Male victims should not be ignored in industry outry against budget cuts

For Immediate Release

LOS ANGELES/EWORLDWIRE/July 31, 2009 --- Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is reportedly cutting up to 100 percent of state funding for domestic violence services in California, according to the National Coalition For Men, and these cuts can hurt both male and female victims of domestic violence. Yet, many in the domestic violence industry are leaving male victims invisible as usual in their public outcry against the funding cuts.

For example, a July 30, 2009, news release by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence repeatedly refers to victims as "women and children" or "women, children, and families," leaving male victims and their children invisible ('http://www.ncadv.org/files/CA%20Budget%20Cuts.php').

In a landmark case pursued by the National Coalition For Men (NCFM), the California Court of Appeal recently declared that "domestic violence is a serious problem for both women and men," that "men experience significant levels of domestic violence as victims," and that "male victims of domestic violence are similarly situated to female victims for purposes of the statutory programs." The court also found approximately 15 percent of State-funded domestic violence programs in California refuse to help male victims, although NCFM contends the percentage is much higher. (Woods v. Horton (2008) 'http://www.cpedv.org/docs/101608CPEDV-Woods_v_Shewry_Decision.pdf')

"This double standard is absolutely wrong," said Marc Angelucci, the NCFM attorney who represented the plaintiffs in Woods v. Horton. "If it were AIDS victims or homeless veterans, who are 80 to 95 percent male, we would say 'men and women' to include everyone. Why not for domestic abuse victims? Don't they deserve the same dignity?"

Male victims are less likely to report it, which makes crime data unreliable, but over 200 empirical studies using various methods all show "women are as physically aggressive, or more aggressive, than men in their relationship with their spouses of male partners," and that men account for one-third of injuries, according to a California State University bibliography maintained online by Professor Martin Fiebert at 'http://www.csulb.edu/~mfiebert/assault.htm'.

For example, a major study by researchers from the Centers for Disease Control found half of heterosexual domestic violence is reciprocal and women perpetuate more than half of the non-reciprocal violence and about 71 percent of the reciprocal violence.
('http://www.patienteducationcenter.org/aspx/HealthELibrary/HealthETopic).

A recent 32-nation study by the University of New Hampshire found women are at least as violent and as controlling as men in dating relationships worldwide.
('http://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2006/may/em_060519male.cfm?type=n')

SOURCES:

Governor Schwarzenegger cutting 100 percent of funding for domestic violence services:
'http://www.sandiego6.com/news/local/story/Governor-Cuts-100-percent-of-Domestic-Violence/NhC-p-OglUCj6RjrvcuuiQ.cspx'

HTML:   http://www.eworldwire.com/pressreleases/211145
PDF:   http://www.eworldwire.com/pdf/211145.pdf
MOBILE:    http://www.eworldwire.com/mobile/211145
ONLINE NEWSROOM:   http://www.eworldwire.com/newsroom/312078.htm

CONTACT:
Marc Angelucci
National Coalition of Free Men
1964 Addison Way
Los Angeles, CA 90041
PHONE. 626-319-3081
FAX. 626-319-3081
EMAIL: [email protected]

KEYWORDS: National Coalition For Men, Men's rights, fathers' rights, gender equality, masculism, Battered men, male victims, domestic violence, budget cuts, abuse against men, spousal abuse

SOURCE: National Coalition For Men