16 Safe and Creative Ways for Bystanders to Become Upstanders in Stopping Violence Against Women

For the 13th day of the 16 Days of Activism, we are pleased to share a special blog list of 16 actions that bystanders can take to become upstanders taking action to stop Violence Against Women from our new partner, Breakthrough and their Bell Bajao campaign

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Almost everyone on the planet has been through that harrowing experience where they, someone they know, or someone in their vicinity has been subject to some form of violence. A lot of us know all too well the feeling of helplessness or panic that comes with experiencing a violent situation. It could be something as ubiquitous as street-harassment, or it something as covered-up as domestic violence.

We know that there is no excuse for violence, and we know that violence should never be allowed to happen. So, as witnesses or bystanders to a violent situation, what could we do to stop it from happening? Continue reading

16 Notable Facebook Pages by Anti-Violence Against Women Organisations

Every morning, no matter where we are in the world, most of us begin our days on Facebook. In between pictures of cats and babies we read the latest updates on what our friends and families are doing… and post our own updates too.

The power of the one-click Facebook update is also felt with major news stories and opinions: Before a news story reaches the television airwaves, it is often already going viral on Facebook with hundreds of people sharing their opinion on it. The power of Facebook seems to be limitless as one share equals 12 shares, which turns into 24, then that equals 48, and the next thing you know 100 people have seen and shared a piece of information, news link or picture.

Thanks to social media networks such as Facebook, the power for change in the world today is more in reach than previously imaginable. For difficult human rights issues such as violence against women, Facebook helps organisations and activists keep the subject – be it acid attacks, female genital mutilation or domestic violence – at the forefront of people’s minds. Continue reading

16 Tech Innovations that Help the Movement to Prevent and Stop Violence Against Women

The 21st century has been defined by the ever-evolving repertoire of technology, devices, and inventions that ultimately connect us across temporal and spatial boundaries. This has been the era of smart phones, tablets, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, amongst many others.  The challenge of ending violence against women has not remained static but has similarly morphed to join the digital era. Violence against women now not only occupies its traditional spaces: cyberbullying, cyberstalking, digital voyeurism, and a whole gamut of new forms of violence have become prevalent.

This article highlights 16 tech innovations or platforms that address violence against women and can be used to prevent or to stop incidences of gender-based violence. Together, they show how we can reclaim technology and use it to make positive contributions to the lives of women around the globe and hopefully invite some creative spark for the next technological invention to be used in this cause. Continue reading

16 Striking Campaigns for the Cause to End Violence Against Women

While we at The Pixel Project always seek to emphasise the positive, the fact remains that, in many places in the world, activists working to end Violence Against Women (VAW) face considerable obstacles:  denial of the problem; cultural taboos that prevent open and honest discussion; viewing VAW as a “women’s issue instead of a human issue; and hostility from men’s rights activists and extremists who seek to keep women “in their place.”  The latter was tragically and recently seen in the early October shooting of Pakistani girls’ rights activist Malala Yousafzai.

Given the hostility they often face,  many VAW activists recognise that they have to be more creative than activists working in more popular causes (e.g. cancer, children’s issues, animal rights and the green movement). A sense of humour and a penchant for effecting change from within also does not go amiss. Continue reading

16 Memorable Stories of Standing Up Against Street Harassment 2012

We are proud today to share the second annual blog list of 16 memorable stories of women dealing with street harassment which has been kindly compiled by Holly Kearl, Founder of Stop Street Harassment and one of our 16 Female Role Models of 2010.

Almost 100% of women and girls experience street harassment in their lifetimes ranging from the uncomfortable to the downright dangerous. Holly receives many stories of women fighting back against street harassment by themselves or with the help of friends, family and bystanders which is shared on the Stop Street Harassment website and Facebook page to help raise awareness of this particular type of violence against women as well as provide inspiration and ideas for everyone on making public places and spaces safe ones for women.

This list provides a starting point for all to learn about and discuss the impact of street harassment. We hope it’ll inspire you to take action. Continue reading

16 Organisations, Charities and Grassroots Groups Working to Stop Female Genital Mutilation

“Female genital mutilation has nothing to do with culture, tradition, or religion. It is torture and a crime. Help us to put an end to this crime.” — Waris Dirie, Survivor of FGM, UN FGM Ambassador, Founder of the Desert Flower Foundation and former Supermodel

FGM stands for Female Genital Mutilation. FGM is a harmful and dangerous practice that involves the outer parts of the vagina- including the labia and the clitoris- being partially or totally removed. There are four main types of FGM and in the case of type 3, which can be the most detrimental to a victim’s reproductive health, the vagina is sewn up, leaving only a small hole for urinating, menstruation and sexual intercourse. FGM is predominantly carried out in parts of Africa. Increasingly it has been found in societies in Asia and also migrant communities across Europe and America. Continue reading

16 Ways to Take Action Against Human Trafficking

The Universal Declaration on Human Rights declared over 60 years ago that all humans were born free and equal with rights common to all and exclusive to none. Sixty-odd years later, in spite of the clear and express prohibition of slavery, trafficking in humans stands at an astoundingly and eerily high level, eclipsing all other eras. In other words, with 30 million people, mostly women and girls, currently being exploited and violated in the sex/human-trafficking trade at this precise moment, there have never been more people enslaved in global history.

The conversation surrounding human/sex-trafficking is not a particularly popular one, but remains a necessary one. Human/sex-trafficking thrives on the secrecy and shadow of unawareness, which currently pervades. This increasingly disturbing human rights violation is linked to forced prostitution, street crimes, domestic servitude, child labour and many other forms of exploitation.  Human trafficking is not only about individuals: it has a mass effect on our social fabric, economic stability and more abstractly reflects on our common humanity. Continue reading

The Pixel Project Selection 2012: 16 Films About Violence Against Women

The Pixel Project’s annual selection of films, documentaries and television shows that raise awareness about violence against women has been a fixture in our annual “16 For 16” campaign from the very beginning. We firmly believe that the “Show, Not Tell” principle is one of the most powerful ways to create a connection between the movement to end violence against women and the person on the street who might not have even given this human rights issue a thought before. Film and television are some of the best tools that activists and educators have at their disposal to shape and galvanise public opinion and action to prevent and stop violence against women (VAW) in their communities remains strong.

2012 has been a bumper year for films and documentaries about violence against women, some of which have won major awards. This indicates that this major human rights issue is starting to come out of the shadows and that the wall of silence surrounding it may not be completely eradicated but is, at the very least, cracked enough to start conversations. Continue reading

16 Creative and Safe Ways to Intervene to Stop Street Harassment

Visit www.mencanstoprape.org for more information.

Street harassment is becoming increasingly prevalent all across the globe. The anti-Street Harassment nonprofit, Stop Street Harassment, defines street harassment as:

Unwelcome words and actions by unknown persons in public which are motivated by gender and invade a person’s physical and emotional space in a disrespectful, creepy, startling, scary, or insulting way.

Two things are necessary for street harassment to happen:

1) A person or group who chooses to harass someone and

2) A community of bystanders willing to let it happen.

As a society, if we continue to accept street harassment as a part of our daily lives, it will never stop.

Many people would like to prevent and stop street harassment in their communities, but are worried about how to go about it. Intervening does not mean that a person has to get involved in a verbal or physical fight with the harasser. Keeping yourself safe is important and there are many safe and creative ways to intervene – here are just 16 of them:

Written by Rubina Singh; Edited by Crystal Smith and Regina Yau Continue reading

The Pixel Project Selection 2012: 16 Music Artistes Who Support The Cause To End Violence Against Women

With VAW being a taboo topic in many cultures and communities, music has become an invaluable awareness-raising, advocacy and educational tool which anti-Violence Against Women (VAW) activists, grassroots groups and nonprofits such as The Pixel Project use in their work to get communities aware about VAW, to break the silence surrounding the violence and to inspire people to take action to stop this human rights atrocity. Indeed, from We Are The World to Man In The Mirror, musicians, singers and songwriters have proven again and again that music is one of the most powerful ways of conveying messages about causes and issues. Continue reading