August 25: Orange Day

Orange Day is the twenty-fifth day of each month, when the people of the world are asked to come together to wear some orange garment or article of clothing to remember the campaign of UN Women: Say NO to gender violence.

"The UN Secretary-General's campaign UNiTE to End Violence against Women has proclaimed 25th of every month as Orange Day. It's a simple action that everyone can take - wear something orange - a t-shirt, a scarf, a tie, a dress, accessories or your traditional outfit - and talk about the issue with people you know and on social media" (*).

To commemorate the day and remember the cause, UN Women is asking supporters to spread the word so that humankind takes up the challenge to fight against gender violence. The advice is as follows (*):

Check out some photographs from last month's Orange Day action and get inspired! If you are taking action this month, don't forget to let us know - post your photograph on facebook.com/sayno.unite, or tweet it to @SayNO_UNiTE using the hashtag #orangeday.

If you are hearing about Orange Day for the first time, here are some tips on how to take action:

Wear Orange on the 25th of each month and invite others to do the same!

Spread the word on Facebook and Twitter - scroll down for sample messages.

Use and share the UNiTE Ribbon as a symbol for preventing and ending violence against women and girls.

Post this banner as your Facebook cover photo and send us your photographs wearing orange through Facebook and Twitter.

Three million girls a year in Africa are submitted to female genital mutilation; 100 to 140 million women and girls live with the scars of this practice; 60 million children a year are forced to make commitments in marriage ceremonies; 80% of human trafficking is committed against women and girls; 79% of these, or 632,000 women and girls a year, are trafficked for purposes of sexual exploitation. 379,200 women and girls are subjected to conditions of sexual slavery every year.

The statistics are shocking - between 15 to 75% of women in every community suffer from some sort of violence. Up to 70% of these violent acts are perpetrated by intimate partners. Two women are murdered every day in Guatemala, on average; in India, there are many thousands of dowry-related deaths every year; in so-called developed nations such as the USA, Canada and Israel, 40 to 70% of women were murdered by intimate partners; on a worldwide basis, 50% of sexual assaults are committed against children under 16; up to 150 million women and girls suffer some kind of violence yearly; 30% of first sexual experiences are rapes or attempted rapes.

In parts of Europe, between 40 and 50% of women are subjected to unwanted sexual advances; in Asia, up to half the women suffer sexual harassment at work.

(*) UN Women

Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey

Pravda.Ru