13th-April-2008
|
 | Men's rights activist | | | |
Men's Rights Group: Victim Support Only For Women | |
From 2005: Quote:
A men's rights group claims the domestic violence system is skewed toward women.
Today, a lawsuit was filed in Sacramento court, claiming that male victims don't get the same help as female victims.
"I remember going to phone 911, saying get here now, I'm going to kill him!" said Ruth Woods.
They fought all the time, often over money. Things sometimes got violent.
"I do it. I do hit. I do slap," said Ruth.
"She reaches a point when she's angry, you look in her eyes, there's no one there," said Ruth's husband, David Woods.
Ruth's longtime husband, David, says he's a former bouncer who didn't want to hit back.
"If I hit her, I could kill her," said David.
But David claims when he went to local agencies for help, for shelter, he got nowhere.
"I was told women are not the perpetrators, they are the victims," said David.
Now, a lawsuit has been filed, claiming that men are treated unfairly. According to the suit, state law even excludes male victims from domestic violence help. The health and safety code section will pay for things like housing, hotel rooms and counseling--but only for women and not men.
David insists he tried to get help from the group WEAVE--Women Escaping A Violent Environment--but was turned down.
"I was told no by weave four times," said David.
WEAVE could not comment on the suit, neither could the state; they haven't seen it yet. But WEAVE is adamant they help men, too.
"We do provide shelter services," said Michelle Coleman, WEAVE director of crisis services. "At WEAVE we provide services to everyone."
Tell that to David, who believes that help for men is pretty scarce. In fact, even his wife believes that and his daughter too. They all think when it comes to domestic violence the deck is stacked in favor of women.
"If a man takes it, he's a pansy, a sissy. If he defends himself, he's an abuser. He just should be put in jail," said David.
"It's a slap in the face to my gender. What is this, animal farm?" asked Maegan Black, David and Ruth's daughter.
WEAVE insists men do get help, but fewer men ask for it than women do.
| Men's Rights Group: Victim Support Only For Women |
|
|
