Recognizing Violence Within Homosexual Relationships Term paper
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Domestic violence in relationships and marriages has been a long-standing problem in American society. A lot of people have not realized that it is not just a problem for heterosexual couples. Domestic violence in lesbian, gay, and bisexual relationships is just as prevalent.
Lori B. Girshick, a Professor of sociology and women’s studies at Warren Wilson College in North Carolina, states that we live in a society where “sexual violence is defined only in terms of male penetration and intercourse”(Griffin). If this is true then it is easy to see why our society has difficulty understanding the problem with the atypical types of relationship abuse.
We must also consider the issue of prevalence. Though statistical research is still spotty many researchers believe that abuse in the gay and lesbian community is as prevalent as it is among heterosexuals. Incidents of domestic violence involving gay couples in the New York City area increased 25 percent in 1998 from the previous year (De La Cruz). A report by the National Institute of Justice which included a population that was 99 percent heterosexual found that 25 percent of women and 8 percent of men were at some point victims of an abusive relationship(Leland).
There are many myths surrounding gay domestic violence. One of those is the general belief that women are not violent. Another involves a belief that the abuser in a relationship is more powerful. Violence in any relationship cannot be understood in terms of male, social and economic power. In lesbian partnerships it is often the partner who appears to have more self-esteem and makes more money who is being battered. Studies have shown that the women who were assaulted were the ones who were more self sufficient, independent, less jealous and had higher incomes (Pearson 132).
After looking at the numbers it’s important to notice that the victims are of all ages. In 1998 reported cases were 44 percent between the ages of 30-44, 21 percent were 23-29, 12 percent were 45-64, and five percent were either under age 22 or over age 65 (Garbo). Based on this it appears that no one in the gay community is safe from the threat of domestic violence.
Since this seems to be such a significant problem then it seems strange that we don’t hear more about it on the news or in our own communities. There is a great deal of speculation as to why these cases go unreported. According to an article in the July 14, 1995 edition of the online Jewish Bulletin of Northern California the gay community resists confronting abuse among its own members. They already face so many problems such as HIV and discrimination that publicizing the abuse would be like “airing dirty laundry”. (Lank)
Another important reason these situations are not being reported is due to...
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