Violence Against Women Living with Disabilities in Canada (2013)
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Women living with disabilities experience disproportionately high rates of violence.
They face 45% of all reported incidents of violent crime against women in Canada. Yet, they only make up 14.9% of women in Canada.
Women living with disabilities are about 2 times more likely than other women to be:
- a victim of violent crime
- victimized in their own home
- sexually assaulted
- victimized multiple times
- emotionally, financially, physically, or sexually abused by a current or former partner
- sexually abused by an adult before age 15
- homeless (strict or hidden) at some point in their lives
Women living with disabilities who have experienced homelessness are 3 times more likely than other women to self-report violent victimization.
71% of women living with disabilities who have experienced intimate partner violence contact or use formal services These sobering and alarming statistics indicate:
1. Services for women experiencing violence must be accessible and responsive to the needs of women living with disabilities
2. Effective violence prevention must increase the safety and security of women living with disabilities
Source & Definitions: Cotter, Adam. 2018. Violent victimization of women with disabilities, 2014. Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics. Catalogue no. 85-002-X.
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