Every November 25, the world observes the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. On February 7, 2000, the United Nations General Assembly officially designated the day. They asked governments and other international organizations to join the cause to end violence, particularly against women. However, there was a bigger story behind the date, one honoring the lives of the Mirabal sisters.

The three siblings were assassinated on November 25, 1960, by the Rafael Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic. Activists against the regime, the sisters Minerva, María Teresa, and Patria were known by their code name “Mariposas.” They led the anti-Trujillo movement alongside their husbands. Despite the government brutally killing them as they returned home from visiting their husbands in jail, their resistance wasn’t in vain. Today, they still remind us of the importance of activism and standing up for women’s rights.

The Mirabal Sisters symbolize resistance against human rights violations and violence against women

When Rafael Trujillo’s officers murdered the Mirabal sisters, their death was reported as an “automobile accident.” According to History.com, during Trujillo’s regime the country endured intimidation, torture, imprisonment, the kidnapping and rape of women, and murder. Trujillo was responsible for the massacre of more than 20,000 Haitians in 1937 that lived on the border between Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

In the early 1960s, Minerva, Patria and María Teresa and their husbands became part of the resistance leadership. They helped form the June 14th movement. Despite their violent deaths, they soon became martyrs of the revolution they helped start. Their surviving sister, Dedé, ensured her sisters’ legacy, which includes a museum and raising their children. The story of the sisters also rose to prominence with Julia Alvarez’s novel In the Time of the Butterflies.

During Dedé’s life, she spread the word about the tragedy of her sisters’ death, raising national and international outrage. Thanks to this, the international community resisted Trujillo while also rejecting dictatorships, corruption, and human rights violations.

Gender-based violence continues to be an issue today – here’s what to do about it

Despite societal advances, violence against women continues to be rampant worldwide. According to UN Women statistics, an estimated 736 million women have been subjected to physical or sexual intimate partner violence, non-partner sexual violence, or both at least once in their lives. Additionally, more than 640 million women 15 and older have been subjected to intimate partner violence by their current or past husbands or intimate partners.

Even more, in 2023, approximately 51,1000 women and girls were murdered by their intimate partners or other family members. UN Women statistics show that intimate partners or family members perpetuate 60 percent of all femicide. That’s not all. Women are more vulnerable to abuse when they face war, poverty, or live in high-conflict areas. Child marriage rates are also 4 percent higher in conflict-affected areas.

Although these issues are still prevalent, we can still organize for change. After all, women can’t live safely in a society that doesn’t value their safety. If you want to join the action to end gender-based violence, you can join the UN’s 16 Days of Action Against Gender-Based Violence, demand the president pass legal protections based on sex in the United States by passing the Equa Rights Amendment, and become part of community members who are helping end violence.