Battered Women's Bill of Rights

• She has the right NOT to be abused.
• She has the right to anger over past beatings.
• She has a right to choose to change the situation.
• She has a right to freedom from fear of abuse.
• She has a right to request and expect assistance from police or social agencies.
• She has a right to share her feelings and not be isolated from others.
• She has a right to want a better role model of communication for her and her children.
• She has a right to be treated like an adult.
  
• She has a right to leave the battering environment.
  
• She has a right to privacy.
  
• She has a right to express her own thoughts and feelings.
  
• She has a right to develop her individual talents and abilities.
  
• She has a right to legally prosecute the abusing spouse.
  
• She has a right not to be perfect.

Patricia G. Ball & Elizabeth Woman
(Reprinted from Victimology:An International Journal.
Vol. 2 1977-78, No. 3-4, p.550)