Orange the World at the University of Bayreuth

The background of 25 November lies in the history of the sisters Patria, Minverva, and María Mirabal, who were members of the "Movimiento Revolucionario 14 de Junio" movement and fought against the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. After being imprisoned, tortured, and raped for months, they were killed on 25 November 1960.

16 days for more attention

As early as 1981, 25 November was proclaimed a day of remembrance for the victims of violence against women at a meeting of Latin American and Caribbean feminists (Dia Internacional de la No Violencia Contra la Mujer). In the 1990s - the classification of the acts of violence against women and girls in the Bosnian war and the mass rapes during the civil war in Rwanda as war crimes - the UN General Assembly finally took action (cf. Resolution 48/104 of 20 December 1993; Resolution 52/86 of 12 December 1997). On 17 December 1999, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution (54/134) designating 25 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, also known as the "International Day against Violence against Women". As early as 1991, the Women's Global Leadership Institute initiated the "16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence" campaign (25 November to 10 December) to draw attention to the fact that violence against girls and women is one of the most widespread human rights violations in the world. This includes forced prostitution, sexual abuse, sex tourism, rape, female circumcision, domestic violence, forced marriage, prenatal sex selection, female poverty, and femicide. But also unequal treatment, for example in the areas of inheritance, education, private property, active and passive voting rights, creditworthiness, legal capacity, access to justice, and unpaid work are addressed.

This year, for the first time, the University of Bayreuth, in cooperation with the City of Bayreuth and other institutions, is participating in UN Women's "Orange the World" campaign. Indeed, sexualised violence and discrimination do not stop at the doors of the University, but occur here in connection with hierarchical structures and interdependent relationships. In the University context, harassment is above all a question of power: students are dependent on those who award grades, doctoral students, post-docs, and post-doctoral researchers are dependent on those who supervise them in their academic work. In addition, precarious employment relationships also increase dependency.

Already on 18 November 2021 (16.00 to 18.00, seminar room S 88, BGI), Dr Hassana Ibrahim Wazir delivered her lecture "Women: Rights and Resilience in the Face of the Boko Haram Insurgency in Northeast Nigeria". She is a political scientist and activist from Northern Nigeria (known in this country for the attacks of the terrorist group Boko Haram). She is currently a guest at the University of Bayreuth. In her home region in the north-east of Nigeria, she does incredibly important work for girls and women within the framework of the University of Maiduguri Muslim Women Association (UMMWA). In her talk (in English), she reports on her work there, gives us an impression of the region and its people, and shows photos of her
projects.

Participation of UBT

The participation in "Orange the World" is meant to set an example: In the Iwalewahaus in the centre of Bayreuth, the windows will be lit up orange from sunset to sunrise every day from 25 November to 10 December. Furthermore, bookmarks will be displayed in the libraries and department libraries of the University of Bayreuth to inform and educate University members.

On 25 November, the University will cooperate with various actors in the city of Bayreuth:

• "We stand up!" The women's shelter Caritasverband Bayreuth e.V. will show a 45-minute film on the topic of violence against women in continuous loop on 25.11.2021 from 10:00 to 20:00. The film was made by Nirgendmedia and can be seen in the city centre in front of the Reichshof building. Employees of the women's shelter and the network organisations will be on site as contact persons.

• The Protestant Deanery Women's Officer, the Catholic Deanery, ver.di women, and the Equal Opportunities Officer of the City of Bayreuth invite you to a light campaign against violence against women and girls on 25 November 2021. It will begin at 18.00 with a short prayer service in the Harmoniehof of the Schlosskirche. At 6.15 pm, participants will meet at the New Fountain in front of the Court of Honour. Here, Deputy Mayor of the City of Bayreuth, Andreas Zippel, will speak a word of greeting. A chain of lights will then connect this meeting with the action of the women's shelter at the Reichshof building.

• For the campaign launch of Orange the World, the premises of Avalon, the specialised counselling centre against sexualised violence - counselling and prevention e.V., will also be lit up in orange.

Over the following weeks, the Equal Opportunities Department will also offer two empowerment workshops to help create a culture of learning and working at the University of Bayreuth that does not tolerate sexualised discrimination and violence.

• "Dealing confidently with sexism and sexual harassment" for female students on 1 December 2021: https://www.frauenbeauftragte.uni-bayreuth.de/de/termine/20211201_Sexismus_Stud/index.html

• "Dealing confidently with sexism and sexual harassment" for women academics on 16 December 2021: https://www.frauenbeauftragte.uni-bayreuth.de/de/termine/20211216_Sexismus_Wiss/index.html

Registrations are requested by 29 November 2021 at Chancengleichheit@uni-bayreuth.de

In addition, the help hotline is available to all: 08000 116 016. https://www.hilfetelefon.de

More information regarding "Orange the world" can be found online via https://www.unwomen.de.