Last Call

I'm from the Midwest, so I know how domestic violence works in the Bible Belt. The reality is, while the law says women should not be beaten, culturally allowed gender bias does turn a blind eye to the problem. In what I consider the information age, a time when bright trumps might, we still find ourselves facing domestic violence with a certain trepidation in this region. The central U.S. is about a decade behind the rest of the nation, both in recognizing and correcting the problem.

But decriminalizing domestic violence? You gotta be freaking kidding me. This isn't a brand new problem, however. The gaps in help for abused women is so poor that the district attorney advises victims not to call in.  Another danger is that domestic violence situations will escalate to regain dominance of the situation. What is often mistaken as retaliation is actually an attempt to assume control over the victim. Not that it matters to the victim. For her, it's just another beating.  She may have to pay for her medical bills, knowing the man who hurt her won't have to pay a dime to her or for his crime.  Could it be that jaywalking or owning dangerous dogs will be a worse crime than beating an adult woman?

We have two problems here. One is that misdemeanor domestic violence may be decriminalized. Second, what they consider misdemeanor is pretty scary, including beating a woman with a crowbar.  The article from ThinkProgress states they are repealing the city code that specifically bans domestic violence.  Sixteen people have been arrested and released with no consequences or charges filed.  To be fair not every victim of domestic violence is a woman but they are certainly the majority.  We have to ask ourselves why this could ever be considered an intelligent move.  Why not cut from programs that do not directly protect victims of violent crime?  The fact that there are too many victims to help should be all we need to step in and protect.  We also need to ask at what point is protecting women going to be cut off?  When a man buys her a drink, or do they have to live together first?  Because if a stranger beats a woman with a crowbar or throws her through a window, that would be assault and battery.  If the city government is going to draw a line, that line had better be clearly defined and justified.  I really want to hear their reasoning when they look at medical costs of abused women.

It seems the people in charge all say it's a damn shame, but nobody has any money to help prosecution. That's no reason to make it legal so they are no longer obligated to do their jobs. What happens when other hate crimes become too numerous to control?

Originally posted at Angry Black Lady's corner.