Calls are down to women's shelters during the pandemic, but it's not good news
'There’s no reason to believe that there’s less violence happening'
We have been hearing a consistent message during the pandemic: "Stay at home, and stay safe." But what if home is not a safe place?
Statistics Canada reports that about every six days, a woman in Canada is killed by someone she knew intimately. About a third of all police-reported violence happens between intimate partners. Thousands more assaults are never reported.
These realities have not changed during the lockdown, but a great deal has changed in women's shelters across the country. They are adapting their space to meet the requirements for physical distancing, and have seen a shift in the number of women who are seeking shelter.
"It's been strange. Since the outbreak of COVID and all the changes with social distancing, things have definitely quieted down a bit. We're not seeing as many calls," said Stephanie Taylor, executive director of Regina Transition House. "Fewer women have the ability to get away from a violent or abusive partner, a controlling partner, to make these phone calls, to even plan an escape if they need to get out."
Regina Transition House has been a safe harbour for women for more than four decades, and about 90 per cent of the people they help are Indigenous. Saskatchewan has the highest per capita rate of domestic violence in Canada, and Indigenous women are over-represented in shelters across the country.
"There's no reason to believe that there's less violence happening. In fact, everything we know about family violence tells us that there's probably more violence going on because of the stress people are under," Taylor said.
Here is her audio postcard, describing life on the edge of COVID-19, and offering guidance, both for potential abusers, and for those who are concerned a neighbour may be a victim of domestic violence.
Click 'listen' above to hear the full story.
