A group of marchers rallied through Chicago's Loop Thursday, March 8, to celebrate International Women's Day and call attention to injustice against women worldwide. The rally started with speeches by members of the Prairie Fire Organizing Committee, reminding demonstrators and passers-by of the ongoing international examples of violence against women, from Asian sweatshops who use young girls to sew ( often American ) corporate sportswear, to current bills in the U.S. Congress which threaten to limit American women's control of their bodies by seriously changing standing abortion-rights laws.
The march kicked off around noon, left from Federal Plaza on Dearborn, and headed south toward its final destination in front of the Immigration and Naturalization Service building on Jackson. A passionate representative of Khuli Zaban, a Chicago group for lesbians of South Asian heritage, spoke to the crowd against the continued trafficking of Asian women into European and American households under the guise of "marriage arrangements" and service opportunities.
Marchers demonstrating against domestic violence and for feminist causes were also present for this short but invigorating demonstration.
Persons interested in more information about local organizing against sweatshops and for abortion rights can contact Melinda Power of the Prairie Fire Organizing Committee at ( 773 ) 278-6706.
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Meanwhile, during the day Saturday, March 10, several women's groups sponsored the International Women's Day Conference: Rethinking Our Future, with guest speakers and workshops on a range of topics, including gay and lesbian hate crimes, and racism within the GLBT communities.
The featured keynote speakers were: Nandita Das, co-star of the lesbian film Fire, on issues of sexuality, national identity and poverty, especially in India; Toni Bond of the Chicago Abortion Fund on international issues of reproductive freedom; and Migdalia Jimenez, a DePaul student, speaking on labor issues. Jimenez went undercover at a suburban sweatshop where illegal immigrants were being treated unfairly.
The conference, held at DePaul University's downtown campus, was sponsored by a wide range of women's groups, including: Affinity, Chicago Anti-Bashing Network, Chicago Foundation for Women, Chicago NOW, Chicago Queer Commission of DSA, DePaul Women's Center, Rape Victim Advocates, and Refuse and Resist. E-mail IWD2001@hotmail.com
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Sisters Organizing for a United Leadership ( S.O.U.L. ) , a new group of young female organizers based on the Southwest Side of Chicago, presented Women Uniting in Struggle and Celebration at the Hot House Saturday, March 10. The program featured a diverse group of speakers and performers, representing younger and older women from varied cultures.
Pounding, fierce drumming from the OO-RI SO-RI Korean Women's Percussion Group greeted the audience and was followed by energetic movement by the Nauhulli Mexica Ceremonial Dance Group. A "Cultural Fashion Show" was another highlight, featuring locally made clothing from various ethnic groups represented in the day's proceedings. Young people were represented well by the talents of two local teen poetry collectives, Kuumba Lynx and the Pedro Albizu Campos High School Performers. The day raised money and awareness for S.O.U.L., which strives to empower young women through knowledge of self, history, and leadership.
WOMEN'S STUDIES FROM COVER
academic departments and the library, and there are 30 students minoring in women's studies. A recent survey suggested that 108 students would major if a program was offered, Fuller said.
As a commuter school with 10,000 racially diverse students, Northeastern is in a unique position, and Fuller said the students tend to be older and come back to school "because they want to learn."
At DePaul, the women's studies major is about five years old, and one concern among its 60 students is that they won't find a job when they graduate, said professor Ann Russo.
One participant at last week's forum, held at Women & Children First Bookstore, said her response to the question, "What will you do with a women's studies degree?" is "Anything I damn well please."
Many women's studies programs in the city have widened their focus, such as the University of Illinois-Chicago's expanded Gender and Women's Studies Program. "The department wanted to keep up with developments in scholarly fields and changes in activism," said Judith Kagan Gardiner, professor of English and Gender and Women's Studies.
Those developments have included discussions of gender, masculinity and the intersections of homophobia, racism and classism.
"Studying masculinity is a feminist project if it's done from a feminist perspective," Gardiner said.
She added that the department was also looking to make the program more international, with wider discussions of different cultures' constructions of sexuality and gender.
While there is not an official major in Gender and Women's Studies, students can get an individualized study degree in it.
Loyola University offers a rare master's degree in women's studies, and the chair of the department, Pam Caughie, said getting the program approved wasn't a hard sell because the school views the addition as a financial decision.
The professors at the forum said they have not seen interest in women's studies decrease over the years, with Kelly saying she has had the same number of students—almost always all women—in classes since the 1970s.
If anything, they said, students today bring a rich perspective to women's studies because their feminist mothers or grandmothers have already exposed them to many of the ideas discussed. Kelly and others painted a bleak picture of the early days of women's studies, far from the multi-faceted programs currently being developed.
The early 1970s was a time of no tenured female faculty, Kelly said, and students were forced to push for programs alone because professors were afraid to risk their jobs.
With little precedent to work from, she said, women's studies instructors improvised, and the first women's studies she taught began with the book Moll Flanders and ended with Toni Morrison's Sula.
"We're now exploring what's been hidden from history," Kelly said.
In looking back, other women pointed to the split that occurred between academic women and community organizers. Whereas the late 1970s saw collaborations between campus scholars and activists, they said, today's climate is largely devoid of cooperation.
Gardiner noted that even with 20 years of societal changes, feminism has left some women behind.
"Women have won, and the rich have won," she said, adding that professional women are satisfied and now want to close the door on advancements for the working class.
The forum, entitled Women's Studies: Where Have We Been? Where Are We Going?, included Kelly and Russo from DePaul, Fuller from Northeastern, Gardiner from UIC, Caughie and Judy Wittner from Loyola.
COLUMBIA'S EXPERIENCE
Columbia College is also seeing expansions in its offerings, with plans in the works for an Office of Gay and Lesbian Student Affairs. The office is just one example of the burgeoning movement occurring among GLBT students and faculty at Columbia.
"Gay is in the air," quipped instructor Victoria Shannon. "Things are just happening around here at last."
Shannon, who has recently revived GLBT studies courses at Columbia, is the most likely candidate for the office's first part-time coordinator.
Last spring, Shannon taught a gay and lesbian literature course, the first time the class was offered in four years. Students lamented the lack of courses and support, and Shannon spent last summer developing a game plan.
Over the summer, the student GLBT organization, GLOBAL, was revamped, and is now called Columbia Pride. Shannon said a website set up by the group has generated interest among at least three or four prospective students looking at Columbia.
A brochure for students was developed, with a list of GLBT-friendly faculty, and Shannon received a $500 grant for a gay studies course. The class has full enrollment, and she recently learned that the college plans to offer it every semester—an unusual move. After two years, she said, it will become a permanent part of the curriculum.
Each week of the class features a different topic, including gay families, homo-economics, psychological perspectives on homosexuality, phases in gay development and diversity in the community. As part of the last section, Shannon plans to have a leatherman come in to speak.
She said the courses have had a visible, positive impact on Columbia's students. "It's like they're coming out of the woodwork now that they're seeing signs of support," she said. "There are so many gay and lesbian students, it's just a matter of how to get them involved."
While the student affairs office doesn't have a space yet, Shannon said she is hoping to get it approved and running as soon as possible.
