Users on TikTok and other social media platforms will have noticed an odd occurrence: multiple people, including celebrities, have turned their profile pictures purple, but why exactly is this happening?
Turning your profile picture purple is a sign of supporting the Women for Change movement, a movement originating in South Africa after femicide rates went up 83% in one month alone. Femicide is the murder of women, and South Africa has experienced immense reports of domestic violence against women in the last year.
The Women for Change movement is a call to action for women to stay safe during the day in South Africa to protect themselves against violent individuals. This movement is calling out the unbelievably high femicide rates and prompting the government to declare it a national emergency immediately.
This movement blew up on TikTok, Instagram and Twitter, with numerous people changing their profile picture to purple to show their support for the women in South Africa. This movement reached ordinary citizens and celebrities alike, with popular figures like singer Tyla changing their profile pictures to support the movement. It’s even reached FVHS sophomores Yalimar Lopez-Cortes and Jordan Abel.
“I’ve never been so unsettled before. Hundreds of thousands of women are being massacred every day in South Africa and barely anyone is talking about it. It’s disgusting how little attention this gets. I want to support the women by changing my TikTok profile picture to all purple. I can’t do much, but I just thought this was better than nothing,” Lopez-Cortes said.
The movement is moving slowly but surely across social media, with supporters growing each and every day.
“It’s really disturbing how high the femicide rates are. Femicide shouldn’t exist, period, so seeing it so high just breaks my heart. I changed my Instagram profile picture to support the poor women in South Africa. My heart hurts for them,” Abel said.
You can join the support movement by going on to your Instagram, SnapChat, TikTok, etc and changing your profile picture to the color purple or visiting the website https://womenforchange.co.za/.
