In 2005, the Zonta Club of Austin donated a peace statue with many symbols of Zonta’s mission to the City of Austin.  It was moved to the corner between the Court House and the new Justice Center in 2010.  It is a great little plaza with benches, a table and plenty of flowers in summer.  The Club wanted to expand this area, and it was decided that the Club would take this expansion on as part of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence.  The Club purchased a flag pole and an American flag to fly permanently behind the statue.  A flag with the Zonta emblem on it also flies under the American flag.  Each day, during the 16 Days of Activism, the Club placed a yellow flag at the site to bring awareness of violence against women to the community.

On 26 November, a ceremony was held at the plaza for the kick-off of the 16 Days of Activism.  The VFW color guard posted the American and Zonta flags, and two yellow flags were placed on each side to start the event.  After an explanation of the 16 Days of Activism, Mayor Tom Stiehm read a proclamation on violence against women.

On 10 December, a “Take Back the Night” event was held.  Zonta Club of Austin President, Linda Miller, welcomed guests to the Justice Center lobby, and Cheryl Retterath, Area 3 Director, shared some statistics about violence in the United States.  Tori Miller of the Crime Victims Resource Center informed guests about the different types of violence and what her organization can do to help people who are in violent situations.  Kristin Nelson, Mower County Attorney, thanked Tori for Crime Victims Resource Center’s work with victims of violence and shared her experiences inside the courtroom and in dealing with perpetrators.  State Representative Jeanne Poppe thanked the Zonta Club of Austin for raising awareness of violence against women in the community of Austin and the surrounding areas.

Everyone then crossed to the plaza for a candlelight vigil and prayer ceremony where Pastor Glen Monson prayed for the end of violence.  He asked those in attendance to keep people dealing with these issues in their prayers and also to remember those individuals who have lost their lives due to violence.  It was a meaningful way to end the event.

In November 2011 the members of the Zonta Club of Berry were chastising themselves for not doing something positive in our area for the White Ribbon day on November 25^th.  As such in March 2012 their Chair of ‘Status of Women’, Fay Lewis went in search of how our Club could advocate against Domestic Violence in our community.   Fay joined the local ‘Domestic Violence Committee’ and later recruited fellow member Megan Cleary to join her.  This committee comprised representatives of the local support agencies including the Police and a very strong Court Support & Advocacy program run by the YWCA.  They receive a small grant of $1,000 from the State Government to run awareness raising activities, but collectively came up with the idea of Cinema Ads to try to reach the general public.  A cinema director was found who responded to a tender and the committee commenced fundraising to cover the costs.  A huge voluntary effort came from the Police department and several agencies (including the Zonta Club of Berry) to project manage the programme.  The committee reached their $18,000 budget and were able to link the launch of the Ad campaign with the White Ribbon week activities to maximise publicity in November 2012.

The Ads can be viewed on YouTube –  they show three typical scenarios of – ‘Stalking’, ‘Physical Control’ and ‘Put Downs’.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nm0lFlBchU0&feature=youtu.be&w=320&h=240]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13kYXU_2Tek&feature=youtu.be&w=320&h=240]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3afEo8rOj_M&feature=youtu.be&w=320&h=240]

The quality of the production was exceptional due to the great fortune in having local (and also International) film director Christopher Collins implementing the brief.  The ad campaign will be shown for the first six months of 2013 for free in cinemas from Wollongong to the border and from Bega to Goulburn and the Highlands.

The Zonta Club of Berry was recognised as adding their support (actions & dollars) with other partner agencies in producing the Cinema Advertising Campaign launched at the Roxy theatre in Nowra on November 25^th 2012 (White Ribbon day).

Following an idea set forth by their governor, District 30, Area 03 Zontians teamed up with local men to say “HANDS OFF OF WOMEN” during sporting events (football, basketball, volleyball, rugby, water polo, hockey and curling matches), including athletes and fans.  Together, men and women denounced violence against women, catching the attention of the national media and eventually extending the campaign from the playing fields to shops, penitentiaries and street art.  The campaign continues in the new year.  On the first of the year, the Zonta Club of Imperia raised awareness of the issue of violence against women in the seaside town of Alassio, Italy when musicians in a local band played around town while wearing t-shirts with the campaign slogan – “HANDS OFF OF WOMEN”.  Zontians from the 22 clubs have been successful in motivating and including men in their efforts.