Join us for 16 Days of Action, 2022

Are you ready to take action and be part of the change? The 16 days of action against gender-based violence are upon us!

The 16 Days of Action against Gender-Based Violence is an annual international campaign that starts on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs until 10 December, Human Rights Day.

Launched in 1991 it continues to be coordinated each year and is used as an organising strategy by individuals and organisations around the world to call for the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls, and we really encourage you to get involved.

Why? Because gender-based violence is everybody’s business and we can no longer claim we don’t know of its alarming extent.

• We know that a woman is murdered by a man every 4 days in the UK (ONS, 2019)
• We know that 97% women in the UK have been sexually assaulted (UN Women, 2021)
• We know that 1 in 4 women in the UK will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime (ONS, 2019)
• We know that hundreds of women die by suicide as a result of domestic abuse each year, yet we don’t have a national database recording domestic abuse related-suicides.
• We know that the highest ever number of rapes was recorded in England and Wales last year (ONS, 2021), and yet rape convictions have fallen to a record low (CPS, 2020).

Together, we need to act on this evidence and shift the toxic, patriarchal, sexist and misogynist attitudes and beliefs that underpin each individual act of violence experienced by the women and girls behind those statistics. This year, we will be focusing on the health consequences of domestic abuse — please join us by resharing our messages with your networks to raise awareness.

There are actions for everyone, whether it’s:

• donating to SATEDA’s fundraiser for mental health support for domestic abuse survivors in Swale.
• talking about domestic abuse and sexual assault with those around us
• sharing the content we will be putting out during the 16 days (make sure you’re following us on social media! @satedacharity)
• printing our Warning Signs poster and placing it in the women’s toilets at your workplace to let victims and survivors know they are not alone and there is support available
• sharing our survey about healthy and unhealthy relationships with teenagers you know
• adding your name to the Women’s Aid pledge urging the UK Government to provide an Emergency Support Fund to support victims and survivors of domestic abuse through the cost of living crisis
• calling out sexist and misogynist behaviour when you witness it, or check on the victim if saying something puts you at risk — don’t be a bystander

Many other organisations will be sharing information and actions during the 16 Days of Action period so we hope you take the time to learn, reflect, amplify and grow. There is a lot to understand about how deeply and systemically gender inequality in embedded in our society and how deeply it affects us individually and collectively. And there is a lot we can and must do together to dismantle it and eradicate male violence against women once and for all.

We’re really glad you’re here with us. Let’s do this.