West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence

PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

Domestic Violence always has to do with a pattern of power and control in a relationship. Click here to go to a page with an overview about domestic violence. Then see below for information about how domestic violence happens in the lives of people with disabilities.

Who are people with disabilities?
People with disabilities are diverse and prevalent in West Virginia. According to the 1990 U.S. Census Bureau, approximately 35% of the population in West Virginia has a disability. West Virginia has the highest percentage of people with disabilities in the nation. Disabilities can include mobility impairments, sensory impairments, cognitive impairments and mental illness. Some disabilities are more visible than others.

Defining domestic violence for people with disabilities.
People with disabilities may experience domestic violence in ways that differ from people without disabilities. That is, they experience a pattern of behaviors used to exert power and control by someone with whom they have a relationship. However, the behaviors used to exercise that power and control and the types of relationships may not be easily characterized as domestic violence. For example, people with disabilities may have caregivers, paid and unpaid, with whom they have developed a personal relationship. If these caregivers are family members or significant others, the relationship is more than caregiver and care receiver. When this relationship includes behaviors such as withholding medical treatment, denying personal care, denying access to information that will help increase independence, rough handling when providing care, not allowing the person to make decisions, and other forms of emotional and physical abuse - this relationship is abusive. Many people with disabilities are conditioned to believe that part of having a disability is having to endure certain abuses. "It's the price you have to pay for care" is a common myth believed by some people with disabilities.

Barriers to seeking services for victims of domestic violence with disabilities.
People with disabilities who experience domestic violence may also experience additional barriers when seeking helping services. These barriers include the following:

Consequences of reporting domestic violence for a victim who is a person with a disability includes all of those faced by a victim without a disability and may also include:
They may lose their primary caretaker;
They may be at greater risk for loss of children (people with disabilities are often viewed as having less adequate parenting skills);
Their credibility may be questioned which may result in denial of services;
They may lose their basic decision-making rights (a person with a disability may be viewed as unable to make decisions apart from their abusive partner, relative or caretaker);
They may experience an increased risk of being institutionalized (especially if the primary caretaker is the abuser and no other caretaker is available);
They are more vulnerable to threats by the abuser.

Consequences of not reporting can include some of the same risks as above and mean that a victim remains in the abusive situation. If the abuse is not reported, there is no opportunity to stop the abuse and, therefore, there is a greater likelihood that the abuse will be perpetuated in the present and future generations of the family and the community.

Lack of knowledge about services. Public awareness information is generally not distributed or available in alternative formats (Braille, disk, large print and audio tape) necessary for some people with disabilities. In addition, the available information generally does not define domestic violence in ways that people with disabilities can relate to.
Domestic violence is often invisible in the lives of people with disabilities. People with disabilities do not relate to public awareness education because it is not distributed in formats needed or in places where people with disabilities will access it. Additionally, the general public does not consider that domestic violence happens to people with disabilities. Although not much research has been done on victims of domestic violence with disabilities, some research has shown that regardless of age, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or class, women with disabilities are assaulted, raped and abused at a rate more than two times greater than are non-disabled women. Yet, these crimes are less likely to be reported and usually are handled administratively, within service programs, rather than through the criminal justice system.
People with disabilities often lack accessible services. This "lack of services" is due to limited resources, lack of transportation (especially in rural communities), policies, laws and funding sources that limit services, and competition for limited resources. Although the Americans with Disabilities Act has provided mandates to accommodate the needs of people with disabilities, West Virginia is a rural state with limited economic resources and in many communities, these accommodations have not been made.
People with disabilities are perceived as less credible and are not empowered to live independently. People both communicate and attain their independence in a variety of ways. People with disabilities are often stripped of their basic right to make decisions for themselves by those in positions of authority (judges, social service agencies and law enforcement). A person with a disability is less likely than a person without a disability to be believed when they identify as a victim of domestic violence. Some (especially those with cognitive disabilities and mental illness) have been denied the right to file for a civil protection order. People are empowered when they are believed, when they have the right to self-determination (to make their own choices and decisions), and when they trust the system.
Systems and service providers often lack sensitivity, knowledge, and understanding about the diversity of needs of people with disabilities. Not all people with disabilities have the same needs. People with cognitive disorders have different needs than people with mobility impairments. Each person is unique. All people self-identify with multiple cultural, social, economic, educational and age classifications. Service providers are often unaware of how to meet the needs of people with disabilities and often lack the economic and human resources to meet those needs.
There is a misconception that domestic violence against people with disabilities is expected and is, at times, justified. Some view people with disabilities as difficult to care for and believe that harsh, abusive treatment is necessary to manage them. The phrase "caregiver stress" has perpetuated the myth that stress precipitated by caring for a difficult family member somehow excuses abusive behaviors and relieves the perpetrator of responsibility and consequences.
Victims with disabilities are more likely than victims without disabilities to be blamed for the abuse they receive. Victims of domestic violence are often blamed and held responsible for the abuse they suffer. When the victim is a person with a disability, he or she is often viewed as more responsible because their disability makes them more difficult to care for and/or live with.

What can I do?

If you are a person with a disability, talk with your local domestic violence program to learn more about how to get involved. People with disabilities often turn to someone who has characteristics similar to theirs when seeking help. You may be in a position to change a life!
Initiate steps within the community to involve people with disabilities in efforts to end domestic violence.
Learn more about people with disabilities: how they maintain independent lifestyles, their role as parents and how to accommodate a variety of communication needs. Your local independent living center can provide a vast amount of information about services and resources for people with disabilities in your community.

Although domestic violence crosses all racial, social, economic, educational, ability and age boundaries, the way each victim experiences domestic violence is very much connected with those boundaries.

Click here to reach a page with information about the dynamics of power and control. Then see the following for ways in which people with disabilities may be dealing with an abuser.

If a victim has a disability, the batterer may use additional tactics of control, including:

Coercion and Threats: Threatening to withhold basic support and rights; terminating the relationship and leaving the person unattended; reporting noncompliance with their program providing care; institutionalizing the person.
Intimidation: Mistreating service animals; providing personal care in a way that is frightening.
Emotional/Verbal: Focusing verbal abuse on impairment; denying a person the right to make decisions; refusing to speak or ignoring requests.
Isolation: Limiting employment possibilities due to caregiver schedule; discouraging or preventing contact with a case manager or advocate; denying use of assistive equipment or life skills adaptations that facilitate independence.
Minimize, Justify and Blame: Excusing abuse as behavior management or caregiver stress (often accepted by professional helpers); blaming the disability for the abuse.
Using Children: Threatening to take the children and using the disability as evidence of inability to care for children (in custody proceedings and with threats to call child protective services).
Using Caregiver Privilege: Providing care in a way that accentuates the person's dependence and vulnerability; ignoring, discouraging or prohibiting the exercise of full capabilities; dominating treatment decisions by speaking for the person with the disability and intercepting communications from case workers and other potential helpers.
Economic Abuse: Using a person's money or property without their permission; using power of attorney and/or payee status as a means to withhold and/or misuse resources.
Physical Abuse: Inappropriate handling; over-use of restraints; over-medicating; inappropriate behavior modification; using medication to sedate a person for convenience.
Neglect: Denying food, clothing, shelter; withholding medications, assistive equipment or personal/medical care; withdrawing care or equipment to immobilize the person or leaving the person alone without a way to call for help.
Sexual: Forcing someone to have an abortion or to be sterilized.

Help is available! Many domestic violence programs have taken steps to offer services for people with disabilities. If you are in an abusive relationship, remember: Abuse is not the price you have to pay for care.

Even if you are not able or willing to leave your current situation, domestic violence advocates are on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week; they can help you explore your options and will help you find a solution if you are in need. You do NOT have to stay in an emergency shelter to receive services from the licensed programs in West Virginia.

If you are in an emergency situation, call 911!