Dear Pope Francis,
We write to you as one of the world’s religious leaders. We are gathered here in Rome, coordinators of One Billion Rising, a global movement to end violence against women and girls. This movement in 207 countries was ignited by the fact that 1 out of 3 women on the planet will be raped or beaten in her lifetime. That is more than one billion women.
The time has come for the Catholic Church and all religions to make ending violence against women the central issue of our time and to commit with full heart and resources to putting this scourge to an end.
This is our Call:
One Billion Will Rise for Justice
Until the most marginalized are held in the the center
Until the dots are connected
The silence is broken
And the story is told
Until each part of this struggle is integrated and whole
Until the law is a breathing thing
Until every violence is part of the violence we seek to end
Until every caste, every race, every sexuality and gender
Until there is one story
Until we stop forcing poor women into buildings
On the verge of collapse or into garbage sites or back alleys to make a meager living
Until we stop sending raped women home to places where they
Are raped again
Until we stop destroying and seizing the land of the indigenous
Until we stop cutting young girls or forcing them into marriages
Until we honor the women who were murdered and beaten and raped in wars,
In cities, military barracks, refugee camps, homes, churches, in colleges, in schools
On buses, in marriage beds, in forests, in work fields and offices
Until we refuse the occupation and excavation of our bodies, bases, fields, resources
And hearts
Not with more bombs
Not with more death
Not with more pain
Until each violation is uttered
And each hurt is shared
Until the layers of memories
And oppression are uncovered and bared
Until the law serves the poorest
And stops protecting the mighty
Until all are held by the same standards
Until women rise in the knowledge of their
Value and rights
Outside – courthouses, police stations, government offices, work places, military courts, embassies, places of worship, homes
Until we release our shame, guilt, grief, pain humiliation, and rage
Until apologies and reparations are made by governments,
Leaders, husbands, boyfriends, brothers, fathers, priests, rabbis, mullahs, ministers, uncles, bosses, corporate heads
Until we refuse to accept anything that does not include all
One billion are rising for justice
We hope in 2015 Vatican City will rise with the world.
Fartuun Adan (Somalia); Vanessa Arellano Banoni (Peru); Abha Bhaiya (India); Kamla Bhasin (India); Nicoletta Billi (Italy); Rada Boric (Croatia); Nicoletta Corrodini (Italy); Anne-Christine D’adesky (United States); Eve Ensler (United States); Laura Flanders (United States); Lynne Franks (United Kingdom); Nyasha Gloria Sengayi (Zimbabwe); Wu Haomei (Taiwan) Fahima Hashim (Sudan); Karin Heisecke (Germany; Colani Bagcinile Hlatjwako (Swaziland); Lindsey Horvath (United States); Chi Hui-Jung (Taiwan); Khushi Kabir (Bangladesh); Cecile Lipworth (United States); Marsha Pamela Lopez Calderon (Guatemala);Dianne Madray-Yussuff (United States); Marya Meyer (United States); Barbara Mhangami-Ruwende (Zimbabwe); Anthony Montenieri (United States); Jessica Eva Montoya (United States); Andrés Elías López León Naime (Mexico); Lisa Schejola (United States); Susan Celia Swan (United States); Isatou Touray (The Gambia); Karabo Tshikube (South Africa); Monique Wilson (Philippines)
