This app could help Milwaukee residents escape domestic violence

Students at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee have created an app to connect victims of domestic violence with local resources. The Sojourner Family Peace Center app offers information on local shelters, a way to contact authorities, and connection to other victims. The app provides a discreet way for victims to get help, without attracting attention from abusers who might check the victims' phones.

The app already has major support, including the endorsement of Milwaukee's Mayor Tom Barrett (D). It's available in both English and Spanish, and a Russian version is in the works as well.

"Anytime you can provide tools for people fleeing domestic violence, it's a good thing," Kim Theno, director of resource development at the Cathedral Center, a local homeless shelter for women and their families, told the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service. "The more tools they have, the better."

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