Some of you may recall that earlier this year I mentioned that Evan Stark (pictured), a prominent feminist advocate for domestic violence victims and the author of Coercive Control: How Men Entrap Women in Personal Life (Interpersonal Violence) and numerous other DV books, had called me a "notorious right-wing nut case whose lies or half truths about family matters are legion."

Stark was reacting to my co-authored column Domestic Violence Lawsuit Will Help Secure Services for All Abuse Victims (Los Angeles Daily Journal, San Francisco Daily Journal, 12/28/05), which one of my readers had apparently sent him during an email exchange. I thought it was one of my better columns, but apparently Evan didn't agree.

The book jacket of his Coercive Control says:

"In millions of abusive relationships, men use a largely unidentified form of subjugation that more closely resembles kidnapping or indentured servitude than assault. Stark calls this pattern 'coercive control'...Stark shows in terrifying detail how men can use coercive control to extend their dominance over time and through social space in ways that subvert women's autonomy, isolate them, and infiltrate the most intimate corners of their lives. Against this backdrop, Stark analyzes the cases of three women tried for crimes committed in the context of abuse, showing that their reactions are only intelligible when they are reframed as victims of coercive control rather than as 'battered wives.'

"Elevating coercive control from a second-class misdemeanor to a human rights violation, Stark explains why law, policy, and advocacy must shift their focus to emphasize how coercive control jeopardizes women's freedom in everyday life." 

Would Stark classify Mary Winkler as a "victim of coercive control"?

[Mary Winkler shot her husband in the back and then refused to aid him or call 911 as he slowly bled to death for 20 minutes. She claimed--with little corroborating evidence--that she was a battered wife who suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome because of her husband's violence towards her. She was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and walked away a free woman in September after serving a farcically brief 'sentence' for her crimes. To learn more, see my co-authored column No child custody for husband-killer Mary Winkler (World Net Daily, 9/14/07), or click here.]

Stark was also a critic of our successful Campaign Against PBS's Father-Bashing Breaking the Silence in 2005. Stark told PBS:

"I am grateful, as a professional who represents battered mothers and their children in the courts, that you aired the breaking the silence film. The entire production ran true and, I must say, though many of the problems shown capture the experience of several million families a year."

Anyway, I was surprised and pleased lately when Stark, completely out of the blue, wrote me with his regrets. Stark wrote:

"Sometimes I get frustrated and respond in anger. I may have called you a 'Right Wing Nut Case,' but also may not have. If I did, I apologize."

OK, Evan, apology accepted. You showed some class by offering it.

Evan also criticized my quoting of DV researcher Richard Gelles' criticisms of Stark. I'm going to look into it when I get a chance, and probably do another blog post at a later point.

[Note: If you or someone you love is being abused, the Domestic Abuse Helpline for Men and Women provides crisis intervention and support services to victims of domestic violence and their families.] 

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 15th, 2007 at 11:20 am and is filed under Feminism/NOW, Domestic Violence/DV System. You can trackback from your own site.