OAK BLUFFS – MV Community Service’s CONNECT to End Violence and Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School’s SWEAR (Stand With Everyone Against Rape) Program are currently recruiting local men to show their commitment to ending violence against women.
They’re asking them to take the White Ribbon Day pledge and wear a white ribbon as a show of solidarity with women worldwide on March 10, 2022.
A statewide campaign entering its fifteenth year, White Ribbon Day invites men to wear a white ribbon, place a campaign poster in their workplace, and speak out against violence against women through local events and word of mouth.
White Ribbon Day originated in Canada in 1991 when citizens horrified by the Montreal Massacre which led to the deaths of 14 female students at the University of Montreal organized to show their support of women worldwide.
The movement has grown internationally in the decades since.
“With strong community support, CONNECT has participated in the campaign since its inception,” said Jennifer Neary, CONNECT to End Violence Program Director.
“The White Ribbon Day campaign helps to bring to the forefront issues that perpetuate intimate partner violence and we, as community members, can explore what part – big or small – we can play to help end this epidemic,” she said.
CONNECT will visit local businesses to get signatures, distribute ribbons, and encourage participation.
Meanwhile, Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School’s SWEAR Program will conduct discussions in classrooms and during school lunch periods.
“As the co-advisor for SWEAR MVRHS, I have been beyond impressed with the role our young male students have played in trying to improve our culture,” said Amy Lilavois, Wellness Department Chair for the high school.
“By educating their peers on topics such as unhealthy masculinity, being an active bystander, and most importantly working together, these young men now understand that rape and sexual assault is not just a women’s issue but a men’s issue as well. And that the only way to change our ever-growing statistics is for everyone to work together to address the issue of violence.”
White Ribbon Day is sponsored by Jane Doe Inc.
To learn more, click here.
By, Matthew Tomlinson, CapeCod.com NewsCenter
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