From 25 November to 10 December, the world marks the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. This campaign exposes the ongoing violence women and girls face — and this year, the theme “End Digital Violence Against All Women and Girls” highlights one of the fastest-growing and least regulated forms of harm.
At ROTA, race equity is central to everything we do. Violence against women and girls, especially online, is deeply racialised. Black and Global Majority women and girls face abuse intensified by racism, misogynoir, and structural inequality. We cannot stay silent.
Our peer researcher, Jamila Thompson has shown in her study on race, racism, and misogynoir affecting Black girls in education (ROTA, 2025) that the discrimination women face offline feeds directly into the harm they experience online. The systems that fail Black girls offline are the same systems that fail them online.
This 16 Days of Activism, ROTA stands in solidarity with:
- Women and girls facing digital abuse
- Black and Global Majority women targeted by misogynoir
- Organisations like Sistah Space providing culturally specific support
- Activists, educators, and researchers fighting for justice across digital and offline spaces
- Global movements demanding accountability from tech companies and public institutions
Our stance is clear: we will continue to use our platform to centre race equity in conversations about digital safety and VAWG. When systems protect Black and Global Majority women, they protect everyone — and society.
We stand in solidarity this 16 Days — and every day — with all who fight for a world where women and girls can live, work, and speak freely, online and offline.