Seven months pregnant, and with a soft glow to her face, Australian born actress and UN goodwill ambassador, Nicole Kidman, spoke yesterday in support of a global campaign that aims to protect women against violence and abuse, as well as to prevent all forms of female victimization; an all too common practice in many (if not most) places of the world.
Since 2006, 40 year old Nicole Kidman has been a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations’ development fund for women, known as UNIFEM. She has since made many important contributions to the movement; and economic funds for the campaign have more than tripled since her appointment. Political support has skyrocketed as well.
Yesterday afternoon, at the UN headquarters in New York, Kidman talked about the shocking, yet commonly ignored situation of many female victims of the world:
One in three women will encounter violence in some way, shape or form against them in their lifetime, that’s an extraordinary statistic..
This incredible and sad statistic is one of the main reasons why this global awareness campaign is so important, a point well stressed by Nicole Kidman and Joanne Sandler; Executive Director of UNIFEM. The campaign urges governments everywhere to make the issue of violence against women one of its top prioritized; as it might be even more common than suspected, due to the characteristic silence and shame that usually accompanies abuse. Beyond that, women of some cultures constantly withstand abuse, indifferent to the concept, idea, or fact that they’re actually suffering a violation, an undeserved stripping of their “universally accepted,” fundamental human rights.
Being herself a sensitive, educated, and profound human being, as well as an experienced (and expectant) mother, it would be easy to understand where Nicole Kidman’s humanitarian streak of passion might arise from. However, many might be pleasantly surprised to know there are a few additional sources as well. The actress explained that as a child, she was raised within a nurturing, yet-realistic environment by a loving psychologist father and a feminist-nurse mother, both of whom believed in teaching their children about the pressing, important issues of the world.
Taking all this into consideration, in addition to Kidman’s popularity and long record of success in all undertaken projects, one can easily understand why she’s considered to be such a valuable asset to the campaign against female victimization. Many get a sense of relief and comfort from Nicole Kidman and her humanitarian views. And, some are even hoping that in the near future, Nicole Kidman may join hands with Angelina Jolie, Madonna, and (hopefully) many other strong, commited ladies, in order to become a valuable tool in the education of Hollywood itself, by inspiring the sidetraked portion of its youth to use its fame and talents to achieve great and meaningful things, as opposed to the mere ‘scoring’ of VIP tables, and the slurping of free Cristal. At least I am.
Tonight, I’m feeling hopeful and inspired. Women are rocking the world, and people everywhere are cheering them on. And, tonight I’m sure that someday all these goals and prayers will be met and answered, thanks to all the men and wonderful women who actually move, unite, and take a stand.
Womens RULE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Go Kidman!!
😉