(Narratives of gender-based violence and the role of the community (2015-2018))

Abstract

Although within the last few years there has been a marked interest in community studies in different fields of knowledge, studies that relate community and gender based violence are still in short supply. Little is known about informal community networks and their responsiveness to women who have experienced gender based violence and the intersections of violence with formal and informal support networks. In this paper we note that the community’s misunderstanding of gender-based violence, the focus on women’s agency in the intimate partner relationship as part of state responses as well as traditional associations of discourses that link care with women have been important factors. On the basis of the fieldwork with women who experienced gender-based violence in Buenos Aires province and in the northwest of the Córdoba province (between 2015-2018) and current research with women, we review the evidence to argue that, while community-based work against gender-based violence poses particularly complex challenges, an additional strategy to address gender-based violence is urgently needed.