Have you ever met someone who was in an abusive relationship? Have you ever been in one yourself? Well, many people in the United States and around the world are in relationships that involve violence and abuse. Domestic abuse is a serious issue that seems to be taboo in a sense to some. There needs to be change, because it is critical. Many women suffer, and in some cases, men suffer too! To begin with, the definition of domestic violence is “the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior as part of a systematic pattern of power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another” (“What Is Domestic Violence”). Ranging from grown women to young children, many are victims to abuse. According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, “nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States” (“Statistics”). Just by calculating, that is 28,800 people who are abused in just ONE DAY! The scary part is that this number does not even account for the numerous cases that are not even told. Many victims are threatened or even hurt so bad that they must keep their mouth shut in fear of even worse abuse to come. Of This is because the percent of those who are unaffected see this violence as a consequence of the decisions of the abused to stay with the abuser. The women are blamed (Halket). There are so many movies that make this abuse seem like a sick joke. The women (or whoever is being abused) is almost always portrayed as a person who is in-denial and overly connected to the person who hurts them, which is in fact true in some cases but obviously not all. Most cases deal with a person who is involved with a partner who threatens them or their own life if they try to leave, which makes the situation of abuse so much more complex because the victim is at a point of not knowing what to
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Show MoreWomen will continue to suffer from domestic violence unless there is some sort of intervention to help them. When dealing with this population, it is essential to create a safe environment where the woman can talk freely about the abuse without any retaliation from the abuser. When someone comes into a therapeutic session, everyone deserves to be treated with respect and care. This in turn will create a sense of hope that a different type of life can be possible. Also, knowing that there is a support system can help the woman begin the process of change. Despite this, the process of leaving the abusive partner is slow (Warshaw, n.d.)
People do not fully understand domestic abuse as much as they should. It is not simple and the different forms of it needs to be explained more often. “Domestic violence is the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior as part of a systematic pattern of power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another. It includes physical violence, sexual violence, psychological violence, and emotional abuse” (“What is Domestic Violence?”). These types of violence can range from mild to severe. Mild abuse includes pushing, grabbing, shoving, or slapping a woman. Severe abuse includes kicking, choking, beating or using a weapon on women.
There are studies that show 85% of domestic violence victims are women, it is proven that women experience more violence then men. When there are married couples the women have experienced some type of violence within the marriage after the honeymoon stage. There are married couples that have experienced domestic violence more than boyfriend and girlfriend. There are high percentages of unreported cases in the county because a lot of women don’t know where and what to do to get the help they need to get away from the abuser.
What can we say about domestic violence in this country that has not been said already? Is it that it happens in our everyday lives but no one ever talks about it in the media? As a woman I say this with great reluctance in regards to one of my sources: “Most of the reported abuse cases happen in poor and crime- ridden neighborhoods where couples or families in crisis have little to no access to counseling or remedies.” My interest is, does counseling really work? One of my sources is “Normlessness, Domestic Violence, and Social Practice” by Sharleen Andrews. This article talks about Implications for Social Work with Families, and How Anomie Affects the Latino Community. Another source is Dying for Love: The Epidemic of Domestic Abuse Cases by Kimberly Davis. This article speaks about how women are in the most danger after they get out of an abusive relationship, and also touches on different perspectives.
I’ve tried to encourage my friend who went through domestic violence; it was a one time offense that she sadly had to face. I still have the scenario engraved in my memory. Mid-afternoon my best friend comes to my house tears rolling down her face; I immediately grab her and begin to comfort her asking her what’s going on I could feel her body trembling against mine and the fear in her voice when she spoke. The last thing I ever expected her to say was that her boyfriend hit her. As soon as she told me that rage immediately took over and I could only see red my first thought was that we had to call the police but she thought differently. It was a horrific event that she sadly had to face at a young age with someone she believed that loved her
When people think of domestic abuse they usually think about men abusing women but this is not always this case. While more women are abused than men, men can also be abused by women and they are. Domestic abuse is also not only about couples in relationships but can also include children. When a child is abused by their family it is also considered domestic abuse. Even if they are not directly abused, many abusers still attack their victims while the child is present and watching. There are much less options for children because they may not have easy access to computers and phones where they can find help and the adults that they should be able to trust are the ones that are abusing them. This can cause major psychological damage to the child and they can end up being the abusers when they get into
No Way Out Throughout our state, our country, and our world, there is a rarely spoken of problem destroying the lives of innocent people every day. In America, 1 in every 4 women become victims of domestic violence (safehorizon.org). In many areas, there are programs that incorporate a combination of resources, to keep victims safe while simultaneously ensuring that they have a way to get out and stay out of abusive relationships. Here in Hays, many incidents of domestic violence are never fully resolved, resulting in the victim fleeing and reuniting with the abuser after finding they have nowhere to turn. Women and children become trapped.
A common problem in the world today is domestic abuse. Many times the male of a household abuses the woman and children that they life with. Although there are opportunities to safely get out of these situations, women too often stay. While this seems crazy that anyone would even think of staying in a situation of such violent nature, the reason is for more astonishing. Many times the women of these relationships love their abuser. An article written by a woman named Amanda
There are a lot of factors to look at when it comes to domestic violence. Did the abuser have a childhood around domestic violence? Does the abuser live in a culture around violence? Is there anything mentally wrong with the abuser? Does the abuser just want control? According to Child Welfare Information Gateway, “the roots of domestic violence can be attributed to a variety of cultural, social, economic, and psychological factors.” When the abuser keeps doing ones act multiple times, they come to think it is acceptable and will continue to commit the act. For example, a little kid stealing candy out of a convenient store and getting away with it. The little kid is going to continue to steal because he did not get
“My journey to hell and back begin twelve years ago when I met what I thought would be the man of my dreams. In the beginning it was all good but as time went on he became someone I didn’t know. My children and I were physically abused and I had to find a way out.” Jane experienced what no person should have to endure which is Domestic Violence. Domestic Violence is commonly known as violent or aggressive behavior in the home involving the violent abuse of a spouse or partner. Experiencing domestic violence can cause long term effects on young Americans. Having more programs to help these women get out of these situations and building their self-esteem will help to lessen domestic violence cases.
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is historically referred to as domestic violence. It describes a pattern of coercive and assaultive behavior that may include psychological abuse, progressive isolation, sexual assault, physical injury, stalking, intimidation, deprivation, and reproductive coercion among partners (The Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF), 1999). IPV leads to lifelong consequences such as lasting physical impairment, emotional trauma, chronic health problems, and even death. It is an issue effecting individuals in every community, regardless of age, economic status, race, religion, nationality or educational background. Eighty-five percent of domestic violence victims are women (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2003). More than one in three women in the United States have experienced rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime (The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 2012). Thirty to sixty percent of perpetrators tend to also abuse children in the household (Edelson, 1999). Witnessing violence between parents or caretakers is considered the strongest risk factor of transmitting violent behavior from one generation to the next (Break the Cycle, 2006).
Historically, domestic violence was viewed as only involving physical abuse. However, the more contemporary view of domestic violence has come to include not only physical types of abuse; but as well as emotional, sexual, physiological, and economic violence that may be committed
In the U.S. the average number of domestic violence cases that are reported per year is 134,903 (National Domestic Violence Hotline, 2012). Domestic violence is present throughout all of the United States, whether the people of society recognize it or it is under the radar and not seen. In today’s society domestic violence is actually very common in homes whether it is between a man and a woman or a parent and child. Domestic violence can be defined in many different ways because there are several diverse types of domestic abuse. According to the website, domesticviolence.org “, domestic violence or emotional abuse are behaviors used by one person in a relationship to control the other. Partners may be married or not married; heterosexual, gay or lesbian, living together, separated or dating.” No matter what the type of domestic violence is, it is a serious matter and victims are in need of help and support.
“I love you. I can love you like nobody else could. If I can’t have you, nobody can have you”
Domestic violence is skyrocketing in our society. In the U.S., as many as 1.5 million women and 850,000 men were physically assaulted by their intimate partner last year, and numerous children abused by their parents. These sad criminal acts will continue to grow in our society, unless our community takes action to stop these crimes.