Vulnerable Populations: Victims of Violence

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.

When people hear of domestic violence, the first thing they picture is battered woman. Domestic violence doesn’t have a prejudice; it can happen to you regardless of your race, age, sexual orientation, religion, or gender. Domestic violence can affect you no matter your background or education level. People tend to think domestic violence is only when a dominant spouse physically attacks the submissive spouse. Domestic violence is not only physical abuse; domestic violence can also be emotional abuse and financial abuse.

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

Although assistance is now available to those who need it, domestic violence is still a problem that must be dealt with. The victims of domestic violence have real problems that need attention, but it seems as if the issues these people face are not top priority. There are multiple things that are going on in a domestic violence situation, but to someone on the outside looking in, the obvious choice would be to get out of the situation and leave.

“Domestic violence, or intimate partner violence, is defined as a pattern of assaultive and coercive behaviors, including physical, sexual, and psychological attacks as well as economic coercion that adults or adolescents use against their intimate partners” (Peeks-Asa). When it comes to domestic violence many people don’t want to get involved, but if just one person took a stand maybe others would follow and potentially save a life, like the neighbors did in The Day It Happened by Rosario Morales. Domestic violence can happen to anyone at any time, there is no typical victim or perpetrator. The fact that there is no one specific group that domestic violence occurs in more than another, only makes it more difficult to get an accurate

In terms of the topic of domestic violence, the issue can occur to any person, regardless of gender, racial ethnicity, socioeconomic background, etc. Yet, there are certain individuals in the population that are more susceptible to intimate partner violence, particularly minority women. For Black and Hispanic women, there have been little studies regarding their response to violent relationships, with a majority of studies being geared toward Caucasian females. Along with being more susceptible to domestic violence, minority women experiencing varying cultural beliefs and values that can determine whether they decide to leave or stay in an abusive relationship. In study conducted by Lacey (2010), she found out that “marital status, presence

Lindsey also states that women who are low income and those who are unemployed tend to be the ones more affected by domestic violence (307). Furthermore, Muro and Mein state that Hispanic women tend to experience domestic violence in a high rate; culture plays a big part in violence against women. Lindsey explains that women from African American descents are more exposed to domestic violence than white women. Furthermore, Lindsey declares that wife battering is not taken as a serious situation because it is believed to be part of a marriage life (307). She also explains that domestic violence is not only physical, but also sexual and emotional abuse (307). According to Lindsey, back in history, the “rule of thumb” allowed men to “bit his wife if she answer back to him” (p 307). Furthermore, Lindsey declares that many women are being rape by their partners, but they do not report it because there is no way to prove it (307). She also states that domestic abuse is the main cause of injury in women in the United States (307). In addition, “one-third of all women who are murdered die in the hands of husbands and boyfriends” (307). As we can see, Domestic violence does not discriminate against culture or social status. Women from different ethnic groups experience domestic violence. For example, Few relate a case of a 43 year old Black woman who was beaten by her husband until her head was swollen. Few explains that this woman was afraid to die because she was unrecognizable by the beating her husband has done to her. She called the police, and was another woman who was able to escape from her abusive husband, but she end with some mental and physical

Domestic violence is a pattern of abusive behavior or coercive control in any relationship that is used by one person to gain or maintain power and control over another. (Violence). Most of society’s think domestic violence is when one of the spouses is abusing the other spouse. Domestic violence can occur between anyone who has lived together at one point of time; couples who have never lived together, but have a child together and family member who has live together in the same household. Domestic violence can happen to anyone, regardless of their class, religion, ethnic background, education, age, gender, disability status, sexual orientation, gender presentation, or immigration status. The domestic violence can place in different categories, such as; emotional abuse, physical abuse, psychological abuse, sexual abuse and financial abuse. Researcher had discovered tactics that the abusers use to control their victims such as; dominance, humiliation, isolation, threats, intimidation, denial and shifting blame. (Helpguide.org).

Domestic Violence (DV) is a critical social issue that negatively impacts not only our own culture in America but as well as all other cultures around the world. Domestic Violence is a global issue reaching across national boundaries as well as socio-economic, cultural, racial and class distinctions (Kaur & Garg 2008). Domestic Violence is a serious problem that can be seen around every society from families of both developed and underdeveloped countries and of different backgrounds. Although there are various cases of domestic violence against men, children and the elderly; women account for the majority percentage of victims of Domestic Violence. This violence can take the form of physical assault, psychological abuse, financial abuse or sexual assault (Kaur & Garg 2008). Domestic Violence is a trend that is on the rise and will continue to plague our society if nothing is done on time to address this social issue.

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.

Domestic violence, also more known as Intimate Partner Violence, affects individuals in all social classes and racial/ethnic groups is a statement that has been said and taught over again for many years. Yes that statement above holds logic and truth, but there is also an inverse relationship to it. One of the most consistent findings from research is a strong inverse relationship between social class and intimate partner violence (Renzetti, 2009). In other words, as social class status goes up, cases of domestic violence goes down, and vice versa for lower social classes. Analyses of large, national surveys, for example, show that women living in households with the lowest annual incomes were five times more likely to have experienced

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.

Domestic violence happens every day and it includes people of all races, ethnicities, color, religions, rich or poor, old or young, man or woman and physical and mental disabilities. Domestic violence happens to anyone regardless of where you live, work and how smart you are; these do not matter to the person committing the acts of violence against you. Today, domestic violence goes by Intimate partner violence defined as actual or threatened physical or sexual violence or psychological/emotional abuse by a spouse, ex-spouse, boyfriend/girlfriend, ex-boyfriend/ex-girlfriend, or date (Meadows, 2014). There are other forms of domestic violence such as stalking and dating violence. Domestic violence just doesn’t occur to married couples,

“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.