WMNS 1103 Chapter 14: The Violence of Color: National Security and the Violation of Women
25 May 2018
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“National Security” and The Violence of Women by Sylvanna Falcon (The Violence of
Color Chapter 14)
• The systematic and routine use of rape as a tactic against women in the US-Mexico
border war is well documented
• The 1982 DOD Authorization Act nullified a statue that prohibited cooperation between
the army and civilian law force. This changed the role of military in domestic affairs and
encouraged and alliance between military and civilian law enforcement.
• Acts of sexual violence that target undocumented women at the US-Mexico border are
informed by the history of colonialism, a 150 year legacy
• Militarized border rape is overlooked because many border regions aren’t considered war
zones
• 3 conditions under which rape has been militarized: “recreational rape” is the alleged
outcome of male soldiers not having enough access to sex, “national security rape” is an
instrument for bolstering a nervous state, and “systematic mass rape” is an instrument of
open warfare
• “National security rape” on the US-Mexico border: undocumented women are viewed as
illegal, or criminals, so their bodily integrity does not matter to the state and it privileges
certain interests.
• Women rarely decide to prosecute because they have to challenge several powerful
institutions- the INS, the US government and the US legal system. Proving rape is
difficult, especially for undocumented women trying to navigate the justice system
• Border climate: rape occurs with no consequence. The code of silence in law enforcement
and military prevents agents from reporting on each other. Much of their work is
unsupervised.
• In every military conflict, women are disproportionately affected, as rape is used as a
military strategy to dominate women and psychologically debilitate people viewed as
“the enemy”
• No effective or useful mechanism exists for victims of human rights violations to file
formal complaints against border patrol agents. 99% of the complaints received by the
justice department were not prosecuted.
• The US government has grown increasingly dismissive and undermining of treaties that
support international human rights
• Rape occurs when fear and insecurity are joined with power and immunity from
prosecution. It derives from a system of dominance and subjugation that encourages
violence as ways to maintain the system.
• Urgent call to hold the US accountable for human rights violations
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Document Summary
National security and the violence of women by sylvanna falcon (the violence of. Proving rape is difficult, especially for undocumented women trying to navigate the justice system: border climate: rape occurs with no consequence. The code of silence in law enforcement and military prevents agents from reporting on each other. In every military conflict, women are disproportionately affected, as rape is used as a military strategy to dominate women and psychologically debilitate people viewed as. The enemy : no effective or useful mechanism exists for victims of human rights violations to file formal complaints against border patrol agents.
