ADDRESSING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AMONG HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HOTLINE NUMBERS AROUND THE NATION; MADE BY LILY JANECEK

Domestic Violence is a very real thing and it kills people every day, people that can't escape their abusers before they snap. When children are thrown into that type of household they are more likely to enter an abusive relationship or become the abuser themselves, according to the Office of Women's Health. A child who grows up watching one parent abuse the other is more likely to perpetuate abusive behavior in future relationships. For example, a child who witnesses their mother being abused by her partner may be significantly more likely to engage in abusive behavior themselves compared to a child raised in a non-abusive household. Similarly, a child who witnesses a father abusing a partner may be at a higher risk of experiencing sexual abuse later in life than a child raised in a non-abusive environment. 

Abuse is a very serious issue that happens all over the world, not just in America. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has the highest Domestic Violence rate with 36% of the population being abused by an intimate partner. In America, Oklahoma has the highest Domestic Violence against their population, with 49% of women and 41% men experiencing abuse from their intimate partners. 

An anonymous person wrote to me, “When I was younger my mom had a boyfriend and he was the abuser. When we were growing up he'd yell and do certain things to make us feel bad about what we were doing. This was recurring for 4 years before my mom and him split. He would come into the bathroom when I was showering and would mentally abuse my mom, sister, and I.” This person also said, "I believe that people live with this problem but I don't know if it's a problem with the school as a whole,“ when I asked do you think that there is a Domestic Violence problem in CCA. Jaidyn Calkins spoke to me and said, ”My freshman year I was in a relationship with someone who doesn't go here anymore and we were hanging out and I started to fall asleep and he did things to me that should not be done to anyone without consent. Sometimes I wonder was I raped? Or just assaulted? He tried to brush it off and say ‘don't tell anyone, it wasn't like that okay?.’ And I kept this silent until now,“ and, “Yes, I feel like there is more happening than we know of,” to the question of Do you believe that there is a Domestic Violence problem in CCA. Jaidyn said “Yeah, we never have conversations about it and when we do it gets so tense in the room so I definitely feel like there needs to be more talks around this topic,” to my question about if there is a stigma around Domestic Violence. 

Domestic abuse is a very real thing and it doesn't just happen in movies or TV shows, it happens in real life. And to help victims, we need to talk about it and break the Stigma, or else abusers will continue abusing and people will die. No one deserves that fate, not even your worst enemy.