Protection Order Use Among Immigrant Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence: Research and Policy Implications

Introduction: Intimate partner violence (IPV) affects up to 1/3 of U.S. women, and immigrant women are at increased risk for violence and homicide (Black et al., 2011). Protection orders are one option for increasing women’s safety (Logan & Walker, 2008), but accessing resources such as these may be problematic for undocumented Latinas (Menjívar & Salcido 2002). The purpose of this mixed methods study is to examine the barriers to seeking an order of protection that non-citizen Latinas face.

Methods: Quantitative data were collected using a cross-sectional survey (n=195) and qualitative data were collected using semi-structured, face-to-face interviews (n=12). For the survey, a convenience sample of Latina survivors, including 82 (42%) non-citizens, was recruited from ten shelters in the southwestern U.S. Interviews with Spanish-speaking survivors more fully explore quantitative findings and assist in understanding the circumstances around women’s decisions to/not to seek a protection order.

Results: Non-citizen Latinas were less likely to know what a protection order was (X²=14.89, p<.01) or how to obtain one (X²=8.85, p<.01). In interviews, Latina women reported that they learned about orders of protection at shelter and that they need more information about resources available to them in the community: “Many of us women wouldn’t stay in these situations if we knew we had somewhere to go or someone to protect me. [We need] more information especially if we are undocumented and we already feel that the police is not going to listen to us.” Non-citizen survivors in shelter, however, are more likely to have a protection order (X²=6.28, p<.05) and to believe that their partner would follow it (X²=24.65, p<.01). Latina survivors noted feeling protected and often for the first time empowered against their abuser: “I wanted to get [the protection order] because he used to scare me, but now I feel better… the fear leaves me.” Although non-citizens were more likely to believe that police would arrest their partner for a violation of the order(X²=12.47, p<.01), in qualitative interviews they reported previous experiences of feeling victimized by the police because they “just spoke to him [abuser] and that was it” and never provided survivors with options for leaving, shelter information, or community resources for organizations specific to their language/immigration needs.   

Conclusion: Recent changes to immigration laws in Arizona and the increased enforcement of those laws have created a climate of fear among immigrant victim-survivors of IPV, and documentation status may pose an additional barrier to seeking a protection order or other forms of legal assistance. The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) includes provisions for immigrants and documentation status should not prevent a victim from accessing legal protections for IPV. For example, it is not necessary to have state issued identification in order to apply for and obtain a protection order. Social workers must advocate for laws and policies that protect all survivors of IPV and educate immigrant women about their options and rights.