All over the world, girls and women are victims of violence, oppression, and discrimination. No country, no community, no religious or ethnic group is immune. Too often, women’s voices are stifled, ignored, or trivialized–and as a result, other victims feel alone and unsupported.

Veils, Halos & Shackles, the first-ever anthology of international poetry specifically addressing the oppression and empowerment of women, includes more than 250 extraordinary poems from every continent, contributed by some of the world’s most accomplished living poets. Many are themselves survivors of rape and other gender-based crimes; others are grandmothers, mothers, daughters, friends, and teachers of victims and survivors. Still others write out of empathy and concern, having been moved deeply by the fate of those who suffer and die just because they are female. They offer heartfelt testimony of what they have experienced and witnessed.

Veils, Halos & Shackles, is an important and timely contribution to the cause of women’s empowerment and freedom; it speaks to a global audience and gives a voice to the millions whose outcries have been silenced.