Femicide

Femicide or feminicide is a sex-based hate crime term, broadly defined as the killing of women but definitions vary depending on the cultural context.Feminist author Diana E. H. Russell is one of the early pioneers of the term, and she currently defines the word as "the killing of females by males because they are females". Other feminists place emphasis on the intention or purpose of the act being directed at females specifically because they are female; others include the killing of females by females.

Often, the necessity of defining the murder of females separately from overall homicide is questioned. Opponents argue that over 80% of all murders are of men, so the term places too much emphasis on the less prevalent murder of females. In addition, the study of femicide is a social challenge.

An alternative term offered is gendercide which is more ambiguous and inclusive. However, some feminists argue that the term gendercide perpetrates the taboo of the subject of the murder of females. Feminists also argue that the motives for femicide are vastly different than those for androcide. Instead of centering in street violence, much of femicide is centered within the home.

Feminist author Diana Russell narrows the definition of femicide to "the killing of females by males because they are female." Russell places emphasis on the idea that males commit femicide with sexist motives. She also chooses to replace the word woman with female to show that femicide can occur to both girls and infants as well. Russell believes her definition of femicide applies to all forms of sexist killing, whether they be motivated by misogyny (the hatred of females), by a sense of superiority over females, by sexual pleasure, or by assumption of ownership over women. Russell's broader definition of femicide is stated as this,

She includes covert killings of women as well, such as the mass murder of female babies due to male preference in cultures such as India and China, as well as deaths related to the failure of social institutions, such as the criminalization of abortion or the prevalence of female genital mutilation.

The term femicide was first used in England in 1801 to signify "the killing of a woman." In 1848, this term was published in Wharton's Law Lexicon. Another term used is feminicide, which is properly formed from the Latin femina, meaning "woman" ("femicide" being truncated).

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