To mark the International Day of the Elimination of Violence Against Women, WIDE+’s Migration Working Group put together a short video, highlighting messages of resistance and solidarity, strongly calling for the end of violence against migrant women. Across Europe and globally, migrant women have been at the forefront of the COVID-19 crisis, as healthcare workers, as lowly-paid informal workers, and at the same time, providing unpaid labour.
WIDE+ Key message this year is that we need to end violence against migrant women and migrant women workers. In the words of Martha Salazar, KULU Women and Development, WIDE+ member: “Violence against women is the hidden epidemy of 2020″, but as Nurhiday Hassan, WIDE+ remarks: “There is no vaccine for the shadow pandemic. It is time to end the culture of misogyny now”. According to Gea Meijers, WIDE+: “It is 2020, a year in which violence against migrant women is increasing, we need to end this now”.
“Solidarity is not enough. It is about resistance. End Violence Against Women”, is the message from Lica Stein & Jennifer Kamau, International Women Space, WIDE+ partner.
And we need to focus on migrant women workers: “It is time to eliminate Violence Against Migrant women workers“, according to Jara Henar, Alianza por la Solidaridad, WIDE+ Member and Cristina Reyna, WIDE+ Member. Anna Fabbri, WIDE+, calls for “Solidarity & Support For Migrant women Working in the Elderly Care System“.
As the “shadow pandemic” of violence against women worsened during the pandemic, migrant women continue to face multiple intersecting forms of discrimination and struggle to get access to support. Our working group continues to advocate for the rights of migrant women, and demand for action, especially in this moment of crisis.