A domestic abuser can be more than just a significant other, which was the focus of the Break the Cycle event on Oct. 2.
The presenters from Two and a Half, Emely Curiel and Cheick Traore, asked the audience what they think domestic violence is. Sophomore Tony Jones said he thinks domestic violence is violence within a relationship, whether verbal or physical. Curiel and Traore defined domestic violence as a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner.
Curiel and Traore said there are different forms of abuse: economical, emotional, physical, sexual and psychological. According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 20 people per minute are abused with one of these forms in the U.S. 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men are abuse victims and 90 percent of children are exposed to domestic violence.
The room was split in half when discussing the pros and cons of hitting children. Some people thought it was completely acceptable to beat or hit a child. One audience member said that there is a difference between abusing kids and hitting them. She said abusing children has the intention to hurt them, but hitting or spanking them has the only goal of teaching them a lesson and stopping bad behavior.
However, the other half of the room suggested that hitting children will create the domestic violence pattern. They said hitting children will probably lead them to think it is okay for someone to hit them, and they will accept a relationship with an abusive partner.
When this statement was said, those on the pro side counterargued their parents hit them and they turned out alright. One person in the audience said that she is a decent person who does not tolerate domestic violence.
However, those on the con side said that their parents never hit them and they also turned out to be decent people. One person said her parents did not have to hit her for her to respect them. She still fears her parents as much as a child who is subjected to corporal punishment. This debate took up more than half of the presentation that the presenters had to take control and stop the discussion.
The debate on whether corporal punishment is effective took over half the time allowed for the presentation. The presenters had to take charge and stop that discussion before they continued on.
The conversation switched to a discussion on violence against men. Curiel and Traore said that 1 in 10 men are raped in the U.S., and in 2010, more men became vocal about being victims of domestic violence. Although women are more likely to report domestic violence or sexual abuse in the household, men are just as susceptible to trauma and anxiety as female victims.
The presenters closed the presentation with statements on their current takes on domestic violence.
Traore said that domestic violence is a cycle that needs to be broken.
“I used to hear about it, I just never did anything,” Curiel said. “Now, I have the opportunity to do something.”
Photo: Taylor Woods | The Oswegonian
