Mei-Mei Ellerman, a Storyteller of AARW, is featured in UVA's latest exhibit activities!

UNESCO/UNITWIN Network Affiliate Unbound Visual Arts (UVA) is hosting a new storyteller series called New Narratives: Reclaiming Asian Identity Through Story. Long active in our Network, Mei-Mei Ellerman is featured as a Storyteller in UVA's latest exhibition! The Asian American Resource Workshop (AARW) is a Partner of UVA for these events. Mei-Mei also currently chairs the Gender and International Development Initiatives (GaIDI) at Brandeis University. Congrats to Mei-Mei on her fabulous work!

More on UVA's latest exhibition here: https://www.unboundvisualarts.org/new-narratives-reclaiming-asian-identity-through-story-storyteller-series/

Mei-Mei's full story in UVA's link above:

Storyteller Artist Statement

A brief account of my decades-long search for identity and belonging. 

Though I still consider myself a world citizen, having lived in many countries I consider "home," it was only by attempting to weave together the endless threads of my families' tapestry (adoptive and biological), that I developed a full sense of my identity. 

According to my Maman, grandfather use to say, "Wherever you hang your hat is Home." That is how she felt as she spent decades living on different continents until she gently slipped away at the age of 94. I followed in both their footsteps, and never felt out of place, no matter what the country, even if I didn't speak the language. And yet, did I fully belong? Was I able to close my eyes and feel that I was surrounded by "my people?"

Photo courtesy Mei-Mei Ellerman

A Glimpse at Environmental Heritage in Brighton!

Here's a message from DB Reiff about Lisa Hirsh of the Board of the Friends of Faneuil Library, a UNESCO/UNITWIN Affiliate, and Lisa's artwork, which resonates with our UNESCO/UNITWIN Network interests in Environmental Heritage. Brava to Lisa!

Hi all,

Some of you know that Lisa is a watercolor painter.

Recently she submitted a painting to the Newton Watercolor Society to be considered for its show "Nature in Watercolor." Not only was the painting, Vernal Pool in the Rain, accepted, it was awarded First Prize in the "Most Creative and Imaginative" category.

Here is the commentary by the judge, Barry Van Dusen, about the painting:

"Not only is this piece whimsical and FUN, it also shows a sophisticated use of repeated patterns and rhythms, and employs a gestural application of paint that provides great variety and movement. I could look at this for a long time, and still make new discoveries!"

I thought you'd enjoy this 90 second video of Lisa discussing what inspired her to paint the pool and the materials she used. It is shot on location in Brighton, Mass.

Vernal Pool in the Rain

Also, The Newton Festival of the Arts will broadcast its festival online this October and all of the art groups in Newton have been asked to participate, so you can see Lisa's painting and many Newton artists' work there.

Good September to all,

DB

100 Years (and Counting), Artist Ronni Komarow's Installation in Galatea's new live Exhibition!

100 Years (and Counting), Artist Ronni Komarow's latest installation in Galatea's "Light From Above: Emerging Out of Isolation" Exhibition

Dates: September 4 through October 31, 2020
Location: Galatea Fine Art, 460 Harrison Ave., Boston, MA 02118
Description: 100 Years (and Counting) is a tribute to the centennial of the 19th Amendment of the United States Constitution, granting women the right to vote. It is also a fund-raising project for Fair Fight, an organization founded by Stacey Abrams and dedicated to promoting voting rights for all qualified citizens. There are 100 gloves in Galatea artist Ronni Komarow's installation, signifying the centennial; white was the color worn by suffragists and is symbolic of the cause. Jennie Loitman Barron, one of the 100 women honored by Ronni, is also featured in "Women of Vision: The Brighton Allston Women's Heritage Trail Guide" of the Brighton-Allston Historical Society (BAHS), a UNESCO/UNITWIN Affiliate, at
http://www.bahistory.org/WomanOfVisonGuide.pdf
and in the Boston Women’s Heritage Trail organization‘s recently-launched Suffrage Trail at
https://bwht.org/road-to-the-vote-the-boston-womens-suffrage-trail/
Artist Ronni Komarow is affiliated with the UNESCO/UNITWIN Network on Gender, Culture & People-Centered Development anchored at Boston University's Women's, Gender, & Sexuality Studies Program, an officer of the Board of Directors of Galatea Fine Art and of the BAHS, and an Alumna of Brandeis University's Women's Studies Research Center.
More Info: https://www.artsy.net/artwork/ronni-komarow-100-years-and-counting

 Ronni Komarow's 100 Years (and Counting) Installation
Photo by/© Eric West

Announcing our new 'Women & UN Origins' series first entry by Margaret (Peg) Snyder!

A message from UNESCO/UNITWIN Network Director, Dr. Brenda Gael McSweeney:

Hi Everyone,

Hope you had a nice weekend!

We're writing to confirm the launch of our new UNESCO/UNITWIN Network "Women & UN Origins" series! Joining us in shaping and publishing the series is the Buenos Aires-based Global Network of UNESCO Chairs on Gender led by Gloria Bonder.

First in the series is an article by Margaret (Peg) Snyder entitled "THEY CAN MOVE US BUT THEY CAN’T STOP US: Surviving the Early Years of 'Women and Development' in the United Nations," attached below. Dr. Snyder, long affiliated with our BU/WGS-based UNESCO/UNITWIN Network, is the Founding Director of UNIFEM (1978-89) as well as a co-founder of the African Centre for Women in 1971. This feature provides a firsthand view, in Peg’s words, of the "... history on the vagaries of establishing the women’s center in Addis and UNIFEM."

Thanks to Peg for her candid presentation of unique insights into these pivotal events --- and Brava for her pioneering contributions decade after decade!

As Gloria notes, we want "... particularly to encourage young researchers and activists to know and value what has been done and achieved." Our UNESCO/UNITWIN Network and the Global Network of UNESCO Chairs on Gender both wish to highlight the importance of sharing direct accounts on the creation of key international institutions and pathbreaking initiatives, for today’s social justice activists, academics and students, and policymakers.

Happy reading!

http://www.brendamcsweeney.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Snyder-16July2020_ATRCW-UNIFEM_forUNITWIN.pdf

Cheers, & be well, Brenda

Brenda Gael McSweeney on behalf of the UNESCO/UNITWIN Network on Gender, Culture, and People-Centered Development;
with Gloria Bonder on behalf of the Global Network of UNESCO Chairs on Gender

L to R: Marilyn Carr, Peg Snyder, Pamela Mboya, Brenda Gael McSweeney:
ATRCW/ECA, Addis (Circa 1975)!
Photo: Collection of Marilyn Carr

Margaret (Peg) Snyder at left, leaving party at ECA in 1977. Tall gentleman with glasses standing in centre is James Riby-Williams, Head of Social Division and Peg’s boss and supporter. At right, ATRCW colleague Marilyn Carr.
Photo: Collection of Marilyn Carr

UNESCO/UNITWIN Network Highlights Reel 2018-2020 Now Published!

The BU/WGS-based UNESCO/UNITWIN Network on Gender, Culture & People-Centered Development has just published the Highlights Reel for September 2018-May 2020!

Please enjoy this visual portrayal of some of the UNESCO/UNITWIN Network's impressive accomplishments in India, West Africa, and Greater Boston, featuring key special events and publications. The Highlights Reel for this period amplifies grassroots voices for our UNESCO/UNITWIN Network on Gender, Culture & People-Centered Development anchored at BU's Women's, Gender, & Sexuality Studies Program (WGS), including a new series on a young women's forum.

More here: http://www.brendamcsweeney.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/HighlightsReel_23June2020.pdf

UNESCO/UNITWIN Network Supports Black Lives Matter

A Message from the UNESCO/UNITWIN Network:

Hi Everyone,

We hope you are well, or as well as one can be, during these devastating times.

Please see the message below from BU/WGS's Director, Dr. Catherine 'Cati' Connell, in support of Black Lives Matter. The UNESCO/UNITWIN Network also supports Black Lives Matter and "commitments to anti-racist action," as Dr. Connell states. Here's the link: http://www.bu.edu/wgs/news/black-lives-matter-statement/

See too the message from Unbound Visual Arts' Board of Directors, a UNESCO/UNITWIN Affiliate, on responding to the reality of racism (below Dr. Connell's message). 

Please take great care --

Warmly,

Brenda on behalf of the UNESCO/UNITWIN Network

Black Lives Matter

June 3, 2020

Although I am conscious of how such public statements can come off as perfunctory and performative, BU WGS cannot remain silent at a time when every voice needs to be deployed in support of Black lives. Racist violence and murder at the hands of police and other state actors is an inexorable part of our nation’s history. Unfortunately, there is nothing particularly new or specific to this political administration about police murders such as those of Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and George Floyd, about civilians weaponizing the police as in the case of Christian Cooper, or about civilians committing anti-Black murders such as Ahmaud Arbery’s, among the countless others we mourn in the wake of state violence. Nor is there anything novel about the violent suppression of protest we are experiencing in this moment. This is part of a historical pattern, characterized by cycles of radical uprisings and subsequent retrenchment of the unjust status quo. It is our ethical obligation to learn this history, learn from this history, and to seize moments of uprising to agitate for sustained social change. 

As the feminists who founded WGS would remind us, the personal is political. There are ample opportunities, today and every day, to effect change in our personal lives and to use personal experience to drive collective political action. For many of us, this moment is an opportunity to push ourselves into a deeper understanding of and commitments to anti-racist action. It is, crucially, also a time to amplify the voices of and give resources to Black people and Black communities and to push through discomfort or the desire to center whiteness in these conversations.

To that end, I would like to use the remainder of this message to boost a number of projects here at BU, in Boston, and beyond.

I encourage our community members to read the BU African American Studies Program’s Statement and BU Law Dean Onwuachi-Willig’s reflections. I ask that you support the fundraiser organized by UMOJA: The BU Black Student Union and BU student government. I urge you to join and amplify these events organized by the BU Office of Diversity & Inclusion and to keep an eye out for emails coming from BU Diversity & Inclusion for a comprehensive list of events and BU-led direct action.

Black Lives Matter Boston, along with a number of other organizations, coordinates and amplifies local and national direct action efforts. There are many resources available to help connect you with the many opportunities to contribute to anti-racist efforts, for example, this Ways to Help guide or this roundup of places to donate, learn more, and join the protest. How To Be An Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi is an especially valuable, accessible text for those looking to learn more about challenging institutional racism and white supremacy.

I would also like to highlight two BU WGS courses that may be especially useful for your anti-racist education: WS 335: Sociology of Race, Class, and Gender, taught by Professors Saida Grundy & Sarah Miller and WS 393: Technoculture and Horizons of Gender and Race, taught by Professor Takeo Rivera. 

If you have more questions or ideas about the fight for racial justice, if you have events or texts you’d like us to amplify, if you need help accessing resources, please be in touch.  Along with many of my colleagues, I am making a commitment to prioritize students, faculty, and staff who need WGS’s support and partnership in anti-racist action and to center it in our events, curriculum, and co-sponsorships.

Much love and solidarity,

Cati Connell, (Program Director, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies)

Co-Signed:

Derek Anderson (Lecturer, Philosophy)
Japonica Brown-Saracino (Professor, Sociology)
Arianne Chernock (Associate Professor, History)
Joanna Davidson (Associate Professor, Anthropology)
Shelly DeBiasse (Clinical Associate Professor, SAR Health Sciences)
Sean Desilets (Senior Lecturer, CAS Writing Program)
Bria Dunham (Clinical Associate Professor, SAR Health Sciences)
Sarah Frederick (Associate Professor, World Languages & Literature)
Kyle Gobrogge (Lecturer, Neuroscience)
Max Greenberg (Lecturer, Sociology)
Samia Hesni (Assistant Professor, Philosophy)
Carolyn Hodges-Simeon (Assistant Professor, Anthropology)
Cheryl Knott (Professor, Anthropology)
Petrus Liu (Associate Professor, World Languages & Literature)
Lida Maxwell (Associate Professor, Political Science)
Olivia McCargar (Program Coordinator, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies)
Marie Satya McDonough (Lecturer, CAS Writing Program)
Sandy McEvoy (Director of Graduate Studies, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies)
Brenda Gael McSweeney (Adjunct Research Assistant Professor, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies)
Ashley Mears (Associate Professor, Sociology)
Luis Menéndez-Antuña (Assistant Professor, School of Theology)
Roberta Micallef (Professor of the Practice, World Languages & Literature)
Sarah Miller (Lecturer, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies)
Erin Murphy (Professor, English)
Lynn O’Brien Hallstein (Professor, CGS Division of Rhetoric)
Anthony Petro (Associate Professor, Religion)
Carrie Preston (Director, Kilachand Honors College; Professor, English)
Takeo Rivera (Assistant Professor, English)
Christopher Schmitt (Assistant Professor, Anthropology)
Sophie Seita (Assistant Professor, English)
Merav Shohet (Assistant Professor, Anthropology)
Nancy J. Smith-Hefner (Chair, Anthropology)
Susanne Sreedhar (Director of Undergraduate Studies, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies; Associate Professor, Philosophy)
Deborah Swedberg (Lecturer, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies)
Keith Vincent (Associate Professor, World Languages & Literature)
Karen Warkentin (Professor, Biology)
Yoon Sun Yang (Associate Professor, World Languages & Literature)

June 11, 2020  Unbound Visual Arts Responds to the Reality of Racism Unbound Visual Arts (UVA) is in solidarity with and support of the Black Lives Matter movement. The protests against racial injustice toward Black Americans across Boston and the country have moved many to think about white privilege. Unbound Visual Arts is no different. The Board of Directors and Council of Advisors of Unbound Visual Arts want everyone to know we are committed to seeking ways to contribute towards positive changes for individuals in the Black community.  As an organization, we are reflectively thinking of ways we can contribute a stronger voice so the art we present contributes towards social justice, racial equity and is promoting and highlighting diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusiveness. Some of which can include organizing socially and culturally significant exhibits, partnering with and participating in art-related events, programs and activities offered by others where the message focuses on combating racism and promoting social and economic justice for Black Americans and other marginalized groups in the Boston area. We believe learning and educating one’s self is an important first step that everyone can take. Unbound Visual Arts is committed to helping make that step happen. We’ll keep everyone posted on all of our efforts to be a part of the solution. Thank you for joining us. The Unbound Visual Arts' Board of Directors: Ruth Rieffanaugh, Heidi Lee, Susan Loomis-Wing, Diane Sheridan, John Quatrale, Christine Winship, Jeanne Lin, Anthony Carmoega

"Reclaiming the Pearl" Photobook!

Congratulations to UNESCO/UNITWIN Affiliate, Cyrus Konstantinakos, on the forthcoming publication of an inspiring and visually engaging photo-essay book, Reclaiming the Pearl: Uganda Through the Eyes of Human Trafficking Survivors. The volume is co-edited by Hubert H. Humphrey Program alumna, Agnes Igoye, Ugandan Deputy National Coordinator Prevention of Trafficking in Persons. Please see Cyrus' personal announcement below, along with his selection of striking images from Reclaiming the Pearl by teams of Ugandan photo-journalists.
              ~ UNESCO/UNITWIN Network

Agnes Igoye and Cyrus Konstantinakos
Photo courtesy of Cyrus

From Cyrus:

Thank you to Brenda and Nicole for inviting me to describe Reclaiming the Pearl: Uganda Through the Eyes of Trafficking Survivors for the UNESCO/UNITWIN Network blog!

This book presents photos and written text by Ugandan survivors of human trafficking and others in their production teams on the beauty of their country. It introduces wide-ranging topics, from tropical rainforests to equatorial glaciers, and from ancient kingdoms to social entrepreneurship initiatives that address the local effects of climate change.

The title, Reclaiming the Pearl, expresses two sentiments. One is the photographer-authors’ hope to raise global awareness of Uganda as “the Pearl of Africa,” as it was described by Winston Churchill in 1907. The other is a celebration of the photographer-authors themselves and the strides they are taking to revive their dreams.

Our Global Cultures is a project I’ve been fortunate to create with Humphrey Fellows, humanitarian leaders in-the-making from developing and newly industrialized countries who spend a year in the U.S. under the auspices of the U.S. State Department. For this book, I was very fortunate to team-up with Agnes Igoye, a Humphrey alumna and a global voice in the fight against human trafficking. We were also joined by Phylicia Martel, a specialist in youth, gender equity, and women’s empowerment programs at Peace Corps Uganda, where we ran our photo-essay camp. The project was made possible by a grant from the U.S. Embassy in Kampala.

This book, and others that the "Our Global Cultures" project has produced in Japan, Guam, and Nicaragua, are all motivated by the idea of “internationalization at home”—the belief that local people who may lack global mobility deserve opportunities to build global agency. Our photographer-authors have certainly done so!

Note about “group” photo credits:
We had a limited number of cameras in this project, so the production teams shared cameras, and everyone agreed to credit photos to the groups rather than individual members.

Photo Credits: Eastern Production Team

"Just a few women and their cows - making a difference in Eastern Uganda." (pgs 6-7, Reclaiming the Pearl) 

 Farmer of Mount Elgon processing Arabica coffee beans, "the pride of the Bagisu" people. (pg 8, Reclaiming the Pearl)

Photo Credits: Northern Production Team

In the Acholi Region, "agriculture remains the main industry." (pg 19, Reclaiming the Pearl)

Acholi women celebrate music and dance as "means of promoting gender equality and cohesion in the community." (pgs 22-23, Reclaiming the Pearl)

Acholi woman with calabash - "a symbol of unity in Northern Uganda." (pgs 30-31, Reclaiming the Pearl)

Photo Credit: Western Production Team

YAWE Drama Group using "song and dance to spread awareness about health and positive living." (pg 70, Reclaiming the Pearl)

Photo Credit: Afterword 

Ugandan woman cooking, providing for her community (pg 81, Reclaiming the Pearl)

UVA Virtual Exhibition Now Live!

Unbound Visual Arts Exhibition Wellness: 
Art for Physical and Emotional Healing

Date: View "live" on Monday, May 4, 2020 through June 30, 2020

Location: Online at https://www.unboundvisualarts.org/wellness-virtual-exhibit/

Description: Unbound Visual Arts (UVA), a UNESCO/UNITWIN Affiliate, is creating a series of 3-dimensional exhibits using a virtual gallery. The first one will be the very timely “Wellness: Art for Physical and Emotional Healing” which premiered at Lasell University’s Wedeman Gallery in October 2018. Cosponsors included the UNESCO/UNITWIN Network on Gender, Culture & Development at Boston University's WGS (Women's, Gender, & Sexuality Studies Program) and the Gender & International Development Initiatives of the Brandeis Women's Studies Research Center (GaIDI/WSRC). This Exhibition, curated by UVA Executive Director John Quatrale, features 13 artists (12 women!) and 29 works of art. The artists in the Exhibit showcase different understandings of health and wellness -- the wellness of a person, an animal, and even nature itself, and the interaction and relationship among all three. The artwork further demonstrates how art can help us both understand and represent the concept of wellness.

Don't forget to Save the Date!

Unbound Visual Arts Exhibition

Opening Program for Wellness: 

Art for Physical and Emotional Healing

Date: Thursday, May 21, 2020 from 7-8:30pm by Zoom
Location: Online via Zoom. Register around May 7, 2020 at https://www.unboundvisualarts.org/wellness-virtual-exhibit/
Description: The May 21st Opening Program for Unbound Visual Arts Wellness Virtual Exhibit is still evolving and may include a short tour, music, and artist talks -- and perhaps some surprise entertainment! The Exhibit may be viewed on the UVA website on May 4th and will run through June 30th. New virtual exhibits with online sales opportunities are also in the planning stages, and UVA hopes to announce calls for art very soon.

Anita Helen Cohen, Unspoiled, water color on yupo, 27 x 29 inches

Join us, and be well!

Warmly,
Brenda (on behalf of UVA, UNESCO/UNITWIN at WGS/BU, and GaIDI/WSRC)

Shahla Haeri's The Unforgettable Queens of Islam Now Published!

Photo by Walter Crump

Dr. Shahla Haeri’s new book entitled The Unforgettable Queens of Islam: Succession, Authority, Gender was published in March 2020 by Cambridge University Press. Here is the book's announcement from the Cambridge University Press, including most positive reviews & endorsements: https://www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/

history/middle-east-history/unforgettable-queens-islam-succession-authority-gender?format=PB

Shahla shared this from her new volume: "This book is about the extraordinary biographies of several Muslim women rulers and leaders who reached the apex of political systems of their times. Their stories illuminate the complex and challenging imperatives of dynastic succession, electoral competition and the stunning success they achieved in medieval Yemen and India, and modern Pakistan and Indonesia. Religious and legal justifications have been systematically invoked to justify Muslim women's banishment from politics and public domains. Yet this patriarchal domination has not gone on without serious challenges by women. The Unforgettable Queens of Islam highlights lives and legacies of a number of charismatic women engaged in fierce battles of succession, and their stories offer striking insights into the workings of political power in the Muslim world."

Congratulations to Shahla on this mega-contribution to the field!

UPDATE:

Cambridge University Press is hosting an online reading of Shahla's new book, The Unforgettable Queens of Islam, on Monday, August 31, 2020 at 10:00AM EST. 

See the cover and more about Shahla's book here: https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/unforgettable-queens-of-islam/7FE0FE031D5B7789B02A937F68883683

Congratulations to Dr. Roberta Micallef on winning Boston University's Prestigious Susan K. Jackson Award!

The UNESCO/UNITWIN Network joins WGS Director Cati Connell in applauding Roberta Micallef on winning Boston University’s Susan K. Jackson Award!

Photo courtesy BU

Dr. Micallef has been a long-standing contributor to the initiatives of our Network, including sharing her gender justice work on Turkish women in prisons, and women and gender perspectives from the Ottoman Empire to modern Turkey.

We can't say we're surprised: as announced on the CAS website, she "helps foster the unique and vibrant intellectual community of BU"—and beyond!

The energy Dr. Micallef invests in social justice concerns inspires us all! As former mentees attest, she has changed the lives of many.

Brava to Robreta for radiating creativity and commitment to the BU—and global!—communities, and for being such a great leader!