Claire with two energetic youngsters from Tierra Nueva Dos during the 2006 Delegation.
Branigan, C. T. (2008) Feminincide: The Intent to Destroy a Society Where Women Walk Without Fear
Abstract:
In this paper I will examine the crime of feminincide: the systematic killing of women simply because they are women. Although none the less horrendous, femininicide, is not by definition genocide. Rather feminincide is a distinct crime, specific to the female experience in a society which asserts its power through systematic and misogynistic terror. It is not contradictory, but rather parallel, concurrent, or complementary to genocide; both are crimes of power committed through the systematic terror of a marginalized group. Through the examination of the feminincide in Guatemala, as well as supporting evidence from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, I will make the claim that, in the crime of "feminincide", there is a clear intention to destroy in whole or in part a society in which women are granted the freedom to live safely; rather to implement instead a society of misogynistic fear. This paper is written with the theory that to examine the crime of feminincide, in Guatemala or otherwise, it is absolutely essential to utilize the crime of genocide as a frame of reference; to draw comparisons between the two crimes and what makes societies participate in intentional slaughter of their population. Specifically, through the case study of Guatemala, I will focus on how the mechanisms which were utilized in its genocide have re-manifested themselves in the feminincide. I will also emphasize how the common denominator of impunity makes both of these crimes permissible and perpetual within a society.