Financial Support For Victims Of Domestic Violence In Brazil
Updated: Mar 10, 2025
Written by: Mayra Cardozo, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
We know that several factors lead a victim of domestic violence not to report the aggressor. However, financial dependence is the second main reason in Brazil that leads victims to continue in the cycle of violence.
According to the survey carried out every two years by the Datasenado Institute, financial dependence is the main reason women avoid denouncing the aggressor to the authorities.
Therefore, it is essential to develop public policies that allow women in situations of violence to generate their income as a strategy to break the cycle of violence.
An example of a successful program in Brazil is TransformAction, developed by the government of Minas Gerais in partnership with the AmericanEmbassy for the professional training of 100 women who were victims of domestic violence. The embassy is the funder of the project.
The idea is to offer these women a new profession that will generate income and contribute to breaking the cycle of violence since one of the reasons for not ending abusive and violent relationships is financial dependence on the partner.
In Brazil, in some states, we also have programs that provide cash support for survivors:
The state of Rondônia was one of the pioneers in establishing the Mulher Protegida program to provide financial assistance to victims of domestic violence. The benefit of R$400 must be paid in six installments, and the beneficiary can spend it as she prefers.
In other citiesacross the country, similar programs also help victims financially. In Niterói (RJ), aid of R$ 1,000 is paid. For example, in Rio de Janeiro, the Carioca Woman Card was launched in recent years, also worth R$ 400, for women in situations of domestic violence and vulnerability. Other locations offer programs to women in this situation, but in the form of rent assistance, as in São Paulo, Maranhão, and Goiás. In these cases, an amount is paid so the victim can rent a property and leave the aggressor's house. Financial dependence cannot allow women to have their physical and psychological integrity disrespected.
In Brazil, the Maria da Penha Law (Law nº 11.340/2006) guaranteed, as one of the protective measures, the provision of alimony to women in situations of domestic violenceand financially dependent on the aggressor. The decision is up to the judge, who will evaluate the request sent by the police.
The judge may determine that the aggressor provisionally pay alimony to the partner, who also has the right to be referred to a Shelter if she is in a situation of risk of death. Shelter Houses welcome women in positions of domestic and family violence and their underage children when there is a significant risk to the woman's physical integrity.
It is worth remembering that the permanence in the Shelter Houses is temporary. During the period that she needs to stay there, the woman must meet conditions to resume the course of her life.
That is why these income generation programs are so important so that the woman victim does not return to the aggressor's house.
The judge can also determine that that woman be included in assistance programs maintained by the government, such as Bolsa Família and basic basket programs, in addition to guaranteeing a place in schools and daycare centers for her children. How should income generation programs be designed to be safe? It is prevalent for social projects to be designed by people who have never suffered violence, which means that countlesswell-intentioned projects reproduce victimization and gender stereotypes.
When an income generation program or training for victims of gender violence is consolidated, it is common to see programs that train women for "sewing,"; "for the kitchen,"; activities that are seen by the patriarchal society as "feminine," reinforcing the idea that women should only be trained to occupy specific workspaces. Furthermore, the activities for which women are trained are generally not well-paid and are socially devalued.
We must be careful that victims of domestic violence are not exploited by capitalism as cheap labor. It's crucial to create a safe space for those women who are leaving abusive love relationships and do not end up in abusive and exploitative relationships at work.
Mayra Cardozo, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Mayra is one of the pioneers in Brazil in feminist coaching and is something she is passionate about. Despite being a lawyer and partner in a famous office in Brazil and a university professor of Human Rights, these were not enough for her. She always wants to make a difference in people's lives. It was then that she discovered her passion and became a life coach; she has a brilliant curriculum involving the best national and international courses. The objective of your work is to empower human beings to be their best version and help them emancipate themselves from socially constructed beliefs to be their essence. Her approach is different. It aims to unite the coaching process with the development of an inclusive and emancipatory awareness.
