Campus Engagement #2

Last night I hosted a screening of "The Whistleblower" in my backyard. Six people attended and it was definitely helpful having others around to discuss what was happening during the film.

While the film may have played a bit into the stereotype of who a trafficking victim is, it shed light on what the perpetuators of this type of violence look like. Kathy, working with the U.N. International Police, is sent to Bosnia post-war. In working with a young woman named Raya, she uncovers a deep-rooted human trafficking and sex slavery scandal: her fellow officers are not only paying for prostitutes, they are transporting them, and being paid to keep quiet. The woman working in the shelter tells Kathy, “Half of our men died at war. Who do you think these women are working for?

Raya is reluctant to cooperate with Kathy at first. And despite her efforts to keep Raya safe, she is eventually abducted and brought back “to work.” To set an example of what will happen if you “deal with the devil,” the other girls are forced to watch Raya as she is anally raped with a lead pipe. Afterwards, she is told that she will go to work in 2 hours. When Kathy reappears to help her, Raya refuses. This definitely supported what we read in Girls Like Us, when it is seemingly safer to stay with your abuser than go through the gruel of leaving them.

You are left with a moral knot in your stomach at the close of the film, especially after the last prompt, which states that the U.S. is still doing business with private contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan. Despite the “based on actual events” prompt at the start of the film, if I hadn’t had prior knowledge of the issue it would have been easy to push away the inconceivable corruption and wickedness presented in the movie as the imaginative work of Hollywood. For that reason, as enlightening as it was, I think it would have been more impactful as a documentary. Hopefully, it persuades most viewers to research the issue.

I plan on reading Kathryn Bolkovac’s book by the same name.

Campus Engagement #1

I attended the Pay Inequity Forum (organized by my wonderful classmates, Nicole E. and Nena B.) on April 11^th. To me, pay inequity is about as mind boggling as currency exchange. While I have experienced my fair share of gender-based discriminations in the work place, I have not yet felt the repercussions of the wage gap. I am currently a manager at a company where 4 out of 6 employees are female in an industry (service/bar/restaurant) where, according to Forbes, women make 111% more than men (the reasons for this, however, are certainly a topic for “unpacking”) (Goudreau).

Panelist Curtis Hiero brought up a few good points concerning the persistence of pay inequity, mainly the construction of masculinity in society and it’s ability to perpetuate the wage gap. Men are often portrayed as the “bread-winners” and thus deserving of heftier compensation. Men with children earn 2% more than men without children (Longley). Conversely, women with children earn 2.5% less than women without children (Longley). There is also a theory that working women from an older generation continue on in positions that are subject to attitudes from the past, having a negative impact on the wage gap equation. In 2005, women under 25 working full-time earned 93.2% of men’s salaries; women 25 and older earned 79.4% of what men made (Brunner). But, as commentator Katha Pullit states: “Young men and women have always had earnings more compatible than those of their elders. Starting salaries are generally low, and do not accurately reflect the advantages that accrue, or fail to accrue, over time as men advance and women stay in place, or as women in mostly female kinds of jobs reach the end of characteristically short career paths (Brunner).” This is definitely something that concerns me as, at 25, I am at a crossroads when it comes to making decisions that will determine what my career/future looks like.

It’s important to recognize the gravity of the situation, but equally important to recognize the progress that has been made in this imperfect world of ours. Albeit slow, the wage gap has narrowed in the past decade (up from 76 cents to 81 cents compared to every dollar earned by a man) (Goudreau). While government action such as the Equal Pay Act and the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act have made an impact, I agree with Curtis’ assertion that empowerment will be our most important tool in continuing progress and influencing larger systematic changes.

Also: Jobs Where Women Earn More Than Men: http://www.forbes.com/sites/jennagoudreau/2011/03/14/jobs-where-women-earn-more-than-men/

Works Cited

Brunner, Borgna. "InfoPlease." The Wage Gap: A History of Pay Inequity. Women's History, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2012.

Goudreau, Jenna. "Forbes." The 15 Jobs Where Women Earn More Than Men. Forbes Woman, 14 Mar. 2011. Web. 17 Apr. 2012.

Longley, Robert. "About." Why Women Still Make Less Than Men. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr 2012.

Activism Log #2

Activism: The trip to the Fellsmere Community Garden on March 31^st was both humbling and inspiring. Because of this experience, I decided to continue a relationship with YAYA. I attended their meeting the following day and volunteered to write the report for the Fellsmere trip to be posted on the site (it will also be used in our Service Learning Presentation). I joined some classmates/YAYA members during a beach trip on Easter Sunday. While for the sole purpose of leisure, it allowed me the opportunity to connect with my peers in an unrestricted setting.

A core group of classmates has met a few times in the past week in an attempt to wrap things up with this Service Learning project, and it once again seems that we are not truly coming together to “make things happen” until it gets “down to the wire.” Yes, communication has been spotty; yes, there have been personality conflicts; yes, this should be expected. While there is definite room for improvement in these areas, I think for a team of 20-somethings with varying obligations, we should have some pride when it comes to what we’ve accomplished individually and as a group.

Reflection: As I noted in my previous activism log, we were facing issues involving how we addressed things and struggling to agree upon a way in which to reach our goals. Since then, the importance of opening up dialogue and acknowledging perspectives has generally been accepted and has had a positive impact on our ability to communicate, mobilize, and empower each other. I feel like this semester, this project, and the issues we discuss in class have seemed overwhelming to the majority of my peers. It’s important to recognize evidence of the changed a group can make in order to remain motivated rather than become discouraged. Hilkka Pietila writes about the impact of a woman’s movement in Finland: “By empowering women around the country as national political actors, the women’s movement made a remarkable contribution to the eradication of poverty in Finland (166). Making general progress in any country requires all possible contributions, of women, too, and thus the empowerment of women benefits the whole nation (167). This directly relates to our Service Learning project, as many families in the farmworker community are forced to live in poverty and, as Yolanda discussed with us in Fellsmere, the women are often restricted to household chores and childcare. By working within these communities and empowering these members, we are making progress towards positive social change.

Reciprocity: I have gained a lot from this project and class, most notably a change in perception and the opportunity to become involved with YAYA. I am inspired by the organizers in this community and feel that the impact this has had on me will be reciprocated whether while working in solidarity within a movement or voicing what I’ve learned/experienced within my circle of friends. I am excited to continue a relationship with YAYA and look forward to the personal growth that will come along with that. At the meeting yesterday, we discussed fundraising events and “YAYA Jr.” at Glenridge Middle School, both of which I plan on being involved with.

Works Cited

Pietila, Hilkka. "Women as Agents for Development.” Global Feminism: Transnational Women's Activism, Organizing, and Human Rights. New York: New York University Press, 2006. 166-167. Print.

Word count: 524

TAL: Three Women and the Sex Industry

It was interesting to listen to this after our discussion about the national vs. global discourses of sexual exploitation, human trafficking, the importance of age, race, and class, and the "sex positive" theory, so I thought I'd share:

Girls Like Us Assignment

Pg. 81: “I understand why she feels that being in the life is the only thing that she’s capable of doing. It’s hard to imagine a life of possibilities when she can’t even read a book, fill out a job application, or decipher a street sign.”

This quote summarizes the hopelessness that can control someone in a situation of this nature. While we wish there was an easy answer: “go to a shelter, go to the police, go to a family member, go to a “safe place,” the harsh reality is that these options often don’t offer the rehabilitation, support, and protection that is needed to escape the cycle of abuse, manipulation, fear, hope/helplessness that human trafficking fosters. One of the main things that Rachel Lloyd stresses in her memoir is the absence of choice for the women and girls that are caught up in the commercial sex industry. In order for a choice to be of legitimate construct, you’ve got to believe that you actually have possible alternatives…(Lloyd, 78).

Lloyd writes to expose the disconnect that exists in our society when it comes to our perception of victims of sex trafficking—-to break down the idea that the women and girl citizens involved in these acts are “morally corrupt” for “choosing” this lifestyle when the reality is that they are often just as scared, vulnerable, and disadvantaged as the immigrants that we have such sympathy for. Police are the most likely officials to come in contact with these victims. Unfortunately, most victims of trafficking are treated as criminals on the local level (Hughes, 9). Tactics of force and coercion that often cause the victim to fear telling the truth in the face of certain threats, or for loyalty to shift to the abuser further perpetuates this (Hughes, 4-7). Girls are encouraged to lie about their age and the prevalence of fraudulent documents makes it difficult to determine a person’s true age, hindering the authorities ability to treat them as victims of sexual exploitation instead of criminals (Hughes, 9). Paired with the overall insensitivity of law enforcement, as Lloyd has described in her book, the cycle continues.

The antithesis of “choice” would be “force.” The article cited above mentions “force” 22 times.

Works Cited

Hughes, Donna. "Hiding in Plain Sight." (2003): 3-11. Web. 9 Apr. 2012.

Lloyd, Rachel. Girls Like Us. 1st. New York City: HarperCollins Publishers, 2011.78-81. Print.

Word count: 343

Activism Log #1

Activism: Last Sunday, Andrew and I held a last minute garage sale at my apartment, which ended up acting as a hub for donated items that I sold to Plato’s Closet later in the week. I also tabled with YAYA at UCF today. This bumped us beyond our fundraising goal, which is exciting. While I wish we had organized and gained momentum sooner, I feel good about the work we have done and the forward progress we can now make as our group begins to work in solidarity and gain understanding of and respect for one another. I have faith that our group will do something great.

Due to my work schedule and a recent car accident, it’s difficult for me to attend the YAYA meetings or last minute get togethers, but I sincerely hope to show my face at these events in the coming weeks.

Working in this group highlights the difficulties of uniting diverse women for global activism, even on a small scale. However, with each step we take at overcoming the challenges of diversity, we not only learn and grow from each other, the strength of our group and ability to mobilize effectively is improved.

As has been stated, I think in order for this project to be successful, we need to find a way to bring the focus back to women.

Reflection: In communicating with people about YAYA and the fundraising we were doing, it was important to stress the fact that we are working in solidarity with the farmworker movement(s) in order to meet the needs of these communities rather than “liberating our less fortunate sisters,” as Bellhooks said (45). This project and class in general has stressed the importance of solidarity and decolonization of thought, which is necessary when mobilizing for a global women’s issue.

The challenges we have faced during organizing are perfectly summed up by Aili Mari Tripp on pg. 296 of Global Feminism: “one of the biggest constraints on transnational feminism today comes from problems in the manner in which issues are treated and discussed, on how to best achieve agreed upon goals, and how international support should be rendered.” We are experiencing these same issues and probable solutions as we practice global feminism within the constraints of our project. We certainly will not figure out all, if any, of the answers, but in trying we are able to understand and dissect the realities of a global movement.

Reciprocity: I feel I have experienced a decent amount of growth from my involvement in this project and class. I have learned in what arenas difference do and do not matter when it comes to building solidarity. I have also gained perspective through listening to and reading other people’s ideas, points, and experiences. Although it was frustrating at it’s onset, the process of “decolonizing” thought has ultimately been freeing.

Works Cited

Tripp, Aili Mari. "Challenges in Transnational Feminist Mobilization." Global Feminism: Transnational Women's Activism, Organizing, and Human Rights. New York: New York University Press, 2006. 296. Print.

"Global Feminism." Feminism is for Everybody. London: Pluto Press, 2000. 45. Web. 29 Mar. 2012.

Word count: 473

Service Learning Proposal...again

Mission Statement:

To fight for agricultural justice and improvement of women’s rights in the farmworker community through fundraising and volunteering with YAYA and communication and cooperation with our [to be determined] global partner.

Organizational Structure:

1) Secretary: record keeping (includes tracking attendance), maintenance of Google group

2) Scheduler: maintains Google calendar and plans attendance to events

3) Task-based committees:

· Headed by a Committee Chairperson who acts as the liaison for the committee and ensures efficiency of meetings

· Community partner liaisons (2): communicate with community partners and attend YAYA meetings

· Global partner liaisons (2): work with fundraising committee

· Ethics Committee (3): ensures mindful action, implements “three strike” policy

o Three Strike Policy:

§ failure to complete a task or attend a designated event results in one strike

§ first and second strikes result in voting restrictions

§ three strikes results in a meeting with the ethics committee and Professor Tweed

· Fundraising Organizers (4): responsible for coordinating an event and/or delegating responsibilities to other members to ensure that we are able to provide at least $190 (for food), 19 rakes and 19 shovels to YAYA for the community garden project

Every member is accountable for their own attendance and participation. If a member is unable to attend an event they must notify the scheduler. The Ethics Committee and “three strike” policy were conceived to deal with situations in which a member fails to be accountable for themselves.

Our group is democratically structured and focuses on working with, rather than for, our community. We have chosen this organizational strategy because, based on the NGOs that have come before us, operating through task-based committees (where personal accountability and leadership can foster) promotes efficiency in goal achievement. Women, Food, and Agriculture Network (WFAN), as discussed in Women’s Activism and Globalization, have a similar mission. One of their goals is to “instigate change” by building community and sustaining relationships with farmworkers (144).

We also have an ethics committee to monitor our progress. In “Unlikely Godmother,” Margaret Snyder characterizes the United Nations as a “godmother,” which acted as a guardian and advocate for women’s issues (25). Our ethics committee is cognate to the UN, in that it will monitor the efficacy and ethical compliance of our project.

We are facing the global challenge of migrant farmworker rights based on local realities, specifically the lack of resources to farmworkers in the community of Fellsmere, FL. We will be participating in discussion that takes place on a global level with our global partner. By building solidarity between our local and global partners, and ourselves, we will either discover or develop new ideas to cater to the needs of the farmworker population.

Group effectiveness will be measured by involvement of the majority of class members at each event, as well as our ability to fulfill each of the goals we have set. We are also considering the individual gains of each class member, outside of the group as a whole, to be an accomplishment of overall group effectiveness. This includes phone banking with YAYA, fundraising, and planning. We will also strive to maintain sincere communication and ethical interactions with each other and our community partners. We will assess ourselves via individual surveys on group effectiveness.

Community Partner/Global Theme Profile:

We propose to address the larger systemic issues of the treatment and unfair conditions of farm workers, focusing specifically on women farm workers. We know that "women produce 70% of the food on earth but they are marginalized and oppressed by neoliberalism and patriarchy" (What Is 1). These systems of oppression often deny those who produce the food basic and equal access to the products they produce. As the price of food increases and becomes more scarce, women become malnourished, "as they eat last after providing for their children and family members" (Desai 21). One possible way of addressing this issue is to "produce food for local consumption" (Desai 24). To lay a foundation for both environmental and production sustainability, it is key that the community eats the food it grows. Local production and consumption can also indirectly address situations of "unsustainable exploitation of workers," who are denied not only equal access to food but also other resources, such as safe housing and acceptable working conditions (Two Years 1). By establishing themselves as producers of their own food and giving value and recognition to both the unpaid and poorly paid labor, farm workers can pave the way for change in regard to equal access and fair treatment.

We have not yet been able to contact a global partner, however when we do we will be able to find out more about their needs and goals as they relate to our own and therefore participate in both shared learning and activism.

By working in solidarity with YAYA, we are supporting activism enacted “to change the oppressive social, political and economic conditions of farm workers” (“About”). Human rights violations, such as those our local farmworkers face, are worldwide issues and are experienced in many forms across many communities. “Few people are willing to do the hard physical labor required to farm under often harsh weather conditions while living in social isolation without many city amenities. This is not just an American problem, as migrant labor issues are present in Europe, the UK, Canada, Australia and elsewhere (McDonald).” While YAYA is “[i]nspired by the principles of nonviolence of the farm worker movement,” we are inspired by the efforts of YAYA and the organization’s slant towards working with, not simply for farmworker communities (“About”). As we work with each other and with YAYA, we will cultivate ethical activism through focusing on our communicative and social interactions.

Our project with YAYA addresses the goals and objectives of this course by allowing us the opportunity to work alongside women from diverse histories and struggles as a means to come to a better understanding of the experiences of those that we have labeled as “the other.” By submersing ourselves into this culture, even momentarily, we learn to respect the needs of a community as opposed to pushing our perception of their needs onto them. In doing this, we will rise above what Trinh Minh-Ha refers to in “Woman, Native, Other” when she states: “the invention of ‘needs’ and the mission to ‘help’ the needy always blossom together (54).”

By mobilizing beyond the classroom and reaching out to our communities in order to inform them of the position of women farm worker’s and encourage participation during Farmworker Awareness Week, we are engaging in a feminist movement as described on page six of “Global Feminism. ” As we will reflect our experience and relate it to the feminist theories, beliefs, and strategies that we dissect during this course, our activism is morphed into ‘service-learning’ as its attachment to a curriculum guides our experience.

The Project Proposal:

Our intention for this project is to forge relationships with farmworker communities on a local to global level, with a focus on women and how their lives are impacted by the work they do. We will accomplish our goals by dividing them up between the various aforementioned committees. We will begin developing a relationship with our local community partner, YAYA, by attending meetings and fulfilling their requested needs for gardening tools and long sleeve shirts. We will also be participating in the Fellsmere Community Garden Event, where we will be gardening and sharing and preparing a meal, while also learning from one another. We will determine the needs of our global partners through email and meet whatever need(s) that they express at that time.

We will complete our service-learning project via our combined resources as individuals, the resources we have available as UCF students, and the resources of our Orlando community. Through the expertise of YAYA and FWAF, we will be able to better understand the ways in which we can use our resources to best serve the needs of the farmworker community. We will be communicating as a group in order to continuously reevaluate our initial methodology, resources, and group organizational structure, in order to best serve our goals.

One of our immediate goals in supporting YAYA and FWAF in the Fellsmere community gardening day is to fundraise one shovel and one rake per student. Another goal is to fundraise the cost per person for our visit, which includes meals and transportation. These goals are feasible because we have access to different types of resources that will help our fundraising efforts, such as on-campus technology to create fundraiser advertisements, as well as access to various campus organizations that may support our fundraising events. Our most important goal is to support our community partner and their sustainable relationship building with farmworker communities. Our fundraising efforts will provide the Fellsmere community with the tools that they currently need and will use in the future. We will also be providing labor within the Fellsmere community garden and helping with the upkeep of the plots, a service that FWAF has asked YAYA and our Global class to provide. Through this project, we hope to help YAYA strengthen their established relationship with the Fellsmere community, and that through our collaborative efforts, we will create a sustainable relationship with our community partner.

Project Timeline:

2/22: Initial contact with Lariza Garzon of YAYA to confirm partnership

2/24: Contact Global Partner

3/1: In-class presentation by YAYA

3/15: Meeting

3/17: Fundraise

3/19: Fundraise

3/25: Attend YAYA Meeting

3/31: Participate in YAYA’s Community Garden Project

4/1: Draft presentation and final reflection paper

4/12: Turn in final presentation

4/19: Turn in final reflection paper

Works Cited

· McDonald, Kay. "Migrant Farm Workers in the PIGS, America, and Elsewhere: Noting a Balance Sheet Correlation." Big Picture Agriculture. Black Sea Agriculture, 12 Oct. 2011. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. .

· Naples, Nancy, and Manisha Desai. Women’s Activism and Globalization: Linking Local Struggles and Transnational Politics. New York: Routlege, 2002. Print.

· “Two Years After the Events…” La Via Campesina: International Peasant’s Movement. La Via Campesina International Peasant’s Voice. 12 January 2012. Web. 23 February 2012.

· “What is La Via Campesina?” La Via Campesina: International Peasant’s Movement. La Via Campesina International Peasant’s Voice. 9 February 2011. Web. 23 February 2012.

Word Count: 1590