This is a Sustained Program.

Project Title: MADRE

Location: Iraq

Grant Amount: $3,962

Grantee Website: www.madre.org/

Areas of Impact: Safety and Security

Mission of MADRE
To advance women's human rights by meeting urgent needs in communities and partnering with women to create long-term solutions to the crises they face.

Summary
MADRE is an international women's human rights organization that works with women who are affected by violations to help them win justice and, ultimately, change the conditions that give rise to human rights abuses. They also challenge US policies that undermine human rights. MADRE provides humanitarian aid, supports community development programs, enables sister organizations to respond to immediate needs, and educates its members and the public. MADRE will use DFW's gift for projects in Iraq: women's shelters and The Underground Railroad for Iraqi Women.

Why We Love This
MADRE's Iraq programs operate on a small budget. In the last two years, MADRE directed $49,500 to Iraq for fives women’s shelters and the Underground Railroad project. The Underground Railroad serves as an escape route for women threatened with “honor killings" (murders intended to “protect the family honor” by preventing and punishing women’s violations of accepted behavior).

A woman targeted for an “honor killing" is often hunted by her family, even years after. For that reason, relocating completely is often the only way a woman can save her life. Also, the only shelters in the country, they serve as a safe haven for women marked with an “honor killing” or another form of gender-based violence. With DFW's help and MADRE's efforts, dozens of women's can be saved. Thanks to the shelters and the Underground Railroad, women longer see themselves as victims of abuse but rather as creators of positive change.