The Masked Women

Domestic violence is an epidemic and the number one health concern in our country. There are more abusers and their victims compared to past years. As a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship, domestic violence is used by one person to gain or maintain power and control over another one. It can be physical, sexual, emotional, and economic abuse and not look the same in every relationship because every relationship is different. This kind of abuse affects people of all ages and sexes, socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds, education and employment levels. Abuse towards children and the elderly can be violent or aggressive behavior. Thus, there are many types of abuse that one can suffer; awareness of the signs of domestic violence is especially important before getting into any kind of intimate relationship.

Domestic abuse in the United States is a large-scale and complex social and health problem. The home is the most violent setting in America today (Lay, 1994). Sadly enough, the majority of people who are murdered are not likely killed by a stranger during a hold-up or similar crime but are killed by someone they know. Not surprisingly, the Center for Disease Control and prevention has identified interpersonal violence as a major public health problem (Velson-Friedrich, 1994). Current estimates suggest that three to four million women are the victims of physical abuse by their intimate partners (Harris & Cook, 1994). According to the FBI, some form of domestic violence occurs in half of the homes in the United States at least once a

Domestic violence, alternatively referred to as Intimate Partner Violence, is defined by the Department of Justice as “a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner.” While domestic violence is commonly thought of as only physical or sexual abuse, domestic violence can also be emotional, economic, or psychological. Domestic violence has remained constant in society throughout history, even though over time society’s response to the issue has changed. While domestic violence affects everyone regardless of race, gender, age, etc. it is estimated that approximately 90% of all victims are women. For the purpose of this paper, I will be focusing on

The article constructs domestic violence as an issue of gender, race and socioeconomic status. Women are identified as the “majority” of victims (Taylor 2014). Consequently, the article conceptually represents domestic violence as events of intimate terrorism where one partner violently terrorizes the other partner to gain complete control over the relationship, which is entirely perpetrated by men (Johnson 2012). With that said, Johnson (2012) points out that majority of domestic violence is situational couple violence, where both the man and the

On average,in the United States, twenty people per minute are physically abused by their partner. Which if you make the math, that is more than ten million women and men. In the short story, “ It will look like a Sunset” by Kelly Sundberg, she effectively asserts her targeted audience which consists on couples and mainly young women in their late twenties who are in a relationship. Sundberg supports her assertions by appealing to ethical, emotional, and logical examples as well as using rhetorical strategies. The author's main purpose is to urge the readers to accept life is complicated and anyone who faces a similar situation should seek help because you may not be in the right state of mind to make the right decision.

There are many thing that have been proposed as a solution that work. However, there still can be improvements on those solutions because the solution does not solve all the problems that the victims of domestic abuse gained from their abusive relationship. The Domestic Abuse Hotline has been really working for victims of domestic abuse. There are many reasons why. One of the reasons why is because it is open 24 hours a day. It has also had huge success over the last 20 year. “The Hotline and loveisrespect have answered more than 4 million calls, chats and texts from people seeking help around issues of domestic violence and dating abuse”(2016 Impact Report). Also loveisrespect, a project of The Hotline, has been successful too. Just like the Hotline it is also free and confidential. Is has “helps millions of teens and 20-somethings learn about healthy relationships and dating violence”(2016 Impact Report) this shows that the loveisrespect and domestic abuse hotline has been highly successful.

There are certain rights that are set up by the United States government to serve and protect the citizens of the United States of America. The Constitution was set up to all the people to be a free people, and laws were set up to establish ground rules of respect and equality. When domestic violence occurs, the rights of the victim are violated and the protection that is needed is not acknowledged. The amount of impact Domestic Violence has in Society has become more and more recognized over time. The main issue in collecting information to form statistics is difficult, as many victims of domestic violence choose not to report the incidents that occur within their domestic situation.( Frieze, I.H., Browne, A.)

“Domestic violence is a type of abuse by one or both partners in marriage, friends, family, dating or cohabitation” (Aziz & Mahmoud, 2010). There are many forms of abuse from verbal and emotional to physical that often escalates over time in intensity for the victim. Data from the criminal justice system, hospital patient medical records and mental health records, police reports, surveys and social services reports of thousands of women revealed that many are injured and killed as a result of violence from someone close to them. “The US Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) defines domestic violence as a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner regardless of race, age, sexual orientation, religion, or gender” (Robertson & Murachver, 2009). Researchers and the criminal justice system have not been able to agree on a clear definition to domestic violence which can range from physical injury, stalking, verbal abuse and humiliation, denial of shelter and access to money, and intimidation through aggressive behaviors. The definition of domestic violence may vary but the results from physical injury, mental and emotional trauma, and sometimes even death can last a life time.

the ages of 11 and 20 are in jail for murdering their mothers abuser. Also

While not a somatic assault, emotional abuse can cause lasting effects on a woman’s health, so much so that researcher, B. Van Houdenhove and others working on the project have found “that emotional abuse and neglect may be contributing factors to the development and/or severity of illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia” (Karakurt and Silver). Finally, emotional abuse is a rampant issue, Karakurt and Silver report that “Psychological aggression by an intimate partner was reported by 48.4% of women,” which was found in the National Intimate Partner & Sexual Violence Survey (“Emotional Abuse in Intimate Relationships: The Role of Gender and Age”). Nearly half of the population of women report being victims to psychological abuse, making it a widespread epidemic faced by not only women in dystopian novels but also real life. Psychological abuse can take many verbal and non-verbal forms, which can put great strain on a woman’s health, and affects nearly half the population of the United States.

Domestic abuse is a serious ongoing situation that is occurring all around the world, and according to the Women’s Aid organization, they define this abuse as a “pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive, threatening, degrading and violent behavior” (2015). This violence can vary from aggressive behavior to sexual assault that occurs with their partner or family member. In most of the cases reported to officials, this is experienced by women and is continued by men, due to the fact that females are seen as the weaker link. So to advocate about anti-domestic violence, the Women’s Aid campaign made a billboard, with one simple goal. It was to see if anyone in the public passing by the enormous sign would notice what it showed or read the

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.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) affects an estimated 1.5 million women and 830 thousand men in the United States (James & Gilliland, 2017). This movie helped to put a face to the countless domestic violence attacks that take place daily. I recall viewing the moving, and there were many scenes that are difficult to watch. I can’t say I can’t believe it, because I witnessed a family member endure 9 years of physical and verbal abuse by her husband.

“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.

Such as the National Domestic Violence Hotline, National Coalition Against Domestic Violence and locally here in San Antonio the Family Violence Prevention Center.