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The U.S. Department of Justice estimates that a woman is beaten in her home every 15 seconds. Approximately 44,000 women are
beaten by their husbands each year in New Hampshire. During 1993, New Hampshire's domestic violence programs received calls from 5,126 battered women and 85 battered men seeking assistance.
Domestic violence
includes physical, sexual, verbal or emotional abuse between partners. It occurs in families from all economic, educational, racial and religious backgrounds. 95% of the victims of spouse abuse are
women. 25% of all reported victims of domestic violence are pregnant women. Battering becomes more frequent and more severe over time, sometimes leading to murder or suicide. 30% of female homicide victims
are killed by their husbands or boyfriends. A recent study concluded that battering accounts for one fourth of all suicide attempts by women.
Men batter to control or dominate their partners. Violence is a
behavioral choice for which the batterer must take responsibility. No language or other act is provocation or justification for physical violence.
Violence in one generation encourages violence in the next
generation. Almost two thirds of the men who abuse their wives or partners witnessed abuse or were abused as children.
Domestic violence is often ignored or tolerated as a "private matter." Because the
community does not view wife abuse as a crime, battered women can feel humiliated and wrongly believe that the violence is somehow their fault. Such feelings, along with the isolation from family and friends that
battered women often experience, make it difficult for abused women to seek help to end the violence in their lives.
Other factors that can trap women in violent homes include
- lack of job qualifications,
- few housing options
- misguided advice about what's good for the children
- being a better wife
- terror
)fear of reprisal from the abusive partner.
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