Statistics tell us that women do almost 80% of unpaid care work in the world. Most women have less/little access to and control over resources, hold few positions of power, and have little if any control over decisions that affect their lives. For these women, establishing self-care as a right will do little to change their lived realities. We need to ask: who and what will make it possible for women to challenge everyday norms and expectations by taking care of themselves? What makes it possible for women to prioritize their wellbeing in the way that we are advocating is not ‘nice to have,’ but absolutely essential to their physical, mental and emotional health?

By Tarangee Mutucumarana, Attorney at Law and Barrister at Law of England and Wales, practicing in Sri Lanka. | Access to justice for victim-survivors of sexual violence globally is restricted by various social, cultural, structural barriers and legal complexities which can be better addressed through a keen analysis of the gatekeepers of law enforcement; the police force.

Violence Against Women and The Call for Change by Natasha Simone Alexenko | Ten years after Andrea Dworkin would give this speech, I was raped and robbed at gunpoint in the United States by a stranger who followed me home. I am far from being an anomaly—research from WHO indicates that about 1 in 3 women have been subjected to sexual violence globally.

By Asiya Jawed | When we imagine humanitarian relief in emergency contexts, we automatically think about the people’s basic needs, which include food, water, shelter, and clothing. However, people live in a state of emergency post-political unrest and turmoil for several months and years – sometimes even decades.

by VOICE founder Mendy Marsh | VOICE exists because we don’t believe that violence against women is inevitable or a normal part of conflicts, disasters, and so-called “normal” times. We exist to disrupt the status quo in the humanitarian system and beyond; to center actions to address violence against women and girls on what we know is necessary.