Eradication of gender violence: dream or reality of deep Latin America

Abstract

To the historical subordination of women, to all forms of discrimination and violence, to unequal wages, to systematic domestic abuse, and to limited access to the political arena, humanity must shamefully add the phenomenon that cuts short the lives of thousands of women and girls in the desire to subjugate and dominate their bodies. Gender violence is the leading cause of death among women in Latin America and the Caribbean between the ages of 15 and 44. Its structural causes are inequality, patriarchy, machismo, discrimination, and the historical subordination of women, which has its origins in historically unequal relations between men and women, in power relations, and in deep gender gaps. It must be understood as a systematic violence that takes various forms and is present in all spheres of society. At the same time, it constitutes a serious violation of human rights and fundamental freedoms, and a long-standing structural problem, the most extreme manifestation of which is femicide, along with other negative factors that contribute to the worsening inequality of women and their status as nobles around the world.