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Event promotes domestic violence awareness
By Amy Woodward
awoodwa4@mscd.edu

October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and to help raise awareness, Auraria came together to sponsor “Love, Sex and Lies: An Intimacy Check-up.”

The event was held in the Multicultural Lounge and the Robert Braun Lounge in the Tivoli on Oct. 10 and Oct. 11 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and was sponsored by the Counseling Center at Metro, UCD’s Human Services Department and UCD’s Graduate School of Public Affairs.

“I have always been interested in the subject of family violence,” said Birgit Moran, the event facilitator. “Out of all of my research I’ve learned about this issue, I found that prevention is the ticket.”

The event offered screenings and questionnaires for students to fill out to get more insight into their relationships, as well as videos, books and pamphlets on domestic violence. Counselors spoke with students about the warning signs of an abusive relationship.

“This is all about getting people to reflect on relationships and inform them about what a healthy relationship is,” Moran said. “This is a young time in people’s lives, and we would like to educate young people about abuse in relationships and inform them on the signs of abuse.”

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, one in four women will experience domestic violence during their lifetime. Statistics show that 5.3 million partner victimizations and 3.2 million physical assault cases occur each year against women in the United States.

Same-sex couples report abuse in relationships as well. Statistics provided by the Counseling Center at Metro estimate that 25 to 33 percent of gay and lesbian relationships are abusive, the same amount as straight relationships.

The Counseling Center information also said, “Abusive LGBT relationships have the same dynamics of power and control as straight relationships, but frequently go undetected and unreported because the victim may be afraid to get help, worried that the police and counseling services will be homophobic and insensitive and often times, some abusers threaten to ‘out’ the victim to parents, friends or employers.”

Counselors at the event said most abuse cases “start small” and then usually escalate.

“When people think of abuse, they think of bruises, cuts and breaks,” Moran said. “But there are other types of abuse, too.”

Dr. Karen Jackson, a clinical psychologist at Metro’s Counseling Center, said the most common cases she sees are emotional or psychological abuse.

“Women in emotional and verbal abuse relationships are confused and suffer from depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress syndrome,” Jackson said. “They feel it is hard to label what is going on for them in their life and are afraid to get help.”

NCADV says on its website that “adult men are less likely to report violence and seek services due to embarrassment, the assumption that others will not believe them and the belief that others will ridicule them.”

According to Jackson, there are four types of abuse: emotional or psychological, economic, sexual and physical. The usual signs or red flags men and women need to look for are criticizing behavior, jealousy, control and, most importantly, a history of domestic violence. Whatever the reason may be for the perpetrator to do what they did, “Their acts are not excusable,” Jackson said.

Moran hopes to keep Love, Sex and Lies going by turning it into an annual event, growing into more segments about relationships.

“The committee hopes to regroup, and by next year, we hope to have panel discussions, exhibits, displays and speakers. We hope to get the Communications Department at Metro to help facilitate this as a community discussion and talk about the effects of and ways to prevent domestic violence in society.”