Trivial complaints
Subtitle: the role of privacy in domestic violence law and activism in the U.S.
By: Kirsten S. Rambo.
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Published: 2008
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 248
ISBN-13: 9780231135573; 9780231509589
Subjects: Privacy, Right of; Family violence -- Law and legislation; Abused women -- Legal status, laws, etc
Description: ""Trivial Complaints" explores the historical relationship between privacy and domestic violence through an analysis of litigation and activism. The state has traditionally hesitated in responding to domestic violence, characterizing it as a "private" family matter. The discourse of privacy incorporates presumptions about race, class, and sexuality, and this volume examines the ramifications of such assumptions for victims and activists." "Kirsten S. Rambo begins with an analysis of courts' and activists' responses to domestic violence during the late nineteenth century and continues through to the late twentieth century, when the modern battered women's movement emerged on the heels of the battle to secure abortion rights. Rambo explores the seemingly contradictory yet often complementary ways in which the discourse of privacy has been shaped by both movements seeking justice for women. She further examines concepts of privacy as applied to same-sex relationships and domestic violence, and ultimately considers alternative models of privacy that are egalitarian and rooted in empowerment."--BOOK JACKET.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references.
Table of contents: title: Precursors to the battered women's movement : domestic violence law and activism before the 1960s; title: The paradox of privacy for the battered women's movement : rape, reproductive rights, and the case of People v. Liberta; title: From Bruno to Gonzales : patriarchal privacy and the failure to protect; title: Privacy and domestic violence in same-sex relationships; title: Conclusion : toward a new model of privacy.