It traces the origins of the victim movement to President Lyndon Johnson's effort to counter his image of being "soft" on crime. He appointed a commission to investigate the Nation's crime problem. The commission's research focused attention on crime victims and sponsored victim surveys that documented the extent of crime, widespread fear of crime, and dissatisfaction with the criminal justice system. Insistence on victims' concerns since that time has brought change in various aspects of criminal justice policy, raising questions about whose interests the criminal justice system should serve. The women's movement has also influenced policy toward women as crime victims, notably in attempts to suppress pornography, make mandatory arrest a police policy in wife-abuse cases, and increase sanctions for sex offenders. This has brought feminists in conflict with their political allies in other areas of women's rights. Larger ideological conflicts exist in the victims' movement as both liberals and conservatives bring their agendas to victims' interests. The future will see continued debate about the parameters and forms for victim compensation for injuries and losses due to crime and the enactment of "good samaritan" laws which make citizens liable for failure to aid a crime victim. 16 references