Issue Brief: Politicized Violence Against Women

Description: This brief will focus on different forms of violence against women in the United States, specifically on violence that has been politicized or is a product of politics. Focusing on domestic violence, rape, and the debate on abortion, this brief will give an overview of several of the many forms of violence women experience as well as providing information on violence women experience in the criminal justice system. Key Points: Domestic Violence overwhelmingly affects women (85 % of all reported domestic violence cases are from women being abused) and is increasingly prevalent in America (1 in 4 women have experienced domestic violence in their lifetime).1 Up until 1991, women in California who were incarcerated for killing their abusers were not allowed to provide evidence of a history of abuse in court.2-This means that women who defended themselves against this violence were convicted of crimes without being allowed to provide evidence of self-defense; many of these survivors are currently doing life sentences (another form of state violence against women). According to the U.S. Department of Justice, somewhere in America a woman is raped every two minutes.