October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and while males can be victims of domestic violence, the vast majority are women and children. That’s why male allies and community cooperation are so important.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline, was first observed in October 1981 as a national “Day of Unity.” It’s still held each October to unite advocates across the nation in their efforts to end domestic violence.
According to the NDVH,
- “An average of 24 people per minute are victims of rape, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner in the United States — more than 12 million women and men over the course of a single year.
- Nearly 3 in 10 women (29%) and 1 in 10 men (10%) in the US have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by a partner and reported it having a related impact on their functioning.
- Just under 15% of women (14.8%) and 4% of men in the US have been injured as a result of intimate partner violence that included rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner.
- Intimate partner violence alone affects more than 12 million people every year.
- Almost half of all women and men in the US have experienced psychological aggression by an intimate partner in their lifetime (48.4% and 48.8%, respectively).
- Women ages 18 to 24 and 25 to 34 generally experience the highest rates of intimate partner violence.
- From 1994 to 2010, approximately 4 in 5 victims of intimate partner violence were female.”
These statistics also illustrate the damaging impact of domestic violence on families and the lives of the children who live in the home.
If you or someone you know is suffering from domestic violence, call the Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Help is available.
And for the rest of us … Is there room in your life to advocate against domestic violence? Is there room in your day to help a victim of domestic violence become a survivor?
