Give & Grow
New Year – New You – New Future
I love the start of a fresh, new year. Particularly when the last one – or last three!... Continue ReadingI love the start of a fresh, new year. Particularly when the last one – or last three! – have been challenging.
If you’re like me, when you reflect on the past few years you’re uplifted by the many joyful moments when you felt yourself rise above the chaos. But you’ve also been invited, or perhaps required, to engage in self-healing, overcome hurdles, and step outside your comfort zone.
It can be exhausting and wreak havoc on your body, mind, and spirit. Trust me, I know.
As a result, many of us have taken the opportunity presented by the lock-downs, slow-downs, and smack-downs to go within and do some deep excavation. Ask the hard questions. Re-evaluate EVERYTHING!
And if we’ve gotten still enough to hear the inner whispers of our Soul, we might be contemplating – or even implementing – significant changes in our life.
That’s where I am.
For the past two years, I’ve been hearing the call to take some life-altering, soul-transforming steps leading me on a new path forward.
To add fuel to the fire, the timing coincides with life changes for my entire family. My youngest son is graduating from college this year. My oldest son is moving from the Midwest to the left coast. My husband is retiring. We are selling our home of 17 years in the suburbs of Chicago and moving to the mountains of the Carolinas.
And because that’s not enough upheaval for one woman, I’ve decided it’s time to close my on-line business of eight years, AWE Partners, to explore a Higher Calling and Sacred Mission that has been nudging me for quite some time. I just kept putting it off.
If you’ve been reading my emails over the past six months – which, by the way, an unusually high number of you do so thank-you! – you can probably see the direction I’m headed.
AWE Partners was founded on the desire to teach women how to give, shop, and invest effectively to support causes that are near and dear to their heart. And in the past eight years I’ve provided impact coaching, hosted webinars, created an on-line course, wrote a book, participated in numerous online events, and co-hosted an AWE-mazing summit this past year, Creatrix Convergence 2022.
Yet, despite sharing all of this heart-inspired content it has come to my awareness that there’s something more profound asking to be birthed. It’s not coming from my head or my heart. It’s coming from my Soul.
And I’m not alone in sensing this stirring. You feel it too, don’t you?
There’s something BIG happening on the planet and we’re being invited to step up and into it NOW!
While doing research around my passion – supporting women and girls – I’ve discovered that we can continue to address our most pressing issues in the same way we have but it’s not going to move the needle…
• Health & Wellness
• Education
• Economic Empowerment
• Equality & Leadership
• Freedom from Violence
It all matters. But it’s not enough.
What I now know is that I have to immerse myself in Pillars #1 and #7 of my 7 Pillars of Re-Powerment:
• Re-Connecting to Mother Earth
• Re-Storing the Sacred
I don’t yet know exactly what this will look like or where it will lead. What I do know is I have to step back from running a business so I can dive deeper into the research and writing that will bring clarity of vision for my path forward.
Here’s what I know for sure. You’ll hear from me less often – perhaps once a month. And the topics will include the themes I’m most passionate about at this time:
• Rise of the Divine Feminine
• Sophia Christ Consciousness
• Energy & Frequency
• 7 Pillars of Re-Powerment for Women & Girls
• Co-Creating a New Earth and New Future for All
If this resonates and you’d like to continue to join me on this journey, I welcome your company. Please always feel free to reply to my emails, share your thoughts, and let me know how I might be able to serve you in the future.
If this does not resonate, I ask you to please unsubscribe.
What? Why would I say that??
Because it is SO important that we each become laser focused on our Sacred Mission and stop being inundated by information that no longer serves – even if the information is good and from a trusted source. I have unsubscribed from numerous email lists and backed off on social media significantly in the past few months.
Although we all can benefit from guides and a supportive sisterhood, here’s the truth… You are the Guru! You are the Goddess! You don’t need to look outside for the answers. You know! It’s already within you. You just need to be still and listen deeply for what you’ve always known but forgot.
It’s time to Re-member, SiStar!
It is an honor and privilege to share this journey with you. I look forward to our continued growth and transformation in community – and to the New Future we will co-create in Unity and Peace.
Be bold. Be Daring. Be AWE-DACIOUS!
Re-Power Yourself, Your Sisters, Your World
Women and girls are half of the world’s population and yet in 2022 we are still overlooked and... Continue ReadingWomen and girls are half of the world’s population and yet in 2022 we are still overlooked and undervalued in most parts of the world.
And despite attempts to direct funding to organizations that serve women and girls, support is surprisingly deficient when compared with philanthropic giving as a whole.
With the knowledge that making investments in women and girls promotes a ripple effect of change throughout families, communities, and even entire countries – why aren’t more of us supporting causes that lift up women and girls? And what can we do to change that?
We can start by coming together to identify and support real Soul-utions. And that’s why we’ve created a powerful new global conference bringing together a diverse and visionary collective of women leaders who are radically transforming the lives of women and children and compassionately healing humanity and our planet!
You are invited to attend:
Creatrix Convergence 2022
Re-Power Yourself, Your Sisters, Your World!
Live Global Conference from July 11-15, 2022
There is terrific work being done on the ground to address the issues that keep women and children disempowered. But is it enough? Are we moving women from a life of suppression and oppression quickly enough and at scale? What might we be missing?
Can we really make an impact on the re-powerment of women and girls if we’re living under the old constructs and beliefs of a patriarchal, hierarchical society? Constructs and beliefs around culture, religion, politics, business, education, and healthcare that we have accepted as truth. Until now.
All of the upheaval on the planet is shifting the way we look at women and men, the roles we play, the privileges we have, where the power is held, and ultimately the imbalance that is prevalent in all sectors.
Women’s voices are needed now more than ever! Your voice!
The feminine naturally leads not from a place of competition, scarcity, and power over – but rather from a place of cooperation, abundance, and power within. From a place of love and compassion. But for thousands of years our voices have been suppressed and silenced. No more!
It’s time to shout a collective “No More”
- No more to destroying our planet
- No more to healthcare that doesn’t respect our knowing of what we need to thrive
- No more to education systems that don’t permit girls to go to school
- No more to economic systems that put greed above the common good
- No more to cultural systems that permit violence against women and children
- No more to political systems that believe leaders must be men
- No more to religious systems that fail to recognize our inherent sovereignty
We’re all connected and the social issues that challenge us are inter-connected as well. When we come together in community to learn, grow, and serve, we strengthen our commitment and increase our impact ensuring that we effect the change we want to see in the world.
Regardless of our race, religion, age, or culture – we are all women. We are sisters. We are strong, courageous, and determined. And together we will co-create a better world!
You can attend Creatrix Convergence 2022 completely FREE.
I can’t wait to see you there!
Be bold. Be Daring. Be AWE-dacious!
Creatrix Convergence 2022
In this 5-day online global event we are spotlighting 30+ female environmentalists, healers, educators, business owners, activists, humanitarians,... Continue ReadingAre you ready to hear some good news for a change?
Hoping that someone will find solutions to our global challenges?
Think we need more women leading the way forward?
Your wait is over! Welcome to:
✨ Creatrix Convergence 2022 ✨
Re-Power Yourself, Your Sisters, Your World!
Live Global Conference from July 11-15, 2022
In this 5-day online global event we are spotlighting 30+ female environmentalists, healers, educators, business owners, activists, humanitarians, social entrepreneurs, indigenous elders, spiritual leaders, and evolutionaries.
Each will be sharing a Soul-ution or philosophy they are exploring or bringing forth to radically transform the lives of women and children and compassionately heal humanity and our planet!
The pandemic and associated shutdowns have had a disproportionate effect on women. And the war in Ukraine has likewise impacted women and children profoundly. As a result of these tragedies, along with many other global challenges, we are being called to step up and into our leadership potential to lift up women and girls around the globe.
For although we are half the world’s population, we are still undervalued and overlooked. But not for long!
“When sleeping women wake, mountains move.”
– Chinese Proverb
Despite the personal and collective challenges of the past two years, it’s heartening and empowering to see so many coming together with a common focus on co-creating a new way forward. One way of life may be over, but a new way of being and doing will be birthed from the turbulence. And it’s up to us to make that happen!!
We see this as an incredible opportunity to bring together women from around the globe who share the common mission of lifting up women, girls, and our Mother Earth at this pivotal time on the planet. The feminine voice as well as her compassion, conviction, and power are needed now more than ever. We hope you will join us!
Here is a just a sampling of the speaker topics we’ll explore during Creatrix Convergence 2022:
✨ Barbara Marx Hubbard: Becoming a New Human
✨ Anne Baring: The Old Story or The New Story – Which is it?
✨ Jean Houson and Anneloes Smitsman: Future Human for a Thrivable World
✨ Jyoti Ma: Mother Earth is Calling Us
✨ Dr. Shamini Jain: Healing Ourselves: Biofield Science and the Future of Health
✨ Anna Vanickova & Petra van der Linden-Brussen: Mary Magdalene’s Great Passage
✨ Gail Straub: IMAGINE Initiative – The Missing Piece in the Empowerment Equation
✨ Lisa Garr: Making Your Message Your Mission
✨ Deborah Anderson: Women Of The White Buffalo Documentary
✨ Devin Hibbard: Confidence + Cash: How Women Will Change the World
And much more. You definitely don’t want to miss this!
The event begins July 11th, 2022. I can’t wait to see you there! Until then…
Be bold. Be Daring. Be AWE-DACIOUS!
Transforming a Culture of Violence
Last week, I had the privilege of interviewing Jean Houston and Anneloes Smitsman, co-authors of the Future Humans... Continue ReadingLast week, I had the privilege of interviewing Jean Houston and Anneloes Smitsman, co-authors of the Future Humans Trilogy, as featured speakers in our upcoming summit entitled, Creatrix Convergence 2022: Re-Power Yourself, Your Sisters, Your World. In the conversation, we addressed the culture of violence we have been living in for eons – a pattern of domination and oppression that has plagued the world for far too long.
It was not until later that evening that I realized we were holding this conversation at exactly the time of the horrific school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. An incident that has become far too common in recent years and for which we seem unable to come to a consensus on how to ensure it NEVER happens again.
As violence erupts in our schools, our cities, our world, we feel powerless to effect change – victims of a world gone mad. But we are not powerless! We are not victims!
We’ve been duped into a case of mistaken identity. Participants in the grandest scheme of “imposter syndrome”!
Deceptions are now being revealed as more and more of us are waking up to the truth of who we are. We are not just our ego – our false self – conditioned to play small. Trapped in a world of needless anxiety, unnecessary suffering, and cultural separation, competition and violence.
No, we are so much more!
Our True Self is a manifestation of Source.
Powerful beyond measure if we choose to believe it. Emissaries of peace, compassion, and justice. Messengers of unity and love. Called to lead the way forth to a New Future.
Since January, a group of Soul Sisters have been gathering once a month to prepare ourselves to step up and into our magnificence and onto the path of leadership. We have journeyed through a progression of themes to nurture, support, and strengthen our resolve in Awakening the Sovereign Feminine to…
- Realize our Individual & Collective Sovereignty
- Release what no longer serves
- Remember our Connection to Soul-Source-Sister
- Renew our Being
- Reimagine Sacred Impact
We will meet for our final session this month for the Coronation of the Sovereign Feminine. A chance to embrace all we have learned, shared, and claimed as our own. A chance to celebrate ourselves and each other.
For we are no longer meant to go it alone.
The Divine Feminine path forward is one of partnership and collaboration. Of empathy and forgiveness. Of compassion and love.
All are welcome!
And stay tuned for more information about Creatrix Convergence 2022, airing July 11-15. We have an extraordinary line-up of women who have heard the call and answered it. If you’re tired of hearing all the bad news, we have an abundance of good news, wisdom, and inspiration to share.
I know sometimes it feels like we just want to curl up in a ball, hide under the covers, and wait until the chaos ends. But, alas, there is no superhero coming to save us. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.
It takes courage, it takes stamina, it takes heart. But we’ve got this!
Be bold. Be Daring. Be AWE-dacious!
Re-Imagine Sacred Impact
As we move forward to address the myriad issues presenting themselves at this time, what if as the... Continue ReadingJust when you thought we couldn’t handle anymore intensity, this past week saw the battle around Roe v. Wade take center stage in the U.S. As a result, half of our country has erupted into a state of anger, grief, and disbelief. While the other half is rejoicing.
As in the past, the two sides have gone to their respective corners to plot how to respond to what is seen as injustice on both sides. The wound is re-opened. The blaming ensues. The divide widens.
Those who would wish for women to carry on under the illusion of separation have achieved their goal. For if we remain divided, then we shall not rise. And this is a victory for some.
We live in a world of division. Where our greatest challenges are viewed as black or white – not gray. You’re either with us or against us – can’t be both. You’re on the left or on the right – not the middle.
The dualistic consciousness that pervades our society can only see the “either/or” approach. It refuses to believe in the possibility of “both/and”.
But women, in particular, have the innate ability to see another way forward
– a “Third Way”
Richard Rohr describes this as, “…the place of grace out of which genuine newness can come. This is where creativity and new forms of life and healing emerge.”
As we move forward to address the myriad issues presenting themselves at this time, what if as the changemakers, wayshowers, and lightworkers that we are – we consciously and intentionally choose a new path forward. One that stops judging and pointing fingers, and instead chooses to listen from the heart.
What if we were to listen to a sister whose views appear to be radically different than our own? Listen to her story, how she grew up, what challenges she faced, what led her to the decisions she has made and the beliefs she clings to so tightly.
What if we were to put ourselves in another’s heels? Imagine what life might be like if we didn’t have the resources we do, the education we’ve received, the support system of our family and friends.
How might that change us? Might we soften a bit? Might we stop demonizing a sister who thinks differently but cares as deeply as we do?
Might we begin to ask ourselves how to stop fighting each other and truly begin to work together for the good of ALL women and ALL children? To look at the reasons a woman feels so vehemently that the right to an abortion is a human right.
Perhaps it’s because we haven’t adequately addressed the culture of violence we have created. One that still permits – and no one is marching in the streets or protesting to end…
- Rape
- Incest
- Pornography
- Domestic Violence
- Human Trafficking
- Child Marriage
- Female Genital Mutilation
Instead, we focus on one issue – and one issue only. We manipulate it. We politicize it. And when the dust settles, we go back to our separate lives with a warped sense of accomplishment.
Anyone else had enough of this? If so, I invite you to join myself and many other Soul SiStars who are committed to midwifing a new path forward. A “third way” that sees the inherent worth and dignity of each and every woman, and the creative and life-giving power of each and every womb.
Let’s Re-Imagine this “third way” together. Let’s Re-Imagine the world we’re stewarding. Let’s Re-Imagine our Sacred Impact and co-create Soul-utions that are life-affirming for all humanity and our beautiful Mother Earth.
Divine Feminine Rising
Regardless of our race, religion, age, or culture – we are all women. We are sisters. We are... Continue Reading2022 is a powerful year for the Rise of the Divine Feminine on the planet. And you may be feeling the intense energies coming through as old, patriarchal systems break down.
We’re certainly seeing the intensity in the events happening around the globe. So please don’t be too hard on yourself if you’re experiencing bouts of uneasiness, anxiety or stress. There’s just not a whole lot of clarity right now.
Despite the uncertainty, I am hopeful that this time of upheaval and chaos, this collective dark night of the soul, is an opening to vast possibilities we may have only imagined. One way of life may be over, but a new way of being and doing will be birthed from the turbulence. And it’s up to us to make that happen.
Women’s voices are needed now more than ever! Your voice!
The feminine naturally leads not from a place of competition, scarcity, and power over – but rather from a place of cooperation, abundance, and power with. From a place of love and compassion. But for thousands of years our voices have been suppressed and silenced. No more.
The Divine Feminine is Rising and it’s time to speak our truth!
As Barbara Marx Hubbard said, “For the first time in thousands of years, women now have the opportunity to give birth to their authentic feminine “Self”, and to actively participate in the workings of the evolutionary process. The modern and postmodern rise of women into the role of evolutionary agents is an event of the highest significance.”
So how will you answer the call? What will you do? Where will you serve?
We’re all connected and the social issues that challenge us are inter-connected as well. When we come together in community to learn, grow, and serve, we strengthen our commitment and increase our impact ensuring that we effect the change we want to see in the world.
It doesn’t matter which of my 7 Pillars of Re-Powerment you choose to focus on…environmental sustainability, health & well-being, education, economic empowerment, freedom from violence, equality…it all matters! Choose a pillar and join with others to shift the paradigm from patriarchy and privilege to new systems that support the common good.
Regardless of our race, religion, age, or culture – we are all women. We are sisters. We are strong, courageous, and determined. And together, as Fierce Warrior Goddesses of Light, we will change the world!
Be bold. Be Daring. Be AWE-DACIOUS!
7 Pillars of Re-Powerment
Repowerment is a practice of "reminding" women and girls of the power we inherently hold simply because we... Continue ReadingWomen and girls are half of the world’s population and yet in 2022 we are still overlooked and undervalued in most parts of the world.
And despite attempts to direct funding to organizations that serve women and girls, support is surprisingly deficient when compared with philanthropic giving as a whole.
With the knowledge that making investments in women and girls promotes a ripple effect of change throughout families, communities, and even entire countries – why aren’t more of us supporting causes that lift up women and girls? And what can we do to change that?
Perhaps the answer lies in the confusion over how we can effectively support our sisters around the globe. Of the philanthropic giving directed toward women and girls, 90 cents of each dollar is focused on reproductive health, leaving inadequate funding for a range of other issues. Although reproductive health is of critical importance, the factors that will lead to women rising into co-equal partnership with men are varied and go beyond our ovaries.
So what does this mean for those of us who desire to lift women and girls out of oppression? It means we need to focus on multiple issues at the same time. We can’t devote resources in one area and expect it to be enough.
But it can be a daunting task to sift through data and information and identify those efforts that have the greatest potential for effecting real and lasting change. Many different frameworks exist, but no single framework that is commonly used across the field. For example, the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals are not specific to women, do not organize the topics that improve women’s lives holistically in one place, and can be overwhelming given there are a total of 19 goals.
But what can feel overwhelming doesn’t have to be. In an effort to simplify the approach I’ve created the:
7 Pillars of Re-Powerment
Let me first explain why I use the term “Re-Powerment”. Most of us are more familiar with the concept of empowerment when speaking of women and girls. However, empowerment doesn’t accurately describe what we hope to achieve. The definition of empowerment states that one person or group of people are bestowing power on another. This implies a hierarchy where those wielding power choose with whom to share it.
“Repower = to provide again or anew with power;
to rebuild the power source”
Repowerment, on the other hand, is a practice of “reminding” women and girls of the power we inherently hold simply because we are alive. It’s a power given to all by Source, the greatest power in the Universe, and from which we are all equally created. Re-powerment is ultimately a reminder of our inherent worth and dignity as Divine beings.
Now on to the 7 Pillars. Using research from the Center for High Impact Philanthropy at the University of Pennsylvania, we begin with the five core areas with the most promising solutions for women and girls globally. These five dimensions are inextricably linked and provide a holistic view of how to create the greatest impact:
- Health & Wellbeing
- Education
- Economic Empowerment
- Freedom from Violence
- Equality
There is terrific work being done on the ground to address the issues that keep women and children disempowered. But is it enough? Are we moving women from a life of suppression and oppression quickly enough and at scale? What might we be missing?
Can we really make an impact on the re-powerment of women and girls if we’re living under the old constructs and beliefs of a patriarchal, hierarchical society? Constructs and beliefs around culture, religion, politics, business, education, and healthcare that we have accepted as truth. Until now.
The rise of the Divine Feminine on the planet is shifting the way we look at women and men, the roles we play, the privileges we have, where the power is held, and ultimately the imbalance that is prevalent in all sectors. It’s time to incorporate two long forgotten pillars into the women’s re-powerment movement and all sectors of society:
- Re-connecting to Mother Earth
- Restoring the Sacred
I believe these two anchor pillars merged with the five core pillars are the missing links to ending oppression, restoring equality for all, and ultimately saving our planet.
It’s time, SiStars, to shift the paradigm that has allowed the pandemic of “-isms”: sexism, racism, classism, etc…to fester and infect the health of our planet and all humanity. Over the next couple of months I’ll share more about how we do this together.
Be bold. Be Daring. Be AWE-DACIOUS!
What will it take for Women to Come Together to End Oppression and Patriarchy?
Our February Film Festival concludes this Wednesday, February 24th @ 7:00 p.m. CST. Our screening this week is... Continue ReadingOur February Film Festival concludes this Wednesday, February 24th @ 7:00 p.m. CST. Our screening this week is “Rising Power: Building an intersectional justice movement in the United States.”
In an increasingly polarized and racially segregated United States, we see the impact of patriarchy through the eyes of Black and Southeast Asian activists living in Madison, Wisconsin. Against a backdrop of anti-Blackness, violence against women, and increasing social and political polarization, we meet M Adams and Kabzuag Vaj, community organizers and co-directors of Freedom, Inc.
What began as a sexual assault support group has grown into a community organization at the forefront of battles over education reform, police brutality, land access and ownership, women’s safety and security, and mental health. In this Fundamental episode, Kabzuag says “Freedom, Inc. exists because there were no organizations serving women like me.”
With Freedom, Inc. Kabzuag and M have cultivated a movement that invites women of color—in particular, Black, Hmong, and Khmer women, girls, queer, and trans people—to tie their own rights to one another. Freedom, Inc. works to equip the communities they serve with the tools and resources they need to uproot our broken system and ultimately build a roadmap toward shared liberation.
Most Americans say it’s now more common for people to express racist or racially insensitive views. Additionally, 2019 saw the most deaths of transgender or gender non-conforming people in the U.S. due to fatal violence, the majority of whom were Black transgender women.
In this Fundamental episode, we learn about grassroots movements led by women and gender non-conforming people of color who confront oppression and patriarchy in the U.S. It highlights the ways people from different backgrounds experience discrimination and focuses our attention on the importance of not placing issues in silos, but instead recognizing how systems of oppression intersect and overlap.
Movements addressing one form of oppression must take others into account. For example, efforts to fight racism must include addressing homophobia, classism, and anti-Semitism, and work to eliminate gender disparities must acknowledge how women of color experience inequality and prejudice differently from white women.
INTERSECTIONALITY: The interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage. The term “intersectionality” was coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw, a civil rights activist and legal scholar.
Nothing changes if we don’t talk about it.
Be bold. Be Daring. Be AWE-dacious!
How do we prevent children from having children?
How many of you think it’s a good thing that girls as young as 10 years old are... Continue ReadingHow many of you think it’s a good thing that girls as young as 10 years old are getting pregnant? I think I know the answer.
Our February Film Festival continues with “Girls at the Heart of It: Comprehensive Sexuality Education in Kenya.”
In Kenya, anti-rights movements are blocking access to comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) for girls and young people—a critical barrier to girls and young women realizing their full potential.
In this episode, we meet Purity Kagwiria, Executive Director of Akili Dada, an organization that provides education and leadership training to high school- and college-aged girls and young women. We also meet Mary Adhiambo, a young leader and sexual assault survivor in her early twenties who is taking her new organizing skills to the streets, and Mary Anyango, a high school student who is sharing what she’s learned about sexuality and leadership in her own community.
Across Kenya, young people and especially teenage girls are denied CSE and access to sexual and reproductive health and rights. According to a 2017 United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) report, more than 390,000 10- to 19-year-olds became pregnant in Kenya between July 2016 and June 2017.
Patriarchy and religious and social conservatism are exacerbating the issue: teenage pregnancy is high, along with maternal mortality rates and rates of unsafe abortion. Pregnancy—often a result of a lack of comprehensive sexuality education—is one of the main reasons that girls drop out of school. For girls in Kenya, misinformation on sexuality and gender is coming from many different places: religious leaders, individuals with deep cultural and traditional beliefs, media and news sources, social media, or teachers without the skills or training to develop CSE.
But teenage girls and young women in Kenya are change-makers and leaders. Many of them are advocating for comprehensive sexuality education, educating their peers on their bodies and rights, and working for laws and policies that advance sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) is about more than just reproductive health, pregnancy, and sex. A truly comprehensive sexuality education program includes positive, scientific, and nonjudgmental information about so much more, including gender roles and power relations, bodily autonomy, consent, and gender identity (among other important topics).
CSE is an incredibly effective tool to empower girls. A 2019 United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) report outlines why comprehensive sexuality education is crucial: it leads to improved health; contributes to gender equality; enables young women to understand basic facts about their bodies; encourages young people to think about families and social relationships, and recognize inappropriate behavior; and helps prepare women for healthy, consensual, and pleasurable relationships.
However, CSE is rare, and even basic information about sexual health can be lacking in many places. For example, 48% of girls in the Islamic Republic of Iran believe menstruation is a disease. Likewise, 51% of girls in Afghanistan and 82% in Malawi were unaware of menstruation before they first experienced it.
In the United States, CSE programming varies widely across the country. Currently, just 29 states in the U.S. and the District of Columbia mandate sexuality education, and 39 states mandate HIV education. Although almost every state has some guidance on how and when sexuality education should be taught, decisions are often left up to individual school districts.
Nothing changes if we don’t talk about it. Join us!
Be bold. Be Daring. Be AWE-dacious!
Have You Ever Felt Out of Place or Unwelcome?
Have you ever felt out of place or unwelcome? Sadly, this is a daily experience for members of... Continue ReadingHave you ever felt out of place or unwelcome?
Sadly, this is a daily experience for members of the LGBTQI community. And for many, it’s worse. They live in fear.
LGBTQI+ discrimination is rampant around the globe. As of March 2019, there are 70 United Nations Member States (35%) that criminalize consensual same-sex sexual acts, with imprisonment as the most common penalty. Indeed, in 37% of these countries, consensual same-sex acts can be punished by life imprisonment. In six countries, a person can receive the death penalty for being found “guilty” of consensual same-sex sexual acts, with three in Asia (Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen) and three in Africa (Nigeria, Sudan, and Somalia).
In 30 states in the United States, LGBTQI+ people are at risk of being fired, refused housing, or denied social services simply because of identifying as LGBTQI+.
Our February Film Festival continues tomorrow, February 10th, at 7:00 p.m. CST as we feature “Living Out Loud: LGBTQI rights in Georgia.”
In this episode, we meet feminist activist Ekaterine Aghdgomelashvili, a trailblazer for LGBTQI+ rights in Georgia and co-founder of Women’s Initiative Supporting Group (WISG). Eka and the other leaders at WISG focus their work on empowering women and LGBTQI+ people in Georgia and working to advance their rights through political participation, economic empowerment, and cultural exchange.
We also meet Eka T., an aspiring young artist and fellow community activist, in the tense days leading up to a rally for International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHOT). Through the eyes of Eka A., Eka T., and others, we see how anti-rights and anti-gender movements are endangering the lives of LGBTQI+ people and seeking to rollback rights gained by the gender justice movement in Georgia.
A 2018 study on hate crimes and discrimination in Georgia found that the majority of Georgians generally think it’s important to protect the rights of minorities—with the exception of LGBTQI+ people.
While officially a secular country, church and state are far from separate in Georgia. LGBTQI+ people in Georgia are the targets of violence and state-sanctioned oppression because of the undue influence of the Georgian Orthodox Church on social and political life in the country. Anti-LGBTQI+ rhetoric, led by religious and political leaders, has resulted in homophobic and transphobic violence, discrimination, hate crimes, and murders throughout the country, as well as state-ordered threats against LGBTQI+ individuals and activists. At the same time, LGBTQI+ and feminist movements in Georgia have made gains and have grown stronger over the years.
Don’t miss this eye-opening documentary and discussion. You are needed and Now is our time!
Be bold. Be Daring. Be AWE-dacious!!
P.S. We will be hosting the Fundamental film series on Wednesdays in February. It is a joint production from Academy Award-winning director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and the non-profit Global Fund for Women. At a time of unprecedented political uprisings around the globe, Fundamental introduces global audiences to grassroots movements and community leaders who are standing up for our fundamental human rights and working to hold governments accountable for healthier and more just societies for all.