Ebook: Judging Victims: Why we Stigmatize Survivors, and How They Reclaim Respect

“Why didn’t she resist?” “Why is he telling us only now?” “Why can’t she move on?” Unpacking the questions that cast victims as deviants, Jennifer Dunn critically examines why we stigmatize survivors of rape, battering, incest, and clergy abuse—and how they reclaim their identities. Dunn explores the shifting perceptions over time of victims as blameworthy, blameless, pathetic, or heroic figures. She also links those images to their real-world consequences, demonstrating that they dominate the ways in which people think about intimate violence and individual responsibility. Her analysis cuts to the core of fundamental issues at the center of debates about crime and deviance, victimization, and social problems.