This chapter presents an overview of the prevalence of violence and abuse, and with reference to Black women, definitions of key terms and concepts used throughout, and themes from previous research.
Prevalence of Violence Against Women and Children
Violence against women and children are worldwide issues of concern and are underreported as crimes (Radford et al. 2011). Global prevalence surveys estimate that over a third (35.6%) of women experience violence or sexual assault from a partner or non-partner (WHO 2013). The annual Crime Survey of England and Wales (CSEW) (ONS 2017) estimates that just under 1 in 5 (20%) and just over 1 in 10 men (9%) experience violence from a partner, with 1 in 5 women (20%) and just over 1 in 25 (4%) men experiencing sexual assault or rape, and this figure includes attempts. Eighty-six per cent of those who report rape are female, and just under a quarter (23%) of rapes are committed against children under the age of 16. Women are more likely to experience violence in the home than are men, and while men are more likely to be killed by another male acquaintance or stranger, women are more likely to be killed by a partner or ex-partner; this is the case for over half of the female homicides (ONS 2017). Women between the ages of 16 and 34 are more likely to experience stalking and physical violence from a partner or ex-partner (ONS 2017).
Violence tends to increase post separation, where women are more likely to be murdered (ONS 2017; Thiara 2013). In the USA, African American, Native American, and non-White Hispanic women experience higher rates of violence from partners and sexual violence from non-partners and are more likely to be killed by a partner than are White American women (Breiding et al. 2014). If a woman or a man has a disability or long-term illness, he/she is more likely to be a victim of violence and abuse from a partner (ONS 2017; Nixon and Humphreys 2010). Few studies explore how living at the intersections of a range of social locations which include being racialised as Black presents, opportunities and limitations for women who experience violence and abuse.
Child sexual abuse and the umbrella term āchild maltreatmentā are also widespread phenomena. It may be impossible to know the full prevalence of child sexual abuse as definitions of abuse vary by country and statistical measurement and individuals rarely disclose abuse experiences (Finkelhor et al. 2014; Lalor and McElvaney 2009), and when they do, they wait between 10 and 20 years (Lamb and Edgar-Smith 1994). The implementation of policies and preventive measures are also inconsistent across middle- and high-income countries, more so in low-income countries exacerbated by fewer resources (Dubowitz 2017; Wekerle and Black 2017).
In the USA, between 1 in 4 (25%) and just over a third of women and between 1 in 10 (10%) and 1 in 4 (25%) men report sexual abuse. Between 1 in 10 (10%) and 1 in 4 (25%) men and women report physical abuse in childhood (Briere and Jordan 2009; Finkelhor et al. 1990). One German study (Allgroggen et al. 2017) reported an elevated risk of sexual abuse of almost 1 in 2 (47%) for girls and 1 in 50 for boys (8%) among children in institutional care . These statistics reveal similar prevalence rates of child sexual abuse across racial groups (Bolen 2001; London et al. 2005).
However, subsequent research has found that African American women are more likely to be estranged from their childrenās fathers, increasing the risk of abuse from mothersā boyfriends and stepfathers, especially for African American girls (Abney and Priest 1995; Amodeo et al. 2006; Finkelhor et al. 1990). Amodeo et al. (2006) found that when compared with White American women, African American women had more incidences and multiple perpetrators of child sexual abuse and this was associated with family structure; they are more likely to live in the same household with uncles, cousins, and parentsā friends. Similarly, Basile et al. (2016), in a study with a community sample of 168 low-income African American women, found that nearly half (44%) had experienced sexual abuse from a family member and over half (53%) suffered sexual violence as adults. Bolen (2001), in a review of studies on child sexual abuse, found that abuse from peers is far more prevalent than abuse from fathers or carers. Children live with increasing forms of violence and abuse both inside and outside of the home (Finkelhor et al. 2009), and more exposure to multiple caregivers increases the risk of maltreatment and being āpolyvictimsā of violence and abuse (Finkelhor 2008). Bentovim et al. (2009) found delinquency and āacting outā or disruptive behaviour to be associated with witnessing violence between parents.
In the UK, there are no comparable representative statistics by race for violence and abuse. The Sexual Abuse and Violence in Ireland (SAVI) report (McGee et al. 2002) and the CSEW (ONS 2017) for England and Wales have found similar prevalence rates as in the USA (see also Lalor and McElvaney [2009] for a systematic review). The Cawson Report (Cawson 2000 ) was a random probability sample of 2869 18ā24-year-olds exploring their experiences of childhood maltreatment, with 92% White and 8% minority (mostly South Asian heritage) respondents. While 77% of those surveyed described coming from warm, loving families with people to support them, between 21% and 59% reported physical discipline, being infrequently slapped on the arm, hand, or bottom. Physical abuse was associated with lower socio-economic status, with 6% of the sample reporting going without food and wearing dirty clothes. Thirty-four per cent of the respondents described being sometimes terrified of their father or stepfathers.
Parents who tell their children that they wish the child was dead or had never been born, for example, may be reacting to stress or an immediate family crisis rather than expressing a genuinely held long term view, but it is hard to imagine a more hurtful thing to say to a child. (Cawson 2000 , p. 15)
Girls were slightly more likely to be physically abused than boys, and women were also involved in physical and emotional maltreatment of children. Most of the sexual abuse was carried out by siblings, peers, and non-relatives. The updated study (Radford et al. 2011) also found between 12% and 23.7% of respondents reporting exposure to, or witnessing, violence mostly from males to their mothers. Radford et al. (2011) also found that a section of their respondents could be classified as polyvictims. This was associated with being within the lowest socio-economic groups, o...