Description: This book analyzes violence against women as a systemic and intersectional issue shaped by structural inequities, political power, and representational narratives. Integrating research, policy, and survivor-led perspectives, it maps how these forces converge and offers pathways toward justice, healing, and transformative social change.
Brief description: Kim M. Anderson is Professor in the School of Social Work and the Public Affairs Doctoral Program at the University of Central Florida.
Review Quotes:
"From a perspective as an advocate, teacher, and researcher who has spent nearly 30 years engaged
in efforts to end gender-based violence, the field was long overdue for a book like Violence Against
Women: Countering Historical and Contemporary Missteps on the Road to Social Justice. It pushes users towards macro-level systemic changes that target contributors and facilitators of gender-based
violence writ large, in part by identifying societal barriers to solutions. In doing so, it draws on
experiences of survivors of all backgrounds, incorporating the complexity of their experiences to
highlight where past efforts have fallen short. A must read for anyone dedicated to the goal of
violence-free communities." --Alison C. Cares, University of Central Florida
Historical and Contemporary Missteps on the Road to Social Justice meaningfully integrates
intersectionality throughout every section. The authors move beyond surface-level engagement,
centering Black, Latinx, Indigenous, queer, and disabled women with intentionality and care. By
foregrounding the interconnectedness of violence and systems of power, this book offers both a
critical lens and a transformative path forward." --Michelle M. Vance, UNC Greensboro "This is an important and timely book. Anderson and Havig bring intellectual rigor, intersectional
insight, and a deeply humane commitment to justice to their analysis of violence against women,
offering a volume that will matter not only to scholars, but also to practitioners, advocates, and
educators." --Tina L. Bloom, Notre Dame of Maryland University