No More Secrets by Janice L. Ristock

No More Secrets

Violence in Lesbian Relationships

Janice L. Ristock

In No More Secrets: Violence in Lesbian Relationships, University of Manitoba women’s studies professor Janice Ristock presents one of the first studies of lesbian domestic violence. Basing her work on interviews with victims and social workers, she evaluates firsthand testimony, piecing together how and why lesbian relationships become violent and how the medical and criminal justice systems react when they do. The book concludes with suggestions for battered individuals and for wider community action.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

–This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Review

If any message can be taken away from this book it is that lesbian women’s experience of violence in all its differing contexts must be reconceptualized outside restrictive frameworks that to date have failed to consider the intersections of racism, classism, sexism, ableism as well as heterosexism. In providing us with the first in-depth critical exploration of the subject matter, Ristock has provided us with a valuable resource for feminists by which future Canadian and international research may be conducted.

–Automne

This study of abuse in lesbian relationships looks you in the eye and dares you to turn away. Far from being a prurient study of a fringe group of violent lesbians, this book demands that the queer community at large–afraid of straight disdain –recognize its accountability. No More Secrets illustrates that despite what many lesbian feminists believe, acts of violence are not committed solely by men. Beautifully sad and unflinching in its insistence on the centrality of its subject to lesbian–and gay–life, this book, penned by an esteemed women’s studies associate professor, sheds light on domestic abuse and gives voice to its tragic victims.

–Out Magazine

No More Secrets is the most comprehensive treatment of violence in lesbian relationships to be published to date. Grounded in rich interviews, this book builds on the empirical work that preceded it, but moves us beyond monolithic models to a recognition of the diversity of lesbian relationships and the complexity of lesbian intimate partner violence.

–Claire M. Renzetti, author of Violent Betrayal: Partner Abuse in Lesbian Relationships

Janice Ristock has given us a compelling study of violence within lesbian relationships. She argues compellingly for open discussion of this violence both by those involved and by professionals working with such women. This courageous book will help clients escape the secretly abusive spaces currently occupied by far too many of us trying to live with and love other women.

–Toni A. H. McNaron, author of Voices in the Night: Women Speaking About Incest

This is an important and groundbreaking book, examining the taboo subject of violence in lesbian relationships. It shatters the myth that it is only men that perpetrate violence against their partners, and provides important insights into this particular form of abuse. The thoughtful analysis Janice Ristock presents, based on extensive interviews, lifts the lid on this important subject, answering the question of how violence develops between lesbians, and makes suggestions for prevention or intervention. I highly recommend this book.

–Jane M. Ussher, author of Fantasies of Femininity: Reframing the Boundaries of Sex

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