From Marianism to terrorism: the many faces of violence against women in Latin America.

Abstract

Violence against women is widespread and highly tolerated in Latin America. In this paper, I will argue that this is because violence stems from deep cultural roots and because women are brought up in a patriarchal familial organization which promotes passivity and dependence. Traditional religious culture, which poses the Virgin Mary figure as role model, is ambivalent and distorted, repressing sex while overvaluing motherhood and self denial and demeaning women who do not conform to the established stereotypes. Patriarchal violence has serious emotional consequences for women. The stressful violent circumstances in women's lives lead to increased drug abuse that further exposes them to police and institutional violence. Political instability and civil wars in South America have caused many deaths, and have left many women with traumatic sequelae. Efforts at improving quality of life and diminishing violent conditions for women and girls in Latin America should include consideration of local cultural, political and economic peculiarities.