After all, 4 million women experience sexual assault or rape from their partners in America. Men also experience the same.
Recent news about Johnny Depp and Amber Heard has most of us divided between disbelief and defense. But then there comes reality, the same reality that leaves countless victims of abuse, (both verbally and physically) silenced for years. It seems point blank that the victim loses her right to share a story, because people are afraid of the truth. The amount of defenses that Johnny Depp has received is unfortunately unsurprising. It seems that his image is held so high that he truly could get away with just about anything. It is questionable whether people with great money and power simply live under a different standard of rules than the rest of us. However, public issues source lies in the social structure and culture of society, contrast social problems affecting many individuals.
No victim is to blame for any occurrence of domestic abuse. Domestic violence is a pattern of behavior used to control over another person through fear and intimidation. Often resulting in threatening or use of violence. The number one fact about domestic violence is that most domestic violence incidents are never reported.
Women are literally dying from blame. According to a 2011 report in the Journal of American Medical Association, 35 percent of women in an Australian survey who had experienced gender-based violence later tried to commit suicide. Sometimes the victim is more punished than the criminal.
And then when they are, society feels that it is their right to comment. It is unbelievably difficult to hear people debilitate and discourage a victim who is speaking up. Any sort of support should be directed to the courage that women like Amber Heard have for being out in the open about something most people can’t even talk about.
The psychology behind victim blaming is truly not something society is unfamiliar with. Perfect example being, rape victims’ sexual histories are dissected, homeless people are unmotivated, and mental illnesses are a lifestyle choice. When we blame the victim, we spend limited dollars and personal time to address the failings of individuals who suffer from poverty, illiteracy, poor health, eating disorders and many more. So instead we blame the system, and the social conditions, and the cultural standards of female beauty, etc. The worst part of all, is the fact that we are all so eager to blame victims, when we aren’t even gaining anything? Could this all be because victims threaten our image of the world being a moral place, and good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people. Then, when bad things happen to good people, no one is safe, and we too could be vulnerable.
The best way to look at these cases that give us fear of what the real world is like, is to not impulse or rationalize other people’s sufferings. It just as easily could be us in their shoes. This realization is bothersome, but it is the only way to support others and make them feel less alone. What the world may lack in proper justice society can try and make up for in compassion.
“Sociological Perspectives on Social Problems”, section 1.2 from the book A Primer on Social Problems (v. 1.0). For details on it (including licensing), click here.
Domestic Violence: Statistics & Facts: http://www.safehorizon.org/page/domestic-violence-statistics–facts-52.html
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