As the domestic violence victims’ advocate on Vashon, I speak daily with survivors of partner abuse about their experience in seeking safety, support and healing from abusive relationships.

Often they are thankful for the services and resources available in navigating such a complex situation. Sometimes they are frustrated by the numerous limitations and barriers they face, as well as the lack of ability to hold people who abuse accountable.

In honor of Women’s History Month, I thought I would take the opportunity to reflect on the numerous and great accomplishments achieved by those working to keep survivors safe and to share my thoughts on the work that still needs to be done.

The movement to stop domestic violence is only in its adolescence. As late as the 1930s, it was still argued that violence against women was a form of sexual gratification to the victims.

In 1945, a California law was passed which made it a felony for a husband to inflict corporal injury resulting in a traumatic condition on his wife or any child. However, a judge ruled the law was unconstitutional because it discriminated on the basis of sex and dismissed murder charges against a husband accused of murdering his wife.

The 1960s didn’t offer any more protection.

In New York then, domestic violence cases were transferred from criminal court to family court, meaning a husband would never face the same punishments for assaulting his wife that he would if he assaulted a stranger.

In 1976, Nebraska became the first state to establish a law making it illegal for a husband to rape his wife. However, Diana Russell published her book “Rape in Marriage” in 1982 and was ridiculed for her research findings. It wasn’t until 1993 that marital rape became a crime in all 50 states.

Riding on the wave of the civil rights and feminist movements, services for survivors of domestic violence started to appear in the late 1960s and 1970s. Shelters and support groups were often grassroots services. By 1981, there were almost 500 battered women’s shelters established.

The 1990s brought more laws which protected survivors. California passed the first law which defined stalking as a crime. In 1994, the Violence Against Women Act was passed by Congress to provide federal funding for services for domestic violence and rape survivors and to allow women to take civil action for gender-related crimes.

More recently, legislators in Washington have also worked to pass laws protecting survivors of domestic violence.

In 2004, it became illegal to discriminate against victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking when renting housing. This makes it easier for survivors to move to safe locations and prevents victims from being evicted due solely to violence perpetrated against them.

Cyberstalking also became a new crime in 2004 which made it illegal to use electronic mail or the Internet to harass, intimidate, torment, or embarrass a victim.

And in 2006, domestic violence victim advocates were provided legal support in protecting confidentiality of survivors.

Last year, Washington added two additional protections: clarifying that a violation of a protection order, regardless of the level of violence of the contact, was a crime; and, increasing the punishment for strangulation, including in domestic violence cases, to a class B felony.

Currently, there is a bill in Olympia which would make it illegal for employers to fire or demote employees for taking time off to attend to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking-related issues.

A second bill would clarify that petitioners of protection orders only have to make two reasonable attempts to serve a respondent before the court allows them to serve the papers via mail or publication.

The movement to stop domestic violence has certainly come a long way, but we still have a lot of work to do.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, on average three men murder their female partner (or ex-partner) every day.

Women in their early twenties and Alaska Native, American Indian, and African-American women experience higher rates of domestic violence.

Confidential shelters still report turning away victims because shelters are full.

Over the past ten years, rates of domestic violence calls on Vashon have not seen a substantial decrease and I continue to hear from survivors every week.

Here are a few ways that Islanders can help to foster a community where abuse is not tolerated: Advocate for federal and local funding for agencies working with domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking victims; Become educated on how to identify and appropriately respond to domestic violence; Encourage lawmakers to develop strategies for holding people who abuse accountable; Support programs that work to prevent dating violence and teach people how to have healthy relationships.

— Joanna is the Vashon domestic violence victim’s advocate from the Domestic Abuse Women’s Network. Her last name is not used for safety reasons.