Domestic violence is a nightmare that touches nearly every household in America, and its victims can be as old as 85 and as young as a newborn.
In America, according to the National Violence Organization, every nine seconds a woman is assaulted or beaten. In fact each day nearly three women are murdered by their boyfriends or husbands. One out of three women will become a victim of abuse, and in far too many cases the abuser is a member of the victim’s own family.
A man who witnessed domestic violence between his parents as a child is twice as likely to become an abuser of his wife as an adult. In addition, an estimated eight million work days are lost annually by domestic abuse victims in the United States. This figure equals nearly 32,000 full-time jobs.
Although there are local, state and federal agencies and organizations available to assist domestic violence victims, a report on 10 countries that document domestic abuse have found that 55 to 95 percent of women never contact shelters, law enforcement or non-governmental organizations to seek assistance. Instead these women decide to remain in the darkness.
Rebecca L. Mahan, a U.S. Marine veteran and law enforcement official who spent 10 years as a field training officer will be discussing her solutions to dealing with domestic violence on “Standing at Freedom’s Gate.” Mahan has been spent over 20 years studying domestic violence and working with victims of traumatic events.
She is the creator of the V.O.T.E. (Victims Overcoming Traumatic Events) Program, which is primarily designed to help victims overcome domestic violence.
Listen to Standing at Freedom’s Gate with guest Rebecca L. Mahan available on demand:
