Gender violence against girls and adolescents in Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic)

Abstract

The present work deals with the phenomenon of sexual abuse against both child and teenage girls in Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic) through a field study. The sample was obtained from a shelter where, in a temporary internment regime, either victims of sexual abuse, prostitution, sexual exploitation or simply people with lack of resources, lack of protection and / or helplessness are hosted. Specifically, we looked for analyzing this phenomenon from a gender perspective through a case study. The information was broken down into several units of study, using an inductive category analysis. The units of analysis examined make reference to the social and family context of the minors, to the knowledge of the gender equality that they possess, to the weight of the male chauvinism beliefs, etc. The cases studied show a structured society based on gender and, in this sense, also the families –mostly unstructured– follow a strength patriarchal hierarchy that legitimizes the different forms of violence against women and does not seem to clarify the incestuous barriers between relatives of the opposite sex. In addition, the prevailing masculinity sentiment is coupled with gender inequalities concerning the labor and professional areas. This produces a false empowerment, felt by the girls who try to obtain through their bodies, in a society that treat them as an object, a supplier man, what contributes to reinforce, maintain and perpetuate these practices. In this sense, it was verified how the sexual abuse is an expression of the machismo. The relevance of such a conclusion lies in how the great intensity with which the population lives the strict gender roles and their corresponding male chauvinism beliefs is detrimental for both genders.