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‘They Did Not Have To Burn My Sister Alive’: Causes And Distribution By State Of Dowry Murder In India, Peter Mayer Mar 2022

‘They Did Not Have To Burn My Sister Alive’: Causes And Distribution By State Of Dowry Murder In India, Peter Mayer

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

Dowry, the money, goods, property, or gifts given by the bride’s family to the groom or his family at the time of marriage, is a common custom in South Asia. Although it is illegal to demand—or offer—a dowry in India, it is a nearly universal custom in many parts of the country. If, after marriage, a husband’s family feels that the wife’s dowry was insufficient, they may harass or inflict other forms of domestic violence on her to put pressure on her family to provide an additional dowry. At its most extreme, this violence may lead to the murder of …


Marriage Or License To Rape? A Socio-Legal Analysis Of Marital Rape In India, Vidhik Kumar Jun 2021

Marriage Or License To Rape? A Socio-Legal Analysis Of Marital Rape In India, Vidhik Kumar

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

Rape exposes the failure of society’s institutions which were established to provide better security to an individual in a society. These institutions sometimes not only failed to protect an individual from such grave assaults on their autonomy and privacy, but also sanctioned them by either providing them legitimacy by law or not illegitimating them. States often have either provided legal sanctity to rapes within marriage or have refrained from declaring it a crime, on account of it being a private sphere not open to interference. Rape within marriage or marital rape is a global problem, and it is argued that …


Acid Attacks In India: A Socio-Legal Report, Vidhik Kumar Jan 2021

Acid Attacks In India: A Socio-Legal Report, Vidhik Kumar

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

India has the highest number of acid attacks globally every year, and despite the actions taken by the Indian Government and the Supreme Court of India, the crime is on the rise. This increase can be attributed to the patriarchal ideology that is prevalent in India and to India’s inadequate legal system, which does not deliver efficient remedies to the victims. This article will discuss the prevalence of acid attacks in India, motives behind the attacks, consequences on victims, and shortcomings in measures adopted to prevent the crime and provide justice to victims.


Remembering An Abolitionist, Ambassador John R. Miller (May 23, 1938-October 4, 2017), Eleanor Kennelly Gaetan, Donna M. Hughes Oct 2017

Remembering An Abolitionist, Ambassador John R. Miller (May 23, 1938-October 4, 2017), Eleanor Kennelly Gaetan, Donna M. Hughes

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

A memorial for Ambassador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, John R. Miller (May 23, 1938-October 4, 2017). Ambassador Miller believed modern-day slavery, encompassing sex trafficking and forced labor, requires a principled global offensive that the United States is morally obligated to lead. In the four formative years he led the State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, 2002 to 2006, John Miller set the office’s course as diplomatically aggressive and programmatically creative. He made the annual Trafficking in Persons report more than a bureaucratic submission, putting daring heroes at the center, and insisting on compelling …


Why The Clarification Petition Filed By The Union Of India In The Transgender Case Is Incorrect In Law And In Bad Faith On The Question Of Reservation, Surabhi Shukla Jun 2016

Why The Clarification Petition Filed By The Union Of India In The Transgender Case Is Incorrect In Law And In Bad Faith On The Question Of Reservation, Surabhi Shukla

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

In this Article, I make an argument that the state, including the Government of India, is empowered by the Constitution of India to decide which classes qualify as “backward classes” for affirmative action measures under the Constitution. The Supreme Court of India has directed the government to include the transgender population as a backward class and to extend to them affirmative action measures such as reservation in public appointments and university admissions. In response, the Union of India has filed a clarification petition stating that it is incompetent to suo motu include the transgender population as a backward class and …


Women Who Kill Women, Rashmi Goel Jun 2016

Women Who Kill Women, Rashmi Goel

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

This Article examines more closely the participation of mothers-in-law in India’s dowry murders to gain a better understanding of these dynamics and to expose the limits of existing reforms. I first turn to the participation of women in dowry death cases and the ways in which their participation challenges our conventional understanding of patriarchy and societal manifestation. In Part II, I provide an overview of dowry deaths in India. In Part III, I survey the different criminal provisions related to dowry deaths and demonstrate how these laws actually operate within a set of cultural practices that support female subjugation. Part …


Ill-Conceived Laws And Exploitative State: Toward Decriminalizing Prostitution In India, Yugank Goyal, Padmanabha Ramanujam Jul 2015

Ill-Conceived Laws And Exploitative State: Toward Decriminalizing Prostitution In India, Yugank Goyal, Padmanabha Ramanujam

Akron Law Review

Part II describes the history of prostitution in India and shows how the skeletons of morality were reconstructed during colonial rule. It also discusses the lack of strong evidence that prostitute women were treated in the same deplorable way in ancient India as they are today. In Part III, we explore the legal landscape in India concerning prostitution and describe how, even though prostitution is not illegal per se, the associated legislative and enforcement apparatus in India has, in effect, rendered it criminal activity in the eyes of the law. Part IV discusses the forms and players involved in exploitation, …


Saving Face: Acid Attack Laws After The U.N. Convention On The Elimination Of All Forms Of Discrimination Against Women, Lisa M. Taylor Oct 2014

Saving Face: Acid Attack Laws After The U.N. Convention On The Elimination Of All Forms Of Discrimination Against Women, Lisa M. Taylor

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


Women And Law: A Comparative Analysis Of The United States And Indian Supreme Courts' Equality Jurisprudence, Eileen Kaufman Sep 2014

Women And Law: A Comparative Analysis Of The United States And Indian Supreme Courts' Equality Jurisprudence, Eileen Kaufman

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


Do All Roads Lead To Islamic Radicalism? A Comparison Of Islamic Laws In India And Nigeria, Amitabha Bose Sep 2014

Do All Roads Lead To Islamic Radicalism? A Comparison Of Islamic Laws In India And Nigeria, Amitabha Bose

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.


Protecting The Living Victims: Evaluating The Impact Of India's Farmer Suicide Crisis On Its Rural Women, Gowri Janakiramanan Feb 2014

Protecting The Living Victims: Evaluating The Impact Of India's Farmer Suicide Crisis On Its Rural Women, Gowri Janakiramanan

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.


Bride-Burning: The "Elephant In The Room" Is Out Of Control , Avnita Lakhani Mar 2012

Bride-Burning: The "Elephant In The Room" Is Out Of Control , Avnita Lakhani

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

This article is an attempt to answer the question of why the practice of bride-burning continues and propose alternative ways to not only look at the problem, but also to define workable solutions. It is only via a thorough conflict analysis of this complex issue that the world might rein in a problem that is clearly out of control in this day and age. Section II examines the origins of bride-burning, its continued practice, and societal ramifications. Section III analyzes some of the current and proposed efforts in place for banning bride-burning and punishing those who illegally engage in this …


Exporting Subjects: Globalizing Family Law Progress Through International Human Rights, Cyra Akila Choudhury Feb 2011

Exporting Subjects: Globalizing Family Law Progress Through International Human Rights, Cyra Akila Choudhury

Michigan Journal of International Law

In our popular culture and social consciousness, women are no longer the second-class citizens they used to be. Magazines, television advertisements, and billboards featuring women show us how we have achieved independence, wealth, desirability, and our intelligence. We are no longer the supporting role in movies and entertainment but stars in our own right. For this, we can thank both changing society and the unrelenting work of many women who refused to bring the coffee for the boss. The women's movement in the United States has made large gains for women through the use of social activism and legal action. …


Charting A New Path Toward Gender Equality In India: From Religious Personal Laws To A Uniform Civil Code, Shalina A. Chibber Apr 2008

Charting A New Path Toward Gender Equality In India: From Religious Personal Laws To A Uniform Civil Code, Shalina A. Chibber

Indiana Law Journal

Symposium: Missing Information: The Scientific Data Gap in Conservation and Chemical Regulation, held on March 24, 2006 at Indiana University School of Law- Bloomington.


"Please Write 'E' In This Box" Toward Self-Identification And Recognition Of A Third Gender: Approaches In The United States And India, Jennifer Rellis Jan 2008

"Please Write 'E' In This Box" Toward Self-Identification And Recognition Of A Third Gender: Approaches In The United States And India, Jennifer Rellis

Michigan Journal of Gender & Law

Part I of this Article defines intersexuality and highlights the legal and societal complications that occur when the concept of the fixed male-female gender binary is challenged. Part II describes the unique role of the hijras in India, who are both revered and discriminated against, and suggests that India is beginning to legally recognize a third gender through the grassroots advocacy of the hijras. Part III contrasts the experience of intersexed individuals in the United States by describing the current protocol to deal with the "medical emergency" of the birth of an intersexed child. This section forecasts legal issues facing …


Presentation: Naming The Unnamed: Intellectual Property Rights Of Women Artists From India, Ruchira Goswani, Karubakee Nandi Jan 2008

Presentation: Naming The Unnamed: Intellectual Property Rights Of Women Artists From India, Ruchira Goswani, Karubakee Nandi

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.


Reconceptualizing Domestic Violence In India: Economic Abuse And The Need For Broad Statutory Interpretation To Promote Women's Fundamental Rights, Pami Vyas Jan 2006

Reconceptualizing Domestic Violence In India: Economic Abuse And The Need For Broad Statutory Interpretation To Promote Women's Fundamental Rights, Pami Vyas

Michigan Journal of Gender & Law

This Article explores the reconceptualization of domestic violence in India through an analysis of the economic abuse provision of the recently passed Domestic Violence Act. The author argues that although India has taken a significant step towards advancing women's rights by characterizing economic abuse as a form of domestic violence, effective implementation of the law requires a broad interpretation of the economic abuse provision. To be consistent with the purpose of the statute and India's constitutional and international human rights obligations, "economic abuse" must be interpreted broadly to include the deprivation of a woman's control over her economic resources. Economic …


The Economics Of Dowry: Causes And Effects Of An Indian Tradition, Tonushree Jaggi Jan 2001

The Economics Of Dowry: Causes And Effects Of An Indian Tradition, Tonushree Jaggi

University Avenue Undergraduate Journal of Economics

I argue that dowries exist because of a combination of two reasons. First, there is an excess supply of women in the Indian marriage market that results in the use of dowry as an equilibrating mechanism. Secondly, a differential in the patterns of human capital accumulation of men and women have led to a larger positive benefit from marriage for women than for men, the net difference of which is theoretically equivalent to the amount of the dowry. Both these explanations for the existence of dowry are fundamentally grounded in the powerful social and cultural ideologies of marriage held by …


Dowry Deaths: Proposing A Standard For Implementation Of Domestic Legislation In Accordance With Human Rights Obligations, Namratha S. Ravikant Jan 2000

Dowry Deaths: Proposing A Standard For Implementation Of Domestic Legislation In Accordance With Human Rights Obligations, Namratha S. Ravikant

Michigan Journal of Gender & Law

This article discusses the due diligence standard of governmental responsibility, and measures the adequacy of India's implementation of its national dowry death legislation in accordance with its international human rights obligations. India has enacted legislation designed to combat dowry violence. Although India's laws seem to follow the letter of its international human rights obligations, the country violates the spirit of human rights by lacking an actual commitment to implement this legislation. This Article demonstrates and examines India's breach of its duty of due diligence. Such a breach constitutes government complicity in condoning and perpetuating dowry deaths, which violate women's human …


The Fundamentalist Face Of Secularism And Its Impact On Women's Rights In India, Joseph C. Hostetler-Baker & Hostetler Lecture, Ratna Kapur Jan 1999

The Fundamentalist Face Of Secularism And Its Impact On Women's Rights In India, Joseph C. Hostetler-Baker & Hostetler Lecture, Ratna Kapur

Cleveland State Law Review

I am going to talk about three things today: The first is to give you a very brief account of the competing understandings of secularism that have emerged in India. I look at the model of secularism that is being promoted by the Hindu Right and the validation this has received from the electorate, but more importantly, the Supreme Court. Secondly, I will address why the wall of separation does not provide a way out of the crisis of secularism in India and how it has not solved the problem of majoritarianism even in the American context. And finally, how …