NCJ Number
102366
Date Published
1986
Length
8 pages
Annotation
More effective outreach efforts are needed to start support groups for battered lesbians, because domestic violence agencies have focused mainly on services to heterosexual battered women.
Abstract
Agencies need case statements that outline the scope of lesbian services to be provided. They also need to train staff and volunteers to deal with their homophobia. They must also revise their language and procedures to eliminate the assumption that a woman's intimate partner is male. Intake procedures should be conducted in person and should prevent the batterer from entering the support group. The group's roles should be to break the isolation and silence of battered lesbians, to aid planning for safety, and to empower group members. Group facilitators must define their primary function as empowering the battered lesbians. A 7-week format used by one group covers one of the following topics each week: (1) introductions (2) self-defense (3) setting limits (4) class, ethnicity, and cultural issues (5) anger (6) sexuality and sexual abuse and (7) closure.