Taking action against domestic violence

Spousal abuse was just beginning to be identified as a major social problem in the 1970s when the Junior League of Bronxville started working with the county probation department to develop court assistance programs for abused wives (and husbands). With no federal legislation addressing the issue of spousal abuse, JLB’s work in one of the most affluent counties in the country was a catalyst for The League’s broader role in advocating for the enactment of the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act, the only federal funding source dedicated directly to domestic violence shelters and programs, in 1984. Association leadership and League members testified in Congress in support of the act. Leagues also helped to build awareness about domestic violence among women and children in advance of the addition of the Violence Against Women Act provisions to the Crime Bill in 1994.