Skip to content
Her Choice

Her Choice

Safety

safety

A Restraining Order Is Not Enough When an Abuser Has a Gun

On Sept. 16, the Violence Policy Center released a report finding that nearly 2,400 women were killed by men in 2024. Nearly nine out of 10 knew their killer, and firearms were used in 63.4 percent of these homicides.

Ms. MagazineSep 22, 2026

safety

Could Disaster Recovery Include Protecting Women From Domestic Abuse and Exploitation?

Proposed legislation would strengthen FEMA’s response to gender-based violence, an issue advocates say is often overlooked after natural disasters. This story was originally reported by Jessica Kutz of The 19th , and republished through Rewire News Group ‘s partnership with the 19th News Network.

Rewire News GroupSep 22, 2026

safety

South African Women Need Protection, Not Warnings

Click to expand Image A student during a vigil for victims of gender-based violence and femicide at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, September 18, 2026. © 2026 Esa Alexander/Reuters The discovery of several women’s bodies on the outskirts of South Africa’s commercial capital, Johannesburg,

Human Rights WatchSep 22, 2026

safety

Could disaster recovery include protecting women from domestic abuse and exploitation?

After a deadly wildfire tore through Maui in August 2023, community organizer Khara Jabola-Carolus set out to ask women how they were faring after the disaster. She teamed up with fellow community organizer Nadine Ortega to co-found Tagnawa, a grassroots recovery organization to meet the needs of Fi

The 19thSep 21, 2026

safety

Why Blaming Sydney Sweeney Misses the Point

If you follow the mainstream press and social media, you would assume that Sydney Sweeney is an amazingly powerful 29-year-old woman. With her new hypersexualized ad for Novig, she stands accused of single-handedly debasing women, especially female athletes, and has, according to The New York Times

Ms. MagazineSep 19, 2026

safety

The Perfect Victim Is a Dead Woman

This is a story about choices that are not really choices. It is a story about impossible circumstances propelling us down pathways we believe unimaginable. You always believe it could never happen to you, until it does. Naomi planned to end things with Moses (both names changed for privacy).

Ms. MagazineSep 17, 2026

safety

Five Years Without a Classroom: Afghan Girls Cannot Wait Any Longer

Last week, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid was asked about the continued ban on Afghan girls’ education. He said, plainly, “Perhaps now is not the time to discuss this issue.” Five years in, that is their answer. It has always been their answer.

Ms. MagazineSep 8, 2026

safety

For Gloria Steinem, Women’s Liberation Meant Men’s Liberation, Too

Since her death, social media has lit up with heartfelt stories and testimonies, mostly from women, about Gloria’s impact on their lives. When men have weighed in with expressions of gratitude, it’s often been to thank her for helping to create a world in which their mothers, wives and daughters had

Ms. MagazineSep 7, 2026

safety

Cameroon Grapples with Gender-Based Violence, Increased Femicides

Click to expand Image Marie-Thérèse Abena Ondoa, Minister of Women's Empowerment and the Family, at the International Day of Rural Women celebrations in Nguibassal, Centre Cameroon, October 17, 2022. © 2022 Giordanno Brumas/SOPA Images/Sipa via Getty Images Several women were killed, including by cu

Human Rights WatchAug 28, 2026

safety

Domestic Violence Is a Men’s Issue, Too

Nearly one in two women has experienced domestic violence (DV) in their lifetime, yet accountability remains limited, as nearly half of survivors never report their abuse to law enforcement. Out of fear of retribution, survivors often minimize harm and shield their perpetrator’s behavior, shifting r

Ms. MagazineJul 28, 2026

safety

Indigenous survivors of violence see fewer services after federal cuts

Organizations serving American Indian and Alaska Native survivors of violence say reductions in federal funding have led to over 1,000 unmet requests for help, according to a new report. The Urban Indian Health Institute, an Indigenous health research group, surveyed 201 tribes, tribal organizations

The 19thJul 21, 2026

safety

Egypt Prosecutes a Doctor for Alleging Obstetric Violence

Click to expand Image A doctor examines a pregnant woman at a hospital in the province of Fayoum, southwest of Cairo, Egypt, February 19, 2019. © 2019 Hayam Adel/Reuters An Egyptian court sentenced doctor and filmmaker Omnia Suwydan on July 4 to a six-months suspended prison sentence and a fine

Human Rights WatchJul 6, 2026

safety

A Rape-Survivor-Turned-Prosecutor Is Teaching Women How to Heal

One of us is a doctor, the other a lawyer. We’re also members of a club that no woman ever asks to join, but too many are forced into, often by men they loved and trusted. JoDee Neil, a Texas attorney and former prosecutor, has spent her career seeking justice for survivors of sexual violence.

Ms. MagazineJul 5, 2026

safety

Supreme Court rejects Trump’s attempt to overturn $5 million E. Jean Carroll verdict

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected President Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn a 2023 jury verdict that he sexually abused and defamed the writer E. Jean Carroll. The high court’s decision not to hear Trump’s appeal marks the president’s latest loss in a seven-year legal battle with Carroll,

The 19thJun 29, 2026

safety

Cameroon: Failed Promise to Reduce Gender-Based Violence

Click to expand Image © 2026 Diana Ejaita for Human Rights Watch Women and girls in Cameroon face persistent domestic violence and gender discrimination without meaningful protection or access to justice.

Human Rights WatchJun 24, 2026

safety

When it Comes to Consent, ‘Yes Means Yes’ Is Not Enough

In 1993, Saturday Night Live parodied a new affirmative consent policy at Antioch College with a sketch starring Mike Myers who asks explicit consent for each intimate act such as, “May I elevate the level of sexual intimacy by feeling your buttocks?” The joke landed because the policy seemed absurd

Ms. MagazineJun 20, 2026

safety

Trump’s White House UFC Fight Is a Master Class in Fake Populism

The UFC cage fight scheduled for June 14 on the White House lawn has been dismissed by some as harmless entertainment and condemned by others as authoritarian theater. But there’s another way to understand it: as a political strategy.

Ms. MagazineJun 9, 2026

safety

When Survival Becomes a Crime: The Women Punished for Escaping Abuse

When I first began reporting on incarcerated women, I was fascinated by studies that showed that showed that upwards of 70 percent of women in jails and prisons were subjected to intimate partner violence before they were incarcerated.

Ms. MagazineJun 8, 2026

safety

US Court Rules to Protect Immigrant Domestic Violence Survivors

Click to expand Image A woman is detained by US federal agents after exiting a court hearing in immigration court at the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York City, on September 3, 2025. © 2025 Michael M.

Human Rights WatchMay 27, 2026

safety

Documentary ‘Ask E. Jean’ Is a Funny, Moving Portrait of a Fearless Woman

Director Ivy Meeropol on the challenges of making a film about E. Jean Carroll, Trump’s most formidable legal adversary. This film review and interview was originally published by The Contrarian. Ask E. Jean, the poignant yet entertaining documentary about E.

Ms. MagazineMay 24, 2026

safety

Why is successfully prosecuting sexual assault so difficult?

Six years ago, Jessica Mann took the stand for the first time in a New York City courtroom to publicly detail allegations that Harvey Weinstein raped her in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013. That trial resulted in Weinstein being convicted of raping Mann, as well as committing a criminal sex act again

The 19thMay 20, 2026

safety

How My Fear Of The Single Black Mother Stereotype Kept Me In An Abusive Marriage

I was born a Black girl in New York City in the 1980s. It was a time when graffiti graced walls, Lojacks secured steering wheels, unsheltered people with substance abuse […] The post How My Fear Of The Single Black Mother Stereotype Kept Me In An Abusive Marriage appeared first on Essence .

EssenceMay 5, 2026

safety

‘Who Will Revere the Black Woman?’ Remembering Nancy, Cerina and So Many More

Even though I did not know Nancy Metayer, my heart is utterly broken by the loss of her life and the violence of her death. The night before her funeral, I joined a virtual vèyè in her honor—a space to keep watch, to remember her impact and to hold one another in communal care.

Ms. MagazineApr 22, 2026

safety

In abusive relationships, the end can be the most dangerous part

Two deadly high-profile domestic violence cases this month highlight how the most dangerous part of a relationship can be when it is ending — particularly for women and families, and especially if guns are involved. In Virginia, authorities say former Lt. Gov.

The 19thApr 21, 2026

safety

Silence Should Never Be the Price of Progress

Dolores Huerta’s revelation lays bare a painful truth: Too often, women—especially women of color—are expected to carry harm in silence to protect movements. Real progress demands breaking that cycle. The post Silence Should Never Be the Price of Progress appeared first on Ms. Magazine .

Ms. MagazineApr 20, 2026

safety

International Force in Haiti Allegedly Responsible for Sexual Violence

Click to expand Image A contingent of police officers from Kenya arrives at Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on January 18, 2025, as part of the Kenyan-led Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) authorized by the United Nations​.

Human Rights WatchApr 13, 2026

safety

Federal grants can save the lives of abuse victims. $200 million is sitting unspent.

More than $200 million in federal funds that was supposed to go to help victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and trafficking last fiscal year still hasn’t been paid out to the nonprofits and other entities that form the safety net for those impacted by gender-based violence.

The 19thApr 9, 2026