Domestic violence is a real and serious matter. Millions of women are battered and bruised everyday. The absolute sad part about domestic violence is the majority of the time it is commited by a spouse, family member, or someone the victim is dating. But, why is it that men feel the need to lay their hands on women as opposed to a member of the same gender?

I personally knew a young lady who was being physically abused by her boyfriend. He was either 6’2 or 6’3, 240 pounds with hands the size of a dictionary. She was about 5’10, weighing 120 pounds. He was a violent person as is, but especially when he had alcohol in his system. Could you imagine the impact of a punch like that to the face?

Me either until I saw the evidence. I saw her walking to or from class one day and stopped to have a casual conversation. It wasn’t two minutes into the conversation when she coughed and grabbed her stomach. I thought nothing of it at first because I knew she exercised frequently and I figured she was just sore. Little did I know she had had been punched in the stomach during one of his drunken rants. This was just one of many times to come. The tears this woman had shed for this man who was supposed to love her ate at my soul. Why did it eat at my soul? Through her pain and scaring, she still found it in her heart to love him. It’s a blessing she got out the relationship when she did, because she wouldn’t have gotten out alive had she stayed with him.

To me a relationship is supposed to be something you build on in order to move to the next step. In most cases domestic violence is just as common in a relationship as well as a marrige. The domestic violence in marrige is a lot more shocking. You stood at an alter and promised to love and cherish the person that stood in front of you and promised the same thing, and yet you hit them. The love and feelings you have for that person must be very strong. The feelings are so strong, it knocks them off their feet.

When these women beaters are confronted about their brutal actions by other men, they become speechless. Honestly they are lucky to be confronted on the outside rather than the inside. Men in the jail system do not take heed to men who harm children or women. A man who is in jail for domestic violence has just as much chance of dying in jail as a man who has harmed a child. Not only is domestic violence brutal but it is sad. Domestic violence is like a stain on a relationship. It can happen but when that stain has set for a while, it is hard to be removed. How can you call yourself a man if you harm a woman?

A man protects a woman from harm. It’s easy to say you love someone, but actions speak louder than words. If you hit a woman, who is going to protect her from you?