From Grassroots to Global: The Kentucky Justice Model to Combat Sextortion Worldwide

Sextortion is a pervasive form of technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) that weaponizes digital intimacy. To combat this, the United Nations Association of the USA (UNA-USA) and its Women Affinity Group are bridging American grassroots activism with UNFPA’s global protection mandates. This CSW70 parallel event session showcases the ‘Kentucky Model,’ a historic 2025 legislative achievement that secured unanimous bipartisan support to classify sextortion as a misdemeanor, enhance penalties, and enable homicide prosecutions. Advocates will break down Kentucky’s unanimous 2025 legislative success and examine how it fuels the federal momentum behind the DEFIANCE Act. These frameworks provide a scalable “justice architecture,” integrating criminal penalties, civil remedies, and survivor-informed education to achieve legislative harmonization across both US states and UN Member States. Anchored by UNFPA’s mandate, we demonstrate how civil society participation generates the sub-national and federal policy momentum central to CSW70 priorities. We invite attendees to join UNA-USA’s advocacy network to replicate these successes, empowering constituents to connect local activism to the UN’s mission for a world free from digital coercion.

In‑Person — click here to register

Virtual — click here to register