#OrangeURHood
This year has indeed been a remarkable year for change. Throughout this year, change has manifested in several different forms, from having Malala Yousafzai, at merely seventeen years of age, win the Nobel Peace Prize and the World’s Children’s Prize to Actress Emma Watson deliver her speech on gender equality at the United Nations for the ‘HeforShe’ campaign. It has however also been an year of horrific attack on women across the world. For Indians specifically, we witnessed the the Badaun Gang rape, where two girls aged 14 and 16 were brutally gang raped and more recently the attack on the business analyst by a taxi diver. Now United Nations Women has initiated the ‘Orange Your Neighbourhood’ movement that seeks to raise awareness and prompt action to cease the worldwide scourge of violence against women and girls.
Gender Inequality has been prevalent in society much before the invention of time and neither women nor men are immune from it. The United Nations reported (on their website [http://beijing20.unwomen.org/en/in-focus/evaw]) that a staggering 1 in every 3 women have endured some form of abuse, be it physical or sexual, mostly at the hands of their partner; approximately 120 million girls have reportedly been coerced into intercourse or other sexual acts at particular points in their lives; while 133 million women and girls have undergone female genital mutilation. Earlier this year, Emma Watson, in her speech at the United Nations, stated that at the impressionable age of fifteen she witnessed her ‘girlfriends dropping out of their beloved sports teams, because they didn’t want to appear muscle-y’ and then at eighteen, ‘when her male friends were unable to express their feelings.’
Furthermore, she incited: “How can we effect change in the world when only half of it is invited or feel welcome to participate in the conversation?”
So, how does this relate to ‘Orange your Neighbourhood’ you may ask? The ‘Orange Your Neighbourhood’ is one such platform where we, the people, can galvanize change for both the sexes, right here in Aotearoa, New Zealand. “We need this eye-catching colour everywhere so that the message is loud and clear: we all need to work together to stop violence against women and girls right now,”UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka said, “We all need to work together to stop violence against women and girls right now,” she added, “that includes men and boys standing up for what’s right and working with us and the women’s movement to tackle gender inequality. We have to end this universal violation of human rights.” I am Woman supports this cause in its endeavour to empower every woman to live to her fullest potential. For us this is a campaign to align all men and women to this cause and eventually help build a world where women can develop and bloom uninhibitted.
One of the biggest events of the Latin American region is a marathon in Mexico City, the result of a partnership between UN Women and TV Azteca, one of the region’s top media groups. In Africa, among a series of creative initiatives, a film forum will be hosted in Uganda screening stories focusing on the experiences of women’s lives, and a collaborative venture with Talk Radio 702 in South Africa, will promote zero tolerance for gender-based violence. In Asia-Pacific, public spaces in India will turn orange to promote awareness among local communities, and youth champions in Cambodia will take anti-violence messages online to galvanize action through social media. In the Arab States region, several activities are planned, many with a special focus on violence against women in Gaza. High-profile events in Eastern Europe and Central Asia include a series of awareness-raising forums in Kosovo (under UN Security Council Resolution 1244) on the violence that young girls face in high schools, and more than 100 events in Kyrgyzstan engaging Members of Parliament, government officials, donors, and civil society.
You too can be part of this change. To show your support for this cause share your photos, thoughts and ideas showing how you orange your neighbourhood with the hastag #orangeyourhood (www.facebook.com/womanunlimited) and #iamwoman on Facebook or email us on iamwoman@xtra.co.nz
Follow the ‘Orange Your Neighbourhood’ movement at facebook.com/SayNO.UNiTE and twitter.com/SayNO_UNiTE.
This year has indeed been a remarkable year for change. Throughout this year, change has manifested in several different forms, from having Malala Yousafzai, at merely seventeen years of age, win the Nobel Peace Prize and the World’s Children’s Prize to Actress Emma Watson deliver her speech on...
This year has indeed been a remarkable year for change. Throughout this year, change has manifested in several different forms, from having Malala Yousafzai, at merely seventeen years of age, win the Nobel Peace Prize and the World’s Children’s Prize to Actress Emma Watson deliver her speech on gender equality at the United Nations for the ‘HeforShe’ campaign. It has however also been an year of horrific attack on women across the world. For Indians specifically, we witnessed the the Badaun Gang rape, where two girls aged 14 and 16 were brutally gang raped and more recently the attack on the business analyst by a taxi diver. Now United Nations Women has initiated the ‘Orange Your Neighbourhood’ movement that seeks to raise awareness and prompt action to cease the worldwide scourge of violence against women and girls.
Gender Inequality has been prevalent in society much before the invention of time and neither women nor men are immune from it. The United Nations reported (on their website [http://beijing20.unwomen.org/en/in-focus/evaw]) that a staggering 1 in every 3 women have endured some form of abuse, be it physical or sexual, mostly at the hands of their partner; approximately 120 million girls have reportedly been coerced into intercourse or other sexual acts at particular points in their lives; while 133 million women and girls have undergone female genital mutilation. Earlier this year, Emma Watson, in her speech at the United Nations, stated that at the impressionable age of fifteen she witnessed her ‘girlfriends dropping out of their beloved sports teams, because they didn’t want to appear muscle-y’ and then at eighteen, ‘when her male friends were unable to express their feelings.’
Furthermore, she incited: “How can we effect change in the world when only half of it is invited or feel welcome to participate in the conversation?”
So, how does this relate to ‘Orange your Neighbourhood’ you may ask? The ‘Orange Your Neighbourhood’ is one such platform where we, the people, can galvanize change for both the sexes, right here in Aotearoa, New Zealand. “We need this eye-catching colour everywhere so that the message is loud and clear: we all need to work together to stop violence against women and girls right now,”UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka said, “We all need to work together to stop violence against women and girls right now,” she added, “that includes men and boys standing up for what’s right and working with us and the women’s movement to tackle gender inequality. We have to end this universal violation of human rights.” I am Woman supports this cause in its endeavour to empower every woman to live to her fullest potential. For us this is a campaign to align all men and women to this cause and eventually help build a world where women can develop and bloom uninhibitted.
One of the biggest events of the Latin American region is a marathon in Mexico City, the result of a partnership between UN Women and TV Azteca, one of the region’s top media groups. In Africa, among a series of creative initiatives, a film forum will be hosted in Uganda screening stories focusing on the experiences of women’s lives, and a collaborative venture with Talk Radio 702 in South Africa, will promote zero tolerance for gender-based violence. In Asia-Pacific, public spaces in India will turn orange to promote awareness among local communities, and youth champions in Cambodia will take anti-violence messages online to galvanize action through social media. In the Arab States region, several activities are planned, many with a special focus on violence against women in Gaza. High-profile events in Eastern Europe and Central Asia include a series of awareness-raising forums in Kosovo (under UN Security Council Resolution 1244) on the violence that young girls face in high schools, and more than 100 events in Kyrgyzstan engaging Members of Parliament, government officials, donors, and civil society.
You too can be part of this change. To show your support for this cause share your photos, thoughts and ideas showing how you orange your neighbourhood with the hastag #orangeyourhood (www.facebook.com/womanunlimited) and #iamwoman on Facebook or email us on iamwoman@xtra.co.nz
Follow the ‘Orange Your Neighbourhood’ movement at facebook.com/SayNO.UNiTE and twitter.com/SayNO_UNiTE.
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