The Rape Crisis Movement: Radical or Reformist?

Abstract

The rape crisis movement was a radical that freedom for oppressed groups feminist social issue that emerged in the comes not through reformism leading to early 1970s—feminist because the moveequality but only through a restructur ment was conceived by women whose ing of the ideology and institutions of primary concerns focused on women's society. Reform strategies thus may be experiences, radical because it sought to useful in that struggle, dismantle the existing social order. Over The development of rape crisis pro the ensuing years, rape crisis services grams has resulted in institutional increasingly have become professionreforms and more comprehensive ser alized and institutionalized. This article vices for individual victims of sexual explores the impact of this evolution on assault. However, little if any progress the goals and dynamics of rape crisis has been made toward the goal of the ear programs. ly rape crisis movement: a rape-free According to most social movement society. The effects of the institution theorists, the development of a social alization of the rape crisis movement are movement to social institution can be examined through a case study of the characterized by threestages:(l)awarePennsylvania Coalition against Rape ness and mobilization, (2) policy deter(PCAR). The general issue addressed in mination, and (3) reform (Fuller & Myers, this article is whether the institutional 1941). From this perspective, the instituization and increased professionalism of tionalization of reforms represents the rape crisis programs have lessened em fulfillment of social movement goals, phasis on radical social change goals and However, the institutionalization of a increased reliance on ideologies and ac social movement inevitably raises the tions of a reformist nature, specter of cooptation, particularly when the original movement goals are not r l f th merely reforms of the existing social „ „°? ? °. „ e institutions but are more radical transRaPe Crisis Movement formations of social structures, power The early rape crisis movement had relationships, and ideologies. two primary goals. One goal was to Galper (1980) noted in his discussion change the society that permitted and of radical social work that any profesencouraged the oppression of women sional efforts that fail to link temporary and sexual violence against them. A and partial solutions with larger social second goal was to provide havens transformation may, though giving minwhere victims would be believed and imal benefits, only tighten the hold of supported without blame and where, destructive institutions and ideologies, through the process of mutual aid and Bunch (1981), a feminist theorist, disself-help, women would be strength tinguished between reformism—the ened individually and collectively. Ear ideological position that Women's liberly activists perceived themselves as ation is achieved by a progression of increating an alternative system that stitutional changes that ultimately will could exist outside patriarchal institu bring women equality within the extions yet could affect those institutions isting social, economic, and political through a combination of cooperation order—and a reform—a change or and confrontation, strategy that can be employed for either In 1974, the first federal funding for reformist or radical ends. Bunch argued a rape center was granted to Pittsburgh Action against Rape, a radical feminist group (Pride, 1981). By 1979, more than 1,000 rape crisis programs were oper ating in the United States. Most staff members in these programs identified themselves as feminists. However, as several researchers have documented, an ideological shift from radical feminist to more liberal-reformist had occurred