In reaching and influencing an audience of millions, network television has an unparalleled opportunity to raise viewer awareness about the most pressing issues of our times. But rarely does a TV series on a major network commit that power to help those who need it most.
Last night's episode of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit on NBC broke ground by including a storyline about the rape and sexual violence happening in the Congo, described as "the worst humanitarian crisis in the world." We learn what is going on through the eyes of a Congolese woman who escaped torture and rape in her homeland to build a new life in the U.S., but is threatened with deportation when she witnesses a rape and tries to stop it.
One of SVU's stars, Mariska Hargitay, writing for the Huffington Post explains why our purchases of cell phones and laptops perpetuates the violence, and how -- as consumers -- we can demand 'conflict-free' products.
It's a powerful episode that had me in tears for two reasons: the story is well written and deeply moving; and the fact that NBC has allowed a top-rated series to take risks and cover social issues that never see the light of day in entertainment television is frankly impressive.
Every woman and man who saw last night's show understands that what's happening in the Congo is the widespread use of rape as a strategy of war and control. In one hour, the series drove home that message with an effectiveness that organizations fighting to improve the situation in the Congo have struggled for years to achieve.
The question is, will other series follow SVU's lead and either promote a women's agenda or cover crimes against humanity? If television can combine entertainment and political awareness and enjoy solid ratings, why not do so at every opportunity?
For anyone plugged into the feminist stratosphere, it was clear there was a lot of moving and shaking going on last week, especially on Friday in New York City.
On Twitter that day, there were hashtags galore from women tweeting about the first day of the Women in the World Summit. Also in NYC, the UN Commission on the Status of Women's annual session; this year, the 1995 Beijing Conference on Women was revisited, especially the Declaration and Platform For Action that was established to push us all toward greater gender equity.
Women's issues superstar Hillary Clinton spoke at both events on Friday -- the last day of the UN Commission which celebrated the 15th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration, and the first day of the Women in the World Summit sponsored by The Daily Beast and Tina Brown.
According to the Voice of America, at the UN Clinton noted:
Women are still the majority of the world's poor, the uneducated, the unhealthy, the unfed. In too many places, women are treated not as full and equal human beings with their own rights and aspirations, but as lesser creatures undeserving of the treatment and respect accorded to their husbands, their fathers and their sons.
And in her capacity as Secretary of State, she told the gathering:
President Obama and I believe that the subjugation of women is threat to the national security of the United States. It is also a threat to the common security of our world. Because the suffering and denial of the rights of women and the instability of nations go hand-in-hand.
At the Women in the World Summit, Clinton highlighted the good and the bad of the last 15 years of progress since Beijing:
Growing numbers of women have been elected to public office, received in education, joined the workforce....but...for every place where women's lives have improved, there are still too many where ...women's rights may exist on the books but not on the streets, where violence against women remains an epidemic, and the extremist voices calling for restrictions on women's rights are growing louder. So we must raise our voices even more loudly.
So we meet today...about what more can be done, and how we can be those voices that are needed for so many who are silent....[W]omen's rights are human rights...women's progress is human progress.
The women attending both events were no doubt fired up by the prospect of advancing women's rights and improving women's lives. But since those who do not remember history are doomed to repeat it, it's worth going back 15 years to revisit the pivotal event cited by speakers at both gatherings last week -- the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing.
Instead of giving you a dry recitation of what happened in Beijing (and if you want that, here it is), I'm sharing the recollections of a fairly ordinary woman who pursued an extraordinary opportunity -- she somehow got herself to Beijing and participated in the 10-day conference and endured mud, torrential rains, and an hours-long wait at an impossibly overcrowded auditorium to hear then-First Lady Hillary Clinton speak.
If her story isn't enough to encourage you to get yourself to the nearest women's conference or women's summit, then I don't know what else will light a fire under you. If you are inspired, it's probably too late for this year and this Women's History Month, but you have a year ahead of you to plan and prepare.
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Tomorrow's leaders are today's women (both young and old) inspired by the stories of those who've gone before them, living remarkable lives of progress and advancement.
Women's History Month is a reminder to look back, reflect and remember, and carry forward the legacy left by our foremothers. Here are several ways to learn more about inspirational women:
HerStory Website
From 1917-1920 -- the final four years women fought to win the right to vote -- there were many stories of courage, passion, determination, and suspense as women overcame the final obstacles to ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment. Imagine if you came across a scrapbook belonging to your great or great-great grandmother -- an ardent women's rights supporter -- who kept every clipping she could find from the nation's top newspaper chronicling the suffrage movement.
That's what the HerStory Scrapbook is -- an online collection of hundred of items from The New York Times including articles, editorials, and letters about the women who were fighting for, and against, suffrage. The HerStory Scrapbook includes more than 900 of the most interesting pieces -- actual scans of the original articles from The Times saved as PDF files. It's a fascinating look back, and an extraordinary free resource.
And new this year, to mark 2010's significance as the 30th anniversary of Women's History Month and the 90th anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment, is the HerStory 360° Challenge, a collection of 90 short descriptions of women involved in women's suffrage.
International Women of Distinction Trading Cards
What a great idea -- trading cards featuring women.Why didn't somebody think of this sooner?
A small trading card company based in Canada -- which has had success with Black History trading cards -- developed the idea for Women's History Month this year.
According to company founder Luanga Nuwame, the International Women of Distinction trading cards are designed "to help young girls see the accomplishments of strong women throughout history....I created this 20-card set on great women after parents asked me to make such a product...based on notable women of the past."
What I especially like about the cards is that they offer a global perspective, with inspirational women from around the world in a variety of fields. They include Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (Africa's first elected woman president), Hillary Clinton, Benazir Bhutto, Indira Gandhi, Rosa Parks (seen in photo), Sojourner Truth, Coco Chanel, and Grace Murray Hopper (the pionerring computer programmer behind COBAL.)
The cards feature a photo on the front and a short biography on the back. They are $12.99 per 20-card set and 50 cents from each sale will be donated to breast cancer research. The women's trading cards can be ordered from the Azikwe Toys website.
Women Making History
Unlike other websites, the Women's Media Center is focusing on contemporary women who are currently making history and reshaping the world as we know it. Their blog featuring "30 Women Making History" highlights a new woman each day in March in recognition of the 30th anniversary of Women's History Month.
Junior League on Twitter
Even women's civic organizations have stories to share about remarkable women. And the Junior League has come up with a clever way to use new media to tell their stories.
On Twitter, if you follow @JuniorLeague, each day you'll see an interesting fact about a Junior League member -- some famous, some not -- who exemplifies civic leadership.
Junior League members have included Sandra Day O'Connor, first woman on the Supreme Court; actress Margaret Hamilton, best known for her portrayal of the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz; Katharine Hepburn; First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt; Margaret Chase Smith, first woman elected to U.S. Senate; and Eudora Welty, author and Pulitzer Prize winner.
More than 160,000 women participate in 292 Junior Leagues throughout Canada, Mexico, the UK and the US.
Are Sarah Palin and Michele Bachmann the only conservative political mothers willing to speak out about their lives and opinions? This isn't a rhetorical question.
One of my favorite mom bloggers and political commentators, Joanne Bamberger (aka PunditMom) is in the midst of writing her first book, Mothers of Intention, due out this fall. She tweets that it's been very hard for her to find conservative political moms willing to be interviewed.
That can't be true, can it? C'mon, don't let us liberal moms dominate the conversation! I know your'e out there. That's because when I write about anything abortion-related, I have lots of conservative female (and male) readers posting here to debate my commentary. And intelligent discourse between opposing sides is always appreciated when participants focus on opinion and avoid name-calling.
If you're a conservative mom with kids at home (or kids out of the house that have retained your conservative values) who has raised your family with a strong political awareness and aren't hesitant about sharing your views, Joanne would appreciate speaking with you. Contact her through her blog, and perhaps you'll be featured in her upcoming book.
