Brocato, Vanessa

This article evaluates the human rights violations experienced by women in the mail-order bride industry in light of relevant international human rights instruments. The industry facilitates marriages characterized by domestic violence and other abuses, relies on and perpetuates racial and sexual stereotypes of women, relies on and perpetuates globalized economic inequality between women and men and is closely associated with trafficking of women into involuntary sex work and domestic labour.

This article examines the mail order bride industry in the US through the lens of international human rights law. It notes that mail order bride companies are often front organizations for trafficking women into involuntary sex work or domestic service; given the violations against women's human rights, the author argues that the international community is obligated to regulate or eradicate it. Brocato first looks at the industry and evaluates it within the international human rights framework.