THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 8 | REHEARSAL FOR ONE BILLION RISING

We have been proud to be a part of supporting Taos' One Billion Rising event every Valentine's Day since its inception. One again, Aurafitness will donate space and practice time, along with dance instructor and event organizer Julia Daye, so that anyone can learn the dance moves to "Break The Chain" and be part of this beautiful empowerment.

One Billion Rising is the biggest annual global action to end violence against women in history. The campaign, launched on Valentine’s Day 2012, began as a call to action based on the staggering statistic that 1 in 3 women will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at 7 billion, this adds up to more than ONE BILLION WOMEN AND GIRLS. An annual worldwide revolution for body and body sovereignty, One Billion Rising is a call to action to the people of the world to rise in dance against sexual and domestic violence.

In dancing in our streets and town centers around the world every February 14th, the people of this planet come back to the scene of the crime in both our bodies and in public space, two spaces where women are constantly reminded are unsafe for them. In returning to these troubled places empowered and unified, we embody a new paradigm—a paradigm of emancipation, self-love, peace, confidence, respect, and community.

For this year's Taos rising, we will be doing our annual "Break The Chain" dance, followed by a community march through the center of town (starting and ending in Taos Plaza), poetry, community calls to action, and finishing with a free dance-rising celebration at the end for the whole community! As always, this event is free and open to the public.

Participation in the "Break The Chain" dance is not required to participate on February 14th, but a fun part of the annual tradition. The song and sequence has served as a dance anthem for the OBR movement since 2013 and all are invited to participate in this part of the rising in whatever way feels most fun and expressive to them! Free community rehearsals to learn and practice the dance will be offered prior to the OBR event: Join us Thursday, February 8 from 6-7PM at Aurafitness.

#love #dance #activism