DOMESTIC ABUSE POLICY

Andrew Brazzale

A difficult issue that continues to plague our society is that of domestic violence.
Domestic violence is a dangerous, paradoxical, and at times deadly act that is perpetrated in
many different ways. The largest problem with domestic abuse is that it has the habit running in
the family, creating terrible vicious cycle of beaten women and abused children. An article I
found from The New York Times written by Pamela Shifman and Salamishah Tillet makes the
point of looking at domestic violence as an issue that lead to larger acts of violence. In the article
the authors speak on some recent violent acts that have reached national news, an example being
the Boston marathon bomber. They say that before he bombed the marathon the man was a
domestic abuser. The article speaks on how domestic abuse can often predict larger violence
from the abuser and that boys who grow up in abusive homes are more likely to practice abuse.
The genesis, perpetuation, and future violent evolution of domestic abuse can all be
classified as social welfare issues. The most obvious issue being that people are hurt, physically
and emotionally, in their own homes by people they trust. It goes against basic human decency to
hurt others for one's own personal sense of power or dominance, such is the case with many
domestic abusers. It gets worse however when domestic abuse is practiced in a home with
children.
Children learn by example, and if viewing their parents, the people who they learn from
the most, act violently or aggressively around each other, it is very likely that child will grow up
to become an abuser. This kind of environment is by no means healthy for the development of a
child and needs intervention by service providers, not only for the child's present well being, but
for their future partners and children.

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The last, but possibly most important social issue is that domestic abusers are more likely
to go on and commit much more violent crimes on a larger scale than committing them only in
their own homes. Though not every person who blows up a building or kills a random person is a
domestic abuser, there is a still a trend that cannot be ignored. If society continues to not pay
more attention to domestic abuse because of whatever flimsy reason they choose, they could be
the ones who are suddenly affected by a much larger atrocity.
In order to help fix these social issues through policy I would suggest by first looking at
the response of the authorities. Authorities have a reputation for not investigating reports of
domestic abuse as well as they could, leaving abusers to continue their cycle of violence. A
policy in the law enforcement system that requires police to hold those they find with evidence
of abusing their domestic partners could allow pivotal time for the person being abused to try and
get out of the relationship. At the very least this could buy them breathing room and chances to
give testimonial without threat of reprisal.
In order to cut back on the perpetration of domestic violence there could be an
investigation into how closely service providers, such as social workers, are required to look into
households with signs of domestic abuse. A campaign to raise awareness and try to work closely
with households with histories of abuse could make sure that children do not grow up to become
abusers as well.
A final change to policy would be to make sure that people with a history of domestic
abuse are put under closer scrutiny when attempting to purchase firearms. The article by Shifman
and Tillet make a point of saying that people under restraining orders or convicted of domestic
violence are not hampered when purchasing firearms. With the propensity for mass violence to

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have roots in domestic abuse having firearms policy become stricter for these people could vastly
reduce further acts of violence or temptation to do so.
At the end of the day domestic violence can really be stymied by just looking out for the
signs in those around you. Its the old adage of if you see it say something, and as people in the
service providing profession we have an obligation to do such things. Furthermore its important
to go out of our way to support infrastructure and organizations that help victims of abuse in
order to keep a good professional support structure active. Working on social policy can do a lot
of good, but we should also never forget to keep caring in our hearts when issues meet us in our
own lives.

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Works Cited

1. Shifman, P., & Tillet, S. (2015, February 3). To Stop Violence, Start at Home. New York

Times, p. A21.