CATCH A STAR! TO CELEBRATE OUR 10th ANNIVERSARY! Domestic Violence Gets More Attention Sterling Berkley (810) 546-2590 Todd Hegler Birmingham (810) 646-8787 Norm Lining bank & trust Southfield (810) 355-9831 Charles Rollo West Bloomfield (810) 855-6644 Jeff Thompson "We create solutions." *S2,500 MINIMUM BALANCE REQUIRED. STATEMENT FEES MAY CHANGE IF BALANCE IS NOT MAINTAINED. "PENALTY FOR EARLY WITHDRAWAL. RATES MAY CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE. ANNUAL PERCENTAGE YIELD EFFECTIVE As OF JULY 22, 1994. WE SUPPORT NANCY ARLES * FOR OAKLAND COUNTY COMMISSIONER * Oakland County Commissioner, Lillian Jaffe-Oaks; Royal Oak Township Trustees; Congressman, Sandy Levin; State Representative, Maxine Berman; State Representative, David Gubow; Oak Park Mayor, Jerry Naftaly; Southfield Democratic Club Chairperson, Vince Gregory; Southfield School Board Member, Steve Kaplan VOTE AUGUST 2, 1994 * A Leader * A Listener * A Concerned Activist District 21 ( Southfield, Oak Park, Royal Oak Township) THE DETRO PAID FOR BY NANCY QUARLES for COUNTY COMMISSIONER COMMITTEE, HAROLD MONTGOMERY, Treasurer (810) 569-4130 112 Next time you feed your face, think about your heart. Go easy on your heart and start cutting back on foods that are high in saturated Lfat and cholesterol. The change'II do you good. U American Heart Association WE'RE FIGHTING FOR YOUR LIFE New York (JTA) — The thought of a Jewish man battering his wife often strikes the same cog- nitive dissonance as the idea of football hero O.J. Simpson stand- ing trial for the murder of his ex- wife. But in the wake of the much- publicized Simpson case, the vol- ume of calls to shelters and domestic violence agencies cater- ing to Jewish women has jumped, reflecting what experts say is the oft-denied truth that Jews are vic- tims of domestic violence as much as the population at large. The Family Violence Preven- tion Center in New York City has had 25 percent more calls to its hot line since the Simpson case started making headlines in mid- June, according to a spokesper- son. And the Family Violence Pro- ject of Los Angeles, part of the lo- cal Jewish Family Service, has seen the number of new calls for services nearly double, said Lynn Moriarty, director of the center. Despite ongoing efforts by com- munal agencies and religious movements to educate Jewish communities about the problem, experts say the perception that Jewish homes are untouched by domestic violence persists. Experts who work with abused women from a range of ethnic backgrounds say the patterns of intimidation, abuse and recon- ciliation in abusive relationships, and the need for control which drives the abuser, easily crosses cultural lines. What is different for a Jewish woman are the social forces with- in the Jewish community that af- fect when, and whether, she and her family receive help. Directors of shelters and social service programs around the country say that Judaism's em- phasis on family, and the notions of a "nice Jewish husband" and a "happy Jewish home" often lead battered women to hide or deny the abuse. Spousal abuse occurs in 10 per- cent to 20 percent of Jewish households, according to a 1983 study published in the Journal of Jewish Communal Service. So- cial workers and others who work with battered Jewish women say the rate leans more toward 20 percent, consistent with the na- tional average. The study also showed that un- like the population at large, Jew- ish women in higher socio-economic brackets may be more likely to be abused than poorer ones. Workers at shelters said it is not uncommon to have young Jewish professionals arrive at a shelter with nothing but their children and the clothes they are wearing. Because abusive spouses of- ten maintain complete control . over the family's finances, many women lack the financial re- sources to flee or fear a drastic drop in material lifestyle if they do. Nevertheless, abuse in the Jewish community crosses eco- nomic and denominational lines, with rich, poor, secular and reli- gious women all at significant risk of being battered by their spouses. There is also great fear among Jews of threatening the family's social position, or simply not be- ing believed because of a spouse's prominence in the community. In many cases, experts say, women's stories of abuse are not Most larger Jewish communities have task forces or social service agencies dedicated to the topic. believed, or she herself is blamed for "disrupting" the community or home. Others hide abuse from their doctors and therapists. While some look to the Jewish community for support services, others go to programs outside the community for fear of exposing their spouses — or themselves — to embarrassment. As a result of ongoing efforts within the Jewish community — most of it in the last 10-15 years — activists say that rabbis and lay leaders have become in- creasingly aware of the problem, and how to deal with it effective- ly. Most larger Jewish communi- ties have task forces or social ser- vice agencies dedicated to the topic, with referral and advocacy services, shelters, psychological treatment for batterers, hot lines, community education. Some of these groups receive partial funding from the Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services and from local Jewish federations, as well as from oth- er agencies, local and federal grants and private donations. Many service organizations and shelters grew out of grass- roots efforts begun in the 1970s.