[Day 10] Women Of Color
One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.
Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.
We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.
Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.
Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.
It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.
V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.
V can also stand for victory.
Women of Color
Women of color face their own unique struggles. While women of color are roughly 30% of the U.S. population of women, their salaries still trail behind that of white women and men of color. Many women of color have issues receiving quality healthcare, are often employed in low-wage, exploitative work, and deal with the affects of racism as well as sexism. Beauty ideals exploit women of color financially while creating beauty standards which are impossible for most women to reach. Violence against women of color can include war, colonialism, police violence, rape, and domestic violence.
With issues such as these, it's important for critical dialog and community involvement to better the lives of women, which is why today we are highlighting INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence. INCITE! is a national organization of activist, radical feminists of color that strive to end violence against women and the community through their grassroots organization, action, and critique of dominant power and ideologies.
[Today's essay courtesy of vylit]