Women's Voices from the Muslim World: A Short-Film Festival

I follow a great blog called "Muslimah Media Watch" which tracks and comments on current events/news/issues related to Muslim women worldwide. Today, I saw this short post on their blog...
Women's Voices Now is a non-profit organization that was founded in January 2010 and is based in New York City. Their mission is to “empower women and give voice to the struggle for civil, economic and political rights.”

Currently, they’re accepting submissions for a film festival, "Women's Voices from the Muslim World: A Short-Film Festival." They are taking submissions up until Nov 1, 2010, but they are already posting some films on their website. Go and watch them... great storytelling!

Sudan's Elections Today... PRAY!

Pray for Sudan today... elections are happening. The resulting weeks/months ahead could turn sour in a country that's already suffered so much. Click HERE to read an article on the election from Seed Effect Sudan's blog.

Child Brides (a book review)

I finished this book today. It is the story of a 10 year old Yemeni girl who was married off and then raped & beaten repeatedly by her husband. This brave young girl found a way (through near impossible circumstances) to escape. She made her way to the public courts, walked right up to a judge and demanded "I want a divorce!"

Her story reflects the horrors that little girls face in too many parts of the world. To be sure, the issue of child brides is not solely a religious issue. Often it is cultural in its roots or even just motivated by poverty or tribal traditions. Regardless of the cause, it is a tough issue to think about, read about, or fight.

The book, which just hit bookstores last week, was a quick and easy read. A ghost writer wrote Nujood's account (as at the time of her marriage/divorce, she could not read and could only write her first name). Its not a complex tale and not even written in an adult voice. In fact, much of her story consists of her admitting "I don't really understand what people are talking about" or "I didn't understand what was going on." Her experience is well beyond her years and her own processing will likely not unfold completely for years to come.

Her new life goal: first-- to never ever marry again, and next-- to become a lawyer in her home country to help fight for the rights of women in her land.

From Tragedy To Rape

I have read in books and seen reports in documentaries about the incidence of rape that takes place in temporary shelters. When communities are uprooted and disorganization rules the day, the evil that is our flesh finds new ways to manifest itself-- to take advantage of the chaos, and brutalize women.

It is sad to me that women living in refugee camps the world-over fear for their safety. They have already escaped such horrific circumstances to arrive in this "safe place of refuge"-- they've run from war, from persecution, from the clutches of death or poverty or disease. And they arrive to a new life where the possibility of rape is likely. That is simply devastating to think of.

"1 in 3 women globally are beaten, raped or abused in their lifetime." That statistic is cause for mourning.

Today I read an email update from CARE that reports the horrible suffering that is surfacing more & more in Haiti.

"Two months ago today, a massive earthquake struck Haiti, killing almost 225,000 people and leaving more than a million people homeless. For them, especially the women and girls, panic sets in every night as the sun retreats.

The women here talk of mauvais esprits (bad spirits) stalking the survivors of the devastating earthquake.

"Young men come with weapons and rape the women. They haven't reported it, because the hospitals, the police — everything was destroyed in the earthquake," reports Hannah, a nurse who sleeps in a makeshift tent in a volatile camp outside of Port-au-Prince.

Incidence of rape in Haiti was high before the earthquake and, now, women and girls are even more vulnerable: streets still are dark due to lack of electricity, and crowded camps and unprotected bathing and toilet areas leave women and girls vulnerable to harassment and sexual brutality."

Half the Sky

On March 4th, a one-night event is coming through Austin (and plenty of other nationwide cities). Click here to read more & find tickets in YOUR TOWN. From what I gather, its essentially a celebration of International Women's Day... so they are having a discussion from the authors of the best-selling book Half the Sky. I think they are having video updates from some of the stories shared in the book of the women, the world over, who are impacting their community and breaking the cycles of poverty & oppression. Also being screened is a new short-film on the subject, directed by Marissa Tomei. I'm going! Are you? Grab and friend, buy tickets online, and go out to dinner after and discuss how yall can get involved!

My Haiti Response

Well friends, through a strange (and only God-orchestrated) chain of events, I am headed to Haiti on Feb 1st for a week to help resettle orphaned children from Port-au-Prince to a different (existing) orphanage in another part of the country. I know very little about what the story is, except that there was an orphanage in PAP that collapsed during the earthquake and they are moving those children. But additionally, the orphanage director is going around to PAP hospitals and seeing if there are any children who lost their families that need to also find a new home.

I am traveling with Visiting Orphans. I am friends with their Executive Director Amanda (her blog here) and we literally reconnected like last week for the first time in years (God has plans, people!). A lot of people on the team are medically trained, and then there's people like me who's sole job is to just love on those kids, with the love that CHRIST has for them.

I received a "NEEDS LIST" over email today for medical supplies I can bring down (see below). But I also think if I could bring down some NEW underwear (ages 3-16) and some arts/crafts supplies that would help. If you live in Austin and want to deliver any of these things to me before Sunday, email me or comment for my new address. But if you would rather just donate money for supplies to be purchased, you can do that at the Visiting Orphans website (just denote Haiti).

Medical Supplies Needed

- IV Tubing also needed

- Antibiotics (as much as possible)

- Antibiotic Ointment

- Children's Motrin

- Children's Tylenol

- Triaminic Syrup for Cold and Cough

- Automatic Blood Pressure pumps with cuffs for Children and Adults

- Stethoscopes

- Audi-Scopes with disposable covers

- Eye Drops for Conjunctivitis

- Keflex

- Ringworm Medicine

- Scabies Treatment/Ointment

- Anti-fungal cream

- sutur kits

- Epi Pens

- Benadryl

- Disposable Bed Pads

- Disposable Needle Container for used needles

- AccuCheck to check blood sugar levels

- 4 x 4 dressings

- dressings and bandages

- Gauze - sterile, pre-medicated, non-stick

- Medical Tape (basic)

- Butterflies Bandaids

- bandaids

- petroleum dressing

- digital thermometers (10)

- Plastic Gloves (All sizes and Both Sterile and Unsterile)

- IV Tape

- IV Butterflies

- 4-8 IV Stands

- Pediatric Growth Charts

- Pediatric Hospital Gowns

- One Full Pediatric Exam Room Set Up

News8Austin Covers Refugee Story

Here is a news story about Refugees in Austin from News8Austin. And if you click on and watch the video of the story, you can see me in the background working with the kids (I'm wearing a green T shirt).

America's Best/Worst Paying Jobs

Saw this reported on CNN this morning and thought I'd share it just because its a random list, and I like lists.

Top 5 BEST Paying Jobs in America:

1. Surgeons ($206,770)
2. Anesthesiologists ($197,570)
3. Orthodontists ($194,930)
4. Obstetrician and gynecologists ($192,780)
5. Oral and maxillofacial surgeons ($190,420)

Top 5 WORST Paying Jobs in America:

1. Combined food-preparation and service workers ($17,400)
2. Cooks, fast food ($17,620)
3. Dishwashers ($17,750)
4. Dining room/cafeteria attendants, bartender helpers ($18,140)
5. Shampooers ($18,300)

And the AVERAGE ANNUAL SALARY in America is now $42,270, which is up 3.9% from last year.

CNN cited Forbes.com as their source. You can click the linkt o read the top 25 of both categories.

Things I've Learned Recently

These are just sort of random facts that have come across my desk in the last couple of weeks. They're the kind of stuff you just want to tell someone about and be like: "man, can you believe that?" And since my husband's gone, I thought I'd have that conversation over cyberspace with you, my blog-readers... I'd love to hear your comments.

1) At the Presidential Inauguration on Tues, there will be in excess of 40,000 armed security forces in place... which is MORE than the number of troops we currently have in Afghanistan! really?! (heard on CNN news)

2) By the year, 2050, America's white (of European origin) race will drop below 50% of our country's total population. That is within our lifetime. This is due to the vast increase in our refugee community, LEGAL immigrant community, and illegal immigrant community. America will be a rich curry of peoples... are you prepared to live with love in an ever-growing community of people who will out-number you? (read in "The Middle of Everywhere" by Mary Pipher)

3) "A 2001 survey conducted in low-income neighborhoods (in Egypt) found that 96% of women had been beaten at least once by their husbands." And the first "women's shelter" ever started in Egypt wasn't until 2006. Really?! (read in article here.)

4) A representative of Habitat for Humanity shared with me recently that the average Habitat home built in the U.S. costs between $80,000-$100,000. But the average cost of a Habitat home built in Egypt costs $1,100 U.S. dollars. Wow, huh? To learn more about Habitat for Humanity's Egypt office, click here.

What do yall think? Pretty interesting stuff, huh?