The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
5 Jul 2012
One in three women is raped or beaten on our planet. On a planet of 7 billion people, that’s one billion women who experience this savage violence.
To respond to this crisis, Eve Ensler has launched a global campaign – The One Billion Rising Campaign – which seeks to mobilize one billion people to come together on 14 February 2013 to take a stand against these terrible acts against women.
Ensler launched the South African leg of the campaign in Melville, Johannesburg, on 30 June 2012.
Fazila Farouk, executive director of the South African Civil Society Information Service, talked to her about The One Billion Rising Campaign, her work in South Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Egypt.
Eve Ensler is founder of V-Day, a global activist movement that seeks to end violence against women and girls. She is an Award winning Playwright -- famously known as the author of the Vagina Monologues, which was translated into over 48 languages and performed in more than 140 countries.
Editor's Note: For more about "One Billion Rising" in South Africa, see here.
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Just a Niggle about Stats
"1 Billion woman are raped or beaten on this planet." What is the source that number come from and how is it defined?
Are 1 billion women being beaten and raped right now as I type? Will 1 billion women be beaten and raped in their lifetimes? Or, are 1 billion women in a relationship or circumstance where they have, or will eventually, be raped and beaten?
Um, Ok
Finally. the video downloaded and answered my question. 1/3 of women will be raped or beaten in their lifetime.
That's awful. But as far as I can tell about 100% of men will be beaten in their lifetime. I don't know a single male over the age of 12 (myself included of course) that hasn't experienced a severe beating at some stage. A much smaller percentage of men than women will also be raped but its not an insignificant percentage, especially in the pre-teen demographic where it is more damaging.
I guess the main thing that is keeping me from putting any energy whatsoever in joining the campaign against violence on women and girls is the unanswered question:
Why is a woman's pain so much more of a concern than a man's?
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