Domestic Abuse Victims Are Terrified of Staying Home

[Judi Lynn]

The calls to self-quarantine can place some in imminent danger

Danielle Campoamor
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Mar 25 · 5 min read

As the seriousness of the coronavirus pandemic has been realized, calls for Americans to practice social distancing and self-quarantine have increased. The long-lasting social and financial ramifications of these necessary precautions remain unclear. But for the one in four women and one in nine men who experience intimate partner violence, the consequences are immediate: Staying home means staying in an unsafe, potentially deadly environment.

In the United States, an act of domestic violence occurs every 15 seconds, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Four women lose their lives every day as a result. Black women, in particular, are at a higher risk of experiencing intimate partner violence. Black women are two and a half times more likely to experience physical or sexual violence from a partner or spouse and three times more likely to die as a result. Domestic violence is among the leading causes of death for Black women ages 15 to 35.

The minimal resources victims had prior to the onslaught of a global pandemic have now been limited in the name of public health. There are already reports of surging domestic violence cases in the midst of the pandemic.

“A key feature of the power and abuse dynamic is isolation,” Katrina Anderson, PhD, a trauma specialist practicing in New York City, tells ZORA. “The abuser will work hard to isolate their partner from family, friends, and resources. To have this reinforced socially only compounds the danger survivors are facing.” Anderson says that for many victims, going to work or having their partner go to work is often the only respite they have from the abuse. “To have this break thwarted by work-from-home orders for themselves and their abuser—or worse, no work at all—leaves the survivor of partner violence more exposed to times of potential abuse,” she says.

More:
https://zora.medium.com/domestic-abuse-victims-are-terrified-of-staying-home-right-now-24ead49949a3

[radical noodle]

1. I've thought quite a lot

about what it would have been like to stay at home with my first husband. I feel so sorry for the women in that situation.

[TDale313]

2. Put people in a confined space in stressful circumstances

There’s gonna be tension even in healthy relationships. Add those circumstances in an abusive relationship and it could be a recipe for disaster. 😢

[58Sunliner]

3. So awful, on top of all the suffering, that some have to deal with a home of terror.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

4. I hate abusers.

Narcissists suck.
I hope the victims and kids have refuges away from the abusive wastes of skin. I hope thier victims can find a safe place to go.

Domestic violence shows me god is a monster.

[BigmanPigman]

5. I have read many articles about this over the past week.

I thought that divorce would rise but this never crossed my mind. This is a terrible situation and is even worse in other countries and cultures.

[FirstLight]

6. police cant help, nobody can when you are in that

I am a DV survivor and it took a year to actually get free from my hell. Police just make it worse in some cases, but the worst thing is that there's even less likely to be anyone around to "help" since all emergency workers are already busy with the rest of the meltdown...

It's sad and distressing to think of the people who are literally on lockdown with their abuser... :

So much additional suffering alongside the crisis we are facing
it sucks

[marble falls]

7. Don't ever say it can't get worse. This has to be tougher on shelters than ever.

[BeckyDem]

8. EVERY 15 SECONDS without a pandemic calling for isolation.

This breaks my heart.