Topless in NYC

According to law, it is legal for a woman to be topless in New York. Because of this, activist Moira Johnston is taking it upon herself to end the taboo around breasts and the female body. Is her form of awareness a good way to go about this or is it indecent? Is she doing this for petty attention? Is this a good way to de-sexualize breasts? What do you guys think?
Watch the video below:
http://blip.tv/btrpulse/moira-johnston-topless-in-ny-btr-pulse-ep80-6198544

Human Rights Film Festival: Reportero

During the Human Rights Film Festival I saw the film Reportero, which was directed by Bernardo Ruiz. This documentary follows the journalistic life of Sergio Haro and his colleagues at Zeta, a weekly paper based in Tijuana. Because of corruption and danger (granted this is the case in most of Mexico but Tijuana is worse by far) it is very difficult to be a reporter. Rather, it is very difficult to be a good reporter who is willing to write the truth. This idea of the moral responsibility for truth telling is central to the work of Sergio Haro, whose life is in constant threat. Three people have been attacked, resulting with founder Jesus Blancornelas barely surviving and the death of two other main reporters. This documentary illuminates the dangers of living within a “drug war zone”. It shows how the Mexican government has consistently failed to take care of its people and allowed drug lords to govern the country through corruption and impunity. Along with this is the issue of media censorship on the behalf of the government.

This film effectively shows how the truth can be a threatening force for a system. Tijuana drug cartels are still threatened by the possibility that the masses can know the truth. In the film they describe how Haro and the other editors of Zeta published the faces of every hired gunman for the cartel. These were normal men who were a part of the community and now their dark secret was revealed. And of course this is unsettling for the assassins—whether for issues of accountability, secrecy, or shame. The public officials involved in drug cartels are also at risk of exposure so controlling the media is in their best interest. There needs to be a standard of truth and freedom of speech but the budding relationship between the Mexican government and drug cartels stands in the way of this.

Reflection on the Davies Workshop

I really enjoyed today’s workshop but wished that I could have stayed longer or been there in the morning. My favorite part was being a part of the drawing exercise on violence and well-being. I noticed as we were sharing our drawings in small groups that my drawings ended up being very personal and emotion based. In a group with Erika and Sarai Aharoni, we noticed that all of our drawings ranged in theme and abstraction. The thing that struck me most was that a lot of the drawings had something to do with balance and time. There is always a time for something—as cheesy as that sounds. There is a time to contemplate, a time for friends and community, a time for working, etc. This exercise reminded me that balance is very important to have in one’s life. Balance, for me, is the ultimate expression of well-being. It is the best way to clear the mind and reorient your life. I think this is why I am intrigued by the idea that anger should be productively channeled, which is something Swati Parashar kept talking about. Anger can be used as a force of good if controlled and understood. Emotions themselves are not bad and can be expressed constructively. Similar to anger, silence can be used as a powerful tool as well. Silence can have as much power as any other method and speak volumes.  

Response to Anu Bhagwati

Anu Bhagwati, executive director and co-founder of the Service Women’s Action Network, came to talk to our class before her evening lecture. I also had the opportunity to go out to dinner with her, Professor Wibben, and two fellow classmates. Anu’s visit was refreshing because she has a completely different take on women in the military than most other visitors we have had. She is pro-equality in the military, leading her to endorse policy such as equal standard fitness tests. I completely agree when Anu says that this patriarchy is preventing women from exceeding because they are held at a lower standard. Women in the military exist in this limbo where they cannot act too feminine or too masculine because they are ridiculed either way. There is no win. The pressure of this environment leads women to be ultra feminist or a misogynist, as Anu admitted to being at one point.

            Although Anu’s visit was refreshing, I found myself getting frustrated at times because her views were so pro-military and I cannot agree with this. I kept forgetting that she was still a willing participant and representation of the military. One comment that rather annoyed me was when she was explaining the job of female engagement teams. These women are not trained to have tea but rather to carry out a mission and determine when the next air strike should be. This completely shocked me because, again, I kept forgetting her positionality. It makes sense to think that this is a natural sentence to her, which it totally is, but I cannot get passed the thought that this method of attaining information violates the women at the other end. They are blatantly being used by the military; well I guess that is what is involved in war. So yeah, I guess my problem is not Anu but the existence of what she represents. 

Response to Cynthia Enloe

During her lecture Monday evening, Cynthia Enloe ended up talking about the bombings at the Boston Marathon. She focused mostly on how the incident was being portrayed by the media, an observation made possible by her feminist curiosity. All stories surrounding the Boston Marathon seem to be based on pure speculation. I am glad Enloe brought up the hasty terrorist accusations that were jumped to immediately. She raises a good question when asking why this was a terrorist act and not any other recent shootings. Is it all based on race? How is it justifiable to tie these two kids to an ethnic war and disregard everything else? The connections that the media has been making to their Chechen ethnicity are so over stretched. Are we that concerned with security? Must we always create this phantom menace? Not to mention that all this reporting and reactions just cause more fear which is then blanketed by a false sense of security. Everything seems to be blown out of proportion so emotional responses are the first to be had. I mean, have you seen the footage and pictures they have been showing in the news? The graphics are so unnecessary. Yes, there should be transparency and the people have a right to know what has been going on but the way it is presented is completely unclassy. But of course, the more “in your face” it is, the bigger the response will be, and the easier it is to gain control. Haha, this totally sounds like a conspiracy theory. I think we should always be wary of the information we are presented and approach it with a critical eye.  

Davies Forum Workshop - Impressions I

(photos via Prof. Doubiago)

Sisters in Spirit: An Inter-Faith Dialogue

Last week I attended two events at the Global Women's Rights Forum at USF. On Wednesday, I went to the inter-faith dialogue where Toni Battle, Bhawana Kamil, and Mary Waskowiak were the featured panel. The following day I attended the gender and justice panel addressing domestic work. Because I was unable to stay for the whole of it and for the purpose of keeping this blog post short I will focus on the former program event. 

The Sisters in Spirit inter-faith dialogue was concerned with discussing how the search for social justice is inspired by a certain faith and more importantly by being a woman. Although these women each come from a specific positionally, which is highly influenced by her own spirituality, it can be seen that sisterhood ties them together. Each of them talked about how we are all connected. Toni Battle put it best by saying that we are all relations, you are me and I am you. 

We have to be aware of this spirit and embrace it to make social change. This directly ties back to this year's Davies' topic of women and violence. To fight this violence, women must acknowledge their lineage and form communities. This makes me think of the Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace who were successful in ending the second Liberian civil war. Muslim and Christian women came together in a massive move of nonviolent direct action and demanded peace. They came together partly because of sisterhood and motherhood but it was more than this. It was an instance where the connections between people were being threatened, where there was a need to recognize that peace is dependent on the awareness of our ties.  

Liberia: Life Can Change - Section Summary

In the section “Liberia: Life Can Change” of “War Is Not Over When It’s Over”, Ann Jones shows the power of facilitating Liberian women’s ability to define and find solutions to their collective problems, centered around violence in supposed times of ‘peace’. Jones shows how much of Liberia’s contemporary history is characterized by violence towards women, exemplified by the findings that 75% of women refugees from Liberia report being sexually assaulted. Jones details her work through the International Rescue Committee by partnering with local Women’s Action Groups to select Liberian women to be photographers in their communities. These women had “survived the violence of war, and the violence of the peace that followed, when everything was changed; but they worried about the young girls” (Jones, 2010, p. 85). Through this form of community partnership Jones was able to speak candidly with Liberian women about violence in their home, particularly rape in marriage, and work with the women to reflect on their hopes and dreams for the future of young women in their communities and their own futures. 

Maria Stern (174-197)

A brief summary of “Racism, sexism, classism, and much more: reading security-identity in marginalized sites” by Maria Stern (pg. 174-197)

            Maria Stern, in her article "Racism, sexism, classism, and much more: reading security-identity in marginalized sites," speaks about the insecurity of Mayan women marginalized by the Guatemalan elites and the Guatemalan state. Stern explains that, “In sum Mayan women’s insecurity [is] multiple, contingent, and defined in terms of their identity" (176). The Mayans that stern interviewed identified themselves as women, indigenous, and poor which showed their understanding of their identity as marginalized Guatemalan pseudo citizens. Even though Stern was only able to interview women that were political leaders due to their ability to read and co-author their narrative, there was a large consensus amongst them that they had been a part of a resistance that has lasted 500 years (192). The challenges faced by Stern in researching the plight of these women were being able to communicate effectively, while at the same time not exploiting their narratives, all while remembering and balancing her position of privilege.

By Maribel, Haley, and Alexandra