#s08s16

I really enjoyed this final plenary because  not only was it funny and engaging, it was about the current presidential election. They had people represent Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Ted Cruz, and Donald Trump. They discussed points when Donald Trump was saying he wanted to build a wall and have Mexico pay for it and how he has stated that Islam hates people from the United States. They also brought up a point where Hillary Clinton called black youth predators and later said she was an advocate.  Bringing up Hillary Clinton reminded me of the debate going on if women were really feminists if they weren’t voting for Hillary Clinton and then the discussion on whether Hillary Clinton being a feminist or not. There was an article printed in the New York Times called “When Hillary Clinton Killed Feminism.” This article mentions Madeleine Albright stated that it was a betrayal of feminist ideals to support Bernie against Hillary, noting that “there’s a special place in hell for women who don’t help each other.” It also adds that Gloria Steinem told Bill Maher that young women were flocking to Bernie to be where the boys are. These remarks are ridiculous and should not be made by people who claim to be feminists. The article adds that the reason why Bernie Sanders has more young feminists following him is because they want  a world where gender no longer restricts and defines a person’s choices and where girls grow up knowing they can be anything they want.  I like how this article doesn’t negatively portray feminists, instead it portrays it as a movement of people who want rights and equality. I also think that it is important to add that even though there are different feminist waves, feminist are usually fighting for the same thing, equality and women’s empowerment. It is important to not let the media or political figures try to divide feminists and pin them against each other. This relates to the plenary because the main message was to empower each other and not let society shape who you are and what alter what you believe in.

I really enjoyed the documentary, Intersexion. It was intriguing to see how intersex people felt and got to tell their side of the story. However I think that it should have been more inclusive and should have portrayed the stories of people of every race. This film reminded me of a novel I read sophomore year of college called Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. The novel was about a character who dd not know sh ewas interse because when she was born she had a surgery that altered her genitals the novel is about how the character thins she is not normal and questions her identity. This is important becasue when doctors were performing this surgeries thy were changing the identity of these people. In the film a girl mentions how doctors performed a surgery on her and every time she had sex with her boyfriend he was literally ripping her open. She adds that it was extremely painful for her and this could have been prevented if doctors hadn’t performed he surgery on her. Intersex individuals should have the right to choose if they want the surgery or not and the doctor or family should not make that decision for them. This documentary made more of an impact on me than the novel because it was different seeing people speak abut their experiences rather than just reading about them. I also liked how one of the characters was specially happy to be intersex because it showed that intersex individuals are not victims, they are regular human beings who just happen to have different body parts than what society think a “male” or “female” should have.

One of many, Amiyah’s story shines light on the growing human rights violation of women. It was absurd to see and listen to the stigmatization that the women in prostitution are there out of their own choice. Often times, without any other option, these women are forced and drugged to sell themselves.

Needless to say, I kind of rolled my eyes throughout the entire article. Though I consider myself a feminist, I dont necessarily think that my goal is to see men fail. I want to be working with strong female leaders as well as with males who appreciate women and our skills.

When I first entered this class, my idea of feminism was a big foggy cloud. Though I thought i knew... or know(maybe) my gender identification, the gender bread person broke it down enough to where I understood (a little) better about the many different factors that play in the not so binary topic of gender.

To be quite honest, this was a bit of an uncomfortable plenary, in a good way. Often times during this age we find topics such as intersex awkward. It is perhaps a topic that many of us dont know much about because of our ignorant binary society. It was a great idea to express the topic of intersex as a documentary film of real people living REAL lives because it have us the opportunity to sit back and listen as oppose to input unnecessary opinions.

My favorite plenary by far was the third one with Bobbie Ridgely. I enjoyed hearing about her life and how she got to where she is today. I was so pleased to hear her talk about how you don’t have to have a degree that perfectly aligns with a certain field in order to get a job in it. Overall, I found her a prime example of how if you keep true to yourself and work hard you will undoubtably end up doing something you love and for me thats what made this one so great. 

I attended the DRC event entitled “Take Back the Night” which was a protest aimed to end sexual, relationship, and domestic violence of all forms inflicted on women. Upon going to the event, I was amazed at the number of people that showed up and even more so at the sincerity in what they were protesting for. I was able to hear a few anecdotes of violence from people that were around me as well. At first I was a bit shy in attending because I did not want to be seen as a protester and have the possibility of any harm coming upon me. However, after going, I realized that I was an activist of women’s rights and that I should do that more often without fearing for what will happen to me. If everyone fears what will happen to them, then no change will be made in the world.