Meals on Wheels Volunteers & Other Elder Services Staff

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Rural Barriers
The lifestyles of rural victims make it especially difficult to escape from abusers or to use the services available to victims of domestic violence. Some of these obstacles include:

*Isolation*	• Neighbors may be far away and unavailable for assistance or to hear calls for help. • Running away may mean traveling dozens of miles on foot. • The batterer and other family members may the victim’s only social contacts. • Bad weather may keep the victim isolated if roads are bad or impassable. • Social outlets may be limited to bars and churches leaving victims with few opportunities to establish friendships on their own. • The nearest domestic violence shelter may be many miles away. • Social service providers may be few and far between.
*Communication*	• There may be no telephone in the home. • Phoning may require a long distance charge that the batterer is sure to see on the phone bill. • The victim may not speak English.
*Law Enforcement*	• The number of officers in rural areas is often small and their resources are limited. • If the same officer is summoned a number of times (which occurs often) they can become antagonistic toward “chronic cases”, especially if the victim doesn’t leave. • It may take an officer anywhere from 30 minutes to hours to reach the victim because of their isolated location. • May not have a 911 emergency system or enhanced 911 system. • Officers may have little or no education and training on domestic violence or legal rights issues. • Prosecutors and judges may lack knowledge of domestic violence and legal options. • Officers may view domestic violence as a personal problem rather than a crime. • Responding officers often know the perpetrator personally and are reluctant to arrest or prosecute them.
*Transportation*	• Many victims of domestic violence have no transportation of their own or do not drive. • Most rural areas have no public transportation making it difficult for victims to get to work or look for work. • Bad roads may be impassable during certain weather conditions. • Without the abuser, the victim may have no way to get to the grocery store, medical appointments, or social service offices.
*Social & Religious Values*	• Stigma of being divorced in a community that emphasizes marriage. • Community tolerance of spousal abuse. • Gossip and shame used to penalize the victim. • Victims may believe that it is their duty as a wife to remain in the marriage or as a parent to protect children by not reporting their abuse to authorities. • Divorce may be discouraged as morally unacceptable. • There may be a stigma attached to using welfare or food stamps - grocery clerks may be rude, laugh, or spread gossip. • Many religious beliefs include the idea that women must be subordinate to men. • Retaliation and ostracization from community members who are friends of the abuser.
*Community*	• Guns and weapons are commonly found in rural homes. • Lack of privacy when utilizing local services. • Leaving the abuser may require moving to a new community altogether. • Limited job opportunities with low pay for elders, especially women. • Few resources for local programs and social services. • Few housing opportunities or motels. • Few places in the community where the abuser could not locate the victim. • Local counselors may be uneducated on domestic violence issues and provide incorrect information. • Some victims may not speak English.