Abuse Victim Resources
Abuse has many forms and its victims – as well as its perpetrators – have many faces. Victims and their abusers can be anyone at all: men, women, the non-binary, adults, children, the elderly, wives, husbands, parents, siblings, friends, domestic partners, boyfriends, girlfriends, heterosexual, LGBTQ+, rich or poor, any race or ethnicity, have disabilities or be able-bodied, etc. Abuse can be physical, sexual, verbal and emotional, mental and psychological, financial, or cultural & identity-based.
Despite consistent evidence that abuse can take place within any environment, as well as the increasing scope of its diversity, frequency and severity (notably during the COVID-19 pandemic), resources for abuse victims and victim service providers remain segregated, unequitable and biased. These deeply vulnerable populations are consistently failed by an outdated system that provides resources only for those who look, act, live, sound, or identify in specific ways.
Elderly victims, victims of sibling abuse, LGBTQ+ victims (particularly those who identify as transgender) and male victims are consistently, pervasively and disproportionately underserved within abuse resource communities. Victims within these groups often find themselves with nowhere to turn, & many are told – time and again, shelter after shelter – there are “insufficient resources” or “we have nowhere to house your unique [sex/gender identity/age group/specific victim group] situation.” They’re typically offered directions to a homeless shelter or told “perhaps you could find family or a friend to stay with.” But homeless shelters are often dangerous, can easily re-traumatize individuals seeking help and few victims have other housing options or they would have sought them out in the first place.
These free & confidential resources are available to help victims of abuse:
National Domestic Violence Hotline
(All Victims)
National Sexual Assault Hotline
(All Victims)
National Dating Abuse Helpline
(All Victims)
National Child Abuse Hotline
(All Victims)
National Gay & Lesbian Task Force
Trans Lifeline
National Center for Elder Abuse
Break the Cycle (Teens)
The Initiative
(Persons with Disabilities)
National Gay & Lesbian Task Force
Trans Lifeline
National Center for Elder Abuse
Break the Cycle (Teens)
The Initiative
(Persons with Disabilities)
Think this doesn’t happen very often?
Here are some of the more recent abuse, domestic violence and intimate partner violence statistics available:
- About 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men report having experienced severe physical violence from an intimate partner in their lifetime.
- 1 in 7 men (14%) will be the victim of intimate partner or sexual violence in his lifetime, roughly 23.5 million men as of the 2021 U.S. Census estimate.
- As of 2015 (the most recent survey), of LGBTQ+ students who had dated within the prior 12 months, 23% had experienced sexual dating violence, 18% reported physical dating violence, & 18% reported being raped at some point in their lives.
- The 2010 National Intimate Partner & Sexual Violence (NIPSV) Survey found that “the lifetime prevalence of rape, physical violence, &/or stalking by an intimate partner is extremely high in the lesbian, gay & bisexual community with lesbian women (43.8%), gay men (26%), bisexual women (61.1%) and bisexual men (37.3%) reporting experiencing this violence, compared to heterosexual women (35%) & heterosexual men (29%).”
- The same report found that “nearly 1.1 million gay men & over 900,000 bisexual men have experienced sexual violence other than rape in their lifetime.”
- The 2010 NIPSV Survey also found that “approximately one-quarter of all men, regardless of sexual orientation, reported being slapped, pushed, or shoved by an intimate partner at some point during their lifetime (24% of gay men, 27% of bisexual men, and 26.3% of heterosexual men).”
- Elder abuse, including neglect and exploitation, is experienced by about 1 in 10 people aged 60 and older who live at home, & some groups have higher rates of abuse than others.
- Compared with women, elderly men had higher rates of both nonfatal assaults & homicides. The rate for nonfatal assaults increased more than 75% among men (2002–2016) and more than 35% among women (2007–2016).
This blatant victim discrimination even extends to children – as of today, every state in the U.S. has publicly-funded abuse shelters that refuse to house male children over the age of 12, regardless of known victim status. Heterosexual women & girls of any age are typically allowed to stay, while LGBTQ+ victims, adult men, the elderly, & teen boys are forced to secure their own separate housing through a homeless shelter, friends or family, or – most distressingly – by returning to their abuser. This dangerous practice forces already-traumatized victims to face an impossible choice. No parent should have to consider leaving a child behind, & no child should ever feel their presence places a parent in further danger
The numbers are staggering, yet millions of victims are actively discriminated against when they seek abuse services and resources. The significant volume of these underserved groups demands the revision of our nation’s outdated and inaccurate ideas of who is – and who isn’t – a victim. We must also work to enact programs & policies that guarantee assistance is available for all who need them – regardless of age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religion, or disability status. Abuse has many forms and its victims – as well as its perpetrators – have many faces. Victims and their abusers can be anyone at all: men, women, the non-binary, adults, children, the elderly, wives, husbands, parents, siblings, friends, domestic partners, boyfriends, girlfriends, heterosexual, LGBTQ+, rich or poor, any race or ethnicity, have disabilities or be able-bodied, etc. Abuse can be physical, sexual, verbal and emotional, mental and psychological, financial or cultural and identity-based.
Sources
US Center for Disease Control
US Census Bureau
National Intimate Partner & Sexual Violence Survey
National Coalition Against Domestic Violence