The ‘avalanche purple’ takes to the streets in France to thousands of women

Me Too the Nous Toutes. Not casually the decision to move from the “me too” to “all of us”, a signal that, within a year of the movement that liberated the word of the woman, the French consider that it is time to collectivize a movement that claims progress more clear against gender-based violence and sexual abuse in society as a whole. And actions. “Don't just talk, you have to pass the witness to the action,” says the militant feminist Caroline de Haas. And that, in turn, requires “public policies ambitious,” he said on the eve of the march this Saturday. According to the organization of the event, some 30,000 people marched in Paris and in total 50,000 in 50 demonstrations all over France. “It is the mobilization the largest against gender-based violence and sexual who has lived in France,” proclaimed Haas at the end of the tour, in the central Place de la République.

If the problem of gender-based violence is known, the recipe what is more, they underscore the organizers: public awareness campaigns are decided and a better training of the staff responsible for addressing gender-based violence cases, which requires, above all, sufficient funds, the great evil of which they complain almost all the women's organizations in the country. Haas gives the example of the successful road safety campaigns or anti-smoking: “there Was a lot of debate about stop smoking before they banned smoking in bars. But today nobody is going to already have a cigarette in a bar”, he says. “We need public campaigns that have changed with success, social behaviors. That is to say, we have the recipe. If we apply this to violence against women, we will have more success. To change, government policies are needed ambitious,” he insists.

And change, there is much still to change. The figures speak for themselves. The average women 18 to 75 years who claim to have been victims of physical or sexual violence by their partner in France is of 225,000 per year. In 2016, 123 women died from gender-based violence, one every three days. More than 250 women are raped every day in France. And this are official figures dating back, in its majority, before the motion, I Too will take to increase the number of reported cases: in the first seven months of 2018, reports of sexual violence increased by 23.1 per cent compared with the same period of the previous year, according to the Ministry of the Interior. A survey presented this week by the foundation Jean Jaurès indicates that 86% of the French say they have suffered some type of harassment or sexual violence on the street —from gestures or writing rude comments to physical assaults— at some point in their life.

“people need to be aware of the danger of sexual violence,” explained Marie-Claire, a woman who, despite her 80 years, and came out this Saturday Betgaranti to travel several kilometres of walking.

“You have to make large awareness-raising campaigns and from childhood, you have to start early to instill good habits,” said Tatiana, a twenty-year-old who also attended the convocation in the centre of the French capital, which also participated many men, like Claude. “Women's rights are the rights of all. And if reculan their rights, reculan all,” he summarized. Mixed in among the group of feminists of Latin origin —the handkerchief green of the fight in favor of abortion in Argentina was highly visible in the French protest— I was walking also David, a chilean twenty-year-old that told us that was his girlfriend that made him realize that “we live submerged in a "macho" culture, from jokes between friends to the attitude in the family that it is not easy to get out.” That's why, he noted, “it takes education and support”.

Despite having been summoned long before, and, judging by the figures, having a participation appreciably greater, the mobilization violet women saw in the media, drowned out by the disturbances caused by the “yellow vests” that also is deployed this Saturday for Paris to protest against the rising fuel prices and the loss of purchasing power. “But we're not incompatible,” said Wahiba, a trade unionist has manifested itself with several dozens of “yellow vests” in the plaza de la République when converged the feminist.

a Good part of the success of the that aims to become one of the manifestations of feminist more popular in the recent years in France is due to the intense mobilization in the past week.

The request in the platform change.org calling to create an “avalanche feminist” this November 24, the eve of the international day for the elimination of gender-based violence, adds more of 176,000 signatures. In addition, we have increased the support to the march, even in sectors which until now had not spoken together on the subject, as the trade unions. The main union leaders signed on Monday a tribune in Le Monde in favor of the motion. “We will march to demand stricter rules on companies to protect women from this violence and to the implementation of means of prevention and control”, announced the trade unionists of every sign. After another column in support of the motion signed by 250 writers, artists, intellectuals, and activists, on Friday it was the turn of 400 journalists in support of the march against a scourge that also suffer these professionals and claim that the media also participate in the denunciation of “violence against women, that are systemic and should be treated as such in our newspapers, our websites and our antennas”.