Women's History Month, March 2007

The Commonality of Difference:
Women's Lives in the Global Community

The Women’s and Gender Studies program invites you to participate in our celebration of Women's History month. Activities and events are detailed below. Please contact the Women’s and Gender Studies Program office – (734) 487-1177 – if you have questions or need further information.

SCROLL DOWN TO SEE UPCOMING EVENTS...

January 18 -March 26 - WHM 2007 Poster Contest (Katherine Anderson, Alaina Stuard & Rebecca Malotke-Meslin, Coordinators) -- Participants will create a poster around the theme of WHM 2007 "The Commonality of Difference: Women's Lives in the Global Community." Various artistic media may be used (paint, ink, mixed media, computer graphics, etc.) to create a poster between sizes 11"x17" and 18"x 24". Contestants need to submit a hard copy of the poster to be shown in a gallery setting (place/time yet to be determined). The First Place Winner's Poster will be duplicated and sold at WHM events for WGST fundraising purposes. The Top 12 posters will be made into a 2008 calendar for WGST fundraising purposes. All levels of artistry are welcome! For more information and specific contest guidelines contact Katherine Anderson at kander23@emich.edu, stop by the WGST Office 714 Pray-Harrold, or click here.

Mondays, March 5, 19 - WGSSA Film Series (Rebecca Malotke-Meslin, Coordinator) - The Women’s and Gender Studies Student Association (WGSSA) will be showing popular culture films that introduce us to main characters from varied cultural backgrounds. Films will be followed by a moderator-led discussion of feminist themes in the film to enhance viewing experience.

• Monday, March 5th 6pm-8pm, Room 300 Halle Library
  "Bend it Like Beckham"
• Monday, March 19th 6pm-8pm, G03 Auditorium Halle Library
  "Real Women Have Curves"

Monday, March 5 -WHM Kiosk Painting (Katherine Anderson, Rebecca Malotke-Meslin, Coordinators) -- The Women's and Gender Studies Student Association (WGSSA) will paint the kiosk outside of Pray-Harrold Hall announcing the beginning of Women's History Month. Meet us outside Pray- Harrold at 8pm (after the WGSSA Film) for a fun evening of pink paint!

Tuesday, March 6 - Feminism in Bangladesh (Salima Zaman, Coordinator) -- Report of a videotaped conversation with the Director of the Women's and Gender Studies Program at Dhaka University, Bangladesh followed by a discussion of how the experiences of the EMU WGST program compares with the program at Dhaka, and the commonality and differences between feminists involved with each of the programs. 11am-12pm, Room 330 New Student Center.

Tuesday, March 6 - Under One Roof: Jewish and Muslim Women Coming Together (Audrey Bloomberg, Hillel and Hodan Said, Muslim Student Association, Coordinators) - This event is part of a series of events for Jewish/Muslim women on campus. The goal of the program is to put aside political differences and come together under the universal feeling of being minority women in a culture that does not always promote modesty. Observant Jewish and Muslim women will share differences and commonalities of their respective religious cultures. 7pm-9pm, Room 310B Student Center

Tuesdays, March 6, 20, 27 - Women & Courage Film Series (Suzanne Gray and Lisa Klopfer, Coordinators) - EMU Library Faculty will host a series of films set in foreign countries on the theme of Women and Courage. Film showings are as follows:

• Tuesday, March 6th 4-6pm 300 Halle Library
  "Signs Out of Time - The Story of Archaeologist Marija Gimbutas"
  This documentary weaves together interviews, archival footage, photographs, and narration to explore Marija's studies, excavations and publications, the depth and breadth of her scholarship, and the controversy around her theories.
  http://www.belili.org/marija/aboutSIGNS.html
• Tuesday, March 20th 4-6pm 300 Halle Library
  "Whale Rider"
  A contemporary story of love, rejection and triumph as a young Maori girl fights to fulfill a destiny her grandfather refuses to recognize.
  http://www.whaleriderthemovie.com/
• Tuesday, March 27th 4-6pm 300 Halle Library
  "Sisters in Law"
  This fascinating, often hilarious documentary follows the work of State Prosecutor Vera Ngassa and Court President Beatrice Ntuba as they help women fight often-difficult cases of abuse in Cameroon, despite pressures from family and their community to remain silent.
  http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/pages/c645.shtml

Wednesday, March 7 - Women Making a Difference: Gender and the Millennium Development Goals (Dr. Marisa Ensor, Coordinator) - Discussion of women's role in the global efforts to reduce poverty and promote development worldwide. In particular, the workshop will focus on women as global partners in the context of the Millennium Development Goals, which form a blueprint agreed to by all of the world's countries and leading development institutions. 10am -11am, G03 Auditorium Halle Library.

Thursday, March 8 - International Women's Day Events:

• Women's Histories and Challenges Around the World (Drs Dibya Choudhuri and Sõlange Simões, coordinators) -- Noontime cross-cultural luncheon and panel discussion by women from a broad range of countries who will describe the challenges facing women in their respective homelands, and the organizations and methods women use to overcome those challenges. The emphasis will be on identifying commonality and difference in women's experiences and feminist movements cross-nationally. A variety of international foods and refreshments will be provided. Noon-1:30, Porter 301 B/C.
• WHM Quilt 2007: Piecing Together Identity-Block Creation #1 (Katherine Anderson, Linda S. Anderson of Sew Elegant Quilt Shoppe, Coordinators) Participants will receive a pre-cut 10" x 10" piece of fabric on which they can paint, glue, stitch, etc. representations of themselves. While creating their blocks we will engage in informal conversation about women's identities across cultures. Linda S. Anderson, owner of Sew Elegant Quilt Shoppe (http://www.sewelegant.com), will show her collection of historical quilts, discuss the history of women's artistic expression via quilting, and also provide machine and hand sewing lessons. All blocks will be quilted together to create a quilt that is a diverse expression of what it means to be a woman. 1:30pm-4pm, Room 330 Student Center.
• Keynote Speaker: Dr. Kum-Kum Bhavnani, filmmaker and Professor of Sociology, UC Santa Barbara, will show and discuss her award-winning film narrated by Susan Sarandon "The Shape of Water" depicting the grassroots work of women activists in Senegal, Brazil, India, and Israel. Film and Discussion 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Student Center Auditorium. FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT THE FILM WEBSITE at http://www.theshapeofwatermovie.com/
  For maps, directions, and Student Center building information please visit http://www.emich.edu/mckenny/newcenter/directory.htm.

Monday, March 12 - WHM Quilt 2007: Piecing Together Identity-- Information Table (Katherine Anderson, Coordinator) - Stop by during your lunch break to create a block at the table or pick up a 10" x 10" pre-cut piece of fabric to take home for the WHM Quilt 2007 project. All blocks will be quilted together to create a quilt that is a diverse expression of what it means to be a woman. Finished blocks must be turned into the Women and Gender Studies Program office 714 Pray-Harrold by Friday 3/16 at 5pm. Information Table, Student Center Lobby, 11am-2pm.

Monday, March 12 -- Michigan Collects Ruth Weisberg (Julie Myers, Coordinator) - Opening reception and lecture by internationally recognized painter/ printmaker Ruth Weisberg. A forty-year retrospective of her work will be held at the University Art Gallery in the EMU Student Center from March 12-April 27. In the mid-1960s, Weisberg was one of the first American artists to take a self-consciously feminist approach to art. In the early 1970s she joined Judy Chicago and Miriam Shapiro to create the Women's Art Movement in Southern California. She has pursued feminist themes throughout her lengthy career. A Jewish artist, her work treats such subjects as the Holocaust and Jewish rituals in an attempt to build cross-cultural understanding with non-Jewish viewers. Reception 5pm-7 pm; Lecture 7 pm, Student Center Auditorium. Sponsored by the EMU Art Department.

Tuesday, March 13 - WHM Quilt 2007: Piecing Together Identity-Block Creation #2 (Katherine Anderson, Linda S. Anderson of Sew Elegant Quilt Shoppe, Coordinators) Missed the last creation session? Need help finishing your block? Join us again for an informal quilt gathering to create blocks for the WHM Quilt 2007 Project and a discussion of women's identity across cultures. Machine and hand sewing lessons will be provided. 1-4pm, Room 300 Student Center.

Thursday, March 15 - Black Women on the Front: Michigan Welfare Rights Organizations (Karen Schaumann-Beltran, Coordinator) - Screening of a video on the Welfare Rights Movement in Michigan. Sylvia Ordeino (U of M) and Karen Schaumann-Beltran of EMU collected oral histories from activists around Michigan. Viewers will have a glimpse of the struggle over a 40 year time span. 2pm-3:15pm, Room 204 Pray-Harrold.

Thursday, March 15 - Crossing Boundaries in the Fight for Civil Rights - The Story of Viola Liuzzo (Drs. Sõlange Simões, Nina Nabors, & Carol Haddad, Coordinators) -- Showing of the 75 minute film - "Home of the Brave" about Viola Liuzzo, a white 39-year old mother from Detroit who was murdered in 1965 after participating in the 3rd Voting Rights March, from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama (http://www.bullfrogfilms.com/catalog/hob.html). Professors Ron Woods and Carol Haddad will lead a discussion on how gender and racial stereotypes discredited Liuzzo's contribution to social justice, and the implications for today. Professor Simões will present information on how the US civil rights movement has inspired liberation movements in Brazil and other countries. Representatives of interested student organizations will also be asked to contribute to the panel discussion. 6:30pm-9pm, G03 Auditorium Halle Library.

Friday, March 16 - Bandit Queen: Exploring the Image of the Woman Warrior (Drs. Christine Neufeld & Nataša Kovačević, Coordinators) - Film screening of The Bandit Queen followed by a brief roundtable and a general discussion on the theme of the woman as warrior (the participation of women in armed conflict). 2pm-5pm, G03 Auditorium Halle Library.

Sunday, March 18 - ZEITOUNA premier at Michigan Theater - premier of a film documenting the work of Zeitouna, a local Arab-Jewish women's dialogue group devoted to cross-cultural understanding and common work for peace and justice at home and abroad. For more information visit http://www.zeitounamovie.org 7:00 pm Michigan Theater, 603 East Liberty Street, Ann Arbor.

Tuesday, March 20 - The Good, Bad, and Ugly: Women's Physical Education and Athletics Before Title IX (Drs. Linda Pritchard, Brenda Riemer, and Bette Warren, Coordinators) - A panel of women who worked at EMU in Women's PE and/or Athletics before 1972 will tell their personal stories and discuss issues such as: program description and "specialness," relationship of women's and men's PE and sports, how resources were allocated and decisions made, opportunities and challenges, and disappointments and high points. Panel will be moderated by one of the organizers, commented on by a current women's sports official and include 4-6 former EMU women in PE or Athletics. 9:30am-10:45am, Room 330 Student Center.

Wednesday, March 21 - Sporting Women in the Middle East (Dr. Brenda Riemer, Coordinator) - The purpose of this presentation is to highlight the gains/losses that women in the Middle East (such as Israel, Iran, and Iraq) have experienced pertaining to participation in sports. The presentation will also compare some of these gains and losses to what women in the U.S. have experienced. 1pm-3pm, Room 310A Student Center.

Thursday, March 22 - The Concept of Sexual Harassment in Turkey (Dr. Margaret Crouch, Coordinator) -- In researching conceptions of sexual harassment across the globe, one finds that international bodies have been extremely influential in both shaping conceptions of sexual harassment. In this presentation, we will explore the influence of the United Nations and the European Union on the development of sexual harassment law in Turkey. 11am-12:30pm, Room 302 Halle Library.

Thursday, March 22 - Performance -- Unveiled: Stories from the lives of Muslim Women (Bayyinah Muhammed, Coordinator) - a multi-ethnic cast of Muslim women explore the "mysterious" lives behind the veil through the dramatic performance of poems, narratives and ensemble pieces. The performance attempts to deconstruct some of the myths pertaining to Muslim women who walk among us veiled, providing an illuminating tapestry connecting all through the threads of humanity. 8pm- 9:30pm, Student Center Auditorium.

Thursday, March 29 - Technology Degrees: Expectations & Challenges in Global Job Market (Dr. Denise Pilato and Pam Becker, Coordinators) -- Round table dialogue with female students and faculty engaged in technology-related educational programs.  Discussion will focus on expectations and challenges facing those seeking to enter the global job market in technology fields. 11am-12pm, Room 320 Student Center