Most people can define domestic violence, yet how many understand why it continues? It impacts millions of lives every year at a cost of more than $8.3 billion, annually. Why do we allow it to persist—causing victims, witnesses and bystanders in every community to suffer incalculable pain and loss? During October’s National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, question it and continue to ask questions until we solve this global health problem of epidemic proportions.

Question it: ask the overarching questions

• What do you think contributes to one out of four women in the U.S. experiencing domestic abuse in her lifetime?
• How do you feel when you hear that 1.5 million high school students nationwide experience physical abuse from a dating partner in a single year?
• How can we prevent domestic violence which currently results in two million injuries annually, with three women killed every day by a current or former intimate partner?

Question it: ask difficult questions or those that reside along the fringes of the issue

• What societal norms contribute to its existence and persistence?
• How can our community better support survivors?
• How can we act as role models for healthy, respectful, non-violent relationships?
• What conversations can we have with young people about the images and messages they see (TV, movies, magazines, video games, internet, advertisements, etc.) that demean, belittle and objectify women?
• What is our community doing to hold abusers accountable?
• Why is domestic violence one of the most chronically underreported crimes?
• How are patriarchy, entitlement and gender inequality connected to the prevalence of domestic violence?

The Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan (WRCNM) provides immediate and ongoing support, counseling and advocacy (medical, legal, financial, housing) to survivors of domestic abuse in Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Emmet and Otsego counties. That support also includes a 24-hour crisis and information line and an emergency shelter for those seeking refuge from abuse.

The quote, below, is an excerpt from a letter written by a survivor that utilized WRCNM domestic abuse services. It sheds light on the impact of this crime and the hope of survivors to achieve a better, safer life for themselves and their children.

“I was a newly single mother with a two month old infant and two year old toddler. We escaped under great threats people only read about in books or see in movies. Not everyone escapes. We are some of the lucky ones.

“Domestic violence can happen to anyone. What makes the difference is that there is help available. The Women’s Resource Center was there for me…they offered support in the form of counseling, they made sure I was safe from violence and that my children were safe…[they] were strong supporters of my personal educational goals.

“My journey has taken me five years. I now have an Associate’s Degree in Nursing and am a Registered Nurse in the state of Michigan. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, thank you. YOU DO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.”

Question it: ask what we can do to create more survivor success stories until solutions to the pervasive crime of domestic violence are enacted.

If you have questions regarding domestic abuse or dating violence, contact the Women’s Resource Center’s 24-hour crisis and information line at (231) 347-0082 or (800) 275-1995 for long distance callers. The WRCNM is also available to speak with social, civic, faith-based groups, as well as schools and businesses.