Upcoming Conference Announcement- in Sacramento, California - From Ideology to Inclusion

For all who work within the field of domestic violence this is a "not to be missed" conference! National Family Violence Legislative Resource Center Presents: From Ideology to Inclusion:Evidence-Based Policy and Interventionin Domestic Violence The founders, pioneers and today�s most respected experts together in this historic, one-of-a-kind conference! Erin PizzeyFounder of theBattered Women Shelter Movement Linda MillsPhD, LCSW, JDNew YorkUniversity MurrayStraus, PhDUniversity of NewHampshire DonaldDutton, PhDUniversity ofBritish Columbia Jennifer Langhinrichsen-Rohling, PhDUniversity ofSouth Alabama And also featuring:Phillip Cook * Miriam Ehrensaft, PhD * Nicola Graham-Kevan, PhD * John Hamel, LCSWJanet Johnston, PhD * Marlene Moretti, PhD * Tonia Nicholls, PhD5 Plenary Presentations + 15 Breakout Sessions. Topics Include: Current Policy Issues * Male Victims * Use and Misuse of Restraining Orders * DV in the LGBT CommunityResearch Trends * Female Perpetrators * Effects of Mandatory Arrest * DV in Ethnic Minority GroupsDevelopmental Perspectives * Power and Control in the DV Industry * Abuse Versus AlienationLimitations of the Patriarchal Paradigm * Gender-Inclusive Interventions * Model Batterer Programs* Co-ed Shelters * The Shelter Movement & Public Policy * DV, Children & Adolescents* Interventions in Disputed Child Custody Cases * Couples/Family Treatment * Working with Child Victims Friday/Saturday, February 15-16, 2008 Sacramento, California For updated information about location, conference schedule and registration, visit the website of the National Family Violence Legislative Resource Center at www.NFVLRC.org Continuing education credits available for LCSW�s, MFT�s, PhD�s, Batterer Intervention Providersand Family Court Mediators/Evaluators * MCLE credits available for attorneys Conference co-sponsors: Family Violence Treatment & Education Association (www.FAVTEA.com),California Alliance for Families and Children (www.cafcusa.org

Defender of abused women finds a new cause: male victims

Erin Pizzey, one of the pioneers of the battered women's movement in England has found a new cause: male victims. This article comes from The Independent newspaper in the UK. By Emily Dugan Published: 17 January 2008 Erin Pizzey, the campaigner who pioneered treatment for abused women by setting up Britain's first refuge centre for victims of domestic violence in the 1970s, is now turning her attention to another group of often overlooked victims: men. Launching an online campaign and research project aimed at bringing the issue out in the open, Ms Pizzey is hoping to raise awareness of abuse perpetrated by women against men – a subject she describes as "one of the last taboos". She has put a questionnaire on the website femininezone.com that allows women to answer questions anonymously about how they treat men. As many as one in six men are thought to suffer physical and mental abuse at the hands of women, yet the topic is widely seen as insignificant or implausible. "I feel that this kind of violence is one of the last taboos – men are reluctant to talk about it, and so are the women who are doing it," said Ms Pizzey, whose father was abused by her mother. "Much is known and studied about male violence, but very little is written about women, and any attempt to discuss female violence is met with rabid attacks and howls of 'blaming the victim'." During the 1970s, Ms Pizzey created safe havens for hundreds of abused women, but she found it increasingly frustrating that people could only see females as victims. As she tried to create similar sanctuaries for men, she discovered that even those who had been generous towards her women's centres would not consider giving funding. "I imagined people who had given money to my women's projects would also give it over for the men, but not one gave money," she said. "It's shocking that across the world there are no facilities giving sanctuary for men, and no sympathy. I think it's a deeply held taboo that if a man is assaulted by a woman he is weak, but if a woman is assaulted by a man she is a victim. It's social conditioning." Samantha Wilson, a therapist working in London and Manchester who specialises in domestic abuse, says she often sees men who were injured by women. "I've been working with cases of violence for 20 years, and many of them have been women abusing men," she said. "This could be happening to people you know and you simply wouldn't realise." According to Ms Pizzey, the issue is greeted with scepticism by police and social services who, she says, often "refuse to believe" it. She hopes that by discussing violent women in the open she may be able to bring about change. Next month, she is travelling to Sacramento, California, to attend the first conference on domestic abuse to deal with men and women as perpetrators. View the rest of the article at: http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/crime/article3345172.ece

Researchers Are Looking for Men Who've Been Assaulted by an Intimate Partner

"The Men's Experiences with Partner Aggression Project is a research study at Clark University and is funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. Denise A. Hines, Ph.D., Clark University Department of Psychology, is the lead researcher on this project. She is conducting this project in conjunction with Emily M. Douglas, Ph.D., Bridgewater State College Department of Social Work and the Domestic Abuse Helpline for Men and Women. Our goal is to better understand the experiences of men who are in relationships with women who use violence. Extensive research has shown that men are at risk for sustaining partner violence in their relationships, yet few studies have investigated their experiences, and there are few resources available to such men. This is an under-recognized problem in the United States, and by conducting this research project, we hope to provide much needed information on these men, their relationships, and their needs. If you are a man between the ages of 18 and 59 and you have been physically assaulted at least one time in the last 12 months by a current or former intimate female partner you may be eligible to participate in this study. If you are interested in participating, please call the DAHMW at 1-888-743-5754 or email dahmwagency@gmail.com for information about the study and directions for participating. For more information about DAHMW visit their website: http://www.dahmw.org/.

Help Us Win America's Giving Challenge!

DAHMW is competing in America's Giving Challenge sponsored by the Case Foundation and Parade Magazine. Please help us reach our goal of being one of the 100 nonprofits with the greatest number of unique donations so that we can win the $1,000 award! Each personal contribution, no matter what size counts as one unique donation! The challenge ends January 31st at 3pm EST so please hurry! Please help DAHMW by making a donation and passing this message along to others. Thanks for your support! Click on the url to our Charity Badge below and donate! http://www.networkforgood.org/pca/Badge.aspx?BadgeId=109151