Talk about culture shock

After I shared that link about spousal assassinations in India on Facebook, a friend shared this even weirder report.

BBC NEWS | UK | Abused Asian men’s lives ‘living hell’

More South Asian men married to British women are becoming the victims of domestic violence, it has been revealed.

The National Men’s Advice Line found 9% of calls for help to its service last year were made by men originally from countries such as India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. [MORE]

My reply:

Wow. That’s a man-bites-dog story if I ever saw one. I realize that being a newcomer without local knowledge and/or contacts is serious impediment to getting help and I realize that the shame would be a serious deterrent, but I wonder how much of a role male relatives are playing in these case. People can be bullied all sorts of ways, though. Thought provoking.

I sometimes wonder if the counter anecdotes one sometimes hears of “husband beating” aren’t more urban legends than reports of a real social problem, but this sounds like a pretty credible.

It’s easy to forget that men come in different sizes, shapes and temperaments. There are of course men who deeply conflict-averse, for example. I have to admit to finding it exceedingly hard to imagine myself ending up in such a situation, but I guess the first mistake in sociological thinking is to universalize one’s own experiences.

As Arsenio Hall used to say, “Things that make you go ‘Hmm…'”