Whatever advances women make in society, the need to take account of their progress is constant. And under the theme of “Take a Look at Us Now”, Vanier College’s International Women’s Week Festival, running March 8th-12th will do just that. The 2010 line-up of events includes speakers, films, dance workshops, information kiosks and panel discussions. The following are some of the festival’s highlights.
Monday afternoon, Cecilia Diocson will put “Domestic Workers and Immigration” in the spotlight when she exposes the challenges facing Filipino Women working in Canada under the Live-In-Caregiver’s Program and presents alternatives for development. Cecilia Diocson is the Executive Director of the National Alliance of Philippine Women in Canada (NAPWC).
Vivian Barbot, originally from Haiti, will close the first day of activities with her talk about overcoming barriers to reach her goals and succeeding despite discrimination. Vivian Barbot is a member of the Bloc Québécois, former president of the FFQ, teacher and activist.
Tuesday morning, “Women and Sport” will be the focus when World Champion and Olympic wrestler, Martine Dugrenier, shares her views and experiences as an athlete, after a screening of “Playing Unfair” a film about the representation of female athletes in the mass media.
On a different note, Melanie Hadida, who did field work in India, will present her findings on the activism of the women of Bhopal after the Carbide gas leak in “Flames not Flowers: Grassroots Activism and the Women of Bhopal”. In the afternoon, students will express their views in a panel discussion on “Feminism in the Eyes of College Students”.
Students will speak out again on Wednesday, when winners of the “In Her Name” creative writing contest read their submissions celebrating a woman that they admire and singers from the Music Department sing popular songs celebrating women. As well, a panel of Vanier students who travelled to Malawi and taught in schools there will discuss issues of gender and education in Africa.
Another Wednesday feature is Kim Picard, Aboriginal fashion designer and Youth Coordinator at the Quebec Native Women Association, who will describe the realities facing Native women in Quebec and Canada and indicate how they are banding together to create positive change.
The following day, Carlye Watson and Lilia Goldfarb will take aim at the dieting industry and the sexualisation of girls when they explore how a society based increasingly on consumption has caused young girls to disconnect from their internal needs for nourishment and become preoccupied with the ‘perfect’ body and being sexy.
Finally the week will close with a panel discussion on what it means to be women and feminists working in film, television, gaming, social media, performance, art, and photography. Rae Staseson and Giulianna Cucinelli from the Communication Studies Department at Concordia University will explore women as media artists, technology mavens and cultural innovators.
Open to the public. Click here for the Schedule of events.
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