Domestic Violence Statistics Are Eye-Opening - Editorial
Kelly Broder’s recent story on domestic violence is illuminating. The statistics on violence against women are, unfortunately, astounding.
During the Vietnam War years, nearly as many American women were killed by intimate partners as American soldiers were killed during the war. And if we look strictly at numbers of soldiers killed in combat in the war, more women were killed at home.
Even still, one in every five homicides in the country are related to domestic violence. Women still remain much more likely to be the victim than men.
And more at risk still are Indigenous women and girls, who are at severe risk of experiencing gender-based violence—on average, four out of five Native women have been victimized by violence in their lifetime, according to the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center’s guide titled “War on Indigenous Women.” That’s 80 percent. Clearly, the name of the guide is spot-on—there is a war raging, and it is violent, eerily silent, and disproportionately harms Indigenous women and girls. The time for accountability is nigh.
It can be hard to understand an abusive relationship from the outside. Someone who has never experienced abuse may wonder why someone would stay in such a situation; sometimes, though, abusers make it impossible for their victims to see a way out.
Not everyone has a place to go to escape their abuser, and low housing inventory is far from helpful. Even if housing were available, it is not uncommon for someone experiencing abuse to feel stuck due to financial insecurity. When children are involved, it becomes that much harder.
Abusers often make their victims feel like they deserve to be abused and that they are unreasonable if they speak up, that they are overreacting, or they are unworthy of being loved.
And there’s the shame. Admitting that you are in an abusive relationship is hard, especially if you are being made to feel like you deserve it.
But the reality is that these situations, as horrific as they are, do not need to be hopeless.
If you are in an abusive situation, there is help. Cape Cod is fortunate to have the Independence House as a local resource and its domestic and sexual violence hotline is available 24/7 at 800-439-6507. Additionally, StrongHearts Native Helpline offers discreet support and assistance for Indigenous individuals experiencing domestic and/or sexual violence or abuse through its website (www.strongheartshelpline.org) or their 24/7 hotline at 1-844-7NATIVE (762-8483).
For additional resources on or to learn more about the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women/People (MMIW/P) crisis, visit www.nativehope.org/missing-and-murdered-indigenous-women-mmiw.