Challenging abuse introduction part one

Our mission - to raise awareness about violence

Domestic abuse is a fact of life. For many women, it’s a part of their daily experience, for others it is something we read about in the news. Whatever your experience, abuse is a mainstream problem and a pervasive reality of modern society. It is an issue that must not be ignored.

This is the grim reality of abuse in British society today:

45% of murders of women result from domestic abuseEvery three days, a woman is killed through domestic abuseOne in four women will experience violence at some stage during their livesIncidents of violence often begin or escalate during pregnancyChildren are witness to over half of all incidents of abuse in the home

Despite this, many of us ignore and accept abusive behaviour, abusive language and unreasonable outbursts of anger. Many of us shy away from talking about abuse – it’s a dirty subject, it’s too heavy, too serious. Yet worldwide, domestic abuse causes more deaths of women than cancer, malaria, traffic accidents and war. Many of us freely debate speed restrictions in residential areas or wear a pink ribbon for breast cancer, but domestic abuse is too often a closed subject. Maybe it’s because it’s too close to home.