Sexual Abuse Towards Women of Color Paper Example

Introduction

The primary topic in this article is concerned with sexual abuse towards women of color, which is executed by individuals and the state. For an extended period in the United States, women of color have faced much sexual violence, which has led to the formation of various antiviolence groups and agencies. The movements have provided essential services and aid to victims of mainstream sexual violence. They also expose cases of abuse to allow the government to prosecute the offenders. However, they work closely with government agencies, which make it difficult for them to address violence and discrimination towards women of color by the state.

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The author focused on gender violence towards women of color due to the discrimination and negligence portrayed by state agencies towards women based on race. She argues the same institutions created to protect them carry out most of the violence. For instance, the author describes an event of a raped woman of color, who is raped again by a white police officer after asking for help. Secondly, she reveals that institutions and women movements across the United States do not prioritize sexual harassment based on color; instead, they address common occurrences. For example, "The Color of Violence" movement that was created to campaign against gender violence ignored the plight of colored women, which led to their defection to create the INCITE campaign (Smith 3). Thirdly, the writer was motivated by the failure of the world's racial justice system to combat racisms towards women; instead, they focus on issues affecting men and disregard gendered discrimination.

Description of the Author's Main Argument

The author's main arguments revolve around institutionalized violence against women of color in the world, especially in the United States. Notably, she analyzes the failure of the criminal justice system and social movements such as "The Color of Violence" to address specific issues affecting colored women. Firstly, the author reveals that the state through the criminal justice system has been the primary perpetrator of the gender violence. In this case, instead of the agency protecting the rights of women, they serve as a secondary site of victimization (Smith 4). For example, the justice system criminalizes and imposes harsh punishment on women who are found guilty of protecting themselves against sexual assaults. Colored women prisoners are subjected to inhumane conditions in prisons such as physical and emotional isolation, invasive body searches, and verbal and physical abuse. Moreover, incarcerated Indian Women in California face harsh conditions, which the author reveals as genocidal policies against the native community (Smith 5). Similarly, anti-drug laws in the United States oppress women of color who are attempting to evade the exploitative economic system. Law enforcement agencies, such as the border patrol, engage in gender violence against immigrant women. The situation makes it impossible for the justice system to reduce community violence towards women.

Secondly, women of color, especially Arabs have been subjected to state violence. In this case, the state portrays Arab women as terrorists due to the 9/11 suicide bombings. Additionally, most nations through colonialism ideologies have promoted gender violence against women of color. One example is the Zionism ideology that focuses on making Israel a Jewish-only country (Smith 7). The condition has led victimization and inhumane treatment of Arab women by the Israeli occupation soldiers. Furthermore, the United States continues to engage in colonial violence towards indigenous women in Hawaii. In this case, the state has imposed oppressive social structures and militarism such as nuclear testing in the Pacific, which kills the indigenous people slowly (Smith 7). The above phenomena have made it difficult for women of color to turn towards the state for help since it serves more to victimize them.

Works Cited

Smith, Andrea, et al. "The Color of Violence: Introduction." Color of Violence: The INCITE! Anthology (2006): 1-10.