Haiti is impacted by structural violence, a form of dysfunction where social structures prevent certain groups of people from having access to basic human rights, like education and healthcare. This has resulted from its colonial history, and from decades of political instability and social unrest. Additionally, Haitians are financially impoverished and within Haiti, there exist social inequalities. In 2012, 58.5% of its population was below its poverty line. Educational standards within the nation are low, where its literacy rate is about 60.7%, below the 84.1% global average. Haiti is also globally ranked lower than most other nations in various measurements of health outcomes. Such health outcomes include life expectancy, mortality rates, and disease levels. While there has been some international assistance, there are insufficient supportive infrastructures in place within the country to provide resources and opportunities for Haitians who are trying to attain a higher quality of life. Causes that have resulted in higher levels of structural violence within Haiti include political instability and corruption, as well as the impact of post-colonialism, which has established a caste-based class system within Haiti. Definition of structural violence As defined by Medical Anthropologist Dr. Paul Farmer, structural violence is the way by which social arrangements are constructed to put specific members of a population in harm's way. According to Dr. Farmer, social inequalities are at the heart of structural violence, where the prevailing societal framework imposes invisible barriers that perpetuate the suffering of certain groups of people. The term structural violence was first coined by Johan Galtung, the founder of peace and conflict studies, in 1969. The term further gained exposure when it was used by Latin American liberation theologians. These social arrangements are termed structural as they are embedded into the cultural, political and economic realms of society. The term violence highlights the fact that these structures cause injury or inequality to certain groups of peoples and constrain individual agency in the society in which they operate. While structural violence exists in other parts of the world, its effects are more readily identified within Haiti. Compounding factors While the negative effects of structural violence affects almost everyone in the nation of Haiti, there are a number of social factors that render certain demographics of the population to experience a more severe form of human suffering. These include gender, ethnicity and socioeconomic status. Gender While structural violence impacts Haiti as a whole, due