She-unity support
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Below are the types of abuse that we raise awareness of and also advocate against.
Domestic Violence
Domestic violence and abuse can include physical, mental and sexual abuse. This type of abuse has a high volume of crime, which often escalates over time, causing extreme outcomes, such as domestic homicide or suicide. Researchers have stated that, on average, two women are killed by their partners or ex-partners every week in England and Wales. One in four women have experienced domestic violence in their lifetime. One study reveals that half of Asian, African Caribbean and Arab women have been waiting up to 5 years before seeking help in domestic violence.
Physical abuse
can include slapping, punching, strangling, using weapons, scalding, burning.
Mental abuse
can include humiliation and degradation, threats against the woman or her children, keeping her short of money and isolating her from friends and family.
Sexual abuse
can include being forced to take part in sex acts, being sexually assaulted with objects and being raped.
Domestic violence and abuse is also affected by cultural and religious factors and can include:
‘Honour’ based abuse
is a controlling mechanism perpetrated by immediate and extended family members on women who are considered to have brought shame on themselves, their family and the community. Often women will experience isolation, threats, physical violence, extreme emotional pressure and may be murdered in order to protect, so called, cultural and religious beliefs.
Forced Marriage
occurs when family members, including extended family members, who use physical violence or emotional pressure to make women marry someone against their will. In this situation the woman will normally be coerced into going through with the ceremony.
Economic Abuse
In January 2018, She-Unity Support conducted a survey and asked survivors of domestic abuse about their experiences of economic abuse. 80% of survivors stated that they had experienced economic abuse from a partner or ex-partner. 15% of survivors stated they hadn’t and 5% (n=1) did not know. The survey revealed that most BME women suffering abuse, are not employed and/or have no other sources of disposable income. They lack knowledge of how to access services and are not well educated or lack language skills.
Recent research published by Women’s Aid in 2018, reported that over half of survivors who participated in their research could not afford to leave an abusive relationship because they had no money of their own.