Women's Shelters in Afghanistan

October is a difficult month as we recognize Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence. Recently, there have been articles acknowledging that one of the justifications for our fight in Afghanistan was to liberate women. Ten years later, there have been few strides forward, and some steps backward, and we have begun to see it isn’t as simple as some had imagined.

In the U.S., we want our government to step up for us and offer protection. It doesn’t always happen that way, but we do have that expectation.

This morning, NPR reported a victory for women in Afghanistan. Last year, there was talk about putting women’s shelters under the Afghan government. There was an outcry from women’s rights activists saying that by doing so, they would create a prison environment. The law said that before women could enter the shelters, they would government approval and to submit to virginity tests.

In recent months, there has been progress in making the law more acceptable and allowing the shelters to continue to be independent. However, something they are continuing to fight to change is the regulation that a woman leaving the shelter can only leave if she is moving into the home of a male relation. In many cases, the male relation may be the reason she is in the shelter in the first place.

Overall, this is a victory for women in Afghanistan.

Lawrence, Q. (2011, September 26). Afghan Women Fight Back, Preserve Shelters : NPR. NPR : National Public Radio : News & Analysis, World, US, Music & Arts : NPR. Retrieved September 26, 2011, from http://www.npr.org/2011/09/26/140709134/afghan-women-fight-back-preserve-shelters

Sexual Assault & Domestic Violence Awareness Month at Radford University

October is Sexual Assault & Domestic Violence Awareness Month at Radford University.  RU will be participating in three campaigns:

The Red Flag Campaign, “a public awareness campaign designed to address dating violence and promote the prevention of dating violence on college campuses.”

The International Purple Ribbon Campaign, which seeks to end all personal violence/support those who have been victimized. 

The White Ribbon Campaign, an international movement to educate men and boys; men who wear the white ribbon “Wearing a white ribbon is a personal pledge to never commit, condone or remain silent about violence against women and girls.”

Both White and Purple Ribbons will be available Monday, October 3 from 11:00am-2:00pm at the Bonnie Plaza.  We encourage you to pick one up and wear it all month.

Events and activities to promote awareness and, hopefully, action to end violence against women and girls include:

The improv show, Sex Signals, will take the stage on Wednesday October 5, 7:00 pm in the Bondurant Auditorium.  Part of New Student Programs’ Success Starts Here Lecture Series, Sex Signals aims to provide “a safe space to have a candid, positive conversation about the confusion and realities of dating, sex, and non-stranger rape.”

A Brown Bag Series, discussions sponsored by the Women’s Resource Center of the New River Valley will continue throughout the month. Bring your lunch and join the conversation on October 6, 13, 20 and 27, from 12 – 1 pm, in the Bonnie Room 229.

The Clothesline Project will be displayed on October 19^th from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm at the Bonnie Plaza. The Clothesline is “a vehicle for women affected by violence to express their emotions by decorating a shirt. They then hang the shirt on a clothesline to be viewed by others as testimony to the problem of violence.” Members of the Radford University community can add their anonymous testimony to a t-shirt by contacting the SAVES Office at 831-5709. 

The Silent Witness Program, will be take place at the Bonnie Plaza on October 20^th from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm. Silent Witness is a display of “free-standing, life-sized red wooden figures, each one bearing the name of a woman who once lived, worked, had neighbors, friends, family, children--whose life ended violently at the hands of a husband, ex-husband, partner, or acquaintance.” Sponsored by the Women’s Resource Center of the New River Valley, Inc.

Dr. Kathleen Barry, author of Female Sexual Slavery, The Prostitution of Sexuality, and Susan B. Anthony: A Biography, will discuss her latest book Unmaking War/Remaking Men. Tuesday, October 25^th at 7:00 pm in The Bonnie room 249/250.  Dr. Barry’s visit is sponsored by CPC, Peace Studies, Sociology Club, and Women’s Studies Club.

On Wednesday, October 26^th, at 7:00pm in the Bonnie Auditorium, SAVES and Women’s Studies Club present a 20^th anniversary showing of the film Thelma & Louise, which was dubbed “the last great film about women” by The Atlantic in August 2011.

A round table discussion: Thelma & Louise: 20 years later will follow the film on Friday, October 28^th at noon in Heth Hall, Room 22.  Participants in the talk include Dr. Mary Atwell (Criminal Justice), Dr. Michele Ren (English/Women’s Studies), Ms. Sarah Kenney (Health Education), and Mr. John Leonard (Student Activities). The roundtable is sponsored by the Women’s Studies Club.

We hope you will join the SAVES office, CPC, SHAC Peer Educators, Sociology Club, the Peace Studies Program, Women’s Studies Club, New Student Programs, the Radford University Police Department and the Women’s Resource Center of the New River Valley in educating yourselves and others about the problem of Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence both locally and globally.

Constitution Day: The Equal Rights Amendment

Constitution Day is this Saturday, September 17th - the day that 39 members of the Constitutional Convention in 1787 signed and thereby ratified our Constitution.

One of the great strengths that the founders build into this document was the recognition that it may need changing as the the nation changed. And so Article 5 of the Constitution lays out the rules through which the document could be altered through adding Amendments.

An earlier post dealt with the 19th Amendment, through which women won the right to vote. Today, we'll look at a proposed amendment that so far has been unsuccessful, the Equal Rights Amendment, or ERA. Here's the text, courtesy of the National Organization for Women.

Equal Rights Amendment

Section 1. Equality of Rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of sex.

Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.

Section 3. This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification.

"The Equal Rights Amendment was written in 1921 by suffragist Alice Paul. It has been introduced in Congress every session since 1923. It passed Congress in the above form in 1972, but was not ratified by the necessary thirty-eight states by the July 1982 deadline. It was ratified by thirty-five states."

Picture courtesy of: http://articles.nydailynews.com/2011-05-23/news/29595598_1_equal-rights-amendment-women-struggle-maloney

The biggest opportunity for the ERA came in 1972, when it passed Congress, and was given 9 years to secure ratification by 2/3rds of the states, and came up short. View the list of the states that ratified (and didn't ratify, Virginia). There are lots of resources online regarding the history of the ERA dating back to the 1920s, and plenty of organizations are still working towards ratification of the amendment.

There's a lot of ways to celebrate Constitution Day. Play the Which Founder Are You? quiz and post your results in the comments section! Check out material from McConnell Library on the ERA. And repost information on the ERA to your social networks to celebrate how great our Constitution is, and how it could still be improved.

Ms. Magazine at 40

It is hard to believe that Ms. magazine is turning 40 this year and Women’s Studies became a program of study in 1970.

How far have we come since 1970? Looking at the headlines, it would be interesting to know what topics come up over and over and what headway has been made over time.

Ms. magazine and Stanford University are currently doing an essay contest using Ms. covers and wants you to submit a 150-word essay about one of the covers of the 40 they have chosen from 1972 to now.

The contest ends October 15, 2011.

There will be 10 winners who will receive $100 and their essay will be displayed alongside the Ms. covers on the Stanford campus in January 2012.

Ms. at 40 Essay Contest:

http://www.stanford.edu/group/gender/msat40/essaycontest.html

Let’s show them what RU students (& faculty & staff) have got! If you win, let us know and we will celebrate with you!

See also:

40 years of Women’s Studies:

http://msmagazine.com/womensstudies/FourtyYears.asp

The 2009 Women’s Studies Guide from Ms. Magazine:

http://msmagazine.com/womensstudies/index.asp

Happy International Literacy Day!

Every September 8th, the United Nations/UNESCO celebrates literacy and raises awareness about the barriers to worldwide literacy, and the consequences of those barriers. This year's theme explores the relationship between a literate people and peace. But for this post, let's explore last year’s theme, "The Power of Women's Literacy"

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Some statistics:

Approximately two-thirds of adults that are unable to read and write worldwide are women.

UNESCO Institute for Statistics, Adult & Youth Literacy: Global Trends in Global Parity

"Despite many and varied efforts, literacy remains an elusive target: girls still account for more than half of the 67.4 million out-of-school children in the world, and two-thirds of the 796 million adult illiterates are female." http://www.un.org/womenwatch/calendar/10-09.html

To put this disparity into a visual context, Worldmapper.com is a great resource: by clicking on the link, you'll see a larger version of the map below, which shows gender inequalities in literacy rates by country. The bigger the country appears on the map, the more disparity.

Fortunately, things are getting better through hard work and....you guessed it, education. There are many organizations working towards 100% literacy rates. Charity Navigator can be a helpful tool in figuring out which of these organizations are the most efficient and successful at reaching their goals.

Are you going to celebrate International Literacy Day? If so, how?