The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence is an international campaign designed to raise awareness about gender-based violence as a human rights concern both nationally and internationally.
Each day, beginning on November 25, International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, through December 10, International Human Rights Day, Vital Voices will publish a blog post from a woman leader or member of our network. Each woman is dedicated to eliminating gender-based violence in her home country. These women work to provide comprehensive services to victims and actively collaborate with local governments to shape Violence Against Women (VAW) legislation.
Vital Voices and our partners are supportive of the International Violence Against Women Act (IVAWA); this Act, if passed, will positively impact the communities in which our women leaders work. The Act addresses the United States’ commitment to take preventative action and respond to violence against women and girls around the world; it incorporates the issue of violence against women into the United States’ foreign policy agenda; and it highlights our country’s promise to engage men and boys as partners as they are an essential element of making sustained reductions in gender-based violence.
Learn more about our human rights work here and check out Vital Voices Vice President for Human Rights Cindy Dyer’s TEDxSMU talk on ending violence against women.
Promundo, one of four consortium partners leading the Gender-Based Violence Emergency Response and Protection Initiative, works globally to engage men and boys in achieving gender equality. They recognize the importance of defining a pathway for positive change in communities that fosters rigid norms. By involving men in challenging harmful norms around masculinity and violence, Promundo has helped men as well as their families and communities create positive change. Their programming has proven that engaging men, both in adolescence and adulthood, in redefining what it means to be a man can help to prevent GBV and improve the overall well-being of their partners, families and communities.
Vital Voices and each of our partners recognizes the importance of including male voices in the fight to end gender-based violence. On December 10, International Human Rights Day, Voices of Solidarity will celebrate our male allies who are creating a safer world for women. The Vital Voices Solidarity Award will be given to four men who have shown courage and compassion in advocating on behalf of women and girls in the United States and around the world.
We hope you use this campaign and our blog series to learn more about the leaders in our network who have dedicated their lives to eliminating violence against women in countries around the world.
Engage with us throughout the campaign using #16Days and @VitalVoices.
November 25-December 10
16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence
Follow our blog series presenting voices of the Vital Voices Global Leadership Network and men who advocate on behalf of women and girls globally.
December 4
Neda Wants to Die
Provocative theatrical performance co-presented by Vital Voices and the World Bank Group.
December 10
Voices of Solidarity
A presentation of the Vital Voices Solidarity Award, to recognize men who have shown courage and compassion in advocating on behalf of women and girls in the United States and around the world.