Challenging Global Gender Violence

Violence against women and children is a global human rights and public health issue. Gender violence - including rape, intimate partner violence, domestic violence, mutilation, sexual trafficking, dowry death, honor killings, incest, breast ironing is part of a global pattern of violence against women, a pattern supported by educational, economic, and employment discrimination. Intimate partner, family, and sexual violence is a major cause of death and disability for women aged 16-44 years of age worldwide. The most common rationale given for the denial of human rights to women is the preservation of family and culture. While gender violence is a significant cause of female morbidity and mortality, and has long been recognized as a human rights issue that has serious implications for public health and an obstacle for economic development, it persists. Drawing upon cross-national survey data and interviews with women participating in the Global Clothesline Project, this paper discusses the prevalence and patterns of gender violence across the developing and developed world, highlighting the voices of victim-survivors and the strategies that are empowering women and challenging gender violence in Cameroon, the Netherlands, and the United States.