Day 2: The Official First Day

Today was marvelous. I have not felt this marveled since summer. Today I began my day alongside Beth. We attended a parallel event titled “Future Shift: Young Women and the Changing World of Work”. The event was hosted by YWCA Canada. YWCA is a non-profit organization that was originally focused on eliminating racism. Overtime it has expanded to focus on women’s issues. Just FYI. Interestingly enough, this event was led by young “millennial” women.

                                        

(Future Shift: Young Women and the Changing World of Work)

I quoted the term millennial because that’s what they called themselves. That’s what the media calls us. But this is the first time in my life that they have embraced our millennial generation. I am so glad I attended this event. It helped me feel proud to be a millennial woman. At this point you’re probably wondering why. Well they explained a few issues that our generation of working women have gone through in the past years and are going through right now. Issues like online “trolling”, underpaid/ unpaid work, lack of affordable child care. (Sidenote: North Carolina ranks 11^th in most expensive childcare of all the states). The young female speakers shared their work history in relation to technology, lack of legislative support, and the perception of society, and occupational segregation.

 Occupational segregation in terms of vertical and horizontal were discussed in 3 out of the 4 events I attended today. Occupational segregation refers to the tendency for men and women to seek employment in different jobs (horizontal segregation). Vertical segregation refers to the way specific occupations tend to have a lower societal status and less rewarded positions than others. Nordic leaders explained this concept to me for the first time. I had no idea that these ideas were defined and heavily researched.

One of the speakers explicitly told the crowd that she was a millennial and yes people consider us millennial individuals“lazy” but our generation consists of hard working women that work long hours unpaid in this current economic structure. The audience clapped after she stated this. I had never really though much about unpaid work that women do of all kinds such as domestic work. I had also never realized how under-appreciated most care-giving jobs are given the undervalued pay. This was discussed at the side event at the UN Headquarters titled “Gender equality the Nordic way: What can we learn from it?” Some prime ministers of children in the Nordic countries mentioned that the care-giving jobs are still far less underpaid than the jobs in the male dominate field.

                                (Gender equality the Nordic way: What can we learn from it?)

Even though Nordic countries have balanced employment of women, the pay gap is still there. One minister mentioned that despite all the efforts, care-giving jobs (that women tend to take on more than men) are often viewed as less than compared to the jobs that men take on. The options of care-giving jobs are so limited compared to non care-giving jobs as the prime minister mentioned. She gave the example of the nursing profession. While nursing is seen as a feminine care-giving job, there aren’t as many nursing type of jobs as engineering jobs which tend to be male dominant. There’s all kinds of engineering fields for men to enter like industrial, civic, and so forth but women are less limited to the type of nursing they can engage in. I had never thought of this. Male-dominant fields are expansive in terms of job opportunities. Which goes back to emphasizing how BADLY we need more young girls in the STEM field. I think of the speakers from the first event compared the pay of the stem field and the social field also. She noted that RIGHT NOW we need more people involved in the social context than advancing the next technological thing. (She made reference to politics when she said this). However because women’s participation in the social field wasn’t valued as much, they are under-appreciated. I feel like those two sessions really expanded my view of the life hardworking women go through. I have so much more respect for women now more than ever. I go to an all women’s college and I already knew what it felt like to be a woman and step into the shoes of a woman. However, to step into the career path of a woman emotionally is different. I now believe that women don’t complain enough about all the work that they have to do. Even some ambassadors at the UN Ministerial Round Table discussed the unpaid work that women do. The ambassador of Spain compared the amount of domestic work women did to the bare minimal hour that men do in his country…which I don’t have much data for in our country but from experience, my female friends most often complain about how often men leave dishes around and don’t do laundry. The little things often end up meaning all too much for women- they cost women too much. I am going to miss the UN CSW tomorrow now that the blizzard canceled all of tomorrow’s events.

                                      

                                                      (UN Ministerial Roundtable)

Songs, Poems, Speakers, and Panels: Consultation Day

I was so excited to begin this experience with today’s NGO CSW 61 Forum: Consultation Day from 9 until 3:30 p.m. titled “Women’s Rights and Gender Equity in the Changing World of Work.” Ivy Gabbert from Soka Gakkai International and Bette Levy from Soroptimist International facilitated the program. First, the United Nations Singers gave an incredible performance. Then, the Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, and H.E. Ambassador Antonio de Aguiar Patriota, chair of the Commission on the Status of Women, started us off with remarks on this year’s theme, economic empowerment in the changing world of work. It was Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka who said “it is not enough to do no harm. You need to do something about the harm.” And this summed up one of my strongest feelings about anti-oppression work and the fight for global justice. Actively perpetuating oppression and violence, remaining ignorant about oppression and violence, or simply identifying oppression and violence will not create change. There needs to be active resistance and advocacy to end oppression and violence and I believe the majority of the people at this event are here to find out how they can continue their efforts to make these changes.

I was happy to hear panelists and speakers acknowledge the connection between economic empowerment and domestic violence, as this is something I am particularly passionate about. Violence affects women and people of all gender identities at home, in public spaces, in the workplace, and wherever they go. We live in a world that allows for gender-based violence all over the world, causing serious damage, health care costs, and economic losses. Dr. Mabel Bianco, this year’s Women of Distinction awardee and medical doctor from Argentina, called for an end to the murder of women who defend their rights and emphasized the need for comprehensive sex education. Dr. Susan O’Malley, the chair of the NGO Committee on the Status of Women condemned the recent executive orders, rooted in nationalism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, and fundamentalism, that banned people from coming to the United States.

I love what Dr. Radhika Balakrishnan, the faculty director for the Center for Women’s Global Leadership at Rutgers University, said about economic justice. She critiqued neoliberal economic policy and the financialization of the economy. While proponents of neoliberalism promote the idea of deregulation, neoliberal policy generally re-regulates the economy, simply for the benefit of corporate interests. As an example, General Motors made more money loaning people money for cars than actually selling cars. She brought up the Oxfam statistic that the most recent analysis shows 8 people in the world own the same amount of wealth as half of the world. This is absolutely unacceptable and dangerous. With extreme economic injustice, she stressed that we must reconsider what the economy is for and we need to critique the field of economics. Economics as a field is not only dominated by men, but even some of the women economists are not feminist economists. Economic justice relates to immigration, climate change, violence, and every other intersecting issue. For example, she pointed out that migration increased because of the disruption caused by the North American Free Trade Agreement. We must build a world in which our economy honors our human rights.

Lastly, I must gush about how amazing it was to see Rupi Kaur perform her poems in person. I have been a huge fan of hers ever since I saw her Instagram post of a photo of herself with a period stain. She is a fierce feminist activist who incorporates principles of justice into everything she does. She began tearing down the stigma of menstruation with her photo and with her poems she tears down patriarchy, xenophobia, racism, body-shaming, competition among women, and so much else that is dangerous. I have her poems taped up in my room for daily inspiration and it was incredible to hear her read some of those poems out loud. The day ended with a performance from the Harlem Diva, LeeOlive Tucker who brought me to tears with her captivating voice passionately singing “I Wish I knew How It Would Feel to Be Free,” “This Little Light of Mine,” “We Who Believe in Freedom Cannot Rest,” and “Keep on Movin.”

This photo is from the breakout session I went to on gender violence at home and in the workplace which included Raphael Crowe, senior gender specialist at the International Labour Organization, and Dilshad Dayani, founder of World Women Global Council. I was overwhelmed with information, thoughts, ideas, connections, inspiration...all in the best way possible. I cannot wait for what’s to come tomorrow.

Consultation Day Experience

I could not have asked for a more thrilling first day at the UN CSW. Despite a few hours of sleep after a 5 a.m. workout, I remained in sync with the passionate Consultation Day speakers and attendants. As soon as I got to the event, I met an overjoyed woman from Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui Women’s League. The women’s league was run through a church. Even though we came from different worlds, we chatted about our past church retreats. We connected almost instantly. She told me that she came to the CSW to learn more about equal pay. She explained the regulations of equal pay in Hong Kong.  She asked me questions about why I thought there was a gender gap in America. I could sense her enthusiasm of this issue by the sparkle in her eyes. Building mutual connections with strangers is what I enjoyed the most about day 1. You could engage in minimal English with people from all over the world and still share a mutual interest with them over women's issues. 

My favorite part of the day was the breakout session. I had the opportunity to learn about human-trafficking, child marriage, and forced labor. One of the panelist speakers drew my attention towards this issue when she mentioned that a senator in Nigeria married a 13-year old girl and ended up leaving her for a younger child. I was astounded by this. To realize that a public official engaged in this made my stomach turn instantly.

I chose to participate in the group about child marriage because it’s the subject that I had heard least about. I was very interested in knowing more about child marriage especially after hearing the panelist explain child marriage. Luckily, most people in my group provided insight about this issue. The individuals in my group worked for the Concordia Project, in Japan, Center for Women’s Health, OSMTH, and a hospital in Nebraska. The nurse in the group mentioned a child marriage story that she knew of.

Here is the link if you’re interesting in reading it:

http://journalstar.com/news/local/years-after-controversial-marriage-falls-city-couple-at-risk-of/article_16b4ea35-a638-5d92-923c-c9d43fcb2c31.html

As a naïve young woman, I would have never thought that child marriage was an issue in America. The fact that child marriage is not discussed publicly seems disturbing. Our group generated the idea of starting an awareness campaign of the issue. Signs of child marriage would be a key focus of this campaign. Overall, we all agreed that the public needs more knowledge over this issue in order to prevent it. I just can’t imagine the idea of a child getting married before learning how to drive. One very important point that was made during this discussion was that an action plan is necessary for the child’s recovery. Helping the victim after such a traumatizing experience is crucial. I feel fortunate to have learned so many new things in just one day. I am looking forward to day 2 of CSW.

Consultation Day: Setting the Stage

The Consultation Day programming of the 45th year of the NGO Committee on the Status of Women was kicked off by some remarks from Susan O'Malley of the NGO CSW, UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, and Ambassador Antonio de Agular Patriota. In the loosely structured panel discussion, Mlambo-Ngcuka and Ambassador Antonio de Agular Patriota raised a theme that I heard throughout the day: implementation and enforcement of laws and conventions are crucial to realizing the goals of gender equality. Without enforcement, policies are reduced to mere symbolism.

Next, Dr. Mabel Bianco took the stage to speak about the importance of women's work. She commended the actions of strikers who walked out of their workplaces last week for International Working Women's Day. Indeed, the absence of these working women did demonstrate that our communities rely on women's labor, paid or unpaid, to function. Dr. Bianco noted that 78 percent of Latin American women are employed in unstable or unsafe working conditions. To change this, she said, we will need to strengthen the laws and change norms. I took this to mean that we need progressive, pro-woman, pro-worker laws on the books and that we also need them to be followed and enforced.

This call to action was echoed by Elizabeth Tang of the International Domestic Workers Federation and Radhika Balakrishnan of Rutgers University. Balakrishnan emphasized that neoliberal economic policy has given rise to record inequality, emphasizing the need for more financial and economic regulation to end the economic exploitation of the vulnerable. Tang described the efforts of the IDWF to bring domestic workers under the protection of government labor laws. The break out session "Creating Equalities of Work" also echoed the necessity for formal recognition and policy prescriptions for fighting inequality in the labor market. In small groups, we brainstormed possible solutions and strategies for combating the wage gap, like designing tax credits for unpaid household labor and passing laws allowing employees to discuss compensation with their colleagues without fear of retaliation.

The discussion of implementation and enforcement today made me realize that the NGOs have more power to enforce UN Conventions than the UN itself, which has no formal enforcement mechanisms. NGOs have the power to frame issues, mobilize people, and pressure their governments in a more direct way than the United Nations. That is exactly what WomenNC is doing as part of the coalition to implement CEDAW at the local level.

Prevention is essential

We are less than two months away from the United Nations Women Commission on the Status of Women conference in New York! Since starting the fellowship in October, I have collected data and completed my research report on studied dating and sexual violence youth prevention education in Durham schools. I collected data through interviews with staff members of nonprofits around North Carolina, teachers, government officials, and public health workers. I also examined health reports and research articles to find quantitative data on rates of dating and sexual violence and the associated economic impacts. The Durham Crisis Response Center is an amazing nonprofit organization and I am grateful for their staff’s insights on the status of dating and sexual violence prevention services in Durham County. The message that I want to convey to everyone during all of my upcoming presentations is that prevention education is essential to ending interpersonal violence.

            Durham currently has limited youth prevention education that is evidence-based and comprehensive. Their neighboring county, Orange County, has been able to provide age-appropriate comprehensive dating and sexual violence youth prevention education curricula to all of their students in K-9^th grades. This model is extraordinary and can serve as an example for counties all over the country. Durham County nonprofits, teachers, and government officials have already expressed interest in expanding dating and sexual violence youth education services to all of their students but require further support from local government, the school system, and the public health department. Durham as a city is in a unique opportunity to be one of the first cities in the United States to adopt the principles of the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women. On a similar note, Durham county and city governments could work together to make the county of Durham one of the first counties to fully embrace dating and sexual violence youth prevention education.

            I will be conveying my research results to the Durham city government on the afternoon of February 23. That same day in the evening I will present my research results at the Durham Local to Global Women’s Forum: Cities for the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women. This dinner is open to the public and will give the fellows a chance to present their research findings to the local community. We head to New York on March 11 to present our research at the CSW conference. In April, we will present our research to the Durham County government. In order to prepare for all of these presentations, we are currently developing our public speaking skills and practicing our presentations with our mentors. I have found that my greatest struggle during this research project is staying focused on something specific. Dating and sexual violence prevention is a huge topic and it was difficult to fit everything I wanted to say within my 10-page research limit. I cannot wait for all of this hard work to pay off when I see how Durham government officials apply the findings from my research report into change for their community and when I share my research with local and global audiences.

Research Experience

During my experience as a I fellow, I have learned a lot about the women of my community. I have had the privilege of discussing the reproductive rights of girls and women with staff members from jails, local non-profit organizations, and local scholars. Without their engagement in my research, I would not have been able to gain much knowledge over the reproductive services available to girls and women in Durham's jail facilities. Their support helped me come a long way from my research question. Though I have taken the time to collect information about this subject, I learned that there is still more information to be collected from facilities.

During my research, I found myself lacking enough details about the reproductive services for girls and women at Durham's detention facilities. I wanted to know more about the frequency of services provided to the girls and women. My hope is that Durham City Council will be inspired to adopt another method of data collection for the reproductive services of girls and women at its Durham County detention facilities. It would be reassuring to know that women who are incarcerated are being served their reproductive services just as equally as women outside of jail. As a researcher, I was amazed at the continuing efforts that non-profits have made towards the reproductive rights of women. I commend them on helping incarcerated individuals with their issues. I look forward to presenting my research to the supporters of WomenNC and CSW at the UN. I want to thank everyone that has assisted me with this experience, especially our mentors. I appreciate all the things you all have done to make every step of this process easier.

Peaks and Valleys: The Road Ahead

The last few months have been a trying one for women all over the world who are striving to eradicate sexism and misogyny. Last week, we witnessed the inauguration of a president who trivialized sexual assault, used thinly veiled sex stereotypes to attack his opponent, and embraced a staunchly anti-choice voting bloc. While Ivanka Trump has spoken up in support of paid maternity leave and other laws aimed to make the workplace more family-friendly, the Republican-controlled Congress is unlikely to pass any such legislation. On the other hand, Mr. Trump has demonstrated his commitment to the anti-choice cause by signing an executive order blocking federal funding to international NGOs that supply or promote abortion. These developments at the national level, combined with the failure of the incoming North Carolina leadership to negotiate the repeal of HB2 makes local action to promote gender equality all the more urgent.

Unfortunately, taking action at the local level is easier said than done, as I am discovering first hand with my work as a CSW fellow. First of all, most of the policy remedies that would most effectively combat the wage gap—fair scheduling ordinances, living wage laws, paid family leave and sick days—are all prohibited at the local level in North Carolina. North Carolina has what’s known as “Dillon’s Rule,” which states that local governments only have the powers specifically enumerated by state statute. This precludes any law a city or county might pass that would require private employers to guarantee their employees certain rights. However, the City of Durham can implement all of those policies for their own employees, and have already begun to do so. Durham County will soon provide paid maternity leave for their employees. Public employers can have a great influence on the overall labor market when they raise standards for their own workplaces.

On a more personal level, the quest to support the Cities for CEDAW movement with original research proved a much more overwhelming task than I expected. It was difficult for me to keep my research focused and pertinent to the task at hand. I was also frustrated by the simplistic level of analysis I was limited to because of the time constraints and limitations of my data. Most of my statistical analysis feels somewhat trivial and incomplete. However, I could not go more in depth without going beyond the scope of the project and many more pages past the 11-page limit. There will always be critics who are going to criticize the depth and methods of any report. Many of these people will be unsatisfied or unconvinced no matter how many more statistics you cite.

I must remind myself that the real purpose of this report is not to produce indisputable proof of the exact dynamics of the wage gap in Durham. The goal is to provide a model for the kind of formal analysis that the city and its partners should do in order to correct pernicious gender inequities in our communities. I need only to highlight the existence of the problem of the gender wage gap and to educate a general audience about it in such a way that inspires action. This will be the toughest challenge yet, but with the training of the WomenNC mentors, I think I will be able to create an effective presentation that will move people from complacency to action.