One out of every three women will be raped or beaten in her lifetime. In a world of seven billion people, this means more than one billion women and girls will have to suffer through such trauma. On February 14–the 15th annual V-Day–actress Rosario Dawson will join activists across the world for One Billion Rising, a celebration to stop the violence founded by Vagina Monologues playwright Eve Ensler.
“When we started V-Day 14 years ago,” says Ensler, “we had the outrageous idea that we could end violence against women. One Billion Rising is an appreciation, amplification and an escalation. When One Billion bodies rise and dance on 14 February 2013, we will join in solidarity, purpose and energy and shake the world into a new consciousness.”
Activists for One Billion Rising will convene in locations around the world to “dance, strike, and rise.” In New York City, various dance events will be hosted in parks and warehouses, culminating in a finale celebration at the Hammerstein Ballroom in Manhattan, where Eve Ensler began the global movement on 15 years ago.
Rosario Dawson is a V-Day board member and activist, and will attend the finale event. She recently made a “Why I’m Rising” Youtube video for The Guardian, voicing her support for the movement and discussing her personal connection to it.
“I’m rising because acid attacks are becoming more prevalent in Columbia,” Dawson says. “I’m rising because of child brides in India. I’m rising because of girls who are getting raped on their way to class. I’m rising because I’m a human. I’m rising because it’s about time.”
The issue of women’s safety is especially relevant in the wake of the Violence Against Women Act passing in the Senate Tuesday.
Evan Puschak