Gender Violence and Human Rights in an Era of Backlash

This Article brings the lens of civil cases seeking accountability for gender violence to the question of how international human rights decisions interpret gender and gender norms. It argues that a broad interpretation of gender is particularly critical as we face increasing backlash globally. It demonstrates how international human rights decisions assessing state responses to gender violence recognize the role of historic gender biases and stereotypes in holding states to account for redressing discriminatory responses to abuse, and considers structural limitations in those instruments that could impede those instruments’ transformative reach.