Zonta Club of Makati-Ayala President Rita Dy (center) and local restaurant and hotel representatives sign the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women Memorandum of Agreement. (Photo: Joey Viduya/The Philippine Star)

Orange is the color of hope. It symbolizes strength and endurance. The citrus color is also associated with healthy food. It is said to increase the oxygen supply to the brain. It stimulates not only the appetite but also mental activity.

From Nov. 25 to Dec. 10, 23 hotels and restaurants in 37 locations all over the country will offer a special dish with the color orange on the menu — from cocktails to cupcakes, roast chicken to pancit luglug and many other imaginative culinary creations.

“While enjoying these treats, diners can take their stand to Say No to Violence Against Women, as proceeds will be donated to the Cameleon Association, a French NGO committed to rehabilitate sexually abused girls by incest, 15 to 18 years old,” says Rita Dy, president of the Zonta Club of Makati-Ayala.

The global campaign of Zonta International marks 16 days of activism, which starts on International Day, for the elimination of gender-based violence on Nov. 25, and ends on International Human Rights Day on Dec. 10. Orange is the color adopted by the campaign.

Read more in The Philippine Star.

Zonta Club of Everett members (from left) Marilyn Kent, Judith Strand, Cindy Phillips and Linda Lepak chat while standing on Colby Avenue in Everett in an effort to raise awareness about violence against women on Friday. (Ian Terry / The Herald)

Members of the Zonta Club of Everett, USA, donned small orange ribbons Friday, a symbol for the Zonta Says No to Violence Against Women campaign. They bundled up for the November chill and set up a table with information about the campaign in downtown Everett.

More women and men are affected by violence than one might think, member Lyn Kent said. Domestic Violence Services of Snohomish County received 5,706 calls to their hotline last year.

In past years, Zonta Club of Everett has participated in clothing drives, asking for business clothes that women can wear to job interviews. Members cook a meal once a month at Cocoon House, a nonprofit that assists young people in finding a safe place to live. They also hosted a forum for students at Edmonds Community College about human trafficking.

Read more on heraldnet.com.

Street harassment is a human rights issue as it limits the harassed persons’ ability to be in public, especially women’s. Gender-based street harassment includes unwanted comments, gestures and actions forced on a stranger in a public place without their consent. Learn more at stopstreetharassment.org. 

The results of the U.S. election earlier this month have shown Christine Filipowich that the marginalizing of women can happen anywhere.

“It’s a little bit scary,” the president of the Zonta Club of Niagara Falls said Friday, the morning after a candlelight walk at Table Rock to mark the start of the UN’s 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence campaign. “It’s on our doorstep.”

Lori Robinson, District 4 Governor, left, and former governor Joanne Raymond attended the Zonta Club’s a candlelight walk at Table Rock. (Photo: Niagara This Week)

This year marks the 25th year of the UN initiative. More than 5,500 organizations, policymakers, governments, and UN agencies plus countless individuals from more than 180 countries participate. The campaign focuses on cultures of violence, sexism, racism, homophobia and calls for the implementation of human rights obligations, including the right to health and reproductive rights, the end to militarism and gender-based violence, as well as other like-mannered global issues.

Speakers at the walk included Tony Baldinelli of the Niagara Parks Commission, Zonta District 4 governor Lori Robinson, YWCA Niagara board vice-president Jennifer Bonato and Jackie Labonte of the Fort Erie Native Friendship Centre.

Read more on niagarathisweek.com.

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The Zonta Club of Laguna in the Philippines promoted the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign with a “We Walk in Her Shoes” event to support HeForShe.

Joined by the Zonta club and Z and Golden Z clubs of St. Michael’s College of Laguna, 250 men walked in women’s shoes to show their support for gender equality.

Around 100 Z and Golden Z club officers and members also participated in District 17, Area 1 & 5’s in Intramuros, the oldest district and historic core of Manila.

Ahead of the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign, on 6 November, the Zonta Club of Kaohsiung YuHsiuan, Taiwan, teamed up with the Vietnamese Association in Taiwan and Taiwan Kaohsiung city government of social and welfare department  to say NO to domestic violence and violence against women.

The event, called “Play to say NO to domestic violence,” focused on the increasing population of mail-order brides in Taiwan from Southeast Asia through marriage brokers and international marriage agencies. Not only do they struggle the adjustment of the new life in foreign land, but also encounter sometimes more severe problem like domestic violence. Together with the children, the impact of the domestic violence usually weight heavily on the victims and the community, and it only intensifies for the overseas brides.

The three-hour event also highlighted the play with metaphor of the misunderstanding caused by the language and culture barriers, the difficulties to integrate into the new family for the overseas brides and the actions to take to seek the assistance when violence occurs. Continue reading →

On the first day of the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence, members from the Zonta Club of Gladstone, Australia, decorated a White Ribbon Day dinner with 68 orange lady cutouts.

Each cutout represents the women in Australia who died this year due to gender-based violence. The orange ladies will be placed at locations throughout the town during the 16 Days of Activism.

The Zonta Club of De Baronie, Netherlands, “oranged” the streets near their city center and handed out yellow roses to get out the message of Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women.

Click here to watch a video recap of the club’s activity.

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The Zonta Club of Denver II set up the Silent Witness display at the Tivoli Student Union on the Auraria Campus.

The display, which will be up for 30 days, is in a popular area near a main entrance to the building and across from a Starbucks. The club feels confident that many will pause to read these stories as they pass through.

Speaking bottom right is Eucal Bonabay, Attorney General’s Office. (Photos: Felicity Ingraham)

To celebrate the International Day to End Violence Against Women and kick off the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign, the Zonta Clubs of Nassau and New Providence, Bahamas, teamed up to host a “Paint the Town Orange” campaign and held a special forum at the School of Nursing, Grosvenor Close.

Zontians and students took to the streets Thursday tying bright orange ribbons all over Bay Street and Collins Avenue. They also engaged with passers-by, motorists, shop owners and patrons along the way as they tied the ribbons. They also held a fun mannequin challenge in Rawson Square to bring awareness to the cause.

Read more at thebahamasweekly.com.