Apoxonskriti and Feminist Community Work: De-ethnicization of Violence against Women

Abstract

This article presents the experiences of Bodo women through the lens of perceived apoxonskriti (translated to approximation as cultural blasphemy) and addresses how community work could facilitate liberation from patriarchal obligations and its misogynistic underpinnings, thereby creating meaningful opportunities for de-ethnicisation and its impact on emancipation. The article is based on the author’s work with a voluntary organisation in Bodoland Territorial Council, Assam, with conflict-affected communities. The narrative style of the paper, (including the usage of first person “I”) reflects the spirit of autoethnographic accounts and highlights the pedagogies adopted within the framework of feminist community work.