play_arrow

keyboard_arrow_right

skip_previous play_arrow skip_next
00:00 00:00
playlist_play chevron_left
volume_up
chevron_left
play_arrow

Life & Culture

Zonta 16 Days Of Activism Campaign 2024 – The Superior View

Lisa Tucker 28 November 2024 1462 127 4


Background
share close

Zonta Club of Sault Ste Marie Area is one of over 1,300 clubs of Zonta International, a worldwide service organization.  Founded in 1919 in Buffalo, New York, Zonta takes its name from the Lakota Sioux Indian word meaning “honest and trustworthy.”  Zontians volunteer their time, talents and energy to local and international service projects that are designed to advance the status of women.

The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence is an annual international campaign that kicks off on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs until 10 December, Human Rights Day.

Violence against women and girls is one of the most pervasive human rights violations and a
global threat. It knows no national or cultural barriers; it takes place at home, in the workplace
and in open spaces, and affects millions of women and girls in peacetime and conflict. It includes
psychological, physical and sexual violence, and harmful practices such as rape, female genital
cutting, child marriage and human trafficking.
Violence against women and girls threatens countries, inhibits economic progress, and prevents
women from contributing to their community and creating better lives for themselves and
their families.
Zonta International’s ongoing service efforts are demonstrated through numerous local
projects and programs and through partnerships with the United Nations and its agencies.
Our ongoing advocacy efforts are built around the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women
campaign. Launched in 2012, the campaign has raised awareness of the global pandemic of
women’s rights violations and has united Zonta clubs worldwide in conducting impactful
advocacy actions to fight violence against women and gender inequality.
During the 16 Days of Activism, 25 November–10 December, all Zonta clubs and districts
are encouraged to take part in the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign and
to take local, national and international actions to influence the making and implementation
of laws, as well as changing gender-based attitudes and behaviors to end violence against
women and girls.

Visit: zontasaysno.com/zontasvision/campaign

Visit: zonta15.org/find-a-club-near-you/sault-ste-marie

10 THINGS MEN CAN DO TO PREVENT GENDER VIOLENCE

  1. Approach gender violence as a MEN’S issue
    involving men of all ages and socioeconomic, racial and
    ethnic backgrounds. View men not only as perpetrators or
    possible offenders, but as empowered bystanders who can
    confront abusive peers.
  2. If a brother, friend, classmate, or teammate is
    abusing his female partner — or is disrespectful or abusive
    to girls and women in general — don’t look the other way. If
    you feel comfortable doing so, try to talk to him about it.
    Urge him to seek help. Or if you don’t know what to do,
    consult a friend, a parent, a professor, or a counselor.
    DON’T REMAIN SILENT.
  3. Have the courage to look inward. Question your own
    attitudes. Don’t be defensive when something you do or say
    ends up hurting someone else. Try hard to understand how
    your own attitudes and actions might inadvertently
    perpetuate sexism and violence, and work toward changing
    them.
  4. If you suspect that a woman close to you is being
    abused or has been sexually assaulted, gently ask if you can
    help.
  5. If you are emotionally, psychologically, physically,
    or sexually abusive to women, or have been in the past,
    seek professional help NOW.
  6. Be an ally to women who are working to end all
    forms of gender violence. Support the work of campus-
    based women’s centers. Attend “Take Back the Night”
    rallies and other public events. Raise money for
    community-based rape crisis centers and battered women’s
    shelters. If you belong to a team or fraternity, or another
    student group, organize a fundraiser.
  7. Recognize and speak out against homophobia and
    gay-bashing. Discrimination and violence against LGBTQ
    people are wrong in and of themselves. This abuse also has
    direct links to sexism (e.g. the sexual orientation of men
    who speak out against sexism is often questioned, a
    conscious or unconscious strategy intended to silence them.
    This is a key reason few men do so).
  8. Attend programs, take courses, watch films, and read
    articles and books about multicultural masculinities, gender
    inequality, and the root causes of gender violence. Educate
    yourself and others about how larger social forces affect
    the conflicts between individual men and women.
  9. Don’t fund sexism. Refuse to purchase any magazine,
    rent any video, subscribe to any Web site, or buy any music
    that portrays girls or women in a sexually degrading or
    abusive manner. Speak out about cyber-sexism and
    misogynist attacks against women on social media sites
    such as Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. Protest sexism in
    new and old media.
  10. Mentor and teach young boys about how to be men in
    ways that don’t involve degrading or abusing girls and
    women (or men). Volunteer to work with gender violence
    prevention programs, including anti-sexist men’s programs.
    Lead by example.

This poster was produced by MVP Strategies, a gender violence prevention education and training organization.
Visit: www.mvpstrategies.net

Jane & Tracey & Liz & Lisa

Rate it
Previous episode