Last Saturday marked an unprecedented moment for women across the United States and across the world when estimates near three million men and women marched through Washington D.C. and dozens of cities across the states and throughout the world to acknowledge the problem of sexual assaults and sexual abuse on women.

Sexual abuse is a problem in the United States and throughout the world, as is domestic violence; in many cases, the two are intrinsically linked. Domestic violence can take many forms – in addition to sexual assault, physical assault or the threat of physical assault, emotional abuse such name-calling, constant ridicule and criticism to deflate or invalidate a victim; economical abuse such as controlling all of a person’s finances as well as a family’s finances and using it as a ploy against the victim; psychological abuse which could include the threat of violence towards the victim or even towards children, pets, or other family members; and stalking and cyberstalking.

All forms of domestic abuse are serious crimes and can lead to serious and long-term or even life-long damage to a victim. Even being in the presence of a domestic violence incident, especially for a child, can be traumatizing and damaging for the person’s psyche and could lead to life-long issues for children who witness the domestic violence.

Thankfully, family law courts are well aware of the damages that can be caused by domestic abuse, and will always take such incidents and reports seriously while making any and all decisions regarding a divorce, especially child custody. No one should have to live with domestic violence, and no child should ever have to experience it in his or her home.

Source: FindLaw, “What is Domestic Violence?” Accessed on Jan. 30, 2017