WATCH: Waterford set to unite as walkout shines spotlight on violence against women
The 15-minute walkout comes amid a rise in women killed violently across Ireland this year
People across Waterford and around the country are being urged to step outside their homes, workplaces, schools and colleges next Wednesday as part of a 15-minute walkout highlighting violence against women.
The ‘Walk Out for Women’ event will take place at 11am on Wednesday, September 30, participants are being asked to wear red and stand together in solidarity with women who have lost their lives to violence in Ireland.
The Waterford event forms part of a wider call for people across Ireland to walk out for 15 minutes and use the moment to start conversations about violence against women.
Organisers are hoping to see people of all ages and backgrounds take part, with the message that tackling violence, abuse, misogyny and intimidation is an issue for the whole community.
The initiative comes amid concern over the number of women who have been killed violently in Ireland this year.
Speaking to Waterford Live, one of the organising team members John Kelly said the local group came together in July following a number of high-profile cases of domestic violence and the deaths of women in Ireland.
“We got together back in July, on the back of the number of headline cases of domestic violence and frankly murder of women in Ireland this year,” he said.
Mr Kelly said the fact that two of the cases which came to the fore involved Waterford women was one of the reasons the initiative developed locally.
He said the group wants Wednesday's walkout to be about more than the individual cases which have made national headlines.
“The biggest goal for the group is to start a conversation,” Mr Kelly said.
“Ensuring that the behaviour that is happening out there today, the conduct of people towards the women and girls involved doesn’t go unnoticed, doesn’t go unspoken about, is not just brushed under the carpet and that we are starting a conversation.”
Participants are also being encouraged to share photographs and videos from the walkout on social media to highlight the initiative and show their solidarity.
The campaign stresses that the event is not about women versus men, but about encouraging everyone to play a role in challenging violence and intimidation.
For organisers, the hope is that the 15-minute action will be the beginning of a much wider conversation.
“And hopefully the seeds that start that conversation can keep growing and lead to something being done about it,” Mr Kelly said.
Catch the full interview with ‘Walk Out for Women’ organiser John Kelly, speaking to Waterford Live, above.