Sunday, March 6, 2011

“For the hand that rocks the cradle, is the hand that rules the world.”

Lehigh CIE attended the “Mothers of Values: Enhancing the MDGs” session on Friday, March 4, 2011. A primary theme of the session focused on “values reorientation” within the gender equality policy agenda to promote and protect women’s traditional roles as mothers. As part of the session, her Excellency, Joy U. Ogwu, Nigerian representative to the United Nations, was honored as an “Excellent Mother of Values” for her work to advance the status of women. In her speech following receipt of the award, Her Excellency positioned her role as a mother above her contributions in her home nation through her work as an academic and policy-maker. Her Excellency encouraged women to “retain their femininity” and that “as women, nobody can put us (women) down unless we accept it”. While both points were well received among the session’s attendees, her comments and the focus of this session bring to light an important debate in the gender equality discourse: how do women promote and protect their essential “femininity” and unique roles as mothers, while advancing and legitimizing their status in other social sectors including education, employment and political participation?

This debate has received much attention throughout the feminist literature, but the modern women’s rights movement has positioned the advancement of women’s roles in economic and political sectors above the protection of women’s roles as mothers. As women’s participation in political, economic, and academic sectors continues to advance, many women still feel their achievements have come at a price; most notably their ability to participate in these arenas at the expense of roles as mothers. This sentiment was echoed by several participants in the session, one who notably thanked the panelists for bringing this perspective to the NGO CSW.

The politicalization of motherhood in the gender equality discourse, as evidenced in this session, is particularly interesting in light of the conference theme – promoting the advancement of women through work and education. The roles of women as mothers and first teachers are often marginalized because they reflect more traditional gendered social norms and values. If the measure of equality is to promote women’s participation in all sectors of society, women who choose to become mothers above or in concert with their participation in political, social, and economic sectors should also be honored and reflected in the policy discourse without fear of the loss of legitimacy.

(Quote used in title is attributed to William Ross Wallace, 1865.)

“A Plan for Solidarity”: Voices from the NGO CSW - GABRIELA USA and Granny Peace Brigade

After attending the Women’s International Democratic Federation (WIDF) panel discussion on “Women and Work – International Cooperation as a factor of integration and peace” on the last day of the CSW conference, Lehigh CIE had an opportunity to meet Valerie Francisco, Vice Chair of Campaigns for GABRIELA USA, and Nydia Leaf with the Granny Peace Brigade. Valerie and Nydia’s organizations, and their presence at the NGO CSW, demonstrate the diverse participation of NGOs throughout the conference to promote the advancement of women’s rights and access to education and full employment.

As a representative of GABRIELA USA, Valerie’s comments in the session provided a context to explore how the interdependence of global economic systems coupled with the historical legacy of colonialism in the Philippines have left Filipino women without access to full employment. During the WIDF session, Valerie challenged the panelists and attendees to articulate a “plan for solidarity” for how NGOs and international women’s organizations can more effectively work together in support of the advancement of women. This challenge was echoed by Nydia and her work with the Granny Peace Brigade focusing on peace education, advocacy and counter-recruitment of young people into the military in the US. These two women spoke in a common voice reflecting the need for greater collaboration among NGOs and partner organizations to promote gender equality in all sectors of society including women’s access to full employment, education, and health protection. Further, these diverse organizations, and their representatives at the WIDF session, serve as evidence that advancing the rights of women worldwide is linked greater inter-agency cooperation.


For more information on these organizations, please visit:

GABRIELA USA: http://gabusa.org/

Granny Peace Brigade: http://www.grannypeacebrigade.org/

This rallying cry – on the last day of the CSW – illuminates the importance of cooperation and dialogue among international organizations to ensure women’s voices are heard at all levels of policy-making. For discussion: What actions are needed to actualize a “plan for solidarity” among international organizations to promote gender equality?

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Where discrimination does not exist?

During the closing remarks of a panel I attended, the speaker made the comment "I am fortunate to be from a country with an excellent public education system, which all students have access to, and where there is no discrimination on the basis of gender, race, or class." She was talking about a wealthy Western country that surely does have a system of public education that is open to all children in that country and that, in theory, does not discriminate. Yet I find her statement to be highly problematic.

During the entire panel, which was focused on violence in schools, the underlying theme seemed to be that violence in schools, or barriers to girls' education, exist only in developing countries. One speaker's presentation consisted entirely of a laundry list of times teachers had used corporal punsihment or girls had experienced harassment at school in her home country of Uganda. I grew up in the US, went to public and private schools here, and could offer similar stories. I worked in the French public education system and witnessed incidents not very different from those she described. Of course, I am not denying that in certain places girls face extreme challenges in education and in life. But painting discrimination, harassment, and violence, whether based on gender or otherwise, as a problem unique to the Global South is too convenient and, ultimately, dangerous: it allows us to feel good about helping those poor ignorant "underdeveloped" places, while neglecting to critically examine our own societies.