4/18/2025
by Eleanor J. Bader
In the mid-1980s, neither Amnesty International nor Human Rights Watch considered rape a weapon of war or categorized sexual assault as a violation of human rights. But MADRE did. The 40-year-old, U.S.-based global feminist organization helped correct these egregious omissions.
The group’s legacy includes numerous other accomplishments: MADRE was one of the first domestic organizations to partner with international LGBTQ+ and Indigenous activists and was one of the first to analyze foreign policy through a feminist lens.