There is a lot worth celebrating on today's Valentine's Day, but I want to take a moment to elevate the remarkable V-Day campaign. Coordinated by playwright and performer Eve Ensler, the V-Day campaign is a global movement to end violence against women and girls.
You'd have to be buried on a desert island if you haven't yet encountered some piece of it. But just in case--here's a primer from a Vanderbilt University activist leading up to the tenth anniversary of the campaign:
From community performances of The Vagina Monologues (which, besides raising awareness with great humor and love, always raise cash for a local organization that creates safes spaces for survivors of gendered violence), teach-ins at schools and college campuses, the films "Until the Violence Stops" and "What I Want My Words to Do To You," the books Any One of Us: Words From Prison and A Memory, A Monologue, A Rant and A Prayer: Writings to Stop Violence Against Women and Girls (as well as The Vagina Monologues, of course), its online communities ... the V-Day campaign has had profound positive influence these last eleven years.
Ensler, it's worth noting, is also the writer (and performer) behind of The Good Body and Insecure at Last: Losing It In Our Security Obsessed World.
V-Day is an amazing manifestation of activism that has a global scope while having deep roots in local communities.
The 2009 spotlight V-Day campaign is dedicated to ending the rape epidemic in the DRC (Congo), which is being used as a brutal weapon of war.
A few months ago, I had the opportunity to write about this horrific genocidal crisis in the Congo for RH Reality Check--or, more specifically, about how to tell the story about the violence to a world audience that is often fatigued with tragic stories. It's called "Telling an Awful Story to the World." It is one of the hardest articles I've ever written. After seeing Lisa Jackson's excellent film about the women in the Congo (The Greatest Silence) and interviewing for the article, I felt so nervous about not doing justice to the real lives at the heart of it.
V-Day events are happening near you and around the world through the end of March--find one near you now. There are all kinds of other ways you can get involved as well.
Also, be sure to check out the good work of another excellent anti-violence group: Incite! Women of Color Against Violence does tremendous work of all types.
Happy V-Day.
UPDATE: Between February 21 and March 7, UTVS Detroit is hosting a two-week V-Day festival committed to "raising awareness and funds to bring the issues of violence against women and girls center stage in our city. The festival issues a call to action to all citizens of Detroit, through theatre, art, spoken word, photography, performance and community events: demand an end to violence against women and girls, and become an active partner in ending it."
It goes down all across southeast Michigan and looks to be put together with great grace and energy. I'll definitely be participating. Looking forward to seeing you there.
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