Rates of domestic violence are on the rise under this pandemic, that according to the CEO for the Beausejour Family Crisis Centre.
Kristal Leblanc says when things were locked down a year ago, having to stay home was like a prison, “For these women, prison is their life every single day. It is just, they didn’t even have that one hour break when he went to work for her to be able to reach out for help and get ready to go to a shelter.”
Leblanc says when the pandemic began, it was eerily quiet at the shelters, but they had to brace themselves for a surge once the restrictions lifted, and women could go for help.
She adds the beds at the Family Crisis Centre are at full capacity now, as are the beds at most area shelters, “We have seen at least a 20 per cent increase for demand for services, and they are continually climbing.”
Leblanc says a lot of women have dealt with increasing violence in their household compared to pre-pandemic, “Men were threatening their partners to give them COVID-19, if they were to go to seek help. So, they were using the virus for power and control reasons as a threat much like they would threaten to harm the kids or threaten to remove the children or threaten to harm the children.”
She says there are warning signs, if you are a friend or family member, “Are you noticing that they are contacting you less or are you having a harder time seeing them? Are you having a harder time being in contact with that person? Are they justifying their partner’s behaviour? Are we seeing physical signs of violence? Are they developing chronic health conditions, mental health issues that aren’t explained by other factors?”
Leblanc adds, you may also notice they have missed time at work, or children are exhibiting fear responses, possibly because they have witnessed domestic violence.
