Women briefly
Conferences Concluded
We have heard great reports about two conferences in March--the Gender & Disability Studies conference at the Institute for Research on Women, Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, held March 1-3 and will keep checking the website at www.irw.rutgers.edufor papers; and the University at Hawaii Center on Disability Studies Symposium on "Diversity and Disability: Reflections on Women, Culture and Sexuality," held in Honolulu, March 3-4, information: www.cds.hawaii.edu/symposium
The Hawaiian meeting keynote was Heather Rose of Australia, subject and writer of "Dance Me to My Song," film from the viewpoint of an entertainer/artist with cerebral palsy. Both conferences featured international speakers and research and we hope to be able to report further on them in the next issue of Disability World.
Conferences Coming Up
Deaf Women United, Inc. is hosting its biennial conference in Austin, Texas, June 20-24, 2001. The goals are to highlight women's achievements, celebrate women's history and to "instill young women of today with some of the knowledge, skills and confidence that they will need to grace the world of tomorrow." Check out their website for details: www.dwu.org/conference.htm
The World Federation of the Deaf is considering the possibility of hosting the first worldwide conference for deaf women in 2002, following a proposal from Peru; contact the WFD for details: www.wfd.org
Yes!!! Congratulations to Kicki Nordstrom, President, World Blind Union: Disabled women and their allies around the world cheered and raised champagne glasses when they heard that Kicki Nordstrom of Sweden ( kino@iris.se) had been elected the first woman President in the history of the WBU. Ms. Nordstrom, a fervent and articulate defender of the rights of women and minorities in Scandinavia, also has been a staunch supporter over the past decade of the rights and needs of blind women, especially those in developing countries. The WBU is the international representative of blind people and blindness issues at the United Nations and around the globe, and cooperates with other world level disability groups on questions of mutual concern.
No Room for Disabled Women at US Shelters
A February 20, 2001 press release summarized the findings of a new study demonstrating that most of the USA's 2000 shelters for women are inaccessible and largely inhospitable to or ignorant about those with disabilities. Shelters are set up as community-based emergency or transition, safe housing for women who are being abused or in some way threatened. "For most disabled women, there are no options of escape," stated researcher Margaret Nosek, director of the Center for Research for Women with Disabilities, based at the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas. And, until recently, shelter officials say, they didn't really understand the extent to which disabled women undergo abuse; nor did they have the know-how or tools to identify disabled victims and help them come forward to make complaints or to seek services. Details about Baylor studies & programs: http://public.bcm.tmc.edu
The above article also identifies some best practices in the area of assistance for women with disabilities, for example:
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Barrier Free Living in New York City is helping disabled, battered women to find shelter and other assistance: www.barrierfreeliving.org and
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The Violence Against Women Act, under the administration of the Justice Department, has set aside some $12 million over each of the next five years to provide training and technological assistance on disabled-related issues: www.usdoj.gov
Take Up Thy Bed and Walk: Death, Disability & Cure in Classic Fiction by Girls
(Women's Press, 274 pages, L11.99) This new book by Lois Keith examines the novels of the mid-19th century onwards that "killed off their characters or had them endure disability, particularly paralyzing illness during their adolescent years, followed by miraculous and generally improbable cures." We haven't found a reviewer yet, but until then, check out the February 3 Guardian article, "Cured by Submission," by Lyn Gardner: www.guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4129490,00.html
Workshops in Guatemala
Disability World has been informed by Sylvia Quan, a young, blind disability activist in Guatelmala, that a series of workshop for disabled women took place in February for the first time and information is available from silviaq@inelnet.net.gtMs. Quan was one of the emerging leaders selected for scholarship in the Beijing+5 international leadership training event held in New York in June 2000.
Letter from the Ukraine
"My Name is Elena. I'm 28.I live in Ukraine and work as a psychologist. I think it's not only my profession but also my vocation. I've been interested in people, their thoughts and reasons of their behavior for all my life.
When I was 15, I became a wheelchair user following a railway accident. But physical limitation didn't make my life less interesting or active . . . Our society considers disabled people as helpless, passive and asexual . . . Why does it happen? Request complete copy of letter from eshing_2000@yahoo.com
African & European Activists Meet in Rome to Discuss Ban of Female Genital Mutilation
Rome was the site in early March for an international strategy meeting of activists working to find ways to reduce the practice of female circumcision, better known as female genital mutilation (FGM). The World Health Organization estimates that 120 million women have been subjected to FGM, widely practiced in Northern and Eastern Africa.
Khadidja Sidibe Aoudou, leader of Mali's efforts to curb this practice, said, "Women are made to believe that an uncut clitoris can cause impotence in men and the death of their children, and that female circumcision allows women to be accepted in their communities." The conference, with the support of several European nongovernmental organizations, called for the ban of FGM worldwide. Details of the meeting were published in the daily UN paper, UN Wire, found at www.unfoundation.org
Meron Gehene of Ethiopia has written a particularly comprehensive and articulate paper summarizing research on the disabling and sometimes fatal effects of this practice and it can be found at www.interafrica.org/gender/fgm
South Africa Leads Aggressive Female Condom Programs to Reduce AIDS
With the world's highest number of people living with AIDS, and with disturbingly high infection rates of young women, South Africa is at the forefront of programs utilizing the distribution of female condoms as a prevention action.
According to The Female Health Company, which has worldwide rights to the condom, South Africa has been testing and distributing this product since 1996 and is now expanding its availability. South Africa and Zimbabwe, reports company president Mary Ann Leeper, are examples of countries that have successfully implemented overall AIDS prevention programs incorporating this condom.
The UNAIDS program supported studies showing that when the female condom is offered as an option, there is a significant reduction in the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases, compared to when only the male condom is available. A recent study in Zimbabwe found that the female condom is providing new and additional protection from HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.
The Female Health Company describes this condom as the only product controlled by a woman that protects against sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy. Details available at www.femalehealth.com
UN Development Fund for Women Prepares for 2002 Progress Report on the World's Women
Noleen Heyzer, executive director of the United Nations Development Fund for Women, announced on April 25 the appointment of two experts to take charge of the agency's evaluation of progress for women worldwide. The agency will issue a comprehensive status report in 2002.
Elisabeth Rehn of Finland, a former Minister of Defense and Equality Affairs and UN Rapporteur on Human Rights, and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, former director of the UNDP bureau for Africa and investigator of genocide in Rwanda, will collaborate on the report. One focus of the report will be on the gender dimensions of armed conflict, a subject the UN Development Fund recognizes has not been given wide exposure.
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