Young Bride Research Articles

Childhood Marriage: A Detrimental Consequence of Poverty and Gender Inequality

Child marriage is sin which destroys the dream of tiny toys with that has an awful effect on the psycho-social development of the girl child. All around the world, young women are compelled to marry. Young girls are being coerced into marriage by their families or culture in many nations worldwide. For many years, UNICEF and other organizations have been trying to put an end to this practice, which typically causes young brides to face a variety of health concerns. The decision to have the young girl marry the man of their choosing is made by the family in nearly all child marriage cases. For various reasons, families take this action. First and foremost, a large number of these young brides reside in nations known for their lack of access to food and other conveniences. Women find it hard to get any form of work in these areas, and the girls end up being just another expenditure for the impoverished family. The family perceives an opportunity to have someone else provide for their daughter's needs, such as food and care, when the girl gets married to a man, regardless of his age or financial status. Being married at such a young age exposes young brides to several abuses and difficulties. In the majority of civilizations, a woman is seen as a woman by the community's norms when she gets married. This implies that woman will have to take care of her husband's home, which typically entails doing a lot of hard domestic labor in less affluent areas.

Unadorned: An Essay on a Conjugal Spectacle in Postcolonial Zanzibar

Abstract This essay explores the historical, political and cultural lessons of a Shia Khoja diasporic account about the Forced Marriage Act, also known as Ndoa za Karume (NZK), in 1964 post-revolutionary Zanzibar. It examines how the pogroms committed by the Afro-Shirazi government against Arab and Asian communities in this period shaped the narration and transmission of memories of social suffering. In particular, the essay analyzes a work by a Zanzibari Khoja exile in the United Kingdom highlighting the experience of young forced brides. It argues that NZK constituted literal, legal and social harms and thus provides insight into the abuse of women and girls as spoils of war. By engaging with this voice, we gain not only a deeper understanding of a specific historical moment but also a more nuanced understanding of the political context of gendered experience in an island adrift.

Upaya Pencegahan Perkawinan Anak Pada Masyarakat Penerima Program Keluarga Harapan (PKH) di Sonobabar Grobogan

The focus of dedication to this community is to reduce the number of child marriages in the recipient community of Program Keluarga Harapan (PKH) in Sonobabar Dusun Gedangan Grobogan. The PKH programme by the Ministry of Social Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia aims to help the economy to eradicate poverty. But the rise in the number of child marriages in poor areas increases the burden on society. Economic, social, educational and health disruption is an acute problem in the region. Participary Action Research (PAR) approach is chosen by servants to find problems, discern and find solutions together with the community. The result of this dedication is 1. The importance of socializing about the dangers of child marriage for young brides. Lack of preparedness in terms of economics, reproductive health and mental health because it is not ready to go through households and take care of children will be a problem in the future. It is necessary to enhance cooperation and support to promote the economy and legal awareness of the dangers of child marriage between the facilitator of the PKH of the Ministry of Social Affairs, the religious advocate of the Office of Religious Affairs (KUA) of the ministry of Religion, Bidan Village and the village government in Dusun Sonobabar Gedangan Grobogan.

Creating a Local Notable: Brigadier General Anthony Walton White of New Brunswick

To the extent he is remembered today, Brigadier General Anthony Walton White is hailed as one of New Brunswick, New Jersey’s, most illustrious residents and a reminder of the city’s significance during the American Revolution. This account of White’s career reveals that he was far from successful in the military or in business. Born to wealth on an estate along the Raritan River, White relied on family ties and political connections to gain appointments in the military and government throughout his life. He forswore allegiance to Great Britain in 1775 and sought a position on Gen. George Washington’s staff. Washington interviewed White but was unimpressed and declined to appoint him to his staff. White became a cavalry officer and served throughout the Revolutionary War, but his military record was hardly unblemished, and he faced several inquiries into his conduct and courts-martial proceedings. In the 1790s he served in the suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion and in 1798 was promoted to the rank of brigadier general during the quasi-war against France. George Washington reckoned him one of the least capable and most insufferable officers in the US Army. White fared no better in civilian life or business. After the revolution, he lost his sizeable inheritance in a series of bad investments. He also squandered the wealth inherited by his young bride, a girl he met during his service in South Carolina. White filed for bankruptcy in 1802 and died the following year. White was not a villain, but neither was he a hero. His life, like history generally, offers a complicated and cautionary tale.

BREAKING THE SILENCE: PSYCHOLOGICAL STRESS-RELATED FACTORS IN IMMATURE MARRIAGES

The primary objective of this study is to investigate the intricate relationship that exists amid psychological stress and immature marriages in Southern Punjab. More specifically, the research investigated specific obstacles that young brides in this region face. The focus of the research is on unions that occur during infancy. It is believed that these unions are responsible for the emission of stresses that originate from socio-cultural, economic, as well as gender issues. In order to see psychological characteristics that are linked with immature marriages, the research thus made use of the quantitative method approach, making use of quantitative survey data in conjunction with these findings. The study offered significant results in reaching desired conclusion and making decisions. This research contributes toward a better knowledge concerning psychological mechanisms that are responsible for immature marriages, which is necessary so as to provide an explanation for these elements in light of the local context. In addition to recognizing interventions and policies that can be used to construct culturally informed methods to meet the mental health needs of the young brides in Southern Punjab, the results also direct attempts at achieving more comprehensive outcomes.

The commanders’ spouses. The marriages of the Utrecht Teutonic Knights, 1640–1940

In 1640 the Bailiwick of Utrecht abolished the obligation of celibacy, as a continuation of the Protestantisation process that had started 25 years earlier. After this decision, half of the sitting members married. Most of the knights who joined after 1640 were married. The paper analyses data collected on 221 marriages over three centuries. Most of these marriages fit the Western European Marriage Pattern: entered into by mature people, generally of their own free will, but in good consultation with the family (marriage by consent). The age difference between the partners was usually not very large. Very young brides were rare, mainly restricted to the circles of German princes, who knew arranged marriages. The spouses usually came from the same milieu, but certainly not always. As noble girls, the brides had received an education aimed at finding a suitable spouse, after which they could play a role as a mother, manager of the household and pivot in the social network. The knights formed their own households, with their children, no longer living in the commanderies. Until the nineteenth century a substantial part of the offspring died young. The effects of medical developments in the nineteenth century, which reduced child and maternal mortality, are visible in the data set.

Are You a Designer Bride? Power Relations Between Popular Media and the Indian Bride

In recent years, the bride has become a representative fashion icon of clothing, cosmetic and entertainment industry in India. Designers like Sabyasachi Mukherjee, seem to project the bride’s access to bridal couture as a symbol of empowerment, emancipation and even nationalism. However, statistics would prove that Indian brides still carry the burden of cultural evils like dowry, domestic abuse, psychological pressures of marriage and child-bearing. Television shows like “Band, Baaja, Baraat,” lavish weddings of Bollywood actors like Anushka Sharma and Deepika Padukone have evoked new aspirational images in the imagination of the Indian middleclass. The present paper attempts to question the proliferation of wedding couture as a symbol of power and resistance to power. It aims to explore the route maps of capitalist desire and the seduction of women into this ambiguous role-play; are fashionable brides dressed in hot pants foolish consumers or artful minds who bend patriarchal structures even if for a short time? The paper will be premised on theories of popular culture, post-feminism, everyday feminism and cultural studies. It will enable us to address the reductive approach of contemporary capitalism towards complicated ideas of gender, class, caste, money, religion and region in Indian marriages. It will refer to ideas by Germaine Greer, Gloria Steinman, Stephanie Genz, Maitrayee Chaudhuri, Bharati Chibber, Santosh Desai to investigate into the empowering images of young brides as curated and exhibited by popular media.

Child marriage and its impact on health: a study of perceptions and attitudes in Nepal

Background In Nepal, child marriage affects approximately 33% of girls prior to the age of 18, and 8% of girls by the age of 15. The practice has various causes, which include a lack of education, poverty and societal norms. Literature indicates that child marriages have a more significant impact on women’s health because of early pregnancies and the consequences of dropping out of school. This study aims to understand the impact of child marriage on health by exploring the perceptions held by women in Nepal. Understanding the opinions of those most affected is imperative to influence and improve policy. Methods 13 semi-structured interviews occurred in the Kathmandu Valley in May 2019. Participants were selected purposively by the project host who acted as a gatekeeper and further participants were identified via snowballing. The data was analysed thematically. Results The perceived causes of child marriage in Nepal were a lack of school level education, poverty, having numerous siblings, a low social status and societal views. The impacts on health include a high incidence of early pregnancy complications, and the effects of dropping out of school. The mental health of young brides was perceived to be affected by pressures to work in the home, being isolated and being too young for marriage. Factors such as awareness, availability, societal pressures and independence affected the health-seeking behaviours of child brides. The participants highlighted that raising awareness, reaching out rurally, and educating and employing women would tackle the problem. Conclusions Many of the themes discussed agreed with the existing literature. The effect of dropping out of school and the impact of child marriage on mental health have not yet been explored qualitatively. Factors that affect health-seeking agree with the limited research available, indicating a need to make services more accessible.

Intrapersonal communication about the meaning of early marriage in Bandung City

Background: Early marriage is a prevalent practice in Cigondewah Rahayu Village, Bandung City. From a psychological and social perspective, early marriage can lead to emotional immaturity and underdeveloped cognitive abilities among young brides. The persistence of traditional customs surrounding early marriage in the area serves as a compelling motivation for researchers to investigate this phenomenon. Purpose: This study aims to explore the community’s interpretation of early marriage from the perspective of intrapersonal communication. Additionally, it seeks to understand the experiences of individuals who have participated in early marriages in Cigondewah Rahayu Village, Bandung City. Methods: This research employs a qualitative approach, drawing on Alfred Schutz’s phenomenological studies and the theory of Symbolic interactionism. Informants were selected using a purposive sampling technique. Data analysis involved techniques such as data reduction, presentation, and verification. Results: The findings indicate that, within the context of intrapersonal communication, early marriage is commonly perceived as a normal practice within the local community, deeply rooted in historical traditions. Participants view early marriage as a ritual that holds religious significance. Moreover, they believe that it facilitates the development of a mature mindset, fostering independence and generating positive impacts in various aspects of their lives, particularly within their social interactions. Implications: Based on the study’s findings, it is important to raise public awareness regarding the potential risks associated with early marriage. Given the unstable mental condition of young individuals, engaging in early marriage can give rise to challenges within the household, as their psychological development is not yet fully equipped to handle the responsibilities and complexities of married life.

Homage to a Picture Bride

Homage to a Picture Bride Garrett Hongo (bio) When years were long with labor in the sugarfields,I sought a wife, at last, choosing her from a photograph.She was but fifteen, a shy child of a bridewrapped in faded kimono, as I likewise was wrapped in wind,a man of thirty, weathered by work in the green seasof cane, my savings finally enough to take my wedding vows. Before then, it was to the coming world that I made vowsto wrest a new life from the earth and leave the fieldsso I might cast my eyes without sorrow from mountains to the sea,never again to falsify who I was in a photographas though I were a clerk or a saddler, sheltered from the constant winds,the image I'd sent, a deception to my young bride. She was young but daily growing, my new bride.We stood on the pier and took our vows,and I led her to the North Shore, its mountains torn by winds,below them the rippling green fieldsof cane stretching all the way to the sea,a landscape no one would care to photograph. [End Page 328] Before we left, someone took a photograph—this laborer and downcast picture bridehalf his age at their dockside ceremony of vows—staged before a background of slate-gray seasand the small curls of waves tossed by winds,impassive faces resigned to a hard life in the canefields. We were destined never to leave the fields—my wife gave birth to a son we did not photographas, before he could cry, he was taken by the windthat came betrothed as his own promised bride,journeying from the Afterworld over storm-tossed seas,our mortal dreams of a better life all but disavowed. She herself died within a year of our vowsand so finally escaped the sugarfields,a ghost in flight, ha-alele-hana, over the dread seasthat never would be captured in a photograph,so that, ever after, only resolve would be my brideand my mourning cloak a coat of harsh winds. Only the wind knows my sorrows now, whatever vowsmy bride and I made are forever lost in the sugarfields,this photograph the one moment we lived apart from life's cold seas. [End Page 329] Garrett Hongo Garrett Hongo was born in Volcano, Hawai'i, and grew up in Los Angeles. His latest books are The Perfect Sound: a Memoir in Stereo and a forthcoming collection, The Ocean of Clouds: Poems. He is the recipient of the 2022 Aiken Taylor Award in Modern American Poetry, and he teaches at the University of Oregon in Eugene. Copyright © 2023 The University of the South

The Hera of Zeus. Intimate Enemy, Ultimate Spouse by Vinciane Pirenne-Delforge and Gabrielle Pironti

Reviewed by: The Hera of Zeus. Intimate Enemy, Ultimate Spouse by Vinciane Pirenne-Delforge and Gabrielle Pironti Roy Van Wijk The Hera of Zeus. Intimate Enemy, Ultimate Spouse. By Vinciane Pirenne-Delforge and Gabrielle Pironti. Trans. by Raymond Geuss. Cambridge, UK; New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2022. Pp. 348. Hardback, $120.00. ISBN: 9781108888479. This book is an English translation of the 2016 French original L'Hera de Zeus: Ennemie Intime, Epouse Definitive. It is the first product of a new CUP series dedicated to translating key works in other languages into English. If this is the standard adhered to, the series will be a great addition to Classical scholarship. This is an essential book for anyone interested in researching and understanding (if partially) the multifaceted nature of Greek polytheism. Rather than providing a general overview or deciphering the teleological development of Hera, the authors stress her versatile character. At the same time, they successfully incorporate the many local characteristics of her cult. They avoid the [End Page 376] straight jacket of a "uniform" goddess approach, yet demonstrate how her essential characteristics, such as maintaining sovereignty and organizing the hierarchy of the (divine) household or marriage, emerge at the cult sites from Sybaris to Samos. In the process, they traverse numerous mythological stories to argue that Hera cannot be captured by the monolithic "jealous wife" trope widespread among scholars. In fact, she is the rightful, powerful counterbalance to Zeus in her own right. She does not just exist as Zeus' foil. She is a divine queen atop the pecking order of Olympus by her own right. The first chapter sets out the premise of her role in the divine order. Contrary to earlier scholarship that saw Hera as the remnant of a matriarchal society or the final development of a primordial vegetation goddess descended from the Mycenaean period, the authors show that Hera took on many roles. Besides being the daughter of Kronos and thus divine royalty on her own account, she plays the role of spouse. As Zeus' sister, she is on equal terms with him. As his lover, she is unsurpassed in beauty in Zeus' eyes – despite his misgivings – and his desire for her stands on a different level. It is that attraction she uses to negotiate with him. She is the guardian of marriage and safeguarded childbirth, especially the legitimacy of children, as evidenced by her behaviour vis-à-vis Dionysos and Herakles, who need to earn their right to Olympus. It is her close acquaintance with her brother that makes her his most dangerous enemy and equal: she knows exactly what triggers him and how to outsmart the thundering god, as evidenced in the story of Herakles and Eurystheus' birth. The second, much bigger chapter, traces Hera in her various cult guises across the Greek world. The cults in question are that of Stymphalos, Plataia, Argos, Samos and Olympia. The chapter ends with an overview and analysis of her roles. Despite the local differences, in each cult it is clear that she acts in her capacity as Queen of the Gods and Olympus. Her role as the consort of Zeus is everywhere engrained in the cultic roots across Greece in various shapes and sizes. In Plataia she protects and solidifies unions and marriages; at Samos she takes on the form of Zeus' young bride that inspired such desires in him. These roles are not mutually exclusive. She can perform various duties within these cults. What their geographic dissemination and local idiosyncrasies show, however, is that despite epichoric differences, the goddess is always venerated in her role as the Hera of Zeus, an equal partner that rightly deserves worship. These investigations of cult are not just worthwhile because of the breadth of their analysis and scholarship; [End Page 377] they also provide a Sitz im Leben for understanding how Greek worshippers themselves saw Hera in all her roles and attributes. The third and final chapter traces one of Hera's most lasting legacies: that of her cholos. This archaic, Homeric term for anger was always misused by previous scholarship. Rather than analyze the context of Hera's wrath more closely...

The association of child marriage with morbidities and mortality among children under 5 years in Afghanistan: findings from a national survey

BackgroundThere is still a gap in knowledge of the impact that child marriage could have on the mortality and morbidity of children in Afghanistan. This study used the data from the latest Afghanistan demographic health survey conducted in 2015 (ADHS) to address this gap and advance the current knowledge.MethodsA secondary analysis of the 2015 ADHS, including the births in the past 5 years to ever-married women aged 15–24 years old, was carried out. Logistic regression analyses were employed to examine the association of child marriage (< 18y) with morbidities (diarrhea, acute respiratory infection, and fever in the last 2 weeks), mortality (neonatal, infant, child), and size at birth among the children under 5 born to women aged 15–24 years, before and after adjusting for the effect of sociodemographic and structural inequalities.ResultsApproximately two-thirds of births in the past 5 years belong to 15–24 years old mothers who married at ages < 18. The majority of them were born to mothers residing in rural areas (75.67%) with no education (51.68%) from poor households (39.39%). As compared to the births to women married at ages ≥ 18, there was a significantly higher likelihood of neonatal mortality among births to women married at ages < 18 (crude OR = 2.30, 95% CI: 1.52–3.49 & adjusted OR = 1.94, 95% CI: 1.25–3.01) and higher infant mortality among the births to the women married at ages ≤ 14y (crude OR = 1.94, 95% CI: 1.06–3.53). However, it disappeared for neonatal mortality after adjustment for adequacy of antenatal care (ANC) and infant mortality after adjustment for sociodemographic inequalities.ConclusionAlthough the births to women married as a child (< 18) were more likely to die at an early age, this association disappeared after adjustment for the adequacy of ANC. Given the unavoidable practice of child marriage in Afghanistan, this finding emphasizes the importance of providing adequate ANC for young brides to prevent child mortality. In addition, strong global advocacy is required to empower and support young Afghan women in negotiating their reproductive and maternity rights with their partners by reducing social and gender-based inequalities.

Reclaiming the Revolutionary

Reclaiming the Revolutionary

Child marriage and the mental health of adolescent girls: a longitudinal cohort study from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, India.

There has been much speculation about the role of inequitable gender norms and early marriage in mental health and suicide risks in girls and young women, but no prospective study has yet investigated this relationship. Understanding these links has become particularly important in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic which has led to increased risk of child marriage in the most vulnerable girls. We examined the association between early marriage and mental health in girls using data from Understanding the Lives of Adolescents and Young Adults (UDAYA), a longitudinal study in adolescents in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, India. The study included girls who were unmarried at wave 1 (2015-2016) and participated at wave 2 data collection (2018-2019). Information on mental health (Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)), suicidal thoughts, plans and attempts were collected at both waves. Logistic regression with survey weights was used to estimate the association between marrying between the two waves and mental health. Between waves 1 and 2, 1825 (23%) participants (n=7864) married. Unmarried girls with depressive symptoms (PHQ score≥9) at wave 1 had greater odds of transitioning into marriage by wave 2 than those without (adjusted-OR 1.5; 95% CI 1.1 to 2.0). The odds of wave 2 depressive symptoms were higher in newly married vs unmarried girls (adjusted-OR 2.0; 95% CI 1.6-2.5). Among newly married girls, the odds of depressive symptoms were higher for those who experienced any abuse than those who did not (adjusted-OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.2-2.2). This effect was larger for girls who had not given birth (adjusted-OR 2.2; 95% CI 1.4-3.3). Our findings show poor mental health preceded and was a consequence of child marriage. Mental health should be considered in policies and programming aimed at reducing early marriage; equally the mental health of young brides should be a focus for community and maternal health services. Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and David and Lucile Packard Foundation.

Teen Brides, Migrant Husbands and Religious Schooling

In many Muslim communities across South Asia, children and adolescents access education through religious institutions such as madrassa. When analysing the impact of madrassa on gender equity and empowerment, many scholars downplay feminist criticism of these institutions on the basis that even non-religious schools promote traditional gender roles in the global south. Some research on Bangladesh explains that ‘modernised’ or government-recognised madrassa, where students learn secular academic topics in addition to Arabic and Quranic verses, help boost female educational attainment in conservative communities. In addition, scholars often resist criticism of madrassa and other local practices such as early marriage in the name of understanding non-Western norms and ideals. Based on ethnographic fieldwork in remote villages of northern Bangladesh, this paper analyses the impact of religious schooling on young women’s everyday lives and perspectives through the experiences of young brides who are married to labour migrant men. Some of these brides have attended secular school while others have attended traditional madrassa, and I attempt to understand how their educational backgrounds have informed their views on marriage and gender roles. In this article, I contest the claim that religious schooling and early marriage can facilitate rural women’s agency. I argue that advocating for modernised madrassa is problematic, unless the conflicting impacts of unrecognised/traditional madrassa on women’s agency are acknowledged.

The wedding bells of war: The influence of armed conflict on child marriages in West Africa

Child marriage is a fundamental violation of human rights. It hinders progress towards development and public health goals. In this study, we argue that armed conflict plays an important role in the occurrence of child marriages; it influences the supply of and demand for young brides. We argue that in conflict settings, families are more willing to marry off their young daughters for protection. Armed conflict can also influence the demand: marriage in general declines due to an imbalance in sex ratio. However, in cases where belligerents use war tactics specifically focused on harming girls, such as sexual violence and girl recruitment, early marriage might increase as the result of armed conflict. To empirically examine these linkages, we combine the Demographic and Health Surveys of West Africa with information on the location of armed conflict. Our study shows that armed conflict generally reduces the occurrence of child marriage with 13% to 18%. However, we observe that when conflict actors use war tactics that specifically harm young girls there is a significant increase of 12% to 18% in the probability of a girl getting married before the age of 18. This research has important implications for our understanding of the relationship between armed conflict, gender inequality, and their impact on children.

A fashionable wedding in Dakar, Senegal

A young bride and groom, Zeynab Dieng (25) and Abdoulaye Ly (28), asked me to photograph their Muslim/Peulh wedding festivities in Dakar, Senegal. Dakarois wedding celebrations centre around the bride, who demonstrates her dignity and savoir faire as a new matron by appearing in a succession of fashionable outfits. Within the Senegalese fashion system, these outfits fall into the style categories labelled ‘ethnic’, ‘pan-African’ and ‘European’. Among the many Senegalese weddings that I have attended and photographed, the wedding of Abdoulaye and Zeynab was startlingly original in its fashions and its rituals. Abdoulaye, Zeynab and their siblings performed a ceremony of freedom on their own terms. My study addresses interwoven processes of colonization/decolonization. The first concerns my own far-from-complete process of attempting to decolonize my mind and practice. The second process concerns the refusing-to-die colonial dichotomy of ‘tradition’ and ‘modernity’ with respect to fashion and weddings. Instead of applying colonial labels to the fashions and the wedding, I try to see these through the lens of the Dakarois youth imaginary. How do Zeynab, Abdoulaye and their contemporaries interpret the decolonizing/neo-colonizing forces they navigate in creating fashions and in shaping their own lives?

János Pelle. Vérvád, hisztéria, népítélet: “Zsidókérdés” Magyarországon 1945-ben és 1946-ban

János Pelle. <i>Vérvád, hisztéria, népítélet: “Zsidókérdés” Magyarországon 1945-ben és 1946-ban</i>

Social and Spiritual Alienation in Yeats’s The Land of Heart’s Desire and Maeterlinck’s The Intruder

The aim of this essay is to compare Yeats’s play, The Land of Heart’s Desire, and Maurice Maeterlinck’s The Intruder. This essays focuses on the ways in which the two writers mobilize their sense of the supernatural as a means to show the social and spiritual alienations of their time. In The Land of Heart’s Desire, a young bride Mary Bruin longs to escape from her house (which symbolizes the common middle-class values) to the fairy world where no one is unhappy, and no one grows old. Symbolized by a fairy child, the spiritual world is used as a contrast to the daily world in which Mary is expected to fulfill her role as a housewife. Despite the entreaties of her husband, she succumbs to the lure of the Child and decides to follow her to the fairy land. Mary dies, with the suggestion that she has an alternative existence in the world where no one grows old. In The Intruder, there is a mother who has fallen ill after giving birth. As in Yeats’s play, spiritual dimensions are symbolized in a figure of child, who had not uttered a single cry after his birth. It is as if the child is made of wax; when the child’s first cry arrives, at the text’s dénouement, the sound coincides with his mother’s death. Thus, in both Yeats and Maeterlinck’s work, the supernatural poses questions to the spiritual and social realities of their time.

A Crisis after the Crisis: Postconflict Stigmatization of Boko Haram’s Sexual-Violence Victims in Northeastern Nigeria

Victimization and stigmatization are emerging as social rubrics against victims of Boko Haram’s sexual violence in the victims’ quest to reintegrate back into their societies. These victims were used as weapons of war, as young brides, or as sex slaves. After their release, they often experience victimization once more, this time by their communities. They are tainted as so-called Boko Haram wives and feared for assumptions that they carry with them certain ideologies, beliefs, and connotations reflective of the insurgent group. Their children (born to Boko Haram fighters) are cast off, not to be touched and not allowed to associate with other children. The processes of secondary victimization bring to light localized notions of morality and purity, sometimes in unexpected settings, such as camps for internally displaced persons.