Local men urged to sign pledge

St.Helens men are being invited to make a stand - and show they are totally opposed to violence against women.

White ribbon logo 

 

Today (25 November) organisers of the White Ribbon campaign want to see as many of them as possible sign a personal pledge that they will never commit, condone or remain silent about men's violence against women.

The White Ribbon Campaign (WRC) is the UK branch of the global campaign to ensure men take more responsibility for reducing the level of violence against women.

The 25 November was designated as the International Day Against Violence Against Women in 1981. In 1999 the United Nations General Assembly designated the date as International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

In St.Helens, local organisers will be marking the day with a council-backed stall in Church Square (outside the Halifax Building Society) where male residents will be encouraged to sign the pledge and/or discuss the issue.

Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, Safer Communities and Youth, Councillor Sue Murphy said: "Along with our community safety partners, we fully support the aims of the White Ribbon Campaign. We continue to work to identify those who are victims of male violence and strive to ensure we hold perpetrators of violence to account for their actions.

"We want to become a White Ribbon Council - and have developed an action plan to deliver on this commitment. However, we need the support of males throughout the community to make this happen."

"Most men are not violent towards women, but many just ignore the problem - or see it as something which doesn't have anything to do with them. But by signing the White Ribbon pledge they will be agreeing never to commit, condone or remain silent about men's violence against women."

Domestic violence factfile


In St Helens there were over 4,000 calls made to the police to report a domestic incident in 2010-11, and it remains a key priority for St Helens Community Safety Partnership and both Adult and Children's Safeguarding Boards.

Domestic violence and abuse can take many forms - physical, sexual, psychological, emotional or financial. Research shows that:

  • One in four women will experience domestic violence or abuse from an intimate or ex-partner.
  • Two women are killed in the UK every week by their partner or ex-partner.
  • Every year at least one million women experience at least one incident of domestic abuse - nearly 20,000 a week.
  • 40 per cent of young people have experienced domestic violence in their relationships.
  • One in five teenage girls have been raped by their teenage boyfriends.
  • Nearly one million children witness domestic violence in their homes every year.
  • 30 per cent of domestic violence starts or escalates when a woman is pregnant.
  • Research suggests there can be up to 35 incidents before a woman will call the police.

Click here to find out more about the White Ribbon campaign.

Click here to find out more about the UN's International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women