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Let’s End Violence

Violence is everywhere: at home, in the streets, and at school. Every day it increases, thus causing a lot of damage to various people. Violence has different meanings, some of which are the use of force, the infliction of damage by one or more people, the intention of doing damage, and forcing the victim to give or do something they do not want, among others.

As everyone knows, there are various types of violence around the world. In most cases, the victims are children and adolescents under 18 years of age. Violence is the intention to physically or mentally hurt a person or a group of people voluntarily; this can lead to injuries, poor development, deprivation, and even death.

In Paraguay, intra-family violence is the most frequent. Most of the time, the victims are women who suffer different types of violence, whether physical or psychological. Because violence has increased in the country, people are more caring every day and do everything possible to help and support people who have suffered violence. People are providing support to the victims. There are non-profit centers and foundations where victims can seek help. The centers for protection against violence provide legal advice and trial advocacy to guarantee compliance with the law. There are also foundations whose main purposes are to conduct workshops against abuse, and webinars on topics such as “Prevention of Violence Against Women” and “Building a Support Route in Cases of Violence.”

Since 2019 I have been part of the Super Kids Foundation, which teaches children from different backgrounds and schools to read and write. What we always bear in mind when teaching is that violence does not make children learn faster; what we do is teach with love, which is one of the things I like to do the most, and it makes me feel proud. There are great results when teaching with love. We show students that violence is never an option. Beyond that, we sometimes talk about how to act in cases of violence toward others or ourselves. I love these talks because they make me feel safe and prepared.

I believe that by listening, having a dialogue, offering support, and creating more organizations that can help, we can provide the necessary tools to fight against violence. Violence is never an option when teaching or educating. Educate with love and be the teacher you always wanted to have.

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Liz Fabiola is a 14-year-old from Coronel Oviedo, Paraguay. When she is free she really likes to draw, paint, read, write, and study maps, cities, and flags from different countries. Liz loves learning new languages and traveling to meet new people, see new places, and get to know their cultures. She is passionate about teaching other children to read and doing volunteer work.