Domestic Violence_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• Around the world, at least one in three women has been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused during her lifetime. ¹
  
  
• As many as 324,000 women each year experience intimate partner violence during their pregnancy. ²
  
  
• On average, more than three women are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends in this country every day. ³
  
   
• Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women between the ages of 15 and 44 in the United States. ⁴
  
  
• Approximately one in five female high school students reports being physically and/or sexually abused by a dating partner. ⁵

1. Heise, L., Ellsberg, M. and Gottemoeller, M. (1999, December). Ending Violence Against Women (Population Reports, Series L, No. 11).
   
2. Gazmararian J.A., Petersen R., Spitz A.M., Goodwin M.M., Saltzman L.E., Marks J.S. (2000). Violence and reproductive health; current knowledge and future research directions. Maternal and Child Health Journal 4 (2), 79-84.
   
3. Bureau of Justice Statistics Crime Data Brief. (2003). Intimate Partner Violence, 1993-2001. No Author.
    
4. Committee on the Judiciary United States Senate, 102nd Congress. (1992). Violence Against Women, A Majority Staff Report (page 3). No Author.
   
5. Silverman, J. G., Raj, A., Mucci, L. A., & Hathaway, J. E. (2001). Dating Violence Against Adolescent Girls and Associated Substance Abuse, Unhealthy Weight Control, Sexual Control, Sexual Risk Behavior, Pregnancy, and Suicidality. Journal of the American Medical Association, 286 (5).

Domestic Violence & Homelessness___________________________________________________________________________________

• 46% of cities surveyed by the U.S. Conference of Mayors identified domestic violence as a primary cause of homelessness. ¹
  
  
• A 1990 Ford Foundation study found that 50% of homeless women and children were fleeing abuse. ²

1. The United States Conference of Mayors. (2000). A Status Report on Hunger and Homelessness in American Cities. [Online], Available: http://www.usmayors.org
   
2. Zorza, J. (1991) Women Battering: A Major Cause of Homelessness. Clearinghouse, 25 (Special Issue) 421-29.

Stalking_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

             Tjaden, P., & Thoennes, N. (1998). Stalking in America. Washington, DC: National Institute on Justice.

Domestic Violence Against People With Disabilities___________________________________________________________________

• Women with disabilities are more likely to experience abuse by a greater number of perpetrators and for longer periods than nondisabled women. ¹
  
  
• People with disabling conditions are especially vulnerable to victimization because of the real or perceived inability to fight or flee, notify others and/or testify about the victimization. ²

1. Young, M.E., Nosek, M.A., Howland, C.A., Chanpong, G., & Rintala, D.H. (1997). Prevalence of abuse of women with physical disabilities. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. 78,S34-S38.
   
2. U.S. Department of Justice, Office for Victims of Crime Bulletin. (2001). Working with victims of crimes with disabilities.

Violence Against Foreign Born Women___________________________________________________________________________________

• 21.7% of battered immigrant women surveyed stated fear of being reported to immigration authorities as their primary reason for remaining in an abusive relationship. ¹
  
  
• 81.1% of Asian women surveyed reported experiencing at least one form of intimate partner violence (domination/controlling/psychological, physical, and /or sexual abuse) in the past year. ²

1. Dutton, M.A., Orloff, L.E. and Aguilar Haas, G. (2000). Characteristics of help-seeking behaviors, resources and service needs of bettered immigrant latinas. Georgetown Journal on Poverty law & Policy. 2 (2), 245-305.
   
2. McDonnell KA, Abdulla SE. (2001). Asian/Pacific Islander Domestic Violence Resource Project; Project AWARE. Washintong, DC [Online], Available: http://www.DVRP.org.

Violence Against Women and Poverty____________________________________________________________________________________

• While physical and psychological violence against women occurs in all social groups, poor women report violence by their partners at higher rates, partly because they have fewer options for leaving the abusive relationship. ¹
  
  
• Batterers not only use physical and sexual violence to control their victim, they use economic control as well. One method of economic control is sabotage of employment and employment-related activities. ²

1. Davis, M. (1999). The economics of abuse: How violence perpetuates women's poverty. In R. Brandwein (Ed.), Battered women, children, and welfare reform: The Ties That Bind (pp.17-30). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
   
2. Lyon, E. (1997). Poverty, Welfare and Battered Women: What does the research tell us? [Online], Available: http://www.vawnet.org/DomesticViolence/Research/VAWnetDocs/AR_Welfare2.php