Domestic Violence In The 1920's

Domestic violence also known as battering or family violence, is a crime that involves a set of behaviors that involve violence and abuse by a person in a domestic setting. According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, domestic violence consists of but not limited to “physical violence, sexual violence, psychological violence, and emotional abuse” that violate many norms of society. Although, it is most common in heterosexual couples it is quite extensive covering the majority of the population from same sex couples, family, children, and even roommates. From a criminologists point of view that ask the question of why this criminal behavior occurs frequently, a lot has to do with the social factors instilled in society such …show more content…
Throughout history before the 1920’s the institutions of culture have always regarded domestic violence as an “acceptable” measure for the husband in order to have control. When women tried to report the abusive behavior more often than not they were always blame for being the victim, basically saying it was their fault. During this time, women were heavily oppressed because the patriarchal system was fully enforced. It was not until the 1920’s where women started to fight for their rights and began to voice their values publicly during the women’s suffrage movement. After the 12th amendment was passed giving them the right to vote, it gave women more power in the government in order to fight for their rights. Additionally, domestic violence was also criminalized in the 1920’s because of the structural and cultural beliefs during that period, saw domestic violence as a severe wrongdoing for the victim. However, parts of the criminal justice system, the courts and the police had a vague understanding of the severe consequences domestic violence could have on a victim; hence, they view the crime a trivial offence and didn’t punish the abusers harshly. It was not until the 1970’s, were women gained a lot of ground during the feminist movement where they were able to make domestic violence a public issue. During this time there where a lot of strong movements that provided networks for women to revolutionize the current faulty system. New shelters and organizations began to arise in order to help victims. As reported by the Samaritan House, “based on the experiences and demands of battered women, considerable changes in institutional policies and procedures were made. Public awareness campaigns were initiated on the local, State, and national