Orange the World: A Recap on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
November 25th marks the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. UN Women, the central force at the United Nations for women’s rights and protections, commemorated the event on November 19th in the UN Headquarters Trusteeship Council. This event promoted the organization and the Secretary-General’s UNiTE campaign to End Violence Against Women. The theme of this year’s event was “Orange the World: #Hear Me Too,” with the color orange representing a bolder, brighter future for women and girls to unify in fighting for a world without Gender-Based Violence. #HearMeToo stands to encompass all recent movements focused on sexual harassment and show the magnitude of violence directed toward women and girls on a global scale. In this way, the UNiTE Campaign through UN Women works to amplify the voices of survivors and advocates all over the world. By building on the courage and hopes of past survivors who have spoken up about their experiences, these global movements envision a world where women and girls can live lives free from violence.
The event was divided into two panels; the first focusing on the role of law enforcement in ending violence against women and girls in both public and private spaces while the second panel featured official remarks from Secretary-General António Guterres concerning how civil society can utilize its power to end gender-based violence. The first panel highlighted the importance of local law enforcement in ensuring the safety of women and girls, minimizing re-victimization of trauma survivors, and ensuring perpetrators be held accountable for their actions [1]. The presence of women in law enforcement has resulted in an increase in victims reporting assaults they have experienced where typically violence against women and girls has been severely underreported. Women’s participation in law enforcement has had an overwhelmingly positive effect on communities overall and victims of gender-based violence. Proactive engagement with communities in addition to respectful and repeated interactions with victims facilitated greater trust in law enforcement. The overarching message of the first panel relayed the importance of partnerships between the United Nations and local entities such as the NYPD to enable women and girls to live lives without fear of violence.
The second panel highlighted the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with the specific focus on SDG 5, Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment. The 2030 Agenda is centered on 17 global goals for covering 36 issues and global processes, with Goal 5 focused on gender equality and empowerment. Targeting Goal 5 provides the opportunity for UN Women and all supporting parties to work under a common focus in ending violence against women and girls around the world. It was unanimously agreed upon that all efforts to end violence against women and girls should be a priority of the UN General Assembly. Capitalizing on global movements like #metoo, #timesup, and #NiUnaMenos is imperative now more than ever considering the statistics of gender-based violence: 35% of women have experienced physical or sexual violence, 7% of women have been assaulted by someone other than a partner, 1 in 10 girls experience forced sexual acts, and 200 million female genital mutilations occur worldwide [2]. Those on the panel and in attendance agreed the time to act against gender-based violence is now; seizing the momentum on movements that address the global impact of gender-based violence and its challenges needs to happen.
Ending violence against women and girls requires long term, sustainable efforts and active engagement between communities, civil society, and all stakeholders [3]. Achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda is inherently impossible without eliminating forms of violence directed toward all women and girls. Stated by the UN Secretary-General António Guterres, violence against women is “a global pandemic” and an obstacle to inclusive societal development [4]. While pushing for profound change in the treatment of women and girls around the world can be agreed upon in the moment, active efforts and measurable goals need to be made and kept for this ideal to be made reality.
While calling for changes in the treatment of women and girls is a necessary ideal, measurable efforts must be made for true success to be realized. A clear goal highlighted by civil society is recognizing the importance of law enforcement, especially the involvement of women officers, in building trust with victims of gender-based violence and creating positive relationships with communities in a sensitive and proactive manner. Supporting grassroots initiatives already taking action toward supporting and advocating for victims of gender-based violence is of the utmost importance for civil society and the general public in instrumenting change.
Support the work of Nonviolence International-New York as we fight for a world without Gender-Based Violence by visiting our campaign page on the 16 Days of Activism by following the link: https://www.nonviolenceinternational-ny.org/16days-5focuses
Learn more about the UN Women’s efforts to combat violence against women and the UNiTE campaign by visiting their webpage: http://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/take-action/16-days-of-activism
If you or someone you know has been affected by gender-based violence, reach out to https://www1.nyc.gov/nychope/site/page/home, https://www1.nyc.gov/site/ocdv/index.page, or call 1–800–621-HOPE.
References:
[1] “‘Orange the World: #HearMeToo’ International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.” United Nations. Accessed November 19, 2018. http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2018/11/media-advisory-orange-the-world-hearmetoo
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Ibid.
