Professor of Criminal Justice Sciences Dawn Beichner’s collaboration in conjunction with the United Nations (UN) Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is providing global leaders access to the latest studies that could prioritize combating violence against women.
“As UN women eloquently reminded us, during the pandemic the world stopped, but the need to advocate for the rights of women has not,” said Beichner, who teaches in the College of Applied Science and Technology and in the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies program at Illinois State University. She was elected this year as liaison to the UN, representing the World Society of Victimology.
Beichner is one of the guest editors of a special issue of the journal Violence Against Women, titled “Prioritizing the Elimination of Violence Against Women Worldwide: Lessons From the 65th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women.” The proceedings emerged from the 2021 annual session of the CSW.
Sage Publishing is offering free downloads of the journal until the end of September. “I’m grateful to Sage publishers for taking down the paywall for this special issue,” said Beichner. “So many of the individuals involved in legislative and policy change worldwide have access to the issue, ensuring it is in the hands of the people making decisions and affecting change.”
The issue explores topics such as gender-based violence during COVID-19, incarcerated and formerly incarcerated women, and new strategies to address domestic and sexual violence. It also features an article that she co-authored with Dr. Otmar Hagemann of Germany, which explores women’s incarceration globally as state crime. Beichner describes the special issue as a showcase of the evolution of recognizing global trends in violence against women. “One of the most important changes that I’ve seen throughout my career is in advanced acknowledgment of what is happening worldwide,” she said. “We begin to see the connections that take place in various regions of the world in terms of the suffering that women face based on gender.”
The work is a reflection of the emerging idea of feminist criminology, which looks to violence perpetuated against women who are justice-involved, as well as those who have suffered gender-based violence. It can also be seen as gender discrimination for those who work in professions in the criminal legal system, such as in law enforcement, the judicial system, or the correctional system.
“This kind of feminist criminology is necessary, simply because there is an international political backdrop to decision making at the level of the United Nations,” said Beichner. “It is really important to recognize the work that is being done around the world, so we can connect people who are making advances.”
Beichner and her fellow guest editors, Dr. Rosemary Barberet and Dr. Sheetal Ranjan, will convene a larger group of advocates and experts at the upcoming American Society of Criminology meetings that will be held in Atlanta, Georgia, in November.
Listen to the Sage Publication podcast with Beichner and Barberet.
