Every November, the Zonta Club of Key West, USA, goes orange to support the Zonta Says NO campaign to end gender-based violence. The club decked out palm trees with orange ribbons along North Roosevelt Blvd, Key West, to commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on 25 November.

The ribbons included information cards about the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women initiative to get more people not to look away but to speak up and take action, and get involved in their community. The club hung the orange ribbons during the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence from 25 November to 10 December, International Human Rights Day.

Residents and visitors of Key West were encouraged to support the campaign by wearing orange during the 16 Days.

The club strived to raise awareness and promote open discussions to help end violence against women and eliminate the detrimental consequences this violence has on the well-being of their community, including women, partners, children – One Family.

The Key West Commission presented the annual proclamation to the club in recognition of 16 Days of Activism, permitting the display of the orange ribbons.

To kick off the 2021 Orange The World campaign, the Zonta Club of Bad Bergzabern, Germany, lit up the Bad Bergzabern castle in orange on 25 November. 

Club members positioned themselves in front of the castle, dressed in orange and holding orange umbrellas. Club president Susanne Faber opened the event with a minute silence in memory of the 139 women who had been killed by their current or former partners in Germany this year, followed by a short speech in which she addressed the many existing forms of violence against women. 

Several local officials joined Susanne in speaking up against violence against women. They later talked with the interested visitors, who were also dressed up in orange, showing their solidarity gathered around. Many other prominent buildings in the area lit up in orange that same evening to show their support for the campaign: The German Wine Gate (Schweigen-Rechtenbach), Dionysius Chapel (Gleisweiler) and the Museum of Annweiler, for example, as well as Landeck Castle, Town Hall and St. Nicholas Chapel (Klingenmünster). 

“Our dream for the future is to have the complete Southern part of the German Wine Street illuminated in orange someday,” Susanne said when closing her speech.

Starting in September, the Zonta Club of Mannheim, Germany, began organizing their Orange the World activities. More than 40 buildings and organizations participated in the event on 25 November by illuminating the buildings, hanging up posters and distributing information against violence against women. 

Visit the club’s website to see pictures and a short movie about the illuminated buildings.