Student Activism

We’re mailing out the organization kits this week!  And there’s still so much you can do now.  Have you looked at the organization kit online?  It’s time to start planning which actions and activities your group will do and what days you want to do them.  Start to assign tasks and responsibilities to members of your group and get your school’s permission for all events that you plan on holding.  I’m sure you have brainstormed speakers already and now is a good time to start scheduling them.  Start reserving spaces for your movie night, teach in and/or your speaker and pick a visible spot for your Dialogue Wall.  It’s time to also find out your schools procedure on passing campus resolutions so that you can start on that, as well as the deadlines for school and local newspapers.  Remember we need to unite in solidarity with the world and ratify the Convention of Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and it starts with you.  It’s a lot to do so you should get started and have a great week.  Be sure to check back Thursday for a personal story.

Today you should make sure that you've signed up for the National Week of Student Action. In case you haven't already done so, here is the link: www.amnestyusa.org/nwsa. If you want to receive the hard copy of the organization kit along with posters and stickers, you need to be registered by Friday, February 24th. If you haven't already done so, don't forget to put the NWSA on your school's Activity Calendar (the week of April 3), the earlier you do so the better. By now you should definitely have started to brainstorm a list of speakers that can participate in your events and we still encourage you to keep an eye out for other organizations on your campus and in your community that might like to work with your AI group on the Treaty for the Rights of Women. Please take a look at the PDF version of the organization kit. It has some great tools and ideas in there, so have fun!

Good news!  The organization kit will be up as a PDF file today, and the html version will be available Monday.  We’re very excited about it, and we hope you’re starting to seriously think about your preparations for the National Week of Student Action.  To help you get motivated, we’d like to share this inspirational story about Rania al-Baz, a TV journalist in Saudi Arabia who published photos of her after her husband beat herself within an inch of her life.  She’s making unprecedented efforts to let women know their rights in a culture where they’re barely allowed to show their face.  She has had a long struggle and her story is remarkable.  Click to read more.

Ok, so you still have two months until the National Week of Student Action, and you’re probably wondering: What can I do now?  Once you learn about the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women, it’s hard to sit back and wait instead of becoming involved right away.  Luckily, there are a bunch of actions that can be taken that you can start right now.  But first things first; find out as much as you can about CEDAW!  You’re going to want to thoroughly understand what you’re campaigning for and have answers to any arguments against the U.S. ratification of the treaty.  What you should start doing now is dealing with the “Finding Out Phase.”

Find out:

• Who your senator is and what their position is on the Women’s Treaty.
• How to pass a campus resolution.
• When your school publishes its newsletters and how to submit articles.
• Who else is interested in helping you campaign (in your school, in other schools, in the community).
• How to rent or reserve the auditorium or room with a TV to use for movie night during National Week of Student Action.
• How you can make an announcement.

Click here to find your senator.