scholarly journals “We are Forgotten”: Forced Migration, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, and Coronavirus Disease-2019

2021 ◽  
pp. 107780122110309
Author(s):  
Jenny Phillimore ◽  
Sandra Pertek ◽  
Selin Akyuz ◽  
Hoayda Darkal ◽  
Jeanine Hourani ◽  
...  

Adopting a structural violence approach, this article explores, with survivors and practitioners, how early coronavirus disease-2019 pandemic conditions affected forced migrant sexual and gender-based violence survivors’ lives. Introducing a new analytical framework combining violent abandonment, slow violence, and violent uncertainty, we show how interacting forms of structural violence exacerbated by pandemic conditions intensified existing inequalities. Abandonment of survivors by the state increased precarity, making everyday survival more difficult, and intensified prepandemic slow violence, while increased uncertainty heightened survivors’ psychological distress. Structural violence experienced during the pandemic can be conceptualized as part of the continuum of violence against forced migrants, which generates gendered harm.

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 1150-1157
Author(s):  
Summer Forester ◽  
Cheryl O'Brien

AbstractThe global coronavirus pandemic has reified divisions, inequity, and injustices rooted in systems of domination such as racism, sexism, neoliberal capitalism, and ableism. Feminist scholars have theorized these interlocking systems of domination as the “continuum of violence.” Building on this scholarship, we conceptualize the U.S. response to and the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic as reflective of the continuum of violence. We argue that crises like pandemics expose the antidemocratic and exclusionary practices inherent in this continuum, which is especially racialized and gendered. To support our argument, we provide empirical evidence of the continuum of violence in relation to COVID-19 vis-à-vis the interrelated issues of militarization and what feminists call “everyday security,” such as public health and gender-based violence. The continuum of violence contributes theoretically and practically to our understanding of how violence that the pandemic illuminates is embedded in broader systems of domination and exclusion.


2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 638-652 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Whitney Fry ◽  
Asheley C. Skinner ◽  
Stephanie B. Wheeler

Gender-based violence (GBV) in humanitarian emergencies is progressively recognized as a global public health problem. Detrimental gender norms influence male perpetrated GBV against women, and social and structural contexts of forced migration and camp resettlement contribute to problematic gender norm development. The review sought to elucidate the dynamics that link gender socialization among male youth in sub-Saharan Africa with violent sexual behaviors. Two concepts were explored: (1) male gender socialization in sub-Saharan Africa related to GBV perpetration patterns and (2) the effect of forced migration on male socialization and GBV. We reviewed articles using a standard systematic review methodology, searching academic databases for peer-reviewed articles, and contacting experts for gray literature. Our initial search identified 210 articles. We manually reviewed these, and 19 met the review inclusion criteria. We identified 20 variables from the first concept and 18 variables from the second. GBV perpetration by male youth is positively associated with social pressures as well as cultural and religious beliefs. Amid forced migration, personal, societal, and cultural preexisting gender inequalities are often amplified to encourage GBV perpetration. The literature revealed aspects of culture, language, role modeling, religion, and the context of violence as important factors that shape young men’s perspectives regarding the opposite sex and gender relations as well as sexual desires and dominance. Overall, though, literature focusing on male socialization and GBV prevention is limited. We made recommendations for future studies among refugee male youth in order to better understand these relationships.


2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 105-112

This sample of photos from 16 August–15 November 2019 aims to convey a sense of Palestinian life during this quarter. The images capture Palestinians across the diaspora as they fight to exercise their rights: to run for office, to vote, and to protest both Israeli occupation and gender-based violence.


2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 57-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lyn Snodgrass

This article explores the complexities of gender-based violence in post-apartheid South Africa and interrogates the socio-political issues at the intersection of class, ‘race’ and gender, which impact South African women. Gender equality is up against a powerful enemy in societies with strong patriarchal traditions such as South Africa, where women of all ‘races’ and cultures have been oppressed, exploited and kept in positions of subservience for generations. In South Africa, where sexism and racism intersect, black women as a group have suffered the major brunt of this discrimination and are at the receiving end of extreme violence. South Africa’s gender-based violence is fuelled historically by the ideologies of apartheid (racism) and patriarchy (sexism), which are symbiotically premised on systemic humiliation that devalues and debases whole groups of people and renders them inferior. It is further argued that the current neo-patriarchal backlash in South Africa foments and sustains the subjugation of women and casts them as both victims and perpetuators of pervasive patriarchal values.


2021 ◽  
pp. sextrans-2020-054896
Author(s):  
Navin Kumar ◽  
Kamila Janmohamed ◽  
Kate Nyhan ◽  
Laura Forastiere ◽  
Wei-Hong Zhang ◽  
...  

ObjectivesThe COVID-19 pandemic has exposed and exacerbated existing socioeconomic and health disparities, including disparities in sexual health and well-being. While there have been several reviews published on COVID-19 and population health disparities generally—including some with attention to HIV—none has focused on sexual health (ie, STI care, female sexual health, sexual behaviour). We have conducted a scoping review focused on sexual health (excluding reproductive health (RH), intimate partner violence (IPV) and gender-based violence (GBV)) in the COVID-19 era, examining sexual behaviours and sexual health outcomes.MethodsA scoping review, compiling both peer-reviewed and grey literature, focused on sexual health (excluding RH, IPV and GBV) and COVID-19 was conducted on 15 September 2020. Multiple bibliographical databases were searched. Study selection conformed to Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Reviewers’ Manual 2015 Methodology for JBI Scoping Reviews. We only included English-language original studies.ResultsWe found that men who have sex with men may be moving back toward pre-pandemic levels of sexual activity, and that STI and HIV testing rates seem to have decreased. There was minimal focus on outcomes such as the economic impact on sexual health (excluding RH, IPV and GBV) and STI care, especially STI care of marginalised populations. In terms of population groups, there was limited focus on sex workers or on women, especially women’s sexual behaviour and mental health. We noticed limited use of qualitative techniques. Very few studies were in low/middle-income countries (LMICs).ConclusionsSexual health research is critical during a global infectious disease pandemic and our review of studies suggested notable research gaps. Researchers can focus efforts on LMICs and under-researched topics within sexual health and explore the use of qualitative techniques and interventions where appropriate.


Author(s):  
Marcela Jabbaz Churba

AbstractThis study aims to analyse the legal decision-making process in the Community of Valencia (Spain) regarding contentious divorces particularly with respect to parental authority (patria potestas), custody and visiting arrangements for children, and the opinions of mothers and fathers on the impact these judicial measures have had on their lives. It also considers the biases in these decisions produced by privileging the rights of the adults over those of the children. Three particular moments are studied: (1) the situation before the break-up, focusing on the invisible gender gap in care; (2) the judicial process, where we observe the impact of hidden gender-based violence and gender stereotypes; and (3) the situation post-decision, showing how any existing violence continues after divorce, by means of parental authority. The concept of ‘motherhood under threat’ is placed at the centre of these issues, where children’s voices are given the least attention.


2021 ◽  
pp. 002087282110039
Author(s):  
Hadijah Mwenyango

This article analyses the interplay between women’s social identity, migration and manifestation of sexual and gender-based violence. The research used mixed quantitative and qualitative methods. The findings show experiences of domestic, sexual, community and survival violence. Their predicaments are exacerbated by socio-cultural and structural influences, and despite commitments for protecting refugees, more has to be done to meet the needs of victims. The article reveals the urgency for the adoption of gender-responsive and rights-based approaches in refugee interventions. The capacity of frontline workers must be enhanced to detect violence, appreciate the needs and rights of victims and provide appropriate support.


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