5 Facts You Should Know
- Every 9 seconds in the U.S. a woman is assaulted or beaten.
- Around the world, at least one in every three women has been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused during her lifetime. Most often, the abuser is a member of her own family.
- Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women - more than car accidents, muggings and rapes combined.
- Studies suggest that up to 10 million children witness some form of domestic violence annually.
- Everyday in the U.S., more than three women are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends.
The Avon Foundation and The Global Partnership to End Violence Against Women
Avon Foundation for Women Launches Innovative Partnership To End Violence Against Women Worldwide and Donates Funds to the U.S. Department of State Secretary's Fund for Global Women's Leadership
In 2010, in recognition of International Women’s Day, the Avon Foundation for Women, Vital Voices, and the U.S. State Department hosted a three-day launch of The Global Partnership to End Violence Against Women in Washington, D.C. This innovative public-private partnership, founded on the premise that local experts are best suited to know what solutions will work in their own communities, is fostering the creation of cross-sector collaborations with the goal of reducing violence against women.
To facilitate the Global Partnership, Avon and the Avon Foundation for Women donated $1.2 million to Vital Voices to convene 15 country delegations consisting of leaders from diverse sectors – business, government, law enforcement, the nongovernmental organization (NGO) community, academia and others – in a global forum to share insights, forge collaborations, and seek ways to overcome challenging cultural realities that have been barriers to progress. The partnership also created a violence against women campaign toolkit that provides information and strategies to develop effective advocacy.
The Global Partnership supported regional events in India and Argentina in fall 2010; created a violence against women campaign toolkit that provides information and strategies to develop effective advocacy, awareness and education campaigns and programs that NGOs can use to reduce violence against women in any country; and supported the presentation of the documentary play Seven, which tells seven women’s stories of triumph over physical and mental abuse, oppression, adversity, and threats to their lives, families, and livelihoods.
Also in 2010, the Avon Foundation donated $500,000 to the U.S. Department of State Secretary’s Fund for Global Women’s Leadership to create the Avon Awards for the Elimination of Gender Based Violence, presented in 2011 by the State Department to ten NGOs in eight countries for the purpose of ending violence against women.
2011: Expanding Global Efforts to End Violence Against Women
With renewed Avon Foundation support, the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Women expanded its efforts in 2011. It created a mentorship program, made grant awards for Global Partnership delegation projects, and presented a regional sexual violence institute in South Africa that trained participants to identify, evaluate and overcome obstacles to the successful investigation and prosecution of sexual violence cases.
Women NGO leaders from ten Partnership delegations participated in the Global Partnership Mentorship Program in Washington, D.C., New York City and Phoenix, AZ. The comprehensive program included meetings with former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, White House Advisor on Violence Against Women Lynn Rosenthal, members of the Department of State’s Office of Global Women’s Issues, Commissioner Yolanda Jimenez of the New York City Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence, and other domestic violence leaders.
The Global Partnership Grant Program provided support for five NGOs from Eastern Europe, South America, Africa and the Middle East to fund research and development projects focused on ending violence against women in their countries.
Avon Global Ambassador Reese Witherspoon, First Lady Michelle Obama, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Avon Chairman and CEO Andrea Jung, at the 2010 Women of Courage Awards held at the U.S. State Department where the Avon Foundation for Women announced a $500,000 contribution to fund the Secretary of State’s Fund for Global Women's Leadership. The grant will provide funds for NGOs that work on domestic and gender violence issues around the world.
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