Dr Aisha Gill

Job Title: Senior Lecturer Qualifications: B.A., M.A. [Distinction], Ph.D (Essex), PGCHE Telephone: +44 (0)20 8392 3893 Email Address: A.Gill@roehampton.ac.uk

Mob: +44 (0)7956 116278
Fax: +44 (0) 208 392 3518/3412
Mail: School of Social Sciences, University of Roehampton, Roehampton Lane, London, SW15 5SL.

Dr Aisha Gill (B.A., M.A. [Di], PhD (University of Essex)) PGCHE, is a Senior Lecturer in Criminology at Roehampton University. Her main areas of interest and research are health and criminal justice responses to violence against Black, Minority Ethnic and Refugee (BMER) women in the United Kingdom. She has been involved in addressing the problem of Violence Against Women (VAW) at the grassroots and activist levels for the past twelve years. She is a member of 'End Violence Against Women' group (EVAW); WNC United Nations Advisory Group; invited advisor to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) strategic support group on investigations and complaints involving gendered forms of violence against women in the UK; member of Liberty's Project Advisory Group; Chair of Newham Asian Women's Project (2004-2009); member of Imkaan. Dr Gill has extensive experience of providing expert advice to government and the voluntary sector on legal policy issues related to so-called 'honour' killings and forced marriage, and has challenged politicians to be more inclusive of BMER women's voices in policy-making on issues of gender-based violence and human rights. Her current research interests include the following: rights, law and forced marriage; gendered crimes related to patriarchy; so called 'honour' killings and 'honour’-based violence in the South Asian/Kurdish Diaspora and femicide in Iraqi Kurdistan; missing women; acid violence; post-separation violence and child contact; trafficking; and sexual violence. She has also published widely in peer-reviewed journals (see Publications section) and is currently co-editing a book entitled 'Forced Marriage: Introducing a social justice and human rights perspective'.

Subjects Taught

Current

• Gender Violence and Human Rights (Convenor)

• Criminology, Human Rights and Social Justice (Joint Convenor)

• Youth, Crime and Justice (Convenor)

• Criminal Justice and Domestic Violence (Convenor 2005-)

• Crime Control and Criminal Justice (Convenor)

Past Teaching

• Reading and Writing Criminology (Convenor, 2003-2007)

• Reading Criminological Text (2003-2004)

Areas of Specific Interest

I am particularly interested in supervising postgraduate research in the following areas:

• violence against women/crimes of patriarchy/femicide/forced marriage/'honour' killings

• gender, human rights and/or feminist theory

• women’s movements and policy

• punishment and crime (‘race’, gender and social class)

Research Funding

1. Forced Marriage Unit (Foreign Commonwealth Office) grant for 'Change Together: A pilot project to create informed choice for students facing Forced Marriage' in colloboration with Asha Project (Lambeth) [Consultant]
2. Kurdistan Regional Government grant for the project 'An Investigation into 'Honour'-based Violence (HBV) and 'Honour'-based Killings in Iraqi Kurdistan and the Kurdish Diaspora in the UK: Contested debates on gendered violence, ‘honour’, ethnicity, nation and the quest to eradicate HBV' [CI] . Project Information Sheet.
3. Economic and Social Research Council and Technology Strategy Board [CI]
4. NSPCC Funded project ‘Child Contact in the Context of Post-Separation Violence: Issues for Black and Minority Ethnic Women and Children’ [CI]
5. Roehampton University funded project by CRUCIBLE, Institute for Child Well-Being and Newham Asian Women's Project, ‘COPE: Empowering young people to cope with life's challenges’ [CI]
6. Home Office/Foreign Commonwealth Office Funded project ‘Forced Marriage: Data Analysis of the Government's Forced Marriage Criminalisation Consultation Response’ [PI]
7. European Commission Funded Project with the Berlin Institute for Comparative Social Research (BIVS), Berlin on 'Female Marriage Migration' [PI]
8. West Sussex Crime Reduction Partnership Board Research Grant for the project ‘Needs assessment of domestic violence services in West Sussex’ A. Gill [CI]

Professional links

• Membership of the British Sociological Association.

• Membership of the British Society of Criminology.

• Membership of the Institute of Learning and Teaching in Higher Education since 2002.

Violence against Women Campaigns

Each year, 3 million women across the UK experience rape, domestic violence, forced marriage, trafficking or another form of gender-based violence and there are many, many more who have suffered violence in the past. They deserve specialised support services, such as refuges and Rape Crisis Centres, yet Map of Gaps, published by the End Violence Against Women Campaign and the Equality and Human Rights Commission, graphically shows the postcode lottery in these essential services:

1. Only one in ten local authorities have services for ethnic minority women
2. A third of local authorities across the UK have no specialised services at all
3. Most women in the UK don't have access to a Rape Crisis Centre

• See the latest report: The map of gaps

Honours and Awards

Dr Gill has received several awards and honours for her academic achievements:

• United Nations, Division for the Advancement of Women Award to attend Expert Group Summit on 'Developing Good Practices in Legislation to Address Harmful Practices', Addis Abba, Ethiopia, May 2009

• Economic and Social Research Council Scholarship, University of Essex, UK, 1998-2001

• Economic and Social Research Council Scholarship, University of Essex, UK, 1997-1998

• Police Research Award Scheme Innovation Award. Home Office, London, UK, June 1997

• Department of Sociology Fuller Bequest Project Prize, University of Essex, UK, July 1996

Media Work

• 'These brutal, pre-meditated acts of violence are anything but honourable', The Times, 18th December 2009

• Comment on 'Victim of family rape speaks out' BBC Wales, 17 October 2009. [Audio]

• Comment on Jaycee Lee Dugard Case, BBC NEWS 24, 30 August 2009. [Video]

• The Politics Show November 30th 2008.
Forced Marriage (Civil Protection) Act (2007) Debate with Justice Minister, Bridget Prentice MP and Journalist, Yasmin Alibhai - Brown. [Video]

• BBC Radio 4 ‘Woman's Hour - 'Honour' Killings' June 15th 2007. [Audio]