Waking up Jesus

This is a photo of Jolly Babirukamu from Uganda. She was my first real connection with the Anglican Women's delegation. She was a calming presence the entire time we were in New York, quiet and wise. I found out that she often assists in training staff for Compassion International, an organization I worked with in the 90s. Jolly is a rock, that was obvious.

On our first day at the UN, following Morning Prayer, we were to make our way across the street, passed security and tried to get in line early for registration and documentation. Early means at least an hour before the UN desk opens for registration. I was at once lost, dazed, and confused after passing the gate into the UN, and she waited for a few of us newbies and took us under wing until we landed in the correct line. So, I got to sit on the floor with her and chat a little.

The Anglican Women were, of course, a little tense as we gathered only one day after the Primates meeting in Dar es Salaam. Were our African sisters friend or foe? And why were we even asking that question? Being one to address the elephant in the room, I gingerly began talking about the church. Jolly gave me no personal opinion, nor did her feathers ruffle and a statement ensue. She looked at me and said, "You know, we need to wake Jesus up."

I've never really thought about waking Jesus up, and the only thing that came out of my mouth was, "Wake Jesus up?" She went on to say that when the storm came and the boat was in danger, the disciples yelled and hollered and woke Jesus up to do something about it before they all went down. She said, "Our boat is sinking and we need to wake Jesus up."

I'm not sure if the other women who had circled around by that time have still been thinking on those words, but they stuck with me. Now, from what I have witnessed over the years, I can tell you that the African church knows how to wake up Jesus. Perhaps, I wonder, we are too quiet? There is a time for quiet contemplation, which is what sustains me, but there is also a time for that desparate, intentional, "Hey! Wake up, we need some help...fast!"

Draft Agreed Conclusions

Here is a link to the "Draft Agreed Conclusions on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination and Violence against the Girl Child –CSW51." From first glance it seems as if some our recommendations were indeed implemented! I know for the Peace Caucus, our suggestions appear to have been accepted. Of course, other Caucus's could have also reinforced some language.

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/csw/csw51/pdfs/CSW%20agreed%20conclusions_as%20adopted_9%20March.pdf

If you are an American reader, I encourage you to do what you can locally to lobby your government at all levels to ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The United States is only developed nation to NOT have ratified these two conventions. For the US reservations to ratifying, see the last blog on the "Letter to Sen. Biden." The lives that are being destroyed at alarming rates because of uninformed fear is devastating. Here is the first recommendation on norms and policies in the Agreed Conclusions:

"Consider ratifying or acceding to, as a particular matter of priority, the
Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination against Women and their respective Optional Protocols, limit
the extent of any reservations that they lodge and regularly review such reservations with
a view to withdrawing them so as to ensure that no reservation is incompatible with the
object and purpose of the relevant treaty; and implement them fully by, inter alia, putting
in place effective national legislation, policies and action plans; AGREED"

Letter to Senator Biden

Here is a copy of the letter (some minor protocol changes will be made) the U.S. NGO (non-governmental organization) Caucus is sending to Senators Biden and Boxer.


March 1, 2007

Senator Joseph Biden and Senator Barbara Boxer
Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Cc: Representative Nancy Pelosi
Ambassador Patricia Brister, U.S. Mission to the United Nations

Dear Senator Biden and Senator Boxer,
We, the U.S. members of the North American NGO Caucus to the 51st Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations, call on you and other members of the Senate Foreign Affairs Select Committee to schedule hearings on the ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) during this coming session of Congress. Beginning Congressional hearings on this critical treaty is an important part of the United States’ effort to reestablish its place as a leader in human rights and equal opportunity around the world.
At a time when the majority leader of the U.S. House of Representatives is a woman, now is the moment for Congress to reconsider the positive impact that CEDAW has on women’s lives around the world. CEDAW enabled countries like the Ukraine, Nepal, Thailand, and the Philippines to pass laws against sex trafficking. CEDAW helped Pakistan introduce coeducation in primary schools. CEDAW played a role in Australia, Mexico, and Argentina providing health care programs to indigenous and migrant women. As you know, currently 185 countries—including Iraq and Afghanistan—have ratified this international treaty.
In a season when the political winds of change are being felt in our nation’s capital and around the country, it is time once again to take on the myths about CEDAW on the Senate floor. For too long, opposition to this treaty has rested on the misconception that support for family planning will mean encouraging abortion. Your own committee recognized in 1994 that this is not the case, and the State Department has recognized that CEDAW is “abortion neutral.” Likewise, the idea that CEDAW somehow interferes with traditional family structures is also a myth that needs shattering. As you know, the treaty urges governments to “adopt education and public information programs to eliminate prejudices and practices that hinder women’s equality.”
The United States has best practices to share with the rest of the world in the areas of advancement of women in this country. Yet our nation simultaneously suffers a very tarnished image abroad when it comes to human rights and equal opportunity. Ratification of CEDAW and the Optional Protocol would demonstrate the progress that the U.S. has made in women’s rights.
In conclusion, we urge you to put CEDAW, a treaty that the United States was instrumental in forming, on the schedule again for hearings in this upcoming congressional session. Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Sincerely,

It's a Small World, After All

It's funny how connected we are. I wanted to post this comment left last week when a reader responded to the "On a Plane" post.


Hello.. I wanted to share the Press Release concerning the gentleman you sat next to on the plane. His name is Robert Battles.

Have a Great Day


AFRICATOWN, USA
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR & CEO
ROBERT BATTLE
PLAYS HOST TO 14 WEST AFRICAN DELEGATES
& AWARD WINNING AUTHOR
SYLVIANE DIOUF
MARCH 16, 17 & 18 2007


Mr. Robert Battles, CEO and Executive Director of the AfricaTown, USA Community Mobilization Project, Inc., an Alabama based non-profit organization, is gearing up for a grand three-day cultural symposium March 16, 17 and 18th. Expected to arrive is a 14 member West African delegation of Filmmakers, Artists, representatives from the African fashion and hair design industry and culinary specialist. Two of the members of the African delegation Mr. Thomas Akodjinou from Benin and Mr. Felix Eklu from Togo are returning to Alabama to continue the due diligence they began in November and December 2006 on their AfricaTown documentary project. Embarking on a 3 state tour, of South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama they gathered research and visited several African American & Civil Rights locations.

One of the key moments of the event is a special appearance by renowned and celebrated Senegalese author Sylviane Diouf. Dr. Diouf received a doctorate from the University of Paris and has taught at Libreville University in Gabon and New York University. She is the author of “Dreams of Africa in Alabama: The Slave Ship Clotilda and the Story of the Last Africans Brought to America”. As the CEO of AfricaTown, USA, “Dreams of Africa in Alabama” was especially interesting to Battles because it documents historically the work that he has been doing for over twenty years. He went to New York recently to meet with Dr. Diouf and to facilitate the planning of her Alabama visit.

On Friday, March 16th the City of Mobile Museum will host Dr. Sylviane Diouf in a Meet The Author and book signing of DREAMS OF AFRICA from 4:00pm to 6:00pm. At 7:00 pm the Mobile County Training School * 800 Whitley Avenue * Plateau, Alabama will also host a book signing for Dr. Diouf.

Saturday, March 17th kicks off with the Original AfricaTown Folk Festival Community Day from 10:00 am until 6:00 pm. Come out and meet Mr. Thomas Akodjinou, Mr. Felix Eklu and the other members of the African Delegation. Enjoy the music, fashions and cultural presentations.

On Sunday, March 18th the closing ceremony “Feast of Relatives and Friends” will be held at the Plateau Community Center * 850 Edward Street * Plateau, Alabama. Special African cuisine and other culinary delights will be available. Dr. Sylviane Diouf will be the guest speaker.

For More Information – Call 251-518-1262

Submitted by D. Cameron
usaartistobenin@aol.com

Anglican Girl Delegates to the UNCSW

Here are the Anglican girl delegates to the UNCSW. (Actually, a couple are missing from the photo.)
I am sure New York was psychologically challenging to many of the girls, but especially the tribal.
I will just submit the bios the girls sent in when applying to the UNCSW. I'd rather it be in their own words and let them speak for themselves, rather than put words in their mouths.

(Starting from the far right)
The girl on the far right wishes to not be named.
Faith Nenkai Meitiaki from Kenya--Faith is from Kajiado Kenya. She is in the 11th grade at Alliance High School. She is from one of the Pastoral communities of Kenya, the Masai. In the past, she has attended conferences on women and girls both in Kenya and outside Kenya. She knows that she has some of the information required to be in this conference in their support of girls and women.
Delores-Mai Macauley--Delores is from Newark, NJ. After school, she plays on a basketball team and is part of a book club. She is part of her youth group, which is part of a resilience project, and spends Saturdays handing out liturgies at the local basketball game.
Angie Chan Nga Ki--Angie is from Hong Kong, is in the 11th grade, and attends St. Stephen's Church. She hopes to learn more about how international organizations work so that she may play a part in helping needy people around the world and accomplishing God's will on earth.
Anne Wenk from New Work--Anne is 14 years old and is in 8th grade. She sings in the Brooklyn Youth Chorus and she is very excited about A.W.E. and CSW.

Steffi (Deepti Steffi)--Steffi is from India and is in the 9th grade. She has a big sister and a little brother. Her passion is education for girls and believes that through education, many problems that affect girls can be solved.

These girls became much more articulate and focused as the days progressed and they learned from other girl delegates about the issues facing each in their own countries. Education for all--especially where girls are often denied education--became very important and was repeated at many of the events at the UNCSW. Also, enforcement of laws that have been passed to protect girls, and creating a global awareness of the atrocities happening in each country to girls and women, even here in the U.S. Again, education to the general public makes a difference.

FGM--Female Genital Mutilation

OK, here's a term you don't hear every day in the US, but I have learned it is very real in many parts of the world, affecting millions of girls. Meet Tema, a 15 year old Masai girl from Tanzania. She tells the story of most girls in her country and what they endure from this practice, including herself.
Girls are "circumcised" at an early age to keep them pure, so to speak, stopping any physical sexual desire. They are married off at a very early age, often to very elderly men. Some girls have been married off before they were born. Tema says that 89% of the girls are affected, and the Masai are the first people to use this practice. Some of the many side effects of this practice are how it interferes with the body's ability to give birth, great psychological trauma, and other health problems. Also, when the girls give birth at such an early age, the reproductive organs of the body are destroyed.
Tema was doing fine until she turned age 8, and her father offered her to another man for marriage. She ran away in the night and found a shelter that took girls in who were in her situation. She was able to get an education and now works hard for a change in law and practice in her country. She believes that nothing will change for girls if they do not have access to education. She loves her culture and her people, but thinks some practices should change because they are not good. Early child marriage interrupts the girls' education and to enforce a law that protects "girls" is useless because once these girls are married off and give birth, they are no longer considered girls, even if they are 13 or 14 years old.
I've discovered there is a big discrepancy between ratification of law and implementation and enforcement. There is little recourse when the girls live in remote areas and rape is so rampant. I will keep telling the stories I've heard here for a long time, even though I return home Sunday night. There is so much to digest, process, and plan. I want to find a way to move from telling of stories to action and implementation.

Texan and Afghan

I spoke to an Afghan women today at the Artisan's Fair. She was selling things from Afghanistan to support the Afghan Women's Fund. Her name is Fahima Vorgetts and she was the winner of a lifetime Achievement Award for "Extraordinary Contribution to Peace and Justice" awarded by the Ann Arundel Peace Action Organization in 2002. She has had a number of such awards since then.
Fahima first asked where I was from, and when I told her I lived in Texas she was afraid to speak to me. I had to assure her that I was not a threat, nor did I collaborate with George Bush. I told her I sincerely wanted to know what was going on in her country, and after a minute she told me, in no uncertain terms, how the country has been abandoned and is in shambles.
She is raising money for the rebuilding of Afghanistan because the money that was allocated for the rebuilding has not made it into the country for Afghani's. It has been re-directed to Iraq and gone to pay US corporations in Afghanistan and Iraq. Particularly here at the UN this week she is raising money for four schools and health facilities for women and children. Some of the rugs, jewelry, and tapestries were very old, but the people need facilities and help. She doesn't have time to manage selling on her website, but you can read about the organization by going to http://www.womenforafghanwomen.org.
Here is an insert from her blog dated September 2006. This brief story clearly tells the tale of Afghanistan today, especially for women and children:

A very sad time for Afghan women
12:28 am

This is a very sad time at the Ministry of Women’s Affairs in Afghanistan. Yesterday the provincial director of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs in Kandahar was assassinated by two men outside her home while she was on her way to work.

This slaying is a senseless and cowardly act, more proof that security in Afghanistan is deteriorating rapidly. The Taliban and Al-Qaeda are winning in the southern part of Afghanistan and women’s human rights are a prime target of their fanaticism.

Progress for women in Afghanistan has been frustratingly slow, but it has been happening. We call upon women throughout the world, those who are still fighting for their rights and those whose rights are honored and protected by their governments, to take every necessary step to prevent a reversal of this progress and a return to the time when Islam itself was falsely interpreted as sanctioning tyranny over women.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Safia (Amma Jan).