By Stacey Kimmig, UN Rep, AIWC Cologne
There were too many good sessions to mention here, so I will focus on one session about forced marriage. One expects these stories to come from women in South Asia, but these women were from the US. Child marriage (marrying before the age of 18) is legal in 46 states, with 20 states not setting any minimum age, as long as there is parental consent. But often, it is the parent who arranges a marriage for their child against their will. They estimate that around 250,000 girls in the US were forced to marry between 2000 and 2010. Clearly, something must be done to protect girls from forced marriage, as it drastically increases their risk of experiencing domestic violence, teen pregnancy, poverty and an inability to access higher education. Again, the survivors who spoke are doing amazing things: pressuring lawmakers to change the laws which protect child marriages, as well as helping women escape from an abusive situation. For more information, visit Unchained at Last.
No matter what issue we choose to focus on or how little we feel we can contribute, we do make a difference. That is what I will take with me from this year's CSW.