Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Building Migrant Women's Resilience To Violence and Trauma September 2018
Building Migrant Women's Resilience To Violence and Trauma September 2018
Building Migrant Women's Resilience To Violence and Trauma September 2018
say, “Okay you will sneak over to advocacy, and other NGOs that seek to
Mass at this hour, then I will hide respond to their needs. The online
and go at this hour, then you will survey was conducted in October 2017
take care of the children while I and had 158 respondents from service
sneak to the market for our providers, advocacy organizations, legal
shopping for the week. advocates, domestic violence shelters,
and other community-based
Undocumented women migrants are organizations. Responding
among the most vulnerable people in organizations served Mexican, Central
the U.S. work force because they feel American, Southeast Asian, South
they have no way to report harassment American, and women migrants from
and violence. Migrant women and girls, other parts of the world.
who have limited English proficiency,
and who have been in the U.S. for short Not surprisingly, the survey respondents
periods of time, are among the most at prioritized the need for accessible and
risk to be victims of sexual violence in affordable legal services to assist
the U.S. labor force.29 women migrants gain legal immigration
status. One survey respondent noted:
Programs and Services for Migrant
Women in the U.S. On any given day in Arizona,
Fortunately, there have been many non- there are approximately 3,000
governmental organizations (NGOs) adults detained by ICE.
responding to the needs of migrant Approximately 90% of those
women who have experienced violence individuals will not be able to find
and trauma. However, most NGOs only an attorney to represent them in
have the capacity to respond to their removal case. We try to
individual-level violence, e.g. provide help as many folks as we can
emergency shelter and domestic but the need is crushing.
violence services; assist victims of
crimes; apply for immigration visas for Another noted:
domestic violence victims, victims of
human trafficking, or victims of crime; or Lack of legal [immigration]
apply for public benefits. status/delay of [immigration
court] determination means
There are a few U.S. governmental sustained vulnerability for
programs that address trauma and women and families, where they
violence experienced by migrants: there cannot legally work, cannot
is some funding for domestic violence access public benefits, and could
services, some violence prevention be re-victimized.
programs in the criminal justice context,
some general community relations One respondent noted how current U.S.
programs to address extraordinary immigration law is slow to recognize
incidents of community-level violence or violence-based claims to obtain asylum:
trauma, and some trauma-informed
mental health programs.30 Many of our clients have fear
claims based on gang or cartel
The survey conducted by the Tahirih violence and there is a real lag in
Justice Center as part of this analysis the law and immigration judges’
documents the wide range and willingness to consider these
immediacy of needs among women very real threats to people’s
migrants and the types of service, health and safety as a possibly
9
Manjoo R. Report of the Special Rapporteur on http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.137
Violence Against Women, Its Causes and 1/journal.pone.0168692; Willers S. Migración y
Consequences, Mission to Honduras, United violencia: las experiencias de mujeres migrantes
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, centroamericanas en transito por Mexico.
A/HRC/29/27/Add.1, 31 March 2015, available at: Sociologica (2016);31(89):163-195, available at:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Women/SRWom http://www.scielo.org.mx/pdf/soc/v31n89/0187-
en/Pages/AnnualReports.aspx 0173-soc-31-89-00163.pdf
10 17
Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Honduras United Nations Human Rights Commission,
Unidad de Genero, Observatorio de muertes Women on the Run (2015), available at:
violentas de mujeres y femecidios (2015), http://www.unhcr.org/en-
available at: us/publications/operations/5630f24c6/women-
https://iudpas.unah.edu.hn/observatorio-de-la- run.html; Parish A. Gender-Based Violence
violencia/boletines-del-observatorio-2/unidad-de- against Women: Both Cause for Migration and
genero/ Risk Along the Journey, Migration Policy Institute
11
Centre International pour la Paix et les Droits (2017), available at:
de l’Homme (CIPADH), Gender Based Violence https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/gender-
in Guatemala (2017), available at: based-violence-against-women-both-cause-
http://www.cipadh.org/en/gender-based-violence- migration-and-risk-along-journey
18
guatemala International Crisis Group, Easy Prey: Criminal
12
International Organization for Migration, Violence and Central American Migration (2016),
Factores de Riesgo y Necesidades de Atención available at: https://www.crisisgroup.org/latin-
para las Migrantes Mujeres en Centroamérica america-caribbean/central-america/easy-prey-
(2016), available at: criminal-violence-and-central-american-migration;
http://rosanjose.iom.int/site/sites/default/files/Fact Consejo Ciudadano del Instituto Nacional de
ores%20de%20riesgo%20y%20necesidades%20 Migración. Personas en detención migratoria en
de%20las%20mujeres%20migrantes%20en%20 México: Misión de Monitoreo de Estaciones
Centroamérica%20-%20WEB.pdf Migratorias y Estancias Provisionales del Instituto
13
Raderstorf B, Wilson CJ, Zechmeister EJ, Nacional de Migración (2017), available at:
Camilleri MJ. Beneath the Violence: How http://cdhfraymatias.org/web/wp-
Insecurity Shapes Daily Life and Emigration in content/uploads/2017/08/CCINM-Informe_Final-
Central America, The Dialogue Leadership for Monitoreo.pdf
19
the Americas, Latin American Opinion Project Secretaria de Gobernacion, Boletines
Rule of Law Working Paper (2017), available at: Estadisticos: Extranjeros presentados y
https://www.thedialogue.org/wp- devueltos, 2011-2016, available at:
content/uploads/2017/10/Crime-Avoidance- http://www.politicamigratoria.gob.mx/es_mx/SEG
Report-FINAL-ONLINE.pdf OB/Extranjeros_alojados_y_devueltos_2016
14 20
U.S. Civil Society Working Group on Women, Burgi-Palomino D, Buckhout E. Does My Story
Peace & Security, Violence and Insecurity in the Matter? Seeking Asylum at Mexico's Southern
Northern Triangle of Central America: Dangerous Border, Latin American Working Group Education
Choices for Women and Girls (2017), available Fund (2017), available at:
at: https://www.futureswithoutviolence.org/wp- http://lawg.org/storage/documents/LAWGEF_MX
content/uploads/US-CSWG-Policy-Brief- _Asylum_Report_July_2017.pdf
21
Violence-and-In...gerous-Choices-for-Women- Médecins Sans Frontières, Forced to Flee
and-Girls.pdf Central America’s Northern Triangle (2017),
15
Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, available at:
Global Report on Internal Displacement (2016), https://www.msf.org/sites/msf.org/files/msf_force
available at: http://www.internal- d-to-flee-central-americas-northern-triangle_e.pdf
22
displacement.org/globalreport2016/ United Nations Committee on the Protection of
16
University of Washington Henry M. Jackson the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members
School of International Studies Task Force, The of Their Families, Twenty-Seventh Session,
Cycle of Violence: Migration from the Northern Summary Record of the 365th meeting. 6
Triangle (2017), available at: September 2017, available at:
https://digital.lib.washington.edu/researchworks/b http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyext
itstream/handle/1773/38696/Cycle%20of%20Viol ernal/SessionDetails1.aspx?SessionID=1127&La
ence_Task%20Force%20Report%202017%20FI ng=en
23
NAL.pdf?sequence=4&isAllowed=y; Keller A, U.S. Border Patrol, Stats and Summaries,
Joscelyne A, Granski M, Rosenfeld B. Pre- available at:
migration trauma exposure and mental health https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/media-
functioning among Central American migrants resources/stats?title=Border+Patrol
24
arriving at the US border. PLoS One (2017)12:1, Separation of children from migrant women
available at: mothers occurred even before the announcement