We’ve the annual complaint that women are being killed in droves by men – killed by their partners and isn’t this a gross indictment of a patriarchal society and no doubt it’s capitalism to blame. And the reality here is that men are more likely to be killed by a friend or partner than women are. So, perhaps the dolour should be to the other side? Or even that indictment of capitalism and patriarchy?
And the thing is, even though we’re never told this, this is in fact true too. Men are more likely to be murdered in the first place and so also more likely to be killed off by a friend or partner – by a killer known to them rather than some murder murder thing a la Whoopi Goldberg.
Three-quarters of women killed by men in the UK in 2017 knew the perpetrator, according to a report on femicide. The Femicide Census, conducted by Women’s Aid and the campaigner Karen Ingala Smith, found that of the 139 women known to have been killed by men in the UK last year, 105 (76%) knew their killer. Thirty women were killed by strangers, with 21 of the 30 killed in terrorist attacks. The report found that 64 of the women, or 46%, were killed by a current or former intimate partner. Another 24 (17%) were killed by a man known to them – such as a colleague, neighbour or friend – while 17 (12%) were killed by a male family member, of whom 10 were killed by their son. The perpetrator’s relationship to the victim could not be established in four cases.
And here’s where the actual statistics reside:
The Home Office Homicide Index showed there were 518 homicides (murder, manslaughter and infanticide) in the year ending March 2015 in England and Wales.
…
There were differences between males and females in the pattern of relationships between victims and suspects. Women were far more likely than men to be killed by partners/ex-partners (44% of female victims compared with 6% of male victims), and men were more likely than women to be killed by friends/ acquaintances (32% of male victims compared with 8% of female victims).
…
In the year ending March 2015, just under two-thirds of homicide victims were male (64%, 331 victims) and one-third were female (36%, 186 victims).
518 dead, 64% male, gives us 331 male victims, 186 (ignore rounding) women. 44% of women by partners, 82 incidences, only 20 for men. But friends, 106 for men, 15 for women. Leading to 126 male victims or partners or friends and 97 female.
Given roughly equal male/female split in the population therefore men are more likely to be killed by a friend or partner than women are.
Odd we don’t get told this more often, isn’t it?
Damn you and your facts!
In fact, I pointed this out a couple of weeks ago on one of your earlier posts. 😉
And evidently in Canada, boys are more likely than girls to be victims of date violence! It’s true, here is the study: https://www.studyfinds.org/boys-more-victimized-by-teen-dating-violence-than-girls-study-finds/
Not one of your best Tim
cos “acquaintances” is not synonymous with “friends”, the way you used in the title .
A man may know the people in the opposing gang , but they are not his friends.
And it is always best NOT to reduce full colour complex things to black and white
Killers include #1 strangers, #2 partners #3 friends and #4 other acquaintances.
Killed by strangers : Males 393 (80%), Females 89 (50%)
The “stranger danger” for women is much lower than men experience.
Second ideas
#1 Almost anything that splits the world in to men vs women is a false analogy, cos it’s not being M/F that causes the effect
eg in this case it’s not MEN who are at risk but rather illegal weapon carrying people and violent gang members
cos I bet almost all male deaths happen to them
So #2 for 50 million normal men and women those 518 probably reduce just 100
ie they have a 1 in half million chance each year..which is nothing.
You appear to be struggling with statistics there – you open the article commenting about women being killed by men (specifically the main concern is at the hands of male partners) but then neglect to mention the sex of the attacker in relation to your stats. Couple of points – I believe women are six times more like to be killed by a male partner than vice versa – you can try and hop around that subject as much as you like but men are killing there female partners in far larger numbers than women are killing their male partners.… Read more »