AVONDALE, Arizona – On Thursday, February 13, 2014, Estrella Mountain Community College (EMCC) will host and participate in the One Billion Rising campaign, a global activist movement to end violence against women and girls.
One Billion Rising began in 2013 as a call-to-action based on the staggering statistic that one in three women on the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at seven billion, this adds up to more than one billion women and girls.
“Until violence ends, women will never have equality,” says Dr. Olga Tsoudis, EMCC sociology faculty and event organizer. “Violence against a woman is violence against her children and her whole community.”
EMCC was one of the charter sites for the 2013 event, and felt it was important to continue being a resource for social change. The campus community will join activists, writers, thinkers, celebrities, and women and men across the world to raise critical awareness and demand global change to end the injustices women and girls suffer. The day will be filled with dancing, speakers, and resources provided by student clubs and community organizations.
A unified dance will be the culminating demonstration of coalition during the day, and will be performed throughout the day at EMCC, and across the globe at the other 1 Billion Rising event sites. The song “Break The Chain” was written and produced by Tena Clark and Tim Heintz, with an accompanying dance choreographed by the award-winning Debbie Allen.
There will also be a donation drive for the New Life Center located in Goodyear, a refuge from domestic violence in Goodyear that provides shelter, safety and services to families seeking independent, violence-free lives. Requested items include baby/infant items, personal care items, bedding, laundry soap, paper products and non-perishable food.
“No human being should have to endure violence and as a community we should not tolerate it,” says Tsoudis. “So the questions becomes, why is it still happening and what can we do to stop the violence in our community?”
The 1 Billion Rising events are free and open to the public, and will be held in the Ceremonial Plaza Amphitheatre on the EMCC campus, located on Thomas and Dysart Roads in Avondale, Arizona. Attendees are encouraged to wear red and black to symbolize the campaign’s cause.
1 Billion Rising Events: Thursday, February 13, 2014
Campaign 1
8:30 a.m. – Welcome, Dr. Sandy Zetlan, EMCC biology faculty
8:40 a.m. – Guest speaker: RJ Shannon, HIV/AIDS Minority Liaison & Community Engagement Coordinator, Arizona Department of Health
9:05 a.m. – Dance
9:15 a.m. – Guest speaker: Anna Tovar, Senator, Arizona State Legislature
9:45 a.m. – Dance
Campaign 2
10:00 a.m. – Welcome, Dr. Marsha Segerberg, EMCC biology faculty
10:10 a.m. – Guest speaker: RJ Shannon, HIV/AIDS Minority Liaison & Community Engagement Coordinator, Arizona Department of Health
10:30 a.m. – Guest speaker: Kelli Hernandez, Community Development Volunteer Coordinator, New Life Center
10:55 a.m. - Dance
11:00 a.m. – Chris, survivor, New Life Center
11:15 a.m. – Dance
Campaign 3
11:30 a.m. – Welcome, Dr. Sandy Zetlan, EMCC biology faculty
11:40 a.m. – Guest speaker: Allie Bones, Executive Director, Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence
11:50 a.m. – Rachel Holmes, EMCC education faculty
12:15 p.m. – Dance
12:20 p.m. – Teri Graham, EMCC math faculty
12:40 p.m. – Dance
12:50 p.m. – Dance