Feminist Values: Making Our Non-Violent Homes

The beautiful faces of people exploring feminist values.

One of the more interesting discussions I've been in lately occurred last Sunday, January 27, 2013 in Augusta at the Pine State Arboretum. It occurs to me now that this was about a month into the beginning of the new great cycle of the Mayan calendar. (For those who say who cares about an ancient calendar I say, check your facts: plenty of Mayan people are still alive today. Also, the ancients who made the calendar had a genius grasp of astronomy.)

A Feminist Values discussion was organized as part of the 19th Changing Maine Gathering which occurs about once a year bringing together progressive dreamers from around the state. This year CODEPINK State of Maine and Portland local groups co-sponsored with ROSC (Resources for Organizing Social Change) and proposed the topic. No, not feminism: feminist values. One participant summed these up as: Respect for the Earth, and for everyone. Amen to that

Someone had suggested we introduce ourselves as descendants of our moms and their moms. About a third of the 40+ people who attended were male; for many, especially the younger people that also made up about one-third of the group, this type of identifying may have been a first.

I chose to be in the breakout session discussing Reclaiming Domesticity: Abundance or Scarcity? We took turns sharing how we live right now, and why we have made the decisions we've made around how to live. It was a diverse group: young parents who live on a land trust and are constantly on the defensive, being criticized for choosing to spend a lot of time with their children (ages 3 months and 4 years) and as little time as possible earning money; a thinker with a degree but no job who sleeps on friends' couches; a single mother of five; a grandmother who lives with her husband in the house he and his friends built on land they cleared; and a bachelor labor organizer who is tired of living alone and tired of society's message that he must "get a woman" in order to live comfortably and correctly.

Much of the discussion during the day centered on commodification: of natural resources, of women's bodies. There was a general consensus that feminist values reject this, and that the era of commodification is coming to an end.

I described how I live on land that was stolen from the indigenous people and turned into a commodity to be bought and sold, along the Kennebec River, within the Penobscot Nation homeland. Some of those people are still neighbors of mine. The large group acknowledged the importance and hope of Idle No More and the earth-defending resolve of initiatives led by First Nations people in Canada and other indigenous communities.

After a lengthy potluck lunch where conversations and new friendships flourished, we re-convened as a large group to hear reports from the breakout groups and continue our discussions. The entire day for me was characterized by deep, respectful listening. One of our group was a woman activist who is over 90, and a special hush fell on the room when she spoke.

In one of the breakout sessions there was some trouble with interrupting, and the vibe felt a little hostile. This caused a 10 year-old girl to leave the discussion and return to the childcare group. After her mom explained why, the participants made a new plan for taking turns speaking, and the facilitator of the group described it as a successful "self-correction."

We all go astray from our ideals many, many times in life. Just look at the formerly (allegedly) idealistic Hillary Clinton, outgoing Secretary of State. Can we find the courage to examine the road we're on, and make a "self-correction" if necessary? We had better be able to if we hope to continue human life on this planet.

THE UGLY FACES OF PATRIARCHY: A screen grab from a video of last week's State Department dinner for Mr.  and Mrs. Hamid Karzai. Hillary Clinton has placed herself firmly in the service of the patriarchal empire that is ruining the Earth and killing children and women and men wantonly every single day,  making "defense" contractors so wealthy they are sometimes referred to as the 0.01%. Afghanistan and its people in particular continue to suffer under this regime.

One breakout session was about violence and the One Billion Rising movement which is spreading globally like wildfire. Here's a great video I watched yesterday of people in the EU Parliament rising up to dance against violence on women. Eve Ensler, a leader of the movement, speaks at the end to explain why one billion women and the men who love them dancing could just be a revolution. Maine events on V-Day will be held in Portland & Belfast. Non-violence is a feminist value.

We Need Feminism Cuz Mother Earth Needs Patriarchy To Step Down Now

Facebook album "I Need Feminism Because" on A Girl's Guide to Taking Over the World

Who knows how much progress we've missed out on because of sexism?

Do most young people even relate to the concept of feminism? And if so, what do they mean by that term?

Here I share my short video of just a few out of hundreds of conversations on that topic, and on how to save the world. From the Feminist General Assembly held at the Occupy National Gathering in Philadelphia, July 1, 2012.

Special thanks to Curtis Cole for much of the video. And for modeling his Bring Our War $$ Home black and white t-shirt on camera -- looking good!

Facebook album "I Need Feminism Because" on A Girl's Guide to Taking Over the World

Yesterday I blogged about why Israeli and U.S. policies aim to keep smart young Palestinians down.

Today I'm asking myself, why would elites in the Dominican Republic want to keep smart young women down?

And, can earthlings afford to keep anyone down who might have good ideas at this point in human history?

Satellites See Unprecedented Greenland Ice Sheet Surface Melt Source: NASA

Tweet For #AfghanWomen As We Occupy Sisterhood

by Favianna Rodriguez, Oakland, CA

It was a rocking good time to be with women and feminists at the Occupy National Gathering in Philadelphia during the run up to 4th of July. Besides being there with some of my favorite women from occupies everywhere (SF, LA, NYC, Maine, New Haven, etc) I got to have a workshop which amounted to a long conversation on how our government is using Afghan women's rights as a cover to keep military forces in Afghanistan. About 35 people sat down around a pink Bust Bank Of America banner laid on the shady grass of Franklin Plaza in 100 degree heat, and shared what we knew.

This photo is funny because, like at many Occupy gatherings, there seem to be more media recorders than there are participants. But the great thing about it is, that OccupyFreedomLA was not only livestreaming the workshop discussion, but also archived it here. So that makes it a bigger conversation that goes beyond the temporal space we were in beneath our pink flag (created to help people find the various workshops).

Since I was facilitating and not taking notes, I'll share the things that stayed with me that other people said (what I said is mostly summarized here in an article published July 3 on Common Dreams). A young veteran shared that war is designed to destroy things, not protect people's rights. Also that women are treated horribly both in and by the U.S. military. An older vet shared that Status of Forces Agreements with the governments of countries with military occupations grant immunity to the acts of soldiers, and this is a danger to everyone living there.

Gasps from those listening when I shared that Afghan women currently have an average life expectancy of 51 years, and that the war on Afghanistan costs U.S. taxpayers $230,000+ a minute.

Sarah from OWS saying at the end: "This workshop was really rad!"

I also shared that a bunch of us from CODEPINK and MADRE would be tweeting about how #AfghanWomen should be at the table in talks on security and development (90% of that funding currently goes to army and police instead of toward real development) in Tokyo July 8-9. You can follow that hashtag and join in if you want to help make this demand.

Then I was so hot and exhausted that I retreated to the oasis of a Vietnamese restaurant to enjoy fresh  lemonade and cold noodles. A short nap on the grass and some yoga (thanks to a new friend from OWS who lent me her mat) which may have baffled police who were lurking around but revived me enough to participate in the first ever national level Feminist GA!

About 200 people came together to say how patriarchy affects them and their communities, and what visions they hold for the future of Mother Earth and her humans. Because there were so many of us, introductions happened in groups of three, which joined to make slightly larger breakout groups to discuss why we had come to a public feminist discussion, and the kind of world we had in mind for the future. My group was composed of a young women from South Korea who emigrated to escape the stultifying patriarchy of her own culture, a young man from OWS, a young man from France, a young woman studying science and marveling at its past uses as a tool to manipulate, control and destroy life. Robin, a new contact I had heard give the most rousing call to citizen journalism in front of Fox News during an earlier March to End Corporate Personhood, an older man who seemed like an academic, bringing a queer perspective, and a young man with strong views on mass media images of women. We had a great discussion, mostly because of the engaged listening.

Then came time for the report backs. At first these were shouted out ("Access the collective wisdom of women worldwide!") but eventually people lined up at the microphone to be audible while telling something they had heard in their breakout discussion.

Chris Hedges, who described the blinders of privilege, another guy who started talking about himself at length and was eventually shushed, and Ivanaka, a major organizer of the FemGA. I forget the name of the woman in the hat, who spoke eloquently about how frustrating living under patriarchy can often be.

Eventually from this work came a Feminist Declaration that was read out in public on July 4.

When I find the text of it I'll share, along with the video I'm working on of the Feminist GA from footage shot by me and Curtis Cole. There are also livestream recordings of the GA where you would hear even more voices -- with so many small breakout groups, it would have been nearly impossible to capture them all on video. Check out OccupyFreedomLA's Ustream channel for those.

Did I mention that I got to meet Lisa Fithian, one of my organizing she-ros? She spoke earlier in the day during assembly about being pissed off and using that energy to organize ourselves. Inspiring! Unfortunately I was gone by the time Medea Benjamin arrived so I missed the workshop on how to Occupy Peace (recording here in case you did, too).

A couple of final pictures to show -- better than words could do -- Why We Occupy:

 

Feminist GA at Occupy Maine Summer Camp

Occupy New Haven, Maine, The Roads, Our Neighborhoods, TV, and Farms exchanging ideas.

Young, old and in between, we've all got to feed ourselves. Consensus: Local food as the basis of local economies is an idea whose time has arrived in a big way.

I was able to be part of three good discussions during day 2 at Occupy Maine summer camp. We started on the patio surrounded by fields sprinkled with tents, and the bugs weren't too bad as long as you slathered up with fragrant oils that bugs hate.

In the morning we heard from local farmers and transition town planners, and talked about how how we can work together to make our food supply sustainable, healthy and democratic. Diverse models of engagement between people and their food were considered. The people in the group were of varied ages, life work and, to some extent, geographic origin, which made for a rich discussion about the all important questions of what to eat and how to live.

Potluck lunch followed and who should appear but The Stolen Mural, a band from the area, high school students that totally rocked the neighborhood, performing revolutionary songs with verve. One could still talk if one shouted as if at a night club, so I listened and ate while having some interesting talks with people as I look forward to anywhere I am able to Occupy. When the band ended to loud applause, as it faded away the neighbors could be heard singing "God Bless America."

After lunch the subject was local citizens fighting corporate polluters and water miners. Activists discussed  ongoing efforts to exercise the right to Home Rule and stop Canadian Tar Sands from entering our bio-region! Successful campaigns to block corporate development of local water supplies, and to clean up a river so polluted that the mist peeled the paint off buildings along its shores were described. By now large and engaged group had crowded into the upstairs floor of the barn where antique fans were moving hot, humid air around. (The first four days of summer have hit at least high 80's and often 90's around Maine. Scary hot for this part of the world. How do we stop global warming before it's too late?!)

In late afternoon it was time for the Feminist GA, co-led by myself and Pat Taub, CODEPINK Maine's newest Local Coordinator in Portland. We went back to the patio, hoping for a cool breeze.

Feminist GA note taker and facilitator at work.

Twenty-eight people, nearly as many men as women, gathered and introduced ourselves. We each commented on why we had chosen to take part in a Feminist GA. Options for a meeting structure were considered briefly and there was a strong consensus in favor of breakout sessions. This turned out to be a very productive arrangement in that it created supportive space for people to talk about how they experience gender, and what that has to do with the patriarchal systems that all people and the Earth suffer under. 

Men and women held their own circles for about 40 minutes, and then after a short break reconvened as a whole group for another 30 minutes, hearing reports from the breakout sessions, and continuing discussions.

Occupy Freeport, MDI and Maine come together at Feminist GA

Wonderful notes were kept thanks to Diane, Ian, James and Susan. Just some of many interesting ideas:

• Coming together as women is an opportunity to recognize the power of our intuition, and the wisdom of collectively listening to it. This experience builds trust, which also strengthens connections among people. Occupy is about horizontal democracy, and Fem GA is about changing relational dynamics of power that we are all conditioned to, replacing them with trust. Equality can be expressed by “Level Glance” when people are on the same level, eye to eye. Also, we can aspire to listening without being afraid there won't be time to speak, and to not rush when it comes our time to speak.
  
  
• Women tend to hide their light under a bushel, to defer, and to deprecate themselves in relation to others. Getting over this tendency and celebrating our best qualities and strengths would be good for the pool of ideas. Women supporting other women is a good way to help them step out and speak up, even if their voice shakes a little. Supporting younger women is a way of bearing witness to the strength of their individual contribution, and will tend to encourage their participation. Women are very under-represented in media, even more than in government or other decision making roles.
  
  
• Raising decent, healthy sons in a vicious patriarchy is a challenge. The culture is against you. Men suffer as much under patriarchy as women and children do. It's an inhumane system that would benefit everyone and the Earth if dissolved.
  
  
• Men reported their families influenced their understanding of what is is to be masculine. Sometimes groups they are in make them feel they don't belong if they are not masculine in an “acceptable” way. Some men felt listening and observing carefully would be a masculine strength if this was valued. Men reported a lack of any opportunities at all for discussing these issues, and that being able to do so at Occupy summer camp was appreciated.
  
  
• There has been so much loosening up of masculine gender requirements. It's all over the map how you can choose to be a man now. Paradoxically, at the same time as that has been changing, patriarchy has gone out of control, with dominance, violence, war and destruction of the environment everywhere. (I was intrigued by this point and have been mulling it over ever since.)
  
  
• Gender roles are in flux – don't make assumptions. Accidentally hurt feelings made us realize we had erred in offering only two choices, male or female, and we need to remember than gender identity is fluid, and multi-faceted.

As a wrap-up each person was invited to share one thing they would be doing to bring about the better world that is possible. Many people voiced the wish for more opportunities to have conversations around ending patriarchy. As the meeting ended, little conversations broke out all over the room. We had now taken refuge in the barn again because....

There came an enormous thunderstorm and torrential rain -- followed by a

 A good omen! 

And after that I met up with Occupy the Roads, a story that deserves its very own post.

Why We Occupy: Feminist GA To Gather Collective Wisdom

SOURCE: OccuCards.com Print 'em yourself, buy printed sets, or donate to help them reach others.

One of the chief delights of being alive in the second half of the 20th century, and the first half of the 21st, has been the explosion of ways to share information.

Who knew about OccuCards before, say, five minutes ago? I did not, but a CODEPINK sister on the left coast emailed me a link, and I shared it with a fellow organizer who lives in a house named for Melman and then I got inspired to showcase this particular card in my blog.

And who knows who may see it here, and share it with even more people...

This is why the authorities kick Occupy out of public spaces for no worse a crime than camping. Because our coming together to share ideas is very, very threatening.

One of the chief ways we've been kept from coming together is by systems of control where some people, the very wealthy, have way more power than other people. They control the banks, the Congress, the courts, the White House, and the mass media. Their paid hacks trivialize, marginalize and attack anyone who tries to take their head out of the sand and speak up about what's wrong and what to do about it.


Unfortunately, we all get brought up in this system. We watch "debates" where people shout each other down. We are flooded with false messages so loud, so flashy and so constant that it become a radical act just to shut them off.

We remain silent -- sometimes to save ourselves from annihilation, sometimes out of habit.

One of the amazing features of indigenous communities around the globe is inclusion of all the voices. Collectively humans are far more wise than any one individual. When citizens have to shout and get arrested just to be heard in bodies that allegedly represent the people, it's time for a new order.

I will be supporting and helping to organize Feminist General Assemblies (#FemGA) at various Occupy events this summer. This is not because I am mad at men or think they have nothing to contribute. It is because I know how many young women are silenced by the oppressive powers that be. They are ridiculed for not being gorgeous enough, they are marginalized for not being aggressive enough, they are forced into industrialized labor and childbearing in order that they may never discover the awesome power they embody.

It's time for the patriarchy to step down, and I have no doubt that righteous brothers everywhere are hoping and working toward this end just as women are.

I'm going to do my part to hear from the young women, the women of color, the low income women, the older women--those whom the patriarchy shouts down. I'm excited about the ideas they will share with the rest of us when they get into a space where their voices can be heard.

We can't have it be a contest to get your voice the loudest. That's what we have now, and look where it's gotten us.