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Myths & Facts
Myth: Domestic violence is not common.
Fact: Nearly one-third of American women (31 percent) report being physically or sexually abused by a husband or boyfriend at some point in their lives. 1 It has been reported that three million women are physically abused by their husband or boyfriend every year. 2
Myth: Domestic violence occurs only in uneducated, minority, or dysfunctional families.
Fact: Domestic violence affects every demographic group, regardless of race, ethnicity, economics, class, sexual orientation, occupation, or education. Approximately 50% of all couples experience domestic violence at some time in their lives.
Myth: Anger causes domestic violence
Fact: Domestic violence is about power and control. Abusers are not angrier than the rest of us. They use anger as an excuse and justification for their behavior. We all experience anger, but we do not have to express it in abuse of others.
Myth: If a woman who has experienced domestic violence really wants to leave, she can.
Fact: Any woman who considers leaving her abuser faces risks. 65% of women who experience violence and who are killed are murdered by their abusers when, or after, they leave.
Myth: No one would hurt or commit an act of violence against a woman with a disability.
Fact: Women with disabilities and Deaf women are just as likely as women without disabilities to be victims of domestic violence. In addition, for women with disabilities the abuse tended to last longer and involve more than one perpetrator.
Myth: Caring for a person with a disability is stressful; therefore, abuse in those situations is understandable, expected, or justified by the circumstances.
Fact: While it can be stressful to care for someone else, stress is, in this and most cases, used as an excuse for abusive behavior. Most people experience stress, as a caregiver or in general, but do not respond by abusing other people. Violence and abuse stem from a need to gain power and control.
