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<h1>From College Campuses to Conflict Zones: Violence Against Women Is Both Personal and Political</h1>
 <div>  <div>  <div>During the last few months, the issue of violence against women has again come to the fore in the media. NFL running back<a href="/?p=10323"> Ray Rice knocked his fianc&eacute;e out</a> in an elevator and was caught on video. A University of Virginia<span style="height: 20.6719989776611px;"> </span><span style="height: 20.6719989776611px;">(UVA) </span><span style="height: 1.7em;">student went missing, and </span><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/24/us/virginia-hannah-graham-remains-identified/" style="height: 1.7em;">was found dead</a><span style="height: 1.7em;"> weeks later. An alleged violent gang rape of another UVA student by members of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity was described in detail as part of a </span><a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/features/a-rape-on-campus-20141119" style="height: 1.7em;">9,000-word <i>Rolling Stone</i> article</a><span style="height: 1.7em;"> on sexual violence on campus. (The magazine </span><a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/a-note-to-our-readers-20141205" style="height: 1.7em;">today issued a statement</a><span style="height: 1.7em;"> citing concerns about the article's veracity).</span>  <p>Thus far, <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/bill-cosbys-legacy-recast-accusers-speak-in-detail-about-sexual-assault-allegations/2014/11/22/d7074938-718e-11e4-8808-afaa1e3a33ef_story.html">at least 20 different women</a> have come forward with stories of how comedian Bill Cosby sexually assaulted them. Three high school girls in Oklahoma who were <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/oklahoma-high-school-rocked-by-3-rape-allegations/2014/11/24/43b4a008-740a-11e4-95a8-fe0b46e8751a_story.html">allegedly raped</a> by the same male student were bullied for coming forward. And in Washington, D.C., this week, a Capitol Hill staffer pleaded guilty to drugging and sexually assaulting female colleagues.</p>  <blockquote>A law can only do so much without the cultural and political will to implement its intent.</blockquote>  <p>The United States has a serious gender-based violence problem.</p>  <p>The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) has helped the situation some by institutionalizing protection of victims&rsquo; rights, increasing prosecutions and penalties for rape and domestic violence, and making resources available for survivors of violence and their families. The provisions of VAWA have and can go a long way to bringing rapists and abusers to justice, protect women from new abuses, and get survivors of assault back on their feet.</p>  <p>But a law can only do so much without the cultural and political will to implement its intent. For example, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/13/us/new-orleans-police-special-crimes-unit-inquiry.html?_r=0">a recent report</a> from the New Orleans Police Department reveals the greatest challenge facing women who seek to hold their rapists accountable for their actions: In a three-year period, the NOPD only followed up on 14 percent of reports of sexual assault&mdash;the remaining 86 percent were never investigated at all.</p>  <blockquote>Change can only occur if we switch our mindsets from the reactionary to the proactive.</blockquote>  <p>These challenges are global. Just last week as the rest of the world was recognizing the International Day to End Violence against Women,<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/sudan-increases-pressure-on-un-darfur-mission/2014/11/25/8a6f3afe-74d1-11e4-8893-97bf0c02cc5f_story.html"> the Sudanese government was ordering </a>the UN Mission in Darfur to prepare to withdraw&mdash;this, following the mission&rsquo;s request to investigate new reports of mass rape committed by government forces.</p>  <p>Rape has also become an alarmingly common occurrence for Central American women crossing the border into the United States&mdash;in fact, 80 percent of women are subjected to sexual assault before reaching the United States, <a href="http://fusion.net/story/17321/is-rape-the-price-to-pay-for-migrant-women-chasing-the-american-dream/">according to one study</a>.</p>  <p>Domestic violence is <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-29708612">rampant in my country of India</a>, though more women are reporting abuse, signaling a positive change in women&rsquo;s willingness to courageously speak up (and, importantly, for the rest of us to listen without attaching stigma).</p>  <p>Women all over the world continue to face violence, whether they are being beaten by members of their families, raped by persons known or unknown, or assaulted within the context of military aggression and armed conflict.</p>  <blockquote>I had many female friends who would tell me about the fraternities they avoided &hellip;</blockquote>  <p>The public outrage that has followed each shocking event in the United States is only meaningful if it is met with corresponding action, and change can only occur if we switch our mindsets from the reactionary to the proactive: We need to honestly unpack and confront the cultural forces that make violence against women so pervasive.</p>  <p>One in five women is estimated to be a survivor of sexual violence. This is not just a criminal justice issue, but a cultural phenomenon.</p>  <p>I was a member of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity when I went to undergraduate college years ago. My sister-in-law currently attends UVA. The allegations made in<i> Rolling Stone</i> are very personal on many levels and absolutely political as well. Whether they occurred exactly as the author details or not, there is absolutely no denying that many fraternities tolerate&mdash;if not accept&mdash;a culture where their masculine identity somehow condones or even celebrates the objectification of women.</p>  <p>Looking back, I had many female friends who would tell me about the fraternities they avoided, or the parties they wouldn&rsquo;t attend&mdash;and I lived with men who would often display the unwelcome behavior women were trying to avoid.</p>  <p>Violence against women will continue to be a serious problem worldwide until all of us, our political leaders, and our legal systems demonstrate that women have an inviolable right to be safe from injury at the hands of others, that perpetrators will be prosecuted and punished for their actions&mdash;and that we will hold ourselves accountable for the cultural norms we perpetuate that allow violence to occur.</p>  </div>  <!-- <img src="7950161f1edd4004b27c29aefe8ee8b4"> --></div>  <!-- <p><img src="901db7ff78b54fbcad63d2d8a05a31d8">Samir Goswami is the Director of Adjacencies at LexisNexis, where he manages renewal and growth of the federal government&#8217;s data integration business line and directs the development of a Rule of Law portfolio.</p> --></div>  <!-- <a href="http://www.lexisnexis.com/lextalk/justice_matters/f/24/t/1378.aspx#sthash.flIMBg50.dpuf">LexisNexis&#174; Justice Matters Rule of Law blog</a>. LexisNexis Rule of Law Services is an organization that collects and publishes the local laws of transitioning nations and those emerging from conflict, making them accessible to citizens and professionals so they can know their rights with unprecedented clarity and gain access to justice. --><!-- <a href="http://www.yesmagazine.org/peace-justice/why-yesallwomen-matters">Language Matters: How #YesAllWomen Named a Problem With No Name</a> --><!-- <a href="http://www.yesmagazine.org/peace-justice/when-yesallwomen-have-experienced-violence-it-s-my-job-to-make-sure-it-s-notmysons">7 Parenting Tips For a World That Harms Women</a> --><!-- <a href="http://www.yesmagazine.org/peace-justice/this-country-needs-a-truth-and-reconciliation-process-on-violence-against-african-americans">This Country Needs a Truth and Reconciliation Process on Violence Against African Americans&#8212;Right Now</a> -->
<p>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org">Yes! Magazine</a> at <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org/social-justice/2014/12/06/violence-against-women-is-personal-and-political">https://www.yesmagazine.org/social-justice/2014/12/06/violence-against-women-is-personal-and-political</a>.</p><link href="https://www.yesmagazine.org/social-justice/2014/12/06/violence-against-women-is-personal-and-political" rel="canonical"/><p>Yes! Magazine is a nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of ... . Learn more at <a href="https://www.yesmagazine.org">Yes! Magazine</a></p><img id="republication-tracker-tool-source" src="https://www.yesmagazine.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=13582&ga4=G-74QJNNY44Z" style="width:1px;height:1px;">

From College Campuses to Conflict Zones: Violence Against Women Is Both Personal and Political
     During the last few months, the issue of violence against women has again come to the fore in the media. NFL running back Ray Rice knocked his fiancée out in an elevator and was caught on video. A University of Virginia (UVA) student went missing, and was found dead weeks later. An alleged violent gang rape of another UVA student by members of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity was described in detail as part of a 9,000-word Rolling Stone article on sexual violence on campus. (The magazine today issued a statement citing concerns about the article's veracity).  Thus far, at least 20 different women have come forward with stories of how comedian Bill Cosby sexually assaulted them. Three high school girls in Oklahoma who were allegedly raped by the same male student were bullied for coming forward. And in Washington, D.C., this week, a Capitol Hill staffer pleaded guilty to drugging and sexually assaulting female colleagues.  A law can only do so much without the cultural and political will to implement its intent.  The United States has a serious gender-based violence problem.  The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) has helped the situation some by institutionalizing protection of victims’ rights, increasing prosecutions and penalties for rape and domestic violence, and making resources available for survivors of violence and their families. The provisions of VAWA have and can go a long way to bringing rapists and abusers to justice, protect women from new abuses, and get survivors of assault back on their feet.  But a law can only do so much without the cultural and political will to implement its intent. For example, a recent report from the New Orleans Police Department reveals the greatest challenge facing women who seek to hold their rapists accountable for their actions: In a three-year period, the NOPD only followed up on 14 percent of reports of sexual assault—the remaining 86 percent were never investigated at all.  Change can only occur if we switch our mindsets from the reactionary to the proactive.  These challenges are global. Just last week as the rest of the world was recognizing the International Day to End Violence against Women, the Sudanese government was ordering the UN Mission in Darfur to prepare to withdraw—this, following the mission’s request to investigate new reports of mass rape committed by government forces.  Rape has also become an alarmingly common occurrence for Central American women crossing the border into the United States—in fact, 80 percent of women are subjected to sexual assault before reaching the United States, according to one study.  Domestic violence is rampant in my country of India, though more women are reporting abuse, signaling a positive change in women’s willingness to courageously speak up (and, importantly, for the rest of us to listen without attaching stigma).  Women all over the world continue to face violence, whether they are being beaten by members of their families, raped by persons known or unknown, or assaulted within the context of military aggression and armed conflict.  I had many female friends who would tell me about the fraternities they avoided …  The public outrage that has followed each shocking event in the United States is only meaningful if it is met with corresponding action, and change can only occur if we switch our mindsets from the reactionary to the proactive: We need to honestly unpack and confront the cultural forces that make violence against women so pervasive.  One in five women is estimated to be a survivor of sexual violence. This is not just a criminal justice issue, but a cultural phenomenon.  I was a member of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity when I went to undergraduate college years ago. My sister-in-law currently attends UVA. The allegations made in Rolling Stone are very personal on many levels and absolutely political as well. Whether they occurred exactly as the author details or not, there is absolutely no denying that many fraternities tolerate—if not accept—a culture where their masculine identity somehow condones or even celebrates the objectification of women.  Looking back, I had many female friends who would tell me about the fraternities they avoided, or the parties they wouldn’t attend—and I lived with men who would often display the unwelcome behavior women were trying to avoid.  Violence against women will continue to be a serious problem worldwide until all of us, our political leaders, and our legal systems demonstrate that women have an inviolable right to be safe from injury at the hands of others, that perpetrators will be prosecuted and punished for their actions—and that we will hold ourselves accountable for the cultural norms we perpetuate that allow violence to occur.

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