HWRC Commemorates 160th Anniversary of Historic Convention, Stresses Need for More Progress
Issue date: 11/26/08 Section: News
Jonathan Jordan
Staff Writer
Nine students from the Hunter Women's Rights Coalition (HWRC) celebrated the 160th Anniversary of the historic Seneca Falls Convention by attending the Annual National Organization for Women (NOW) Conference in Seneca Falls, NY on the weekend of Nov. 7-9. Some of the guest speakers included Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney and NOW Executive Vice President Olga Vives. Hunter's contingent of nine made it the largest of all the colleges in attendance.
The theme for this year's conference was "The Road to Equality: From Seneca Falls to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Celebrating the 160th Anniversary of the First Women's Rights Convention." That first Convention took place in 1848 and featured women's suffragist icons Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. In this anniversary year, the speeches by the speakers centered around commemorating the gains made in the Women's Rights Movement since that era, including some commentary on Hillary Clinton's historic run for the U.S. presidency.
However, with an eye to celebrating progress made, HWRC President Jerin Alam, also stressed the need for continued activism and improvement.
"We should not become complacent," she emphasized. "While Barack Obama's victory is a step in the right direction and we hope that his Cabinet includes women and minorities, there are still some other gains needed. It greatly bothers me that the United States still has not ratified the UN Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), as a signal of how much we, as a nation, value the importance of women's rights. We still have a long way to go," she concluded.
Apart from speeches, Alam, also co-presented one of the workshops during the conference entitled "Young Feminists Working for Equality: Keep the Movement in the Fast Lane: A How to on Young Feminists Mobilizing" which centered around developing strategies and tactics to combat violence against women in general as well as and how to get funding for such programs from one's own home campus. However, it was the play Keep Your Eyes Open on the conference's final day that brought the event to a thought-provoking and moving climax. The play, a Best of Fringe Most Outstanding Ensemble award-winner, was performed by a cast of 11-year-old girls and speaks about the realities and challenges faced by girls in today's culture from a unique (and much younger) perspective.
Staff Writer
Nine students from the Hunter Women's Rights Coalition (HWRC) celebrated the 160th Anniversary of the historic Seneca Falls Convention by attending the Annual National Organization for Women (NOW) Conference in Seneca Falls, NY on the weekend of Nov. 7-9. Some of the guest speakers included Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney and NOW Executive Vice President Olga Vives. Hunter's contingent of nine made it the largest of all the colleges in attendance.
The theme for this year's conference was "The Road to Equality: From Seneca Falls to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Celebrating the 160th Anniversary of the First Women's Rights Convention." That first Convention took place in 1848 and featured women's suffragist icons Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. In this anniversary year, the speeches by the speakers centered around commemorating the gains made in the Women's Rights Movement since that era, including some commentary on Hillary Clinton's historic run for the U.S. presidency.
However, with an eye to celebrating progress made, HWRC President Jerin Alam, also stressed the need for continued activism and improvement.
"We should not become complacent," she emphasized. "While Barack Obama's victory is a step in the right direction and we hope that his Cabinet includes women and minorities, there are still some other gains needed. It greatly bothers me that the United States still has not ratified the UN Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), as a signal of how much we, as a nation, value the importance of women's rights. We still have a long way to go," she concluded.
Apart from speeches, Alam, also co-presented one of the workshops during the conference entitled "Young Feminists Working for Equality: Keep the Movement in the Fast Lane: A How to on Young Feminists Mobilizing" which centered around developing strategies and tactics to combat violence against women in general as well as and how to get funding for such programs from one's own home campus. However, it was the play Keep Your Eyes Open on the conference's final day that brought the event to a thought-provoking and moving climax. The play, a Best of Fringe Most Outstanding Ensemble award-winner, was performed by a cast of 11-year-old girls and speaks about the realities and challenges faced by girls in today's culture from a unique (and much younger) perspective.
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Marcia Pappas, President of NOW NYs
posted 11/28/08 @ 3:27 PM EST
It was a thrill to meet with so many young feminists at our convention in Seneca Falls. Yes, indeed, one of the major highlights was a play called Keep Your Eyes Open. (Continued…)
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