ABSTRACT
This chapter draws on the lived experience of the women workers in entertainment establishments in Kathmandu, Nepal, to shed light on how structural violence manifests in their daily lives. Within spaces such as singing and dance bars, pubs, nightclubs, and massage parlors, women face significant societal stigma, exploitation, and vulnerability. Through a critical health communication perspective, this chapter illustrates the everyday communicative acts that perpetuate structural violence. A communicative environment of verbal threats, belittling, and denigration leads to increased behavioral risks and negative physical and mental health outcomes. This chapter highlights women’s voices through the lens of structural violence while emphasizing the importance of critical health communication perspectives emerging from the Global South.
