The “Shadow Pandemic”: How COVID Has Exacerbated Issues of Domestic Violence
The COVID-19 pandemic has proven to affect every aspect of life as we know it. Beyond the millions of lives lost, the pandemic has crept into all social, financial, political, and psychological structures. One way this has manifested is in the increased severity and reports of domestic violence worldwide. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines domestic violence as an umbrella term to describe intimate partner violence (IPV), child abuse, and elder abuse, but in this context will be used to exclusively outline the intimate partner violence occurring between past or present intimate partners. Among other things, this abuse manifests as psychological, sexual, and physical violence. Lockdowns and financial troubles have become stressors, increasing the levels of abuse across the board.
Of course, intimate partner violence does not start or end with the impact of Coronavirus. The United Nations estimates that one in three women worldwide will experience physical or sexual violence, and this is most likely to be perpetrated by an intimate partner. Like all social issues, intersections of class, race, and sexuality are deeply pertinent. People of color are more likely to suffer from this pattern of abuse, making rates of intimate partner violence even higher for non-white survivors. Erika Sussman, of the Center for Survivor Advocacy and Justice (CSAJ) says, “While one in three white women report having experienced domestic violence [during the pandemic], the rates of abuse increased dramatically to about 50% and higher for those marginalized by race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, citizenship status, and cognitive physical ability.” As Sussman mentions, domestic violence does not just affect white, American women. Sexuality can be another factor that produces rates of abuse in same-sex couples that are similar to or even higher than abuse in opposite-sex couples. Interestingly, members of the LGBTQ+ community and communities of color face specific issues of employment because they are more likely to be employed in “highly affected industries like education, restaurants, hospitals, and retail.” Working-class victims also face higher rates of violence and hardship in receiving support. These areas of intersectionality only worsen levels of stress from COVID-19 due to economic, health care, education, and childcare issues. This increased intimate partner violence has been recorded by the United Nations, United States police departments, domestic violence organizations, and academic journals. For instance, the American Journal of Emergency Medicine and the United Nations group, U.N. Women cited that when the pandemic began, domestic violence reports increased by 25% in China, 33% in Singapore, and 50% in Brazil.
Over 150 countries have created measures to protect survivors from violence during the pandemic, strengthening their COVID-19 responses. Domestically, state and city police forces have experienced an increase in domestic violence reports since COVID-19, noting stay-at-home orders as a contributor. This occurred nationwide, like in Jefferson County, Alabama, where there was a 27% increase in domestic violence calls in March 2020 compared to March 2019. During this same month, in March 2020, the New York City Police Department saw a 10% in domestic violence calls.
Jacky Mulveen is a project manager of Women’s Empowerment and Recovery Educators which is an advocacy group in England with a mission of supporting domestic violence survivors. Mulveen makes it clear that the issues of domestic violence, which while always prevalent, have been heightened since the pandemic. “COVID doesn’t make an abuser but COVID exacerbates it. It gives them more tools, more chances to control you. The abuser says, ‘You can’t go out; you’re not going anywhere,’ and the government also is saying, ‘You have to stay in.'”
Sources
“Alarming Trends in US Domestic Violence during the COVID-19 Pandemic.” The American Journal of Emergency Medicine, n.d. https://www.ajemjournal.com/article/S0735-6757(20)30307-7/fulltext#relatedArticles.
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“Covid-19 - Human Rights Campaign.” Accessed April 1, 2022. https://assets2.hrc.org/files/assets/resources/COVID19-IssueBrief-032020-FINAL.pdf.
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Kluger, Jeffrey. “Domestic Violence Is a Pandemic within the COVID-19 Pandemic.” Time. Time, February 3, 2021. https://time.com/5928539/domestic-violence-covid-19/.
“Preventing Intimate Partner Violence |Violence Prevention|injury Center|CDC.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, November 2, 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/intimatepartnerviolence/fastfact.html.