VAWnet News Blog

The repeal of federally protected abortion rights would result in an increase in violence experienced by Indigenous women, girls and all those who birth, predicted the director of one of the leading research institutes on Indigenous and Alaska Native people across the US.

A national criminal justice advocacy group is pushing the Justice Department to support the release of women who were sexually abused by staff at a federal women’s prison in California.

Front-line workers are calling for more support for Indigenous families after a Statistics Canada analysis found First Nations, Inuit and Métis women are more likely to experience physical or sexual assault in their lifetime if they were in government care as children.

Efforts are under way to get emergency contraception into Ukrainian hospitals as quickly as possible, as reports of rape after the Russian invasion continue to rise. Charities describe logistical problems delivering morning-after pills and medical abortion drugs, and stress time is of the essence.

"I do a lot of work to end violence against women and girls," says Palexelsiya Lorelei Williams, a well-known advocate from the Skatin and Sts'Ailes First Nations. "When creating the group, I just thought of butterflies because like so many women they are transformative, strong and resilient."

The United Nations has called for the increasing reports of rape and sexual violence against Ukrainian women and children during the Russian invasion of the country to be independently investigated.