Bénédicte Daguet
This blog post was produced as part of the course “Social Media, Ideologies, and Ethics in the United States” at the University of Turku.
Violence against women, let me explain:
“If he hits you, we believe you.” This slogan has been used in many demonstrations in different countries to fight against violence on women.
But what are we talking about?
What does the word ‘violence’ entail? It means sexual, physical, and mental abuse, human trafficking, forced marriage, and female mutilation.
Where does this happen?
Everywhere. At home, in the streets, at work, within religious communities, or as a part of cultural traditions.
And we could ask ourselves why?
Because of gender inequality, which is a persisting issue worldwide. Each minute, 20 people are domestically abused in the United States. The World Health Organization has assessed that 35 per cent of women in the world are killed by femicide, the intentional murder of a woman because of her gender.
Breaking the Silence: The 16 Days of Activism Campaign
The number of victims is not decreasing and that is for one significant reason: silence. The very aim of the 16 Days of Activism campaign is to put to an end to the taboo on gender-based violence. It is a global movement dedicated to demonstrating solidarity between women, raising awareness on the issue, and creating tools to pressure governments to work towards gender equality. It is often forgotten that abusing a woman is a violation of human rights. Each year between November 25th and December 10th, women around the world gather to honor the victims and shed light on the issue.
How to Raise Awareness?
The answer to this question is simple: social media. Social media are part of our daily routines and the platforms enable people to communicate and raise awareness on important issues. Twitter and Instagram are particularly important for the 16 Days of Activism movement because they have helped the organizers reach a wider audience. For instance, the non-profit organization UN Women is sharing their message every day through videos or images that are viewed by thousands of people. Moreover, social media empower the creation of communities and help women to deliver their stories and experiences, which is important for breaking the silence. Social media give a non-distorted voice to the activists in the 16 Days of Activism campaign, especially in places around the world where women are often silenced. The campaign uses a variety of hashtags, such as #genderequality, #16daysactivism, #orangetheworld, #endtheviolence, and plenty of others, making it easy to find various types of content. This strategy demonstrates the significant impact that activism can have through social media, in the effort to influence society and combat violence against women. Indeed, 16 days are not enough to protect women around the world from violence, but social media and activism, hand in hand, can make a difference.
Sources:
National Coalition Against Domestic Violence Website, Statistics: https://ncadv.org/statistics
Research through various hashtags on social media (Twitter and Instagram).
Official United Nations Youtube Video on the 16 Days of Activism Campaign: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37oJ7bJOWiA.
16 Days Campaign Official Website: https://16dayscampaign.org/about-the-campaign/
United Nations Women Website: https://interactive.unwomen.org/multimedia/infographic/violenceagainstwomen/fr/index.html#trafficking-3
https://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/take-action/16-days-of-activism
World Health Organisation Report on Feminicide: https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/77421/WHO_RHR_12.38_eng.pdf?sequence=1