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How Can International Advocacy Reduce Violence Against Native Women?
Special Collections | UN Commission on the Status of Women | UN Human Rights Council | UN Special Rapporteurs | UN Treaty Bodies | Inter-American Commission on Human Rights | UN Permanent Forum
While advocacy on the domestic level is vital, it is important to recognize that violence against Native American women also has implications in the international arena. The United States government's failure to respond to the epidemic of violence against Native American women is a human rights violation under international law. Advocacy at the international level can complement and strengthen advocacy efforts on the domestic level.
International advocacy can:
- raise awareness of and inform the international community about the epidemic of violence against Native women;
- educate legislators and policy makers in the United States about their international human rights obligations to Native women;
- provide new legal arguments for increasing protection of Native women from violence;
- mobilize other human rights groups to engage with the United States on this issue;
- allow international human rights bodies to comment on United States' actions and whether they meet the United States' international obligations; and
- increase pressure on the United States by shaming it in the international arena.
Indian Law Resource Center Special Collections
- International Advocacy to Help End Violence Against Native Women (February 2016) | This Special Collection is intended to provide information and resources on how to use international advocacy in our work to end violence against Native women and girls.
- The Inter-American Human Rights System ─ Combating Violence Against Native Women in the United States (November 2013) | A compilation of resources documenting the Center’s advocacy within the Inter-American Human Rights System to combat violence against Native women in the United States.
UN Commission on the Status of Women
- Violence Against Rural Indigenous Women: Brazil, Guatemala, Peru, and the United States | March 8, 2023
- Experts Call For Action to Address Violence Against Indigenous Women in Rural America | March 19, 2018
- Empowering Women at the United Nations: CSW 61 Update | April 25, 2017
- International Experts Say Ending Violence Against Indigenous Women is Critical Step Towards Empowerment | March 17, 2017
- UN Commission on the Status of Women 61st Session | March 13-24, 2017
- International Experts Explore Strategies to End Violence Against Indigenous Women and Girls | April 5, 2016
- Panel of International Experts to Explore Strategies to End Violence against Indigenous Women and Girls at CSW60 | March 16, 2016
- CSW60 Event Focuses on Ending Violence Against Native and Aboriginal Women | February 1, 2016
UN Human Rights Council
- Written statement submitted to the 48th session of the UN Human Rights Council, "Violence against Indigenous Women in the United States: A Human Rights Scourge Exacerbated by the COVID-19 Pandemic." | August 20, 2021
- Center again calls on UN Human Rights Council to take action to end violence against indigenous women and girls | September 9, 2016
- Center calls on UN Human Rights Council to take action to end violence against indigenous women | June 16, 2016
- Center delivers recommendations to the UN Human Rights Council to stop violence against indigenous women | June 19, 2015
- UN Committee Calls for Intensified Efforts to Combat Violence Against Native Women | September 9, 2014
- Thematic Hearing before the Commission addresses spectrum of violence against indigenous women in the United States | October 2018
- New Report by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights focuses on the Human Rights of Indigenous Women in the Americas | April 17, 2017
- Protection against violence is a fundamental human right - Jessica Lenahan (formerly Gonzales) Update | January 11, 2016
- Thematic Hearing Before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights: “Violence Against Native Women in the United States” | October 2011
- IACHR hearing on Violence Against Native Women: Inter-American Commission Hearing has U.S. Officials and Native Advocates Agreeing that the Violence Must End | October 2011
- Advocating for Native Women in the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights | July 13, 2011
- IACHR Decision Brings Hope to Native Women: Inter-American Commission on Human Rights says U.S. violated its obligations under international human rights laws | August 18, 2011
- Native Women File Amicus Brief in Gonzales v. United States | November 2008