The International Violence Against Women Act of 2015 (I-VAWA) is proposed legislation to address

violence against women Violence against women (VAW), also known as gender-based violence and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), are violent acts primarily or exclusively committed against women or girls, usually by men or boys. Such violence is often consi ...

through

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

foreign policy. The legislation was introduced in the

114th United States Congress The 114th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States of America federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from Jan ...

in March, 2015. Similar legislation was introduced in the 110th and

111th United States Congress The 111th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government from January 3, 2009, until January 3, 2011. It began during the last weeks of the George W. Bush administration, with th ...

but was not passed into law.

Background

At least 1 in 3 women around the world are subject to

sexual Sex is the biological distinction of an organism between male and female. Sex or SEX may also refer to: Biology and behaviour *Animal sexual behaviour **Copulation (zoology) **Human sexual activity **Non-penetrative sex, or sexual outercourse ** ...

physical Physical may refer to: *Physical examination In a physical examination, medical examination, or clinical examination, a medical practitioner examines a patient for any possible medical signs or symptoms of a medical condition. It generally co ...

or other

abuse Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...

during their life, per estimates by the

United Nations Development Fund for Women The United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM, french: Fonds de développement des Nations unies pour la femme, ) was established in December 1976 originally as the Voluntary Fund for the United Nations Decade for Women in the International ...

. Not only does violence against women prevent mothers from raising healthy children, it also affects the economic progress and stability within the country in which they live.''The International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA) (S.2982, HR. 4594)''.

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

Issue Brief No. 2. March 2010. Retrieved November 23, 2011.

International Violence Against Women Act of 2015

The International Violence Against Women Act of 2015 (I-VAWA) (, ) was introduced to ensure that addressing violence against women is included in the nation's foreign policy, with best practices for preventing violence, protecting victims and prosecuting offenders. The legislation was the result of efforts by: *

Amnesty International USA Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) is one of many country sections that make up Amnesty International worldwide. Amnesty International is an organization of more than 7 million supporters, activists and volunteers in over 150 countries, with compl ...

* Family Violence Prevention Fund * Women Thrive Worldwide. Experts in related fields from 40 international and 150 U.S. groups provided input for the legislation. The House of Representatives Bill (HR. 1340) was brought before the 114th Congress, sponsored by Representative

Janice Schakowsky Janice Schakowsky ( ; née Danoff; born May 26, 1944) is an American politician who has served as the U.S. representative from since 1999. She is a member of the Democratic Party. The district is anchored in Chicago's North Side, including mu ...

Illinois's 9th congressional district The 9th congressional district of Illinois covers parts of Cook, Lake, and McHenry counties as of the 2021 redistricting which followed the 2020 census. All or parts of Chicago, Evanston, Glenview, Skokie, Morton Grove, Niles, Northfield, ...

. The Senate Bill (S.713), was introduced by Senator

Barbara Boxer Barbara Sue Boxer (née Levy; born November 11, 1940) is an American politician and lobbyist who served in the United States Senate, representing California from 1993 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as the U.S. ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Criticism

I-VAWA has been criticized on the grounds that it would discriminate against male victims and impose Western values upon other societies. According to

Wendy McElroy Wendy McElroy (born 1951) is a Canadian individualist feminist and voluntaryist writer. She was a co-founder along with Carl Watner and George H. Smith of ''The Voluntaryist'' magazine in 1982 and is the author of a number of books. McElroy ...

, a research fellow at

The Independent Institute The Independent Institute is an American libertarian think tank based in Oakland, California. Founded in 1986 by David J. Theroux, the institute focuses on political, social, economic, legal, environmental, and foreign policy issues. It has more ...

, the Act "constitutes a 5-year redirection of foreign aid funds in order to insert politically-correct feminism into the structure of other nations" and "revictimizes every male victim by denying his existence."

Organizations

Many organizations support the I-VAWA Act, some of which are: *

American Jewish World Service American Jewish World Service (AJWS) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit international development and human rights organization that supports community-based organizations in 19 countries in the developing world and works to educate the American Jewish com ...

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...

International Center for Research on Women The International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) is a non-profit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, with regional offices in New Delhi, India, Nairobi, Kenya, and Kampala, Uganda. ICRW has project offices in Mumba ...

International Rescue Committee The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is a global humanitarian aid, relief, and development nongovernmental organization. Founded in 1933 as the International Relief Association, at the request of Albert Einstein, and changing its name in 19 ...

Refugees International Refugees International (RI) is an independent humanitarian organization that advocates for better support for displaced people (including refugees and internally displaced people) and stateless people. It does not accept any United Nations or gove ...

Vital Voices Vital Voices Global Partnership is an American international, 501(c)(3), non-profit, non-governmental organization that works with women leaders in the areas of economic empowerment, women's political participation, and human rights. The organiz ...

Women's Refugee Commission The Women's Refugee Commission is a 501(c)(3) Non-Governmental Organization that aims to improve the lives and protect the rights of Women, Children, and Youth displaced by conflict or crisis. Established in 1989 by Norwegian Actress and film ...

''International Violence Against Women Act Organizational Supporters.''
Women Thrive Worldwide. Retrieved November 23, 2011.

References

{{reflist Domestic violence Violence against women in the United States Proposed legislation of the 114th United States Congress

Background

International Violence Against Women Act of 2015

Criticism

Organizations

See also

References