now stop campaign report

7/31/2019 Now Stop Campaign Report

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/now-stop-campaign-report 1/14

This is my unique Imprint

RED is my color

The power of Red begins with me

I AM THEF

ORCE OF CHANGE

I say NOW STOP!What about you?

ABOUT NOW STOP! CAMPAIGN NOW STOP! is a global campaign with a mission to end violence, empower women & girls,

and bring equality to every home. It aims to achieve its mission through human rights

advocacy, community outreach, mobilization & mass media programs, and public awareness

about the understanding of the link between gender-based violence & gender equality,

HIV/AIDS, reproductive health, poverty and national economy as well as the impact of

gender-based violence on future generations. It implements evidence-based primary

prevention programs and initiates collaboration between community members and

institutions including youth, elders, schools, universities, local authorities, businesses and

civil society organizations to strengthen and forge commitment to build a future without

gender-based violence. It targets to harness the power of unique red imprints worldwide,

enforcing ZERO TOLERANCE to all forms of violence against women & girls.

It aims to unite 1,000,000,000 PALMS around the world, painted RED with a common cause:

BUILDING A WORLD WITHOUT GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE.It is a campaign about you taking action and saying “NOW STOP!” to any form of violence

against women & girls. Because the power of change is in your hands!

NOW STOP! Campaign is an initiative by Voice for Earth International, a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization with federal EIN/Tax # 27-1325280.



WHY WE NEED THIS CAMPAIGN ?

www.nowstop.org 2

1World Health Organization (WHO), Multi-country Study on Women’s Health and Domestic Violence

against Women, 2005 ;2http://www.unifem.org/gender_issues/violence_ against_ women/

3http://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/fgm_eng.pdf;

4Costs of Intimate Partner Violence Against

Women in the United States. 2003. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Centers for

Injury Prevention and Control.

State of the Problem

Gender-based violence is extensively

present in most cultures & countries and

is the least recognized human rightsabuse in the world

1. It is an issue that

cuts across all ages, races, religions &

socio-economic levels and thwarts global

efforts to reduce poverty. Although there

are available policies and implemented

legislations in almost every country,

there is still an exponential rise in

gender-based violence around the world.

Evidently, violence against women & girls

has become deeply rooted in the society

due to lack of adequate knowledge &

awareness about gender-based issues,

prevalence of gender discrimination &

inequality at all levels in the society,

cultural expectations that reinforce

gender inequity, lack of womenempowerment & girl education and

other reasons. Overall, the role of

gender-based violence in inhibiting the

development of a nation is not clearly

understood in our society.

There is clear statistical evidence

indicating that violence against women &

girls is now a global pandemic :

• 15 to 76 % of women experience

gender-based violence at some point

in their lifetime1.

• 1 in 2 sexual assaults committed

worldwide are committed on girls

under 16 years of age2.

• 700,000-4,000,000 women per year

are forced or sold into prostitution

each year worldwide, thus infected

with HIV.

• Each year, 2,000,000 more girls are

subjected to female genital

mutilation. They join the estimated

130,000,000 women and girls already

living with this painful practice.3

• In the United States alone, over half

of the 37 million Americans living inpoverty today are women, which is

way behind in comparison to women

in other countries.

• The poverty gap between men and

women in the United States is wider

than anywhere else in the Western

part of the world.

• It is estimated that victims of gender-

based violence collectively lose

almost 8 million days of paid work

each year because of the violence

perpetrated against them by current

or former husbands, boyfriends.4

• 79 countries had no legislation

against domestic violence until 2003.

• In the US, a large gap exists between

men & women due to discrimination,

inspite of similar qualifications and

working the same hours. Women who

work full time earn only 77% of what

men make – a 22% gap in average

annual wages.



Costs & consequences of gender-based violence

Immediate injuries &

hospitalizations

Mental illnesses & chronic

health problems

Lost work days, lower

productivity & lower income

Increased financial expenses

Sexual & reproductive health

problems

Substance abuse incl alcohol,

drugs etc.

Social isolation and

marginalization

Reduced or lost socialparticipation opportunities

Expenses on medical,

security, judicial or social

services

Poor performance of child

in schools

Work place losses on

account of absences

Violence against women & girls affects a country’s human, social and

economic development. It hinders poverty reduction efforts and leads to

intergenerational consequences.

HIV/AIDS,

Maternal health,

Reproductive

Health, Infant &

child health

Unsafe school

environment,

low girls

enrollment,

increased rate of

school

abandonment

Declined quality

of life. Reduced

civic/community

participation

HEALTH

Increased cost

on health care

services, judicial

& social services.

Reduced

Productivity,

Drains public

Budget

ECONOMY EDUCATIONAL SOCIAL

www.nowstop.org 3

There is clear statistical evidence that

violence against women & girls is taking a

toll on global economy.

6Costs of Intimate Partner Violence against Women in the United States ,Department of Health and Human

Services ,Center for Disease Control and Prevention;;7American Institute on Domestic Violence,

Violence against women & girls is not only awomen’s issue, but affects all members of the

society. Not addressing the issue can take a

serious toll on the economy of a nation

because of the costs incurred by the health

and justice systems dealing with the

consequences of violence. While ending

violence against women & girls is a strategic

priority for achieving gender equality and the

Millennium Development Goals overall, itremains a ‘missing target’ of the MDG-3,

which promotes gender equality and

women’s empowerment. It is not possible to

achieve the universal goals of ending poverty

and hunger, achieving universal primary

education, improving maternal and child

health & combating AIDS and other

infectious diseases, unless we end violence

against women and girls. There is no hope tomake significant progress in development

unless women & girls are safe at homes &

workplaces, achieving education and playing

active roles in policy and decision making.

• In US alone, the health-related cost of rape,

physical assault, stalking, and homicide

committed by intimate partners exceeds $5.8

billion each year. Of that amount, nearly $4.1

billion are for direct medical

and mental health care services and nearly

$1.8 billion are for the

indirect costs of lost productivity or wages.6

• The estimated total days lost from

employment and household chores is $858.6

million. The value of lost productivity from

employment is $727.8 million. The value of

lost productivity from household chores is

$130.8 million.6

• Gender-based violence victims lose a total of

nearly eight million days of paid work – the

equivalent of more than 32,000 full-time jobs

– and nearly 5.6 million days of household

productivity as a result of the violence.6

• Employers lose between $ 3–5 billion every

year in absenteeism, lower productivity,

higher turnover and health and safety costs

associated with battered workers. Businesses

lose an additional $100 million in lost

wages, sick leave and absenteeism. Over

1,750,000 workdays are lost each year in US

alone, due to domestic violence.7

• As per WHO, each year, over 16 million people

receive medical treatment for a

violence-related injury.

The cost for each sexual assault is approx.110,000 and that of rape is approx. $ 87,000.

5

5National center for victims of crime



Violence is predictable, thus preventable. Primary prevention can effectively hinder

gender-based violence when diverse

methods such as community mobilization,

mass media, awareness-raising, and school-

based approaches are combined and

employed at different levels of society.

Primary prevention efforts can bringindividual behavioral changes related to

gender norms and roles in a given

community.8

Successful primary prevention efforts could

improve the quality of life for women & girls,

improve health status, reduce child abuse

and all forms of violence, improve cost

benefits through lower needs for medical

care, mental health services, criminal justice,diminished educational performance, and

lost productivity of women.

Studies carried out in multiple countries by

World Health Organization (WHO), the

World Bank, and Center for Disease Control

(CDC) clearly identify strategies for an

evidence based intervention to prevent

interpersonal and self-directed violence. For

example, the Nurse Family Partnership

home-visiting program implemented in the

United States has been shown to reduce

child maltreatment by nearly 50%. The

Seattle Social Development Program, also in

the United States, is proven to reduce

violent delinquency and saved US $3 for

every US $1 invested. In Australia’s Northern

Territories, the Living with Alcohol Programwas associated with a 36% decrease in

deaths due to alcohol-related violence and

unintentional injuries, compared with a 16%

decrease in a control area. In South Africa,

the Intervention with Microfinance for AIDS

and Gender Equity, which combined

micro-loans with gender equity training,

reduced intimate partner violence by 55%.

www.nowstop.org 4

Thus, violence prevention is an excellent

investment, with multiple payoffs and

savings. Specifically, violence prevention

supports basic human rights, reduces death

and disease, addresses underlying societal

factors, accelerates economic development

and improves revenues.

These findings clearly indicate that violence is predictable and thus preventable. Preventing

violence against women preserves valuable

public and private funds. The 1994 United

States Violence Against Women Act cost $1.6

billion over the first five years while saving

$14.8 billion on direct and indirect expenses

related to health care and survivor services,

police responses, lost productivity, reduced

quality of life and death.9

In Australia, it is

estimated that the National Plan of Action

could save $23,673 for each woman prevented

from experiencing violence.10

CAMPAIGN’S MAIN MESSAGE

8Morrison et al, 2004,Harvey et al, 2007

9Clark, et al 2002 ,A Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Violence against Women Act of 1994 Violence Against Women,

Sage Publications;10

National Council to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children. 2009. The Cost of

Violence against Women and their Children. Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra

We believe that the solution

to end violence lies with youand it begins by taking action

at your homes,neighborhoods ,

and communities. We all have

the power to change! No laws ,regulations or policies can be effective

until we understand the significance of a world

without violence; until we realize how the virus of

violence is spreading and weakening the very roots

of our society and it is worth addressing gender-

based violence for moral, societal, health and

economic reasons.

Our future depends on what we chose today.

Take action. Join the RED PALM MOVEMENT!

In Brazil, legislation which included raising

the minimum purchase age of firearms to 25

and prohibiting the carrying of firearms

outside the home or workplace, led to an 8%

decrease in homicides and suicides.1

“

”Sherry Dee Batra,Founder, NOW STOP! Campaign



OUR APPROACH

ELIMINATE

EDUCATE

EMPOWERRESTORE

COLLABORATE

Enforcing ZERO TOLERANCE to all forms of

violence against women & girls. Challenging

the deep-seeded norms, cultural beliefs,

harmful practices, and attitudes & behaviors

in the society about gender-based violence.Initiating dialogues, community based

conversations and actions towards changing

them through cutting-edge mass media

interventions, strategies, and programs.

Research based evidence clearly indicates

that mass media campaigns (radio, TV,

billboards etc.) and diverse edutainment

approaches (mix of education with

entertainment like art, dance, theatres,

mobile phones, computers, and digital

technology etc.) reach a wider segment of

communities and are much effective

strategies to successfully convey and create

positive changes in attitudes and behaviors

associated with violence against women in

the society. 11

ELIMINATE

11Singhal et al., 2004,Donovan and Vlais 2005

Eliminate. Educate. Empower.

Restore. Collaborate.

www.nowstop.org 5

I am the girl next door.I am the girl across town.I am the girl on the other

side of the world.I have hope & dreams.I will make it.

I will surviveI say



www.nowstop.org 6

Providing Knowledge and Empowerment to women & girls through

evidence-based primary prevention programs.

• Creating public awareness about legal and human rights issues, legal consequences of

gender abuse at all levels in the society and its impact on future generations.

• Advocating for equal representation of women in politics at local and national levels.

• Raising public awareness about the importance of women’s economic empowerment and

the economic costs of women workforce absences due to gender-based violence.• Educating women from all walks of life about their rights and encouraging change from a

grass root level.

• Assessing legislative protection of women; Asking for enforcement where laws are ignored;

Addressing barriers to justice for women.

• Strengthening and forging commitment through campaigns for the reform and

implementation of laws, allowing women to inherit land and property and access to

education & health care.

• Creating greater understanding of the link between HIV/AIDS and gender-based violence.

•

Integrating the Millennium Development Goals into plans of action.

EDUCATE



www.nowstop.org 7

Implementing gender equality curriculums in elementary and middleschools.• Imparting lessons of equality from pre-k onwards so that young boys can become

aware of the devastating effects of gender-based violence and young girls can gain

self-esteem and confidence to combat violence before they become victims.

• Seeding the idea of equality in tender age using fun based anthropomorphic fictional

comic character, Mr. HANDY GLOBAL, which serves as a role model and an effective

learning tool to inculcate the idea of equitable relationships among their peers.

• First of its kind in the world, this campaign mascot is based on unique research-driven

studies12,13

with proven positive impact on young minds. The evidence suggests that

preschool enrichment and social development programs are by far the most robust,

high quality studies associating these early interventions with reduced aggressive

behavior and violent crime in childhood and later in life.14 Researches clearly indicate

that such form of symbolic communication and visual art is an ideal medium to deal

with issues like bullying, peer pressure etc.

12Puppets and objects-medium and mediator by Rena Baker; http://julkaisumyynti.turkuamk.fi/filemanager/productfiled/1132file1Upload.pdf#page=104;

13The Use of Puppetry for Health Promotion and Suicide Prevention Among Mi'Kmaq Youth doi: 10.1177/0898010107306201J Holist Nurs March 2008 vol.

26 no. 1 50-55 ;14

Effectiveness of a Violence Prevention Curriculum Among Children in Elementary School, Grossman et al JAMA.1997;277(20):1605-

1611. doi:10.1001/jama.1997.03540440039030

.



EMPOWER

Increasing economic empowerment in terms of access and control over economic resources. Promoting financial

independence through job skill developmental trainings & workshops. When women are earning and have

decision-making control, they are better poised to protect themselves from abusive relationships.

Empowering women to take charge of their own development.

Promoting education for girls including secondary and higher education. Educated girls are in a much better

position to take informed decisions and challenge harmful practices like female genital mutilation and child

marriages. They are more likely to bring an end to these practices by not passing them off to their daughters

and grand-daughters.

, ,



• Engage & empower men & boys effectively through active bystander intervention programs.

• Gender-sensitizing training to promote cultural beliefs, practices, and values that reinforce

shared responsibility.

• Focused attitude & behavior transformation through RED PALM VISION.

• Enforcing positive masculinity to bring about behavioral changes through mass media

campaigns & edutainment.

Mobilizing Men as Agents of Change.

15Toward a Transformed Approach to Prevention: Breaking the Link Between Masculinity and Violence, Luoluo Hong 2000 , Journal of American College Health Volume 48, Issue 6

Red Palm VisionTM is a comprehensive approach to violence

prevention that redefines the role of men & boys in

combating gender-based violence in the society, without

being targeted as perpetrators. It engages men and boys to

come out of the traditional manhood box and to transform

the harmful notions of masculinity 15

and traditional

expectations to a more sensitive role of a partner in an

equitable relationship. It empowers men & boys with a better

understanding of gender equality and prepares them for the

role of active bystanders, in which they care and make efforts for a better health, economic and social status of women. It

makes them understand that gender-based violence is not

only a women’s issue and how their actions can perpetrate

sexism and violence in the society, thus setting a wrong

example for generations to come.

Picture!!!!


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/now-stop-campaign-report 10/14 www.nowstop.org 10

RESTOREHealing through Expressive TherapiesThe traumatic experience of abuse can change the lives of survivors in a dramatic way. Once a woman

becomes a survivor of violence, she is labeled dirty. She is cast out from the house, her hurt cry is muffled,

buried in a broken heart. The terror and trauma is bottled within her with no one to go to, no one to help,

no one to listen, no one to hold her hand, and no one to comfort. She feels all alone with her pain and

terror. It is proven through evidence-based researches that getting involved in expressive therapies can help

the survivors release their inner emotions, help them mend their souls, and emerge out as stronger selves.It helps restore their lost dignity and gain back the self confidence by overcoming their painful experiences.

We believe that only time cannot heal. Keeping in mind the needs of survivors, our survivor-centered

approach utilizes the medium of art and dance to help recuperate them so that they can emerge out as

stronger selves again, ready to join the mainstream and live a dignified life.

Our Expressive Therapy Programs :

1. ART FOR INNER HEALING

This is a creative process to help the survivors overcome their past and release their

feelings through an expression of colorful images, drawings, and paintings on canvas. It

enhances the physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing of survivors of all ages. In

victims of abuse, such an emotional expression helps release their suppressed emotions

which plays an extremely important part in internal healing of their souls, bodies, and

thus, helps them emerge out as stronger selves.

Not only that, our workshops in schools help the students understand the significance

of art, creativity, and colors in their lives. Through creative art, students are more aware

of their potentials and are able to cope up with the daily stress and enhance theircognitive abilities.



2. DANCE FOR DIGNITY We use dance as a medium of expression to help the violence victims release their pent up

internal emotions. We utilize specially designed modules of Yoga Dance Movement TherapyTM,

which is a perfect amalgamation of

the psychotherapeutic movements

of the human body and the age old

scientific yoga postures in the artof dance, creating an eternal

approach to inner healing and

restoring balance of mind, body &

spirit. Our therapy oriented

workshops not only help survivors

in ventilating their anger and

anguish arising from physical

abuse, but also reclaim their

dignity for womanhood and regain

their love of body. These

workshops are designed in a way

to help the victims gain control of

their own body, and are made to learn the importance of their bodies through dance forms that

help them carry it with a high self esteem and live a dignified life.

Yoga Dance Movement TherapyTM heals mind-body-spirit



Strengthening communities by engaging youth in RED PALM CORPSTM, a volunteer force

dedicated & committed to make local communities free of gender-based violence, through

the medium of canvassing and awareness campaigns.

• Training in participatory community leadership; Enhancing community capacity for

social transformation by identifying critical issues, finding innovative solutions andplanning to take action.

• Developing resource maps of communities by identifying resources availability in

community, village, city or neighborhood; developing ideas, identifying obstacles, and

examining areas that need change to eliminate gender-based violence.

• Analyzing the available laws, government actions and gender-based violence trends in

the communities and making proposals and demands for the modifications of laws or

enactments of new laws in order to eliminate gender-based violence.

COLLABORATEInitiating collaboration between community members and institutions including youth,

elders, schools, universities, local authorities, businesses, and civil society

organizations to strengthen and forge commitment to build a future without gender-

based violence. Supporting coordinated program actions at the local through country

level with interventions tailored to address sexual violence focused on girls.



Online and community-based actions through NOW STOP! Activists Club,

a platform for volunteers to bring a lasting social change in the society and

eliminate violence against women & girls.• Trained volunteers report stories of change and the impact on communities through videos and

pictures about gender-based violence and human rights issues, thus transforming stories of

sufferings into powerful tools of change.

• Grassroots mobilization using the medium of street plays, thus creating awareness about thegender-based issues in the communities.

• Participation and discussions on the issue of gender-based violence through the use of social media

and networking platforms.

A program designed for analysis and

evaluation of legal situations of survivorsthrough free-legal advice and pro-bono

counsel services with the collaboration

of Bar associations. This assists those

women survivors who are deprived of

justice due to social stigma or

discrimination that may have deterred

them to file or report their injustice right

away.

LIGHT MY PATHTM

We believe that monitoring and evaluation are critical to the success of a program and are

an excellent tool for assessing the progress of diverse range of interventions acrossindividual, community, national, and international levels. Successful monitoring and

evaluation leads to successful programs. Our different kinds of interventions (community

mobilization and outreach, awareness raising campaigns, pre-school curriculums etc.)

utilize different monitoring & evaluation tools and techniques inclining with the goals and

objectives of our programs, thus providing evidence-based credible and useful information

which helps us determine if the programs are on track, need modifications or

improvement. Furthermore, the findings, recommendations, and lessons of an evaluation

form the basis of future decision-making processes regarding the programs. It is a way to

ensure that we will accomplish our mission to eliminate violence against women & girls.

Program

Monitoring & Evaluation



You are the one who holds the key to end violence. You can impact millions of

lives and help rebuild a world without gender-based violence.

Now it’s time to confront this before it takes a toll on our loved ones, our homes,

neighborhoods, and communities and makes it hard to breathe;

before it drains our economy and makes it hard to survive;

before it takes our children in its grip, destroys our dreams and affects our

future.

We need everyone to come aboard and talk about the NOW STOP! Campaign to

end gender-based violence and its impact on our loved ones, neighborhoods,

and communities.

Go ahead!TEXT, TWEET, STATUS UPDATE, EMAIL, SHARE, WEAR and SHOUT about

NOWSTOP! and make a difference. It will gain momentum as you add your voice.

We will not rest until we have 1,000,000,000 people united together, until there

is a world without gender-based violence.

We believe change is possible with YOU!

WHAT CAN I DO ?

now stop campaign report

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