Chicago Metropolitan Battered Women’s Network (1980)

The Chicago Metropolitan Battered Women’s Network was formed in the early 1980s by frontline advocates, providers, and survivors tackling systemic failures in courts, healthcare, and policing. Functioning as a collaborative incubator, the coalition drafted the Illinois Domestic Violence Act, launched the country’s first public hospital crisis response project, and established Chicago’s Centralized Domestic Violence Court with permanent on-site advocates. Key leaders on the panel included:

Joyce Coffee: Founding member and retired CEO of Family Rescue, she developed vital shelters and transitional housing, notably breaking exclusionary shelter practices across the city by accommodating teenage boys up to age eighteen.

Margaret "Peggy" Luft: Network co-chair and former Hull House director, she leveraged her social work background to unite siloed city officials, successfully brokering the collective meetings that established the centralized domestic violence court.

Leslie Landis: Founding executive director of Lifespan and early co-chair, she formally incorporated the Network and applied legal expertise to translate survivor experiences into statutory definitions, protective orders, and comprehensive civil remedies.

Jeri Linas: Early co-chair and former CEO of Rainbow House, she pioneered youth violence prevention curricula and expanded culturally tailored, bilingual, and accessible services for marginalized communities.

Dr. Vickii Coffey: Former executive director of the Network and CAWC, she integrated her survivor perspective into founding Cook County's hospital crisis intervention program and championed womanist frameworks prioritizing community accountability and racial justice.