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Eve Ensler and One Billion Rising Director Monique Wilson
to Visit India and Nepal as part of ONE BILLION RISING FOR JUSTICE tour
with Global Coordinators On The Ground
Ensler To Make Special Appearance at The Times of India Literary Carnival in Mumbai, Emotional Creature to be Performed at The Festival
Short Video about One Billion Rising Released Featuring Never Before Seen Footage
6 December 2013 – Eve Ensler, award-winning playwright and founder of V-Day, the global activist movement to end violence against women and girls, with One Billion Rising Director and renowned activist and actor Monique Wilson, embark on a multi-city tour of India and Nepal as part of the ongoing ONE BILLION RISING FOR JUSTICE tour with Global Coordinators Khamla Bhasin and Abha Bhaiya and other extraordinary Indian and Nepali artists and activists. Following stops in France, Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, and the United States, Ensler and Wilson will visit Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Dharamsala, and Kathmandu over the next two weeks. The tour began today in Mumbai.
The One Billion Rising for Justice campaign is rapidly building upon the energy and momentum that was created in 2013 when one billion activists in 207 countries came together to strike, dance, and rise to end violence against women and girls. To date, One Billion Rising for Justice activists around the world in over 120 countries have signed up to plan their risings.
This year’s campaign is a call to women, men, and youth around the world to gather on 14 February 2014 outside places where they are entitled to justice including court houses, police stations, government offices, school administration buildings, work places, sites of environmental injustice, military courts, embassies, places of worship, or other public spaces for justice, marking the call to end the rampant impunity that prevails globally.
Ensler will debut a new monologue written for India at the events. Also, coinciding with the tour, V-Day is debuting a new short film entitled India Rising, by South African filmmaker Tony Stroebel (Rising, One Billion Rising, The Man Prayer, Break The Chain) and Eve Ensler. The film features never before seen footage from Ensler’s 2012 One Billion Rising tour throughout India, as well as new footage from One Billion Rising events in February. To view the video, visit www.vday.org/indiarisingfilm
Events have been coordinated by Sangat and One Billion Rising for Justice activists. Indian singer Katie Gray will be performing at many of the events along the tour. Following is a schedule:
Mumbai
December 7:
Rise For Justice India – A dialogue between Eve Ensler and Indira Jaisingh on the progress and obstacles faced in the fight for justice for survivors and victims of violence. Organized by Akshara and Pravin Gandhi College of Law.
The Times of India Literary Carnival “A Fractured Freedom” panel discussion with Eve Ensler, Urvashi Butalia Shereen el-Feki and Poorna Jagannathan.
December 8:
The Times of India Literary Carnival keynote address by Eve Ensler. 10am
Performance of Eve Ensler’s “Emotional Creature,” 8pm
Chennai
December 10:
One Billion Rising For Justice Chennai for International Human Right Day. Hosted by Asian College of Journalism.
One Billion Rising For Justice Chennai Cultural Event, hosted by YWCA Chennai. Featuring speeches by activists and performances by local and international artists. Eve Ensler will read pieces from her new work “In The Body of the World, ” followed by the premier of a brand new piece by on justice and the body.
Delhi
December 12:
One Billion Rising For Justice Delhi Cultural Event, hosted by Sangat. Featuring speeches by activists and performances by local and international artists. Eve Ensler will read pieces from her new work “In The Body of the World.”
December 13:
Apne Aap Rising for Justice with Eve Ensler and Prof. Ruchira Gupta, 12pm – 2pm
One Billion Rising For Justice Event at Jamie Milia University, at 3pm
December 14:
Cultural event at Delhi University.
Panel discussion on “A Feminist Dialogue On Envisioning Justice,” hosted by the Centre for Policy Analysis Jagori & Sangat, moderated by Seema Mustafa (Director, CPA) and featuring Kamla Bhasin (Advisor, Sangat), Eve Ensler, Shabnam Hashmi (Founder, Anhad), Kumkum Sangari (Vilas Prof. of English and Humanities University of Wisconsin), and Vimal Thorat (Co-Convenor, NCDHR).
Dharamsala
December 16:
Press conference on the 1 year anniversary of the attack on Jyoti Singh Pandey.
One Billion Rising for Justice Himachal Cultural Event. Featuring speeches by activists and performances by local and international artists. Eve Ensler will read pieces from her new work “In The Body of the World.” The One Billion Rising for Justice Himachal event will also feature actress Poorna Jagganathan performing a piece by Eve Ensler.
December 17:
V-Day India 10 year anniversary gathering with Eve Ensler and Jagori activists.
Nepal
Kathmandu
December 20 – 21:
Programs and schedule to be announced.
For more information, visit https://www.onebillionrising.org.
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About One Billion Rising
One Billion Rising was the biggest mass action in human history. The campaign began as a call to action based on the staggering UN statistic that 1 in 3 women on the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at 7 billion, this adds up to more than ONE BILLION WOMEN AND GIRLS. On 14 February 2013, people across the world came together to strike, dance, and RISE in defiance of the injustices women suffer, demanding an end at last to violence against women. Over 10,000 events took place on the ground and the campaign took over media and social media worldwide for 48 hours, trending in 7 countries – 4 times in the US alone. The wildly successful grassroots campaign was covered widely by media in all corners of world including The New York Times, The Guardian, NPR, and many more. www.onebillionrising.org
About V-Day
V-Day is a global activist movement to end violence against women and girls that raises funds and awareness through benefit productions of Playwright/Founder Eve Ensler’s award winning play The Vagina Monologues and other artistic works. The V-Day movement has raised over $100 million; educated millions about the issue of violence against women and the efforts to end it; crafted international educational, media and PSA campaigns; reopened shelters; and funded over 13,000 community-based anti-violence programs and safe houses in Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Kenya, Egypt, and Iraq. V-Day has received numerous acknowledgements and awards and is, one of the Top-Rated organizations on both Charity Navigator and Guidestar. V-Day’s most recent global campaign, ONE BILLION RISING, galvanized over one billion women and men on a global day of action towards ending violence against women and girls. www.vday.org