Summary

Part of a series of interviews focusing on best practices for activists and human rights organizations.

LaShawn Jefferson discusses the use of sexual violence in armed conflict, the impact of The International Criminal Tribunal For Rwanda (ICTR), The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), improvements in publication and dissemination of information. She emphasizes the necessity of focusing on preventative measures, calling for a deeper examination of how women viewed within society, progress as related to changing the treatment of women during peacetime. Discusses women's sexual autonomy as an issue that pervades women's rights work, attitudes underpinning acceptance of sexual violence and use as an easy tactic by armies. Discusses the cross-cultural aspects of violence against women, commonalities between domestic violence and issues surrounding women staying silent, guilt, treatment by the judicial system, obstacles placed in women's way. Discusses advancements since the Beijing Conference on Women, 1995. Discusses the dangers of cultural relativism, perception of women's rights as antithetical to nationalism and wellbeing of countries. Describes the formation of a coalition of women's rights activists for Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000. Calls for a more active role from the US Government to establish better international standards regarding conditions of work and migration for work when tricked into it. This refers to the UN Trafficking Protocol and contemporary forms of slavery. Discusses the merits of coalitions, expanding expertise not possible individually, final effort more informed and stronger. Discusses the value of independent contributions brought by Women's Learning Partnership (WLP), the contribution of organization in demystifying advocacy and strategies offered to other groups. Remarks that rights education cannot be a theoretical concept for it to be understood. Discusses strengths of unifying across regions and communities and broad strategizing with other movements - when all systems based on subordination and inequality - to present as a majority.

Runtime: [00:15:22]

TERMS OF USE: While WLP encourages visitors to our website to explore and share the resources in our Learning Center, we do not permit the publication or exhibition of any of the materials provided by WLP or generated by WLP, in part or in their entirety, in articles, books, digests, documentaries, magazines, movies, newsletters, reports, websites, whitepapers, or other print or digital document or platform, or audio or audio-visual recording, or audio or audio-visual broadcast or podcast, without our written permission. To learn more about how to request permission, please consult our full Terms of Use.