A metallic taste fills your mouth as yet another blow hits. Your bones ache as you force yourself to stand. Your arm oozes blood as you cover your swollen face with it. The red dirt below clings to your sweat stained skin. Your muscles tense as you feel the rope around your neck pull taught. A car starts. The idle of the engine reverberates through your already shaking body. A voice calls out over the roar of the vehicle.
“I want to see you run… come on dog- see you run”.
The tale reads as if a novel. Perhaps something you might pick up in the thriller or horror section of your local library. A fictional fable.
But this is fact.
And it is reality for domestic violence victim, Sandy Wolfe.
The South Australian woman has a harrowing tale to tell about her 28-year abusive marriage. However, her story, like countless others,
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As media consumers, we need to become more discerning of what we watch, read and listen to.
Whether it be tweets, Tumblr posts, articles or anything in between, opinions can instantly engulf the virtual realm in which so many of us spend our time. With this instantaneous transfer comes a multitude of ill-informed attitudes, opinions and beliefs.
Published articles appear to be no exception to this instant epidemic.
Whilst scrolling through The Age over the weekend, I stumbled across an article about domestic violence. Happy to see even an inch of coverage, I clicked on the link without a second thought. However, the satisfaction I felt dissipated within the time it took to load the article.
The first thing that caught my eye was the title, ‘The Part Women Play in Domestic Violence’. Needless to say, what followed was a perfect example of the media’s manipulation.
In the article, author, Dr Sallee McLaren attempted to convince readers that domestic abuse victims bear fifty percent of the responsibility for their perpetrator’s
The earliest literature reference to domestic violence against men can be found in the studies of Suzanne Steinmetz (1977,1978) entitled, “The Battered Husband Syndrome.” She hypothesizes that the incidents of husband-on-wife beatings rivals the incidents of wife perpetrated batterings, and that it was husband abuse not wife abuse that was underreported form of domestic violence. Steinmetz used two United States populations, a broadband nonrepresentative group and a random sample in New Castle, Delaware in the form of police reports and family surveys. The small study found only small differences in the percent of men and women who resorted to violence in the context of pushing, shoving, or hitting with hands or an object. This suggested early on that domestic violence is not a one way street. Husband beating is a serious issue and needs attention due to the fact that it is grossly underreported. Steinmetz received numerous criticism from her colleagues on this concept. In later studies, Murray Straus, Richard Gelles, and Suzanne Steinmetz (1980), authors of the book, Behind Closed Doors: Violence in The American Family, supports Steinmetz’s earlier studies in finding that women acted violently during marital affairs compared to a similar number of men who act violently in the United States. The study used 2,413 family surveys, finding in majority of them that the level of violence was a mutual or bilateral activity, with only 27% of cases finding that husbands were the
In the article, Abuser & Victim…Alike, the author argues that both the abuser and the victim share responsibility for their situations. This is only true if we choose to believe that such people voluntarily stay and allow the abuse to continue. In this sense, some truth might exist, however, we must remember the lack of control felt by each victim, as well as the emotional torment they experience that serves to trap them in their current situations. Alternatively, it would be difficult for the author to validate such a claim of shared responsibility if the abused were a child, disabled or mentally handicapped person. To a certain degree, the author himself contradicts his previous statement when he comments that “abusers have all the power”.
The effects of intimate partner violence are attenuating and extend far beyond physical scarring. The abuse of woman and children has been researched extensively by Rachel Pain (2014, p. 536) as acts of “terrorism within the home”. If we are to compare the experience of women and children living in violent homes and the act of ‘terrorism’ itself we get a corresponding experience (Pain, 2014, p. 546). The construction of fear, the loss of identity, the ongoing distress of constantly feeling unsafe, isolated from all support networks are the surreal and ongoing daily struggles for domestic violence victims. Living in such horrific conditions has immense physical and psychological effects on those directly exposed or indirectly exposed to such violence. Through this research the links between domestic violence and ill health has been well-established. In an attempt to combat this prevalence element two of It Stops Here (NSW): a “streamlined referral pathways to support victims’ safety and support their recovery” was introduced (NSW Government, 2014, p. 18). Through this second element, there has been a strong focus on being able to better identify risk and supporting victims. From the inquest inquiry into Luke’s death, Coroner Ian Grey stated that "I find that there is no validated risk-assessment tool that can accurately predict whether a parent is likely to commit filicide." (ABC News, 2015). In an attempt to close the gap on such issues in July 2015 It Stops Here (NSW)
There is an idea that we have become a nation of victims. Some psychologist and most people have a don’t blame the victim mentality. While other psychologist look at the victims as being held accountable in some cases. Looking at the data and validity of these arguments, I believe that neither one should be used but instead we should shy away from the blame approach and develop a better understanding of the role victims play in violent situations
Furthermore, factors that contribute to the beginning of violence against an intimate partner is emphasized by both literary texts, correlating with the reality of domestic violence in modern society. The thoughts of conducting abuse may arise in the subconscious mind of a person due to several influences, such as witnessing abuse as a child or mental illnesses, without the person’s intent; however, the choice to carry out the act still lies in the hands of the individual. Those who violate women once continue their abuse for extended periods of time, rarely ever being able to change. According to several psychiatrists who analyze the behaviour and influence of domestic abusers, “people with very traditional beliefs [think] they have the right
Domestic Violence: Victims Should Leave For many years, domestic violence has been a subject of many discussions, concerns and fears. As we all have probably heard or seen, most of the victims of domestic violence are women. It’s not unusual to question- Why don’t they just leave? Why silently endure the pains inflicted by the perpetrator when the door is open and there is so much help out there.
This part of the dissertation will cover the similarities and differences between men and women as victims of domestic violence. The first topic that will be discussed is reporting. It can be difficult to understand or grasp the concept that men can be abused by women and nearly near the rate that women are assaulted and abused by men. In the white paper (Home Office, 2003) domestic violence was mainly described in terms of violence against women, males were largely ignored despite being acknowledged. In the white paper (Home Office 2016) things appeared to be different as male victims were acknowledged which suggests that it is becoming widely known that there is violence against men and it is being viewed as an issue. The Northern Rock Foundation concluded from their research that some males did not report partner abuse because they considered the occurrence too trivial and not worth reporting. Their research also looked into the large differences between the experiences of males and females; it was found that females were the main group to ask for help and also communicate with services. DOJ figures indicated that males are 11 percent less likely than women to report any type of violent crime that they were victims in. Ivankovich suggests that there are a number of explanations why male victims are unwilling to report. Men suffer abuse in silence because they fear that they will not be believed and people may jump to worse conclusions such as he is the perpetrator. Males
Domestic Violence is abuse or violence, which takes place in the household. One side of Domestic Violence is physical, impulsive, and vicious. When that level of violence kicks in, the only response is to take whatever means necessary to stop it. Both men and women are equally at fault for abuse. It is not either man or women’s fault, “Both male and the female are bound in their incapacity for intimacy and appreciation of differences”(Sherven 27). This means that male and female need each other to perpetuate personal and collective dramas of victimization and lovelessness, regrettably so, neither can leave. Women and men are equally at fault for Domestic Abuse.
With one in six Australian women experiencing abuse in their lifetime, the issue of abuse is highly prevalent in Australia. MacDonald and Phan clearly take advantage of this though incorporating both the themes of domestic violence and Stella’s characterization to encourage a modern Australian audience to
When I think about the effects of physical abuse and how it affects conflict in the family and other areas, I cannot ignore areas such as, family (siblings) abuse, sexual abuse, psychological abuse, emotional abuse, drug and alcohol abuse and relationship abuse. In this essay, I have decided to focus my research on how physical abuse has dangerously destroyed our society; moreover, the various outcomes it causes, is not only scary, but troubling. Although one gender chose not to report nor share their experience; the statistics remain staggering. Do you believe physical abuse is a respecter to any particular person, class, status, education, race, gender, religion or age? Is it possible that some people have misused their power and became physically abusive in order to display control?
Family violence and abuse is a prominent issue in our society that has maintained its presence throughout our history. Familial abuse has a tendency to be masked by emotions, not being classified as “abuse” by the victims until it has become a reoccurring issue. In fact, most unreported violent acts are due to the victim’s desire to protect the related offender. The media usually develops news stories and articles revolving around the most sensational cases of family violence; their representation of the sensationalism of the issue is of no uniqueness. But due to the sensual aspect that the media seeks in presenting stories to the public, people are not aware of the commonality and routine violence that occurs
Domestic violence is a prevalent issue that has enormous consequences for both the victimized individuals and their families. There are many injuries, deaths, rapes, and separation of families, and other fatalities which can all be interconnected to domestic violence. Which raises the question who are the perpetrators? why are they violent? Were they also abused? The answers to these questions may shed some insight on what goes on inside the mind of an abusive and violent individual.
Every year in the United States, One in four women are victims of the domestic violence; however, this is only based on what has been reported to the department of justice (Stahly 2008). While men are also victims of domestic violence, women are more often the victims. Moreover, 90% of domestic violence is male initiated. In severe cases domestic violence ends with victims being murdered. More specifically, domestic violence resulted in 2,340 deaths in the United States in 2007, and 70% of those killed were females (CDC 2012). Many people think that victims have the option of leaving and many people blame victims for putting up with the abuse; what many people don 't know is, victims of domestic violence have many reasons preventing them from leaving their abusers, these reasons include, isolation, having children bounding them with the abuser and lack of financial support. "It 's never pretty when you leave an abusive and controlling relationship. The warden always protests when a prison gets shut down," says Dr. Steve Maraboli (qtd from web). Whether a victim stays or leaves their abuser, the outcomes of both situations are not always as easy as many people predict. In some situations, the outcomes of leaving may be very dangerous for both the victim and her children.
“Every year in the United States there are over 3 million incidents of domestic violence. That means that every nine seconds a women is beaten by her domestic partner” (Findeley). There are many women that stay silent when being abuse by their partners. The consequences of staying quiet when obtaining abuse can be dangerous and can also lead to death. Many women do not recognize the importance of the fact that there is in speaking out if they are being abuse by their partner. No woman should take domestic abuse by their partners. Every woman deserves a healthy relationship; A healthy relationship involves trust, respect, and consideration for the other person. Domestic abuse has gotten worse during the past years and is still rising up. One can see that domestic abuse can occur everywhere. Domestic abuse is considered a crime and woman should not keep silent when being abuse.
I was born and raised in Atlanta, GA. I come from a place where over 70% of black men are raised in a fatherless home, where domestic violence is something that is a way of showing love. Drugs and alcohol are encouraged or pushed on you to do. Most of the uses are raised in the street, because they are the only men in our life that will pay us some attention.