One in three women will be raped, abused or beaten in her
lifetime. That’s one too many.
From California to Congo, women and girls face unspeakable
violence and abuse. In the chaos of conflict and disaster, women and girls are
at even greater risk as their bodies and spirits become the forgotten
frontline. Sexual violence is not just a by-product of war; it is also a
strategy of combat used to terrorize and humiliate.
Yet each day, women and men are fighting for a safer, more
peaceful world. It is a world where women and girls live free from violence,
where a girl can go to school, where a woman is empowered to choose who and
when she will marry and where gender is not an obstacle for a girl to reach her
full potential.
The Wake Up Call
is the International Rescue Committee’s new interactive multimedia site where
people can take action by viewing, uploading and sharing photos, video and
comments about what motivates and compels people to keep working for equal
rights and an end to violence.
Tamika reveals her
dismay at realizing that the West African women with whom she
worked were covered in scars from a secret society induction ceremony. Naw Khet reminds us that women can’t break the cycle of
violence alone; it’s vital to enlist men in the struggle against domestic
violence. Jean-Marie shares a
storyabout a young girl kept as a sex slave by rebels in
Congo – a horrific wake up call about the widespread use of rape as a
tool of war.
The Wake Up Call
allows site visitors not only to listen to photo and video wake up calls like
the ones above, but also to take part in the community by sharing their own
wake up calls, leaving comments, and taking action on behalf of women and
girls.
Visit the Wake Up Call
to watch and read the powerful stories there. We hope you’ll be inspired to
share your own.
