Tamil Nadu-based anti-caste activist and human rights defender Gowsalya Shankar has been honored with the International Woman of Courage (IWOC) award 2021. The award has been given by the U.S. Consulate.
Key Points
- The IWOC Award Certificate of Nomination was handed to Gowsalya at an event ‘Courageous Women Inspire a Better World’ held in Chennai.
- It was handed over by the U.S. Consul General in Chennai Judith Ravin.
- Gowsalya was U.S. Mission India’s nominee for the 2021 U.S. Secretary of State’s IWOC Award, which honors women who have demonstrated exceptional strength, courage, and leadership in acting to improve the lives of others.
- Suresh, National General Secretary of the People’s Union of Civil Liberties, and Malini Parthasarathy, Chairperson, The Hindu, also spoke on the theme of courageous women.
- In March 2017, Gowsalya launched the Shankar Social Justice Trust in honor of her late husband.
- The trust fights atrocities against caste-based violence.
- The trust provides legal, psychological, and moral support to victims and builds awareness against social discrimination and injustice.
U.S. Consul General Judith Ravin said that the United States of America is committed to gender equality, social inclusion, and advancing the status of women and girls globally as a foreign policy priority. Global prosperity, security, and stability cannot be achieved without the full participation of women and girls in the economic, social, and political spheres.