Violence Against Women: New York vs. London
Women in New York City are in crisis. Why is no one calling it that?
By Carolyn Gevinski
The Big Ben in London (left) and One World Trade Center in New York City (right)
In February of this year, the UK declared violence against women a “national threat.”
“A woman is killed by a man every three days in the UK and one in four women will experience domestic violence in her lifetime,” said Reem Alsalem, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls on February 20, 2024.
Grassroots organizations focused on gender-based violence have become overwhelmed and reached a crisis point, according to Alsalem, who called violence against women and girls in the UK, “simply untenable.”
Around 121 women per year—or 1 woman every three days—is killed by an intimate partner in the UK. In the United States, around 1690 women, or 4 women per day, are killed by their intimate partner every year.
Proportional to the two country’s populations, women in the US are almost 3 times as likely to be killed by their intimate partners. The UK is taking tangible action to identify violence as a national threat.
As a Women’s and LGBTQ+ focused journalist and a New Yorker visiting London for the first time last week, one of the first motifs I noticed was the posters that peppered the walls of Tube stations (London’s subway system), with messages like, “MAKE SURE THEY’RE OK,” promoting step-by-step bystander intervention against sexual harassment.
The city’s anti-harassment campaign was launched in 2023 by the Transport for London in partnership with the Rail Delivery Group, British Transport Police, Metropolitan Police Service and City of London Police. Since the inauguration of the campaign, Transport for London has noted that reports of sexual offenses on the Tube have increased. The rise in recorded incidents has been accompanied by an increase in “bystander intervention” from passengers.
On the other hand, the New York subway system is infamously known for its dangers, including attackers who have slammed women into moving cars and pushed them onto the tracks. While the subway has friendly animated posters warning riders to stay off the tracks and avoid subway surfing, we do not have an equivalent of the Tube’s anti-harassment or anti-assault campaign targeting potential bystanders.
Upon exploring London’s pub scene, I was further impressed by their “Ask for Angela” posters on the back of every bathroom stall door, instructing women on how to discreetly ask for help when they feel unsafe on a night out.
“The scheme works by training staff in vulnerability management and what to do when someone Asks for Angela,” according to the not for profit’s website.
While “Ask for Angela” is not a governmental campaign, the organization was founded by Hayley Crawford, District Commander for Bassetlaw (Nottinghamshire Police), when she was working as the Sexual Violence (Prevention) Lead for Lincolnshire County Council. The campaign has been adopted nationwide in the UK.
The United States does not have a nationally recognized equivalent of “Ask for Angela.” Nor does New York City on its own. Some US bar owners have attempted to recreate “Ask for Angela,” by urging women to ask for an “angel shot,” but this tactic is not widespread or nationally recognized.
The formidable data combined with these individual observations points to an unreported national crisis in the US. So why is it that gender-based violence in cities like New York remains such a taboo and neglected subject?
Intimate partner homicides in Brooklyn increased by 225%, from 4 in 2021 to 13 in 2022. The vast majority of homicides occurred in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens. Intimate partner homicides in Brooklyn rose another 38.5% from 13 in 2022 to 18 in 2023.
Although intimate partner homicides continue to rise in Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island, city expense reports show that Manhattan, the borough with the least homicides, received the most funding (56% of total appropriations) for domestic violence initiatives in 2023. Brooklyn only received 22.5%, and the Bronx and Queens combined received 16.5%.
The communities that face the brunt of domestic and intimate partner violence are severely underfunded, prompting grassroots organizations to shoulder the burden of anti-violence campaigning and crisis intervention.
“The lack of adequate investment in prevention programs and the underreporting of abuse due to fear or stigma play significant roles in the increasing rates of IPV,” said Teal Inzunza, Associate Vice President of Justice Initiatives with Urban Resource Institute, the largest provider of domestic violence shelter services in the U.S.
Domestic violence is the single largest driver of homelessness after eviction. The Supreme Court’s recent decision ruling that “camping ban” laws restricting unhoused individuals from sleeping on public property are not prohibited by the Eighth Amendment has further isolated victims of violence and promoted widespread distrust in law enforcement and flimsy reporting mechanisms.
“These women and children are not guilty of any crime,” the Urban Resource Institute wrote in a press release following the ruling. “Homelessness is not a crime or a moral failure; it is a policy failure.”
The first step in fixing a crisis is admitting that a crisis is occurring—but self-awareness and accountability have never been a strong suit of the US government. On a local level at the very least, it is time for New York City to declare violence against women a city-wide threat.
In New York, local organizations and nonprofits are among the most efficient options for victims seeking help. Please see below for a list of hotlines and resources.
Local and National Intimate Partner Violence Resources:
NYC's 24-hour Domestic Violence Hotline (Línea directa de violencia doméstica de Nueva York las 24 horas): 800-621-4673; TTY: 866-604-5350
NYS Domestic and Sexual Violence Hotline: 844-997-2121.
New York State Adult Domestic Violence Hotline (habla español): 800-942-6908
Womankind (formerly New York Asian Women’s Center) Multilingual Hotline: 888-888-7702
Urban Resource Institute Crime Victim Services: CVSPinfo@urinyc.org
Email We all Really Matter with subject line “I need Help”: contactwarminharlem@gmail.com
National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673
Carolyn Gevinski is a co-founder and co-editor-in-chief at Grassroots. She can be reached at carolyn@grassrootsmagazinenyc.com