Protecting from whom, exactly?
Who is doing the violence that they need protection from?
The idea that men are the protectors of women is akin to a sexist patriarchal protection racket. That women who "behave" get "protection" from men who would otherwise assault them.
Of course they are. I could draw a picture for you, but let's pretend: here's a woman, and mother, her two children standing beside her, much smaller. Their father is the tallest, biggest strongest in the picture. Who in this picture will be protecting the others from harms?