WHAT'S UP WITH WOMEN HITTING MEN IN ROMANCE NOVELS?

Yesterday,  Anna Cade from http://www.herdingcats-burningsoup.com/2017/02/things-I-hate-reading-in-romance.html#more  and I hung out at a couponing class and as usual, it was an adventure in funness.  But once we got serious for a minute, Anna schooled me on a recent trend in romance novels that I find alarming. We can probably think of plenty of scenarios that would make a woman angry, but what in the world would make it okay to resort to physical violence?

Without putting those authors on blast, Awesome Anna gave me at least six examples of authors who exhibited this content in a novel. What I found interesting is that the beta readers or editors let this type of behavior slip by without either noticing it, or giving it the green light.  Also, it's a crime.

Typically, I talk about domestic violence as it relates to women, because that's what people I know have experienced, but men are victims of domestic violence as well.  These numbers are from the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

Statistically, 20 people are physically abused by an intimate partner in the US annually, which is the frightening equivalent of more than 10 million men and women!

Statistically, 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men experience intimate partner physical violence, intimate partner sexual violence and/or stalking in their lifetime.

Statistically, 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men experience severe physical partner violence in their lifetime.

Statistically, 1 in 7 women and 1 in 18 men have been stalked by an intimate partner have felt fearful or believed someone close to them would be hurt  or even killed due to stalking.

Statistically in the US, 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men have been raped.

For every 3 reported cases of abuse, 2 will be women and 1 will be male as of 2014/2015.

Let's be honest, there are men out there who are being emotionally and physically abused and will never bother to report it because they are embarrassed, feel that no one will believe them, or are fearful they'll be considered weak.  They certainly don't want to go to court to accuse their attackers or go into shelters, and no these men are NOT weak. 

But it's happening, and being punched, slapped or hit with frying pans shouldn't be glorified in books or on television.  Being verbally assaulted and degraded is not okay either. Abuse is abuse and is still abuse. It's not cute or funny, and my goodness, it certainly is NOT romantic! These men are suffering in ways we can never imagine, and society forces them to remain silent.