Violence Thrives in Silence (and we're Done Being Quiet)
- Betty Chatzipli
- Nov 25
- 7 min read
“Your strength is not defined by what you endured, but by what you refuse to tolerate next.” — Betty Chatzipli
Today, the world pauses for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, a day that shouldn’t need to exist, yet must. Not because women are fragile, but because the world has been far too comfortable with their suffering. Because silence has been convenient and pain has been normalized. Because entire systems have been built on women’s endurance instead of women’s safety. Violence against women isn’t “a women’s issue.” It is a human issue, a leadership issue, a cultural issue and above all, a moral issue. One that calls for honesty, courage, and transformation, not pity.
And the first step to transformation is truth.
The World as it Is, Not as we Pretend it to Be
The numbers are impossible to ignore:
1 in 3 women worldwide — roughly 840 million women — have experienced physical or sexual violence (source).
316 million women were harmed by an intimate partner in just the last 12 months (source).
In 2023, 51,100 women were killed by partners or family members — one woman every ten minutes (source).
In conflict zones and crisis settings, the rates skyrocket to 70% (source).
And despite this global emergency, only 0.2% of development aid goes toward preventing violence against women (source).
Behind every number is a life interrupted, a dream paused, a voice muted, a future reshaped.
But behind every woman who survives, there is something else too: resilience, clarity, and a fierce hunger for change. Women do not survive because they are built for suffering. Women survive because they were never meant to be broken.
The Truth Few Want to Say Aloud
Violence against women isn’t only physical.
It is:
the intimidation that silences her,
the harassment she’s expected to tolerate,
the emotional manipulation that erases her boundaries,
the financial control designed to keep her small,
the institutions that fail to protect her,
the systems that look away when she speaks.
Violence is not always loud. Sometimes it is quiet — so quiet it hides in plain sight. But women feel it anyway. And women everywhere, in every country, every culture, every age group, are rising with the same message:
"We are done asking for safety. We are demanding it."
The World as it Can Be, if Women Lead the Change
Here is what the statistics don’t tell us:
Women are not Waiting for Permission to Build Safer Futures
From grassroots organizers to women’s empowerment coaches, from activists to mothers, from teenagers speaking up in classrooms to CEOs rewriting policy in boardrooms, women are shaping a new narrative:
a world where safety is a right, not a privilege, where boundaries are respected, where girls grow up unafraid and where women finally stop apologizing for taking up space.
Violence does not End with Awareness Alone
Violence ends when women are heard, believed, supported, and empowered. It ends when we stop treating violence as an inevitable part of the female experience and when every woman recognizes something essential: her voice is power, her choices are power, her boundaries are power.
Why this Fight Belongs to Every Woman
Even if she has never experienced violence, every woman knows its shadow. Every woman has gripped her keys in a parking lot, changed her clothes to avoid attention, texted a friend to say she got home safe, avoided a street, a bar, a staircase, a conversation, a man. Safety is not something women “earn.” It is something women deserve by existing.
And when women step into empowerment — not as a slogan but as a way of living — the world changes around them.
Empowered women:
set boundaries that silence abusers,
raise daughters who walk tall,
raise sons who do not confuse strength with domination,
transform workplaces,
re-write family patterns,
inspire communities,
challenge harmful norms without fear,
hold institutions accountable.
Empowered women don’t just heal themselves. They heal the world.
Practical Steps We Can Take — Not Tomorrow, But Today
Change doesn’t come from rhetoric alone. It comes from intentional action. Here are concrete steps every woman, and every ally, can take to build a world that doesn’t hurt women:
1. Learn the Early Signs of Control
Violence rarely begins with a blow. Notice the warning signs, such as jealousy, surveillance, isolation, coercive financial demands, or even subtle put-downs. Recognizing control early is one of the strongest prevention tools.
2. Build your Safety Network
Identify at least three people — friends, family, or mentors — who you can call in crisis. Agree on a code word. Keep a hidden list of emergency contacts.
Here are some international hotlines and support services you can access from anywhere:
UN Women / Safe Cities and Safe Public Spaces Global Initiative
Offers guidance and connects women to local support worldwide. (unwomen.org)
WAVE (Women Against Violence Europe)
Find Help Database. Lists shelters, hotlines, and support services in 46 European countries, useful for general international reference. (wave-network.org)
National Domestic Violence Hotline (USA)
24/7 support via phone, chat, or text; can also connect you with local international resources. (thehotline.org)
RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, USA)
Online and phone-based support, with referrals worldwide. (rainn.org)
Women’s Aid (UK)
Guidance, online chat, and information about local shelters; can help women connect across borders. (womensaid.org.uk)
Refuge International Hotline Directories
Offers country-specific hotlines and safe spaces globally. (refuge.org.uk)
Tip: Even if you don’t need help right now, save these numbers and links. One day, they — or someone you care about — might be life-saving.
3. Document Everything
If you feel unsafe, start keeping records: screenshots of texts, photos of injuries, dates, and times. This is not “just memory” — documentation is a powerful tool for legal action and later healing.
4. Protect your Digital Life
Abuse often follows online. Strengthen your digital security by using strong passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, checking devices for tracking software, and never sharing real-time location publicly.
5. Set and Defend your Boundaries
Decide on your “no more” lines — things that are non-negotiable for you (yelling, insults, intimidation, threats). Speak them aloud, rehearse how you’ll say them, and lean on your support network to back you up.
6. Empower Yourself Financially
Violence often thrives in financial dependence. Start small:
Save just €10/week
Learn a new skill or take a free digital course
Explore remote work or flexible work options
Global Fund for Women and UN Women’s initiatives provide holistic support for survivors, including financial empowerment programs, skills training, and case management worldwide.
Global Fund for Women
UN Women – Ending Violence Against Women Programs
7.Download an App that Increases your Personal Safety
There are several apps designed to improve personal safety, especially for women. Here are some trusted ones:
WomanAid — SOS button, audio recording, live tracking, and scenario-based protections. WomanAid
bSafe — lets you share your live location, stream video, send SOS alerts to trusted contacts. bSafe
Noonlight — hold a button in the app, and if you release it without entering your PIN, it sends help to your location. Noonlight
Epowar — detects attacks using motion and heart rate, sends SOS alerts, records evidence, and offers aftercare. Epowar
Tip: No app is a guarantee of safety, but they can significantly increase your security by alerting people you trust, recording evidence, or even contacting emergency services — use them alongside practical safety strategies (like having a safety network, planning, and knowing local emergency numbers).
8. Engage Men as Allies
Change is not women’s alone to carry. Ask men in your life to:
Speak up against sexist jokes
Model healthy masculinity
Learn about consent as more than a concept — as a way of life
9. Offer Trauma-aware Support
When a survivor speaks, listen. Don’t ask why she stayed, ask how you can help. Believe her. Provide space, not pressure. Help her to find professional support.
10. Share Safely, Stand Loudly
Stories break stigma. Encourage safe storytelling, either in anonymized forums, community groups, or through survivor-led organizations. Sharing is powerful; healing is collective.
Why these Steps Matter — because this Is Leadership, not just Survival
Ending violence isn’t about charity. It’s about justice. It’s not a favor. It’s a right. When women take these steps (learning, organizing, demanding) they are acting as leaders in their own lives. They rebuild broken systems, not just repair individual wounds. When a woman says “no more,”she is not just rejecting violence, she is refusing to pass it on to the next generation. When a woman reclaims her voice, she inspires others to reclaim theirs. When a woman recognizes her worth, she becomes unstoppable. And when millions of women do this at once, a cultural revolution begins.
A Message to Every Woman Reading this
If you have ever been silenced, minimized, frightened, or dismissed —
this is not your fault. This is not your shame. Neither is your burden to carry, or your destiny to fulfill.
Your story is not over, your power is not gone and your voice is not too late.
You are allowed to:
walk away,
set boundaries,
raise your standards,
be loud,
be seen,
demand safety,
demand respect,
demand a life free from fear.
You are allowed to want joy, freedom, peace, and a life that feels like your own.
The Call to Action: a World that Does not Hurt Women Must Start with us
Violence ends when:
women tell their stories without shame,
communities refuse to look away,
workplaces prioritize safety,
men step forward as allies,
institutions enforce accountability,
girls grow up understanding their worth,
women support other women — loudly, fiercely, and without hesitation.
Every woman who refuses to accept violence is rewriting history. Every woman who speaks, stands, educates, empowers, heals, supports, advocates, and leads is pushing the world forward. And together, we are unstoppable.
Today, and Every Day after
Violence against women is not a statistic — it is a global emergency demanding global courage. Today is a reminder, as well as is an invitation.
An invitation to rise, to speak, to believe in your worth, to take up space, to protect other women and to demand a world that finally protects you back.
This is not just a day of awareness. It is a day of awakening. And women everywhere — including you — are leading the way.
Written by Betty Chatzipli
Betty is an experienced Mentor and Women’s Empowerment Coach with a multifaceted background in Art History, Business Development, and PR. She is the Founder & CEO of Expert on Your Life, LLC, where she offers one-on-one coaching and designs transformative programs that help women build essential skills. She also runs her blog, The Rise of She, where she writes extensively on women’s empowerment, focusing on personal growth and resilience. Contact: lifecoach@expertonyourlife.com
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