V-Day Presents Turning Pain to Power

V-Day Breaks Silence on Congos Brutal Rape Crisis with Five-City Turning Pain to Power Tour. Featuring Eve Ensler and Dr. Denis Mukwege The Vagina Monologues Playwright and V-Day Founder Eve Ensler Joins UN Human Rights Award-Winning Doctor in NYC, LA, SF, Atlanta and DC to Raise Awareness New York, NY (January 15, 2009) To combat rampant rape and mutilation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) that has affected hundreds of thousands of women, V-Day, the global movement to end violence against women and girls, announced today a tour to raise urgent new awareness of the DRC crisis. The five-city Turning Pain to Power Tour will take place this February, making stops in New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Atlanta, and Washington, DC. Events on the tour will feature Dr. Denis Mukwege, founder of the DRCs PANZI Hospital in Bukavu, and playwright/V-Day founder Eve Ensler. Honored by the UN in December 2008 for his humanitarian work and winner of the African of the Year Award, Mukwege joins Ensler, the founder/artistic director of V-Day, and the award-winning author of The Vagina Monologues, in exposing femicide and the sexual torture of women in the DRC, and relaying the stories of women survivors on the ground who are coming together and breaking the silence. During public conversations with Ensler, Dr. Mukwege will describe his experiences treating and performing life-saving fistula surgery on thousands of Congolese women and girls destroyed by unspeakable rape and mutilation. Their conversations will also explore the causes of the brutality, ways to stop the ongoing femicide, and Congos growing movement of women leaders. The tour is in support of V-Days joint campaign with UNICEF STOP RAPING OUR GREATEST RESOURCE: POWER TO WOMEN AND GIRLS OF THE DRC – which is exposing the devastating impact of rape on Congolese womens health, their families and their communities; calling for specific measures to end impunity for perpetrators; economically and socially empowering women and girls to lead in the prevention of sexual violence and in the rebuilding of a country devastated by conflict; building and opening the City of Joy in conjunction with PANZI Hospital and Dr. Mukwege, a center where survivors will be provided with support to heal and training to further develop their leadership and life skills. What were seeing in the DRC is a war being enacted on the bodies of women that is conscious and intentional – it is the systematic destruction of the female population of the Congo, said Ensler. But after three trips to the Congo in the last eighteen months, I have seen the spirit and strength of the Congolese women translated into a burgeoning movement which is turning pain to power. The Turning Pain to Power Tour has been made possible by generous support from Open Square Foundation, which is putting a strategic focus on ending violence against women in the DRC. Turning Pain to Power Tour featuring Dr. Denis Mukwege In Conversation with Eve Ensler – Itinerary is as follows: Wednesday, February 11, 8PM New York, NY Dr. Denis Mukwege In Conversation with Eve Ensler, introduced by Anne Veneman, Executive Director of UNICEF Location: 92nd Street Y – Kaufmann Concert Hall Lexington at 92nd Street, NYC Tickets: $27, on sale now For tickets and more info, visit http://www.92y.org/shop/event_detail.asp?productid=T%2DLC5WL10″>http://www.92y.org/shop/event_detail.asp?productid=T%2DLC5WL10 Saturday, February 14, 8PM Los Angeles, CA V-Day USC Performance of The Vagina Monologues with special guest speakers Eve Ensler and Dr. Denis Mukwege Location: USC Campus, Bovard Auditorium, 3601 Trousdale Parkway, L Tickets: $18 general admission, $12 students on sale now http://www-scf.usc.edu/~vday/Vagina_Monologues.html”>http://www-scf.usc.edu/~vday/Vagina_Monologues.html (Student tickets must be bought with an ID either from the Student Union Building 100, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Mon-Fri, or email: mailto:solters@usc.edu solters@usc.edu ) Wednesday, February 18, 6:30PM Redwood City, CA The World Affairs Council and Global Philanthropy Forum host Dr. Denis Mukwege interviewed by Eve Ensler Location: Hotel Sofitel, Redwood City Tickets: $25 Members and Non-Members, $15 Students on sale now http://www.itsyourworld.org/assnfe/ev.asp?ID=2418″>http://www.itsyourworld.org/assnfe/ev.asp?ID=2418 Thursday, February 19, 8PM San Francisco, CA City Arts & Lectures Art & Politics features Dr. Denis Mukwege interviewed by Eve Ensler, Location: Herbst Theater, San Francisco Tickets: $20, on sale now For tickets and more info, visit http://www.cityarts.net/n.mukwege.html”>http://www.cityarts.net/n.mukwege.html Monday, February 23, 8PM Atlanta, GA Dr. Denis Mukwege In Conversation with Eve Ensler Location: The Carter Center Tickets: to be announced Wednesday, February 25 Washington, DC Dr. Denis Mukwege In Conversation with Eve Ensler Location: Howard University Tickets: to be announced Events are subject to change For more information about the tour and V-Days campaign on Democratic Republic of Congo, visit vday.org. To receive the latest tour information, sign up for V-Mail at vday.org/vmail. To read the recent The New York Times article – Rape Victims Words Help Jolt Congo Into Change October 19, 2008, visit http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/18/world/africa/18congo.html?hp”>http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/18/world/africa/18congo.html?hp About V-Day V-Day is a global movement to end violence against women and girls that raises funds and awareness through benefit productions of Playwright/Founder Eve Enslers award winning play The Vagina Monologues and other artistic works. In 2008, over 4000 V-Day benefit events took place produced by volunteer activists in the U.S. and around the world, educating millions of people about the reality of violence against women and girls. To date, the V-Day movement has raised over $60 million and educated millions about the issue of violence against women and the efforts to end it, crafted international educational, media and PSA campaigns, launched the Karama program in the Middle East, reopened shelters, and funded over 10,000 community-based anti-violence programs and safe houses in Democratic Republic Of Congo, Haiti, Kenya, South Dakota, Egypt and Iraq. V-Day was named one of Worth magazine’s “100 Best Charities” in 2001 and Marie Claires Top Ten Charities in 2006. The ‘V’ in V-Day stands for Victory, Valentine and Vagina. http://www.vday.org http://www.vday.org Contacts: Susan Celia Swan (917) 865-6603, mailto:press@vday.org press@vday.org Margaret Bensfield, (212) 751-3476, mailto:mbensfield@groupsjr.com mbensfield@groupsjr.com http://newsite.vday.org/”>http://newsite.vday.org/