People are Painting Black Dots on Their Hands and It's Going Viral, Hereand#039;s Why

These last few days, the Internet has been stormed by an important social media campaign, which is encouraging people to post pictures of a black dot painted on their hands. But this is no ordinary campaign and the people posting these pictures aren’t doing so mindlessly to follow or support a noble cause that boosts their social media status.

The Black Dot Campaign on Facebook is encouraging domestic abuse victims to draw a black dot on their hands in the hope that it acts as a subtle yet powerful marker to alert people around them about their situation.

Domestic abuse is a global social evil. Women are often the victims of such violence at the hands of their partners. And yet asking for help or talking about it does not always seem like the safest option. The campaign allows survivors to open up about their situation, without having to say a word.

Just by making an effort to paint that black dot, women can leave a message to friends, relatives, doctors and other people and services that they need their help to escape the torment.

Launched only a few weeks ago by an anonymous creator, the campaign has reached over 5 million people on Facebook. It has been supported by numerous domestic abuse survivors, who are now boldly coming forward by painting dots on their hands as a symbol to show that they survived the abuse, which so many more are enduring now.

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If a campaign like this can generate support and bring change in the US, in just a matter of days, it can surely help people in India too. Domestic violence is a prevalent problem in our male-dominated country and we desperately need out-of-the-box ideas like this campaign to spread awareness to deal with the situation.

Image Via Facebook

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