Domestic Violence is a complex problem that affects nearly 20 people per minute nationwide and can range from physical or sexual violence, to threats, to financial or emotional abuse. Learn more about the cycle of violence below and contact our helpline immediately to speak to an advocate if you think you or someone you love is experiencing abuse.
Domestic violence is an act or threatened act of violence upon a person with whom the actor is or has been involved in an intimate relationship*.
Domestic violence also includes any other crime against a person, or against property, including an animal, or any municipal ordinance violation against a person, or against property, including an animal, when used as a method of coercion, control, punishment, intimidation, or revenge directed against a person with whom the actor is or has been involved in an intimate relationship*.
*Intimate Relationship: A relationship between spouses, former spouses, past or present unmarried couples, or persons who are both the parents of the same child regardless of whether the persons have been married or have lived together at any time.
At the start of a new relationship, it’s not always easy to tell if it will later become abusive. In fact, many abusive people appear like ideal partners in the early stages of a relationship. Possessive and controlling behaviors don’t always appear overnight and may emerge and intensify as the relationship grows.
Every relationship is different and domestic violence doesn’t always look the same. One feature shared by most abusive relationships is that the abusive partner tries to establish or gain power and control through many different methods, at different moments.
Power and Control Wheel
Domestic violence is caused by a partner seeking power and control over the other. This wheel is a powerful tool the staff and advocates of SMRC use to help inform our clients and to help them recognize behavior they see with their partners. Some clients are unaware that they are even in a unhealthy relationship.
In 2021, San Miguel Resource Center:
Served 174 clients
139 domestic violence survivors
18 sexual assault survivors
26 survivors of other crimes
35 Latinx clients
58 West End clients
419 in-person contacts with clients
942 phone contacts with clients
Provided safehousing for 12 adults and 2 children
Facilitated 352 youth-targeted presentations
Facilitated 76 community outreach/awareness presentations
Domestic Violence Statistics
A recent Commonwealth Fund Report reveals that one-third of American women report being physically or sexually abused by a husband or boyfriend at some point in their lives.
Statistics reveal that as many 30 to 60 percent of children living in violent homes also suffer from abuse
Men who witness their mother’s abuse are 700 times more likely to abuse their female partners. Every 37.8 seconds in America a man is battered, which is more than 830,000 men a year who fall victim to domestic violence
30 percent of Americans say they know a woman who has been physically abused by her husband or boyfriend in the past year.
At least 3 women are murdered by their husbands and boyfriends in this country every day.
Take a look at our “What to Expect When You Contact Us” page to learn more about next steps and what happens when you reach out to SMRC.
