Home should be a place of comfort and rest, but for many women and children around the world, home is a terrifying warzone. Like a minefield rife with danger, these women and children feel their next step could result in an explosion.
Their community and cultural beliefs aren’t always on their side. In different countries and cultures, both men and women agree a man has the right to beat his partner. In certain cultures, the majority of even adolescents—both female and male—believe a man who hits his wife is justified.
Domestic assault has been on an uptrend since the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns kicked in. Household tension doesn’t always stay at a simmer; for many, it has resulted in grievous injury. For multiple women and children, this violence will prove fatal.
This is partly because the COVID-19 outbreak has increased poverty and economic stress, which in turn has triggered even more incidences of brutality. Violence against women and children has surged in at least 27 countries and counting.
This crime is one of the deadliest, not only literally, but also because it’s often hidden in plain sight and behind the façade of a normal family.