SEEING RED
Links and things from the CODE RED feminist collective. Visit our website for critical Caribbean feminist commentary.
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Caribbean Images
Calling all Caribbean people in the region & diaspora! Share your 1 billion rising photos with each other by joining our Caribbean flickr pool. follow us on twitter @redforgender
Caribbean feminism is not some giant hairy man-eating monster anxious to claw its way to the top and destroy the family and society in the process. It’s a movement of ordinary diverse women (and men) like the ones I had the privilege of spending two days with: passionate, courageous and committed to being the change they want to see.
A CODE RED for gender justice! member talks about why she’s a feminist. Read the full Outlish Magazine article here.
CODE RED is a Caribbean feminist activist collective. Find us on facebook or follow us on twitter.
How we ah go mek dis movement move? Reflections from the CatchAFyah Caribbean Feminist Grounding
We’ll be posting a much more serious and sober report later but here are some quick reflections from a few of the Catch a Fire participants.
On Transformation
Day 1 of our Caribbean Feminist Grounding was really (personally) transformative. Something Shifted. Something Changed. And maybe I just needed y’all to remind me *why* and to think together (creatively) through the *how’s*. Thank you sisters for re-igniting the flame! Sistrens, how we ah go mek dis movement move??!?!
On Community
I often wish I lived on a deserted island far away from people. But now, I want to live in a commune with the amazing, fiery, beautiful women of Caribbean Feminists CatchAFyah! So I’m just going to think of the Caribbean as my commune ;P Two quotes from Audre Lorde are resonating as I reflect and return to the work: “Without community there is no liberation, only the most vulnerable and temporary armistice between an individual and her oppression.” Also- “Revolution is not a one-time event. It is becoming always vigilant for the smallest opportunity to make a genuine change.” We are stronger, more effective together. 1 ♥
On Sisterhood Across Difference
Someone asked me what the other ladies at Catch A Fire were like. I said they were like me! Even though we are certainly very unique individuals, it was great to feel that sisterhood among us. And somewhere within ourselves, we are all feminists who have caught a fyah…
On Privilege
Though not necessarily individually, we were a privileged group. We were funded, had a comfortable meeting space (that was not wheelchair accessible) and among us were many a university degree. That in itself is a disconnect from large numbers of women and men our work seeks support and empower. Even those words, support and empower are problematic… Though raised, the challenge remains, how do we make it different for our next meeting? For our next project(s)? For our work? Class privilege is unwieldy dammit!
I have been in many queer positive spaces in my life. Both in the Caribbean and in North America. This was yet another one of them which was lovely. I have enjoyed straight privilege most of my life however I am mostly read as queer outside of being in a relationship with men. Many womyn in the group identified as lgbtqi and spoke to their experience. However very few (myself included) spoke to their experience of straightness. I greatly appreciated a post my another member who spoke to this silence post-meeting which so beautifully encapsulated how I feel about my own sexuality which makes me simultaneously shy away from labeling myself (b/c it’s so much more complex than any label but also want to identify/name) and speak to the privilege of straightness. (via Add Fyah And Stir. read entire post here.)
On Inspiration
This was [an] amazing 3 days. The insights, spirits, comments and inspiration to go on is willed. The time is now, the opportunity is here. … i just cant stop talking about next step. A fyah was certainly caught in Barbados. GET F’ED UP!!!!!
Thank you SISTAS
On Inter-generational & South-South Learning
The selection of participants I believe indeed contributed greatly to the grounding. The fact that participants presented on issues and assisted with managing the group over the two days. Having Dr. Antrobus and other invited guest from DAWN and Red Thread was also inspiring and added motivation as to why my involvement was one to be proud of.
On Safe Spaces
I loved the women that attended. All so powerful, interesting, and inspiring. The opportunity and space to meet like-minded persons with an interest in changing the status quo. I also deeply appreciated the safeness of the space, I love that women could be open and honest about who they are and without fear. And the food was amazing!
Visit CODE RED for gender justice on wordpress, facebook and twitter to learn more about CatchAFyah.
Delegates from Barbados and Jamaica in deep conversation.
Follow #CatchAFyah for updates on this historic meeting which brings together representatives from youth, women’s, LGBT and feminist organisations from Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Haiti, Grenada, Guyana, St.Lucia, St. Kitts & Nevis, Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica and St. Vincent & the Grenadines.
CODE RED is a feminist collective of Caribbean women and men. Join us on facebook or follow us on twitter.
Catch A Fire!
Ignite the imagination.
Ideas & Action for social change.
It’s not a meeting. It’s a movement.
A new generation of Caribbean feminists will meet in Barbados for two intense days to strategise on how to collaborate regionally, strengthen feminist voices and initiatives in the region as well as mobilise around key issues like sexual and reproductive health and rights.
This is just the beginning for this group which includes members of traditional women’s organisations, regional feminist organisations, LBGT and youth organisations as well as women’s health organisations.
We are social entrepreneurs, peer educators, community activists, volunteers, gender and development professionals, a doctor working on rural women’s health, the coordinator of the young feminist fund, students, teachers, advocates, artists.
We come from Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Trinidad & Tobago and the Caribbean diaspora.
We recognise the need to reach out further within our own communities and across the other territories of the English, Spanish, French and Dutch-speaking Caribbean.
Watch this space for updates and to learn how you can get involved.
CODE RED is a feminist collective of Caribbean women and men. Re-blog to help us get the word out!
Catch A Fire the Caribbean: Regional Feminist Grounding
CODE RED will bring 10 young feminists from across the Caribbean to Barbados for a regional grounding in May (1-day meeting). We are looking for passionate and engaged leaders who are working at the community level. Do you know someone who should be there? Tell us! redforgender [at] gmail [dot] com.
The meeting is envisioned as a starting point towards regional feminist mobilisation of a new generation of Caribbean activists whose outlook is regional, who are well networked into their communities and who are connected to each other. Some young women from the region have started their own initiatives and could benefit from access to funding, mentorship and opportunities to grow and develop these initiatives into institutions. One of the objectives of this meeting is to determine how we can support each other and becoming stronger voices for social change in the region.
Persons who are working specifically in the area of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights are especially welcome.
The participation of 10 young women from the English-speaking Caribbean and Haiti will be fully funded. Country representation will be taken into account as part of the selection process.
Barbados-based activists and other participants from the region who have their own funding are also invited to participate.
Want to be there?
Send us your contact information (including SKYPE ID) and a brief bio outlining your activist work.
It’s that simple!
“We are the ones we have been waiting for.”
A Week of CODE RED Reads
- Did a Caribbean news source really describe rape as “mounting her”?
- How strong is sexual citizenship activism in the region?
- Is it possible for another member of parliament to top the sexism of the JLP’s “jobs for the girls” comment?
- In which movement for justice are Caribbean people taking the lead?
For answers to these and more take a look at CODE RED’s round up of Caribbean links on gender, sexuality, the environment, politics and other feminist issues.
CODE RED is a feminist collective of Caribbean women and men. Visit our website and find us on facebook and twitter.
Caribbean feminist, gender & sexuality news: The Good, Bad and the Ugly!
Here are some of the top stories in Caribbean feminist and gender news:
The Good
Guyana to begin vaccinating girls against HPV this week! This month is Cervical Cancer Awareness month. What a great way to begin the month! Time for the other Caribbean countries to follow Guyana’s lead!
Some Good, Some Bad
Dominica and The Bahamas have been ranked among the top 10 ethical destinations in the developing world for 2012. Countries were evaluated in three main categories: environmental protection, social welfare and human rights. Dominica was lauded for its renewable energy policy and for being one of the few Caribbean nations to sign a statement of LGBTQ rights at the UN in 2011. The Bahamas received kudos for its commitment to shark conservation. Both Dominica and The Bahamas were ranked highly in terms of political rights, civil liberties and press freedom. Barbados was on last year’s list, but wasn’t included in the 2012 ranking; the reason given was that the government has not shown itself to be committed to its promises of environmental protection and sustainability.
The Bad
Woman in Guyana dies after unsafe abortion even though abortion has been legal there since 1996. Former Minister of Health says that women may be uninformed about certified abortion providers.
The Ugly
JLP described PM Portia Simpson Miller’s decision to appoint three women to the Cabinet as ‘jobs for the girls’.Three woman cabinet members dismissed as illegitimate, unnecessarily costly excess baggage just because they are women, no, girls!
Want more Caribbean feminist/women’s/gender news?
Find CODE RED on facebook or follow us on twitter.
CODE RED is a feminist collective of Caribbean women and men. We are the only online source for daily updates and aggregation of Caribbean news and links related to feminist, gender and sexuality issues (via our facebook page)
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CODE RED is a feminist collective of Caribbean women and men. Join us on facebook for lively interaction. What are we talking about?
Harvard university in Africa Land Grab
Three women set on fire in Trinidad in the last two weeks.
Constitutional challenge to Belize laws against “carnal intercourse against the order of nature.”
Media reporting on incest and child sexual abuse. More harm than good?
“ Every person who has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any person or animal shall be liable to imprisonment for ten years, “ states section 53 of the Belize Criminal Code. ”
Where are the Caribbean tumblrs?
i know you’re out there. Put your hands up so i can see them!
Where are the Caribbean tumblrs?
