Ray Rice domestic abuse brings societal problem to forefront

Watch above: NFL domestic abuse case highlights need for education

SASKATOON – The video of NFL star running back Ray Rice punching his now wife in an elevator unconscious has gone viral raising the on going issues of domestic abuse and violence against women.

“While we’re doing better at recognizing the issue of domestic violence, it’s something that still is hidden. People and particularly women who have experienced it, it’s not something they want to admit to,” said Barb Macpherson, executive director at the YWCA in Saskatoon.

According to the Canadian Women’s Foundation, over 40,000 arrests made each year in the country are connected to domestic violence. Only 22 per cent of all incidents are reported to police.

“It’s certainly very alarming and something that we do take very seriously not only do we try and investigate to the fullest extent possible, we made it one of our goals to try and prevent re-victimization because often we found that the crisis for the victim is not over,” said Kelsie Fraser, a spokesperson with Saskatoon Police Service.

Every day, over 3,300 women in Canada are forced to sleep in emergency shelters to escape domestic violence. The YWCA has 18 rooms and 38 beds; the need outweighs the supply.

“We are always full and I don’t like to use the term turned away, we are not able to accommodate at least as many women as we can accommodate every year so we have to try and work with them to find other solutions,” said Macpherson.

Emergency shelters are not long term solutions, most women end up right back in the abusive homes.

“It will often take six or seven times that they leave before they’re successful and there’s many reasons for that, often when they get here they come with nothing and they have no idea what to do,” said Macpherson.

In 2011, violence against women in Saskatchewan was almost double the national rate.

“It’s a number that we can be ashamed of and many of us are working hard to try and address,” said Macpherson.

If any good can come from a violent attack like the one involving Ray Rice and his now wife, it’s the awareness that it’s brought to the global forefront.

Domestic abuse cases don’t just affect the man and woman but the family. On average, every six days a woman in Canada is killed by her intimate partner.