Teen Dating Violence
Anonymous
The month of February has been set aside as teen dating violence awareness month, and Hudson High School has been doing its best to spread around the dangers and prevalence of dating violence in our youth. Most consider dating violence in our youth to be a one way street: men beating their girlfriends. The fact of the matter is that abuse can take many different forms. Sexual coercion and verbal abuse are real dangers that teen males face every day.
According to an American Psychological Association study, “Of 284 U.S. high school and college students who responded to a survey about unwanted sexual encounters, 18 percent reported sexual coercion by physical force; 31 percent said they were verbally coerced; 26 percent described unwanted seduction by sexual behaviors; and 7 percent said they were compelled after being given alcohol or drugs.” 13.4% of the respondents were male high school students who have been physically or sexually abused by their partner. Many of these young men are victims of sexual coercion. Sexual coercion is when one partner will say or do things that pressure them into doing things they are not comfortable with. We must do whatever we can to stop teens from being extorted into committing acts that they are not comfortable with. This is one of the biggest threats against young men in relationships.
One of the other ways that teen males are abused is verbally. Lots of young women control their boyfriends by undermining and insulting them. When someone only hears negative things about themselves, they will begin to believe it. Often times verbal abuse will reinforce the ideas that the abused are worthless, useless, or not as good as their significant other in an effort to make them believe that they can only be happy with the abuser. These ideas and tactics are capable of real damage. Even when that young man does build up the courage to leave his girlfriend, the damage is done. Verbal abuse can instill insecure thoughts that last for years, and can influence those victims in future relationships.
Dating violence is a serious issue that demands our attention. Not all victims are women. It’s time that we as a society shed a light on the problem of teen dating violence not only against young women, but among young men as well. According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 57% of teens know someone who has been physically, sexually, or verbally abused in a dating relationship. If you know someone who has been abused or you yourself have been abused, then call the National Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), or go online to DomesticShelters.org.
Additional settings for Safari Browser.
