Brooklyn, Staten Island, NYC Residents Participated In Teen Violence Awareness Walk Across Brooklyn Bridge

Teens Walk to End Dating Violence on Saturday, April 26th

Hundreds March Across the Brooklyn Bridge

Editor’s note: See our previous coverage of this event a few weeks ago before it occurred, and we also reported on it last year.  Below is a video and photo slideshow with photos and videos of the walk, the speakers, and the march across the Brooklyn Bridge. 

Brooklyn, NY – On Saturday, April 26th, 2025, students, parents, advocates, elected officials and community residents from across the five boroughs marched across the Brooklyn Bridge to take a stand against teen dating violence and sexual assault. Together they raised their voices and participate in the 13th annual NYC Teen Dating Violence Awareness Walk™ ― the only event of its kind in the country.

Teen dating violence and sexual assault by an intimate partner affect 19% of teens. 40% to 60% of all rape victims are under the age of 18, and the majority of these are adolescents. Women between the ages of 16 and 19 are 4 times more likely to experience sexual assault than those across all other age groups. In addition, about half of teens experience either stalking or harassment, and up to 65% report being subjected to psychological abuse.

These abuses are far too common, and the figures reported do not even begin to capture the true scope of the problem, given how reluctant many teens survivors are to share about such personal and stigmatized experiences.

“The NYC Teen Dating Violence Awareness Walk is an unparalleled event that shines light on a pressing problem among youth. Our advocacy movement sets teens up to succeed in life and spreads information on healthy relationships that can impact youth for the rest of their lives” says Noeline Maldonado, Executive Director of The Healing Center. “The work to protect youth in New York City from abuse tactics, manipulation, and unhealthy relationships is critical.”

The walk, organized by The Healing Center, will kick off with a rally at Korean War Veterans Plaza in Downtown Brooklyn, and will open for registration at 10:00 a.m. The rally will feature speakers who will share their personal experiences with teen dating and sexual violence, words from nonprofit agencies and elected officials, and MCs from the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office. At noon, participants will start their march across the Brooklyn Bridge.

The Healing Center is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the intervention and prevention of family violence, abuse, and sexual assault, serving people of diverse faiths, cultures, and personal experiences.

The NYC Teen Dating Violence Awareness Walk is co-sponsored by Bethlehem Lutheran Church, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, CONNECT, Day One, YWCA Brooklyn, Womankind, Sanctuary for Families, Planned Parenthood of Greater New York, Violence Intervention Program (V.I.P), Safe Horizon, the Office of Council Member Alexa Avilés, Diaspora Community Services, the Office of Council Member Farah N. Louis, the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault, Release Wellness NYC, the Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence (ENDGBV), and New York City Teens Connection.

Banner Image: Teen Violence Awareness Walk. Image Credit – The Healing Center of NY