YWCA Week Without Violence 2025
For more than 20 years, YWCAs across the U.S. have set aside one week in October as a Week Without Violence—an initiative to raise awareness of the realities of gender-based violence and to encourage action with the goal of ending harm against women and girls everywhere.
We know that not all violence is acknowledged or responded to equally, and that some victims go unrecognized altogether. That’s why we focus on ending gender-based violence, including domestic violence, intimate partner violence, sexual assault, trafficking, and harassment.
This year, we invite you to join us from October 18 - 23 as we move beyond resilience, supporting women and girls to not only survive, but thrive. We honor the deep significance of resilience in surviving violence and also aim to collectively work towards healing and building thriving futures for survivors that include replenishment, rest, and recovery.
Our 2025 theme, Safe Beginnings: Protecting Mothers, Nurturing Futures, is about how we can support mothers and their children as they build hopeful, healthier futures. YWCA GP is hosting a webinar on Tuesday, October 21 from 6:00 - 7:30 p.m. with local leaders and subject matter experts to discuss this topic and its intricacies. Register now to join.
Discussion Questions to Generate Ideas of a World Without Violence
We know a better world is possible, but what would that world look like? Imagining what we want our communities to have (and not have) in the future is an important piece of bringing that future to fruition. It gives us thoughtful goals to work towards and a clear picture of what we’re fighting for. It can get us motivated and bring us hope.
Below are questions to ask your family, friends, colleagues, neighbors—anyone who you’d like to brainstorm a better world with. Don’t feel limited by what’s currently considered possible or impossible. Allow for radical imagination based on the needs, wants, and values of your communities.
In a dream world where anything is possible, what would my neighborhood look and be like?
What physical, material changes are needed to make my local community look more like the one I envisioned?
What nonmaterial changes are needed to improve the wellbeing of people in my community?
How do I define violence?
How would my and my loved ones’ lives be changed if all violence was eradicated?
What would peace and freedom from violence look like for me?
What is the difference between surviving and thriving?
What are some of my and my community’s strengths?
How can I actively grow my relationships with my fellow community members?
