What I like most about her? Every song describes in detail one aspect of life, love or marriage.
It’s not just a cliche of ‘I love you.. why don’t you come back..’ or ‘Never intended to hurt you..sorry..please stay with me.’ No, Nil Karaibrahimgil writes about how much she – like every girl on this planet - once desired to wear a pink princess dress. At the concert she gave in Paradiso Amsterdam, she started with an excuse telling why she (thought)?) looked weird, with a lace princess skirt on leather brown pants. Every other singer might look ridiculous, But not Nil. Nil Karaibrahimgil, singer, songwriter, cum laude graduate in politics and international relations looks like a supermodel.
Before I had even seen her, I already was fan of her voice. She sang the original soundtrack of the movie ‘Organize Isler Bunlar’ and her distinctive voice using a certain girlish accent, made me curious of who the singer was of this beautiful maffia-song, and what was her story?
I got the chance to interview Nil Karaibrahimgil- known in Europe as the Turkish Bjork, because of her extravagant and daring outfits- quickly after the concert, just for ten minutes- but enough to ask her some nice questions. What I found out:
It was her first time in The Netherlands, but she liked being in Amsterdam a lot. She particularly was fascinated by Paradiso; and that shows her good taste because the authentic building is definitely one of the finest concert locations of this country. Many pop singers would like to stand on the main podium of Paradiso. Nil said she was determined to come back soon and make a bigger tour around Belgium and Germany, because Turkish singers are not used to do European tours as often as other singers do.
Nil is a versatile woman. One of her songs ‘Sana kek yaptim’ (translated: I made cake for you), made me question if she bakes cakes for her partner. She surprised me when she told me she doesn't even bake cakes. Yes, she is definitely 'a free girl', named after her song 'I am free', which is about liberation and feminism.
That’s what I like about her songs. Most of them are about strong women who can take care very well for themselves. Her song 'Pirlanta' (Diamond) is one of my favorites. In this song she tells that she bought her own diamond ring. She seizes topics out of the daily life of contemporary women. One song is totally written about sleeping on your own in a King size bed. She surprised the audience when she asked;’Who in this room sleeps alone in a King size bed?’ Most people (men and women) raised their hands wistfully. And then she said: ’Well, it’s easily fixed. Date with each other!!’
Sometimes her songs are more political, such as "Yaş 18" (Age 18) which is one of the two tracks she recorded for the soundtrack of the Turkish movie Sinav (Exam). The movie and the song deal with the pressure Turkish students face during adolescence.
My last question - about her future plans - actually surprised me, but I should've known better. Her dreams don't differ much from the girl next door's: Now that she's married (at the Nile in Egypt where her name comes from), Nil desperately wants to become a mom. Like most girls do.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Saturday, December 04, 2010
Hymen Reconstructions
Recently I tweeted Sadie Stein's article about women restoring their virginity. To me, this topic is not new, since as an editor of a woman's magazine we have been dealing with it for a couple of years already. I have received a lot of questions about how women know if they still have a hymen. We wrote columns and articles about it, like the virginity test (in Dutch), and my one page op-ed about the virginity-paradox, published in the Dutch daily NRC Handelsblad, received many reactions from all around the world.
I get outraged about this topic, each and every time. Why would a woman be judged by this itsy bitsy mini tiny thing in her body for ALL her life? What's important is that you and your partner/husband shouldn't care. And do you think virginity is a romantic thing? Come on! I get more frustrated when I hear about women who '’keep these traditions’'. What kind of woman are you when your annual gift to your husband is having your hymen restored so that you can be a virgin at least once a year? I get mad when I hear replies of dudes saying "I rather marry a virgin because sex with me is the only sex she has to know." I know, from the letters to my magazine that there are, luckily, also men saying: "I'd rather marry someone with experience because then I know I'm the best she's ever had." And I love this reply of an Arab girl to Sadie's article: "Guys who just look harder for girls who ARE virgins? Well then they can go fuck themselves because I don't want to."
And yes, this is all about the patriarchal world we are living in. According to many many tribes and religions, women are just not supposed to enjoy their body, or enjoy their life.
But we can make this stop and wash out the myth. First, hymens do not break, nor do they disappear after first vaginal intercourse. So, the expectation that a woman bleeds on her wedding night is out of keeping with the reality of many women's bodies. Because, most women (more than 50%) do not bleed their first time. In most cases the hymen is a small band on the side of the vagina (1,5 centimeters down the vagina). This band is very flexible. Not everybody has this band and it disappears by aging. Because women are all different, even a doctor can hardly tell by looking at a vagina whether a woman has had children or if she ever had sex. In rare cases there is a string in the middle. In one of a million times the vagina is closed of by the hymen. This causes problems because menstruation blood can not leave the body. If this is the case, a doctor needs to open the hymen.
But I have hope when I hear women liberating themselves. So, I want to finish this post with one fantastic and hopeful reader's comment to Sadie's article: "Why would I want to restore my virginity? It took me forever to finally get rid of it."
I get outraged about this topic, each and every time. Why would a woman be judged by this itsy bitsy mini tiny thing in her body for ALL her life? What's important is that you and your partner/husband shouldn't care. And do you think virginity is a romantic thing? Come on! I get more frustrated when I hear about women who '’keep these traditions’'. What kind of woman are you when your annual gift to your husband is having your hymen restored so that you can be a virgin at least once a year? I get mad when I hear replies of dudes saying "I rather marry a virgin because sex with me is the only sex she has to know." I know, from the letters to my magazine that there are, luckily, also men saying: "I'd rather marry someone with experience because then I know I'm the best she's ever had." And I love this reply of an Arab girl to Sadie's article: "Guys who just look harder for girls who ARE virgins? Well then they can go fuck themselves because I don't want to."
And yes, this is all about the patriarchal world we are living in. According to many many tribes and religions, women are just not supposed to enjoy their body, or enjoy their life.
But we can make this stop and wash out the myth. First, hymens do not break, nor do they disappear after first vaginal intercourse. So, the expectation that a woman bleeds on her wedding night is out of keeping with the reality of many women's bodies. Because, most women (more than 50%) do not bleed their first time. In most cases the hymen is a small band on the side of the vagina (1,5 centimeters down the vagina). This band is very flexible. Not everybody has this band and it disappears by aging. Because women are all different, even a doctor can hardly tell by looking at a vagina whether a woman has had children or if she ever had sex. In rare cases there is a string in the middle. In one of a million times the vagina is closed of by the hymen. This causes problems because menstruation blood can not leave the body. If this is the case, a doctor needs to open the hymen.
But I have hope when I hear women liberating themselves. So, I want to finish this post with one fantastic and hopeful reader's comment to Sadie's article: "Why would I want to restore my virginity? It took me forever to finally get rid of it."
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Two fingers
I was speechless. In fact, I still am. Did you hear about the Indian finger test? Well, hold on, it's horrifying and it really is as awful as it sounds. What is it? The finger test is a rape test used by doctors to determine if sexual intercourse is being practiced. The doctor inserts two fingers into a rape victim's vagina to verify the presence or absence of the hymen.
So, let's rewind.
It won't be easy, but try to imagine you have just been raped— already an awful experience to deal with. Terrified your family will condemn you, you go to the police. The police say they are not convinced about your statement or story. Neither does your family. They want to know whether you were raped because you 'asked for it', or you were 'chaste' enough and truly a victim of rape. To determine the validity of your story, they send you to the doctor. While you are still enduring the mental and physical anguish and humiliation of the rape, you have to take a seat in the gynaecologist chair and let a strange man, a doctor, insert two fingers in your vagina to check the 'purity' of your most intimate female part.
The results are only multiple choice: it can be "two fingers admitted”, “two fingers easily admitted”, or “two fingers not easily admitted". These results can be understood as "used to" or "not used to" sexual intercourse. Of course, the two fingers represent the thickness of the penis.
I don't know about you, but when I read about this I couldn't believe my eyes. It is outrageous and unacceptable. This 'examination' simply can't be medically accurate for several reasons:
1. There is no such thing as a hymen;
2. Each and every woman's vagaina is built different;
3. Each and every man is built differently too: small penises, long ones, thick, thin and so on and so forth.
So for an Indian girl, it's all about luck. Judgement is determined by the insertion of two fingers by a man (suppose female fingers are thinner) in the most intimate part of her body, which will judge her for the rest of her life. Where is this going?
Well, I am elated to know the Human Rights Watch is calling for a ban; and a lower court recently ruled this rape test should be stopped. But although the Indian government prohibits the test because of its immoral nature and some hospitals have banned the test, the doctors and, more importantly, the people in India still see value in it.
Which is where we end up once again in the never-ending circle in patriarchal societies. No one wants to deal with women complaining of sexual harassment. Instead of acknowledging it is happening, and educating doctors on how to deal with this huge issue, or offer women support, women, again, end up being a victim for the second time.
Now, tell me, if you were an Indian woman, would you tell anyone you were raped? I wouldn't.
So, let's rewind.
It won't be easy, but try to imagine you have just been raped— already an awful experience to deal with. Terrified your family will condemn you, you go to the police. The police say they are not convinced about your statement or story. Neither does your family. They want to know whether you were raped because you 'asked for it', or you were 'chaste' enough and truly a victim of rape. To determine the validity of your story, they send you to the doctor. While you are still enduring the mental and physical anguish and humiliation of the rape, you have to take a seat in the gynaecologist chair and let a strange man, a doctor, insert two fingers in your vagina to check the 'purity' of your most intimate female part.
The results are only multiple choice: it can be "two fingers admitted”, “two fingers easily admitted”, or “two fingers not easily admitted". These results can be understood as "used to" or "not used to" sexual intercourse. Of course, the two fingers represent the thickness of the penis.
I don't know about you, but when I read about this I couldn't believe my eyes. It is outrageous and unacceptable. This 'examination' simply can't be medically accurate for several reasons:
1. There is no such thing as a hymen;
2. Each and every woman's vagaina is built different;
3. Each and every man is built differently too: small penises, long ones, thick, thin and so on and so forth.
So for an Indian girl, it's all about luck. Judgement is determined by the insertion of two fingers by a man (suppose female fingers are thinner) in the most intimate part of her body, which will judge her for the rest of her life. Where is this going?
Well, I am elated to know the Human Rights Watch is calling for a ban; and a lower court recently ruled this rape test should be stopped. But although the Indian government prohibits the test because of its immoral nature and some hospitals have banned the test, the doctors and, more importantly, the people in India still see value in it.
Which is where we end up once again in the never-ending circle in patriarchal societies. No one wants to deal with women complaining of sexual harassment. Instead of acknowledging it is happening, and educating doctors on how to deal with this huge issue, or offer women support, women, again, end up being a victim for the second time.
Now, tell me, if you were an Indian woman, would you tell anyone you were raped? I wouldn't.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Private life on the internet
This time I want to share an email of a friend of mine with her comment on the news of the suicide of a Rutgers University freshman killing himself after classmates used hidden camera to watch his sexual activity.
Here is my friend's reaction and I don't have anything to add:
So sad that people think its OK to blast someone's, especially another friend's, private life on the internet. I think all this "technology" and lack of privacy gives people the assumption that anything goes.
There's a huge lack of boundaries, oversharing, and basic respect for a friend.
Basic respect I would think any friend would have for another friend.
Or has all the technology driven, disconnected world we live in zapped people of basic, common respect? And knowing what is OK and not OK to share with others?
Did these two kids lack the ability to see that?
Or were they being malicious to a friend?
Or did they think this was a funny prank?
The article states these were good kids, yet they did not know when to draw the line.
It just makes me very sad..I think not only his parents, but we all should be in mourning.
Here is my friend's reaction and I don't have anything to add:
So sad that people think its OK to blast someone's, especially another friend's, private life on the internet. I think all this "technology" and lack of privacy gives people the assumption that anything goes.
There's a huge lack of boundaries, oversharing, and basic respect for a friend.
Basic respect I would think any friend would have for another friend.
Or has all the technology driven, disconnected world we live in zapped people of basic, common respect? And knowing what is OK and not OK to share with others?
Did these two kids lack the ability to see that?
Or were they being malicious to a friend?
Or did they think this was a funny prank?
The article states these were good kids, yet they did not know when to draw the line.
It just makes me very sad..I think not only his parents, but we all should be in mourning.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Wall Street Journal
Dear editor,
As a European Muslim feminist who supports a tolerant and moderate Islam, I was really happy that the Wall Street Journal devoted so much space on its op-ed page to the question "What Is Moderate Islam?" The six "leading thinkers" were eloquent and provocative.
But seriously, WSJ, you couldn't find a single Muslim WOMAN to weigh in?
How ironic is it that ‘the West’ sometimes point at Islam and say how the religion subjugates women and yet here is a Western newspaper that completely ignores the female perspective on a very important issue. It's inexcusable especially considering that the WSJ has a former reporter who is very outspoken, Asra Nomani, a Muslim feminist.
She is not the only one who could have been included. The US counts so much more female Muslim thinkers, e.g. Irshad Manji, Mona Eltahawy, Daisy Khan, Laila Lalami and Nathalie Handal. If the West is going to criticize Islam for not being enlightened, they need to demonstrate a better example.
This article shows exactly where we are still at: the news is still being dominated by white Western males. And of course, if there had been enough female editors in the newsroom, and more preferably, multicultural diverse staff, the WSJ would not have made this gigantic mistake.
The subject of moderate Islam can’t be discussed without Muslim women thinkers. Emancipation is a huge part of the discussion if we want to create a post-patriarchal and a post-modern society in the Muslim world. Feminist standpoints, with fresh approaches to new interpretation of Islam, would have provided multi-dimensional and, above all, practical perspectives of contemporary Islam.
This article reflects the male-dominated power structure in the East and the West. This stereotyping cut both ways. It doesn't leave much for anything else. Shame on you.
As a European Muslim feminist who supports a tolerant and moderate Islam, I was really happy that the Wall Street Journal devoted so much space on its op-ed page to the question "What Is Moderate Islam?" The six "leading thinkers" were eloquent and provocative.
But seriously, WSJ, you couldn't find a single Muslim WOMAN to weigh in?
How ironic is it that ‘the West’ sometimes point at Islam and say how the religion subjugates women and yet here is a Western newspaper that completely ignores the female perspective on a very important issue. It's inexcusable especially considering that the WSJ has a former reporter who is very outspoken, Asra Nomani, a Muslim feminist.
She is not the only one who could have been included. The US counts so much more female Muslim thinkers, e.g. Irshad Manji, Mona Eltahawy, Daisy Khan, Laila Lalami and Nathalie Handal. If the West is going to criticize Islam for not being enlightened, they need to demonstrate a better example.
This article shows exactly where we are still at: the news is still being dominated by white Western males. And of course, if there had been enough female editors in the newsroom, and more preferably, multicultural diverse staff, the WSJ would not have made this gigantic mistake.
The subject of moderate Islam can’t be discussed without Muslim women thinkers. Emancipation is a huge part of the discussion if we want to create a post-patriarchal and a post-modern society in the Muslim world. Feminist standpoints, with fresh approaches to new interpretation of Islam, would have provided multi-dimensional and, above all, practical perspectives of contemporary Islam.
This article reflects the male-dominated power structure in the East and the West. This stereotyping cut both ways. It doesn't leave much for anything else. Shame on you.
Sunday, September 05, 2010
Nathalie Handal
For the glossy INKT, a bimonthly Dutch magazine for 'everybody who loves to read' I interviewed the beautiful French/American poet, Nathalie Handal. Actually, the invitation for an iftar-dinner from the US Ambassador to The Netherlands inspired me.
It's a tradition that once a year, during the Ramadan, the American Ambassador organizes an iftar (a dinner). I love these rather 'informal' gatherings with people I know from several other networks. Religious, non-religious, secular friends and colleagues come to share that peaceful inner moment, that you only can experience while eating together. And this year, I was honored when I was asked for advice what to serve on the menu. Of course I suggested my lentl soup :-)
But there is another reason why this year's iftar is going to be even more special. Nathalie Handal is going to read her poems. I had heard her name several times before but never realized she would be mediterranean or Arab or even Muslim. Even though I had not met her, I strongly felt connected and she inspired me immediately. It was her intelligence, her artistic talent but most of all her 'accessibility'. I sent her an email and requested an interview. She responded immediately, warmly and with mutual respect. She had surfed to my Website and was looking forward to meet me.
I read about her, I read her poems and the questions came spontaneously.
The interview was great and the editor of INKT was super-enthusiastic. I hope that Nathalie’s work will become well-known in Holland and Belgium, that we can read her poems in Dutch soon.
But there is another thing I felt while I was doing this. In Dutch we have a saying 'in hart en nieren', translated: 'in your heart and kidneys'. It means that you are so devoted to something that it will be always there, stuck inside of you. Well, I felt that I am a true editor and realized again why I had started SEN Magazine. I want to show the infinite beauty and talent of mediterranean women. I will always be eager to get to know them better and spread their message when and where ever I can, which probably makes me also a true journalist: the urgent desire to report about people and their stories.
I am sure you will all love her. The interview tells about the person Nathalie, her background, her writing and her views about current issues. She is an interesting woman who really has something to say (which explains her numerous awards). And yes, she looks good on the cover of a magazine (and yes, in the end, I'll always be a magazine editor!)
Nathalie and I made a deal to have a drink together after the iftar; I promised that I would let her feel 'the energy of the city'(I warned her that The Hague isn't Paris, New York or Istanbul). But actually, it doesn't matter where we are, I am sure Nathalie and I will have a great time together: two cosmopolitan women from the Mediterranean discussing about all kinds of issues women face nowadays.
I'm looking forward to it and, of course, keep you posted! The interview with Nathalie Handal will be published in the October issue of INKT Magazine.
More information about Nathalie Handal is to be found on her website: http://www.nathaliehandal.com/
It's a tradition that once a year, during the Ramadan, the American Ambassador organizes an iftar (a dinner). I love these rather 'informal' gatherings with people I know from several other networks. Religious, non-religious, secular friends and colleagues come to share that peaceful inner moment, that you only can experience while eating together. And this year, I was honored when I was asked for advice what to serve on the menu. Of course I suggested my lentl soup :-)
But there is another reason why this year's iftar is going to be even more special. Nathalie Handal is going to read her poems. I had heard her name several times before but never realized she would be mediterranean or Arab or even Muslim. Even though I had not met her, I strongly felt connected and she inspired me immediately. It was her intelligence, her artistic talent but most of all her 'accessibility'. I sent her an email and requested an interview. She responded immediately, warmly and with mutual respect. She had surfed to my Website and was looking forward to meet me.
I read about her, I read her poems and the questions came spontaneously.
The interview was great and the editor of INKT was super-enthusiastic. I hope that Nathalie’s work will become well-known in Holland and Belgium, that we can read her poems in Dutch soon.
But there is another thing I felt while I was doing this. In Dutch we have a saying 'in hart en nieren', translated: 'in your heart and kidneys'. It means that you are so devoted to something that it will be always there, stuck inside of you. Well, I felt that I am a true editor and realized again why I had started SEN Magazine. I want to show the infinite beauty and talent of mediterranean women. I will always be eager to get to know them better and spread their message when and where ever I can, which probably makes me also a true journalist: the urgent desire to report about people and their stories.
I am sure you will all love her. The interview tells about the person Nathalie, her background, her writing and her views about current issues. She is an interesting woman who really has something to say (which explains her numerous awards). And yes, she looks good on the cover of a magazine (and yes, in the end, I'll always be a magazine editor!)
Nathalie and I made a deal to have a drink together after the iftar; I promised that I would let her feel 'the energy of the city'(I warned her that The Hague isn't Paris, New York or Istanbul). But actually, it doesn't matter where we are, I am sure Nathalie and I will have a great time together: two cosmopolitan women from the Mediterranean discussing about all kinds of issues women face nowadays.
I'm looking forward to it and, of course, keep you posted! The interview with Nathalie Handal will be published in the October issue of INKT Magazine.
More information about Nathalie Handal is to be found on her website: http://www.nathaliehandal.com/
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Pen and Sword
It was a surprise when I received an email from a friend that Forbes wrote a column about my magazine SEN. Of course I am honored, but moreso I am happy that our hard work for SEN, even after so many years, is being appreciated by leading journalists and magazines. Well, that's quite an impressive endorsement!
We have a long way to go, the emancipation of (muslim) women has just started yet. And probably you are not surprised when I tell you that my hands are itching..and that I have so many ideas.. All the responses on the article were very supportive, and almost similar. They all wish that some day SEN will find new backers, so we can be able to publish it internationally.
An English version of SEN, I think, would not be a luxurious thing to do in these times of turmoil between East and West, islamophobia, antisemitism and above all emancipation of the world.
Here is the article which was published by Forbes on July 26th.
We have a long way to go, the emancipation of (muslim) women has just started yet. And probably you are not surprised when I tell you that my hands are itching..and that I have so many ideas.. All the responses on the article were very supportive, and almost similar. They all wish that some day SEN will find new backers, so we can be able to publish it internationally.
An English version of SEN, I think, would not be a luxurious thing to do in these times of turmoil between East and West, islamophobia, antisemitism and above all emancipation of the world.
Here is the article which was published by Forbes on July 26th.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Super healthy lentil soup made by chef Senay
My baby is sick..he really feels weak..I think he caught a virus, I'll make sure by tomorrow to find out, but first he needs a good rest, lots of mommy love and...my favorite medicine:
Lentil soup!
People tell me that I make the best lentil soup of the world..and this recipe I also shared with the popular tv-hosts Carlo & Irene when I was a guest cook in their tv-show Life 4 You. Here is the recipe (and let me remind you: this is a very good dish if your child doesn't want to eat vegetables..he will get so many vitamins with this SUPER HEALTHY soup:
Lentlsoup (for 12 big bowls)
300 gram of red lentls
3 spoons of sunflower oil
50 gram white rice
1 big carrot (250 gram)
4 small potatoes
1 big onion
3 pieces of garlic
chickenbouillon
1 lemon
1 can of tomato paste
Get a big soup pan.
Put it on low fire and add two spoons of oil.
Wash the carrot and cut it in small pieces. Add it in the pan.
Do the same with the potatoes, the onion and the garlic.
Add 3 liters of cooked water in it.
Turn the fire higher and add the washed lentils.
Add the rice.
Stir it really well and add the chickenbouillon (broth).
Add salt and pepper.
After the soup is cooking really well turn down the gas and let the soup cook for another fifteen minutes on low fire.
Don't forget to stir it now and then.
Add the can with the tomatopaste. Stir well.
Make the whole soup smooth with a mixer.
Serve the soup with a big slice of lemon.
Bon appetit!
Lentil soup!
People tell me that I make the best lentil soup of the world..and this recipe I also shared with the popular tv-hosts Carlo & Irene when I was a guest cook in their tv-show Life 4 You. Here is the recipe (and let me remind you: this is a very good dish if your child doesn't want to eat vegetables..he will get so many vitamins with this SUPER HEALTHY soup:
Lentlsoup (for 12 big bowls)
300 gram of red lentls
3 spoons of sunflower oil
50 gram white rice
1 big carrot (250 gram)
4 small potatoes
1 big onion
3 pieces of garlic
chickenbouillon
1 lemon
1 can of tomato paste
Get a big soup pan.
Put it on low fire and add two spoons of oil.
Wash the carrot and cut it in small pieces. Add it in the pan.
Do the same with the potatoes, the onion and the garlic.
Add 3 liters of cooked water in it.
Turn the fire higher and add the washed lentils.
Add the rice.
Stir it really well and add the chickenbouillon (broth).
Add salt and pepper.
After the soup is cooking really well turn down the gas and let the soup cook for another fifteen minutes on low fire.
Don't forget to stir it now and then.
Add the can with the tomatopaste. Stir well.
Make the whole soup smooth with a mixer.
Serve the soup with a big slice of lemon.
Bon appetit!
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Turkish women and the media
Did you know that:
• 15% of media managers are women, 85% are men
• 12% of columnists are women, 88% are men
• 11% of guests on political discussion programs on TV are women, 89% are men
• 18% of news sources are women, 82% are men
• 100% of "Page Three Girls" are women, 0% are men
• 0% of editors in chief are women, 100% are men.
A Dutch colleague of mine is asked to speak at the Womens Book Fair in Eskisehir, Turkey. She asked me whether I could update her about the Turkish media landscape and women’s participation in the media. I told her what I already knew from stories of my journalist friends and colleagues in Turkey. To be honest I didn’t have a real positive story for her. I told her how the media is still dominated by men and that we need a completely mentality change to increase women’s participation.
Let’s be honest: “Working in the media” has, for the most Turkish people, a negative connotation. It simply means that you are “exposing” yourself to the world, and the majority of Turkish families simply do not want their girls to be exposed to the world.
This counts not only for the jobs in front of the camera; it also applies for jobs behind the camera. Sometimes I can understand this, since “media" is an intangible concept. If you tell somebody you are a lawyer or a doctor or an engineer, everybody exactly knows what you mean, even they haven’t done it themselves. But since people associate “media” with “glamour,” “magic” and “power,” it’s something people find interesting but also scary and opaque.
What do you do, and how do you do it? For most women (particularly from patriarch and Islamic countries), it’s also less attractive because it requires one to work flexible hours. Media or journalism is not a 9-to-5 job. You have to be on standby constantly, and not every father/brother/husband (or mother!) accepts that — which is probably why you can’t find the equal number of male and female students from communication studies back on the newsroom floor. So that’s something we have to work on: the portrayal of jobs in the media. I can tell, after being there for more than 17 years myself, that it’s one of the, if not THE BEST job in the world.
Here are some statistics of Turkish women’s participation in the media, which are quite depressing since the numbers are significantly higher in European and American media.
30%: participation of Turkish women in the media.
20%: women in managerial positions
33%: women in decision making positions.
(of course the last two numbers apply to the 30% female participation)
Internet usage is more depressing, although its hopeful to know that there is an increasing trend:
In 2005 85% of Turkish women had never used a computer (against 69% of men). Ninety percent of women never used the Internet (male usage: 76%). In 2007: 76% of women never used a computer (58% of men) and 79% of Turkish women had never been on the Internet (against 61% of men).
We can be quite optimistic when we see that there is an increase over two years (there are no recent numbers for 2008 or 2009) but it depresses me when I talk to Turkish colleagues about this development.
From the 1990’s Turkey has known a huge expansion of TV broadcasters. The Internet explosion came worldwide at the end of the 90s. One could expect a huge explosion of employment in media, for both men and women, and because the communication schools are filled equally. So where does it go wrong?
Many Turkish media organizations like the Journalists Federations organize panels, conferences or programs for gender equality in the media — which is good. But they can’t do anything substantial when the government lacks the same commitment. There has to come some kind of action from the government, a series of quotas or a state allocation to fight for this issue. The position of women in the media can only change with their support. But since the reigning government has not any political aspirations as such, the problem will stay there. If the media sector stays in the same hands as now, I don’t forecast any improvements for the short term.
Source: Mediz, TC Basbakanlik Kadinin Statusu Genel Mudurlugu
• 15% of media managers are women, 85% are men
• 12% of columnists are women, 88% are men
• 11% of guests on political discussion programs on TV are women, 89% are men
• 18% of news sources are women, 82% are men
• 100% of "Page Three Girls" are women, 0% are men
• 0% of editors in chief are women, 100% are men.
A Dutch colleague of mine is asked to speak at the Womens Book Fair in Eskisehir, Turkey. She asked me whether I could update her about the Turkish media landscape and women’s participation in the media. I told her what I already knew from stories of my journalist friends and colleagues in Turkey. To be honest I didn’t have a real positive story for her. I told her how the media is still dominated by men and that we need a completely mentality change to increase women’s participation.
Let’s be honest: “Working in the media” has, for the most Turkish people, a negative connotation. It simply means that you are “exposing” yourself to the world, and the majority of Turkish families simply do not want their girls to be exposed to the world.
This counts not only for the jobs in front of the camera; it also applies for jobs behind the camera. Sometimes I can understand this, since “media" is an intangible concept. If you tell somebody you are a lawyer or a doctor or an engineer, everybody exactly knows what you mean, even they haven’t done it themselves. But since people associate “media” with “glamour,” “magic” and “power,” it’s something people find interesting but also scary and opaque.
What do you do, and how do you do it? For most women (particularly from patriarch and Islamic countries), it’s also less attractive because it requires one to work flexible hours. Media or journalism is not a 9-to-5 job. You have to be on standby constantly, and not every father/brother/husband (or mother!) accepts that — which is probably why you can’t find the equal number of male and female students from communication studies back on the newsroom floor. So that’s something we have to work on: the portrayal of jobs in the media. I can tell, after being there for more than 17 years myself, that it’s one of the, if not THE BEST job in the world.
Here are some statistics of Turkish women’s participation in the media, which are quite depressing since the numbers are significantly higher in European and American media.
30%: participation of Turkish women in the media.
20%: women in managerial positions
33%: women in decision making positions.
(of course the last two numbers apply to the 30% female participation)
Internet usage is more depressing, although its hopeful to know that there is an increasing trend:
In 2005 85% of Turkish women had never used a computer (against 69% of men). Ninety percent of women never used the Internet (male usage: 76%). In 2007: 76% of women never used a computer (58% of men) and 79% of Turkish women had never been on the Internet (against 61% of men).
We can be quite optimistic when we see that there is an increase over two years (there are no recent numbers for 2008 or 2009) but it depresses me when I talk to Turkish colleagues about this development.
From the 1990’s Turkey has known a huge expansion of TV broadcasters. The Internet explosion came worldwide at the end of the 90s. One could expect a huge explosion of employment in media, for both men and women, and because the communication schools are filled equally. So where does it go wrong?
Many Turkish media organizations like the Journalists Federations organize panels, conferences or programs for gender equality in the media — which is good. But they can’t do anything substantial when the government lacks the same commitment. There has to come some kind of action from the government, a series of quotas or a state allocation to fight for this issue. The position of women in the media can only change with their support. But since the reigning government has not any political aspirations as such, the problem will stay there. If the media sector stays in the same hands as now, I don’t forecast any improvements for the short term.
Source: Mediz, TC Basbakanlik Kadinin Statusu Genel Mudurlugu
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Violent Extremism
Together with 34 other women from around the globe I was a founding member of SAVE in 2008 in Vienna.
The global SAVE initiative, standing for Sisters Against Violent Extremism, brought women from around the world together in Vienna for a strategy conference from November 28 to December 1st 2008 in order to engage in courageous dialogue about the importance of mobilizing women against violent extremism.
This innovative female powerbase from all walks of life discussed the vital role that women can and will play in rejecting violent extremism, all while building political, religious, and emotional bridges.
With Smart Power and courageous dialogue that transcends borders, the participants- survivors of terrorist attacks, relatives of 9/11, 7/7 and Madrid victims, and community activists from Columbia to Kosovo, Africa to Asia - developed strategies to mobilize against terror and violence.
After 3 days conference each participant of the first SAVE-conference declared:
1. I, as a woman, will use the local and global networks of women to stop the killing.
2. I will inspire a new response to prevent terror, violence and discrimination.
3. I will create awareness for not stigmatizing the families of the extremists/terrorists.
4. I will support the young generation with non-violent alternatives in their search for a better life.
5. I will engage all forms of media for spreading the message of non-violence.
6. I will insist on peaceful resolutions to prevent escalation of conflict and violence.
7. I will promote a global dialogue for a future without fear.
8. I will raise my voice against all hostile states and politics that cause suffering.
9. I recognise the urgency to create ‘SAVE’ spaces for a peaceful coexistence.
10. I will always remember those affected by violent extremism.
Shaista Gohir, one of the founding members of SAVE and whom I met at this conference wrote an op-ed in The Guardian. It's an article on child abuse and child marriage in Muslim countries—difficult subjects to tackle, but well worth discussing. You can read her article here.
And of course, as always, feel free to comment on the articles posted on this blog.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Dear Students,
Are you interested in working in international business or diplomacy but don’t know quite where to start? Are you dedicated to breaking down the boundaries that cultures and traditions have imposed on you? Do you want to learn more about leadership? Would you like to meet other students with similar interests in international issues?
If so, the Osgood Center for International Studies would like to invite you to attend their programs in the Summer. These programs will be a chance for you to hear from leaders and other students about leadership, current international issues, and international business. The Osgood Center runs short-term experiential learning programs in Washington, DC, which provide wonderful opportunities to network with high-profile Washingtonians as well as students and young professionals from all around the world. Your international career starts right here!
International Business Conference (July 18-29, 2010)
The International Business Conference (IBC) is a ten-day exploration of the international political economy. Participants will visit leading international institutions in Washington, DC such as the World Bank, the IMF, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the leading Congressional Committees on trade and international economics. They will address issues in international economics such as the international financial crisis, creeping protectionism, the rise of China and India, and the persistence of poverty in a globalized world.
Summer Symposium on Foreign Policy (August 1-12, 2010)
A two-week course in August, during which students will meet with top level government officials, members of the press, experts from prestigious think tanks such as the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the American Enterprise Institute, and the Brookings Institution to discuss and debate contemporary foreign policy issues.
Please don't hesitate to email me (senay at osgoodcenter dot org) if you have any questions about your application. Hope to see you in D.C.!
Practical information:
Both programs (10-12 days) cost $1500. This includes hotel (Homewood Suites by Hilton), breakfast and many additional meals. We have our sessions at Osgood Center and on site. We go to the World bank, State Department, IMF, Johns Hopkins University, etc. We go, go, go...
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Pulitzer Prize
For the first time in history two Web sites have won the prestigious Pulitzer Prize. I know this is a big deal since I was the first visiting lecturer who taught a class on Online Publishing at the University of Texas. While internet exists for more than three decades, newspapers have taken their online publications seriously for maybe the last five years. Well, with rewarding two journalistic Web sites, ProPublica and www.sfgate.com, we can conclude that there is no future for newspapers without their online portals.
Of course I knew that already for many years (that's why I started my online magazine) but this is a good sign for all the big newspapers publishers.
With this terrific news, I feel double euphoria.
First is, that, nobody, not a single Journalism University or College, can deny the importance of online content.
Second, (the real reason why I write this blog) is that I had the privilege to work together with the editor of the book, America’s Best Writing: Pulitzer Prize Feature Stories, David Garlock.
Dave, my senior, assembled 25 feature articles and analyzed the quality of the research, reporting and writing of the stories and why they deserved the Prize for Outstanding Journalism. This book 'Pulitzer Prize Feature Stories - America's Best Writing 1979-2003' is a help and an inspiration for writers, both established and upcoming.' And let me note here, as a 'global journalist', that this book is not only for American journalists, but every journalist, worldwide, can learn a lot from it.
It's every journalist's desire to have the opportunity to work with such an amazing professor. Our daily chats in his small office were very valuable for me. In his office where every wall was surrounded with books and magazines we discussed world issues. And I will never forget his profound curiosity and interest in my thoughts but also he wanted to know my opinion about a certain topic in his class. As a 'small fish', for the first time teaching in a Journalism school, I felt very often that I worked together with the 'big catches'.
Some information about Dave:
He has been on the UT faculty for 21 years, teaching a wide variety of magazine writing, reporting and management classes. He is also advisor for the campus magazine, Orange. Before that, he was a Texas-based independent magazine consultant and publisher. He was the vice president and editorial director in New York for Executive Business Media, an international publishing firm, specializing in a wide variety of business-to-business, niche, specialty and targeted consumer magazines. In that job, Dave was editorial director of a hard-news monthly magazine covering the military that frequently uncovered government corruption and mismanagement. Stories he wrote or edited often led to congressional or governmental investigations and some were picked up by the national media, including the CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite.
While packing to get back to Holland, I decided to take his book (805 pages!) with my hand luggage. True, It was heavy to carry it on during my eighteen hour trip from Austin, via Washington to Amsterdam. But I did not get bored one time, thanks to Dave's thoughtful interviews and insightful comments on the Pulitzer stories, valuable for every journalist.
Thank you, Dave!
Tuesday, April 06, 2010
Senay appointed as Senior Fellow Osgood Center for International Studies
I have some great news, which I want to share with you.
I have been appointed as senior fellow at the Osgood Center for International Studies in Washington, D.C.. The Osgood Center is a non-profit educational organization that offers short-term foreign policy programs and experiential learning to graduate, college, and high school students from around the globe.
I will be starting this summer at this institute which is the premier foreign policy program in the heart of Washington, D.C.
As you can understand, I am very excited to begin with this new challenge in my career: sharing my views and experiences with new fresh global thinkers and leaders.
One of my main goals will be that I can inspire other girls and women to choose what's best for them and their career. That I can learn them not to think in boundaries and that they have the capacity to become the new female leaders of the world.
In my next blog I'll write some information about The Osgood Center's programs and how to apply. So, please if you know somebody (students of International Business or Diplomacy) who might be interested, don't hesitate to email me at senay at osgoodcenter dot org.
Thank you!
Thursday, April 01, 2010
Illusion
My new book got published.
Channel 4 requests an interview.
And somebody puts the New York Times Book Review in my hand.
A review of Leah Hager Cohen who calls it 'excellent work'.
CNN Turk is in my Outlook with very much interest in this 'upcoming' and talented Turkish-Dutch writer.
Even when, in my Miu Miu suit I walk back to my car after the launch party..the phone keeps ringing.
I feel great..this is why I worked so hard; people like my book..
And then...I wake up and see the grey clouds from my bedroom.
I turn around and continue as I don't care.
Isn't everything an illusion?
Channel 4 requests an interview.
And somebody puts the New York Times Book Review in my hand.
A review of Leah Hager Cohen who calls it 'excellent work'.
CNN Turk is in my Outlook with very much interest in this 'upcoming' and talented Turkish-Dutch writer.
Even when, in my Miu Miu suit I walk back to my car after the launch party..the phone keeps ringing.
I feel great..this is why I worked so hard; people like my book..
And then...I wake up and see the grey clouds from my bedroom.
I turn around and continue as I don't care.
Isn't everything an illusion?
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Beyond Reasonable Doubt; the Srebrenica massacre
Yesterday I posted a blog about a film which dealt with the Chechnyan-Russian war. I saw this movie, together with fifteen other movies as I was one of the five jurymembers of the Rudolf Vrba Award at the Prague Filmfestival in 2006.
The festival was extremely well organized; in the heart of Prague we went from one ancient movietheater to another and saw the most amazing museums of the Eastern European continent. Prague was of course FABULOUS! I had my daily coffee at the Slavia Grand-cafe, a meeting place of artists and intellectuals; where the most famous writers, poets and politicians (including Vaclav Havel) had their debates and discussions but also where they smoked cigarettes and pipes while reading the newspapers.
It was a very intense week. And after this week I decided for my own that it's nice to be asked to become a jurymember, but seeing sixteen movies about human rights violations in four days; discussing and judging them, is highly INTENSE. One of the movies which disturbed me very much, they even had to stop the film because I couldn't take it anymore, was Beyond Reasonable Doubts
about the Srebrenica massacre in Bosnia-Herzegovina. It's humanly unworthy to see young men being deported in trucks while they pee in their pants being shot in the back (These images are really shown in this film, so, don't say I did not warn you!).
As tv-news producer of one of the leading news organizations, 2Vandaag, we had hundreds of stories about this topic; every single day when it all happened in 1995. As we all know, Srebrenica was under the protection of Dutch soldiers; Well, it became a black page in Dutch history. As newspeople we saw the ugliest images of war.
Today, the 31st of March, the Serbian parliament passed a landmark resolution condemning the 1995 Srebrenica massacre of some 8,000 Bosnian Muslims, I wanted to tell you about this movie. It's not only a black page in Dutch history, it's a black page in everybody's history.
Here is what the film is about:
Post–war Europe made the promise to never again allow one nation or race or any one group of people to attempt to systematically wipe out another. Yet what happened in Yugoslavia was genocide, executed moreover with the United Nations looking on. The author of this documentary film, Mina Vidakovič, returns to the massacre at Srebrenica and records the testimony of those who survived the ordeal. Direct testimony from those who witnessed the Srebrenica massacre right where it happened, is the best evidence against those who committed the crime. General Ratko Mladič or Slobodan Miloševič, who were behind most the war crimes that took place during the work in Bosnia and Herzegovina, are filmed in edited confrontation with the remaining inhabitants of Srebrenica. The director moreover works with video recordings made by members of the military units involved in the massacre. They capture the transport of inhabitants of Srebrenica under the false pretences of fears for their safety, the separation of the men capable of military service from the rest of the inhabitants, and the various methods of the mass murder and concealing the graves. Not all the bodies have been found to date, and that is why it is not even known exactly how many victims there were, which is important in determining the punishment for those convicted. The first minutes of Beyond Reasonable Doubt focuses on the preparation of the Nuremberg laws, followed by the construction of concentration camps, the existence of which some people despite all the evidence continue to doubt. The film by Mina Vidakovič helps refresh Europe's historical memory, so that it does not allow itself to forget any of the genocides of the 20th century.
In remembrance of all that died in this and all other wars..
Sincerely,
Senay Ozdemir
The festival was extremely well organized; in the heart of Prague we went from one ancient movietheater to another and saw the most amazing museums of the Eastern European continent. Prague was of course FABULOUS! I had my daily coffee at the Slavia Grand-cafe, a meeting place of artists and intellectuals; where the most famous writers, poets and politicians (including Vaclav Havel) had their debates and discussions but also where they smoked cigarettes and pipes while reading the newspapers.
It was a very intense week. And after this week I decided for my own that it's nice to be asked to become a jurymember, but seeing sixteen movies about human rights violations in four days; discussing and judging them, is highly INTENSE. One of the movies which disturbed me very much, they even had to stop the film because I couldn't take it anymore, was Beyond Reasonable Doubts
about the Srebrenica massacre in Bosnia-Herzegovina. It's humanly unworthy to see young men being deported in trucks while they pee in their pants being shot in the back (These images are really shown in this film, so, don't say I did not warn you!).
As tv-news producer of one of the leading news organizations, 2Vandaag, we had hundreds of stories about this topic; every single day when it all happened in 1995. As we all know, Srebrenica was under the protection of Dutch soldiers; Well, it became a black page in Dutch history. As newspeople we saw the ugliest images of war.
Today, the 31st of March, the Serbian parliament passed a landmark resolution condemning the 1995 Srebrenica massacre of some 8,000 Bosnian Muslims, I wanted to tell you about this movie. It's not only a black page in Dutch history, it's a black page in everybody's history.
Here is what the film is about:
Post–war Europe made the promise to never again allow one nation or race or any one group of people to attempt to systematically wipe out another. Yet what happened in Yugoslavia was genocide, executed moreover with the United Nations looking on. The author of this documentary film, Mina Vidakovič, returns to the massacre at Srebrenica and records the testimony of those who survived the ordeal. Direct testimony from those who witnessed the Srebrenica massacre right where it happened, is the best evidence against those who committed the crime. General Ratko Mladič or Slobodan Miloševič, who were behind most the war crimes that took place during the work in Bosnia and Herzegovina, are filmed in edited confrontation with the remaining inhabitants of Srebrenica. The director moreover works with video recordings made by members of the military units involved in the massacre. They capture the transport of inhabitants of Srebrenica under the false pretences of fears for their safety, the separation of the men capable of military service from the rest of the inhabitants, and the various methods of the mass murder and concealing the graves. Not all the bodies have been found to date, and that is why it is not even known exactly how many victims there were, which is important in determining the punishment for those convicted. The first minutes of Beyond Reasonable Doubt focuses on the preparation of the Nuremberg laws, followed by the construction of concentration camps, the existence of which some people despite all the evidence continue to doubt. The film by Mina Vidakovič helps refresh Europe's historical memory, so that it does not allow itself to forget any of the genocides of the 20th century.
In remembrance of all that died in this and all other wars..
Sincerely,
Senay Ozdemir
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Coca, the dove from Chechnya
As I told earlier I was jurymember of the Prague Filmfestival in 2006 judging the best film in the category named 'Right to Know'. The documentaries selected for this category refer to human rights violations all over the world.
When you think of Chechnya, what comes to mind? Chechen terrorists, often women, committing suicide bombings? Like the attacks yesterday in the Moscow metro? The actions of the rebels make it difficult for many people to view the Chechen conflict with sympathy for the Chechen side.
I recommend you to see the film Coca: the Dove from Chechnya
The film is about fifty–year–old Zainap (nickname Coca, which means 'dove')belonging to an organisation called 'The War Echo'. She divides her time between documenting the situation in Chechnya and in the refugee camps of Ingussetia, transporting photographs and recordings to Germany and Russia and lobbying for the rights of the Chechen people throughout Europe. Using this documentation, they are trying to help assist Chechen civilians with cases brought before the International Human Rights Court in Strassbourg. She tries to do everything she can for her country and prove to the world that Chechen terrorism is the desperate reaction of a small group of people, not the pastime of an entire nation.
The film is being shown as a part of the traveling Amnesty International Film Festival, aims to show the world a different side of the bloody and violent conflict, through the lens of another kind of weapon - the video cameras of a group of Chechen women.
This is not a slick, well-produced Hollywood film. Much of the footage is grainy, shaky, and difficult to watch.
Chechen activist Zainap Gashaeva is well-known in the international community for her tireless campaign to draw attention to the suffering of the Chechen people at the hands of the Russian government.
About Rudolf Vrba:
Rudolf Vrba, escapee from Auschwitz provided the first eye witness documents about the concentrationcamps. To pay honors to this exceptionally brave man, One World Festival presents annually Rudolf Vrba Award.
When you think of Chechnya, what comes to mind? Chechen terrorists, often women, committing suicide bombings? Like the attacks yesterday in the Moscow metro? The actions of the rebels make it difficult for many people to view the Chechen conflict with sympathy for the Chechen side.
I recommend you to see the film Coca: the Dove from Chechnya
The film is about fifty–year–old Zainap (nickname Coca, which means 'dove')belonging to an organisation called 'The War Echo'. She divides her time between documenting the situation in Chechnya and in the refugee camps of Ingussetia, transporting photographs and recordings to Germany and Russia and lobbying for the rights of the Chechen people throughout Europe. Using this documentation, they are trying to help assist Chechen civilians with cases brought before the International Human Rights Court in Strassbourg. She tries to do everything she can for her country and prove to the world that Chechen terrorism is the desperate reaction of a small group of people, not the pastime of an entire nation.
The film is being shown as a part of the traveling Amnesty International Film Festival, aims to show the world a different side of the bloody and violent conflict, through the lens of another kind of weapon - the video cameras of a group of Chechen women.
This is not a slick, well-produced Hollywood film. Much of the footage is grainy, shaky, and difficult to watch.
Chechen activist Zainap Gashaeva is well-known in the international community for her tireless campaign to draw attention to the suffering of the Chechen people at the hands of the Russian government.
About Rudolf Vrba:
Rudolf Vrba, escapee from Auschwitz provided the first eye witness documents about the concentrationcamps. To pay honors to this exceptionally brave man, One World Festival presents annually Rudolf Vrba Award.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Desiderata
Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let not this blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore, be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams; it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let not this blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore, be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams; it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Yes, he can!
Dear readers, please let me share this press release about a wonderboy:
13 Year-Old UNICEF Ambassador Bilaal Rajan Challenges World Youth To Help Haiti
Toronto, Canada – Bilaal Rajan, the grade nine student at Lakefield College School, UNICEF Canada Ambassador, youth activist, best-selling author and fundraiser, has issued a challenge to students all over the world to raise a minimum of $100 for the relief efforts in Haiti.
“Hundreds of thousands have died, and millions are without shelter, food, running water or medical attention. Young people have to get involved and help,” says Rajan, the fundraising wunderkind who has raised millions of dollars for programs that help children in need all over the world. “I think the potential students have for raising millions of dollars throughout the globe is overwhelming.”
Barely a teenager, the Toronto-based children’s activist is already a force to be reckoned with. An accomplished writer, Rajan’s book, Making Change: Tips from an Underage Overachiever (160 pages, Orca Book Publishers), shows people how they can take charge and make a difference in their communities, no matter what their age.
Rajan is adding an extra incentive for students to raise money. He will shave his head in honour of the school or student in Canada that raises the greatest amount of funds. “I’m looking forward to see what kinds of fundraising ideas young people come up with and how much money they can raise. Am I looking forward to going bald? Not so much. I hope the students are gentle,” he laughs. In addition, Lakefield College School Headmaster David Thompson has agreed to shave his head as well if his students raise $35,000.
At 4, Rajan began his fundraising success by selling clementine oranges door-to-door raising money for victims of the 2001 earthquake in Gujarat, India. At 7, he founded Making Change Now, an organization dedicated to heightening awareness of youth issues and raising funds for children in the developing world. In March 2005, he was chosen as an official Child Representative and Ambassador for UNICEF Canada.
In 2004, Rajan launched his first UNICEF fundraising challenge, at the age of eight, called the UNICEF Canada Kids Earthquake Challenge, through which Canadian children raised more than $1.8 million to help those who were impacted by the earthquake and tsunami of south Asia. Canada’s youth contributed again in May 2008 to those affected by the Myanmar cyclone through Rajan’s Me and You for the Children of Myanmar UNICEF fundraising campaign.
All the proceeds raised by Rajan’s Help Haiti Challenge will go to UNICEF and the organization’s relief efforts in Haiti. “The challenges of the Haitian people won’t go away overnight,” he says. “But I know that students throughout the world will step up to the plate and make every effort to help those who are suffering in the country.”
13 Year-Old UNICEF Ambassador Bilaal Rajan Challenges World Youth To Help Haiti
Toronto, Canada – Bilaal Rajan, the grade nine student at Lakefield College School, UNICEF Canada Ambassador, youth activist, best-selling author and fundraiser, has issued a challenge to students all over the world to raise a minimum of $100 for the relief efforts in Haiti.
“Hundreds of thousands have died, and millions are without shelter, food, running water or medical attention. Young people have to get involved and help,” says Rajan, the fundraising wunderkind who has raised millions of dollars for programs that help children in need all over the world. “I think the potential students have for raising millions of dollars throughout the globe is overwhelming.”
Barely a teenager, the Toronto-based children’s activist is already a force to be reckoned with. An accomplished writer, Rajan’s book, Making Change: Tips from an Underage Overachiever (160 pages, Orca Book Publishers), shows people how they can take charge and make a difference in their communities, no matter what their age.
Rajan is adding an extra incentive for students to raise money. He will shave his head in honour of the school or student in Canada that raises the greatest amount of funds. “I’m looking forward to see what kinds of fundraising ideas young people come up with and how much money they can raise. Am I looking forward to going bald? Not so much. I hope the students are gentle,” he laughs. In addition, Lakefield College School Headmaster David Thompson has agreed to shave his head as well if his students raise $35,000.
At 4, Rajan began his fundraising success by selling clementine oranges door-to-door raising money for victims of the 2001 earthquake in Gujarat, India. At 7, he founded Making Change Now, an organization dedicated to heightening awareness of youth issues and raising funds for children in the developing world. In March 2005, he was chosen as an official Child Representative and Ambassador for UNICEF Canada.
In 2004, Rajan launched his first UNICEF fundraising challenge, at the age of eight, called the UNICEF Canada Kids Earthquake Challenge, through which Canadian children raised more than $1.8 million to help those who were impacted by the earthquake and tsunami of south Asia. Canada’s youth contributed again in May 2008 to those affected by the Myanmar cyclone through Rajan’s Me and You for the Children of Myanmar UNICEF fundraising campaign.
All the proceeds raised by Rajan’s Help Haiti Challenge will go to UNICEF and the organization’s relief efforts in Haiti. “The challenges of the Haitian people won’t go away overnight,” he says. “But I know that students throughout the world will step up to the plate and make every effort to help those who are suffering in the country.”
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
The Female Factor
You might like this following story, it's really fascinating (which doesn't only apply to Eastern German women).
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/18/world/europe/18iht-women.html?em
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/18/world/europe/18iht-women.html?em
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