Frederica Freyberg:
Across Wisconsin, a record number of people died as a result of domestic violence in 2024, according to an annual report released this month. End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin reports 110 victims in 2024, up from 85 the year before. 60% of the homicides happened in urban areas, 40% in rural and firearms were used in 71% of the deaths, with 78% of the perpetrators being men. What is causing the jump in domestic violence and what to do about it? We’re joined by Monique Minkens, executive director of End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin. And thanks so much for being here.

Monique Minkens:
Thank you for having me.

Frederica Freyberg:
Well, to that question, what is causing domestic violence to be on the rise?

Monique Minkens:
There are several reasons why. You know, any time there is an economic downturn, there is domestic violence because of life stressors. And so we know that we have been in this, I don’t know if you call it a recession or whatever, but food prices are rising. Prices are rising in general. Unemployment is rising, and that causes a lot of stress in a family. And so that can be a cause of the rise. Sometimes it’s also the fact that programs are underfunded, and we are trying to serve as many people as we can, and sometimes there are waitlists or people decide not to pursue the services. And so, it’s a matter of access to services as well as economics that play an important role in why these numbers are rising. This is the worst yet.

Frederica Freyberg:
Harkening back to our last segment in this program and affordable housing, how do housing needs play into domestic violence response?

Monique Minkens:
Housing is homicide prevention and the majority of homeless women and children are homeless due to domestic violence. And so we have to understand the role that it plays and how someone leaves and it’s almost a vow of poverty. And we have to serve each individual according to who they are, realizing that we have to have many options and that housing is expensive. And it’s hard to get in, and there are stricter requirements that can sometimes be difficult for people to find housing. Housing, like I said, is homicide prevention and people are safer in their home when it’s their home and they control who comes in and out.

Frederica Freyberg:
Your report notes that Black women are six times more likely to be killed than white women. What do you want to see in response to that, and would it mitigate this disparity?

Monique Minkens:
Black women are six times more likely nationally to die of homicide. In the state of Wisconsin, they are 20 times more likely to die of homicide in the state of Wisconsin. And that’s — there are several factors, right? Those are underserved populations. The police have a role for some people, but not for everyone. And we have to recognize that. We have to respect that and make sure that there are different methods of people accessing services and not making it tough or creating barriers or criticizing people for the way they do access those services. And so we have to look at all of these things and make sure that there is understanding of what it means to work with different populations and realize, once again, the police play a role, but not for everyone and for us to try and force people to work with the police is a tragedy, and it will not get us anywhere. We can’t arrest ourselves out of domestic violence. And for some people, that is not — that is not the — that’s not an option. And we have to honor that and work with them accordingly.

Frederica Freyberg:
What can be done to address root causes do you think?

Monique Minkens:
We have to consider all avenues of serving victims because people are individuals with different life experiences. And of course, we need more funding. I can’t stress that enough. People are losing. We have lost a lot of funding and we are seeing the results of that. We have a TA line and victims are starting to call our TA line when they can’t get services from their local programs, and we are able to connect them to other programs. And sometimes they want to know how can they be safe or — and are in need of moral support that we are giving them. And we are seeing a huge increase of calls from victims.

Frederica Freyberg:
We leave it there. Monique Minkens, thank you so much.

Monique Minkens:
Thank you.