Members of the Zonta Club of Porterville, USA, in District 9, along with members of one of the three Z clubs, participated in the town’s annual Christmas parade.

The Zonta Says NO-themed float was decorated by two of the members of the club’s Advocacy Committee, Adonas Nuckols and Mickie Manning.

Club members Sharon Scarbrough and Valerie Simonich led the team with a bright yellow banner that displayed the name of the club in big bold letters. The Z club members sat on the flatbed, holding messages against violence and for gender equality.

The back of the truck displayed a “Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women” banner. The parade draws more than 10,000 people from the city and Zonta members took the opportunity to address the captive audience with its message.

The Zonta Club of Gawler Inc, Australia, in District 23, is supporting the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign in multiple ways.

Club members are distributing white ribbons to local businesses for them to hang in their windows to support ending gender-based violence and continuing its project with local schools where students create art about expecting respect.

Wearing orange Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women t-shirts, the club recently met at a local cafe, joined by Mayor Karen Redman.

“It is such an important message to get out, and we need to change our culture as Australians, because the statistics are terrible surrounding domestic and family violence,” Redman told The Buniyip.

“One of the biggest groups of rising homelessness is women and children, who are fleeing violence, and that it is not okay.

“A really important role of the connected local council is to advocate for issues that are important, and need advocating for, and this is one.

“I (also), certainly, feel as a female mayor that it resonates in a very powerful way for me.”

Gawler Mayor Karen Redman (back row, left) joined the Zonta Club of Gawler Inc during its Zonta Says NO activities.

The Zonta Club of Tacloban, Philippines, in District 17, spread awareness of gender equality and violence against women during the 16 Days of Activism.

Members of the club gathered and lectured 100 11th graders from Leyte National High School in Tacloban City to educate them on preventing early marriage and teen pregnancy.

“Together as Zontians, we will continue to raise our voice and be active,” says Club Treasurer Aegina Ruiz. “We solidly support saying NO to violence against women and girls.”

Trafficking for sexual exploitation or for forced labor are reported nearly everywhere, but trafficking victims are trafficked for many exploitative reasons.

Click here to read more from the UNODC report on Trafficking in Persons.

UNICEF reports that current progress to end female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is not sufficient to keep up with the growing population. Unless these trends change, the number of girls who will undergo FGM/C will continue to rise. Say no to FGM/C.

Half of today’s migrants are women. Zonta is partnering with UN Women to address human trafficking and foreign labor migration of women and girls in Nepal. Join us in saying no to violence against women during the 16 Days of Activism.

Click here for more information on our project in Nepal.

Intimate partner violence is one of the most common forms of violence against women. More than one-third of women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence.

On Saturday, 25 November, the Zonta Club of Portland, USA, in District 8, turned the Morrison Bridge orange to raise awareness of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and the start of the 16 Days of Activism.

On Saturday, 25 November, the city of Rotterdam in The Netherlands colored the Erasmus bridge orange.

In the presence of Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb and Minister Sigrid Kaag, the Zonta Club of Rotterdam in District 29—together with UN Women NL—asked for awareness to stop violence against women in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, and internationally.

Earlier in the afternoon, club members colored the city with yellow roses, as they handed out 500 roses in the main shopping area. They talked to many women, girls and men, and got great support for their action to spread the message to stop violence.

During the 16 Days of Activism Campaign, the Golden Z Club of UAFS (University of Arkansas Fort Smith) joined to place a display prominently on the campus to raise awareness of the campaign and to Say NO to Violence Against Women.

The Golden Z Club of UAFS is sponsored by the Zonta Club of Fort Smith, USA, in District 10.