Per one man in four there verbal and psychological violence are largely motivated by provocations and “incorrect” behavior by women. Economic violence is considered acceptable by one in three men. And it is for almost half of Millennial and Gen Z males. The majority (55%) of Millennials consider control over their partner legitimate, especially in case of betrayal or failure to take care of the house and children. Even the physical violence is justifiable for almost 2 out of 10 adult males. This is the picture that emerges from the research Because it doesn’t happen (ActionAid with the Pavia Observatory and B2Research), according to which violence is thus internalized and normalized in emotional and family relationships that many of its manifestations are reinterpreted by the male population as “understandable” reactions to conflicts or behaviors of women perceived as provocative.
Violence against women. From Boomers to Millennials, this is how men justify it
The survey tells about men of all ages. If the Boomers deny gender violence and do not know how to see its different forms, the younger oneswhile recognizing it, the legitimize. This means, as Katia Scannavini, Co-Secretary General ActionAid Italia explains, that when we talk about primary prevention (that which works on the root causes through education, the promotion of a culture of respect and the modification of attitudes and behaviors) we cannot stop at the necessary education in schools, we must «involve the people of all ages, with actions directed at all areas of daily life, because only a cultural change can stop male violence against women.”
Disparity and sexism in every area of life
In the family
Disparity and sexism cross every space and every role, social and private, that women experience. At home for example: 74% of women take care of housework alone, versus 40% of men, with even wider gaps among older generations (80% of Boomers and 83% of Gen X women). Even in parenting the load remains unbalanced: 41% of mothers take care of their sons and daughters alone, compared to just 10% of fathers.
In the cities
If you leave your private sphere you experience that public spaces are “human-scale”, cities are less accessible and safe for women: 52% of women have felt fear in public spaces (compared to 35% of men), a share that rises to 79% among the youngest and remains high even among Boomers (55%).
Only 13% of women believe public transport is always safe, while 40% think that a woman is only safe during the day and a quarter only if accompanied.
In the virtual world
In the virtual world, four out of ten women (40%) say they have had “often” or “sometimes” fear of receiving sexist reactions to their online content. Fear is highest among Gen Z girls (59.3%), while it drops to 29.1% among Boomers. Younger women, more present on social media, are more exposed both to attacks and to awareness of digital sexism.
Violence against women: how much we talk about it, how little we do
The paradoxical side of the issue is that violence against women is at the center of public debate. But they remain mostly empty words, ActionAid reports. Although the application of the gender mainstreaming – the gender perspective transversal to every policy – is indicated as one of the transversal priorities of the National Strategy for Gender Equality 2021-2026, this principle has never been implemented. The PNRR could have been a great opportunity: it wasn’t.
In fact, this year the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) highlighted how in Italy the institutional mechanisms that should promote gender equality are not effective: our country obtained a score of 41.1%, lower than the European Union average which is 50.8%.
The steps to change things
This is why ActionAid reiterates that the responsibility of transforming words into concrete policies concerns the entire Government and Parliament – without exception. The necessary steps are:
1) apply the gender perspective in all public policies;
2) put a ad hoc strategic and operational plan on primary prevention, with certain resources and measurable objectives.
A first commitment that ActionAid asks the Government is to act immediately by tying at least 40% of the funds of the current national anti-violence plan to primary prevention. In Spain, where more than 50% of funds are allocated to actions that promote gender equality, feminicides decreased by more than 30% from 2003 to 2024 and last year saw the lowest number of women killed since official data exist.