All levels of government asked to help fight violence against women
Posted April 14, 2014 4:13 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Battered Women’s Support Services estimates one-in-three women are involved in an abusive relationship.
It is calling for a strategy to deal with this crisis through all levels of government.
Executive Director Angela McDougall feels this is a crisis that tends to be swept under the rug. “It’s a cycle, certainly a cycle within a family. We know that much of what happens inside the home is still viewed as a private issue.”
She says there has been some progress. “Women are reporting violence more than ever, reporting violence in relationships more than ever, and women are leaving abusive relationships now than more than any other time in our recorded history.”
McDougall says there are still many things that haven’t changed. “Men continue to believe that they can be abusive in relationships. We know that this is endemic and the cycle continues with the children that witness their father’s abuse of their mother.”
For the last 40 years groups have been taking action against this.
“But we have not seen a broad-based, provincial, national or even municipal response to this very serious issue,” she says.
Prevention of Violence Against Women Week in BC goes until Saturday.
This week, organizations throughout the province will be holding events to reinforce the fact that violence against women is unacceptable and we all have the right to feel safe in our daily lives.
News1130 tried to get the Justice Minister to weigh in, but was told she’s too busy to comment.
