So many have known hardship, have somehow overcome it and then went on to speak out and advocate for others, ...and that's a beautiful thing.
You can find the article by clicking here and going to page 24-25.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Crusading for a cause; After suffering personal losses, women reach out to help others
Wow! How cool to appear in a magazine article along with Deborah Morosini, Christopher's Reeve's sister-in-law, and other women advocates!! It's humbling to be in an article alongside such amazing women who are doing incredible work to help others.
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Hello Kristin,
ReplyDeleteI am a fellow Mount Holyoke alum and I was very impressed to read about your resolution to fight this. I run a campaign called 'The 50 Million Missing' (www.50millionmissing.info) -- which is fighting femicide in India, and in a cultural context there are many forms of domestic violence in India -- including female infanticide and feticide, dowry murders, honor killings etc. There is 1 young married woman killed every 20 minutes by her husband and in-laws usually in a dowry related case. But for us the hardest challenge is that in India the pressure is for women to remain in the marriages. Another difference with the west, is that survivors, like you, in the west, find the courage, space, and as your blog indicates political and social support to actually speak out, tell your story and encourage other women to get out too. In India most women treat this as a matter of dishonor, and even if they get out they are ostracized and socially isolated, and that's why these women often themselves feel they have reasons to be ashamed of themselves. In one case we were fighting where this young woman had been force-fed acid by her husband and in-laws, and almost died, and we rushed to get her medical help, after almost 7 months of medical care and rehabilitation she returned to the husband, because she felt we should not try to take her husband to court for attempted murder. Instead she wanted us to help her find a job so could give money to her husband and in-laws, and that she felt was the solution she wanted to her situation. The neighbors and community, who did nothing to help her applauded her decision. This is frustrating scenario that repeats itself in India, over and over -- and makes our fight that much more difficult. I hope some day we will have more women in India come out into the open and fight back with courage and conviction, like you are doing in the U.S. This is a post we recently put up for women to recognize violence in their marriages and get out before it is too late. I know we will be partners in this fight -- sisters in more than one way :-) http://genderbytes.wordpress.com/2011/05/15/dangerous-relations-recognize-the-signs-and-symptoms/
Rita, this is so incredibly heartbreaking!! I had no idea that a married woman is killed in India every 20 minutes. Unbelievable. Talk about silent suffering.... Since I've "come out" with my story, I've heard of other women who have found themselves in similar situations and yet still end up going back to their abusive spouse. I know it's beyond frustrating to witness that kind of situation, especially when the abuse is over the top (force-feeding acid?!? Yikes!!).
ReplyDeleteI do believe that education is the key here, and that we have to start young -- to reach teenage girls and young women before they end up in an abusive dating relationship or marriage. Once a woman is in a marriage, within the cultural context of India or another Asian country, then I imagine it's most likely too late to empower an abused woman to break free.
I applaud you for your efforts and would be happy to help spread word of your powerful campaign. Thanks so much for making me and others here aware of your work!!