This Is What A Feminist Looks Like

Looking back on International Women’s Week

Women’s week at StFX has come to end after a week of laughter, tears and solidarity and what a beautiful week it’s been to say in the least. 

I wish that I could have attended every single event that was put off this week, but alas it’s paper season in my fourth year and it’s not being too kind to me.

I started off the week by attending the screening of Dolores. Dolores centers on Dolores Huerta’s committed work to organize California farmworkers to form the UFW, in alliance with the Chicano Movement, the Civil Rights Movement, Gay liberation and US-based LGBTQ+ social movements, and the late 20th century women’s rights movement.

I have to say I am ashamed that I did not know who Huerta was before I watched this documentary. Huerta is a powerhouse of a woman and I can easily see that I have fallen in love with this woman. She stood up to sexist remarks that were snarled at her and found her way in a male dominated society. She changed the future for many Chicano farmworkers, improving their work conditions, and making them know that their concerns and voices are valid and heard. 

If you ever come across this documentary and have the chance to watch it, I encourage you to do so, you’ll also find yourself blinded by Huerta’s brilliance.

Then on Wednesday, March 6, I attended the Learning Lodge: Honouring Indigenous Women, which was a very powerful night. The panel consisted of Shane Bernard, Karen Bernard, Jennifer Cox, Devann Sylvester and Kaysha Young. Each of the panelists shared their own personal stories of what it means to them when it comes to honouring indigenous women and how we can continue to honour these women. Everyone brought something so unique and special, the audience held onto every word that was spoken. It was a privilege to be able to hear these their powerful voices.

Friday, March 8, marked international women’s day around the world and one of the celebrations that took place on this campus was a women’s march. It started off on the steps outside of the Coady International Institute, the honour song was sung out in the cold air by two Mi’kmaq women but their voices warmed the souls of everyone there. 

Rebecca Mesay and Naima Chowdhury also offered words of solidary before the rally began. The group took the streets of Antigonish cheering and chanting about women’s rights and the need for improvement. It was hopeful and encouraging when people in their cars  would honk their horns and smile at us.

Yet, something strange happened. When were out in the community of Antigonish I felt free, and a sense of safety and support from the rest of the community. The minute we stepped back onto campus I felt myself being scared, scared to cheer and I could feel the eyes of students passing us burning into my back.

And, it made me angry. I’m proud to be a feminist, I’m proud of my loud voice and I’m proud of standing up to injustices when I see them. And somehow, I find myself being afraid to be who I am on this campus.

Being a feminist on this campus is like walking around with a huge target on your back and it’s hard to ignore the stares, the judgment and the whispers.

But I won’t let the judgement of others hold me back, rather I’ll let it fuel me to keep on fighting the good fight. This was the last women’s week I’ll get to    experience at StFX and it          exceeded all my expectations.

International Women’s Week Events For March

Standing together: women organizing for justice

Once again this year, events are being planned to mark International Women’s Week in the Antigonish area.

This year’s theme is Standing Together: Women Organizing for Justice. Events will highlight examples of collaboration and solidarity that have advanced justice and equality. There will be educational events to promote understanding of Indigenous peoples’ relationship with Canada and Canadians; a public presentation and discussion about women’s activism; and a film about the first female farm workers union organizer in the United States. Celebratory events include the annual Feminist Cabaret; Women’s Breakfast and Silent Auction; and an International Fashion Show. Participating restaurants will serve free coffee to women on International Women’s Day (March 8). Youth-focused events include an IWW-themed Family Singalong, and activist girls and young women gathering to tackle “period stigma.”

The week will begin with a KAIROS Blanket Exercise on Monday, March 4 at 6:30 pm in the St. James United Church Hall. Deb Eisan and Denise John of the Mi’kmaw Native Friendship Centre will guide participants through a unique and powerful learning experience that will deepen their understanding of the experiences of Indigenous peoples within the colonial context, and their present-day relationship with non-Indigenous people and the Government of Canada.

An evening of information sharing for local women is also planned for Monday, March 4 at 6:30 pm at the Canso Library Resource Centre. Representatives from community organizations will talk about the services available to women of all ages as they navigate life transitions and address problems.

On Tuesday, March 5 at 7:00 pm, a film will be shown about the life and achievements of Dolores Huerta, a Central American union organizer. Her struggle to form the first farm workers union in the United States became a struggle for gender equality within that same union.

On Wednesday, March 6 at 6:30 pm in Immaculata Hall, the StFX Anthropology Department will host Learning Lodge: Honouring Indigenous Women. A panel will speak about traditions of honouring women, and about missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

Also on Wednesday, March 6, girls, young women, and allies are invited to participate in Girls Taking Action to End Period Stigma at the People’s Place Library. This fun and interactive workshop to take action in debunking myths and stigma around menstruation will start at 6:30 pm and will be hosted by Faye Fraser and her team of Girls Take Action members.

Joy Worth Fighting For, a public presentation by Karen B.K. Chan followed by discussion is planned for Thursday, March 7, at 7:00 pm at the Coady Institute’s Dennis Hall. Karen B.K. Chan, an award-winning sex and emotional literacy educator, will speak about making women’s struggle for gender equality joyful. Chan quotes Emma Goldman, an anarchist political writer and activist (1869-1940): “A revolution without dancing is not a revolution worth having.” Chan asks, “As we fight the good fight, what kind of time, energy, and value to we give to joy, love, pleasure, play, and rest? How might they be part of the revolution, and not just the reward?” Chan uses humour, kindness, and art to teach new approaches to emotional health and inclusive human relationships.

Friday, March 8 is International Women’s Day. The Women’s Breakfast and Silent Auction is planned for 7:30-9:00 am at the Maritime Inn. For tickets, contact the Women’s Centre at 902-863-6221.

Also on Friday, participating restaurants and coffee shops will be offering a free cup of coffee to women.

A major highlight of International Women’s Day is the annual IWD March, which will begin with a rally in front of the Coady Institute at noon and move through town. Following the march, Mayra Jimenez will speak at the People’s Place Library about the collective, 8 Tijax. Mayra is raising awareness about the quest for justice and reform following a preventable tragedy that killed 41 girls in a dormitory in Guatemala.

At 7:00 pm on Friday, an International Fashion Show will be held in the MacKay Room. A dazzling variety of fashions will be showcased from different cultures and perspectives.

No International Women’s Week would be complete without the annual Feminist Cabaret. Once again, Piper’s Pub will be the venue for this uproariously entertaining and celebratory variety show on Saturday, March 9 from 8:00 to 11 pm. Doors open at 7:00 pm. The show will be hosted by Jenn Priddle and CJ MacIntyre. There will be a 50-50 draw, door prizes, and a special drink, Feminist Fatale that has been designed for the occasion.

For more details, find us on Facebook @internationalwomensweekantigonish or contact the Antigonish Women’s Resource Centre & Sexual Assault Services Association.

The idea of IWD originated in working class women’s struggles for good jobs, a living wage, and political rights. The tradition of celebrating IWD in Nova Scotia goes back to the pre-WWII years when women in Cape Breton and other parts of the province organized events.

Each year on March 8 since the 1980s, Antigonish area women have marked the successes and goals of local and international women’s movements. In 2013, what had been a one-day affair on March 8 grew into a week of women organizing, learning, honouring, and celebrating.

Making it visible: why we made our sexualized violence issue

This issue focuses entirely on sexualized violence and the ways in which it pervades our campus, our community, and our culture. Timed to align with International Women’s Week, this issue’s publication has proven even timelier in light of last week’s acquittal of Halifax taxi driver Bassam Al-Rawi. Judge Gregory Lenehan’s ruling is yet another reminder of how far society is from taking sexualized violence seriously.

These sixteen pages feature testimonies, analyses, statistics, and news stories all pertaining to the prevalence and normalization of sexualized violence. We didn’t have to look far for these stories: even among our thirty-person news team, this theme hit close to home for many.

Society at large has seemed to accept sexualized violence as part and parcel of reality, and accordingly such behaviours remain invisible. Abuses of power, acts of harassment and violence, manipulation and silencing are normalized to the extent that it can be difficult to even label them as problematic. Experiences of violence are minimized (“are you sure you didn’t lead them on?”), and many who speak out are humiliated, repudiated, and silenced.

“We cannot afford to shy away from this conversation, no matter how uncomfortable it may be.”

Our tendency to conceive of sexualized violence as a clearly defined set of criminal charges further distorts our relationship with its underlying cultural causes. Sexual assault is a physical manifestation of a series of beliefs that have been culturally and socially constructed and accepted. Addressing cases of sexual assault and harassment is certainly challenging enough, but limiting the scope to these extreme demonstrations of entitlement is ultimately a disservice. We need to move beyond the ‘convenient’ lens of a stranger in the bushes and come to terms with the full complexity of the only violent crime in Canada that is not declining.

We cannot afford to shy away from this conversation, no matter how uncomfortable it may be. In assembling this issue, there have certainly been moments where we felt uncomfortable, whether by sharing personal experiences, learning something new, or by trying to deconstruct concepts such as hook-up culture, revictimization, “tradition” – the list goes on. These are hard questions to ask, and even harder questions to answer.

But rather than dismissing these matters due to a lack of clarity, we need to make a concerted effort to unpack the plurality of ways in which sexualized violence is reinforced in our society - through our legal systems, socialization, gender binaries, pop culture, heteronormativity, etc. – and address them directly.

When sexualized violence is so often made to be invisible, the first task at hand is to bring these elements to the fore, call them what they are, and make them visible. This is the central focus of our issue. We do not have all the answers, but we are intimately aware of the need to have these hard conversations.

We acknowledge the important work the university has done this year in establishing StFX’s first sexual violence policy, as well as the developments made by the Bringing in the Bystander program. Yet as the administration has done well to admit, the policy is only a first step. We still have a long way to go in shifting the narrative from one that normalizes and silences experiences of sexualized violence to one that does not tolerate the exploitation or violation of another person’s bodily integrity.

Our world is one where being sexually assaulted is either widely ignored or is considered shameful, where the victim/survivor is made to feel as though they did something wrong in being violated. How victim/survivors are made to feel is the foundation of the culture surrounding sexualized violence, and it is only once we fully address this fundamentally twisted stigma that we can start dismantling the remaining toxic mentalities that pervade our society.

The response to acts of sexualized violence must transition from shame and indifference to outrage, and this outrage must in turn be harnessed into action. While broad social change over time is ultimately required, it starts with speaking truth to power and being vigilant in rendering sexualized violence truly unacceptable through action as well as words.

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