Woman abuse nationally and locally

What’s happening

In Ontario, November is Woman Abuse Prevention Month. Abuse of women can take many forms, from physical to emotional to financial and more. No matter what form it takes, abuse of women typically takes place at the hands of men, and often within the context of an intimate relationship. More than 40% of Canadian women have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) and more than 2/3 of Canadians know someone who has experienced it. Taking a month to think about preventing woman abuse, and taking action to do so, just makes sense.  

We know that intimate partner violence is under-reported. Some estimates suggest just 25% of cases of IPV are. Based on those estimates, and our OPP reported numbers, we can guess that there are probably over 1,000 cases of IPV happening here.

What we’re doing

Alternatives for Women is working to address this. We provide many services for women who have experienced or are experiencing abuse. We’d like to reach all of those 1,000 women.

We can offer them counselling services, a transitional housing program, court support, referrals, and more. Although we cannot offer emergency shelter, we can help any woman (and her children) reach an emergency shelter if she doesn’t have her own transportation. Local options for emergency shelter include our sister agencies in Belleville (Three Oaks) and Tyendinaga (Red Cedars). Even if someone has to look further afield, we will still help them with transportation.

Sadly, no matter how much we do help, our work begins once the abuse has already occurred. Woman Abuse Prevention month invites us to think about stopping it before it happens.

Preventing abuse

Working together is key. This is because culture is part of what allows abuse to go on. Violence against women is permitted by and in our culture. It’s even likely that our culture contributes to this violence.

Think about it. If violence was just an individual thing, everybody in our society would be equally likely of committing violence, and equally likely of being a victim of violence. That’s not what statistics show.

Rates of intimate partner violence are consistently about 3.5 times higher for women than they are for men. Women are twice as likely to experience IPV on a daily basis than men are. Men are more likely to be perpetrators than women are, and women experience more extreme forms of IPV than men do.

If violence was just an individual thing, the statistics should show a 50/50 split on all of these things. They don’t.

It’s true that part of the problem of woman abuse is individual. Lots of men are not abusive. An individual can change their behaviour and become less violent (usually with help).

But part of the problem is our culture. Our attitudes and beliefs about how women and girls should be treated are part of this. The excuses we make about why some men abuse women also are. So are our gender roles and the idea that it was just a joke or that it wasn’t that bad. And more.

These aren’t things an individual can change on their own. They were created by groups of people, and it will take groups of people working together to create something better.

Wrapped in Courage #ThreadsofAction

One group of people working together to try to create something better is the Ontario Association of Interval and Transition Houses (OAITH). Alternatives for Women is a member of this umbrella organization and joins it each November when it runs a campaign called Wrapped in Courage. The goals of the campaign are:

Each community in Ontario will have their own way of participating in the campaign. There are, however, three things that happen almost everywhere. Purple scarves are sold. A Wrapped in Courage flag is raised, and a proclamation is made by an elected official.

That proclamation:

Showing support

For several years this proclamation has been read, and the Wrapped in Courage flag has been raised at Shire Hall. This is a signal to all community members, that our municipality supports this campaign.

Another signal of this support is wearing a purple scarf. Purple scarves have been sold by OAITH member agencies since the launch of the campaign just over a decade ago. Buying a scarf supports fundraising. Wearing the scarves, especially in November, signals support for the campaign’s goals and shows survivors that they are not alone.

Take Action

Here in Prince Edward County scarves can be purchased, starting in November, at the Love Loft. Please do buy one. Wear it daily, and let it be a reminder to you to take action to end intimate partner violence.

You could start a conversation with a friend, family member or neighbour. You could talk to them about what you have learned here.

You can also encourage them to buy a purple scarf of their own, and to join you for the Flag Raising on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and Girls, November 25^th. The flag will be raised at noon at Shire Hall (Picton).

Other things you can do are: