SOFTIE the Film

Here it is, folks, a cool combo of issues: Kenya, politics, photography, film, and the trade-offs between cause and family. Watch SOFTIE, the award-winning film about Boniface Mwangi, a photojournalist/activist, and candidate in the 2017 Kenya election, then listen to a panel discussion this Friday, April 22nd, at 7 PM EDT. Free AND enlightening. Who could ask for anything more? Sign up here: https://museumofpoliticalcorruption.org/

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Together Women Rise: Systems change? To help women? What’s up with that?

Root causes, people, root causes = the real approach to social change. Because just treating symptoms is not enough. Achieving gender equality is a tough, long-term problem, which is why at Together Women Rise we want to spend our time on root causes, on changing the systems that aren't working. Together Women Rise November 2021.

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Root Causes of Gender-Based Violence

Helping victims of gender-based violence is something everyone can get behind: rape crisis centers, domestic violence hot lines, self-defence classes for young girls. No. Just no more. I refuse to support this. Because until we start talking about the root causes of GBV, and addressing those, we are not really helping end the problem. In fact, we may be enabling it's continuation. Sarasota Herald Tribune November 2020.

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Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) 2019

Delighted to be able to attend CSW in New York this year. Our UN Women-USA board convened a panel on Providing Social Services and Protection to Women and Girls in Conflict Zones and hosted an evening reception for fellow national committees. And at Dining For Women’s discussion on Achieving Sustainable Impact: Gender Equity Through Social Protection Systems is Imperative I got to meet new staff from Integrate Health, one of my favorite organizations working in Togo. (Established in 1946, CSW is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women.)

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Panic Buttons, Technology, and Women in India

Can a ‘panic button’ on a phone really help deter violence in India? Last April India’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Ravi Shankar Prasad, announced the government’s order that by 2018 all phones include a panic button and GPS. And this February, pan-India installation of panic buttons was slated to begin. Since then, a debate has raged about whether this is really a step forward to stem the tide of violence against women and girls. There are a host of technical and access issues, of course. Most phones in India do not include GPS. Feature phones would be reconfigured…

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