Name: Find your voice against gender violence
Uploaded: 2014-08-27T15:19:40Z
Duration: 13 min 49 s
Description: This talk begins with a personal story of sexual violence that may be difficult to listen to. But that's the point, says citizen journalist Meera Vijayann: Speaking out on tough, taboo topics is the spark for change. Vijayann uses digital media to speak honestly about her experience of gender violence in her home country of India -- and calls on others to speak out too.

Meera Vijayann: Find your voice against gender violence

Find your voice against gender violence

This talk begins with a personal story of sexual violence that may be difficult to listen to. But that's the point, says citizen journalist Meera Vijayann: Speaking out on tough, taboo topics is the spark for change. Vijayann uses digital media to speak honestly about her experience of gender violence in her home country of India -- and calls on others to speak out too.

Real change begins when women find the courage to share their stories, even when shame and fear make silence tempting. After a brutal Delhi rape shocked the nation, digital platforms became a lifeline for honest voices, as women shared what life is truly like in India. In one survey, 95 percent of women working late in Indian cities reported they did not feel safe. Empowerment is not just access to tools, but claiming the right to speak and be heard.