The Burning Bed

“To those who abuse: the sin yours, the crime is yours, and the shame is yours. To those who protect the perpetrators: blaming the victims only masks the evil within, making you as guilty as those who abuse. Stand up for the innocent or go down with the rest…” These are the words of an individual who sees too clearly the injustice which comes with domestic violence toward women. The United States government estimates one in every four women will experience domestic violence in her lifetime. Domestic abuse remains a significant social problem in many towns, cities and neighborhoods and though the victims involved may often remain silent, its emotional, psychological and physical effects still linger on.

The story of Crystal Bram, wife of Tacoma Police Chief David Brame, is a picture perfect case of how many women are trapped and beaten by the men they love. Chief Brame had his wife on a schedule like no other. He would time her on how much time it would take to get to and from the store, how long to walk to and from the mailbox, and always when was David (their son) coming home? Crystal wasn’t every other woman though; her husband was the Chief of Police in Tacoma, Washington. With her husband’s position with the police department Crystal found it hard to get the proper assistance she needed. When she confronted him about stopping the abuse and control on her life, he would respond to her asking, “Who are you going to call? One of my buddies?” Eventually she did report this issue to the police, only for it to fall on deaf ears , and the City Manager prevented further investigation. When a journalist reported what Crystal had brought up, the president of the Tacoma police union threatened the writer. Crystal eventually filed for divorce. In response her husband accused her of having a bad temper and physically abusing him for multiple years also. Crystal was only about 5 foot tall and 100 pounds. This story has a sad ending as Chief Brame used his police duty weapon to fatally shoot Crystal and then turned the gun on himself. (Carter, 2003)

Just like Janie, many women are physically abused. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence estimates that 1.3 million women are victims of physical assault by their partner each year. Nearly eighty five percent of domestic violence victims are women and females between the ages of twenty and twenty-four are at the greatest risk of partner violence. Janie was only one of the few women to be assaulted. In the 1900’s, Janie’s time, it was even more likely that women were abused since men had more rights.

“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.

Typically, domestic violence occurs between a man and a woman, and usually, women end up being the victims more often then men (Heidensohn, 2012). The male is usually more dominant because he is bigger and significantly stronger then the female. However, in recent years, men have been experiencing their fair share of abuse from women. According to a study done by the Domestic Abuse Helpline for Men, “Over 90% experienced controlling behaviors, and several men reported frustrating experiences with the domestic violence system. Callers’ reports indicated that their female abusers had a history of trauma, alcohol/drug problems, mental ill- ness, and homicidal and suicidal ideations” (Hines, 2007). This study measured 190 male callers who called the DAHM and the study shows that women can also batter men. This applies to the case of Jordan Graham and Cody Johnson because a wife murdered her husband. No one should ever underestimate someone else’s strength or aggression as those characteristics can be extremely hard to gauge. Cody Johnson may have had no prior knowledge of Graham’s temper and may have even felt as if he were the dominant figure in their marriage. Sometimes, it is easy to accuse a spouse of being the core reason for domestic abuse, whether it is verbal or physical abuse. However, domestic abuse can be seen as a problem for human beings in general, “Others have argued that violence is a

As the dominant discourse would suggest, female victims of domestic violence face not only the debilitating psychological and physical traumas of abuse

When looking into the world of intimate partner violence, a major factor involves hearing the victim’s story. Their story can tell people how the abuse occurred and how it is approached by society. The stories can also show similarities within each other. They show the overlooking topics that encompass intimate partner violence, such as power and control and how the abusers achieve it. Throughout the sections, stories show how abuse can affect anyone in a variety of ways.

ABSTRACT: Domestic violence essentially affects everyone. It is not merely a personal or private problem within families. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (US Department of Justice), a woman is beaten every 15 seconds somewhere in the United States. Additionally, the Surgeon General 's report also reveals that one in five women victimized by their spouses or ex-spouses say that they had been victimized over and over again by the same person. These selected statistics easily demonstrate that domestic violence in the United States is a serious and grave social concern. This paper explores the many facets of this social ill,

During the 1800’s domestic violence against women was acceptable behavior unless it was life threatening. There was a widespread belief among ordinary people, male and female, and that it was every man’s “right” to beat his wife so long as it was to “correct her” if she did anything to annoy him or refused to obey his orders. The editor of the Hull Packet stated that “Wife-beating being accepted as the habit of the nation (Wojtczak 2009)”. Women were raised to believe that they “deserved” a certain amount of violence against their wives. Women that tried to take their husbands to court in order to stop the domestic violence was viewed as a challenge to his authority that violates her role as the submissive wife. In court the man would be fined or sent to prison. By the man being sent to prison, his dependents lost their only means of subsistence. So, wives could not report the abuse. Domestic violence is a deviant behavior because it is a significant social problem. “According to national surveys, approximately 11% to 14% of married women in the U.S. are victims of domestic violence each year and the prevalence of domestic violence among young couples is approximately double that of the general population (Jourile n.d.)”. Women who experience domestic violence report higher levels of physical injury, depression, and trauma symptoms compared to women who do not.

Domestic Violence has always been an issue circulating women living in the United States. Alas, not many women realize the harm they are living because they are blinded by fear their partner creates for them to live by each and every day. Historically, many relationships and marriages have gone through many years of Domestic abuse, but yet have not recognized the signs of an abusive relationship. A 2014 survey ordained by the National Violence Against Women found that 25% of all women have been physically forced to have intimacy with their partner at some point during their relationship (Simmons, Catherine. A., et al. 2011). The changes within domestic abuse begin to occur with threats and verbal abuse, which later run the risk of involving

Introduction: “Domestic Violence in America occurs behind the scenes of homes and is often kept a secret. The results of abuse in intimate relationships can be deadly if loved ones do not know the signs, help is not requested, and if the public is not educated.”

According to statistics found by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Every nine seconds a woman is abused by her husband or intimate partner. At least 1 in every 4 women and 1 in every 9 men have been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in their lifetime. Most often the abuser is one of their own family. Domestic violence is a problem that somehow affects every one of us in this room at some time and is actually the leading cause of injury to women -- more than car accidents, muggings and rapes combined.

Underreported and underestimated, domestic abuse rips families apart every single day. Domestic violence comes in mainly five different forms, physical, sexual, psychological, emotional, and economic. This violence ruins families, demoralizes the victims, and the public downplays the household terrorism that goes on every day. Generally thought of as taboo, the public belittles and humorizes domestic abuse as a way to deal with it, that avoidance must come to an end.

Domestic violence used to be considered a private family matter and was not considered a societal problem until feminists in the 70's started pushing the matter. Beginning in the 1970’s, social policy toward female victims of domestic assaults focused on improving legal response and

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