On October 12th, V-Day activist and The Vagina Monologues cast member at San Diego City College's upcoming V-Day production, Diana Gonzalez, was found dead in a men's room at the college's downtown campus. Diana was 19-years old, studying to become a nurse and the mother of a 10-month-old baby girl. The main person of interest in the death is her husband Armando Gabriel Perez.
All of us at V-Day are deeply saddened and outraged by this and our sympathies go out to her family and friends. Diana was a part of the global V-Day community and she will be sorely missed. Though it can be hard to move forward in difficult times such as these, Diana's story serves as a sad and striking reminder of why we do this work, why ending violence against women and girls is so crucial for the future of our planet, and why raising awareness about the issue is integral. Diana is in our thoughts as we enter the 2011 V-Season, we continue to work every day in honor of Diana and the countless other victims and survivors, to keep women safe, until the violence stops.
For the second year, V-Day Founder/Artistic Director Eve Ensler spoke at The Women's Conference: The Nations Premier Forum For Women hosted by California First Lady Maria Shriver. Eve's powerful speech, entitled "The Gift Of Cancer," received a standing ovation from the sold out crowd and is currently available to read and/or watch online.