I've recently discovered the joy of twitter. I was once loathe to use it, but now that I know I can use it for amazing, activisty purposes..... all bets are off. Today I called @VBS_UK out on this horrifyingly offensive "documentary". The poor, ignorant host Sarah Harris reduces India to a "land of contrasts" and talks matter-of-factly about "fat, blue-skinned, gold bikini wearing Gods." All this in addition to misrepresenting sex workers and having absolutely no knowledge of trans issues. I'm shocked that VBS couldn't (wouldn't?) see how almost every aspect of this film is thoroughly problematic.
The bright side of this is that almost anyone can use new media to fight back or have their voices heard. In a brilliant response video, the subjects of Harris' film reject the reductive, misrepresenting, racist and disdainful portrayal of their lives and realities and call her out for not using informed consent forms.
An open letter to VBS by AWID (Association for Women's Rights in Development) aims to counter such inaccurate representations and prevent VBS from spreading such a fallacious and offensive film. Women in such situations are often just the object of an often uninformed Western gaze and are unable to put forth accurate self-representations due to the dominance of Western media, but now have seized the opportunity to speak up for themselves! Sign the petition!
October 20, 2010
October 19, 2010
At-Tahharrush, or, Daily Harassment in Cairo
Cairo is an amazing hustle-bustle and I am always invigorated by its speedy, raucous, neon-bright pleasures.
But, there is one thing I can't stand. I can bear the pollution, the dry heat, the simultaneously gross and refreshing droplets of water from high up air-conditioning units, the traffic, the incessant beeping, being ripped off occasionally (hey, it happens everywhere) and waking up with cotton-mouth from dehydration. But the harassment on the streets drives me crazy. Literally. I become a madwoman, overcome by indignation at the fact that women have to put up with this. Not just in Cairo, but anywhere.
Despite covering from wrist to ankle, sitting in the backseats of taxis, making sure everyone knows I'm married, and avoiding long walks alone, I still get my fair share of harassment. It's usually just men saying things like "ya mozza, 3asal, sukkar" - calling me "honey" or "sexy girl," but sometimes men will follow me, expose themselves, start masturbating next to me, drive accident-distance close, or be more threatening. I've kind of learned to tune most of it out, but there are times when it's terrifying, and I have to do something.
A few days ago I threw rocks at two guys zooming dangerously close to me on their motorcycle and screaming obscenities at me. Effective, but my aim wasn't good enough. Yesterday I kind of lost it and lashed out at a group of guys who were saying unpleasant things and had surrounded me. The minute I hit two of them (extremely hard) they kind of scurried off, but I don't think this is always the best way to manage, particularly if there are larger groups. The most enraging thing is that usually when a woman reacts, the harasser laughs, as though he's kind of won. I have yet to figure out a way that actually gets the message across, but for now knowing that I have ways to protect myself helps me to be calmer and less scared.
Loads of people living here (expats and Egyptians) have suggested some strategies beyond the basic covering-up and avoiding isolated areas - research actually shows that most women harassed in Egypt wear the niqab or face-veil.
- Put on your game face. Walk confidently and act like no one can harm you. Wear headphones and sunglasses.
- SPEAK UP!! Make a scene in public. Scream in Arabic or in English. Supposedly very effective - Egyptians rate their honour and hate to be embarrassed in public.
- Carry a rape whistle or mace spray (illegal in Egypt, but then again, so is sexual assault)
- Trust your instincts and never make eye contact with anyone.
- Duck into a shop or pharmacy for help. The police aren't always effective and usually just make the problem worse. For stalker cases or worse though, I'd definitely recommend filing a report.
I've found that I'm typically harassed in non-neighbourhood areas, e.g. shopping areas, larger streets that don't have a community feel, etc. People are less likely to harass in mahally/local areas where everyone knows them, or where they can be held accountable, as opposed to crowded places where they are just passing through. I feel completely safe and protected in my neighbourhood and have never had a problem - everyone sees me every day, knows me, and I'm pretty sure they would stand up for me. It's just bigger streets (like Ahmed Orabi or Gamaat Al Dowal), bridges, and groups of policemen that are the worst places.
An NGO is currently working on a project called Harassmap that will allow women to report incidents via sms and work towards changing the perception of sexual harassment in Egypt.
Stay safe!
But, there is one thing I can't stand. I can bear the pollution, the dry heat, the simultaneously gross and refreshing droplets of water from high up air-conditioning units, the traffic, the incessant beeping, being ripped off occasionally (hey, it happens everywhere) and waking up with cotton-mouth from dehydration. But the harassment on the streets drives me crazy. Literally. I become a madwoman, overcome by indignation at the fact that women have to put up with this. Not just in Cairo, but anywhere.
Despite covering from wrist to ankle, sitting in the backseats of taxis, making sure everyone knows I'm married, and avoiding long walks alone, I still get my fair share of harassment. It's usually just men saying things like "ya mozza, 3asal, sukkar" - calling me "honey" or "sexy girl," but sometimes men will follow me, expose themselves, start masturbating next to me, drive accident-distance close, or be more threatening. I've kind of learned to tune most of it out, but there are times when it's terrifying, and I have to do something.
A few days ago I threw rocks at two guys zooming dangerously close to me on their motorcycle and screaming obscenities at me. Effective, but my aim wasn't good enough. Yesterday I kind of lost it and lashed out at a group of guys who were saying unpleasant things and had surrounded me. The minute I hit two of them (extremely hard) they kind of scurried off, but I don't think this is always the best way to manage, particularly if there are larger groups. The most enraging thing is that usually when a woman reacts, the harasser laughs, as though he's kind of won. I have yet to figure out a way that actually gets the message across, but for now knowing that I have ways to protect myself helps me to be calmer and less scared.
Loads of people living here (expats and Egyptians) have suggested some strategies beyond the basic covering-up and avoiding isolated areas - research actually shows that most women harassed in Egypt wear the niqab or face-veil.
- Put on your game face. Walk confidently and act like no one can harm you. Wear headphones and sunglasses.
- SPEAK UP!! Make a scene in public. Scream in Arabic or in English. Supposedly very effective - Egyptians rate their honour and hate to be embarrassed in public.
- Carry a rape whistle or mace spray (illegal in Egypt, but then again, so is sexual assault)
- Trust your instincts and never make eye contact with anyone.
- Duck into a shop or pharmacy for help. The police aren't always effective and usually just make the problem worse. For stalker cases or worse though, I'd definitely recommend filing a report.
I've found that I'm typically harassed in non-neighbourhood areas, e.g. shopping areas, larger streets that don't have a community feel, etc. People are less likely to harass in mahally/local areas where everyone knows them, or where they can be held accountable, as opposed to crowded places where they are just passing through. I feel completely safe and protected in my neighbourhood and have never had a problem - everyone sees me every day, knows me, and I'm pretty sure they would stand up for me. It's just bigger streets (like Ahmed Orabi or Gamaat Al Dowal), bridges, and groups of policemen that are the worst places.
An NGO is currently working on a project called Harassmap that will allow women to report incidents via sms and work towards changing the perception of sexual harassment in Egypt.
Stay safe!
October 14, 2010
Blanket Sky
Last weekend we finally made it to the White Desert. A six hour trip from Cairo Turgoman to Bawiti in the Bahariyya Oasis (with obligatory blaring film on bus) followed by a three hour drive in a landrover leads to my favourite place on earth bar none: a moonscape under perforated skies, watching foxes shamelessly court your attention with their pretty eyes.
This was a repeat trip for me, and some guy from the village actually recognized me from when I was in Bawiti in 2006, staying at the now (thankfully) defunct Paradise Hotel. Lonely Planet had described it as the cheapest night in town with the bare basics, but it was nothing but dusty mattresses and three waterless, flush-less toilets. That trip was memorable for many reasons, one of the main ones being that my two fellow travelers didn't use the facilities for the duration of our three day trip. I, on the other hand, shamelessly used a different bathroom each day. I went by to check it the Paradise in its current iteration as the village mosque. We slept overnight in the desert, awoken periodically by cheeky foxes licking the kettle and trying to find food a few feet away from our heads.
Having not planned in advance, as per usual, we piggybacked on a tour that included a lovely French Canadian couple, two sun-scarred girls from Scotland and Ireland working in Sharm, a really old agricultural expert from New Zealand and his Thai lover, who brought and cooked her own food, applied metallic pink lipstick under the desert sun, and sweetly laughed loudly at anything remotely funny.
P and I escaped in the evening for a long walk alone over some dunes, then lay back watching shooting stars.
PICS coming soon.
This was a repeat trip for me, and some guy from the village actually recognized me from when I was in Bawiti in 2006, staying at the now (thankfully) defunct Paradise Hotel. Lonely Planet had described it as the cheapest night in town with the bare basics, but it was nothing but dusty mattresses and three waterless, flush-less toilets. That trip was memorable for many reasons, one of the main ones being that my two fellow travelers didn't use the facilities for the duration of our three day trip. I, on the other hand, shamelessly used a different bathroom each day. I went by to check it the Paradise in its current iteration as the village mosque. We slept overnight in the desert, awoken periodically by cheeky foxes licking the kettle and trying to find food a few feet away from our heads.
Having not planned in advance, as per usual, we piggybacked on a tour that included a lovely French Canadian couple, two sun-scarred girls from Scotland and Ireland working in Sharm, a really old agricultural expert from New Zealand and his Thai lover, who brought and cooked her own food, applied metallic pink lipstick under the desert sun, and sweetly laughed loudly at anything remotely funny.
P and I escaped in the evening for a long walk alone over some dunes, then lay back watching shooting stars.
PICS coming soon.
October 03, 2010
Alexandria
I was super psyched to go to the white desert last weekend, until we got to the bus station and there was only one seat left on the last bus. So, we headed to Alexandria instead. I got a raging migraine on the way, thanks to the excessively loud movies played on the bus. That, coupled with the heat, forewarned me that this was not to be the best day trip ever. Alex has tons of ruins and beautiful things to see, but most of them are underwater. We skipped Pompei's Pillar (an average, unimpressive stump) and checked out the equally lacklustre catacombs of Khoms el Shefaa before backtracking to the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, which is a gorgeous example of modern architecture. Still, we had a great time walking around, ghost-town style, and taking pictures.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)