V-Day Fair at Hunter
Helping put an end to gender violence
Edina Kacic
Issue date: 2/25/09 Section: News
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V-Day, which stands for "Victory, Valentine, and Vagina" and falls close to the other V-Day-the more traditional Valentine's Day-marks a widespread movement to stop violence against women. According to the V-Day website, "V-Day is a catalyst that promotes creative events to increase awareness, raise money and revitalize the spirit of existing anti-violence organizations. V-Day generates broader attention for the fight to stop violence against women and girls, including rape, battery, incest, female genital mutilation (FGM) and sexual slavery." Very popular on college campuses, its events have helped the movement to raise "over $60 million," over the last decade, said the website.
Many colorful flyers and posters adorned Hunter's walls for weeks in anticipation of the day. Professor Carmelina Cartei of the Women and Gender Studies Department was the faculty advisor and factotum to the V-Day Fair. Milena Abrahamyan organized the fair this year. Hunter's Women's Rights Coalition President Jerin Alam helped with the public relations efforts for the V-Day events as part of her organization's effort to help end violence against women and children. The events included a fair, a dance show, and a play.
"Carmelina is amazing. I cannot say enough about her. She has been the faculty liaison since I have been at Hunter, and does an amazing job every time, all the while making beautiful art and inspiring others," Alam said as she praised all members of the V-Day team for organizing a successful fair.
Many organizations that advocate for women's rights attended the fair in the West lobby. The members of one such organization, the Asian & Pacific Islander Coalition on HIV/Aids Inc., aimed to reach out to students, to inform them about its programs and to encourage students to volunteer.
Another attendee, LIFEbeat: The Music Industry Fights AIDS, a national non-profit organization dedicated to reaching America's youth with the message of HIV/AIDS prevention, captured people's attention with bright yellow and orange flyers and information cards that aimed to help students find an HIV/AIDS testing area nearby.
Students were generally impressed.
Laura Slavin, a freshman, spoke with The Envoy about the event. "This is my first time attending the fair and I really learned a lot. There are so many resources available for women to get the help they need and a fair like this is a great way to raise awareness about these resources," she said.
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