Sachseder’s book delves into the intersectionality of gender, race, and violence against women in conflict areas, using Colombia as a case study. Sachseder argues that violent actions against women are not isolated events but rather reflections of broader societal patterns and historical injustices. Highlighting colonial legacies, she discusses how Afro-Colombian and Indigenous women are subjected to sexual exploitation, internal displacement, and violence exacerbated by global economic actors. By emphasizing women’s narratives, Sachseder challenges reductionist perspectives on gender and violence.

Sachseder’s book provides a comprehensive analysis of the coloniality of violence concept.

Intersection of Gender, Race, and Coloniality

The book introduces the concept of “the coloniality of violence” to explain how historical colonial processes and the global political economy shape systematic violence against women.

Methodology

Utilizing ethnographic research, Sachseder accentuates women’s narratives and testimonies to reveal patterns of sexual violence and internal displacement, reflecting broader socio-political structures.

Political Economy of Violence

Sachseder argues that violence is intertwined with transnational capital and serves as a tool for control and dispossession in postcolonial contexts. The analysis examines how global corporate actors exacerbate local power dynamics.

Conceptualizing Violence

The book emphasizes the understanding of violence as part of the political economy of conflict, not merely as a byproduct of war, and highlights its connection to existing hierarchies.

Women’s Agency

Sachseder positions women not just as victims but also as agents of resistance against colonial and patriarchal oppression, revealing new perspectives on gendered violence and displacement struggles.

The book includes an introduction to thematic focuses, a literature review, a methodology section, empirical chapters with case studies, and a conclusion, proposing new frameworks for understanding violence against women in (post)colonial contexts.

Sachseder’s work can be compared to several seminal texts in the field. “The Political Economy of Violence Against Women,” by Jacqui True (2012), explores the institutional responses and policy implications of gendered violence, whereas Sachseder delves into its structural impacts. Ruth Seifert’s “War and Rape: A Preliminary Analysis” (2017) views rape in war as a strategic and symbolic act, in contrast to Sachseder’s focus on structural and economic entanglements. “The Gendered New World Order,” by Jennifer Turpin and Lois Ann Lorentzen (2013), examines the intersectionality of gender with global issues, such as militarism and underdevelopment, while Sachseder focuses on the colonial roots of gender-based violence. Elizabeth D. Heineman’s “Sexual Violence in Conflict Zones” (2012) provides a historical perspective on wartime sexual violence, in contrast to Sachseder’s emphasis on structural and colonial dimensions. Keith Krause’s “Beyond Definition: Violence in a Global Perspective” (2013) addresses the challenges of defining and measuring global violence, whereas Sachseder emphasizes the historical and structural roots of gender-based violence. Finally, “Gender-based Violence and Public Health,” by Coast et al. (2012), develops public health approaches to gender-based violence, whereas Sachseder’s approach is rooted in post-colonial theory and structural analysis.