Women, Violence and Social Change

Women, Violence and Social Change focuses on the often troubled relationship between the battered women's movement and government institutions and as such, makes a significant contribution to the study of violence against women. R. Emerson and Russell P. Dobash show how shelters, providing a basis of support and political action for women, form the core of the battered women's movement. From this base, movements in both the United States and Britain have challenged the police, courts, and social services to provide greater assistance to women.