# Women's Advocates *St. Paul, Minnesota, nonprofit that opened an emergency shelter for women experiencing domestic violence in 1974.* Women's Advocates is a nonprofit organization in St. Paul, Minnesota. It grew out of a women's discussion group that began meeting in 1971, and it incorporated as a nonprofit in 1972.[^1] In October 1974 it opened an emergency shelter on Grand Avenue for women experiencing domestic violence and their children.[^2] MNopedia, the online encyclopedia of the [[Minnesota Historical Society]], calls the shelter "one of the first of its kind in the world." An MN90 audio segment carried on the same page calls it "the first in the nation."[^2][^3] The shelter came before the State's statutes on battered women. In 1977 the [[Minnesota Legislature]] enacted Laws 1977, Chapter 428, which created pilot shelter programs under the commissioner of corrections and appropriated $500,000.[^5][^7] In 1978 the Legislature expanded the pilot program and authorized warrantless probable-cause arrests for domestic assault.[^8][^9] In 1979 it enacted the [[Domestic Abuse Act]].[^10] MNopedia states that Women's Advocates "led efforts to establish state funding for domestic abuse shelters." Its chronology lists the organization among the shelters the State supported from 1977.[^14][^4] The session-law texts in the record do not name any grantee.[^5][^8] The record carries no federal or state proceeding naming Women's Advocates. It does carry the U.S. Department of Justice's release No. 26-21 of January 14, 2026, titled *United States Department of Justice Files Lawsuit Against Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime*. That release concerns the State, uses the term "Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime," and reports that Attorney General Pamela Bondi certified the case as a matter of general public importance.[^17] The record does not give that case's docket number, its allegations, or its status.[^17] ## Who The founders were a group of St. Paul women who began meeting in 1971 to discuss social and political issues. At one meeting, attorney Delores Orey spoke about the lack of public information on marital separation.[^1] MNopedia's related resources identify Sharon Rice Vaughan as one of the founding members. Its source for this is a 2007–2008 interview transcript recorded by Cheri Register.[^16] Several public officials appear in the organization's record: - **Sergeant Carolen Bailey** worked with the shelter's staff to overhaul domestic-violence training for St. Paul police officers.[^14] - **Mayor Lawrence Cohen** met with thirty-four staff members and residents in September 1975. They pressed the meeting over inadequate police response to security concerns at the shelter.[^12] - **Governor [[Rudy Perpich]] and First Lady Lola Perpich** visited the shelter on September 27, 1978.[^13] - **Paul and Sheila Wellstone** hosted the organization's twenty-fifth-anniversary celebration on October 1, 1999.[^13] - **Mayor Chris Coleman** proclaimed "Women's Advocate's Day in the City of St. Paul" on October 23, 2014.[^13] ## What The organization started with two services: a booklet on divorce rights and a legal information telephone line.[^1] After 1974 it ran the shelter and a crisis line staffed around the clock.[^2] It also produced booklets and brochures, designed college courses, and gave presentations at churches, schools and workplaces.[^14] In February 1975 it formed the Battered Women's Consortium with other organizations. In August 1978 it co-organized the first statewide conference on domestic violence.[^12][^13] According to MNopedia, the organization ran on a nonhierarchical structure, and its staff worked with each resident to identify her needs.[^14] MNopedia also reports that the organization made hiring women of color a priority so that its staff would reflect the racial diversity of the women it served.[^14] Around 2020 it added several new services: - a crisis chat line; - online support groups; - a pet foster program; - a Survivor Advocacy Council to guide organizational decisions.[^15] ## When MNopedia's chronology gives the following dates:[^12][^13] - **1972:** nonprofit status. - **October 1974:** the shelter opened. - **1975:** the organization bought the house next door. - **1981:** rehabilitation of both Grand Avenue properties was completed. - **1991:** it bought a third adjacent property. - **2020:** the shelter temporarily moved to a hotel in May. - **2024:** a fundraising campaign began.[^15] The State's enactments came in this order: - **Chapter 428** (S.F. No. 124), approved June 2, 1977.[^7] - **Chapters 724 and 732** (S.F. No. 318 and S.F. No. 1689), both approved April 5, 1978.[^9][^8] - **Chapter 214** (H.F. No. 521), the Domestic Abuse Act, approved May 25, 1979.[^10] The Legislative Reference Library's table of governors gives only the date each governor took office. [[Rudy Perpich]] (Democratic-Farmer-Labor) took office on December 29, 1976, and [[Al Quie]] (Independent-Republican) on January 4, 1979.[^11] By those dates, the 1977 and 1978 acts were approved during Perpich's tenure, and the 1979 act during Quie's.[^11] The session-law texts in the record do not show the signing governor, the floor votes, or which party controlled the Legislature.[^7][^10] ## Where The shelter is on Grand Avenue in St. Paul.[^2] It grew to two adjoining houses in 1975 and to three side-by-side houses by the 1990s.[^12][^15] The 1977 act required at least two of the four pilot programs to be in the metropolitan area. It defined that area as Hennepin, Ramsey, [[Anoka]], Dakota, Scott, Washington and Carver counties. Of the other two programs, one was to be in a city outside the metropolitan area and one in a place accessible to a mainly rural population.[^5] ## Why MNopedia reports that women calling the legal information line often said their partners were physically abusing them. Many wanted to leave but had no other place to live, and no shelters for them existed yet. Members of Women's Advocates first housed these women in the group's office and in their own homes.[^1][^2] The 1977 act was keyed to sex. It defined a "battered woman" as "a woman who is being or has been assaulted by her spouse, other male relative, or by a male with whom she is residing or has resided" in the past.[^5] The 1978 amendment directed the commissioner to report to the Legislature, by a date in January 1979, on "the feasibility of creating similar programs for men."[^8] ## How Initial funding came only from private donations. Within a few years, staff obtained grants from foundations and government bodies.[^14] MNopedia states that Minnesota became the "first state to give financial support to battered women's shelters," including Women's Advocates, in 1977.[^4] It also reports that in 1980 the organization was included in a federal Section 8 pilot program, which laid groundwork for other shelters to receive Department of Housing and Urban Development funds.[^13] The 1977 act placed the program under the commissioner of the [[Minnesota Department of Corrections]]. It required every licensed hospital, physician, public health nurse and local law enforcement agency to collect data on battered women in a form the commissioner would set by rule. The data were to be kept as "summary data."[^6] The 1978 amendment made three further changes: - It added social services agencies and community health agencies to the list of required reporters. - It classified grantees' identifying records as "private data on individuals." - It gave data collectors who acted in good faith "immunity from any liability, civil or criminal."[^8] The 1977 act also allowed general assistance payments to recipients of aid to families with dependent children who were living in shelter facilities.[^7] Chapter 724 (1978) addressed arrest and detention: - A peace officer could arrest without a warrant a person believed, on probable cause, to have assaulted a spouse or household member "within the preceding four hours." The officer first had to observe recent injury to the alleged victim. - An arrested person who was neither released on citation nor brought before a judge within 24 hours had to be released.[^9] The Domestic Abuse Act defined domestic abuse as "physical harm, bodily injury, assault, or the infliction of fear of imminent physical harm, bodily injury or assault, between family or household members." It also covered certain criminal sexual conduct against a minor household member.[^10] The act worked as follows: - It created a petition for an order for protection, with a hearing within 14 days. - It allowed ex parte temporary orders lasting up to 14 days. - It limited relief under an order to one year. - It provided that "violation of the order for protection is a misdemeanor."[^18] MNopedia attributes improved security at the shelter to the police training overhaul that staff carried out with Sergeant Bailey.[^14] ## How much The 1977 act's appropriations were:[^7] - **$500,000** from the general fund to the commissioner of corrections for the biennium ending June 30, 1979. - No more than **$50,000** of that sum could go to education grants. - No more than **15 percent** could be spent on administration. - **$100,000** to the governor's manpower office, for counseling and training of displaced homemakers. The 1978 act appropriated further sums:[^8] - **$100,000** for pilot-program grants. - **$25,000** for data collection and evaluation. - One additional unclassified position at the Department of Corrections. The record does not establish how much of these sums Women's Advocates received.[^4][^8] ## How many - **21:** the people the 1974 house could hold. It was full on its first night.[^2] - **10,000+:** calls a year to the telephone line by the 1990s. Demand for housing still exceeded capacity even after other regional shelters opened.[^15] - **58:** the people the two apartment-style shelters planned in the 2024 campaign would hold.[^15] - **Four, then "four or more":** the number of pilot programs. The 1977 act required four, and the 1978 amendment changed this so that the commissioner would "designate four or more pilot programs."[^5][^8] MNopedia was first published on February 6, 2025, and last modified on July 13, 2026. The Minnesota Historical Society, which publishes it, states that its funding is "provided by the State of Minnesota," the Legacy Amendment, and donors.[^16] MNopedia's bibliography also lists a 1982 *Report on Women's Advocates Shelter* from the [[Center for Urban and Regional Affairs]] at the [[University of Minnesota]].[^16] ## Notes [^1]: Minnesota Historical Society, *Women's Advocates* (MNopedia, first published Feb. 6, 2025) — 1971 meetings; Delores Orey; divorce-rights booklet and telephone line; 1972 nonprofit organization; callers' reports of abuse. https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/group/women-s-advocates [^2]: Minnesota Historical Society, *Women's Advocates* (MNopedia) — 1974 Grand Avenue house; capacity of twenty-one; full on its first night; crisis line; October 1974 opening; "Turning Point" description. https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/group/women-s-advocates [^3]: Minnesota Historical Society, *Women's Advocates* (MNopedia), related audio *MN90: Eileen Hudon and Women's Advocates* (Ampers) — describes the shelter as the first in the nation. https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/group/women-s-advocates [^4]: Minnesota Historical Society, *Women's Advocates* (MNopedia), chronology — 1977 state financial support for shelters, including Women's Advocates; 1979 Domestic Abuse Act. https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/group/women-s-advocates [^5]: Minnesota Legislature, *Laws of Minnesota for 1977, Chapter 428*, §§ 1–2 (approved June 2, 1977) — definition of "battered woman"; four pilot programs and their required locations. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/laws/1977/0/428 [^6]: Minnesota Legislature, *Laws of Minnesota for 1977, Chapter 428*, § 6 (approved June 2, 1977) — mandatory data collection; summary data. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/laws/1977/0/428 [^7]: Minnesota Legislature, *Laws of Minnesota for 1977, Chapter 428* (S.F. No. 124), §§ 7–10 (approved June 2, 1977) — general assistance for shelter residents; $500,000 appropriation, $50,000 cap on education grants, 15 percent cap on administration; $100,000 for displaced-homemaker programs. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/laws/1977/0/428 [^8]: Minnesota Legislature, *Laws of Minnesota for 1978, Chapter 732* (S.F. No. 1689; approved April 5, 1978) — "four or more" pilot programs; private-data classification; feasibility report on programs for men; expanded list of reporters; immunity; $100,000 and $25,000 appropriations. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/laws/1978/0/732 [^9]: Minnesota Legislature, *Laws of Minnesota for 1978, Chapter 724* (S.F. No. 318; approved April 5, 1978) — warrantless probable-cause arrests in domestic-assault cases; detention and 24-hour review. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/laws/1978/0/724 [^10]: Minnesota Legislature, *Laws of Minnesota for 1979, Chapter 214* (H.F. No. 521), § 1, subds. 1–2 (approved May 25, 1979) — Domestic Abuse Act short title and definitions. https://revisor.mn.gov/laws/1979/0/214 [^11]: Minnesota Legislative Reference Library, *Minnesota Governors* (extract, Oct. 29, 2026) — Rudy Perpich, DFL, took office 12/29/1976; Al Quie, Independent-Republican, took office 1/4/1979; the table gives only the date each governor took office. https://www.lrl.mn.gov/lrl/mngov/gov.aspx [^12]: Minnesota Historical Society, *Women's Advocates* (MNopedia), chronology — 1975 Battered Women's Consortium, meeting with Mayor Lawrence Cohen, and purchase of the house next door. https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/group/women-s-advocates [^13]: Minnesota Historical Society, *Women's Advocates* (MNopedia), chronology — 1978 conference and Perpich visit; 1980 Section 8 pilot; 1981 rehabilitation; 1991 third property; 1999 Wellstone celebration; 2014 Coleman proclamation. https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/group/women-s-advocates [^14]: Minnesota Historical Society, *Women's Advocates* (MNopedia) — structure, funding, hiring, education, police training with Sgt. Carolen Bailey, and policy advocacy. https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/group/women-s-advocates [^15]: Minnesota Historical Society, *Women's Advocates* (MNopedia) — three houses and 10,000+ calls a year by the 1990s; services for children; 2020 move to a hotel and new initiatives; 2024 fundraising for fifty-eight places. https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/group/women-s-advocates [^16]: Minnesota Historical Society, *Women's Advocates* (MNopedia, last modified July 13, 2026) — publication dates; MNHS funding statement; bibliography and related resources (1982 CURA report; Sharon Rice Vaughan interview transcript). https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/group/women-s-advocates [^17]: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, *United States Department of Justice Files Lawsuit Against Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime*, release No. 26-21 (Jan. 14, 2026) — release title; Attorney General Pamela Bondi certified the case as a matter of general public importance. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-department-justice-files-lawsuit-against-minnesotas-affirmative-action-regime [^18]: Minnesota Legislature, *Laws of Minnesota for 1979, Chapter 214*, § 1, subds. 4–7, 14 (approved May 25, 1979) — petition for an order for protection; 14-day hearing; ex parte orders; one-year limit on relief; violation is a misdemeanor. https://revisor.mn.gov/laws/1979/0/214