Tag: One Billion Rising

One Billion Rising in Second Life will once again be taking place in Second Life on Monday, February 14th, 2022. As with previous years, the event opens at midnight SLT of Sunday 13th / Monday 14th February, with entertainment and activities then running all the way through to midnight SLT on Monday 14th / Tuesday 15th.

When launched in the physical world on Valentine’s Day 2012, One Billion Rising (OBR) was the biggest mass action in human history; a call to action based on the staggering statistic that 1 in 3 women on the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at 7 billion, this adds up to more than one billion women and girls who are at risk. OBR aims to bring people together, raise greater awareness of the plight of those at risk the world over, and bring about a fundamental change in how vulnerable and defenceless women and girls are treated.

This year, the global movement takes as its theme RISE for the Bodies of All Women, Girls & the Earth, which the organisers note is a move towards more direct political awareness / activism:

[T]o connect both in a deeper, more purposeful, political, transformative and yet also empowering, hopeful way. And to make this coming year a truly radical, bold, fearless escalation of artistic risings … This past year has seen global lockdowns, government neglect, health crises, proliferation of authoritarian regimes, endemic exploitation of labor, escalating corporate greed, worsening poverty, racism and exclusion, the grave ongoing destruction and pillaging of the environment for capital, as well as the deterioration of the climate. At the core of all of this is the injurious hold of patriarchy and misogyny ––on women’s rights and freedom.

We call on the world to hold Artistic Risings for the bodies of all women and for the ‘ultimate body’- our Earth. Using the body as your call. Using the body as your resistance. We call on the world to use ART. Dance. Visual art. Physical and immersive theatre. Film. Sculpture. Painting. Sports. Performances (Live and Recorded). Photography and digital art. 

Within Second Life, the event presents four full regions as a square with the primary stage for music and dance straddling the adjoining corners, allowing up to 200 people at a time to share in activities and events.  Each region – Dance, Resist, Rise and Unite, has its own landing point – SLurls at the end of this piece (which will open to the public shortly before the event officially opening). These provide information on the event, links to discover more about the global One Billion Rising movement, freebies, and paths to both the main event stage and other event spaces within each of the regions.

The latter include the Poetry Corner (OBR Resist), where live readings will be taking place; the Resist garden with its water feature and sculptures; plus the dance theatre and performance spaces (OBR Dance) where some of SL’s top dance and performance groups – such as Misfit Dance and Performance, TerpsiCorps ARTWerks, Guerilla Burlesque, Elysuim Cabaret and the Changhigh Sisters (to name but a handful) will be performing through the 24 hours.

Artists participating in this year’s event include: 2lei, Burners Without Borders, Instituto Español SL, Darkstone Aeon, Roxelo Babenco / Museo del Metaverse, Illyra Chardin, Fiona Fei, Daark Gothly, Johannes Huntsman, Kicca Igaly and Macel Mosswood, Rubin Mayo, Krystal Rabeni, Tempest Rosca, iSkye Silverweb, Jennifer Steele. BB Woodford, AngelaThespian and PrtrickofIreland, Jaz, Kalyca, and Tansee,

Their installations can be found around the outside edge of the four regions, with information available on each display available touching the sign board in front of each of them. In addition, One Billion Rising will once more feature the #MeTooForest, a place of retreat and meditation / contemplation (OBR Unite), together with the Heroes Pavilion, featuring inspirational stories about women from many different cultures and communities (OBR Rise). These can both be found along the outside of the region alongside the art display. In addition, the four corners of the OBR region offer park areas providing further places of retreat. quiet and meditation for those who may need them.

The full schedule of events is now available, covering all live performers, DJs, dance performances and poetry readings.

Why Dance?

A critique sometimes levelled at OBR / OBR in SL is that the issues it raises cannot be solved by dance. Well, that’s absolutely true, just as marching through the streets carrying placards and banners is unlikely to have a lasting impact on whatever it is people might be marching about.

But – like marches and protests – dance and music does serve to draw attention to matters. It provides a means by which people are encouraged to stop and think, while also providing a focal point of attention that allows information and ideas to be disseminated. What’s also important is that it’s a lot harder to see dancing as a threat than might be the case with an organised march or protest – something to take into consideration given there are countries where the right to march or protest freely does not exist. Hence why, as well, OBR in Second Life is marked each year with a dance video to the OBR theme song.

Related Links

• About One Billion Rising
• One Billion Rising official website
• One Billion Rising in Second Life website
• The OBR 2022 landing points (note these will only be available from shortly before Midnight SLT on Sunday, February 13th):
  • OBR Unite
  • OBR Resist
  • OBR Dance
  • OBR Rise

One Billion Rising in Second Life will once again be taking place in Second Life on Sunday, February 14th, 2021. As with previous years, the event opens at midnight SLT on Saturday, February 13th with entertainment and activities then running all the way through to midnight SLT on Sunday, February 14th.

When launched in the physical world on Valentine’s Day 2012, One Billion Rising (OBR) was the biggest mass action in human history; a call to action based on the staggering statistic that 1 in 3 women on the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at 7 billion, this adds up to more than one billion women and girls who are at risk. OBR aims to bring people together, raise greater awareness of the plight of those at risk the world over, and bring about a fundamental change in how vulnerable and defenceless women and girls are treated.

This year, the global movement takes as its theme Rising Gardens, which the organisers describe thus:

Over the years, One Billion Rising campaigns have brought deeper into focus the intersectional issues of poverty, the environment, economic violence and other factors that cause and sustain the continuing violence towards women and girls (cisgender, transgender, and those who hold fluid identities that are subject to gender based violence). One Billion Rising: Solidarity initiatives in 2018 continued to see other movements coming together to address the issue of how climate change and environmental plunder aggravate the situation of women, especially in developing countries and in poor communities around the world. People all over the world joined the Risings to demand and end to violence against women and girls, by looking at policies that pillage, devastate and destroy the environment in the name of “development”.

Within Second Life, the event follows this theme, presenting the usual four event regions as a series of gardens centred on the main event stage as it straddles the centres of all four  regions, offering a place where up to 200 people can come together any any time during the event to join in with the music and dance. In the surrounding gardens, and linked to the central stage and one another by trails and paths, are the landing points (with information givers), art exhibits, gardens, and additional activity areas, such as the Poetry and Prose area and the #Me Too forest.

Artists participating in this year’s event include: 2Lei, Darkstone Aeon, Krystali Rabeni, Ilyra Chardin, Johannes Huntsman and Tempest Rosca, Jessamine2108, Fifi Oh, FionaFei, Lampithaler, Herbie Haven, Jennifer Steele, Daark Gothly, Patrick Ireland and Angela Thespian, and iSkye Silverweb. Their installations can be found around the outside edge of the four regions, with information available on each display available touching the sign board in front of each of them.

For the second year running OBR in Second Life also presents the I Rise Campaign. Earlier in the year, Second Life artists and photographers were invited to produce original images for display at OBR in SL 2021 (with the images also available on the Campaign’s Flickr group) in support the message of One Billion Rising: educating people about the plight of women, and which can include references to personal experiences. As such, some of them may be uncomfortable for those who have themselves been victims of violence – if this is the case, they are asked to reach out to event organisers if they feel they need support.

In addition, the four corners of the OBR estate offer elevated park areas providing elevated views across the regions, while the #MeToo Forest forms a place of retreat and meditation / contemplation, whilst the Heroes’ Pavilion features inspirational stories about women from many different cultures and communities.

Also, this year’s event continues with the themes of poetry and the spoken word as seen in past events in Second Life. The poetry sessions will take place between 14:00 and 15:00 SLT and 16:00 and 17:00 SLT, with recitals by selected readers. Between them, at 15:00 through 16:00 SLT, Seanchai Library will read poems and short prose to celebrate and honour women, while between 17:00 and 18:00 the microphone will be open to anyone to offer a reading in keeping with the themes of the event.

And if this weren’t enough, also on-hand during the 24 hours will be three of Second Life’s top dance and performance groups:

• 10:00-11:00 SLT – The ChangHigh Trinity Sisters present Fireshow of Light, Life, & Love.
• 17:30 – Misfit Dance & Performance Art.
• 19:00 – Guerilla Burlesque.

At 13:00, the Second Life Cheerleaders will provide a display, while at 14:00, there will be an interactive dance session with Cordie.

The full schedule of events is now available, covering all live performers, DJs, dance performances and poetry, and further information on the music entertainment acts can be found here and here, and information on those presenting the spoken word can be found here.

Why Dance?

A critique sometimes levelled at OBR / OBR in SL is that the issues it raises cannot be solved by dance. Well, that’s absolutely true, just as marching through the streets carrying placards and banners is unlikely to have a lasting impact on whatever it is people might be marching about.

But – like marches and protests – dance and music does serve to draw attention to matters. It provides a means by which people are encouraged to stop and think, while also providing a focal point of attention that allows information and ideas to be disseminated. What’s also important is that it’s a lot harder to see dancing as a threat than might be the case with an organised march or protest – something to take into consideration given there are countries where the right to march or protest freely does not exist. Hence why, as well, OBR in Second Life is marked each year with a dance video to the OBR theme song.

Related Links

• About One Billion Rising
• One Billion Rising official website
• One Billion Rising in Second Life website
• The OBR 2021 landing points – note these will only be available from Midnight SLT on Saturday, February 13th:
  • OBR Unite
  • OBR Resist
  • OBR Dance
  • OBR Rise

On  Sunday, February 14th, 2021, many in Second Life will join activists, writers, thinkers, celebrities, and people across the world for the annual One Billion Rising (OBR) event to raise awareness of the plight of the more than one billion women and girls (roughly 1 in every 3) who will face physical and psychological abuse and rape as a part of their daily lives.

By bringing people together and raising greater awareness of this situation, OBR aims to bring about a fundamental change in the ways in which vulnerable and defenceless women and girls are treated.

Every February, we rise – in countries across the world – to show our local communities and the world what one billion looks like and shine a light on the rampant impunity and injustice that survivors most often face. We rise through dance to express joy and community and celebrate the fact that we have not been defeated by this violence. We rise to show we are determined to create a new kind of consciousness – one where violence will be resisted until it is unthinkable.

– from the OBR in SL 2021 announcement

One Billion Rising in Second Life 2021 will once again feature multiple regions focused on a central stage where 24 hours of continuous music from DJs and live performers will be provided, starting at midnight (00:00 SLT) on the 13th/14th February. Surrounding this will be art installations, informational exhibits, and more, with activities within them also scheduled throughout the 24 hours of the event to encourage attendance from as many times zones around the globe as possible, while all of the regions will be rated General to allow all residents an opportunity to participate.

This year, One Billion Rising in Second Life is adopting the global event’s theme: Rising Gardens, a theme designed to bring together the intersectional issues of poverty, the environment, economic violence and other factors such as climate change and environmental plunder can both cause and sustain the continuing violence towards women and girls (including cisgender, transgender, and those who hold fluid identities that are subject to gender based violence).

Rising Gardens, Rising for Climate Justice and Mother Earth is a call for justice against the aggressive greed and global exploitation of nature and people. It is a call to restore dignity, integrity and respect towards Mother Earth and to all people of the world, particularly women and girls, who have been equally violated by policies and programs that cause environmental degradation.

– One Billion Rising in SL

Event Support, Sponsorship and Press Applications

Applications are now being taken from those wishing to support OBR in SL 2021 as staff, or would like to help spread the word through blogs, etc., with further details on both via the following links:

• Staff and support application.
• Press Day application.

Those interested sponsoring the event should contact Kess Crystal in-world, while for general information and updates, please visit the OBR in SL website.

Note: The objective of One Billion Rising is to raise awareness, not to raise funds; however, information about real-world organisations providing assistance and support to women facing violence, prejudice, etc., will be available for those wishing to donate.

One Billion Rising in Second Life will once again be taking place in Second Life on Friday, February 14th, 2020. The event will officially commence at just after midnight SLT on the 13th/14th February with a live performance by Holly Giles. Activities will then run right through the 24 hours of February with music, dancing, art and events.

When launched in the physical world on Valentine’s Day 2012, One Billion Rising (OBR) was the biggest mass action in human history; a call to action based on the staggering statistic that 1 in 3 women on the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at 7 billion, this adds up to more than one billion women and girls who are at risk. OBR aims to bring people together, raise greater awareness of the plight of those at risk the world over, and bring about a fundamental change in how vulnerable and defenceless women and girls are treated.

This year follows the established format for OBR in Second Life, with four regions laid out to offer a central music / dance arena, around which sets and music sessions will move throughout the 24 hours of the event. In the surrounding parkland, and linked to the central stages and one another by trails and paths, are the landing points (with information givers), art exhibits, gardens, and additional event areas, such as the Poetry and Prose area.

Art installations this year include works by Instituto Español SL, Daark Gothly, iSky Silverweb, 2Lei, Jaz, Fran Gustav, Fifi Oh, Marcel Mosswood, FionaFei, Solkilde Auer, Ilyra Chardin, BB Woodford, Burners Without Borders in SL, Isadora Alaya, Campbell Hero Walk, Pixxe Snowpaw, and Darkstone Aeon.

In addition for 2020, there is a special exhibition: the OBR I Rise Campaign. In January 2020, Second Life artists and photographers were invited to produce original images for display at OBR in SL 2020. All of the images have been created from the heart and are intended to support the message of One Billion Rising: educating people about the plight of women. However, survivors may find some of the images uncomfortable. If this is the case, they are asked to reach out to event organisers if they feel they need support. All of the photographs can additionally be seen on the Campaign’s Flickr group.

In addition, the four corners of the OBR estate offer park areas, two of them with elevated aspects that offer views across the regions, while the #MeToo Forest on the Unite region presents a place of retreat and meditation / contemplation. Also within Unite is the Heroes’ Pavilion featuring inspirational stories about women from many different cultures and communities.

The full schedule of events is now available, covering all live performers, DJs, dance performances and poetry.

Why Dance?

A critique sometimes levelled at OBR / OBR in SL is that the issues it raises cannot be solved by dance. Well, that’s absolutely true, just as marching through the streets carrying placards and banners is unlikely to have a lasting impact on whatever it is people might be marching about.

But – like marches and protests, dance and music does serve to draw attention to matters. It provides a means by which people are encouraged to stop and think, and for information and ideas to be disseminated. What’s also important is that it’s a lot harder to see dancing as a threat than might be the case with an organised march or protest – something to take into consideration given there are countries where the right to march or protest freely does not exist. Hence why, as well, OBR in Second Life is marked each year with a dance video to the OBR theme song.

Practical Support

OBR in SL is not itself a fund-raising event, but exists as a means of raising awareness of violence against women and girls. If you’d like to show your support for organisations that work tirelessly throughout the year to bring about change, please visit the OBR in Second Life Non-Profits page for a short list of organisations.

One Billion Rising in Second Life 2020 will open its doors to the public shortly before midnight SLT on the 13th/14th February 2020. Do consider popping along and showing support during Friday, February 14th.

Related Links

• About One Billion Rising
• One Billion Rising official website
• One Billion Rising in Second Life website
• The OBR 2020 landing points:
  • OBR Unite
  • OBR Resist
  • OBR Dance
  • OBR Rise

One Billion Rising in Second Life will be marking its 7th anniversary on Friday, February 14th, 2020. This annual event in-world forms a part of the global One Billion Rising (OBR) event, first launched in 2012, and which is regarded as the biggest call to mass action in human history.

The aim of both OBR and OBR in SL is to raise awareness of the plight of the more than 1 billion women and girls (roughly 1 in every 3) who will face physical and psychological abuse and rape as a part of their daily lives. By bringing people together and raising greater awareness of this situation, OBR aims to bring about a fundamental change in the ways in which vulnerable and defenceless women and girls are treated.

We call on you this year to be braver, go deeper, reflect, study, listen, learn, awaken to what you don’t know, ask the difficult questions, engage, take actions, and push yourselves out of your comfort zones physically and intellectually. We call on you to commit to resistance and solidarity.

Because Rising is no longer a campaign – it is a way of life.

– from the OBR in SL 2020 announcement

One Billion Rising in Second Life 2020 will once again feature a 4-region stage where up to 200 people can come together at any one time during the 24 hours of the core event (starting at midnight (00:00) SLT on the 13th/14th February), to enjoy music from a range of DJs and live performers.

Surrounding this, across the the four regions will be art installations, informational exhibits, and an arena for poetry and dramatic productions. Activities will be scheduled throughout the 24 hours to encourage attendance from as many times zones around the globe as possible, while all of the regions will be rated General to allow all residents an opportunity to participate.

The theme of this year’s event is Solidarity, and it will be especially saluting the work and courage of women around the world who have made a difference in the global attitude towards violence and harm to women – check the One Billion Rising in SL website for details as they are published.

Note: this is not a fund-raising event; the primary objective of OBR is to raise awareness and understanding of the plight of women who face personal violence as part of their daily lives. However, the information kiosks and display areas will include links to physical world organisations for those wishing to donate to their continued work.

Event Support, Artist and Press Applications

Applications are now being taken from those wishing to support OBR in SL 2020 as staff or exhibiting artists, and from bloggers wishing to attend the preview press day. Please follow the links below for details:

• Staff and support application.
• Artist application.
• Press Day application.
• OBR in SL website.

One Billion Rising in Second Life will once again be taking place in Second Life on Thursday, February 14th, 2019, with the event officially commencing at just after midnight SLT on the 13th/14th February, with DJ Kess Crystal launching things. Activities will then run right through the 24 hours of the day with music, dancing, art and events.

When launched on Valentine’s Day 2012, One Billion Rising (OBR) was the biggest mass action in human history; a call to action based on the staggering statistic that 1 in 3 women on the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at 7 billion, this adds up to more than one billion women and girls who are at risk. OBR aims to bring people together, raise greater awareness of the plight of those at risk the world over, and bring about a fundamental change in how vulnerable and defenceless women and girls are treated.

This year’s event follows past OBR events in Second Life, with four regions laid out to offer a central music / dance arena, around which sets and sessions will move throughout the 24 hours of the event. In the  surrounding park lands, and linked to the central stages and one another by trails and paths, are art exhibits, gardens, and additional event areas, such as the Poetry and Prose area.

Also to be found within the regions is the pavilion honouring the work and courage of the joint Nobel Peace Prize winners in 2018, Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad “for their efforts to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war and armed conflict,” according to the Norwegian Nobel Committee announcement on October 5th, 2018 in Oslo, Norway.

The art installations this year include work by the team at 2Lei, Storm Septimus, Krystal Rabini, iSkye Silverweb, Slatan Dryke, Darkstone Aeon, FionaFei, Isadora Alaya (Otcoc), and Marcel Mosswood. The full event schedule is available via the OBR in SL website.

The Rose Challenge

Once again, gifts will be available to those attending One Billion Rising, and there will be a further Rose Challenge.

On offer is a beautiful pink-tipped rose, designed by Kilik Lekvoda, as a mark of both the event and to salute Nobel Peace Prize winners Murad and Mukwege.

The pin can be obtained by travelling around the One Billion Rising regions and counting the number of white rose bushes (kindly provided by Lilith Heart of Heart Botanicals) which are scattered around the four regions of the event, including between (but not a part of) the art installations and in the corner parks.

When you think you have the number (of bushes, remember – not individual flowers). Go to one of the four OBR landing zones and use the mail box there to post your total – your name will be automatically recorded with your total.

Why Dance?

A critique sometimes levelled at OBR / OBR in SL is that the issues it raises cannot be solved by dance. Well, that’s absolutely true, just as marching through the streets carrying placards and banners is unlikely to have a lasting impact on whatever it is people might be marching about.

However, like marches and protests, dance and music does serve to draw attention to matters. It provides a means by which people are encouraged to stop and think, and for information and ideas disseminated. What’s also important is that it’s a lot harder to see dancing as a threat than might be the case with an organised march or protest – something to take into consideration with countries in which the right to march or protest freely does not exist. Hence why, as well, OBR in Second Life is marked each year with a dance video to the event’s theme song.

Practical Support

OBR in SL is not itself a fund-raising event, but exists as a means of raising awareness of violence against women and girls. If you’d like to show your support for organisations that work tirelessly throughout the year to bring about change, please visit the OBR in Second Life Non-Profits page for a short list of organisations.

Related Links

• About One Billion Rising
• One Billion Rising official website
• One Billion Rising in Second Life website
• The OBR 2019 landing points (open to the public just before midnight SLT on February 13th/14th):
  • OBR Unite
  • OBR Resist
  • OBR Dance
  • OBR Rise