In this session I’m going to talk about
the role of a Women’s Rights Activist.
This role would fall under the category of
a Social Worker so if you have’nt watched
that video it may make sense to do so and
then come back.
Now, to set the stage for this video, let’s
look at some RECENT news headlines:
In Saudi Arabia, if you are a woman, you CANNOT
drive.
The article describes what Manal al-Sharif
felt the first time she sat behind the wheel
of a
car.
This is what she has to say:
'You know when you have a bird, and it's been
in a cage all its life?
And when you open the cage door, it doesn't
want to leave.
It was that moment."
Interestingly Manal’s moment of HESITATION
didn't last long.
She pressed the
accelerator and in an instant her car rolled
forward.
She spent the next hour on the road with a
friend using a camera to record the journey.
This next story involves a young student and
education activist.
Extremists had banned girls from studying
in the valley where she lived.
Unhappy with the state of affairs, Malala
wrote a blog describing her life and outlining
her
views on promoting education for girls.
She was shot in the head and neck in an assassination
while returning home on a school bus.
Thankfully Malala survived.
She has since been nominated for the International
Children's Peace Prize by Desmond
Tutu and the Nobel Peace Prize.
This final example focuses on seven child
marriages that were prevented just in time.
In all the incidents, the girls were between
12 and 16 years and the boys between 20 and
25.
These girls were prevented from going to school
and rather being forced into marriage.
As the above examples demonstrate, Cultural
attitudes often put women and girls at a lower
status than men.
This discrimination often starts at the time
of conception.
Female foeticide and infanticide for example
are a major social problem in many countries
around the world.
This cycle continues through the life of girls
and women where they find themselves discriminated
against in almost every sphere of life.
It could result in lack of access to education,
information, nutrition, job opportunities
or even access to justice.
There is no place in the world where this
does not exist in some form.
The key aim of womens rights activities is
to address these issues which stem from inequality
and discrimination.
We can look at the work that womens rights
activists do at three levels:
At the most basic level, which is that of
the individual herself, activists will try
to assist women and girls with the problems
that they face.
It could be assisting in education or health
or helping the individual get information
or gain access to something that she may require.
This could also involve activities such as
counseling which require professional skills
and expertise.
At a community level, activists will work
with families, communities and societies to
change their attitude towards women and girls.
One of the ways of doing this is to carry
out awareness work with men and boys as well
as with leaders of communities.
At a broad level, women’s activists lobby
and engage with institutions that are responsible
for creating policy.
They will work with legal systems and the
judiciary.
They also work with government agencies to
influence womens rights and equality.
Now let us look at what educational qualifications
are needed for this role?
Womens rights activists come from a wide range
of educational backgrounds as it is driven
by a personal commitment and not qualifications.
However, several agencies do give preference
for persons who have completed a degree or
diploma in gender or womens studies.
Alternatively it would also help in doing
a social work degree and choosing gender studies
as an elective subject.
Finally let us look at the prospects this
role offers?
Womens rights activists have diverse prospects.
They could work with NGO’s , as counselors,
and even teach courses on gender or womens
studies.
They could also work as researchers or with
government agencies assisting in bringing
in a womens rights perspectives into policies
or laws.
Alternatively, they could also work with international
agencies like the United Nations.
Please note that these are just some examples
where womens rights activists work.
