[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 32 (Tuesday, March 14, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E360-E361]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING MARCH 8, 2006--INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY--SPOTLIGHT ON THE 
PLIGHT OF MINORITY WOMEN--THE HIDDEN VICTIMS OF MULTIPLE-DISCRIMINATION

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 14, 2006

  Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise to say a few words in recognition of 
International Women's Day and to enter into the Record a very profound 
statement titled ``Meeting the Challenges of Discrimination against 
Women from Minority Groups,'' authored by Gay McDougall, a human rights 
lawyer and a United Nations Independent Expert on Minority Issues. In 
the country and around the world, holidays and special recognition days 
come and go every year. We all celebrate and/or reminisce briefly to 
honor the occasions. Many times there are occasions that deserve more 
than just a cursory acknowledgement. International Women's Day is one 
such occasion.
  March 8th--International Women's Day is a day marked by women's 
groups around the world. This date is commemorated at the United 
Nations and is designated in many countries as a national holiday. The 
idea of an International Women's Day first came about at the turn of 
the century during a period of expansion and turbulence, booming 
population growth and radical ideologies. Great strides in women's 
rights have been made since the turn of century and everyone, 
especially women, can look back to a tradition that represents at least 
nine decades of struggle for equality, justice, peace and development. 
In the present day, women on all continents often divided by national 
boundaries and by ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic and political 
differences continue to come together to celebrate International 
Women's Day.
  The United Nations has played a pivotal role in ensuring that 
International Women's Day continues to receive their support. The 
growing women's movement has been strengthened by four global United 
Nations women's conferences which served to make the commemoration a 
rallying point for coordinated efforts to demand women's rights and 
participation in the political and economic process.
  Few causes promoted by the United Nations have generated more intense 
and widespread support than the campaign to promote and protect the 
equal rights of women. The charter of the United Nations, signed in San 
Francisco in 1945, was the first international agreement to proclaim 
gender equality as a fundamental human right. Since then, the 
organization has helped create a historic legacy of internationally 
agreed strategies, standards, programs and goals to advance the status 
of women worldwide.
  With so much awareness of the issues facing women in this day and 
time, one would believe that women have come close to reaching the 
pinnacle of achievement and recognition in today's society. Yes, great 
strides have been made but the reality is that new and urgent attention 
must be given to the rights of women facing multiple forms of 
discrimination, exclusion and violence. Amongst the most disadvantaged 
and vulnerable are women from minority communities who face problems 
compounded by their uniquely disadvantaged positions in society. These 
women face two forms of discrimination--first because they belong to 
certain minority communities and secondly because they are women.
  This article that I enter into the Record today thoroughly exposes 
some of the challenges of discrimination against women--particularly 
women from minority groups--and clearly brings the unfinished business 
of equal rights for women to the forefront. Gay McDougall the U.N. 
Independent Expert on Minority Issues has written this article to 
remind us that much is left to do to confront the reality of the 
present unacceptable situation facing millions of women worldwide.

 Meeting the Challenges of Discrimination Against Women From Minority 
                                 Groups

                           (By Gay McDougall)

       All women share common bonds in the fight for equal rights. 
     In every region and in every society, women are undervalued, 
     face issues of personal insecurity because of violence in 
     their homes and communities, and must wage a constant 
     struggle for self-determination over their bodies and 
     personal destinies. While some gains have been made in those 
     battles, gender based discrimination remains a persistent and 
     universal problem.
       However, some women's problems are compounded by their 
     uniquely disadvantaged position in society as members of 
     national, racial, ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities 
     that are targets of discrimination. The damage done to 
     individuals, families, communities and societies by 
     discrimination, exclusion and racism on these grounds is 
     immense. Women from these groups must often

[[Page E361]]

     fight the patriarchy within their communities along with 
     the patriarchy and racism of the larger community.
       On this, International Women's Day, it is incumbent on the 
     international community, to speak out in support for those 
     women whose voices have been silenced and whose lives have 
     been blighted by discrimination, intolerance, exploitation, 
     violence and patriarchal ideologies. Addressing the situation 
     of the most disadvantaged women is a challenge requiring the 
     urgent attention of all of us.
       Minorities are often restricted from participating fully or 
     effectively in economic, social and political life. Yet it is 
     women who belong to minority population groups whose choices, 
     opportunities and life chances, are the most restricted, in 
     both public and private spheres. Where minorities suffer poor 
     access to education, health services and employment, it is 
     often the women from those minority groups, whose needs are 
     least recognized, and whose potential remains the least 
     fulfilled. While minorities are the most frequent victims of 
     conflict and genocide, it is the women of those communities 
     who often suffer the most, supporting families under 
     unimaginable conditions, or targeted for rape or killing, due 
     to their status as the most vulnerable of minorities, and the 
     bearers of a new generation. Overwhelmingly, the poorest of 
     the world are disproportionately minority communities that 
     have been subjected to on-going discrimination, yet it is 
     minority women who often bear the greatest burden.
       A Roma woman in Europe, for example, may experience complex 
     multiple forms of discrimination, touching every aspect of 
     her life, including her social interactions, her health and 
     work. An Afro-descendent woman in Latin America is also more 
     likely to be poorly educated, to live in the poorest quality 
     housing, lack access to health care and other services, and 
     to work in the lowest income employment. Women in communities 
     affected by caste in some Asian or African nations are often 
     severely disadvantaged and forced to perform the most 
     degrading tasks in society. If such women happen to be 
     unmarried, to have a disability, to be lesbian or a single 
     mother, they may also face additional forms of 
     discrimination.
       Action must be taken at the community, national and 
     international levels to address the discrimination and rights 
     violations faced by women from disadvantaged minority groups. 
     In the first instance, this requires recognition that such 
     complex problems, exist. It is often the case that we do not 
     see the most disadvantaged, precisely because of the 
     violations perpetrated against them. They are, in a very real 
     sense, hidden victims.
       Socio-economic data that is aggregated hides the problems 
     that minorities face. The increasing practice of 
     disaggregating data along gender lines is revealing the 
     general inequalities between men and women. But only when 
     that data is further disaggregated based on both gender and 
     race, ethnicity or religion, will the problems of 
     marginalized and disadvantaged women come into focus. In 
     order for policies and programs to be effective, the gender 
     lens must be adjusted to reveal the dynamics of colour, 
     ethnicity and religion, so that the plight of these women can 
     become visible through research and statistics.
       While reinforcing a clear message of the value of cultural 
     and religious diversity, we must not shy away from addressing 
     those cultural, religious or traditional practices which 
     impair or restrict the full range of choices that women, as 
     humans, are entitle to as rights. Yet calls for the rights 
     and empowerment of minority women should not be seen as a 
     challenge to the cultural or religious identity or heritage 
     of minority communities. The protection and promotion of the 
     rights of women in disadvantaged communities provides a means 
     to realize the full potential that exists within those 
     communities as a whole, in the abilities and efforts of both 
     their men and their women equal in rights and in dignity.
       These are not solely problems of the developing world. 
     Minorities and women belonging to those minorities also face 
     unique disabilities in the context of discrimination in the 
     developed world. Trafficking of vulnerable women and girls, 
     for example, many of whom are from disadvantaged minorities, 
     is a manifestation of how the global economy can prey on 
     those burdened with multiple forms of discrimination. These 
     are problems in all countries and issues for all nations to 
     confront together.
       I believe that the problems faced by women from 
     disadvantaged minority communities must be tackled both from 
     within their communities and as it is manifested in the 
     larger society. These are problems that must be confronted 
     both by women themselves, and by men, whose attitudes and 
     ideologies are often a root cause of discrimination and 
     inequality. A new challenge exists for those organizations 
     working on women's rights, to fully and effectively address 
     minority rights as they relate to women. Equally, those 
     organizations working on minority rights must pay greater 
     attention to the plight of women within minority communities 
     and the broader society.
       National legislation, sensitively conceived, actively 
     promoted, and vigorously applied, can pave the way for social 
     progress, and for real change to the lives of disadvantaged 
     women. Access to effective legal remedies for women is an 
     essential step on this path. Community based awareness 
     raising and practical initiatives must go hand in hand with 
     legal and judicial progress, and have a role to play in the 
     empowerment of women to achieve their potential and to enable 
     them to claim their rights with confidence. Crucially, girls 
     and women from minority communities must have full and equal 
     access to quality education. Education must extend beyond 
     the, classroom, to reach deeply into the fabric of society 
     with a strong and pervasive message of human rights, equality 
     and understanding, which enriches all lives.
       As Independent Expert on minority issues, I believe that 
     the issues of the rights of, women from targeted minorities 
     deserve particular attention under my mandate, and by the 
     international community. Across the full spectrum of rights, 
     civil and political, economic, social and cultural, minority 
     women are often the most disadvantaged from birth until 
     death. I will support campaigns to highlight the issues and 
     to find effective and sustainable solutions, confronting the 
     reality of the present unacceptable situation facing millions 
     of women worldwide. True gender equality will only be 
     achieved when it is achieved for all women, not simply the 
     women in advantaged majority communities. And, the rights of 
     ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities will be realized 
     only when the women of those communities enjoy fully their 
     human rights.