Peace Over Violence

Building healthy relationships, families and communities free from sexual, domestic and interpersonal violence.

Peace Over Violence is a non-profit, feminist; multicultural, volunteer organization dedicated to a building healthy relationships, families and communities free from sexual, domestic and interpersonal violence.

This violence takes many forms and exists on many levels of society, and we have adopted several approaches in our effort to effect social change: through education, prevention and intervention. We seek to empower women and youth. We believe that self-defense is the most effective mode of self-protection, that peer counseling is the most effective mode of intervention and that education is vital to prevention of abusive relationships. We provide services that inform the community about the problem of violence, teaches women, youth and children to defend themselves against it, offer intervention and support for its survivor and promote social change through activism and policy work.

We are a feminist organization. We work to improve the quality of life for all people in a patriarchal society that ranks the concern of women and children as a low priority. We believe that everyone should be free from the oppression of sexual and domestic violence. By improving the lives of women and girls we hope to improve the lives of men and boys.

In our practices, we are sensitive to the historical and sociological status of women in our culture. We believe in the importance of empowering women, youth and children with the greatest range of options and with making their own choices abut social, reproductive, or other issues. We value and respect the voice and experience of every member of the Peace Over Violence community and are attentive to the feelings of our constituents.

We believe that violence is preventable. We recognize that ending violence against women, youth and children will require energy, support, and commitment from multiple groups in our society. We are part of a large network of people active against violence and thus our work cannot be separate from the awareness and repudiation of sexism, racism, ageism, homophobia, discrimination against people with disabilities and other forms of oppression.

The work we do is difficult and challenging. It requires a strong commitment to the community, much perseverance and faith that one day we will celebrate the fact that our services are no longer necessary. Until that day, we will work together to maintain our vigor, flexibility and responsiveness to the need of the women, youth and children in our society.

1971 A woman is raped on Sunset Blvd. A group of six women friends of the survivor organize an anti-rape squad. The group is housed at the women’s center on South Crenshaw, sells bumper stickers and posts alerts on the trees and at bus-stops with the M.O.’s of local rapists. They also perform guerrilla theater skits and are staffing the phones at the Women’s Center to talk to rape survivors. The response is enormous and overwhelming. The agency is underway.

1973 A meeting is called to respond to the volume of calls coming in for crisis support. Task forces are set up to establish a rape crisis center with a 24-hour hotline; promote legislation; and design and implement rape education programs throughout Los Angeles.

In Roe vs Wade, Supreme Court legalizes abortion, giving women the right to chose.

Title IX funding for women’s and girls’ athletics is passed.

1974 Betty Brooks teaches first self-defense class at the agency.

1975 First funding for hotline services comes from state grants for innovative crisis intervention. The agency works with and trains at the Spanish multi-service center which aids the Hispanic community. Out of this sharing grew the East Los Angeles rape hotline. (In 1993, Alva Moreno took over as Executive Director of East LA.)

Joanne Little acquitted of murder charge for killing her jailer-rapist.

1976 Due to an increasing number of women disclosing on the hotline that they have been raped by their husbands and involved in battering situations, the hotline becomes more and more involved with the issues of battering.

Ms. Magazine runs groundbreaking story and cover image of a battered woman.

1977 The hotline officially becomes the Los Angeles Rape and Battering Hotline, connecting the two issues of violence against women.

1978 Rape Prevention at each of the University of California campuses established.

The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence formed.

1978 Lenore Walker’s “the battered woman” is published.

California makes marital rape a crime, punishable as a felony or misdemeanor.

1978 LACAAW becomes a United Way agency.

1979 Judy Ravitz becomes director, and along with Krysia Dankowski leads the agency into major growth. The agency’s programs expand to include: monthly self-defense classes, medical in-service training to ER personnel, and the development of our booklet “Survivor Handbook.”

Sandra Day o’Connor is first woman on the Supreme Court.

The agency holds its first humanitarian awards celebration.

1980 The agency has its first annual comedy night benefit.

Annual Humanitarian Awards