The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence occurs annually from November 25th, which is the International Day of the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and runs until December 10th, Human Rights Day. This year’s theme is Orange the World: End Violence Against Women Now! and if that isn’t a call to action, I don’t know what is.

It is imperative that we all join forces in our fight against Gender-Based Violence because even though advances are made in medicine, technology, etc. and people are growing, the world is moving, a lot of people are still stuck in the ways of thinking that it is acceptable to perpetrate violence against females. With surges in pandemics, humanitarian crises, conflict, and climate disasters, GBV cases are too on the rise. UN.org reports that 1 in 3 women have experienced violence in one form or another, and that is truly frightening in this day and age. Whether it’s due to the fact that some people are simply wired to think that women are beneath them and therefore deserve to be ‘punished’ at every turn, or whether its due to the fact that women have been rising in ranks and advances are being made in the fight for gender equality, therefore threatening said people’s supposed status-quo, it is unknown what the true motivations are. Regardless, the time to unite in the fight against GBV is always now.

As a show of solidarity, wear something orange, it could even be as small as a pin or ribbon, and join the fight by helping trend #16Days #OrangeTheWorld #NoExcuseForAbuse