Did you know that every 2 seconds, a girl gets married before the age of 18? Her education will discontinue. Her health will suffer. Even her children’s children will experience the ripple effect of her misfortune.

Did you know that child marriage takes place all over the world? It is more common than you may think and directly impacts millions of girls every year.

Did you know that at least 117 countries allow child marriage? Give girls a brighter future; join us in saying NO to child marriage together with UNICEF UNICEF USA and UNFPA.  Learn more about the project by visiting http://foundation.zonta.org/EndingChildMarriage.

Did you know about the long-term effects of violence on girls who are forced to marry at a young age? Say NO to child marriage!

Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and the start of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. From now through 10 December, Zontians worldwide will say NO to violence against women. Join us here.

The Zonta Club of Oil City-Franklin in Pennsylvania, USA, District 4, turned a bridge in Oil City orange to create awareness of the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign.

The Zonta Club of Petoskey Area in Michigan, USA, District 15, asked its members to say no to violence by saying yes to kindness.

Members participated in the following acts of kindness:

• Made lasagna and took it to two local women’s organizations
• Took a meal to a woman recovering from surgery
• Packed treat bags with daughter and Girl Scout troop for Manna Project (the local food bank)
• Helped two women with pro-bono legal work
• Bought doughnuts for two people in line at a local bakery
  
• Bought lunch for someone who was having a busy day
• Helped Plunkett and Cooney law firm buy, serve and clean up at the First Presbyterian soup kitchen lunch
• Bought lunch for a cashier at a retail store
• Helped with Flowers for Friends, a local organization that takes flowers to people in the community and facilities to brighten their days (nursing homes, retirement communities, shelters, homebound individuals)
• Drove a woman with an intellectual disability to her job
• Purchased and took a plant to a woman who needed a boost.
• All members brought feminine hygiene items to donate to a local paper pantry.

The Zonta Club of Colombo I, Sri Lanka, in District 25, held an interactive session with guests on board the Colombo City Tour Bus of Ebert Silva Holidays on 10 December.

The session raised awareness about Zonta’s initiatives to end gender-based violence and a Zona Says NO to Violence Against Women banner was displayed on the bus while it toured the city.

Last weekend, the Zonta e-Club of West Africa ended the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence with an appearance at an empowering event organized by the African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF) and Drama Queens Ghana, a feminist political theater organization in Ghana.

The event, held on 7 and 8 December at the AWDF Resource Center in Accra, was in three parts. Each night started with the showing of documentaries (child brides in Tanzania and Trokosi in Ghana), a stage play and an open forum/discussion with the audience on the types of violence women encountered in the documentaries and theatrical piece.

Two documentaries were shown—“Bride Trace: Fighting Tanzania’s Child Bride Tradition” and the BBC’s “My stolen childhood: investigating Trokosi in Ghana.” This was followed by the play, an excerpt of Ntozake Shange’s 1975 choreopoem: “For colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf.”

The event was attended by both the young and old, men and women, as well as professionals from the Ark Foundation/Shelter who work with battered women.

The Zonta e-club of West Africa highly commends the work of AWDF and the Drama Queens Ghana for empowering women, challenging the status quo and breaking the silence on topics once considered taboo, and keeping the conversation going. The club looks forward to collaborating with them in the future.

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As part of the activities marking the 16 Days if Activism, the Zonta Club of Lagos 1, Nigeria—in collaboration with AWANI Films and the Queens College Z Club—organized a screening of the thought-provoking documentary, Awani, in the Queens College Girls School, Yaba, Lagos.

More than 115 girls, four teachers and other guests viewed the documentary that examines the evolution of the role of Nigerian women, starting from pre-colonial Nigeria to the present day.

The documentary uses a blend of archival footage and expert commentary to make the case that the role women play is not due to any one individual or specific time period but a mixture of economic incidences and colonialism that shape political and social attitudes towards women. The documentary aims to simply answer the question, “how did we get here?” This was a particularly important question considering the high rate of violence against women and girls and the absence of adequate laws and policies that protect them.

Afterwards, during the interactive session, students asked questions about leadership and societal perceptions around gender equality, women leadership and challenges of patriarchy and gender-based violence in Nigeria. More than 70 percent of the girls in attendance signified their interest in joining the Z club in the school and were encouraged to sign up.

Participants were enlightened on Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women and girls’ campaign as well as other activities of the club. They were encouraged to be active members of the club and use the platform provided by Zonta to continue to challenge violence against women and girls in school, at home and within their communities.