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The

Wellesley Centers for Women 

is a research and action institute at Wellesley College that is focused on women and gender and driven by social change.
Our mission is to advance gender equality, social justice, and human wellbeing through high-quality research, theory, and action programs.

PROJECTS

Agenda: "Innovations in Understanding Violence against Women"

2004 International Research & Action Conference

 

Day One

Opening plenary, "Charting a New Course: New Directions for Action and Research on Gender Based Violence." Carolyn West, USA

Day Two

Welcome by Linda M. Williams, USA, Introduction of Plenary Speaker Nan Stein, USA, Keynote Address, "Violence Against Women in War Zones and Conflict Areas: The Forgotten Crimes," Nadera Shalhoub Kevorkian, Israel

Panel sessions

“Gender Based Violence in Schools,” moderator Susan McGee Bailey

  • Susan McGee Bailey, USA, “Unsafe Schools: A Literature Review of School-Related Gender-Based Violence in Developing Countries”
  • Nan Stein, USA, “Gender Violence and Gender Safety in U.S. Schools”
  • Rachel Jewkes, South Africa, “Why Is Coerced Sex so Prevalent in South Africa? Towards a Sociological Analysis of the Context of Rape”

“Narratives of Violence Against Women,” moderator Katherine Morrison

  • Claudia Bernard, UK, “Rape, Trauma, Voice and Recovery: A Challenge for Black Women”
  • Floretta Boonzaier, South Africa, “Women and Men’s Relationship Stories: A Narrative Analysis of Woman Abuse”
  • Katherine Morrison, USA, “African-American Survivors? Insights Concerning Intimate Partner Violence: A Qualitative Study”

“Methodologies for Change—Human Rights in Action,” moderator Monica Driggers

  • Lori Michau, Uganda, “Linking Human Rights Awareness and Experiences of Domestic Violence: Community-Based Action Research with Women and Men in Kawempe Division, Uganda”
  • Sheila Dauer, USA, “Domestic Violence as a Human Rights Violation (Amnesty International and Due Diligence)”
  • Monica Driggers, USA, “The Battered Mothers’ Testimony Project: A Primer for Human Rights Inquiry in the United States”

“Gender Violence Across Sociocultural Contexts,” moderator Veronica Herrera

  • Firoza Chic Dabby-Chinoy, USA, “Understanding Women’s Experiences of Violence Over Their Lifecourse”
  • Kristin Dunkle, USA, “Transactional Sex Among Women in Soweto, South Africa: Exploring Prevalence, Links to Violence, Poverty and Substance Use, and Association with HIV Infection”

“Women with Disabilities Experience Abuse,” moderator Marry Ann Curry

  • Marsha Saxton, USA, “I Didn't Know It Was Supposed to Hurt When They Combed My Hair”
  • Mary Ann Curry, USA, “A Survey of Disabled Women's Experiences of Abuse”
  • Mary Oschwald, USA, “The Development of an Abuse Screening Tool Unique to Women with Disabilities”
  • Dena Houssneh-Phillips, USA, “Women with Spinal Cord Injuries' Experience of Abuse”

“Confronting VAW in Conflict Areas,” moderator Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian

  • Anne Brodsky, USA, “The Resilience and Resistance of Afghan Women: Lessons Learned Through Qualitative Research with an Indigenous, Underground Organization”
  • Kelley Ready, USA, “Mujeres Montanas: Confronting Violence Against Women in Post-War El Salvador”
  • Victoria Firmo-Fontan, Turkey, “The Forgotten Few: Violence Against Women in Post-Saddam Iraq”
  • Jeanne Ward, USA, “Field Test of a Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Survey in East Timor and Kosovo: Lessons Learned”

Roundtables

“Safety and Justice for All: Examining the Relationship Between Women's Anti-Violence Movement in the Criminal Legal System,” Alisa Klein, USA, Patricia Eng, USA, and Mimi Kim, USA

“Victim Testimonies of Global Violence Against Women,” Nina Cummings, USA and Andrea Parrot, USA

“Centering Women/De-Centering a Woman's Issue? Dilemmas in Researching the Medicolegal Response to Sexual Assault,” Deborah Parnis, Canada and Janice DuMont, Canada

“SOS Hotline for Girls Database—Methodology Problems,” Suncica Vucaj, Serbia and Montenegro

“The Picture of Partnership Violence as Conveyed by Surveys,” Minna Piispa, Finland

“Violence Against Women in the Accounts of Young People Living in Reformatory Schools,” Päivi Honkatukia, Finland

"Human Rights, Critical Consciousness and Transformative Processes: A Latino Domestic Violence Intervention as a Case Point," Julia Perilla, USA

“In the Name of the Fathers: Honor-Killings in South-Eastern Turkey,” Aysan Sev’er, Canada

“Packing a Different Punch: The Dynamics of Girl-on-Girl Violence,” Rachel Chertok, USA

“Battered Women's Stories as a Social Change Indicator,” Sharon Rice Vaughan, USA

"Born to Die: Killing Daughters Continues in Masculine India," Anita Raj, USA

“The Power of Listservs: Using Technology To Fight Violence Against Women,” Anne O’Dell, USA, Kelly Otte, USA, Kathleen Waits, USA, and Joy McRae-Fox, USA

“Gender-Based Violence Survey Among Internally Displaced Women and Girls in Colombia: Methodology and Findings,” Jeanne Ward, USA with Rocio Murad, Colombia, in Spanish

“Evidence on Honor Killings in the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan,” Mohammad Ismail, Pakistan

“Legal Abortion as Part of Comprehensive Services to Survivors of Sexual Violence,” Deborah Billings, Mexico

“Impact of Family Violence on Girls' Relationships with Friends,” Vilmante Pakalniskiene, Lithuania

"Sfulinga," Kakana Mukhopadhyay, India

“Trafficking for Prostitution of Women from West Africa to Europe,” Esohe Aghatise, Italy

“The Not so Visible: Intimate Female Homicide in South Africa,” Shanaaz Mathews, South Africa

“Rural/Community-Based Anti-Violence Response and Prevention in Ghana: A Pilot Case,” Margaret Brew-Ward, Ghana

“What Do Women Want From the Health Services After Sexual Assault? A South African Study" NiCola Christofides, South Africa

“Violence Against Black Women: Exploring the Nuances of Assault and Harassment in the Home, Community, and Workplace,” Nicole T. Buchanan, USA, April L. Few, USA, Tameka Gillum, USA

“Who Do We support, How Do We Support Them, and What Does "Support" Mean Anyway? Placing the Ethical Duty To Support Research Participants and Staff in Socio-Cultural Context,” Kristin Dunkle, USA

“Alor Disha—A Community Initiative to Combat Violence Against Women," Dolon Ganguly, India

“Safety Stories: What Matters to Girls,” Judy Schoenberg, USA

“Substance Abuse and Intimate Partner Violence in Lesbian Relationships,” Monika Kolondziej, USA

“The “Greenbook” National Demonstration Initiative: Evaluating Complex Systems Change To Address the Co-Occurrence of Intimate Partner Violence and Child Maltreatment,” Heather Karjane, USA

“Don't Say a Word. The Silence and Scourge of Intra Familial Sexual Abuse,” Suzanne Charles, Jamaica

“Interlinkages between Violence Against Women and Women’s Right to Adequate Housing," Yamini Mishra, Thailand

“Child Sexual Abuse and HIV in South Africa: Beyond Virgin Cleansing,” Rachel Jewkes, South Africa

“Countries Supporting Each Other's Efforts in Fighting Trafficking,” Lyubov Maksymovych, Ukraine

Panel plenary

"Women at the Crossroad: Violence and the Intersection of Multiple Oppressions" Moderated by Nada Aoudeh

  • Sherene Razack, Canada, “Imperiled Muslim Women, Dangerous Muslim Men and Civilized Europeans: Legal and Social Responses to Forced Marriages”
  • Khatidja Chantler, UK, “Domestic Violence: Critical Perspectives on Persecutors, Rescuers and Victims”
  • Naeemah Abrahams, South Africa, “South African Responses to Gender Based Violence: Engaging with the Issues of Race, Class, Culture and Gender”

Panel sessions

“The Persisting Power of Public/Private Ideology in U.S. Law of Sexual Harassment, Rape, and Domestic Violence,” moderator Maria Bevacqua

  • Carrie Baker, USA, “Women v. the State: Legal Narratives of Sexual Harassment and Privacy Rhetoric”
  • Maria Bevacqua, USA, “Shielding Men: Power, Privacy, and the Legal Regulation of Rape”
  • Wendy Murphy, USA, “Rape and the Failure of Law Reform: What's Still Wrong and What You Can Do About It”

“Re-Envisioning a Coordinated Community Response to Intimate Partner Violence,” moderator Lisa Goodman

  • Deborah Epstein, USA, “The Victim Informed Prosecution Project”
  • Lisa Goodman, USA, “Evaluating the Victim Informed Prosecution Project: Design and Initial Results”
  • Lauren Cattaneo, USA, “Addressing Intimate Partner Violence in an Interdisciplinary Context: Obstacles and Lessons Learned”

“Family Violence Against Women in Russia,” moderator Irina Gorchkova

  • Irina Gorchkova, Russia, “Family Violence Against Women in Russia: Scale and Character”
  • Irina Shyriginia, Russia, “Violence Against Wives and Distribution of Power and Families’ Resources Between Wives and Husbands”
  • Irina Kalabikhina, Russia, “Reproductive Behavior, Reproductive Health, Time Use and Family Violence in Russia: Are There Some Links?”
  • Shaura Shakurova, Russia, “Violence Against Women in Russia: Gender and Ethnicity”

“Methodologies for Change-- Research and the Voices of Women,” moderator Moderated Naeemah Abrahams

  • Laura Murray, USA, “Searching for a Voice and Fighting To Be Heard: Dominican Sex Workers Share their Life Stories of Violence, Survival, and Activism”
  • Diane Purvin, USA, “’So When He Came into the Kitchen I Changed the Subject . . .’: Uncovering Intimate Partner Abuse Through Ethnography”
  • Vallei Kalei Kanuha, USA, “"Being Native" vs. "Going Native": Conducting Research as an Insider” Nairruti Jani, India, “Folk Songs and Dance: Means of Fighting Violence in Rural India”

“Context and Culture: The Case of Domestic Violence,” moderator Alytia Levendosky

  • Kerry Leahy, USA, “The Influence of Community Violence on the Functioning of Battered Women”
  • Erika DeJonghe, USA, “Stereotypical Sex-Role Adherence and Behavior Problems in Children Exposed to Domestic Violence”
  • Shallimar Jones, USA, “Race, Family Support, and Domestic Violence”
  • Alytia Levendosky, USA, “In Her Own Words: Women's Narratives of Domestic Violence”

“Interventions with Batterers and Male Involvement in Stopping VAW,” moderator Vera Mouradian

  • Poonam Kathuria, India, “Eliciting Male Involvement in Combating Violence Against Women”
  • Nata Duvvury, USA, “And What About Men? Masculinity and Domestic Violence in India”
  • Donna Chung, Australia, “Researching Domestic Violence Perpetrator Programs as Feminists: Improving Women’s and Children’s Safety or Misplaced Effort?”

“Trafficking, Prostitution and Mail Order Brides,” moderator Nan Stein

  • Marina Chawla Singh, India, “Globalization, Sexuality and Trafficking in South Asia: Some Interventions in Understanding VAW”
  • Mary Sullivan, Australia, “Legal and Safe: Occupational Health and Safety for Victoria’s Legalized Brothel Prostitution”
  • Jeanne Kohl-Wells, USA, “International Matchmaking Organizations: Washington State's Public Policy Response to Providing Protections to Mail-Order Brides”
  • Lyubov Maksymovych, Ukraine, “Prevention of Trafficking in Ukraine”
  • Shobha Hamal-Gurung, "Violence Against Women – Work in the Carpet Factory, Trafficking, and Sex Trade: Who Is To Blame? Poverty, Patriarchy, or Something Else?"

“VAW Across Cultures,” moderator Khatidja Chantler
Sharmila Mhatre, Canada, “Beyond Victims and Villains: The Culture of Sexual Violence in South Johannesburg, South Africa”

  • Ranjan Karmaker, Bangladesh, “Community Violence Against Women in Bangladesh”
  • Saraswati Raju, India, “Born to Die: Killing Daughters Continues in Masculine India”
  • Lilia Labidi, Tunisia, “Debating Violence Against Women in the Arab World: Four Cases”
  • “Grassroots Asian American Women Against Violence, Exploitation, and Human Trafficking: Resistance at the Intersection of Activist and Researcher” moderator Norma Timbang
    Norma Timbang, USA, Joanna Alcantara, USA, Jennifer Brower, USA

Day Three

Panel sessions

"Violence Against Women in Global Context," moderator Joan Kaufman

  • Kersti Yllo, “Marital Rape and the HIV/AIDS Pandemic: A Human Rights and Public Health Crisis”
  • Laura McClosky, USA, “Sexual Abuse, Domestic Violence and HIV in Tanzania: Findings from a Household Survey”
  • Tahira Khan, Thailand, “Marriage-Related Violence Against Girls in Rural Pakistan—Examining the Role of Community and Family”
  • Naeema Abrahams, South Africa, “Exploring the Impact of Witnessing Mothers' Abuse: A Study of South African Male Workers”

"Combating Violence Against Women," moderator Vera Mouradian

  • Janice DuMont, Canada, “Victim Impact Statements in the Context of Sexual Assault: Narratives of Empowerment or Entrapment?”
  • Janine Zweig, USA, “Justice System Reponses to Helping Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Victims: Does Interaction Between Community Agencies Matter?”
  • Suman Bisht, India, “Combating Violence Against Women: Some Reflections from the Field”

“Critical Pathways to Surviving VAW,” moderator Veronica Herrera

  • Montserrat Sagot, Costa Rica, “The Critical Path of Women Affected by Family Violence: From Research to Action in Central America”
  • Sally Merry, USA, “Mobilizing Rights Against Violence Against Women: A Sociological and Historical Analysis of Patterns of Complaining in Hawaii”

Closing session

"The Women's Movement: Confronting the Backlash, Consolidating our Gains and Organizing for Change" Indai Sajor, USA

 
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