Relationship Violence

The first chapter was really alarming because it put in to perspective how no one is safe in our society from domestic violence. It is really sad that our society has conditioned men and boys to not report abuse. If they do report it, they are considered weak or childish. Additionally it was shocking to read that domestic violence is such a new crime, not just in our country but also in the world. It was shocking that as little as thirty years ago, a man could not be arrested for beating his wife.

Additionally, the elderly abuse statistics were shocking and out of control. The worst part is they are not going to get better any time soon, because the baby boomer generation is getting older and there are fewer and fewer people who can care for them. It was also shocking to learn that in elderly couples, the men and women share equal responsibility for abuse. I think of my own grandmother who is 91 years old and I can't imagine her being abused, it just makes me feel sick to think about people taking advantage of the elderly.

I became interested in domestic violence awareness when I discovered Donna Ferrato's book Living With the Enemy, Ferrato documented domestic violence victims, their families, and their children in their homes, in shelters and in recovery programs. One of her most compelling images was of a child screaming at his father who was being arrested for abusing his mother and in the background Cops was on the television. Ferrato took the awareness a step further by showing images of women and children who had been affected by the abuse. Ferrato documented family violence for ten years to compile a book that is basically a cry out for help.

Learning about the history of international family violence answers a lot of the questions I had about how people could do such things. Only until recently has domestic violence been deemed unreasonable and a serious crime. If it is not accepted by society as a whole, domestic violence will continue to go unnoticed. It is easier for people to turn away from it when they witness it in their family or in their community, then to make a difference and stand up for someone and report it. The police, as Furrato reported in her book, as early as