Transnational crime has had a disproportionately adverse impact on women. However, victimization of women is difficult to address due to its relationship to gender ideologies that often tolerate and sometimes even encourage victimization. Poverty, racism, and xenophobia interact with such ideologies and exacerbate women's victimization. Current global economic strategies and the power divide between countries reinforce or heighten these conditions. Women's victimization commonly includes violence against women in the public and private spheres. Research has also demonstrated that female offenders often have had a long history of victimization. In addition, trafficked women are often coerced or have received false promises for happiness or income. Addressing female victimization, particularly in the context of transnational crime, requires addressing the multiple reasons that allow the crime to remain largely unreported. Creating a safer world for females requires the international community to address ways to reduce women's vulnerability as well as to discover indigenous strategic solutions that reduce exploitation and abuse, as well as to regard females as survivors rather than as victims. Footnotes and 75 references