"Domestic Abuse: Another Kind of Epidemic!"

Cynthia R. Bennett

When we think of the word epidemic, we equate it as a sudden disease outbreak that affects many people in a particular region, community, or population. It is when several people who have been affected by a disease are larger than what is normally expected. Epidemics typically are classified as common-source or reproduced as to the way they spread through a group of people.

Propagated or reproduced outbreaks happen when a disease is passed from person to person. A common-source outbreak occurs when a group of people get sick after being exposed to the same source. For example, eating at the same restaurant. This kind of epidemic is widespread, affects many people and if remains unchecked can spread like wildfire, touching many families, communities, cities, nations, and the world for an extended duration. Like the Ebola virus and COVID-19. 

Well, there is another kind of ‘epidemic’ that has been spreading for centuries, affecting individuals, families, countries, and that is domestic abuse. Why do I say that it has been preached from the bible, in the book of 2 Samuel with Tamar. This young lady was victimized in many ways by the men in her family that should have protected her. Not just domestic abuse, but sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect. Amnon, her brother sexually abused her against her will, which is rape. King David neglected her because he was so busy running the kingdom, he paid more attention to leading the kingdom than leading his own household. He was not aware of what was going on because he asked where Tamar was when she did not appear in the Court of Virgins; and her brother, Absalom silenced her, he told her to keep quiet. When you have been violated emotionally, physically, sexually and neglected; that is abuse. It happened then and it continues to happen now, over two thousand years later in every community, every city, every country and nation, which makes it an epidemic.

Understand this, being violated and not having the opportunity to speak out against injustice like Tamar, will affect your self-esteem. It can dampen your dreams; make you feel hollow and barren where you are not able to produce those things you desire. The bible said Tamar went to Absalom’s house and lived the rest of her days desolate.

Picture blowing hot air into a balloon. The balloon is inflated with each blow; and stretches and expands. As you continue to blow air, the shape gets distorted and the material it is made of becomes thinner and thinner until you can see through it; that next blow of air causes it to burst. That is this epidemic, called abuse. With each blow of physical, sexual, emotional, financial abuse, with each blow of neglect a person endures; on the inside you are taking it all in until that one incident, that one verbal tongue lashing has caused you to burst. 

To fight this epidemic of abuse, open your mouth and tell somebody; share your story. What you are going through or have gone through can help somebody else. Don’t suffer in silence like Tamar and so many others who have come after her. You are not your trauma; it does not define you and there is life; there is success; there are dreams after abuse!

Cynthia R. Bennett

Founder/CEO, JADASA

www.jadasa.org