Submitted by megan on Wed, 02/11/2009 - 21:44
If ever there was a day that needed to be rehabilitated for young girls, it is valentine's day.
Christ almighty, I hated valentine's day in grade school. All the anticipation, all the disappointment. Because some boy hadn't sent me a valentine. Or knowing he sent me one because his mom made him.
Your value calculated in the number of valentines, and their size; the size of your pile relative to the other girls around you. Your worth measured by flimsy paper representations of boys' judgement.
Fuck that shit.
For the fifth year, the Girls' Action Foundation has earmarked February 14th as the National Day of Action.
Girls from all over the country have put together kick ass projects that either happen or culminate on Feb 14th. Good to see that Ottawa is healthily represented, with Hopewell and Miss G putting in projects.
Before one of the organizers asked me to blog about it, I'd heard about it through the Facebook group.
So when she emailed, I was prepared and more than happy to say yes, I will tell all of my readers that on Feb 14th, they should send their loved ones, particularly their young-girl loved ones, an e-card or two.
Young girls should be loved by everyone.
Comments
2 comments postedHopewell! The site of so many of my sad Valentine's Day upsets. The mom induced card giving is the WORST.
What is Hopewell up to this year?
It's always easy to tell when it's not real, eh?
Here's what's going on in Ottawa, lifted direct from the site:
*Hopewell: BODY CASTS EXHIBIT*
The Green Goddesses girls group in Ottawa plans to spend time creating body casts of the entire torso and arms, which will then be “decorated” and displayed in an art gallery on Saturday February 14th. Images of female bodies are everywhere – we come across hundreds of advertisements each day, selling everything from food to cars. Well-known people in the media and Hollywood community are promoting unrealistic standards of thinness and beauty, and women’s magazines and even respectable newscasts urge individuals to “change” themselves and “take control” of their bodies and health. Women and girls rarely get the chance to show the world what their bodies mean to them, how they love and nurture them, and how they have been affected by all these negative messages. The casts will represent the girls’ ideas about their bodies, and how they have been physically and emotionally impacted by outside pressures (including peers, family and media). The belief is that body casting can support girls in developing awareness and acceptance of body size and shape. We hope this activity will give girls a voice in the struggle between the image we have of ourselves, and the image society/media tries to mold. We want to be able to display our own unique thoughts about body and body image, with no judgement on ‘right’ or ‘wrong,’ ‘good’ or ‘bad.’
*Miss G: Project for Equity in Education*
For the upcoming National Day of Action we would like to rally all the fabulous teachers in our network to devote Friday, February 12th to teaching entirely about important feminist issues affecting Canadian women. Teachers could either prepare for this day in advance by asking students to give a presentation to their class/school, or focus their righteous energy on Feb 12th in particular. After the lesson/presentations students will develop ideas for actions and organizing that they can bring to their communities, peer groups, homes, online, etc. We hope this project will give students the chance to engage critically in issues and histories “about themselves” and will energize them to move from awareness gained in the classroom to action in the classroom and in other areas of their lives. Awareness is contagious and we hope it spreads!
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