Domestic Violence Essays

Lives which they have to live with and it may be very difficult for a victim to come forward because of the shame they might feel and they might feel at fault for the attacks. 20% of attacks are domestic. Domestic violence has been one of the most serious social issues that the U.S. as a whole suffers from still today. The statement is shocking and the amount of victims who suffer from domestic violence daily is disgusting. Domestic violence is physical or emotional abuse by with someone that you have a relationship, this can be your significant other, with children, with parents, etc. Each year almost 1600 people die of the domestic violence-related issue and 27% of those deaths are children (hanna 1). This is an issue that still controls much of society today and continues to affect millions of lives every day. There have been many pushes to help the problem including laws, and aid for those suffering from domestic violence. Even though there has been a lot of support and aid for the victims, it’s not enough and the issue is still an occurring problem. The social issue of domestic violence is not being effectively addressed.

Each year 2-4 million women report physical or sexual abuse and 1,400 women die in domestic violence-related incidents. About 85% of domestic violence victims are female and the other 15% are male (cohn 2). Victims aren’t just limited to women though there are still thousands of men who suffer from a form of domestic violence. The government has noticed the problem for a long time and in 1641 the first laws against domestic violence was written in Massachusetts but at the time women weren’t allowed to leave their husbands so the law was made for the husband to apologize and reunite with his wife. It wasn’t until the late 1850s were 9 states allowed women to leave their husbands for physical cruelty (gelles 2). Victims usually suffer from one attack and it’s over with in fact 85% of victims have or will suffer another attack in their lifetime (cohn 3). That’s just one of the many reasons why domestic violence is such a big problem LEM because these cases aren’t just incidents they are recurring events the victims a woman is being abused every 9 seconds in the U.S (gelles 2). Domestic violence has a dark history and it has continued to this day and not much has gotten better.

There are plenty of people and organizations that have tried to stand up and fight domestic violence but it is just simply not enough. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence has provided financial aid, shelter, and an open environment for victims. The Coalition has also made attempts of increasing the national budget for the fight against domestic violence but has reached little to no success (Domestic violence). The budget is to provide medical, emotional care, sheltering, and anything that will help victims. This is important to the fight against domestic violence and without it there isn’t much fight at all. There is some hope with there being over 150,000 shelters nationwide (cloos 2). These shelters are made to protect victims from their abusers and help them overcome their experiences. In 1991 the U.S did make a big stride by introducing the Violence Against Women Act. The act was made to spend nearly 1.6 billion dollars on properly training law enforcement officials on how to deal with cases of domestic violence and provide hotlines and support shelters for victims (gelles 3). The nation has tried to help with the crisis but it is just not enough. The amount of women and children struggling with dealing with violence is sickening. The violence isn’t just limited to women and children though, every year 300,000-400,000 men are abused by a domestic partner (cloos 2). Even though the number is much smaller it does prove that anyone can be a victim of domestic violence.

The government has tried to step into the problem and has had small successes. The nation spends almost 37 billion dollars per year for the fight against domestic violence (hanna 2). The money spent by the government is used to fund law enforcers, judges, shelters, and medical care for victims but on a wide margin, the 37 billion dollars isn’t enough to effectively deal with the problem. Every state does have separate laws, each state does have laws stating that a domestic violence suspect can be arrested without there being a witness some states even provide the relocation cost if the problem is serious enough and there is some fear for the victim’s life (cohn 1). Even though the victim may be removed from the same household as the abuser doesn’t guarantee their safety in fact the 12 months after the victim leaves the abuser the likelihood of death jumps very high (gelles2). The issue of domestic violence is more serious than some people realize. Each year 27% of all domestic violence killings make up of children, 90% of them being under the age of 10 (hanna 2). Innocent women and children are losing their lives every day and there needs to be more done to ensure the safety of these victims.

The problem is also a very touchy subject in sports and almost comes off as these big sports leagues try to push it under the rug which only increases the problem. Since 2000 around 713 NFL players were arrested and 85 of those arrests were related to domestic violence (cloos 2). With the NFL being one of the most watched sports in America and people having to see their idols who they’ve looked up to do something like this can really affect the person’s thoughts on the subject. Many of these players only received small suspensions usually 1-2 games up until 2014 (cloos 1). The problem only increases when it is pushed off as a small problem and these icons only getting a slap on the wrist really brings shame to the subject. The more we don’t talk about the problem the bigger the problem becomes. With so many women and children being abused there needs to be more done by both the government and us as citizens.

In all wars no matter the outcome there are bound to be some battles you win. There have been some improvements in domestic violence. Since 1993 death from domestic violence has decreased by 27% and an 18% drop in the chance of death for a woman at the hands of her husband (Cohn 3). As equality is pushed in the United States and women are seen as more equals to men domestic violence decreases. In addition assaults on women by their husbands is down almost 50% since 1975 (gelles 1). These are pretty big strides for the problem that has greatly affected our country since the beginning of colonization. The failures greatly out weight the successes. Although violence on women has decreased children are now more likely to be abused than ever. Over 20% of all assaults occur in the home (gelles 2). Domestic violence is not a problem that is just going to go away and we need to do more to help out those in need. Although people have tried to do as much as they can ⅗ women still suffer from some form of domestic violence in their lifetime (Cloos 1).

The social issue of domestic violence is not being effectively addressed. The problem is still one of the leading issues in our society and affects millions every year. Even though law enforcers and occasions have pushed new laws and help for victims violence is still happening inside the home and domestic violence is one of the leading causes of death and injury for women and children in America. Domestic violence is a bigger concern than most people realize and there needs to be more done to stop this recurring issue. It doesn’t cost a dime to stand up for what you believe in.