Wednesday, January 12th
Thanks for all who came out to meeting- we had a great discussion and have some exciting upcoming events!
The first item on our agenda was the upcoming International Women’s Day celebration on March 8th. Right now, we are in the planning stages with the Mid-Atlantic Regional office but the layout has been put together, thanks to much hard work by Anne Ellsworth.
The Action Team will be pairing up with the DC Independent Film Festival to premier one short and one feature length film at the City Museum on March 8th from 7-9 pm. A reception, with speaker, will follow. We have decided to show Battered, Bruised and Broken as the short film (12 minute) and are still deciding on the feature length. A movie night will be held soon to preview film options; please watch the listserv for details or email Erica Morgan at ericachandra@hotmail.com. For more information on getting involved with the planning please email either Jennie Simpson at giasupertar@yahoo.com or Erica Morgan.
Our Sudan panel is moving right along! It will be held on Wednesday, February 23rd, from 7-9 pm at the George Washington University. We are in the process of finding speakers and Janel Kasper-Wolfe has put together a great summary and background piece to send out to potential speakers. Here it is:
In 2004 Amnesty International launched their ground breaking Stop Violence Against Women Campaign (SVAW Campaign). The campaign has made the link between violence against women and human rights by focusing on a range of issues, including violence against women in conflict. In support of the SVAW Campaign the DC-Women's Human Rights Action Team, George Washington University chapter of Amnesty International and the Women's Information
Network is sponsoring a panel discussing Violence Against Women in Armed Conflict: Darfur, Sudan.
According to Amnesty International USA, over 70,000 people are believed to have lost their lives since the conflict in Darfur, Sudan erupted in February 2003. Systematic human rights abuses have occurred by all parties involved in the conflict, but primarily by the Sudanese government and government-backed Janjawid militia. Over 1.5 million civilians have been
internally displaced by the conflict and 200,000 have sought refuge in neighboring Chad. Amnesty International USA has also reported that many of the human rights violations in Darfur have been gendered, specifically targeting women and girls for abductions, sexual slavery, rape, torture and forced displacement.
We are presenting a panel discussion that can address the general situation in Darfur, Sudan and address some of these specific questions:
* What is the background of the armed conflict in Darfur?
* How is the armed conflict gendered? How are women and girls
specifically targeted?
* Over 1.5 million people have been internally displaced and 200,00
are refugees in Chad, are the situations different for women than for
men?
* Are children in general specifically at risk, is there a difference
between
girl and boy children?
* What are international and local NGOs doing to address the gendered
aspects of this conflict? In particular to address violence against
women?
* Are women involved in the peace process?
* What can we do?
We are hoping to not only educate the audience about the links between armed conflict, human rights abuses, and violence against women but to motivate them to act by giving them specific ideas for action.
If you would like more information or to get involved, email Janel Kasper-Wolfe at Janel.kasper@verizon.net.
And finally, we discussed the possibility of holding a “feminist convergence” this fall. An organizing group has already been formed to take on the task of imagining and planning this event. Some of the questions to think about:
* With a focus on grassroots feminist activism, what do we imagine this to include?
* The format for the convergence- all day workshops, panels, etc…?
* If it is based on a call for proposals framework, how do we envision doing this? Where will we distribute to?
* Comments, suggestions, ideas??
If you would like to get involved, email Jennie Simpson at giasuperstar@yahoo.com.
Wednesday, January 26, 2005
Upcoming Events of Interest
J-Flag Tour
The DC OUTfront Action Team, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA), The Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals & Gays (J-FLAG), the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), Human Rights Watch (HRW), and Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies (GLIFAA) invite you to join us for a public forum featuring 2 speakers from J-FLAG, where we will come together to discuss homophobic violence and ways to demand justice from Jamaican authorities.
In Jamaica, violent of crimes against the LGBT community, including rape, beatings, and even murder, are reported each year. Prominent recording artists incorporate graphic references to homophobic violence in their music. And government leaders refuse to address the issue.
One group is speaking out. The Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals & Gays (J-FLAG) will be appearing in Washington, DC to tell their stories of pride, struggle and courage in the face of injustice. Come learn what's happening in Jamaica, and what you can do about it.
When: Thursday, February 3, 2005
Reception at 7:00 PM, Program at 7:30 PM
Where: Equality Center, The Human Rights Campaign
1640 Rhode Island Ave NW, Washington, DC 20036
This event is free and open to the public. For more information, please contact the DC OUTfront Action Team at http://us.f514.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=info@dcoutfront.org or (202) 390-7888, or visit http://www.dcoutfront.org/.
Visions in Feminism Film Screening: Ladyfesto
Join Visions in Feminism for a Screening of
Ladyfesto: A documentary on Ladyfest Philly, March 20-23, 2003
Wednesday February 2, 2005, 9 PM $5 to benefit
Visions in Feminism’s 2005 Conference
All ages at the Black Cat 1811 14th Street, NW DC
http://www.visioninfeminism.org/
http://www.blackcatdc.com/
http://www.ladyfest.org/
http://www.ladyfestphilly.org/
An hour long documentary about and shot during Ladyfest Philly, a women's art festival, March 2003 Co-directed by Anne Crémieux and Kerry Pyne.
Email kalotto@hotmail.com for details
National Conference on Organized Resistance, February 3-6, 2005
The National Conference on Organized Resistance (NCOR) has been happening every winter on the campus of American University in Washington DC since 1998. It aims to provide a space for activists to meet each other, have in-depth discussions, analyze strategies, tactics, beliefs, learn a few new skills, and give everyone a lot to think about after an inspiring weekend. Activists of all ages or levels of experience are welcome, as are curious non-activists and anyone looking to resist systems of oppression and create something new! For more information, visit http://www.organizedresistance.org/.
The DC OUTfront Action Team, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA), The Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals & Gays (J-FLAG), the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), Human Rights Watch (HRW), and Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies (GLIFAA) invite you to join us for a public forum featuring 2 speakers from J-FLAG, where we will come together to discuss homophobic violence and ways to demand justice from Jamaican authorities.
In Jamaica, violent of crimes against the LGBT community, including rape, beatings, and even murder, are reported each year. Prominent recording artists incorporate graphic references to homophobic violence in their music. And government leaders refuse to address the issue.
One group is speaking out. The Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals & Gays (J-FLAG) will be appearing in Washington, DC to tell their stories of pride, struggle and courage in the face of injustice. Come learn what's happening in Jamaica, and what you can do about it.
When: Thursday, February 3, 2005
Reception at 7:00 PM, Program at 7:30 PM
Where: Equality Center, The Human Rights Campaign
1640 Rhode Island Ave NW, Washington, DC 20036
This event is free and open to the public. For more information, please contact the DC OUTfront Action Team at http://us.f514.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=info@dcoutfront.org or (202) 390-7888, or visit http://www.dcoutfront.org/.
Visions in Feminism Film Screening: Ladyfesto
Join Visions in Feminism for a Screening of
Ladyfesto: A documentary on Ladyfest Philly, March 20-23, 2003
Wednesday February 2, 2005, 9 PM $5 to benefit
Visions in Feminism’s 2005 Conference
All ages at the Black Cat 1811 14th Street, NW DC
http://www.visioninfeminism.org/
http://www.blackcatdc.com/
http://www.ladyfest.org/
http://www.ladyfestphilly.org/
An hour long documentary about and shot during Ladyfest Philly, a women's art festival, March 2003 Co-directed by Anne Crémieux and Kerry Pyne.
Email kalotto@hotmail.com for details
National Conference on Organized Resistance, February 3-6, 2005
The National Conference on Organized Resistance (NCOR) has been happening every winter on the campus of American University in Washington DC since 1998. It aims to provide a space for activists to meet each other, have in-depth discussions, analyze strategies, tactics, beliefs, learn a few new skills, and give everyone a lot to think about after an inspiring weekend. Activists of all ages or levels of experience are welcome, as are curious non-activists and anyone looking to resist systems of oppression and create something new! For more information, visit http://www.organizedresistance.org/.
Tuesday, January 11, 2005
Take Action: Protect Women Survivors of Violence and the Right To Health Care Services
According to Amnesty International USA "Worldwide, at least one of every three women – nearly one billion women – will be beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime, whether at the hands of family members, government security forces, or armed rebels. Urge President Bush to help stop violence against women and girls, address the needs of survivors of violence, and lift US restrictions on health care services worldwide."
You can take action by going to the AIUSA Action Center and sending a letter or email to President Bush and asking him to life current restrictions on health education and services, often referred to as the "Global Gag Rule."
You can take action by going to the AIUSA Action Center and sending a letter or email to President Bush and asking him to life current restrictions on health education and services, often referred to as the "Global Gag Rule."
Monday, January 10, 2005
January Meeting
I hope everyone had fabulous holidays and a much needed break. This wednesday (January 12) is the DC Women's Human Rights Action Team's monthly meeting. We'll be brainstorming for the following events:
- March 8 Celebration for International Women's Day (the team's 2 year anniversary!)
- A panel on violence against women in the armed conflict in Darfur, Sudan
- A conference/teach-in/day of workshops this fall. We're hoping to call for proposals from local community activits/organizers. It will be a day of workshops that can strengthen our skills as organizers and activists but also feed our souls!
The meeting is at 7:00 pm. We are back to meeting at the AIUSA office at 600 Pennsylvania Ave, SE 5th floor. The AIUSA office is right off of Eastern Market. Email dcwhrat@yahoo.com with comments, suggestions for the meeting agenda, or questions.
Friday, December 03, 2004
December Book/Discussion Group: Barbara Kingslover's Poisonwood Bible
December 13 is the first meeting of DC-WHRAT's new Book/Discussion Group. We will be meeting at 7:00 pm at the Teaism in Penn Quarter (400 8th Street, NW). Teaism is right by Navy Memorial stop on the yellow line and walking distance from the China Town stop.
For December we'll be discussing Barbara Kingslover's "Poisonwood Bible."
From the Book Jacket:
"The Poisonwood Bible is a story told by the wife and four daughters of Nathan Price, a fierce, evangelical Baptist who takes his family and mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959. They carry with them everything they believe they will need from home, but soon find that all of it--from garden seeds to Scripture--is calamitously transformed on African soil. What follows is a suspenseful epic of one family's tragic undoing and remarkable reconstruction over the course of three decades in postcolonial Africa.
The novel is set against one of the most dramatic political chronicles of the twentieth century: the Congo's fight for independence from Belgium, the murder of its first elected prime minister, the CIA coup to install his replacement, and the insidious progress of a world economic order that robs the fledgling African nation of its autonomy. Against this backdrop, Orleanna Price reconstructs the story of her evangelist husband's part in the Western assault on Africa, a tale indelibly darkened by her own losses and unanswerable questions about her own culpability. Also narrating the story, by turns, are her four daughters--the self-centered, teenaged Rachel; shrewd adolescent twins Leah and Adah; and Ruth May, a prescient five-year-old. These sharply observant girls, who arrive in the Congo with racial preconceptions forged in 1950s Georgia, will be marked in surprisingly different ways by their father's intractable mission, and by Africa itself. Ultimately each must strike her own separate path to salvation. Their passionately intertwined stories become a compelling exploration of moral risk and personal responsibility.
Dancing between the dark comedy of human failings and the breathtaking possibilities of human hope, The Poisonwood Bible possesses all that has distinguished Barbara Kingsolver's previous work, and extends this beloved writer's vision to an entirely new level. Taking its place alongside the classic works of postcolonial literature, this ambitious novel establishes Kingsolver as one of the most thoughtful and daring of modern writers."
For December we'll be discussing Barbara Kingslover's "Poisonwood Bible."
From the Book Jacket:
"The Poisonwood Bible is a story told by the wife and four daughters of Nathan Price, a fierce, evangelical Baptist who takes his family and mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959. They carry with them everything they believe they will need from home, but soon find that all of it--from garden seeds to Scripture--is calamitously transformed on African soil. What follows is a suspenseful epic of one family's tragic undoing and remarkable reconstruction over the course of three decades in postcolonial Africa.
The novel is set against one of the most dramatic political chronicles of the twentieth century: the Congo's fight for independence from Belgium, the murder of its first elected prime minister, the CIA coup to install his replacement, and the insidious progress of a world economic order that robs the fledgling African nation of its autonomy. Against this backdrop, Orleanna Price reconstructs the story of her evangelist husband's part in the Western assault on Africa, a tale indelibly darkened by her own losses and unanswerable questions about her own culpability. Also narrating the story, by turns, are her four daughters--the self-centered, teenaged Rachel; shrewd adolescent twins Leah and Adah; and Ruth May, a prescient five-year-old. These sharply observant girls, who arrive in the Congo with racial preconceptions forged in 1950s Georgia, will be marked in surprisingly different ways by their father's intractable mission, and by Africa itself. Ultimately each must strike her own separate path to salvation. Their passionately intertwined stories become a compelling exploration of moral risk and personal responsibility.
Dancing between the dark comedy of human failings and the breathtaking possibilities of human hope, The Poisonwood Bible possesses all that has distinguished Barbara Kingsolver's previous work, and extends this beloved writer's vision to an entirely new level. Taking its place alongside the classic works of postcolonial literature, this ambitious novel establishes Kingsolver as one of the most thoughtful and daring of modern writers."
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Discussion Panel: HIV/AIDS and Violence Against Women
Commemorating World AIDS Day
Discussion Panel
HIV/AIDS and Violence Against Women
Are Women More Vulnerable to HIV Infection
Where: George Washington University
Marvin Center, 3rd floor, Continental Ballroom
800 21st Street, NW, Washington, DC
When: Wednesday, December 1, 2004
International AIDS Day
7pm – 9pm
No RSVP necessary. Contact Inma at dcwhrat@yahoo.com with any questions.
Please join Amnesty International, U.S. Committee for UNIFEM, our distinguished speakers and members of the community for a panel discussion on the impact of gender and violence against women on the AIDS pandemic.
Speaker Panel:
Lisa Johnson-Firth, Esq., Virginia State Violence Against Women Campaign Coordinator, Amnesty International
Heather Fortuna, Program Officer - Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Women for Women International
Sonia Kandathil, Research and Program Analyst, American Foundation for AIDS Research
Robert Mugisha, Human Rights Advocate; Country Specialist (Africa), Amnesty International
Cynthia Rothschild, Consultant, Center for Women’s Global Leadership; AIUSA Board member
Co-sponsored by:
Amnesty International DC Women’s Human Rights Action Team,
US Committee for UNIFEM’s National Capital Chapter,
The George Washington University Amnesty International Chapter, and
Amnesty International USA, Mid-Atlantic Field Office
Discussion Panel
HIV/AIDS and Violence Against Women
Are Women More Vulnerable to HIV Infection
Where: George Washington University
Marvin Center, 3rd floor, Continental Ballroom
800 21st Street, NW, Washington, DC
When: Wednesday, December 1, 2004
International AIDS Day
7pm – 9pm
No RSVP necessary. Contact Inma at dcwhrat@yahoo.com with any questions.
Please join Amnesty International, U.S. Committee for UNIFEM, our distinguished speakers and members of the community for a panel discussion on the impact of gender and violence against women on the AIDS pandemic.
Speaker Panel:
Lisa Johnson-Firth, Esq., Virginia State Violence Against Women Campaign Coordinator, Amnesty International
Heather Fortuna, Program Officer - Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Women for Women International
Sonia Kandathil, Research and Program Analyst, American Foundation for AIDS Research
Robert Mugisha, Human Rights Advocate; Country Specialist (Africa), Amnesty International
Cynthia Rothschild, Consultant, Center for Women’s Global Leadership; AIUSA Board member
Co-sponsored by:
Amnesty International DC Women’s Human Rights Action Team,
US Committee for UNIFEM’s National Capital Chapter,
The George Washington University Amnesty International Chapter, and
Amnesty International USA, Mid-Atlantic Field Office
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