Webinars

Legal Responses to Forced Marriage in the UK: Reflections from Justice System Professionals

During this live webinar, a panel of expert legal professionals from the United Kingdom provide background on the UK process which led to the creation of a civil forced marriage protection order (FMPO) in 2008, and the creation of a separate criminal offense of forced marriage as well as the criminalization of breaches of the FMPO in 2014. The panelists offer candid reflections on the current state of the law and the impact of the FMPO (over 850 issued to date) and criminalization (46 prosecutions reported since 2014; one conviction to date) on survivors’ willingness to come forward to seek help and their ability to access the resources they need.

 

Presenters Included:

Anne-Marie Hutchinson OBE, QC (Hon) is a partner at the Dawson Cornwell firm in London and a renowned family law attorney with expertise in forced marriages, children’s law, international family law, international custody disputes, and child abduction.

 

Nazir Afzal OBE was the Director of the United Kingdom’s Crown Prosecution Service from 2011-2015 and currently serves as Chief Executive of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners.

 

Rashid Begum is a survivor of “honour” based violence and attempted forced marriage who has dedicated both her professional and private life to ensuring that others at risk are protected. A former police officer and a qualified lawyer, Rashid now serves as a solicitor for the police in the UK.

 

This webinar was presented on July 15th, 2016 as part of the National Network to Prevent Forced Marriage Quarterly Webinar Series.

 

 

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How Forced Marriage Intersects with Other Forms of Abuse in the United States

This webinar, originally presented as part of the Forced Marriage Initiative’s Quarterly Webinar Series, provides an overview of the current body of research highlighting the ways in which forced marriage intersects with child abuse, sexual assault and rape, domestic and family violence, stalking, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), and human trafficking. It discusses effective intervention strategies and best practice and prepares advocates to recognize and respond to forced marriage alongside other forms of harm.

 

This webinar was first presented as part of the Forced Marriage Initiative’s Quarterly Webinar Series on March 25th, 2016.

 

 

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Youth Agency and the Culture of Law: A Canadian Curriculum on Forced Marriage

This webinar will cover the early development and design of the curriculum as well as the process of consultation with teachers and the NGO community in refining and finalizing the content. Progress with implementation and teacher reception will be shared as well as reflections on the impact of the newly passed Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices legislation on the curriculum.

This webinar was first presented as part of the Forced Marriage Initiative’s Quarterly Webinar Series on December 14th, 2015.

 

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Redefining Valid Choice

This webinar features Rebecca Musser, survivor and founder of the Claim Red Foundation and a highly sought after speaker and author of the book “The Witness Wore Red”, a personal account of her struggle to escape a forced marriage within the FLDS (Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints’) and her journey as a key witness in the trials which sought to bring FLDS leaders to justice. During this webinar, Rebecca explores how miseducation, misinformation, and psychological grooming can affect a person’s ability to give valid consent and what we can do to educate and empower individuals.

This webinar was first presented as part of the Forced Marriage Initiative’s Quarterly Webinar Series on June 26th, 2016.

 

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Forced Marriage 101

This webinar features Heather Heiman and Casey Swegman from the Forced Marriage Initiative at the Tahirih Justice Center. The webinar presents an overview of the nature and scope of forced marriage in the United States, as well as a discussion of the complex social and cultural dynamics and the unique challenges of problem-solving and safety-planning in such cases. The webinar also provides guidance on how to better screen for and identify potential warning signs and indicators of forced marriage within the populations you serve and best practices for providing culturally responsive services.

 

 

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