November 25th is the International Day Against Violence Against Women and marks the beginning of the 16 Days of Activism, an international campaign launched in 1991 to raise awareness about gender-based violence. Violence Prevention Grey Bruce will mark the 16 days by releasing a series of articles between November 25th and International Human Rights Day on December 10th.

All of the Violence Prevention Grey Bruce’s articles will be available through the website www.vpgb.ca. The coming weeks will also see public vigils of commemoration on December 6th for National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. In Owen Sound, the Dec 6 vigil will take place on the steps of City Hall at noon. Students in Owen Sound District Secondary School will also mark the 16 days with in-school awareness campaigns and events.

“The 16 Days of Activism are important because they help to amplify the many intersecting issues that impact our communities and can lead to gender-based violence”, said Jon Farmer, Supervisor of the Men’s Program and member of Violence Prevention Grey Bruce. “Between now and December 10th there are days for us to focus on conversations about violence against women, human rights, the people who defend human rights, our national history of violence against women, AIDS, the discrimination faced by people with disabilities, and all the many things we can do to make our communities and our world more just and safe for everyone. These many and complex issues are always with us but they are long term and can lose our collective attention. Campaigns like this are a great way to bring the attention back to issues that deserve it,” Farmer added.

Community members are welcome to submit letters and articles to the campaign and Violence Prevention Grey Bruce encourages everyone to start conversations and learn more about the issues however you can. Writers should submit articles to [email protected].

Articles from the previous annual campaigns are still available under the news section on Violence Prevention Grey Bruce’s website. The site also includes information about local services and supports for people at risk of violence, experiencing violence, or who want to stop using violence in their lives.