Domestic violence, as an area of legal matter, is a relatively new concept. As women were once considered the property of their spouse, domestic violence was not considered a crime for centuries. Women were expected to be obedient and the results of disobeying were thought to be a matter between husband and wife instead of a legal issue. Fortunately, at the end of the twentieth century, several changes in ideology took place which allowed for a new view of domestic violence into the twenty first century.
With the feminist movement of the 1970’s came an inner strength in women and an end to the social norm of women being the property of their spouse. As the movement grew, these women “pressured states to enact domestic abuse prevention laws and demanded enforcement” (Wolff 10). Once this took place, women were in a place that they could fight for their safety, but the battle was far from over. Women were still afraid to come forward because the men still believed that they were in control. Fearful, many women have stayed in a domestic abuse situation until it was too late.
Use your promo and get a custom paper on
"Domestic Violence Against Women".
At the turn of the twenty first century, with a new generation of thought coming into adulthood, the law finally recognized that the women were often to frightened to come forward and enacted laws that “allow police officers to arrest abusers without the victim filing charges” (Wolff 17). These laws protected the victims from both the present abuse and the retaliation that they feared for filing charges. Although, domestic abusers still receive lesser sentences than those who commit the same acts against strangers, this shows a step towards the right direction. This signifies that the generation of people that ended the twentieth century, along with those coming into the twenty first, are willing to make changes that will hopefully leave domestic violence as a thing of the past.
- Wolff, Lisa. Violence Against Women. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1999. Web. 8 July 2014.
