Interpersonal and community violence is always wrong

The argument

Abuse in relationships can be hard to recognize as it can be often subtle and manipulative, but repetitive. Some red flags of emotional abuse are name-calling, lack of empathy, and gaslighting, which can eventually lead to physical violence. Abuse between partners can also include sexual assault, refusal to use protection, and sharing private photos without consent. Domestic violence leads to low birth weight and premature birth of a baby, an increased rate of sexually transmitted diseases, and mental health damage. Globally, 38% of women are murdered by their parents; the equivalent for men is 6%. The WHO estimates that in England and Wales, there are two million victims a year of domestic violence. In the United States, more than 15 million children have experienced violence in their community. These children are at a greater risk of repeating the same cycles as adults by entering into abusive relationships or becoming abusive parents. Children who witness or are victims of violence are at greater risk of having low self-esteem, depression, and anxiety disorders. Violence within the community is wrong because it leads to a never-ending cycle of abuse, if not treated. There are no exceptions to why such violence should be inflicted in the first place.

Premises

Counter-arguments

Violence against children is good for disciplining them. It teaches them endurance and how to avoid making the same mistakes again. Parents and school teachers often employ violence as it is believed that it results in positive discipline.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1] Not disputed, and the evidence is stronger than the argument's own presentation of it. The global figure in the body is garbled — the WHO finding is that roughly 38 per cent of murders of women are committed by an intimate partner, against about 6 per cent of murders of men, not that 38 per cent of women are murdered by their parents — and a claim this serious is weakened by carrying an error of that size. [Rejecting P2] The cycle is a tendency observed across populations, not an outcome. Most people who witness violence in childhood do not go on to inflict it, and protective factors are well documented: a stable adult, treatment, secure housing, income. Stating it as a never-ending cycle overstates the evidence and, incidentally, writes off the people it describes. [Rejecting P3] This is where the argument moves faster than its premises allow. That an act causes serious harm establishes a strong presumption against it, not that it is wrong in every instance. The standard objections concern force used to stop an assault in progress, defence of another person, and action against an immediate threat — and the argument's own category of interpersonal violence includes someone fighting off an attacker. A conclusion of "always" needs an answer to those cases, and none is offered.