On March 8 in New York City, the Diamond Manufacturers and Importers Association of America joined the U.N. Women for Peace for the first annual March to End Violence Against Women.

Hundreds of supporters—including U.N. representatives and celebrities such as Susan Sarandon, Christy Turlington, and Kelly Rutherford—marched from the United Nations building on East 42nd Street to Dag Hammarskjold Park on 47th Street.

“This first gathering of women from around the world to voice their support for all countries to end violence and other inhuman abuses against women and children was a moving experience and a heartening event,” DMIA member Barbara Winston said in a statement. “For us, American women who work in New York’s diamond, gem, and jewelry industry and trade, it offered an opportunity to show our organization’s and our personal commitment to try and make if only a bit of a difference.”

JCK