Violence against women, expressed in its most extreme form as femicide, continues to grow at alarming rates across Abya Yala. This crisis is not only a matter of public policy or activism; it is a profound social, cultural, and relational problem that demands reflection and transformation beginning within the home.
While marches, public statements, and international days of awareness are necessary, they are not sufficient on their own. We must interrogate the relational dynamics that shape how individuals learn to treat one another from the earliest stages of life within their own home.
Women make up half of the world’s population, and we play a crucial role in giving life to and caring for the other half. They gestate, nurse, nurture, and raise children, laying the groundwork for their emotional and relational development. However, many of these nurtured children grow into men who go on to perpetrate violence against women. Why does this happen?
This contradiction raises urgent questions: What is happening within our relational systems between mothers and sons? How has a relationship of care transformed into one of domination or aggression? What are we failing to do to prevent violence from reproducing itself generation after generation?
The problem is not merely political; it is inside the homes, families, and relationships. Maintaining legal systems based on “weak laws” exacerbates impunity in society.
The roots of violence run deeper in cultural norms, symbolic meanings, and internalized ancestral memories. To kill a woman is not simply to end a life; it is an attempt to destroy her body, to expel rage, fear, or unresolved trauma through destruction. Ever since Bible stories, women are the ones who sin, the ones who are used and mistreated by their husbands. Now, in society, women are exposed to the same relationships of control and abuse.
On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, it is crucial to move beyond mere slogans and confront the underlying issues that contribute to violent behavior. The foundation of respect and compassion begins at home. Children observe and learn about relationships from how their parents and family members interact. A boy who witnesses his father striking, insulting, or controlling his mother learns that dominance and violence can be considered part of intimacy. Conversely, if a girl sees her mother being silenced, diminished, or harmed, she may internalize fear or resignation as components of power dynamics. Consequently, this cycle continues to perpetuate itself.
These patterns do not develop in isolation. Numerous communities continue to bear the traumatic legacy of colonization, which introduced systems of domination, sexual violence, and dehumanization of women in Abya Yala, leaving behind generational scars and trauma.
The abuses of the past resonate in the present, manifesting in the rise of violence, abuse, machismo, and feminicides. What remains unhealed, unacknowledged, or unnamed often resurfaces in destructive ways.
The question, then, is how to disrupt this cycle. We must begin with how we relate to one another. Promoting a culture of care and equality within families involves teaching boys to manage frustration and grief while instilling respect for women. It is crucial to empower girls to recognize their own value and assert their boundaries. Additionally, we should encourage women to support each other in confronting abusive behaviors and work towards developing justice systems that protect survivors rather than dissuade them from seeking help.
Reducing violence against women requires more than punishment. It requires reeducation; recognition that it is a problem. Only by tackling the issue at its core, within homes, churches, schools, and society at large, can we begin to envision a future where women are free from the fear of violence and ultimate feminicide. We aspire to a world where relationships are built on dignity and mutual respect.
PUBLICA 