The World of Widows [Paperback]

Margaret Owen (Author), Margaret Cwen (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1856494209 | ISBN-13: 978-1856494205 | Publication Date: October 1996

This is a global overview of the legal, social, cultural and economic status of a growing but little-known minority - the world's widows. Particularly in the South, where widows have been neglected by social policy researchers, international human rights activists and the women's movements, their status is an urgent issue given the extent and severity of the discrimination against them. The book describes the process of becoming a widow through bereavement and funeral rites, poverty and social security in the context of widowhood, and the differing laws and customs regarding widows' inheritance. It explores the situation of widows who remarry, issues of sexuality and health, widowhood in the context of AIDS, and the needs of specific groups, such as refugees, older widows and women who are widowed while they are still children. It shows discrimination in inheritance rights, land ownership, custody of children, security of home and shelter, nutrition and health, and concludes with an overview of widows themselves organizing for change.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Zed Books (October 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1856494209
• ISBN-13: 978-1856494205
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,128,526 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very important contribution to women's rights literature, May 19, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A World of Widows (Hardcover)

A very well-researched and cogently written account of the systemic discrimination facing women widows in the developing world. The author does not attempt to provide all the answers, but succeeds in throwing open the debate and exposing the stark lack of attention given to this critical policy area. A very useful resource.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The International Plight of Widows, March 19, 2003

By 

George A. Mendonsa (Chattanooga, TN, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The World of Widows (Paperback)

I founded and run a non-profit whose mission is to not only plead the cause of widows in need, but to also provide the means for meeting their needs particularly in the area of home repair. My vision for helping widows was one that did not reach beyond a local setting. In other words, the plight of widows beyond my own borders had never really occurred to me. In that there is hardly anything in written form that accurately depicts the ongoing struggles of widows, literally, all over the world finding and reading this book has had a life changing effect on me as well as Widows Harvest Ministries, the faith based non-profit I am Director of. In the 3 years since I read "A World of Widows" my heart has been drawn ever closer to other nations , seemingly other worlds, where widows are suffering in ways that it is not even possible for me to imagine. The result has been that Widows Harvest has become an international faith based work in that we have now established operations in 3 African nations and are forming partnerships with a half dozen widows oriented progams/ministries in other countries. I have discovered now, for myself, that all that Margaret Owen presents in her book describing the plight of widows is true and in some cases the circumstances that are being described to me by our representatives in the countries where we now operate are even worse. I am forever in Mrs. Owen's debt for her passion, vision and committment for making the plight of widows known to all the world through her book and her unceasing tireless efforts to bring about change for widows whenever and wherever possible.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It Opened My Eyes., March 5, 2004

By 

George A. Mendonsa (Chattanooga, TN, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A World of Widows (Hardcover)

I have been working with widows on a local community level for almost 20 years and if it had not been for this book I might not have ever known or considered the plight of widows on a world wide scale. Since discovering Margaret Owen and her non-profit group, Empowering Widows Through Development (EWD), and after reading her book "A World of Widows" I have now expanded my own local faith based non-profit for helping widows to an international level. Thanks Margaret.