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Yazidi Women: Intersectionality Perspective
Abstract by Rasha Altameemi On Session III-12  ((Post)Colonial Violence)

On Tuesday, November 12 at 11:30 am

2024 Annual Meeting

Abstract
This research paper indicates the significant obstacles that Yazidi women in Iraq faced. While Iraqi women and activists fought for their rights in the post-invasion of 2003, women minorities, particularly Yazidi women, suffered "multi-marginalization" or "double discrimination." I argue that discrimination against Yazidi women stems from their religious affiliation as well as their gender identity. I use intersectional methodology as I consider it the most suitable approach for examining Yazidi women, mainly through violence, conflict, and political, economic, and social upheaval lenses. The term "intersectionality," coined by scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989, refers to how different aspects of social identity interact and overlap. This is true for marginalized people who identify as having multiple distinct experiences of oppression and marginalization. More importantly, one of the objectives of my research is to highlight the horrific sexual violence against Yazidi women who were victimized by ISIS in 2014 and how it impacted women physically and psychologically. ISIS occupied the northern area of Iraq, where they raped, enslaved, and sold Yazidi women after killing their families. The United Nations sees the Yazidi crisis as genocide. The genocide and sexual assault vehemently altered women's lives. Yazidi women still feel the effects of genocide. The connections between the rise of conservatism and the sense of vulnerability that fueled extremism, militarism, and sectarianism can be used to understand the brutality committed against Yazidi women. The research is based on interviews conducted with Yazidi women as the primary data source, along with additional secondary sources.
Discipline
History
Geographic Area
Iraq
Sub Area
None