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16 Anti-VAW Organisations, Campaigns, and Activists using Pop Culture to fight Violence Against Women

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From books, comic books, movies, pop music, and tv shows to graffiti, online memes, tattoos, cosplaying, and street fashion – pop culture is what and who most of us read, watch, listen, and wear. Traditionally, it has been dismissed by the establishment as ubiquitous lightweight entertainment for the person on the street. Nevertheless, from fears that Rock music would promote promiscuous behaviour amongst teens in the 1950s to allegations that video games contribute to violent behaviour in children to Harry Potter fans rallying to fundraise for good causes, pop culture also has a history of being regarded as extraordinarily effective at transmitting powerful ideas and messages to the masses.

The power of pop culture has been magnified manifold since the advent and evolution of radio, film, and the internet over the course of the 20th century. In today’s lightning-fast internet-connected world, its influence is more potent than ever as streaming services like Netflix and Spotify have gone global, social media channels like Tumblr create an proliferation of interactive worldwide fandoms, and celebrities now hold court on Facebook with live videos that go viral. From using pop culture mediums such as comics and YouTube videos to raise awareness about VAW to collaborating with celebrities to amplify messages, today’s anti-VAW organisations and campaigns are dialling into pop culture to reach out to communities with added impact.

Here at The Pixel Project, we realise what a huge role pop culture can play in influencing communities, educating young people, mobilising support, and raising the resources needed to address, prevent, and even stop violence against women (VAW). In recognition of the profound influence that pop culture has on the hearts and minds of individuals and communities worldwide, we present 16 anti-VAW organisations, campaigns, celebrities, and activists using pop culture to fight VAW in a variety of ways.

Written and compiled by Samantha Joseph with additional content by Regina Yau. Introduction by Regina Yau and Samantha Joseph.

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Empowering With Pop Culture #1: Aaron Haroon Rashid and “Burka Avenger” – Pakistan

Aaron Haroon Rashid created Burka Avenger, an animated Pakistani TV series, to emphasise the importance of educating girls. It features a protagonist who is a teacher in an all-girls’ school by day, and wears a burka when fighting misogynistic villains and carries strong themes of women’s empowerment.

Empowering With Pop Culture #2: Anita Sarkeesian and “Tropes vs Women” – Online

Feminist social critic Anita Sarkeesian documents the often sexist and misogynistic view of women in popular culture through her Tropes vs Women in Video Games series which also addresses violence against women and objectification of women in video games. Ironically, launching the series resulted in a deluge of sexist harassment for Anita. [TRIGGER WARNING: This video contains graphic depictions of violence against women.]

Empowering With Pop Culture #3: Breakthrough and the “Ring the Bell/Bell Bajao” campaign – India

Breakthrough and its founder, Malika Dutt, have used pop culture in a slew of campaigns to promote gender rights and bring awareness to violence against women. Bell Bajao, or Ring the Bell, is their most famous campaign is renowned for using a series of striking public service announcements on YouTube calling on bystanders to take action. The campaign later evolved to involve the likes of Patrick Stewart and Michael Bolton calling on men to take action to stop violence and discrimination against women.

Empowering With Pop Culture #4: Celeste Barber and #celestechallengeaccepted – Australia

Using popular social media platform Instagram, Australian comedian Celeste Barber fights the notion of self-objectification that women and girls are supposed to be constantly aware of their bodies and how they are rewarded for sexualisation through ‘likes’ by putting up her own pictures side-by-side those of celebrities like Niki Minaj and Kim Kardashian.

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Empowering With Pop Culture #5: Flavia Carvalho and the “A Pele da Flor” (The Skin of the Flower) Project – Brazil

When talented tattoo artist Flavia Carvalho had a client who wanted to cover up a scar on her abdomen that was inflicted through a violent attack because she refused the advances of a man in a nightclub, Carvalho started her A Pele de Flor project to help other women who have sustained scars from VAW. In addition to helping survivors boost their self-confidence via beautiful tattoos, she shares the before and after pictures of the scars with the stories of how the women received them to raise awareness about VAW.

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Empowering With Pop Culture #6: Gender-flipped Book Cover Posing – United States of America

Fantasy author Jim C Hines noticed a trend of ridiculously posed women on the cover of popular urban fantasy novels, and decided to draw attention to sexist cover art by parodying them in a series of photographs. Since then, he’s raised money for several charities through these efforts, and roped in several other authors, including John Scalzi, Charles Stross, and Mary Robinette Kowal.

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Empowering With Pop Culture #7: Mariska Hargitay and the “NO MORE” Campaign – United States of America

Mariska Hargitay’s Joyful Heart Foundation launched the NO MORE campaign in hopes of normalising conversation surrounding domestic violence and sexual assault, allowing victims to feel more empowered about coming forward with their stories. NO MORE is backed by familiar faces from television and music, including Courteney Cox, Samantha Ronson, and Mary J Blige.

Empowering With Pop Culture #8:   Meghan Rienks and the “That’s Not Cool” campaign – Online

Youtube star Meghan Rienks, Futures Without Violence and the Ad Council team up for the That’s Not Cool campaign, to help teens identify abusive behaviour in relationships. Accessible through platforms like Youtube and Kik, the campaign is aimed at promoting healthy relationships among teenagers.

Empowering With Pop Culture #9: Megan Rosalarian and Gender-flipping Objectifying Comic Book Art – United States of America

Megan Rosalarian, pseudonym of writer and artist Megan Rose Gedris, tackles the hypersexualised representation of female superheroes in comic books, for example Black Canary and Star Sapphire, by re-drawing them as male superheroes in revealing outfits and titillating poses.

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Empowering With Pop Culture #10: Ram Devineni and “Priya’s Shakti” – India

Ram Devineni is one of the creators of Priya’s Shakti, a comic book whose protagonist is a young rape survivor fighting gender crimes in India with the help of the goddess Parvati. Inspired by the horrific gender-based violence making the news in India, Priya’s Shakti exposes issues of gender-based violence that are often left untackled because of patriarchal attitudes.

Empowering With Pop Culture #11: Saint Hoax and the “Happy Never After” Campaign – Online

Middle Eastern artist Saint Hoax uses Disney Princess characters to illustrate domestic violence in the series of Happy Never After posters. The princesses, visibly bruised, are featured with the tagline ‘When Did He Stop Treating You Like A Princess?’, a move that Saint Hoax says underlines the fact that domestic violence can happen to anyone. [TRIGGER WARNING: This video contains graphic depictions of violence against women.]

Empowering With Pop Culture #12: The “Don’t Cover it Up” Campaign – United Kingdom

YouTube beauty expert Lauren Luke and anti-violence against women charity Refuge produce a video as part of the ‘Don’t Cover It Up’ campaign. In the video, Luke appears to be beaten and bruised, an intentionally shocking presentation to make people face the realities of abuse victims and hopefully urge them to seek help rather than ‘cover up’.

Empowering With Pop Culture #13: The “It’s On Us” Campaign – United States of America

A US national campaign, It’s On Us aims to help keep men and women safe from sexual assault, especially on campus. The campaign works with celebrities such as Zoe Saldana, John Cho, Minka Kelly and Josh Hutcherson to create videos that advocate for consent, safety and intervention in non-consensual situations.

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Empowering With Pop Culture #14: The Pixel Project and the “Read For Pixels” campaign – Online

The Pixel Project is an anti-VAW non-profit which specialises in online campaigns that combine social media, new technologies, and pop culture/the arts to raise awareness, funds, and volunteer power for the movement to end VAW. Over the years, their campaigns and programmes have reached out to diverse pop culture communities and influencers including music fans, foodies, and geekdoms. Their most popular campaign is their Read For Pixels campaign featuring award-winning bestselling authors talking about VAW to their fans via live Google Hangouts and raising funds online for the cause.

Empowering With Pop Culture #15: The #WhatIReallyReallyWant Campaign – Worldwide

Project Everyone, founded by director Richard Curtis and Global Goals, took the 1996 girl power anthem ‘Wannabe’ (with the blessing of The Spice Girls), and updated it for their #WhatIReallyReallyWant campaign featuring women and girls from around the world telling the United Nations and the world what they really want: to stop violence against girls, ending child marriage and equal pay for equal work.

Empowering With Pop Culture #16: YWCA Canada and the #NOTokay Campaign – Canada

YWCA Canada’s #NOTokay campaign uses TV series, video games and music videos and representations of assault in them to illustrate that it isn’t okay. Each 15 second video highlights the casual way violence against women is used in shows like Family Guy, and how we shouldn’t be okay with it. [TRIGGER WARNING: This video contains graphic depictions of violence against women.]

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16 Ways You Can Make Online Spaces Safer For Women

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For the 11th day of the 16 Days of Activism, we are pleased to share a special blog list of 16 actions that anyone can take to become upstanders taking make online spaces safer for women from our partner,Breakthrough and their Bell Bajao campaign (now Breakthrough India).

Note: For additional tips and ideas on how to take action to stop online violence, you can read our 2013 article on 16 ways men can help stop cyberVAW.

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SearchQuick – what’s the first thing you think of when you see the phrase ‘safe public spaces’? For most of us, we see well-lit streets, marketplaces bustling with people of all genders, public transport where women don’t fear to tread. But how many of us stop to consider the less ‘physical’ world?

The online space is as legitimate a public space as any, and like the streets, marketplaces and buses around us, as prone to incidences of harassment and violence against women. A woman on the internet is may be subject to death threats, rape threats, or worse, and none of us are strangers to stories of harassment ‘forcing’ women being off social networks or gaming communities.

Fortunately, the solution rests with us – the citizens of the internet. We can act to create online spaces that are safer for everyone – here are 16 ways how:

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Action To Stop Online VAW #1: Believe survivors when they say they have experienced violence. It takes a great amount of courage to come forward and share a traumatic experience publicly. It is difficult enough for survivors to share their stories, the last thing they need is to have their experiences doubted.

Action To Stop Online VAW #2: Know the law and don’t be afraid to use it. Several countries regard cyber crimes as criminal offenses. If you spot someone engaging in cyber threats , do not hesitate to bring them to justice, legally.

Help ButtonAction To Stop Online VAW #3. Intervene when you spot someone being vilified or bullied online. All you have to do is interrupt the conversation and distract the bully.

Action To Stop Online VAW #4: Watch your language when interacting online. A lot of the words and phrases we use frequently are riddled with sexism and idealise masculinity. For instance “don’t be such a girl” makes femininity out to be a negative thing, while “be a man” glorifies masculinity. The phrases we use have the power to tip or equalise the gender balance.

Action To Stop Online VAW #5. Use “block” and “report” liberally – one of the easiest things to do is report abusive or violent online behaviour. Social networks and major website usually have a very low-tolerance policy when it comes to offensive behaviour online and respond rapidly to reports.

Action To Stop Online VAW #6. Concentrate on the argument when in an online debate. The internet is a hotbed for discussion, debate and differences in opinion. When arguments get messy, don’t debase yourself by name-calling the other person. Focus on the point and hand and use reason and logic to make your point, rather than belittling personal attributes.

Action To Stop Online VAW #7. Don’t blame the victim. Whether online, or offline – NOBODY deserves abuse or violence. Don’t fall into the “they asked for it” or “they had it coming” arguments – these just reinforce patriarchal mindsets.

Action To Stop Online VAW #8: Don’t feed the trolls. Sometimes the best action is no action. Trolls make it their mission to disrupt or upset others around them. You can identify them by their resistance to listening to or accepting a point of view that differs from their own. Once you’ve spotted a troll, refrain from interacting with them entirely.

Action To Stop Online VAW #9: Respect the discomfort of others. We may not always know why another person feels uncomfortable during a conversation, but something that is trivial to us may be of great significance, or a trigger for them. Respect their situation if they tell you they are feeling uncomfortable and move on to another topic.

Action To Stop Online VAW #10. Call out abusive or offensive behaviour. Take intervention a step further, and instead of just interrupting the aggressor, call them out on their behaviour. A phrase like ‘that’s a sexist thing to say’ or ‘this is discriminatory’ or even ‘there’s no need to be aggressive’ can be all it takes to bring bad behaviour to notice.

Action To Stop Online VAW #11: Check your privilege. If English is your first language and you’re from a middle class family, you’re already at an advantage online. We often aren’t even aware of our own privilege before falling into shouting matches with others on the internet.

Girl in LaptopAction To Stop Online VAW #12: Encourage more women to come online. The greater the number of women in public spaces, the safer those public spaces are. Work towards gender-equality online by helping create it.

Action To Stop Online VAW #13: Show sensitivity towards other cultures. In a space where people from different countries and cultures intermingle. Be open to listening to the voices of those who have gone through different experiences and learn from their stories. Not everyone goes through the same life experiences.

Action To Stop Online VAW #14:. Stop body-shaming. Calling people names because you perceive them as too fat, too thin, wearing inappropriate clothing or makeup that isn’t professionally applied is just one of the ways the anonymity the internet provides enables such malicious behaviour. Don’t engage in it, and don’t tolerate it from others

Action To Stop Online VAW #15. Don’t marginalise other communities. Not just gender, but making comments that marginalise or demean individuals based on class, sex, race, caste, ability, sexual preference, age or weight all contribute to creating unwelcoming public spaces.

Action To Stop Online VAW #16. Make it visible. Finally, don’t hesitate to bring abusive or offensive behaviour to the public eye. Take screenshots, and spread the word. Make violence against women and girls in every space unacceptable.

16 Commitments You Can Make to End Violence Against Women

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For the 15th day of the 16 Days of Activism, we are pleased to share a special blog list of 16 commitments from men to become upstanders taking action to stop Violence Against Women from our partner, Breakthrough/Bell Bajao. These commitments were collected via their “Ring The Bell” campaign which kicked off on International Women’s Day 2013.

If you are a man who believes that violence against women and girls has no place in your community, your culture, or the world, please consider joining the “Ring The Bell” campaign and making your pledge to stop the violence.

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At Breakthrough we’ve spent over ten years working on issues of violence against women. One of the most frequent questions we find ourselves answering is “I really want to help – what can I do to end violence against women?”

On the 8th of March this year, we launched Ring The Bell – a campaign where we asked you to make a tangible promise to ACT to end violence against women. For 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence, we’ve picked 16 of the simplest, and most tangible promises we received. Without further ado, Here are 16 easy ways you can make a difference.

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Commitment #1: Promote another campaign

Zina Tompkins I promise to #RingTheBell by using this campaign as inspiration in my church network to change gender inequality in my community and then globally.

 

Commitment #2: Start your own campaign

Iren Shin I promise to #RingTheBell by organizing my “Know Your Rights” campaign for Rutgers students and N.B. community members.

 

Commitment #3: Host an Event 

Al Black I promise to host a special Poetry/Music event to, “End Violence Against Women” with all male performers

 

Commitment #4: Challenge Your Surroundings

William Ligon-Bruno I promise to challenge friends and peers who disrespect women or girls and be a presence and a force in ending violence against them.

 

Commitment #5: Challenge Disrespect on the Internet 

Adam Souza I promise to challenging friends or internet commentators who disrespect women or girls.

 

Commitment #6: Demonstrate Respect

Richard Sjolin Jr I promise to treat EVERYONE with equal respect, no matter their gender, identity, or beliefs.

 

Commitment #7: Engage in Respectful Relationships with Women and Girls

Dipankar Gupta I hereby promise that I will not look at women inappropriate fashion and I will make sure that my friends also do the same. I promise that if I have feelings towards a woman,I will accept rejection in a mature fashion. I promise that I will show chivalry with no ulterior motive. I promise that I will help women (or any person for that matter) without any motive. I promise that I will not discriminate against women in any fashion. I promise that I will seek permission from a woman for anything. And I promise to protect every woman I love.

 

Commitment #8: Talk about it

Molly Williams I promise to ring the bell by having conversations with men in my life about violence prevention and elimination.

 

Commitment #9: Raise Daughters to Only Accept Respect

Kelly Christensen I promise to fight violence in my community and to raise my daughter to never ever accept anything less than respect from others.

 

Commitment #10: Raise Sons to Respect Women and Girls  

Bill Cole I promise to teach my son every day to know that women are in every way his equal.

 

Commitment #11: Raise awareness

Anabel Ronconi I promise to raise awareness about violence against women and in general,teach/show/lead nonviolence by example,help others to stand up for themselves

 

Commitment #12: Challenge Misogynistic Patterns of Thought  

Edward Zeauskas I promise to Ring the Bell by changing the patterns of thought, and normative roles portrayed by men and women.

 

Commitment #13: Demand Gender Sensitive Reporting 

Gias Uddin I promise to ring the bell by:encouraging media people to publish gender sensitive report

 

Commitment #14: Be a Role Model

Mitch Pryor I promise to challenge friends, colleagues, and coworkers who disrespect women or girls. I promise to be a good role model for my children.

 

Commitment #15: Respect My Partner and Model good Respectful Relationships

Lynn Harris I promise to ring the bell by treating my daughter and son equally and making sure they see that my husband and I treat each other with deep respect.

 

Commitment #16: Be A Bystander Who Intervenes 

Francisco Cividanes I’m in. I promise to stand up to the bullies not only with my words but through action as well.

Think you can do more? Sir Richard Branson, Sir Patrick Stewart, Michael Bolton and others have made their own commitments to end violence against women. What’s yours?

16 Safety Ideas and Tips for Women facing Domestic Violence over the Holiday Season

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via McHenry County Turning Point http://www.mchenrycountyturningpoint.org

The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence coincides with the start of the annual year-end holiday season in many parts of the world. During this period, Domestic Violence tends to spike due to a number of factors including:

  • Increased financial pressures
  • Increased alcohol and drug consumption
  • Increased family pressures and conflict
  • Increased contact with the abuser who may be on vacation for the holiday season.

In the final article in our 2012 “16 For 16” blog series, The Pixel Project presents 16 safety ideas and tips for women who continue to face Domestic Violence in their family lives. Given that Domestic Violence does not just affect the immediate victim but also their friends and extended family during this time of the year, we have divided the 16 ideas and tips into 2 categories:

  • One for victims/survivors
  • One for friends and family members who wish to take action to keep the victim/survivor safe.

If you have more tips, please share them in the comments box below this article so we can help everyone stay as safe as possible during the holiday season.

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For Victims/Survivors:

Idea/Tip Number 1: Put the right numbers on speed-dial. If you have a mobile phone, make sure to put the following numbers of speed-dial/in your address book:

  • The national Domestic Violence helpline (if your country has it)
  • The local Domestic Violence shelter helpline wherever you will be spending Christmas
  • The local police helpline number
  • The number of a close friend, co-worker or family member who can be on standby to get you out of the situation or act as witness.

For those who fear that their phone may be taken away from them, memorise all important numbers so, if need be, you can call from a public pay phone.

Idea/Tip Number 2: Have a ‘Safe’ word/phrase. In violent or emergency situations, you may not be able to text or say much. Have an agreed ‘safe’ word or phrase with your close friend/co-worker or family member who agrees to have their phone on standby to receive any emergency calls/texts. Keep it short and simple.

Idea/Tip Number 3: Download a safety app. If you have a smart phone, consider downloading a safety app for women, many of which have been designed to automatically alert your support network if you are in danger. Some safety apps include P.F.O. and Circle of 6.

Idea/Tip Number 4: Keep your phone (and some money) on you at all times. Also remember to keep it fully charged at all times. You will never know when a situation will erupt, so it is crucial to have it on hand, especially if you know you might be alone with your abuser. Also have cash in hand in case you need to make a run for your life.

Idea/Tip Number 5: Arrange for an ally in advance. If you are going to spend the holiday season with extended family and you know who would believe and support you, call that person in advance to ask him or her for support and intervention should a situation turn violent. This option may not be available for all victims/survivors but it would be a feasible one for many, especially if visiting their own parents, siblings, cousins etc.

Idea/Tip Number 6: Always have an audience. Use holiday visits to extended family and friends as a chance to minimise being alone with your abuser. At best, being in company will keep the violence in check. At worst, if violence does happen, it will happen publicly and you may have others stepping in to intervene or at least a few witnesses.

Idea/Tip Number 7: Defuse it. According to one police lieutenant, walking away from a potentially explosive situation may help temporarily alleviate the abuse and avoid fatalities:“A lot of times just stepping away from a situation to let it deescalate for that night or that certain time period is the best thing someone can do.” Plan ahead with an ally (a friend or family member who will be with you for Christmas and who will support you) to run interference and get your abuser distracted by food, alcohol, a sporting game, etc.

Idea/Tip Number 8: Have an escape plan. When you are away in a household that is not your own, quietly check out all possible escape routes in the house itself. Better yet, take time to set up a plan of escape including the numbers of people willing to help you get away. If there is a good chance that your abuser will be in a drunken or drug-induced sleep or stupor over the holidays, it may be your chance to escape with your kids and pets.

For Friends and Extended Families of Victims/Survivors

Idea/Tip Number 9: Be on standby. If you suspect your friend or family member of suffering from Domestic Violence, offer to be on standby for her text or call through the holiday season. Have your phone on and fully charged at all times and keep it on you. If you have a car and need to intervene immediately, make sure that the gas/petrol tank is full so you can get in and drive to get the victim/survivor immediately if need be.

Idea/Tip Number 10: Have an intervention plan. Work out a plan to get an intervention operation in action – have the following numbers on standby for your use:

  • The national Domestic Violence helpline (if your country has it)
  • The local Domestic Violence shelter helpline wherever the victim/survivor is located.
  • The local police wherever the victim/survivor is located.

Make sure to contact all of these should you receive an urgent SOS from the victim/survivor.

Idea/Tip Number 11: Get a partner. Intervening with Domestic Violence situations can be dangerous especially if the abuser has a weapon (e.g. a gun) and is intoxicated by drink or drugs. If you are unable to get help from the local shelter or police, make sure to bring another friend or family member along with you when you respond to the victim/survivor’s call in person.

Idea/Tip Number 12: Ring the bell. If you are the neighbour of a family experiencing Domestic Violence, please take the time to ring their bell when you hear a violent situation happening. You could use the old neighbourly approach of asking to borrow a cup of sugar or some milk as an excuse. If you feel that it could get dangerous, bring another person with you so there will be more than one witness. Check out what this guy did in a PSA by our partner, Bell Bajao:

Idea/Tip Number 13: Be the back-up. If your mother, sister, daughter, daughter-in-law, niece or cousin is facing Domestic Violence at home and there is a good chance that they will face abuse over the holiday season, let them know that you will be willing to be a witness or to intervene on their behalf while you are around. Also let them know that they are welcome to take refuge in your home should they need somewhere to go.

Idea/Tip Number 14: Be part of the plan. If a victim/survivor approaches you with a plan to escape her abuser during the holiday season, agree to do so and be on standby to help her and bolster her resolve when the time comes to put the plan into action.

Idea/Tip Number 15: Provide some relief. If your know a Domestic Violence victim/survivor who is being kept at home without relief during the holiday season, do a random act of kindness for her: Offer to babysit the children for a few hours while the abuser is out so she can have a breather; Send over some small festive goodies such as cookies, candy or something else traditional with a kind note; Offer to pick up groceries for her on your grocery run.

Idea/Tip Number 16: Check in regularly. If you fear for your friend or family member’s life over the holiday season, call or text her once a day at a random time to see if she is all right. If it’s your neighbour, keep an eye out on the house and your ears pricked for any signs or sounds of violence.

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

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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

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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 Creative and Safe Ways to Intervene to Stop Street Harassment

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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’s 16 Best Blog Articles 2012

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At The Pixel Project, we pride ourselves on our ability to draw attention to the many ways violence against women (VAW) affects the lives of women, men, girls, and boys around the world. We do so by sharing news stories from varied media sources through our e-news digest and by writing thoughtful and inspiring blog posts on our main website and our campaign micro-sites.

There is never a shortage of things to talk about here. From profiles of VAW activists to our regular Silver Lining posts, our wonderful 30 for 30 Father’s Day campaign interviews, and our exciting Music for Pixels campaign, we have spoken up about how people are making positive change on the issue of VAW. We have also provided articles listing ideas about how to get active on this issue. The dominant themes of this year’s selection reflect the diversity of the ways in which our campaigns have developed with music activism taking the lead. Continue reading →

ANNOUNCEMENT: “16 For 16” 2012 Campaign Combines The Power of Blogging & Music In Support Of The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence

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25 November 2012: The Pixel Project is proud to present their second annual 16 For 16 campaign. This holiday season campaign is The Pixel Project’s contribution to the international 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence campaign. This year’s 16 For 16 campaign has two components: The first is a blogging marathon to raise awareness and inspire action to prevent and stop Violence Against Women (VAW); The second is a digital music EP featuring songs from artistes from around the world saying NO to violence against VAW while raising funds for The Pixel Project.

The core campaign is a 16-day blogging marathon with one blog article published for every day of the 16 Days of Activism. Each article is a list of 16 positive ideas and/or solutions revolving around a specific theme related to VAW. Each idea and/or solution is bite-sized – simple to understand and easy to put into action. These articles are part of a growing online resource of ideas and solutions for preventing, stopping and ending VAW that The Pixel Project is building as part of their commitment to inspiring and galvanising individuals and communities to take that first step towards helping stop VAW. Continue reading →