I've never talked with a woman about Violence Against Women without hearing that it is a serious social problem. In fact, many women I've talked to think that this is the serious social problem and that men don't take it seriously at all. I find it typical of female reasoning that the one kind of violence to which we've given a special name and special attention is somehow not being taken seriously. I have news for any woman who thinks that Violence Against Women isn't taken seriously: women are one of the only two groups for which society has a special concern when it comes to violence; the other group is children.
Of course, we as a society do care about other kinds of violence, but all of the other kinds we care about are defined by how or where the violence happens, not who the victims are. For example, "gang violence," "school violence," or "drive-by shootings" are all kinds of violence that capture society's interest. However, only "violence against women," and "child abuse" are special kinds of violence that are defined by who the victim is.
There are other kinds of violence that have no names. I've seen plenty of these kinds of violence in my life, most of it on the movie screen. However, I've also seen it live. Some of it was sickening; some of it most people wouldn't even call violence; most of it was ignored.
What amazes me is that when talking to other people about these unnamed kinds of violence I don't get much interest registering. There's the usual talk about how the city isn't as safe as it once was (with the implication, spoken or unspoken, that the problem is that the city isn't as safe for women as it once was), or vague noises about "the crime problem," but no particular concern for the individuals who are on the receiving end of this violence.
