An estimated 1.3 million women are victims of physical assault by an intimate partner each year in the United States. The Women’s Resource Center on campus not only advocates for women but encourages men to take action as well in its White Ribbon Campaign.

The White Ribbon Campaign originally began in Canada in 1991 and was started by activist Michael Kaufman and politician Jack Layton. The campaign is centered around men taking the pledge to end all violence against women. Monday, men of all ages and backgrounds will attend the White Ribbon Forum, which allows men to speak out against domestic violence and the ways to stop the cycle and get both men and women the help they need.

“I thought it would be very important to only have men on the panel as well as Monday when we ask the entire male community to wear white in support of the campaign,” said Eric Patterson, a graduate student who works for the White Ribbon Campaign.

Patterson will be expanding the campaign by filming interviews with the men’s swimming and diving coach, the men’s baseball coach and the women’s softball coach about how they will be taking the pledge. Those behind the campaign are hoping to have the interviews available to the public by the end of the month on the Women’s Resource Center YouTube channel.

White ribbons will be handed out at the forum to men so they may show their solidarity. Monday, men are advised to wear white to support women in the fight against domestic violence.

George Daniels, an associate professor in the journalism department, teaches a class called “Race, Gender, and Media,” which not only teaches students about how violence and masculinity are portrayed in society, but also the ways they can learn from it. Daniels will be one of speakers at the forum.

“In the news business we get too many stories like this. We get too many stories with domestic violence,” Daniels said. “I wish I could give this wonderful story about how someone I knew was killed or something like that, but I know that there are enough people who die from domestic violence. Putting on pants and a white shirt for a day is not too much to ask.”

Jessi Hitchens, a graduate student and the assistant director at the Women’s Resource Center, will present a woman’s point of view of the campaign. Hitchens said she feels it is important for men to stand up against domestic violence.

“We really want to hear our male voices stand up, because women have been standing up against violence for a long time, and we can’t do it by ourselves,” Hitchins said. “We can’t change our society alone, so we really need men to speak up and interrupt the violence.”