Women and War in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

“War also destroys the patriarchal structures of society that confine and degrade women. In the very breakdown of morals, traditions, customs, and community, war also opens up and creates new beginnings.”

This quote from Meredith Turshen, referenced in Nadine Puechguirbal’s Women and War in the Democratic Republic of Congo, was very refreshing to me after all of the negative things I have been reading about what happens to women, their bodies, their power, and their lives as a result of war. I think that what Turshen says is very true and that we are seeing it more and more in the world today, where violence creates solidarity between women who recognize that the only way to protect themselves is to stand up together and be heard. While it is certainly shameful that this is what we have let it come to for so many women, it is true that war is often a catalyst for women’s rights movements, and the great obstacles that women often overcome in these situations only serves to illustrate the true strength of so many women around the world. As nations try to rebuild from catastrophes such as civil war and large-scale violence, it is the perfect chance for women to show their power, leadership skills, and indispensability to society. In addition, as the readings for today discuss, many women are the glue that holds their societies together, on many levels, in wartime. This experience must bring women around the world to see how strong and capable they are, and to desire the ability to effect change and meaning in their world even in times of peace.