Students will dance, sing, and hear stories from abuse survivors in an effort to stop domestic violence.

The WSU V-Day club and UREC teamed up to offer a 1 Billion Rising event for the community. V-Day is a global organization combating domestic violence toward women. Launched on Valentine’s Day in 2012, the 1 Billion Rising campaign aimed to raise awareness of the staggering statistic that 1 in 3 women will be beaten or raped in her lifetime. Considering the world population is 7 billion, this adds up to more than 1 billion women.

“We hope that students, faculty, staff and community members will gain an understanding and awareness of the violence against women and girls that takes place globally,” said V-Day WSU Graduate Coordinator Diana Anucinski.

The event will be held from noon to 1 p.m. today in the CUB Senior Ballroom and is free to the public and everyone is encouraged to attend. The event will include a free Zumba class and information tables from V-Day WSU, Alternatives to Violence of the Palouse, Green Dot and UREC, Anucinski said.

“It is a call to survivors to break the silence and release their stories – politically, spiritually, outrageously – through art, dance, marches, ritual, song, spoken word, testimonies and whatever way feels right,” Anucinski said.

Anucinski said V-Day WSU has partnered with UREC to coordinate the 1 Billion Rising event for the past two years with great success. The event helps raise awareness for the V-Day club so people can get involved, she said.

“We have chosen to do Zumba so that survivors of violence and those that know someone who has been impacted by violence can gather safely in a community setting outside places where they are entitled to justice – courthouses, police stations, government offices, school administration buildings, work places, etc.”

A participant does not have to be a woman or a violence survivor to participate in the event, she said.

“We are hoping that not only women, but all members of the WSU and surrounding communities will feel empowered by this event,” Anucinski said.

Reporting by Brookelynn Graditi