"Você aqui de novo?": a atuação do DAGV de Aracaju-SE no enfrentamento à violência doméstica contra as mulheres

Abstract

This research is dedicated to analyzing the treatment received by women who seek assistance at the Department for the Assistance of Vulnerable Groups (DAGV) in Aracaju, Sergipe, in contexts of domestic violence. The study adopts ethnography as its methodology, combined with participant observation and interviews with DAGV staff members. Recurrent practices of revictimization, reproduction of sexist discourses, and the failure to recognize less visible forms of violence, such as psychological abuse, reveal the stigma experienced by women, who are assessed according to binary and patriarchal standards that reinforce male domination and sustain mechanisms of impunity. The interviews also reveal internal contradictions within the institution: some professionals blame women for the violence they suffer, suggesting negligence in “self-care,” while others denounce structural failures such as lack of privacy during appointments, scarcity of material resources, and insufficient technical training of the staff. Added to this is the denial of the severity of the cases by some agents, who discredit statistics and question the truthfulness of victims’ accounts. Thus, the study offers a critical reflection on the limitations and contradictions of public policies aimed at combating violence against women, contextualizing their practical effects in the institutional daily life of the DAGV.