Author: Marie Briere de la Hosseraye

Categories
Opinions

TIME magazine is behind the times on feminism

The women’s movement is not a laughing matter

A few weeks ago, TIME magazine published its annual word-banning poll.  The list of words it suggests is meant as a joke, in order to create—ironically—more discussion about overused buzzwords in this era of constant provocation to attract an audience.  Last year the lucky winner of this “worst word war” was “twerk”.  The nominees for this year included various choices of annoying culture-related terms such as “bae,” “I can’t even,” and…“feminist.”

Not only was it in the list, but it also made it to the first step of the podium. Feminist, a word to ban? After a petition from angry readers—because, let’s face it, some feminists are known to lack a sense of humour—TIME apologized for including the term in its list.

But what’s so wrong about including it in the first place? Let’s get started: first of all, feminism isn’t slang or a brand-new trendy word. Feminism is a movement striving for political, economic, social, cultural equality between genders. Feminism is an ideology promoting respect, equality of chances, rights, and duties, for both men and women. Feminism has history. Feminism is history. How can anyone neglect all the progress made thanks to this movement, by outrageously, casually, including it next to words empty of meanings like “obvi” or “sorry not sorry”? The association is disturbing.

Their justification was that the “f-word” made a loud comeback this year, and it was overused by a lot of celebrities. It cannot be denied the frequency of its use increased these past few months. We remember the beautiful speech from Emma Watson, leading the #HeforShe United Nations campaign, reminding us that anyone who is against gender discrimination and believes in equality should take action and consider themselves a feminist. Because this is the only meaning of the word.

And yes, plenty of other celebrities like Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Beyonce, Lena Dunham, and Taylor Swift all took a stand and defined themselves as active feminists. The question is: in 2014, how can it be “hurtful” or “annoying” to speak out about equality?

The truth is, no matter how many people speak out, the situation stays the same. The gender wage gap exists everywhere. Women are not paid the same as men for equal qualifications. Women still don’t control their own bodies and have to fight for contraception or abortion. Women are still discriminated against, harassed, or blamed for their sexuality. Women are still victims of the glass ceiling, and face archaic sexist structures in the workplace. Women still deal with violence and sexual assault every day.

When all of this isn’t a problem anymore, then we can stop talking about it. Until then, it is our duty not to ban the word, but the injustice. When that day comes, the word “feminist” should not be banned but remembered, because of the meaning it carries, and the accomplishments it represents.

For now, let’s work to make it obsolete.

Categories
News

Mellissa Fung on challenges and hope for Afghanistan

Journalist minimizes 28-day kidnapping ordeal to focus on status of citizens

On Tuesday Nov. 18, journalist Mellissa Fung came to Concordia to give a talk about her experience reporting in Afghanistan. The independent journalist, writer, and former reporter with CBC was captured and held for 28 days by an Islamist group in 2008. This happened while she was reporting for the CBC on Canada’s military intervention in the country. Despite this experience, she chose to go back later to keep reporting on the fragile state.

A few years after, she wrote a book about her story, entitled Under an Afghan Sky. This talk was part of a series of discussions held in seven journalism schools across Canada to share her experience.

The event, titled “Inside Afghanistan,” was organized by the Aga Khan Foundation, a non-profit organization which works towards social growth in the developing world.

André Roy, the Dean of Arts and Science, introduced Fung as being an inspirational example of journalism representing the “conviction, courage, passion, and commitment” necessary for success.

“Just because we have been at war in this country for the past 12 years doesn’t mean that things were going to turn around quickly,” said Fung. “We have to have patience.”

In her talk, Fung chose to focus on why she kept coming back to the country over the last seven years despite everything she’d been through. Even though she made headlines because of her kidnapping, she didn’t talk in detail about this experience. Fung explained that while the press tends to highlight the individual, she did not want to become the story. Instead,  she hopes people will focus on talking about the lives of refugees and women overseas.

It is for this specific reason that she feels committed to the stories she collected, to put the spotlight back on those who are struggling every day. She also spoke about how much Afghanistan has changed and gained since 2001, coverage that traditional media tend to ignore in favour of more negative coverage like instances of suicide bombing.

“We have the responsibility as journalists to tell the other side of the story as well to get a complete picture of what really is going on in the country,” she said.

Fung explained that she had to argue with CBC in order for them to allow her to return to Afghanistan in 2011. They feared for her safety, but this was preventing her from covering the stories she believed in. Fung finally went back with an NGO working in Afghanistan.

According to her, 80 per cent of women in Afghanistan are still illiterate but the number of girls in school keeps increasing. “Development is a process, it is generational,” she said. In addition, new initiatives exist in the population. One of the stories she shared was about a school where boys and girls were learning side by side for a few years, before the government intervened.

Outside of education, she also looked at the healthcare system and talked about new initiatives increasing widespread healthcare access. The Afghan government for instance partnered with a French NGO to create the French Medical Institute for Children in Kabul. Twelve years ago, such a facility didn’t exist, and it is now expanding.

Fung’s lecture concentrated on the difficult situation of women, but she addressed it with positivity. She said that around 90 per cent of women have experienced some kind of sexual assault. However, increasingly women are able to speak up about it.

“Today they have control, they can have a choice. And that’s what makes the whole difference,” she said. “Women all have a sense of cautious optimism about the future, they know they made incredible progress over the last 12 years and they see a lot of hope that this will continue.”
Thanks to the lessons learned from working in “one of the world’s most fragile states,” Fung shared the challenges, risks and importance of treating all sides of a story. Through powerful stories about education, health and women, it is a sorely-needed bit of optimism in the challenging future that lies ahead for this country.

Categories
News

CUPA walks for mental health

Psychology Association wants to see mental illness accepted

The sixth edition of “Montreal walks for mental health” took place this Sunday, Oct. 5, and for the second time the Concordia Undergraduate Psychology Association (CUPA) decided to take part.

A dozen Concordia students — four of which were CUPA executives — joined a total of 2,000 or so people who came under the banner of the Montreal walks for mental health foundation’s mission to fight the stigma surrounding mental illness. The walk allows the foundation to raise awareness and collect funds, giving them the opportunity to support various initiatives that offer services to people dealing with mental illness. The walk progressed for several kilometers and began downtown at Phillips Square.

In preparation, CUPA organized a two-day bake sale last week, with all money raised donated towards the event.

A number of students came to express their enthusiasm and support towards the initiative. “It was really amazing to witness the extent of people that came out to support mental illnesses. We are extremely proud of the amount of donations we were able to raise, and all the positive energy and words of encouragement we received,” said Elizabeth Duong, CUPA president.

“Today, awareness and education should be our priority. Our biggest challenge is to support families who live with mental illnesses through support groups. They also need assistance to help them use the right resources in the medical system,” said Annie Young, former president of Action on Mental Illness Quebec.

According to the organizers, one out of five Canadians will experience some form of mental illness during their lifetimes. Their objective is to eliminate the prejudices and stigma surrounding mental health problems and allow people to feel comfortable talking about them and seeking help when they need it without the fear of discrimination.

Grievances with the current state of things were shared at the march. Participants complained the health care budgets for mental health aren’t adequate to meet the needs. In the crowd, a Concordia counsellor mentioned how students tend to feel ashamed, and she stated that seeking mental illness treatments shouldn’t be more stigmatized than, for instance, seeking cancer treatment.

“As psychology students, the lack of awareness about mental health and the stigma associated with it is something that we gear our education and careers towards. The walk was an excellent chance for our students to meet and network with numerous individuals that felt the same way,” said Duong.

“The walk proved there is hope for victims and that they are not alone. This is the second year that CUPA participated in the walk, and will certainly not be the last.”

Before next year’s walk, make sure to pass by the Mental Health Awareness fair of Concordia, which will take place on Wednesday, Oct. 8, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the EV building.

Exit mobile version