The Zonta Club of Punta del Este-Maldonado in Uruguay, Region South America, is reinforcing the message of their 2017 Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign: Real men only raise their voices to defend women.
The Fire Department of Maldonado participated in the club’s campaign this year, supporting the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on 25 November and the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.
The Zonta Club of Greater Reno in Nevada, USA, District 9, collaborated with the Nevada Youth Empowerment Project (NYEP) to create an art installation for their Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign during the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.
NYEP is a residential housing facility that works with young women who have aged out of the foster care system by providing them with a home-like environment to live in and a structured approach to developing job and life skills to speed their transition into adulthood and self-sufficiency.
With assistance from Zonta club member and retired art instructor Karen Gulash, the staff and residents at NYEP came up with an idea using mannequins to showcase the “light” (the side we present to the outer world) and the “dark” (our inner thoughts, fears and experiences, especially those based on harassment, abuse or violence).
The mannequins are painted and are separated by a mirror-like partition to reflect how we sometimes hide the bad experiences even from ourselves. The Zonta Says NO banner is displayed alongside the installation, along with orange ribbons, facts about sexual harassment and abuse, and a poster that invites onlookers to “Add your voice to end violence against women.” The display is in the lobby of Reno City Hall, where it can be seen both from the outside as people walk by, as well as by the public and elected officials as they walk through the lobby to City Council chambers.
For more information on the club’s Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign and the artists involved in the art installation, read NYEP’s blog post.
The Zonta Clubs of Essex County and Morristown in New Jersey, USA, District 3, and the NJ Coalition Against Human Trafficking joined to host a screening of Break the Chain, a documentary about two survivors of sex trafficking.
A discussion panel included James Gannon, sheriff of Morris County, and Susan Allen Panzica, member of the steering committee of the NJ Coalition Against Human Trafficking.
The Zonta Club of the Adirondacks in New York, USA, District 2, collected 302 bras and raised US$350 to donate to Free The Girls, a nonprofit organization devoted to coming alongside sex trafficking survivors with a path to true freedom.
The bras will be used in Mozambique, El Salvador and Costa Rica to help women rescued from sex trafficking reintegrate into their communities with a viable business opportunity: selling gently used lingerie.
The Zonta Club of Beirut, Lebanon, in District 14, worked with the Lebanon Scout Association to organize a parade to create awareness for ending violence against women and child marriage.
The Zonta Club of Parker County, USA, District 10, has been actively promoting the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign in their community.
The club has installed signs around the downtown square in Weatherford, Texas, and placed banners at different locations throughout the county.
The club is also posting daily photos to their Facebook page of prominent members of the community holding signs to support their campaign.
The Zonta Club of Martigues Etang De Berre in France, District 30, worked to illuminate in orange several local buildings and monuments to attract attention and spread awareness of violence against women during the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.
The Zonta Club of Bradford, USA, in District 4, challenged 16 other organizations to join them in their 16 Days of Activism Challenge by donating items to the Victims Resource Center at the YWCA.
The challenge began on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and will end on 10 December, Human Rights Day.
The Zonta Club of Bradford is also spreading awareness of violence against women by posting videos to their Facebook page each day during the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.
To launch the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence and the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign, the Zonta Club of Siegen Area in Germany, District 29, organized for the Apollo Theater, the town hall and historic city wall to be lit in orange.
Before a sold-out concert and at the break, Zonta club members informed concert visitors about Zonta Says NO in the foyer of the Apollo Theatre. A video on the stage screen before the beginning of the concert pointed out the orange lighting.
Teachers, Zontians and students from the Z clubs of True Light Girls College, St. Paul’s Convent, St. Stephen’s Girls College, St. Mary’s Canossian Girls’ Co, Hong Kong International School, and Good Hope School
Approximately 180 teachers, Zontians and students from the Zonta Club of Hong Kong’s six Z clubs—each armed with an orange balloon—gathered for an aerial photo to launch the club’s Zonta Says NO to Child Marriage campaign to commemorate Zonta’s 100th birthday.
To advertise the campaign, the club distributed “Say NO to Child Marriage” stickers to its Z and Golden Z clubs and challenged students to submit photos that best demonstrate the use of the stickers to enhance public awareness of the campaign.
Join us in saying NO 