My marriage to Duri* was arranged by my parents with the best of intentions. I was excited and had always dreamed of getting married. After a six-month engagement, Duri and I were married near my home in India, with hundreds of guests in attendance. Both Duri and I were dentists, and the plan was for [...]
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Some people can think back to happy childhood days. But all of my memories are only of violence and misery.
My name is Rana* and I am from Saudi Arabia. I was orphaned at a young age and left to the mercy of my two violent and cruel older brothers, Sa’ad and Ghafoor. Even when [...]
I grew up in a small South African village. I went to college, and became a teacher after graduating. When the government planned to redeploy teachers, I was forced to look elsewhere. I had always dreamed of traveling to different countries, so friends suggested I apply for nanny positions.
A friend introduced me to a woman [...]
I first met my cousin, Asif*, when I was 14 and he came from the United States to Pakistan with his parents looking for a wife. Asif liked me and asked me to marry him. I was very happy and excited. He and his mother promised that Asif would take care of me and [...]
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Shaka* and I became engaged in my native Sudan. He was familiar with my political activities opposing the Sudanese government and knew that I chose not to wear a veil, even though I am a faithful Muslim woman. After we got married, I joined Shaka in Qatar, where he was living and working. But soon [...]
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Adam* proposed to me on Christmas Day. I was very happy. To celebrate, we went home and cooked together. I had liked Adam from the start—he enjoyed cooking my native Caribbean food with me, doing activities outdoors, and going out to the movies. Adam and I dated for several months, and eventually moved into the [...]
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Paul was serving in the United States Army when we met through mutual friends. Like myself, he was a native of Uganda and our extended families knew each other back home, which helped me trust him from the start. Paul took me out on fun dates, brought me gifts, and even impressed my mother. After [...]
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I distinctly remember one evening when I woke up startled by how loud the television volume was. It was the middle of the night. I went out of my bedroom to find my husband, Patrício*, in the bathroom and my 13-year-old daughter, Laura*, still awake. She had a lost look in her eyes. I knew [...]
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My family first began “discussing” my marriage when I was 14 years old. In reality, they had already chosen someone for me—a much older man who already had 3 wives and 16 children. My objections did not matter. Because I was a gifted student and was doing well in school, I was able to delay [...]
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My husband said he would kill me if I left him. I believed him.
Throughout my 32 years of marriage, there were many times that I would have preferred to die than to continue suffering, but for love of my children, I put up with it, living with my husband and enduring his abuse. Casimiro* [...]
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