The film entitled “Invoking Justice” details the movement of the Women’s Jammat. Unclear from my viewing, was what the Jammat’s authority actually is. As it appears the Jammat very much advocates and aids in public awareness and seeks for justice on a case by case basis. What I found profound about this film was the ease that many of the women appeared to have towards such heavy issues such as murder, suicide and domestic abuse. In their meetings there was a clear passion but also desensitization that allowed for joking and light hearted conversation alongside the advocacy and legal proceedings. Further and also interrelated with this observation is how this desensitization occurs. Early on in the film one of the Women’s Jammat members says that “violence is a fact of life.” This same woman also goes on to say that the violence wasn’t even recognized as violence because of the normalcy of it. What is it that makes violence so normalized?
A big take away from this film, specifically related to its ending is how justice is not always served. In the case of the seventeen year old girl who was murdered by her husband and his family, justice was not served. In the case of the mother and daughter, two women were given a chance to escape the persecution of a man who should have protected them: a husband/a father. The steps the Women’s Jammat is taking to invoke justice is truly groundbreaking. I hope to read more on this in the future.
