Indigenous Women: The Right to a Voice

"Indigenous Women: The Right to a Voice" contains a collection of articles and interviews focusing on the situation of indigenous women today. With a few exceptions, the articles have been written by female indigenous grass roots activists and academics from the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania. The document gives a vivid picture of the many different realities and problems indigenous women are facing. Obviously many of these problems, as for instance poverty, domestic violence, and marginalisation, are not specific to indigenous women. The perspectives taken by the contributors are however new and different. A recurrent theme is the critique of the "dominating system" exemplified in the "New World Order" which is seen as a threat to both indigenous peoples cultural and physical survival generally and to the relationship between indigenous women and indigenous men. This indigenous perspective gives the book a definite tonality and sets it apart from other books on women and gender issues. As one of the very few publications on and by indigenous women, "Indigenous Women: The Right to a Voice" is essential for anyone working with or interested in the issue of indigenous peoples and/or gender.