Bulgaria’s fifth edition of the International campaign “Walk a Mile in Her Shoes” where men put on women’s high heel shoes to draw attention to the violence against women, will take place on the 18th March 2017 at 11 a.m. in front of the National Palace of Culture in Sofia. The walk will be followed by a film screening and an art exhibition in support of the campaign’s messages. The organizers are Bulgarian Fund for Women, Bulgarian Helsinki Committee, Resource-Center Bilitis, Council of Refugee Women in Bulgaria, the UN Refugee Agency, supported by the National Palace of Culture and Lumiere Lidl Cinema.
This year the cause is supported by Ruth Koleva, who will moderate the event, whereas for the participants who put on the high heels, will be awarded with tickets for the exclusive screening of the film “The mask you live in”. We welcome everyone to join – the ones who stand up for the victims of vioelnece, and the curious who want to know more about how to detect and react to various forms of vioelence. The high heels are not compulsory, but the good spirit is!
The organizers urge men to declare their solidarity to the victims and say “No to violence”. According to the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, in 2014 28 per cent of all women in Bulgaria have been subject to physical and sexual violence, whereas more than 56 per cent of the respondents are unaware of existing institutions and shelter services for victims. These frightening statistics reveal the dark reality therefore the firm confrontation and condemnation are more needed than ever. As a sign of solidarity to the women victims of violence, in the evening of the 17th March the façade of the National Culture of Palace will be lit in pink.
With the walk the organizers want to draw the attention of the general public and the institutions to the need of an immediate ratification of the so called Istanbul Convention – the only international document, which aims at a complete elimination of violence against women and domestic violence. It requires states to adopt three sets of measures: violence prevention, protection for victims and prosecution of perpetrators. For instance, in the field of prosecution psychological and physical violence, sexual violence and rape, stalking, forced marriage, forced abortion etc. Some of these acts are criminalized under the Bulgarian Criminal Code, but other are not.
The charity screening of „The mask you live in” is a follow-up event of the walk and will be held on the 31st March at 18:30 in Lumiere Lidl Cinema. The film is a compilation of interviews and encounters with shocking personal stories, whuch reveal the awful consequences from the continuous pressure on boys to hide their feelings and to act like “real men”, which turns into a catalyst for wrongdoings.
In the day of the screening the audience will be able to see the artworks part of the charity exhibition “The true face of violence”. The exhibition consists of 19 are the personal artistic interpretation of 13 Bulgarian illustrators on the topic. All of them took part in BFW’s campaign #Every4th, aimed at shifting the focus from the victim to the violator.
Seats for the screening of “The mask you live in” and for the exhibition “The true face of violence” can be reserved via Eventbrite. The event is free but we encourage all visitors to give a small donation for BFW’s programs dedicated to the fight with violence.
