Female Genital Cutting/Mutilation: An Under-Recognized Form of GBV in the US, 2021

Female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM/C) is a reality for many women and girls across different communities in the United States. Yet, for centuries, FGM/C has remained a hidden tradition. It’s often practiced by women to women, and girls are raised to believe they must remain silent about what they underwent. Silence is an endemic or inherent part of this type of gender violence that can lead to lifelong physical and emotional health consequences. At the core of providing better prevention, protection, health and social support services for women and girls is stronger data, enhanced research, and community engagement. Join Sahiyo, the Asian-Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence, and the U.S. End FGM/C Network for an exploration of FGM/C, its connection to gender-based violence, and how COVID-19 has impacted the movement to abandon FGM/C in the US.

Related Resources

AAPI LGBTQ+ Experiences of GBV

AAPI LGBTQ+ Experiences of GBV

This factsheet summarizes the layered needs and experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and more (LGBTQ+) Asian, Asian American, and Pacific Islander (AAPI) survivors and communities in the U.S., based on the current literature available. Although...

Exploring the Cultural Contexts of Consent in AANHPI Communities

Exploring the Cultural Contexts of Consent in AANHPI Communities

AANHPI communities tend to be collective in nature, as well as hierarchical, to varying degrees. Both contexts complicate the concepts of consent and boundaries, especially for AANHPI youth and young adults, who often do not have opportunities to learn about the taboo...

Centering AANHPI Survivors: Recommendations for Campus and Title IX Administrators

Centering AANHPI Survivors: Recommendations for Campus and Title IX Administrators

This summary report lifts up the experiences and needs of Asian, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander students and staff who face dating and domestic violence, sexual assault, or sexual harassment on campus. While focused on experiences of survivors on college campuses, the findings and recommendations may also have implications for AANHPI students in the context of K-12 schools. Many thanks to the AANHPI survivors and advocates who were willing to share their experiences and insists with API-GBV!

Policy Advocacy for AAPI Survivor Serving Organizations

Policy Advocacy for AAPI Survivor Serving Organizations

9/14/22 at 12:00 – 1:30 pm PSTWhen AAPI advocates say they want to work on policy advocacy, what does that mean? Do rules governing non-profits limit our ability to advocate to improve systems and laws impacting AAPI survivors? Because elected officials vote on bills,...

Navigating HUD With AANHPI Survivors

Navigating HUD With AANHPI Survivors

API-GBV was joined by Karlo Ng, Director on Gender-based Violence Prevention and Equity, Office of the Secretary at the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development. Ms. Ng shared tips and resources in navigating HUD housing and homelessness programs to best support AANHPI survivors and AANHPI culturally specific organizations.

Defending Criminalized Survivors Workshop

Defending Criminalized Survivors Workshop

What happens when the laws that are supposed to protect survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault become turned against them? Survivors can be criminalized for reacting in self-defense, participating in criminal activity under their abusers’ coercion, or for failing to protect their children from witnessing or being impacted by violence in the home. Survivors of color, who struggle with mental health or substance dependency, or who otherwise don’t fold the “perfect victim” mold are disproportionately incarcerated. In this workshop, API-GBV will be joined by Hyejin Shim and Neda Said of Survived & Punished, who will guide participants through a discussion of the criminalization of survivors, and how advocates can support criminalized survivors.

PowerfuL Partnerships: Collaborative efforts to address human trafficking affecting AAPI communities, 2022

PowerfuL Partnerships: Collaborative efforts to address human trafficking affecting AAPI communities, 2022

Alia El-Sawi, a Victim Assistance Specialist at the Department of Homeland Security, joins API-GBV for our first “fireside chat” hosted by our Executive Director Monica Khant. Drawing also from her previous role as the Anti-Human Trafficking Coordinator at a community-based organization that provides culturally-responsive services for survivors of human trafficking, Alia will discuss what can be done to increase coordination and communication between DHS agents and community-based advocates in responding to trafficking situations and minimizing trauma for survivors. The conversation will also illuminate challenges to current anti-trafficking efforts, including fear of reporting, human-trafficking’s concurrence with other forms of gender-based violence, and the abundant stereotypes around the trafficking of AAPI individuals.

Presented by Sahiyo and the U.S. End FGM/C Network; Hosted  by API-GBV

April 2021

Watch on YouTube
Download Slides
Share this: