Percurso de cuidado de mulheres em situação de vulnerabilidade social e violência doméstica

Abstract

Violence against women is not a phenomenon of our time and affects women from different social classes, races, and ethnicities. However, those in situations of social vulnerability are more fragile in facing it. This research aims to understand the care pathways of women in situations of social vulnerability and domestic violence, seeking to comprehend the unique expression of domestic violence in this context from the perspective of the women themselves, in a municipality in the interior of the state of Tocantins, Brazil. This study is classified as field research, and the research instruments used were semi-structured interviews with two women in situations of domestic violence and a focus group with women living in a vulnerable social environment. The data were analyzed from a historical perspective, with a critical view of legislation and technical guidelines regarding violence against women. Upon completing this research, we conclude that despite the enactment of the Maria da Penha Law, an important achievement of the feminist movement, women in situations of social vulnerability who suffer violence do not feel protected or supported by the state. Despite the existence of public policies and their role in combating violence, many women do not seek public services, and when they do, they report inadequate assistance, leading them to adopt other care pathways, such as seeking protection through family members and neighbors. We found that there is still a long way to go in ensuring the effectiveness of women's rights, considering that such guarantees require social commitment to a radical transformation of reality. Our fight should be for the emancipation of women, and the path forward is the strengthening of the feminist movement.