Hidden in plain sight: structural violence against women
Sticks and stones may break her bones, but our collective silence is ultimately what harms them.
Structural violence occurs when dominant social forces and institutions harm womxn by preventing them from meeting their basic needs and full potential. In doing so, it produces and perpetuates inequality in well-being which manifests as gender pay gaps, the ‘pink tax’, differential attainment in careers and education, worse health outcomes, vulnerability to crises, insecurity, physical gender-based violence and other threats to body autonomy and the right of self-determination.
Structural violence is intersectional.
In addition to sex & gender, various identities, including race, ethnicity, sexuality, socio-economic status, immigration status, religion and disability status, and urban vs rural living influence the experience of structural violence. Intersectionality is the extent to which these various identities compound to create different layers of disadvantage or advantage for womxn. What’s worse than misogyny & sexism? Misogyny layered with racism, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, islamophobia and able-bodism.
Structural violence is invisible.
The paradox of structural violence is that it is ubiquitous yet invisible. This is because its social rules are normalised and minimalised. They are baked into our policies, legislations and guidelines and so become deeply embedded in our psyches and public narratives. The system is hard to challenge because it is a faceless perpetrator.
So who is this faceless perpetrator? It is the patriarchy.
Women, men, trans-folk and non-binary people uphold the patriarchy.
To tackle structural violence against womxn, we must tackle the patriarchy. The patriarchy is founded on male privilege. Privilege is less about whether or not you are deserving and more about the absence of impediment or inconvenience, so you only really notice it when it is absent. Male privilege doesn’t mean you haven’t worked hard or deserve what you have, or that your life isn’t hard or you haven’t suffered; it just means that your sex has never been a cause of your suffering.
Finally, structural violence thrives off popularising the deficit narrative- the belief that individuals and communities are lacking and damaged. It dehumanises and blames womxn, so their bad outcomes are their fault. Attitudes and practices towards them are accepted. The focus is shifted to the individual, not the invisible, powerful forces shaping their ability to self-determine and practice agency in health.
Structural violence is a system. We are THE SYSTEM. The system is upheld by our collective silence and inaction.
As we approach International Women's Day next week, how can we all commit to tackling structural violence against womxn?
Firstly we must acknowledge that structural violence against womxn exists.
Secondly, we can share power and privilege by passing the mic and platforms to womxn. Reflecting on our positionality will help this step.
Support initiatives that provide educational, economic, mentorship and leadership resources and opportunities for womxn in your organisation.
Vote for policies and leaders who prioritise gender equity and protect the rights and well-being of womxn.
Support womxn-led businesses
Happy International Women’s season!!
Here are some events to look out for next week in celebration of International Women’s Day 2023:
P.S
As always, if my thoughts this week struck a cord, piqued your interest, or you’d like to explore some of these ideas further or have questions, leave a comment and write to me HERE.
* I use the term womxn to refer to individuals assigned female at birth who may identify as women, non binary or trans gender.Useful Resources: