Dating violence includes:

PHYSICAL VIOLENCE:  Physical force or violent behavior used to maintain control over a person, injure or frighten a person, or to get what one wants. Examples include pushing, slapping, hitting, kicking, pinching, throwing, or using weapons to inflict harm. The threat of physical violence can also be considered abuse.

VERBAL ABUSE: Words used to intentionally hurt, demean, frighten, or threaten another person often the first stage of abuse in a violent dating relationship.

SEXUAL ABUSE:  Any unwanted behaviors or actions that are sexual in nature.  Forced sex, deliberate embarrassment during sex, sexual names, manipulation into having sex, physical threats to pressure someone into sex, or drug/alcohol use to impair someone’s judgment, are all examples of sexual abuse.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT: Any unwanted sexual pressure, verbal, visual, or physical in nature. Sexual harassment includes spreading sexual rumors, rude gestures or noises, inappropriate touching or rubbing and offensive comments about someone’s clothes or body. Sexual harassment can be common at work and school and is sometimes committed by someone who is in a position of power, such as a boos, teacher or professor.

STALKING: A pattern of repeated and unwanted attention, harassment, contact, or any other conduct that creates fear. Stalking includes repeated, unwanted, intrusive, and frightening communications by phone, mail, the internet and/or emails. This can include direct or indirect threats of harm, damage of property, spreading rumors, following someone or waiting for them at places like their home, school, or workplace. It also includes repeatedly leaving or sending unwanted items, notes, or gifts.

EMOTIONAL ABUSE: Words used to minimize someone’s feelings and put him/her down. Emotional abuse disregards the victim’s feeling’s, and instead instills beliefs of not being important or good enough. If your boyfriend/girlfriend makes you feel guilty, insecure, or afraid, it’s disrespectful and unhealthy.

ISOLATION: Forcing, quilting or pressuring someone to stop seeing friends and family or cut ties to their community. This can be heard in the statements like “If you love me, you would spend time with me.”

FINANCIAL ABUSE: When someone controls your financial decisions and behaviors without your consent, it is considered financial abuse. Examples include forcing someone to work or not work, taking someone’s paycheck, expecting unrealistic gifts, or one person making all or most of the financial decisions in the relationship.

DATE/ACQUAINTACE:  date rape is exactly as stated – a form of sexual violence occurring on a social outing or date.  It is also a common form of acquaintance rape. Both of these can be defined as being subjected to unwanted sexual intercourse, oral sex, anal sex, or any other sexual conduct through force, threats or coercion. There can be male or female victims of rape, although most reported cases of rape are against young women. Date rape is most often perpetrated by someone the victim knows, in a situation familiar to them (i.e., a friends house, their house, a party, etc.).