Stopping Violence against Women

by Leah Curtin

Did you know that every day ten American women are battered to death? Did you know that one in every three American women is raped? The highest rape statistics in the world come from the U.S. Did you know that three out of four American women will be subject to at least one violent crime in their lifetimes?

On any given night, the beds at the local YWCA Battered Women's Shelter are full. "The number of women who seek escape from violence and abuse is overwhelming," said Charlene Ventura, president and CEO of YWCA of Greater Cincinnati. Each year, about 12,000 calls come into the local hotline and more than 1,000 women and children seek help at the shelters in Hamilton and Clermont counties. Ventura talked about some of these issues at the Violence Against Women National Conference that Srs. Dorothy Bolser, June Casterton, Marie Clement Edrich, Jacinta Doyle, Karen Hartman, Adelaide Link, and associate Leah Curtin attended on April 24 at Seton High School in Cincinnati, OH.

Sr. Louise Akers, coordinator of the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati Office for Peace, Justice and the Integrity of Creation, opened the conference, by saying, "This is a global issue – and it is a local issue. I've met women at shelters with powerful stories and frightening experiences....some of the woman here will share their experiences with you." And indeed they did: even at the opening session, a woman gathered her courage to approach the microphone, and with tears in her voice, thanked the presenters – and the YWCA in particular for saving her life.

Sr. Carol Jean Willie, SC, PhD, opened her keynote address with a quote from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, "There is one universal truth, applicable to all countries, cultures and communities: violence against women is never acceptable, never excusable, never tolerable." In the book, Half the Sky by Nicholas Kristof, the author notes "It appears that more girls have been killed in the last fifty years, precisely because they were girls, than men were killed in all the wars of the twentieth century. More girls are killed in this routine 'gendercide' in any one decade than people were slaughtered in all the genocides of the twentieth century."These sobering comments initiated a day full of information, outrage and inspiration. First, the (outrageous) facts:

80%of the 800,000 people who are trafficked each year are female, more than 70% for sexual exploitation.

The United States is a major trafficking magnet; approximately 17,000 people are trafficked into the U.S. each year.

Up to 70% of women and girls will be beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in their lifetime, most before they are 18 years of age. Rape and domestic violence are a higher risk for women aged 15-44 than cancer, traffic, malaria and war combined. The U.S. Bureau of Justice estimates that nearly three of every four victims of family violence are women. An estimated 1.5 million women are raped and/or physically assaulted by an intimate partner each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. More than half of all rapes of females happen before the age of 18, and 22 percent of those happen before the age of 12.

There are no overall statistics on the numbers of girls who die annually from infanticide. Nonetheless, a minimum estimate would place the casualties in the hundreds of thousands, especially when one takes into consideration that the phenomenon is most prevalent in the world's two most populous countries, China and India. Sex-selective abortions likely account for an even higher number of "missing" girls in the population. 65% of the world’s children who do not attend school are girls, and 66% of the world’s illiterate people are women.

These are just a few of the horrifying facts that assaulted our ears at this conference. However, there is hope – and there are thousands of people world-wide who are doing many wonderful things to counter violence perpetrated, for the most part against young girls...So here is some of the inspiration we also found at this conference.

Ingrid Munro founded and manages Jamii Bora, a microfinance organization based in Nairobi, Kenya that started in 1999 with 50 street beggars. Our members – 150,000 strong – climb out of poverty with an average loan of $95. They now also offer health insurance, and a housing program. Their members pay back loans, borrow again, and help one another. Make no mistake – this is the poor uniting together to help one another.

Greg Mortenson is an American humanitarian, writer, and former mountaineer. Mortenson is the co-founder (with Dr. Jean Hoerni) and director of the non-profit Central Asia Institute, and founder of the educational charity Pennies for Peace. His passion for educating girls has led to the building of 131 schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan, often against daunting odds and amid considerable danger.

Following the keynote address and question session, participants ate lunch together and attended break-out sessions focused on what was being done locally to help women who have experienced violence. Then we all gathered in Seton’s Auditorium for sharing – and for enjoying the spectacular singing of MUSE – Cincinnati’s only all female choral group.

© Franciscan Sisters of the Poor