Taking Action To Stop Family Violence

Although recent years have seen many steps taken to end violence in the family, domestic abuse is still a rampant problem in this country. Everywhere you look, you see news about family violence. Sometimes, it is just a matter of verbal abuse or neglect, but other times it takes a more sinister appearance. Family violence claims thousands of victims every year, many of them fatally injured in abuses that society should have prevented. It is not enough for us to keep violence out of our families. We must be able to spot violent families and provide help for victims before things get too far.

There may be many family violence laws in place, but often they are not enough. You see, unless the cops actually see the domestic abuse taking place, they will usually leave the situation alone. The cop's first priority, after all, is not to end family violence, but to stabilize the situation. If they can get someone to cool down without arresting them and there are no clear signs of physical abuse, they will walk away. Even when violence family is reported and someone has been beaten or injured, they may not do anything about it. I have a friend who was the victim of domestic abuse and called the cops, but all they did was detain the man briefly before letting him go. They considered it a domestic issue and declined to participate.

Family violence prevention takes many different forms. You can earn a criminal justice degree, help run a domestic abuse shelter, or work to treat the causes of domestic violence. The latter has been my approach throughout my life. As a therapist, I see both victims and abusers. Is important to understand the family violence is a crime perpetrated by one member of the family against the other, but that doesn't mean that you can't work with the abuser. If you see what makes families violent, you can take actions to stop it. If a domestic abuser can learn to control his anger, future outbreaks of family violence can be prevented.

On the other hand, this doesn't excuse family violence. If you know someone who has been the victim of family violence, you need to make sure that they get out of the house and leave their abuser as soon as possible. There is no reason for them to wait for him to change. They don't deserve to be beaten up in the meantime.