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Degendering of the Problem but a Gendering of the Blame: Domestic Abuse and Rape

Degendering of the Problem but a Gendering of the Blame : Domestic Abuse and Rape

In the world of today , there is increasing pressure from the feminist side that there should be gender equality . The targets of gender equality are generally as follows : women 's rights as human rights , equal participation in political and public life the economic independence the empowerment of girls and boys through the education systems and removing imbalances in society . For this purpose , many legal issues are seen through degendering . Degendering is the reorganizing , improvising development and evaluation

of policy processes , so that a gender equality perspective is incorporated in all policies at all levels and at all stages , by the actors normally involved in policy-making . While this may seem as a sound policy making base , when it comes to discussion of issues such as domestic violence and rape , such degendering of the problem renders justice impossible to obtain , for women are often the victims and males are often the batterers and rapists . Statistics and studies can prove this gender imbalance that exists in the context of these issues . Hence , degendering of problems such as domestic violence and rape prevents the genderization of the blame and consequently pushes women into the background

Degendering of the problem of domestic violence and gendering of the blame

According to an article by Nancy Berns "political discourse on domestic violence obscures men 's violence while placing the burden of responsibility on women . When men are discussed as the batterers in the issue of domestic violence , there is a resistance from men . Two main strategies are used to push the responsibility of domestic violence on women : first , degendering the problem and then , gendering the blame Nancy Berns calls this resistance as patriarchal resistance which opposes a feminist construction of the problem . The arguments that favor the men 's viewpoint are based on normalization of intimate violence , cultural and structural factors that foster domestic violence and the distortion of women 's violence

Normalization of intimate violence

According to the U .S . department of Justice 's Bureau of Justice Statistics (2001 ) National Crime Victimization Survey results indicated that , during the period of 1993-1998 , over 50 of violent crimes involved intimate partners or family members (Jackson et al , 2001 . Male perpetrators of domestic violence attempt to achieve a view which accommodates their violence . Male violence against women is referred to in different ways in different countries . In UK and USA it is often called `battering , `woman battering , `wife abuse ' or `marital rape Bograd 1988 ,1990 Gary 1991 McKay 1994 . However , it is commonly referred to as domestic abuse or domestic violence (Grew 1991 Premier 's Department 1991 . Terms such as family violence and `spouse abuse ' are also being used to refer to male violence against women . According to Barnardoss Staff in his research titled Domestic Violence - Criminal Assault in the Home ' using terms such as domestic , spouse or family has the effect of degendering the issue of domestic violence (Staff , 2006 . They obscure the...

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