Finally, while I've used the most common scenario of male-on-female violence in this article, we should recognize that abuse crosses all barriers and can impact anyone regardless of gender, sexuality, ethnicity, nationality, religious affiliation, age, or socio-economic level. And we should stop assuming these situations will get better in time.
Personally, I haven't heard of one abusive relationship that became healthier. Not one. Not with therapy. Not with church. Not with prayer or forgiveness or complete surrender. When an abuser is determined to destroy his target, he will not stop until that target is erased from this world or stripped from her life.
And in many cases, he'll walk away without any consequences, often taking the target's finances, home, vehicle, reputation, or even her children with him.
Please don't let the next statistic be you or someone you love. For support, contact the Domestic Violence Hotline. From a safe phone, call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or text "START" to 88788.
Julie offers us words of wisdom from someone who has been there. Heed them. How? A good start would be to begin to teach our children how to avoid the gender traps inherent in toxic patriarchy.
Young Gabby Petito's story has within it a wealth of clues and insights, let's honor her life by acting on the treasures of wisdom that her story offers us.
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