The Shadow Pandemic: A Rise in Domestic Violence During COVID-19 Lockdowns

The COVID-19 pandemic caused countries around the world to enforce stay at home orders as an effort to stop the spreading of the virus. While these orders were implemented with safety in mind, they also created unsafe conditions for those stuck in the same household as their abuser. This article reviews literature to see if domestic violence increased within the United States, Britain, and India from the period of March to July of 2020. It is thought that due to citizens being told to stay at home, along with the many different fears related to the pandemic itself, domestic violence increased during lockdown periods. This paper finds that in all three countries domestic violence did increase during stay at home orders when compared with the previous years data. While exploring these conclusions, this paper also addresses changes for the future regarding how to report domestic violence and the role that governments play within this shadow pandemic