THE CHALLENGE

South Africa has one of the highest femicide rates in the world. In one year, 5,578 women were murdered, a 33.8% year-on-year increase. Government promises to tackle the crisis had gone unfulfilled, leaving victims forgotten and the public despairing that their voices were being ignored. Traditional protest was no longer cutting through. Women For Change needed to make the crisis impossible to overlook, restore the human weight behind the statistics, and create enough public pressure to compel formal action from those in power.

THE STRATEGY

South Africa’s government had become numb to protest. Another march risked being met with silence, but funerals hold a different power. In South African culture, funeral processions are sacred public acts of reverence, joined by communities and respected by authorities. So, we replaced protest with mourning as pressure. The idea was The Unburied Casket, a funeral procession for the thousands of women murdered. At its centre was a casket built 33.8% larger than standard to reflect the rise in femicide, shrouded in Zulu beadwork created by local female artisans, with each bead representing a murdered woman. Designed to be carried, witnessed, adopted and repeated, the casket made the crisis tangible, mobilised civil society and confronted government decision-makers with a symbolic refusal to let femicide remain buried.

THE EXECUTION

The casket was designed, built and covered in black, white and purple Zulu beadwork. It was lined with victims’ images, included a QR code linking to women’s stories on an interactive website, and carried a printed memorandum with 150,000+ petition signatures demanding action.

Led by bead artists and victims’ families, the casket moved through Pretoria in a live funeral procession to the Union Buildings, with victims’ names read aloud in public space. National media coverage, including live broadcast, extended the moment. A purple-avatar campaign, petition drive and landmark illuminations, including Table Mountain and Nelson Mandela Bridge, broadened participation. The casket then travelled across the country, appearing at the National Dialogue, WomenIN Conference and Women’s Shutdown ahead of the G20 Summit.

THE OUTCOME

The campaign generated 1.1M+ petition signatures from 13,000 cities, 2B+ earned impressions, 2,400+ earned articles and coverage across 435+ media outlets. Donations to Women For Change increased 9x and an internationally funded support line launched.

The colour Purple was adopted as a national symbol of solidarity not only amplified by celebrities and across the nation’s social media, but national landmarks were also lit purple.

Above all, the President of South Africa classified femicide and gender-based violence a national disaster, helping unlock coordinated national action and resources.