Global Security and Intelligence Studies Volume 3, Number 2, Fall/Winter 2018 | Page 22

Conflicting Values Shaping Perceptions of Community Security and Women’s Health Security
2015). They point out that the very patriarchy that purports to protect women
often functions to isolate women and shield abusers, ironically encouraging women
to stay in abusive situations that undermine their security and the very idea of
patriarchy as a protective umbrella for the family.
While Quiverfull advocates condemn feminist ideas as satanic (Joyce 2006;
Seelhoff 2012), Harrison and Rowley (2011) point out that some Quiverfull advocates
attempt to co-opt feminist ideas and engage modern culture rather than
seek to return to “biblical times,” creating their own competing notion of culture.
For instance, Susan Flanders, a member of the movement, notes that feminists
advocate “choice” and she wishes that her choice to have as many children as God
will give her and to respect her husband would not be considered “crazy” (Al Jazeera
interview 2016). This discussion of choice, however, does not acknowledge
the extreme pressure put on members to conform or be cast out often without an
education or any financial resources. By connecting its movement through modern
technology, using the mainstream media to gain credibility by emphasizing
common values, and co-opting the rhetoric of feminism, the movement seeks to
be perceived as part of modern society while challenging the meaning of cultural
norms and concepts like feminism. 7
Support from Survival Networks
Unlike the Maya Community in Guatemala whose poverty and need for post-conflict
recovery attracts NGO efforts, the Quiverfull community receives little attention
from NGOs. This overlooks the reality that many Quiverfull women and girls
are trapped in their community and have no economic independence. One of the
strategies of the movement is to have young girls completely ensconced in a family
unit before they are old enough to leave. In the most extreme cases, young women
leave home with no proof of U.S. citizenship. 8 This can happen because their home
births are not reported and they are not registered in school or even church. Many
Quiverfull families only home church because of both perceived hostility to their
large families and incompatibility of beliefs (Freiman 2011). This means that girls
will have very little evidence that they were born or spent their childhoods in the
United States if their parents refuse to cooperate.
Thus, networks of survivors have become a key resource for some of the
women who want to leave the Quiverfull community. While there are not many
organizations that provide economic, health, or emotional support to the women
and young girls who have left or are trying to leave the Quiverfull movement, in
7 As Hudson (2005) notes, “there is no one feminism” (158); people bring their own associations as
well as stereotypes when they discuss feminist ideas.
8 For instance, see Abby Ohlheiser, “How a Teenager’s Viral Campaign to Prove Her Citizenship Is
Inspiring a New Texas Bill.” The Washington Post, March 12, 2015.
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