“Text me when you get to work.” “Get home safely.” “Want me to drive you?”
Globally, about one in three women have faced physical or sexual violence at least once in their lives, according to a recent report from the World Health Organization. The WHO described their work as the largest-ever study of violence against women. The total number affected stands around 736 million women, according to the BBC. The data comes from 2000-2018 and does not include figures from the last year of the pandemic.
That report is particularly stark after recent shootings at several spas in Atlanta that many suspect targeted Asian women and the death of Sarah Everard in the U.K. A police officer is charged with kidnapping and murdering Everard as she walked home at night in South London.
These reports come at a time when women, especially women of color, are particularly feeling the pandemic’s effects. Since February 2020, over 2.3 million women have left the workforce.
We’re talking about the fight for safety for women and girls around the world.
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