Over the weekend, thousands of women took to social media, posting the words βme tooβ in solidarity with victims of sexual abuse and harassment in Hollywood.
βRight now, weβre on the front pages with this issue,β Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild said Wednesday morning, as representatives from public-safety agencies across Pima County gathered to recognize what they called an epidemic of domestic violence.
βWhatβs been more important is the response to whatβs been on the front page, which is so many women coming forward to talk about the harassment and assault theyβve experienced, wherever they work and wherever they live,β the mayor said.
But what struck Rothschild most about the issue was how the narrative focused on the number of people who have been raped or abused, rather than the number of people who have been the perpetrators of rape and abuse.
βWe need to ask the same question of domestic violence: Why do we speak in terms of the number of victims rather than the number of abusers?β Rothschild asked.
βWe need, as a society, to speak about the problem a different way. A way that places the responsibility squarely where it belongs: On the perpetrators.β
On an average day in Pima County, 16 new domestic violence victims seek help from Emerge! Center Against Domestic Abuse, said the agencyβs CEO, Ed Mercurio-Sakwa.
βItβs the 30th anniversary of domestic violence awareness month, and while thatβs something to celebrate that for three decades weβve been working hard to raise awareness about this issue, it also speaks to the fact that decades and decades later, weβre still talking about this issue,β Mercurio-Sakwa said. βWhile we know that this is a slow process ... if we have many more decades of this celebration, honestly I feel like weβve failed.β
Each year, local law enforcement responds to 15,000 calls related to domestic violence and 6,000 victims and children enter the shelter, Mercurio-Sakwa said.
βWe cannot allow time to continue to click away as this happens,β he said.
Law enforcementβs role in serving domestic violence victims is critical, but itβs not just that they respond to 911 calls, Mercurio-Sakwa said.
βHow you choose to respond is critical. That is what can make the difference as to whether a victim decides that itβs safe to continue to ask for help,β he said. βWhether taking that very real, physical risk of asking for help is the smart thing to do at the moment.β
With representatives from the Pima County Sheriffβs Department and the Tucson, Marana, Oro Valley and University of Arizona police department standing by, Mercurio-Sakwa thanked the departments for their work and asked them to continue to respond with the same level of care and concern.
βDomestic violence touches every gender, every socioeconomic class and it erodes the quality of life in our community for so many,β said Pima County Sheriff Mark Napier.
βVictims of domestic violence need to realize that law enforcement passionately cares about this crime and weβre committed to eradicating and discouraging domestic violence in our community.β
To date, the Sheriffβs Department has responded to 3,000 domestic violence calls this year, Napier said.
Over the past 30 years, the way domestic violence is viewed and handled by law enforcement and the Legislature has changed significantly, said Pima County Attorney Barbara LaWall.
Law enforcers now understand that in domestic violence, there is always an element of control held by the abuser over the victim, and training has changed as a result.
βThese are things that are progressive that have improved the way we deal with domestic violence, but thereβs still a long road ahead,β LaWall said. βThis is an issue that weβre dealing with right now today in this country.
The situation has to change, she said.
βWeβre working on them, theyβre incremental changes, but we need to move ahead faster,β she said.
βWe need to give out the message to the community that if you are abusive, if youβre guilty of this crime, we will hold you accountable.β
The Tucson Police Department is on track to have 9,500 cases of domestic violence investigated this year, said Assistant Chief Carla Johnson.
βThereβs something about our society that sends the message that it must be OK on some level to do this, and itβs not,β Johnson said. βWe need to send a stronger message.β
In 2017, TPD added a sergeant and three detectives to the domestic violence unit, but itβs still not enough, Johnson said.
Part of the problem is the idea that domestic violence is a private matter, and oftentimes friends and neighbors may not come forward when they suspect abuse, Mercurio-Sakwa said.
βThis issue thrives in silence because people believe itβs a private matter. That culture has led to many deaths in our community,β he said.
βWhen youβre talking about 15,000 911 calls a year ... that isnβt a private matter. Thatβs a public safety and a public health issue.β
When the culture shifts so that people understand that everyone has a responsibility to end domestic violence by changing whatβs viewed as acceptable, people will start speaking out, Mercurio-Sakwa said.
As of now, only one in 10 instances of domestic violence gets reported to police, Mercurio-Sakwa said.
βThereβs something about the way we speak about domestic violence that gets people thinking about the victim, and what the victim could have done and should have done differently, and that is totally wrong,β Rothschild said.
βThe only legitimate question is what the perpetrator could have or should have done differently, and the answer to that is not to commit the abuse.β
