JACOB'S JOURNEY INC. – Confronting Intimate Terrorism Head On.

BUILDING A HEALING FUTURE, ONE HEART AT A TIME.

Intimate Partner Violence According to CDC, approximately 1 in 4 women and nearly 1 in 10 men have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner during their lifetime. Moreover, more than 43 million women and 38 million men experienced psychological aggression by an intimate partner in their lifetime. Approximately 41% of female IPV survivors and 14% of male IPV survivors experience some form of physical injury related to IPV. It is important to acknowledge that IPV can extend beyond physical injury and result in death. Data from U.S. crime reports suggest that 16% (about 1 in 6) of homicide victims are killed by an intimate partner. IPV has been associated with many negative physical and mental health outcomes and health risk behaviors among women of all backgrounds. (Source : SAMHSA 2020)

Not your Problem? Think Again:

CDC.GOV

The costs of intimate partner rape, physical assault, and stalking exceed $5.8 billion each year, nearly $4.1 billion of which is for direct medical and mental health care services. The total costs of IPV also include nearly $0.9 billion in lost productivity from paid work and household chores for victims of nonfatal IPV and $0.9 billion in lifetime earnings lost by victims of IPV homicide. The largest proportion of the costs is derived from physical assault victimization because that type of IPV is the most prevalent. The largest component of IPV-related costs is health care, which accounts for more than two-thirds of the total costs.

CDC.GOV

Data about nonfatal IPV victimizations and resulting health care service use were collected through the National Violence Against Women Survey (NVAWS), funded by the National Institute of Justice and CDC. Based on NVAWS data, an estimated 5.3 million IPV victimizations occur among U.S. women ages 18 and older each year. This violence results in nearly 2.0 million injuries, more than 550,000 of which require medical attention. In addition, IPV victims also lose a total of nearly 8.0 million days of paid work—the equivalent of more than 32,000 full-time jobs—and nearly 5.6 million days of household productivity as a result of the violence.

toxic STIGMA

Police and prosecutors' domestic violence strategy puts burden on victims, not abusers By focusing on what survivors should or shouldn’t do, we're blaming them for their own abuse and placing the onus for justice on them. “Why do they stay?” That’s usually one of the first questions asked when someone in a romantic relationship is abused. The expectation is that the victim should immediately call the police, take out a restraining order and leave the abuser.But by focusing on the victims and what they should or shouldn’t do, we are essentially blaming them for their own abuse and placing the burden of a solution squarely on their already overburdened shoulders. (Rachel Teicher, director of Intimate Partner Violence Intervention programs at the National Network for Safe Communities)

FREE PASS

Instead, we should be asking: “Why should an abuse survivor be forced to give up their whole life, past and present, to be safe?” It’s currently National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and one of the best things we as a society can do to raise awareness is to become aware ourselves how our flawed thinking about this scourge — and the way that informs how we approach it — contributes to its perpetuation.And, in part, because engaging with law enforcement can be so stressful and traumatic, they often don’t call at all — in fact, less than half of intimate partner violence is reported to law enforcement. As a result, abusers often don’t fear consequences for their behavior, and the system unwittingly allows the violence to continue.(Rachel Teicher)

Root of Cycles

There’s a better way: When someone whose name we know is abusing someone else whose name we know, we should make the abuser stop.Research demonstrates that offenders are more likely to be deterred from offending behavior if they know they'll be held accountable, and research also shows that the best deterrent isn’t a harsh sentence, but the certainty that there will be any sanction at all. This “deterrent effect” has been studied for hundreds of years, with leading scholars concluding that the certainty of punishment is more consistent and convincing in stopping someone from committing a crime than the punishment itself. (RachelTeicher)

Part of the Problem

Victim blaming occurs when the victim of a crime or any wrongful act is held entirely or partially at fault for the harm that befell them. The study of victimology seeks to mitigate the prejudice against victims, and the perception that victims are in any way responsible for the actions of offenders. Why is it Dangerous? Victim-blaming attitudes marginalize the victim/survivor and make it harder to come forward and report the abuse. If the survivor knows that you or society blames her for the abuse, s/he will not feel safe or comfortable coming forward and talking to you. Any time someone defaults to questioning what a victim could have done differently to prevent a crime, he or she is participating, to some degree, in the culture of victim-blaming.

latest projects

NEWSLETTER

Jacob's Journey Inc. will begin producing a bi-weekly newsletter full of facts and important updates on the battle against Intimate Terrorism.

legislature

Our goal is to work with other organizations to upgrade and introduce new and more effective legistlation.

Artistic Fundraising

Presently in the making is a play and dancing musical to raise funds for overhead.

Legal System

We have begun the daunting task of networking with law enforcement to improve relations between the victim and meet desperate expectations.

Dana's Dream

'social misjudgments must end'

Dana Grace Butler

Passed away on July 15th, 2020. Her dream was that no woman, should ever have to endure as she found herself having to endure. Hers is a story of endless mistreatment by those who discovered her past of CSA, and those who mocked her suffering using her children as leverage. From intimate relationships to law enforcement to legal courts and grant supported programs, her story proves the system is failing- not the victims.

Dana Grace Butler, C0-Founder Jacob's Journey Inc. 1988-2020