Violence Against Women

 

There are many different types of violence that are taken against women. Some we don’t even see, think, or hear of.
NIWHRC wants to shed light on all types of violence and bring resources to aid women in gathering the tools needed to end the violence.

If you are in immediate danger consider calling 911 immediately.

Definitions:

1.      Abuse –
 a. the physical, psychological, or sexual maltreatment of a person or animal
 b. an illegal, improper, or harmful practice
 c. wrong use

2.      Assault –
 a. a violent physical or verbal attack
 b. an unlawful threat or attempt to do violence or harm to somebody else
 c. the crime of raping somebody

3.      Domestic –
 a. relating to or used in the home or everyday life within a household
 b. relating to or involving a family or the people living together within a household

4.      Defile –
a. to make foul, dirty, or unclean; pollute; taint; debase.
b. to violate the chastity of.
c. to make impure for ceremonial use; desecrate.
d. to sully, as a person's reputation.

5.      Force -
a. To put undue strain on
b. To produce with effort and against one's will: force a laugh in spite of pain

6.      Intimidation –
 a. to frighten somebody into doing or not doing something, e.g. by means of violence or blackmail
 b. to create a feeling of fear, awe, or inadequacy in another person

7.      Misuse –
a. wrong or improper use; misapplication
b. Obsolete. Bad or abusive treatment.
c. to use wrongly or improperly; misapply
d. to treat badly or abusively; maltreat.

8.      Oppress -
a. to burden with cruel or unjust impositions or restraints; subject to a burdensome or harsh exercise of authority or power
b. Archaic. to put down; subdue or suppress.
c. Archaic. to press upon or against; crush

9.      Stalking –
 a. the crime of harassing somebody with persistent, inappropriate, and unwanted attention

10.  Subdue -
a. to overpower by superior force; overcome
b. to bring under mental or emotional control, as by persuasion or intimidation; render submissive.
c. to repress

11.  Violate
a. to break, infringe, or transgress (a law, rule, agreement, promise, instructions, etc.)
b. to break in upon or disturb rudely; interfere thoughtlessly with
c. to break through or pass by force or without right
d. to treat irreverently or disrespectfully; desecrate; profane: violate a human right.
e. to molest sexually, esp. to rape.

12.   Violence –
 a. The illegal use of unjustified force, or the intimidating effect created by the threat of this.
 b. To violate, harm, or damage something

Domestic violence and emotional abuse are behaviors used by one person in a relationship to control the other. Partners may be married or not married; heterosexual, gay, or lesbian; living together, separated or dating.
Examples of abuse include:
• name-calling or putdowns
• keeping a partner from contacting their family or friends
• withholding money
• stopping a partner from getting or keeping a job
• actual or threatened physical harm
• sexual assault
• stalking
• intimidation

Violence can be criminal and includes physical assault (hitting, pushing, shoving, etc.), sexual abuse (unwanted or forced sexual activity), and stalking. Although emotional, psychological and financial abuse are not criminal behaviors, they are forms of abuse and can lead to criminal violence. Violence should not happen to anybody. But it does - and when it does, there is help. Maybe you have lived with abuse, maybe it happened just once; maybe you work or live next to someone who is being abused right now. Whatever the situation bottom line is abuse is WRONG!

What is Abuse? - A Warning List

Violence Wheel

Many people who are being abused do not see themselves as victims. Also, abusers do not see themselves as being abusive. People often think of domestic violence as physical violence, such as hitting. However, domestic violence takes other forms, such as psychological, emotional, or sexual abuse.
If your partner repeatedly uses one or more of the following to control you;
• pushing, hitting, slapping, choking, kicking, or biting
• threatening you, your children, other family members or pets
• threatening suicide to get you to do something
• using or threatening to use a weapon against you
• keeping or taking your paycheck
• puts you down or makes you feel bad
• forcing you to have sex or to do sexual acts you do not want or like
• keeping you from seeing your friends, family or from going to work
YOU HAVE BEEN ABUSED!!

If you are being abused, REMEMBER
1. You are not alone
2. It is not your fault
3. Help is available

Approximately 1.5 million women are raped and/or physically assaulted by an intimate partner each year.
In 2005, 1,181 women were murdered by an intimate partner. That's an average of three women every day. Of all the women murdered in the U.S., about one-third were killed by an intimate partner.
According to the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, women experience about 4.8 million intimate partner-related physical assaults and rapes every year.
Less than 20 percent of battered women seek medical treatment following an injury.
According to the National Crime Victimization Survey, which includes crimes that were not reported to the police, 232,960 women in the U.S. were raped or sexually assaulted in 2006.
Young women, low-income women and some minorities are disproportionately victims of domestic violence and rape.
Women ages 20-24 are at greatest risk of nonfatal domestic violence, and women age 24 and under suffer from the highest rates of rape.

Remember threatened or actual physical violence may be illegal. Consider calling the police for help.

Find a safe place

It is not fair. You should not have to leave your home because of what your abuser has done. But sometimes it is the only way you will be safe. There are shelters that can help you move to a different city or state. Your local town court clerk can put you in touch with them, or look in the front of your phonebook for community services and emergency numbers.

Additional Links and Information

Hotlines

National Domestic Violence Hotline - 1-800-799-7233 or 1-800-787-3224 (TDD)
Safe Link - 1-877-785-2020
American Domestic Violence Crisis Hotline - 1-866-879-6636
Rape Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN) - 1-800-656-4673
Haven - 1-877-922-1274
Common Ground - 1-800-231-1127

Web Sites

RAINN - http://centers.rainn.org/
Feminist Majority Foundation - http:http://feminist.org/911/crisis.html#national
HAVEN - http://www.haven-oakland.org/
National Online Resource Center on Violence Against Women - http://www.vawnet.org/
United States Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women - http://www.ovw.usdoj.gov/
Department of Defense Sexual Assault Prevention and Response - http://www.sapr.mil/
Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse http://www.mincava.umn.edu/
Prevention Connection - http://www.preventconnect.org/display/displayHome.cfm
Alaska Native Justice Center
Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women
Mending the Sacred Hoop
Sacred Circle
Tribal Protection Orders
Native American Women's Health Education Resource Center
STOP Violence Against Women
Amnesty International USA