Invisible Targets of Hatred: Socioeconomically Excluded Women from Religious Minority Backgrounds

Abstract

This paper endeavours to make visible the targeting of poor women from religious minorities in contexts where society and/or the state both engage in religious ‘otherisation’. The paper seeks to contribute to addressing the blind spot in both feminist and freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) scholarship on the experiences of the intersection of religious marginality, economic exclusion, and gender inequality. The main arguments of this paper are presented in five key propositions which describe and analyse the ways in which the interface between targeting and vulnerability influence the position of women who belong to religious minorities. The final part of the paper elucidates the interconnections among the multiple threads informing these propositions and what accounts for their prevalence.