The Roots of Verbal Violence
Verbal violence represents a complex social phenomenon deeply rooted in African patriarchal structures, going beyond mere linguistic aggression to become a subtle mechanism of control and domination. Unlike physical wounds that heal, verbal wounds infiltrate the psychological intimacy, progressively eroding women’s self-esteem and dignity.
Domestic Violence: An Imposed Silence
In the domestic space, this violence takes root in centuries-old traditions of subordination. Family expressions like “You are good for nothing” or “A true woman should…” are not simple criticisms, but instruments of social conditioning. They construct a system where a woman’s value is constantly negotiated, where her very existence seems conditional on her ability to meet rigid and often contradictory norms.
The Professional World: A Minefield
The professional environment is no exception. Here, verbal violence takes on more sophisticated forms, often hidden behind a veneer of professionalism. Sexist jokes, inappropriate comments about physical appearance, systematic infantilization of women become tools of marginalization. A competent woman is regularly reduced to gender stereotypes (“women don’t know how to lead”), her achievements constantly minimized or attributed to something other than her talent and work (“she can thank her physical assets for this promotion”).
Public Space: Permanent Harassment
Public space represents a permanent theater of verbal harassment. Streets, transportation, markets become spaces where women are constantly required to justify their presence, their attire, their behavior. Whistles, comments about the body (“Do you think you’re more beautiful than my domestic staff? We call you, you’re showing off”), injunctions to smile (“A woman smiles”) or to be silent (“A woman stays quiet when a man speaks, he’s the boss”) are not mere inconveniences, but manifestations of deep social control.
Psychological Mechanisms of Destruction
The psychological mechanisms of this violence are particularly insidious. Each word becomes an invisible blow that fractures psychological integrity. The accumulation of these linguistic aggressions gradually builds a sense of inferiority, a state of permanent stress where the woman progressively internalizes dominant discourses and ultimately accepts them as her reality.
Concrete Solutions: A Holistic and Contextual Approach
To effectively fight verbal violence in the African context, a multidimensional strategy is necessary. Solutions must be anchored in our cultural, social, and economic realities:
- Community Education
- Awareness programs involving traditional, religious, and community leaders
- Integration of gender equality modules in school curricula from primary school
- Training of community leaders and mediators on psychological impacts of verbal violence
- Legal and Institutional Mechanisms
- Development of specific legal frameworks recognizing verbal violence even if it is not “visible”
- Creation of complaint mechanisms adapted to local realities and, most importantly, free from judgment and blame of victims who dare to act
- Training of law enforcement and judicial personnel on appropriate behaviors
- Psychological and Economic Support
- Establishment of listening centers in local languages for effective inclusion
- Economic empowerment and financing programs for women
- Community support groups among women, with “He For She” or mediators who have the right resources and the reassuring proximity
- Free and confidential telephone hotlines
- Media and Communication
- Communication campaigns using traditional and social media as in the case of L’Africaine
- Positive representation of women in media
- Training of journalists on gender and language so that those who shape public opinion can sow the right seeds in the right places
- Transgenerational Approach
- Involve men and boys in the fight
- Mentorship programs for young girls
- Valuing positive female role models
Voice as a Liberation Tool
Faced with this reality, resistance passes through awareness and deconstruction. Naming verbal violence, recognizing it in all its complexity, becomes a political act. It is about understanding that these words are not harmless, that they are part of a global system of domination and that we must banish them from our daily vocabulary.
A Message of Hope and Transformation
A message of hope runs through these reflections: our voice is our first line of defense. Not a voice of victimization, but a voice of power, resilience, social transformation. Every word we speak to defend ourselves, every silence we break, is a stone in the edifice of our liberation.
So this sentence, this joke, this inappropriate comment, it might seem banal, but it is gender violence! No excuses, no more excuses, it is urgent to put ourselves in the shoes of women and girls, to see the world through their eyes and act!