In the United States, the battered women’s movement and the rape crisis movement began in the early 1970s as grassroots efforts to create a safe haven for victims, to speak out against the injustice of violence against women, and to demand social change. The same was occurring in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

In 1975 a small group of women banded together out of concern, frustration, and rage over the plight of women in their community. They organized themselves into a Board of Directors, obtained a grant from the local drug and alcohol commission, and began to meet over a drugstore. Through an assessment conducted by the commission, the community identified violence in the home a common area of concern. Equipped with the assessment results and their knowledge of women’s lives, the Board announced on November 18, 1976, the formation of the Women’s Task Force on Drug and Alcohol Addictions, which became the Women’s Resource Center, Inc.

Primary services, offered by volunteers, included a 24-hour hotline and crisis counseling for victims of domestic violence and rape. Volunteers also housed women and children in need of safe housing.  The Center has grown from a full volunteer effort into an organization with approximately 30 staff members in Susquehanna and Lackawanna Counties who respond to the needs of survivors of domestic and sexual violence and their significant others.

 

The Women’s Resource Center (WRC) is a private non-profit organization founded in 1976, serving survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in Lackawanna and Susquehanna Counties in northeastern Pennsylvania. WRC’s mission is to end domestic and sexual violence through advocacy, education and social change. WRC supports a feminist philosophy which places a high value on the individuality and equality of women and all persons, and is committed to enhancing the dignity, self-worth and self-confidence of women.

The Women’s Resource Center seeks to respond to and actively change the prevalence of domestic and sexual violence. Services are offered regardless of age, race, and country of origin, marital status, ethnicity, gender, income, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, and mental and physical ability. WRC works with and on behalf of child, teen, and adult survivors and their significant others.

History

In the United States, the battered women’s movement and the rape crisis movement began in the early 1970s as grassroots efforts to create a safe haven for victims, to speak out against the injustice of violence against women, and to demand social change. The same was occurring in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

In 1975 a small group of women banded together out of concern, frustration, and rage over the plight of women in their community. They organized themselves into a Board of Directors, obtained a grant from the local drug and alcohol commission, and began to meet over a drugstore. Through an assessment conducted by the commission, the community identified violence in the home a common area of concern. Equipped with the assessment results and their knowledge of women’s lives, the Board announced on November 18, 1976, the formation of the Women’s Task Force on Drug and Alcohol Addictions, which became the Women’s Resource Center, Inc.

Primary services, offered by volunteers, included a 24-hour hotline and crisis counseling for victims of domestic violence and rape. Volunteers also housed women and children in need of safe housing.  The Center has grown from a full volunteer effort into an organization with approximately 30 staff members in Susquehanna and Lackawanna Counties who respond to the needs of survivors of domestic and sexual violence and their significant others.

To view a timeline of WRC history, click on the presentation below. For additional viewing options, click on ‘More’.