misery upon grief

At least 245 million women around the world have been widowed and more than 115 million of them live in devastating poverty, according to a new study. Also according to the report, over 500 million dependent and adult children of widows are caught in a vicious underworld in which disease, forced servitude, homelessness and violence are rampant and youngsters are denied schooling, enslaved or preyed upon by human traffickers.

"The plight of widows — in the shadows of the world — is a human rights catastrophe," said Cherie Blair "It's really a hidden humanitarian crisis...Across the world, widows suffer dreadful discrimination and abuse," Blair said. "In too many cases they're pushed to the very margins of society, trapped in poverty and left vulnerable to abuse and exploitation."
She said many are cheated out of their husbands' assets and property and expelled from their family home — and since they have no money they can't support their children, "so misery is heaped on grief."