> Call for Contributions: Young feminist voices
wanted! Speak your
world!
> Kristy Evans
> June 2004
> ******
>
> Young Feminist Voices for Now and the Future! An
analysis on the
Current
Global Order - its Borders and Disorders!!!!
>
> The Association for Women Rights in Development
(AWID) Young Women
and
Leadership Program is producing a book to profile the
voices, analysis
and
creativity of young women striving towards social
justice and we need
YOUR
help!
>
> Globally, our lives are shaped by a myriad of forces
including the
fragmenting impacts of globalization, conflict, wars,
poverty,
violence, and
HIV/AIDS, relentless neo-liberalism, virulent
religious and ideological
fundamentalisms, aggressive militarism, and resurgent
racism to name
but a
few of the challenges of our current times.
>
> Our lives are also shaped by the energy of youth,
hopes for a better
future, friendship, love, creativity, vision and a
passionate advocacy
for
equality and justice. The experiences, perspectives
and visions of
young
women and girls are therefore unique and extremely
valuable in both
understanding the current world order and looking to
shaping a better
future.
>
> The current global situation and its local
manifestations present
both
opportunities and threats for us, with fewer choices
and opportunities
for
some. Protecting the rights of our generation, now
and into the future
is a
challenge that requires new energy, holistic visions,
fresh analyses,
and
new strategies for change. Currently, there are many
civil society
movements
(locally, regionally and globally) working for an
alternative order. We
are
engaged, as advocates, organisers, spokespersons,
protesters,
researchers,
and strategists. We are defining social movements
globally.
>
> Young women, of course, do not constitute a
homogenous grouping. Our
experiences and realities are impacted on by factors
such as regional
location, socio-economic background, sexuality, race,
ethnicity,
religion,
health, education, etc., and our individual
personalities and desires
also
shape their actions and visions. To date, there has
been a considerable
amount of feminist analysis and writing on the
challenges facing women
around the world given the current global order.
However, the unique
voices and visions of younger women remain
underrepresented.
>
> The proposed book will address this gap. By
capturing the analyses,
visions, energy, skills and experiences of young women
as emerging
actors
gaining strength as advocates, practitioners,
researchers, the book
hopes to
profile the unique contribution that young women can
and do make as
leaders
in the struggles for social justice.
>
> We invite contributions that engage with the
following questions:
>
> The New Global Order:
>
> *What are the primary challenges facing you (and
other young women)
in
your society?
> *Who are the power players that are pushing the
neoliberal economic
agenda? What institutions are really pulling the
strings today? How
does
this affect the way you think and live?
> * How are fundamentalisms, militarism and identity
politics impacting
on
your rights?
> *How are you exercising your citizenship? What does
citizenship
mean, in
the light of increasing migration, statelessness and
international
travel?
> *What does act local - think global mean to you?
> *What kind of governance (and by whom) do we need
for a future of
equality, justice and peace?
>
> Women Rights and Economic Policies:
> *How do you experience the impacts of globalization?
What are the
specificities of this experience in different
locations?
> *How are you organising around current threats to
sustainable
livelihoods?
> *How is HIV/AIDS (and related health issues)
affecting you ? How are
these
fuelled by poverty and neoliberal economics, sexism,
religious
fundamentalisms, homophobia, and a denial of women
sexual and
reproductive
rights
> *How might these be addressed by you? The family?
The state? The
church? The education and health services?
> *What alternatives exist to the privatization of
basic services?
>
> New Technologies
> (new technologies include the internet, genetic
engineering,
reproductive
technologies and biotechnologies)
> *How are you using technology to organise and
mobilise for social
change?
> *What are your concerns in the context of the rapid
proliferation of
new
technologies? *How can we engage with and control the
proliferation of
potential harmful technologies?
>
> Movements and Organising:
> *How are you using creativity, art and culture to
promote social
justice?
> *Are you a feminist? How do younger women relate to
older feminist
activists?
> *How do you view women's movements?
> *What do older women in movements need to do to make
women movements
more
attractive to us?
> *Why should we build multi-generational movements?
What is the value
of a
young women's movement?
> *How do young women connect with people around the
world?
>
> Creating a New World:
> *What are your concerns around sustaining your
activism? What
strategies
do you use to sustain yourself? (spirituality, health,
creativity,
etc.)
> *How does sexuality and empowerment (generally and
in relation to
their
sexuality) impact on young women's ability to sustain
themselves? What
are
the issues related to this?
> *How can you embody the alternative world you
envision for the
future?
> *What does the personal is political mean to you?
>
> Contributions should address one or more of these
questions,
highlighting
specific issues and particular locations and
experiences.
>
> Beyond describing the current situation, we are
looking for
contributions
that present forward-looking strategies and visions
for a different
future
global order.
>
> We are accepting abstracts of articles in English,
French and Spanish
of
no more than 350 words. The deadline for submitting
abstracts is June
30th
2004. The selection committee will be choosing
articles in July and
will let
those authors who are selected, know by August 1st.
Guidelines for
articles, including length and style will be included
in this
confirmation.
We are offering a scholarship to those authors who are
selected, to
AWID's
10th International Forum in Bangkok 2005. The deadline
for the full
text of
the article is September 30th. AWID aims to support
inexperienced
authors
and will work with them to develop their articles.
>
> Please submit your abstract and a writing sample to:
>
> Shamillah Wilson - swilson@???
> The Young Women and Leadership Program
> c/o AWID, 2nd Floor Community House, 41 Salt River
Rd., Salt River,
7925
> Cape Town, South Africa.
> Phone #: (27) 21 447 8821
> Fax #: (27) 21 447 9617
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