As October takes her first breaths, I dismiss the steady source of corporate income, the pink ribbon. In it’s place, another ribbon, this one purple, and not a ribbon that Estee Lauder would be interested obtaining legal counsel over. The purple ribbon stands for domestic violence awareness, and October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Domestic Violence is endemic in the United States, enough to have caused the label “pre-existing condition” to be placed on it by the insurance industries operating in some states.
Society, more specifically American Society, has been slow to recognize domestic violence as an ubiquitous societal problem. Viewing domestic violence as a personal problem makes this ribbon an unlikely cash cow, leaving the ribbon unsought by corporate giants, the cause largely ignored by the coorporate world. We still view Domestic Violence much in the same way we used to see AIDS (often still view AIDS), as a lifestyle issue, something that can’t happen to anyone. Breast cancer we view as something that can happen to anyone, even to people who make stellar lifestyle choices.
Domestic Violence can happen to anyone.
Domestic Violence occurs across all demographic groups. Official (reported) rates of nonlethal, intimate violence are highest among women aged sixteen to twenty-four, women in households in the lowest income categories, and women residing in urban areas. However, the current information is insufficient to determine, but significant enough to suggest that’s because middle and upper class women have more access to care, an easier road to moving on and out, or are less likely to report the violence, than women who are less educated and less financially secure.
The aforementioned attitude is the reason the purple ribbon is not nearly as popular on Yogurt, mid-level to upscale department store logos, high end cosmetics, or blogs. And this despite the estimated 4 to 5 million women, in the United States alone, affected by this societal scourge every year.
Some would propose — including Oate’s main protagonist Skyler, (channeling Geertz), in her less than lauded My Sister my Love — that human nature, but for human culture, is virtually non-existent. As a society we must begrudgingly, with sadness, and with feigned disbelief if necessary, admit this to be the case. It is not the nature of the beast causing continued violence, it is not a lifestyle issue, it is the culture, the social construction, that allowed it to begin, and permits it’s to continue. We have no choice but that of changing the culture.
Take some time this month to educate yourself on the domestic violence endemic in your country.
Links:
Sources: National Domestic Violence Hotline, National Center for Victims of Crime, and WomensLaw.org.
The Domestic Violence Awareness Project
United States Department of Justice Office of Violence Against Women
National Domestic Violence Hotline
WOMEN LAW.ORG
Women’s Health Dot Gov – State Resources
Recent News:
Democrats vow to ban domestic violence as ‘pre-existing condition
Books:
No Visible Wounds: Identifying Non-Physical Abuse of Women by Their Men
The Verbally Abusive Relationship: How to Recognize it and How to Respond
Domestic Violence at the Margins: Readings on Race, Class, Gender, and Culture
Peace
because middle and upper class women have more access to care, an easier road to moving on and out, or are less likely to report the violence, than women who are less educated and less financially secure.
Too true. In the 70′s and 80′s when I first became aware of domestic violence in the most personal of ways, police in the 19th precinct 0f NY (then the city’s richest) wouldn’t take reports let alone issue restraining orders unless the abuse was witnessed–same as rape. Things like that just didn’t happen there. Only they did
Abuse goes across all demographics, genders and sexs. It’s hard to understand a woman abusing a man but it happens. It’s hard to understand abuse at all but it too easily happens. And like rape it’s all about power
.-= pia´s last blog ..Backward world =-.
It’s true we have a long way to go.
The words domestic and violence don’t make a lot of sense together.
.-= Doug´s last blog ..Woman =-.
No sense, but strangely enough they are too often paired.
It’s true, I see very little of the purple ribbon except at sites geared specifically toward feminist issues or the whole violence against women genre of blogs/sites. Your explanation makes perfect sense. I’ve never read Geertz, never took anthropology as a matter of fact. I trust your assessment and thanks for posting on the issues.
.-= kait´s last blog ..Reasonable Priced Option in White and Black =-.
Don’t expect to see that ribbon flying anytime soon either.
October is on it’s second breath. You must be very busy.
Natalie has a memorial set up for her sister. Remember her? Killed by her husband last year, strangled and he set the house on fire and hung himself? I think you wrote about it. I’ll send you the link.
.-= g´s last blog ..Working on the Weekend =-.
I understand that to be the case and I saw the fb site. I am still perplexed by that.
Great post.
Thanks for the links and I like what you said about corporate not yet acknowledging purple and the misconceptions that only certain people suffer from Domestic Violence.
I am infuriated about the insurance issue surrounding this cause; I work with victims and I can only see this as yet another reason they might refuse to report or even get necessary help…its so backwards.
Thanks also for advising readers to get educated. With education comes conversations, with conversation comes awareness and eventually with enough awareness we can start to see change.
I wonder often at what age? Does this violence not come from the very attitude and environment males, females as well, are
raised in?
That the violence against women in the United States occurs largely at home is a pretty sick fact, when you examine it.
Noted no purple ribbons displayed at the comsmetic counters at Macy’s or Nordstroms.
Not even Target.
.-= john´s last blog ..The Next Americn Pundit =-.
Seriously.
I know I shouldn’t be shocked by anything anymore. But domestic violence is a preexisting condition in some states?!?!
.-= Bone´s last blog ..As autumn stirs =-.
yea, go figure?
I appreciate your understanding of the way things work, how causes are marketed/supported by corporations only if they are something that can bring in profits from the upper middle class.
That pre-existing condition thing surprised me when I read it. Nothing much surprised me these days, but that did.
I had not heard of it either as it si not the case in this state.
Here in pennsyltucky, we are being treated to domestic violence at its worst. 2nd Amendment advocate shot in her kitchen by quasi-LEO husband while fully-loaded firearm is nearby.
It is tragic.
We seem to have had a over abundance here in the last two years. If it is similar in other parts of the country it is worse than I imagined.
I don’t know if it’s because it’s more reported but there is a lot of domestic violence occuring around here.
.-= jake´s last blog ..Google and the FCC =-.
I have no idea how prevalent it used to be or if it was merely unreported in the past though.