From: Dena Miller, Family and Community Resources, Inc.
1 in 4 women and 1 in 10 men will experience abuse from an intimate partner in their lifetime, and yet there is still so much confusion over what “counts” as abusive. Since October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, we went back to DV101 and lay out some truths about domestic violence in all its forms.
While no two incidents of domestic violence look the same, the Department of Justice 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.” The key elements of this definition are the pattern of power and control. We tend to think of domestic violence as only physical (which it absolutely can be), it also can manifest as:
- Mental/Emotional Abuse – Name calling, insulting, gaslighting, threats to harm their partner or their partner’s pets
- Verbal Abuse – Public embarrassment, telling their partner they are worthless, degrading their partner’s appearance
- Technological Abuse – Accessing accounts without permission, placing a GPS on cars, sharing private information about the survivor online
- Cultural Abuse – Threatening to out an LGBTQ survivor to their family, using racial slurs, not letting their partner observe the customs of their faith
- Social Abuse – Restricting communication with loved ones, demanding partners spend all their time with them, checking their phone history constantly
- Financial Abuse – Denying access to accounts and credit cards, withholding or stealing money, intentionally ruining their partner’s credit
- Stalking – Unwanted or repeated phone calls or texts, spying on their movements, sneaking into the survivor’s home or office and leaving items with the intent to scare
This October, help us spread the word that help is available! At Family and Community Resources, we are committed to standing with survivors always and in whatever way they need us. Our dedicated team of advocates can be reached 24 hours a day on our multilingual hotline and provide a wide array of supportive services. No one should live in fear, and FCR is committed to providing a welcoming, inclusive, and safe environment for all survivors, empowering them to move toward personal growth, health, and happiness.
Learn more about FCR’s wide array of supportive services by clicking here: www.fcr-ma.org
Community Voices for Health 