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Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Saturday, September 24, 2011
gender roles & learning how to punch
This week in addition to class and internship interviews the women in our cohort were also required to attend RAD (rape and aggression defense) Training. It was 12 hours of statistics and tactical maneuvers so we can be ready to defend ourselves if we need to. The class ends with a simulation where we actually individually beat up a couple of grown men that were acting as aggressors. And as fun as it was to kick a couple of guys’ asses, the fact remains that we women were pushed up against a disappointing reality. The statsitical likelihood of being raped in the US if you are a woman is high- 1 in 6, to be exact.
And even after just a few weeks in LA we all had come to understand that statistic a little better. I have been yelled at walking down the street more times that I care to remember since the semester started and while usually I don’t hear them or notice the comments, when I do it can be upsetting. Not only because the comments are rude or unwanted, but also because they are so flippant. Because it’s not even a big deal, because I am a woman. The comments that have really made me genuinely angry have been made by the men that have said something and then expected a response, as though I were supposed to thank them for their obscene comment and their unwanted attention. And I understand that the men that say these things have never been yelled at from a passing car and don’t understand what it feels like to be looked at as a thing that can be whistled at or mocked, but there is something clearly wrong here. There is a prevailing attitude that is so grossly unjust toward women, their safety, and their worth that it makes disgusting words and sexual violence the norm, and can prevent women from leaving their very houses, much less from assuming and exercising their power, strength, and wisdom in the public forum.
I am glad I took the course and that I know how to defend myself but I am disappointed that this was a lesson that I didn’t learn until now. This is something I should have learned in high school, or even earlier, and a basic understanding of gender roles and oppression should have been taught as well. We need to become a culture that teaches our men not to rape, instead of a culture that teaches our women not to get raped if we want to see the violence stop.
And even after just a few weeks in LA we all had come to understand that statistic a little better. I have been yelled at walking down the street more times that I care to remember since the semester started and while usually I don’t hear them or notice the comments, when I do it can be upsetting. Not only because the comments are rude or unwanted, but also because they are so flippant. Because it’s not even a big deal, because I am a woman. The comments that have really made me genuinely angry have been made by the men that have said something and then expected a response, as though I were supposed to thank them for their obscene comment and their unwanted attention. And I understand that the men that say these things have never been yelled at from a passing car and don’t understand what it feels like to be looked at as a thing that can be whistled at or mocked, but there is something clearly wrong here. There is a prevailing attitude that is so grossly unjust toward women, their safety, and their worth that it makes disgusting words and sexual violence the norm, and can prevent women from leaving their very houses, much less from assuming and exercising their power, strength, and wisdom in the public forum.
I am glad I took the course and that I know how to defend myself but I am disappointed that this was a lesson that I didn’t learn until now. This is something I should have learned in high school, or even earlier, and a basic understanding of gender roles and oppression should have been taught as well. We need to become a culture that teaches our men not to rape, instead of a culture that teaches our women not to get raped if we want to see the violence stop.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Shalom is not only peace, it’s a wholeness. A wellness. A working together of all good things. We as the church move out into the world, into hate, into greed, into fallenness.
And we whisper “Shalom.” May the peace of the Living God be with you.
Let this be reflected in our words, our actions, and our time. May our spirits be peaceful. May we live in, and bring Shalom.
And we whisper “Shalom.” May the peace of the Living God be with you.
Let this be reflected in our words, our actions, and our time. May our spirits be peaceful. May we live in, and bring Shalom.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
salt
I have the opportunity to be part of the planning team for the liturgical service on campus this year which has been such a blessing. I have been blessed by the prayer, the singing, the diving into the living breathing word of God, and the people that surrounded me last week. We held hands and they asked the Lord to go before me during my time in LA and I remembered that the church is a beautiful thing. She is a dancing, laughing, shimmering thing that loves fiercely, and calls to the downtrodden and the left behind, and those just trying to get it right.
"Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God. That energy is God's energy, an energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure. Do everything readily and cheerfully- no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God."
Philippians 2:13-15
Listen to this.
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