Jill Brown, Jett Conklin, Brandon Jordan, Carly Rion

Mrs. Harrell

English II Honors

February 21, 2017

Domestic Violence

Imagine this: a house that does not feel like a home. As you sit in your room, the sounds

of yelling and screaming ring through the walls. Your parents, who you remember holding your

loving family together, threaten to kill each other. In your kitchen, empty bottles of booze and

broken dishes are evidence that this episode is happening once more. The bruise on your arm

reminds you that this is not how a family should function. You dial 9-1-1 into your phone, but

as your thumb hovers over the call button, you can not bring yourself to sending them to jail.

These are your parents, who take care of and love you. Experiences like these are the realities

for women, men, and children alike who believe that they must remain silent. However, most

individuals will turn a blind eye to the crime and cruelty. Domestic violence is a silent but

deadly killer in the United States as a whole that needs to be acknowledged and prevented in

order to protect individuals and families.

While countless individuals are affected by this crime, the general public is not educated

in the matter. According to the Department of Justice, domestic violence encompasses abuse in

forms of physical, sexual, emotional, economic, and psychological means (Domestic

Violence). One in three American women are abused by a partner at some point in their lives

("Abuse Hurts. Domestic Violence Awareness at The University of Michigan"), but injustice like

this is also faced by one in four American men and an innumerable number of children

(Weinberger). This matter has gone relatively unheard of because victims feel that they can not
talk about what horrors they experienced; this could be due to a fear of their abusers reaction,

the punishment their abuser would face, the loss of a home, not being trusted, or many other

reasons. Some sufferers lack the ability to stand up entirely as some abusers have taken out

telephones in their homes, limited who the sufferer can talk to, and wired the house with video

cameras (Kasperkevic). Domestic violence is not only an issue in the country, but also within

our own state. In 2013, South Carolina had the worst rates of violence against women, with 2.32

women killed for every 100,000 people. Since then, rates have improved in our state when the

Violence Policy Center ranked the Palmetto State from number one to number five. Regardless,

knowing that people are facing abuse to any extent is unacceptable and must be helped.

Beyond the initial cruelty that victims face, other consequences are created as a result of

domestic violence. The Domestic Abuse Center has claimed that some effects that the abused

can face include loss of financial stability, home, or self-esteem, problems in school or work, and

feelings of depression. To cope with this pain, some victims have turned to substance use or

even suicide (Kinnard). Once they face mental pain and torture, these individuals are changed

forever as it may be hard for them to truly love or trust people again. Women specifically are

told that they will not be able to support themselves in an economy that favors men

(Kasperkevic). Domestic violence breaks apart families; the result of abuse can be divorce or

the death of a loved one or family member. Furthermore, children are taken away from abusive

parents and are put into foster programs where they must wait and hope to one day find another

family.

In order to prevent domestic violence, people must stand up and break the silence. If you

ever find yourself in a situation where your partner or parent is harming you, you need to get

help. You have no reason to feel afraid of possible repercussions for you or your abuser. If you
are not comfortable with contacting the police yet, the National Domestic Violence Hotline

number is 1-800-7233 (SAFE). If your situation is extremely violent, you need to contact 9-1-1

immediately to receive the help you deserve. Always remember, the abusers decision to harm

you is a choice, not something that has to happen (SCCADVASA - Home). Furthermore, if

you know someone who is or could potentially be a victim of domestic abuse, please reach out to

them; he or she may be waiting for a brave individual like you to save the nightmare. You do not

have to allow these situations to keep happening.

Action needs to be taken against domestic violence: the terrifying threat that Americans

of any age, gender, or lifestyle can face. The overwhelming lack of acknowledgement and, in

some cases, the views of normality surrounding this brutality are morally wrong and must be

stopped once and for all. Lasting effects are implemented to both people in the relationship as

well as people outside. If light could be shed on the increasing rates of this crime, lives and

families can be saved. Together, we must do our best by breaking the silence to end this

violence.

Works Cited

"Abuse Hurts. Domestic Violence Awareness at The University of Michigan." About

Domestic Violence. The Regents of the University of Michigan, n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.

"Domestic Violence." Domestic Violence | OVW | Department of Justice. N.p., n.d. Web.

17 Feb. 2017.
 Kasperkevic, Jana. "Domestic violence victims speak out: 'If I worked, he would take

my money'" Guardian News and Media, 20 Oct. 2014. Web. 21 Feb. 2017.

Kinnard, Meg. "South Carolina ranks No. 1 for deadly violence against women." Thestate.

Associated Press, 15 Sept. 2015. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.

"SCCADVASA - Home." SCCADVASA - Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2017.

Weinberger, Bari Zell. "It's Time to Acknowledge Male Victims of Domestic Violence." The

Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 15 Oct. 2015. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.