Crimes Against the Minority Majority

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Women of lower socioeconomic status are at a greater risk for physical violence.
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Women of higher education and socioeconomic status are at a higher risk for emotional abuse.
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Most cases of violence occur in intimate partner relationships. Ex: Husband, common law husband, boyfriend, or ex-boyfriend.
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Women who have no economic freedom and social security are at the greatest risk.
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• Social learning models that shape men’s ideas of masculinity.
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Mental disorders
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Substance abuse
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Exposure to violence or trauma
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Hormonal influx or an imbalance of serotonin
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Most researchers believe it is the interaction of biological, developmental, and environmental factors.

It is usually men who carry out crimes of violence against women.
Almost always, these men are people that the woman is intimately involved with, which is why it is referred to as “Intimate Partner Violence”, or IPV.
HOWEVER, IPV also occurs in lesbian relationships, daughtermother relationships, roommates, and any other relationship where two women are involved.

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Approximately 1.3 million women are victims of IPV every year.
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Only one quarter of all physical assaults are reported to authorities.
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Progress is being made as the years go by, but there is still a disproportionate amount of women to men who are victims of violence.

Rape
17.6% of women in the US are victims of rape
21.6% of all rape victims are under the age of 12
32.4% of rape victims are between the ages of 12-17
78% of stalking victims are women
Women are 60% more likely than men to be stalked by an intimate partner
76% of all female homicide victims were stalked prior to their murder

Health related costs due to IPV is estimated at $5.8 Billion annually. Of that total, $4.1 billion is from direct medical expenses. $1.8 billion is from lost wages.
This annual loss is the equivalent to 32,000 full-time jobs.
IPV results in 18.5 million mental health care visits every year.
Medical Costs
Lost Wages

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More education needs to be implemented to start reconstructing dominate cultural roles.
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More supervised half way homes for abusers need to be established. If the abuser is able to keep their job, they will still have the opportunity to provide for their families.
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Empowering women is the number one way to resolve the problem.
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Educating the society as a whole comes in a close second.
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Providing victims with a variety of different services to rehabilitate. Ex: legal assistance, transitional housing and supervised visitations.
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Allowing more involvement of the community and authorities. Violence against woman is a macro sociological issue.

Abuse is a social problem that affects millions in the United States. Not only do the individuals suffer from the abuse, but her family, children and community suffer from a disturbance of peace. This is a larger scale issue that deserves serious attention. Through education, women can start to find their way to a safe place in their lives and men can start leaving behind the outdated social models of what it means to be a man.
“The first resistance to social change is to say it's not necessary.”
-Gloria Steinem

• Domestic Violence Resource Center. http://www.dvrcor.org/domestic/violence/resources/C61/ . National statistics. Web. 2012
• The National Academies Press. http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=5127&page=49 . Causes and consequences of violence. Web. 2012
• Violence Against Women: The Perspective of Academic Women. Kalaca and
Dunder BMC Public Health. 2010. Academic journal. www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/10/490
• Violence Against Women ACT. Congressional Digest Jan. 1, 2012. Periodical. www.congressionaldigest.com
January 2012.
• National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. http://www.ncadv.org/files/DomesticViolenceFactSheet(National).pdf
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Domestic violence facts. Web. 2012
• Onislam. http://www.onislam.net/english/reading-islam/living-islam/islamday-to-day/family/455599-blame-flawed-character-unhappychildhood.html
. Stop abuse image. Web. 2012
• It’s all About Power and Control. http://violenceagainstwomeninternational.wordpress.com/ . Woman
Image. Web. 2011