Susan Schechter (1 May 1946 – 3 February 2004) was an American

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

and activist against

domestic violence Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes r ...

. She wrote three books on the subject and helped found one of the first

women's shelter A women's shelter, also known as a women's refuge and battered women's shelter, is a place of temporary protection and support for women escaping domestic violence and intimate partner violence of all forms. The term is also frequently used to ...

Education and career

Schechter was originally from

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

, Missouri, where she earned a bachelor's degree in comparative literature from

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1853 by a group of civic leaders and named for George Washington, the university spans 355 acres across its Danforth ...

in 1975. She earned a master's degree in social work from the

University of Illinois at Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the Universi ...

, and became director of women's services at a

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swit ...

in Chicago, through which she began her work with domestic violence, also helping to found a women's shelter in Chicago in the late 1970s. She moved to New York City in 1978, working briefly for the

Henry Street Settlement The Henry Street Settlement is a not-for-profit social service agency on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York City that provides social services, arts programs and health care services to New Yorkers of all ages. It was founded under the ...

before moving to the Park Slope Safe Homes Project in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

and then, in 1982, to the Women's Education Institute in New York. After moving to

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

in 1986, she worked at

Boston Children's Hospital Boston Children's Hospital (formerly known as Children's Hospital Boston until 2013) is the main pediatric training and research hospital of Harvard Medical School, Harvard University. It is a nationally ranked, freestanding acute care children ...

, as a program coordinator and consultant in the Advocacy for Women and Kids in Emergencies program, the first domestic violence program to be established in an American children's hospital. In 1991 she became a clinical professor in the School of Social Work at the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

, where her husband Allen Steinberg was also a professor of history. She died of

endometrial cancer Endometrial cancer is a cancer that arises from the endometrium (the epithelium, lining of the uterus or womb). It is the result of the abnormal growth of cells (biology), cells that can invade or spread to other parts of the body. The first s ...

on 3 February 2004.

Recognition

In 2002, the University of Iowa's Celebration of Excellence Among Women gave her their Distinguished Achievement Award. Schechter was named to the Iowa Women's Hall of Fame in 2005. A special issue of the journal ''Juvenile and Family Court Journal'', dedicated to her memory, was published in 2019. Her papers are held in the

Schlesinger Library The Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America is a research library at Harvard Radcliffe Institute at Harvard University. According to Nancy F. Cott, the Carl and Lily Pforzheimer Foundation Director, it is "the ...

of the

Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University, also known as the Harvard Radcliffe Institute, is an institute of Harvard University that fosters interdisciplinary research across the humanities, sciences, social sciences, arts ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

Books

Schechter was the author or coauthor of: *''Women and Male Violence: The Visions and Struggles of the Battered Women's Movement'' (1982) *''When Love Goes Wrong: Strategies for Women with Controlling Partners'' (with Ann Jones, 1992) *''Effective Intervention in Domestic Violence & Child Maltreatment Cases: Guidelines for Policy and Practice'' (National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, 1999)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schechter, Susan 1946 births 2004 deaths People from St. Louis American social workers American feminist writers Domestic violence academics Washington University in St. Louis alumni University of Illinois Chicago alumni University of Iowa faculty