Meeting with Actors on the Battlefield of Violence Against Women

May 10th was certainly one of the most important days in my university career and my commitment to gender issues. I had the opportunity to participate in a series of meetings and talks about violence against women and sex trafficking at NYU Florence.

Evon Idahosa, president of the PathFinders Justice Initiative, and Cindy Dyer, vice president for Human Rights of Vital Voices, met with leading Tuscan actors and associations (networks, judges, prosecutors, professors) with the aim of creating a collaboration to address gender-based violence. Important steps were taken towards the realization that before the meeting was only theoretical.

One of the things that struck me most was the willingness of all of the participants to put their experience and ideas on the table, to nourish a common reflection on topics that are often omitted from debate, and to actively seek to develop actionable projects that they committed to support in the community.

Getting a clearer understanding of the difficult situation in Italy was also particularly important to me. The participants underlined areas where we need to improve efficiency and functionality: the fragmentation of institutions, the absence of a single action-program, the lack of funds, the sexist culture that dominates in this country, and the lack of concrete preventive measures.

We need work a lot but I am sure that in the future we will be able to effectively face the harmful phenomenon of violence against women and sex trafficking.