Links to other Domestic Violence Websites

Stuart Birks’ Family Violence Page
Family Violence is a highly topical gender issue at present. It is not always clear that the information presented is balanced, however. To illustrate, I have collected some material from the press. There is more on the reporting by The Dominion on a Justice Department survey on domestic violence by men. The results of that survey were published in a report entitled Hitting Home, which was the subject of an Insight radio programme on 18 September 1995. I have compiled some extracts and comments. In this section I also look at several information sources and reports, including one on the costs of family violence. Lots of interesting links.

NZ Government info on domestic violence laws

The one-sided nature of NZ domestic violence legislation is clearly described in the Family Court Domestic Violence Brochure (124 KB PDF). Particularly note the “People who can help” section.

Family Nonviolence Inc.

A Domestic Violence Research Tool September, 2005.

In 2000 Congress asked the National Research Council (NRC) to provide to congress a detailed research report on violence against women. In the 2005 congressional reauthorization process for the Violence Against Women Act not a single member of the NRC was asked to testify.

In the first sentence of, Advancing the Federal Research Agenda on Violence Against Women the authors write, “Knowledge from research on the violent victimization of women has advanced significantly during the past decade.”

Unfortunately, similar to congress, too many domestic violence agencies, advocates and members of the criminal justice system continue with policies that fail to reflect contemporary knowledge from recent research studies.

The purpose of this paper is to place many of these studies and articles into the hands of those who directly or indirectly affect our public polices concerning domestic violence intervention.

New and relevant research will be added so that this report does not, as many advocates and public policy makers have, continue to have 20th century research drive 21st century policies, procedures and legislation.

The Duluth Wheel domestic-violence re-education programme – a revised methodology for generic use

Paper by Tom Graves (link to PDF)
Abstract:
The Duluth Wheel has been adopted by many states as their required basic model for all ‘perpetrator’ programmes for resolving domestic violence. Analysis of the model from a psychotherapeutic perspective highlights fundamental flaws in its concept and design, rendering the model unreliable or unusable for resolving most real-world interpersonal conflicts.

A revision is proposed which uses explicit gender-neutral definitions of power, responsibility, abuse and violence, resulting in a simpler, fully consistent model which is usable in resolving any class of conflict. The revision also demonstrates that arbitrary distinctions between ‘perpetrators’ and ‘victims’, as in the original Duluth model, are misleading and irrelevant, and should be avoided wherever practicable. Suggested procedures for use of the revised model are provided.

Men and Domestic Violence Index
I have received criticism for this collection of resources on men and domestic violence. It has been called "unbalanced." I freely concede the point. There are many studies demonstrating men’s capacity for violence. Many of these are referenced in feminist servers on the net. My intention is to make difficult-to-find and poorly-known material available more broadly.
– David Throop.

Stop Abuse For Everyone
is a non-profit organization that provides advocacy, information, and support for men and women who are the victims of domestic violence. We set up and advocate for services for men and women, straight, gay, or lesbian, with the vision of a world of powerful, supportive relationships, free of violence. SAFE concentrates on domestic violence against straight men, gay men, and lesbian women, because few services exist for these groups.

A Man’s Life How the battle against domestic violence has been exploited to demonize men, patronise women and redefine the feminist agenda. Reports by James Morrow, Cathy Young and Tom Zoellner.

“Most reasonable observers agree that attempting to provide a solution to a phenomenon as complex as this by using the excessive language of feminist rhetoric isn’t likely to work. Virtually all independent studies reveal the androgynous nature of domestic violence…..Perhaps solving
the problem of domestic violence requires education and information directed at those most likely to be involved in violence as both victim and perpetrator — and not the condemnation of half the human race.”

The Controversy over Domestic Violence by Women by Murray A. Straus, published in in Violence in Intimate Relationships by X.B. Arriaga & S. Oskamp. Reviewed by Bert H.
Hoff.
Murray A. Straus, whose book with Richard Gelles and Suzanne Steinmetz Behind Closed Doors (1980) led to the first public awareness of the extent of domestic violence, in one sense created the “domestic violence movement.” Their research was widely cited to justify the need for public action programs to help women. But when these three researchers began to talk about woman-initiated violence, these former supporters turned hostile. In this paper, Dr. Straus does an excellent job of stepping back from the conflict in which he has been embroiled for 20 years, to offer fascinating and brilliant insights as to what the conflict is about.

In a nutshell, service providers and feminist activists take a broad view of violence, as a symbol of male oppression of women. Withholding money is seen as an act of violence, as is shouting or demeaning women. Researchers concerned about family violence, on the other hand, take a narrower view of violence, limiting their focus to actual acts of physical violence.