Sir Patrick Stewart calls on ‘one million men’ to promise an end to violence against women

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NEW YORK—Sir Patrick Stewart stood in the center of the Diplomat Ballroom at the UN Hotel here on Friday, pounding his fist methodically against a podium, each thump punctuated with a number (“One … two … three …”) until he got to nine.

“Every nine seconds a woman is assaulted or beaten in the United States,” Stewart said.

The 72-year-old British-born actor, best known for his roles in “X-Men” and “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” served as host for the launch of “Ring The Bell,” a global campaign calling on one million men to make one million “concrete, actionable promises” to end violence against women.

“Violence against women is the single greatest human rights violation of our generation,” Stewart said.

“This is a call to action—not an act that will make things better in six months or a year’s time,” he continued. “This is action that might save a life today, or tonight, or tomorrow.”