Men Are Victims of Domestic Violence Too

Editor:

The article on domestic violence left male victims invisible by stating, “There is not a typical woman who will be battered — the risk factor is being born female.” (Safety Zone Announces Domestic Violence Awareness Month Activities, 10/15-10/21). That was very unfair to male victims and was based on stereotypes, not social science.

The latest fact sheet from the Centers for Disease Control states: “In the United States every year, about 1.5 million women and more than 800,000 men are raped or physically assaulted by an intimate partner,” and also states that one-fourth of intimate partner homicide victims are men, at http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/ipvfacts.htm.

More recently, the CDC found half of heterosexual domestic violence was reciprocal and that women committed over 70 percent of the non-reciprocal violence.

In fact, although men are less likely to report the violence, virtually all sociological research worldwide shows women initiate domestic violence as often as men and men suffer one-third of the injuries. California State University Professor Martin Fiebert summarizes over 200 studies confirming this in his online bibliography at http://www.csulb.edu/~mfiebert/assault.htm.

For example, a recent 32-nation study by the University of New Hampshire confirmed that women are just as violent and as controlling as men in relationships in both rich and poor nations alike.

When we ignore male victims, we ignore their children too, who suffer long-term damage by the exposure regardless of the severity. This is a serious but hidden problem. How much longer will male victims and their children be kept invisible like this?

Marc E. Angelucci, President,
L.A. Chapter of National Coalition of Free Men