Sunday is for Horizons: Barbie alternatives FTW!

The world might be becoming a better place as I've seen alternatives for barbies (or fashion-dolls as they are called not to offend Mattel) coming up in news and posts. Here you have 3 different approaches each dealing with one of the problematic aspects of fashion dolls:  

1) The oversexualized and over-adult looks of the typical fashion doll leads us to taking the make-up off the Bratz dolls. The results are adorable. More here.

2) The unrealistic body proportions of the fashion dolls gets us to the Lammily, the doll that looks like an average teenager. 

  

3) The ubiquity of whiteness among fashion dolls is such that the fact that in Nigeria the local barbie alternative - Queens of Africa - outsell the pink-obsessed blonde.

Friday is the (Inspirational) Movie Night: Wadjda (2012)

#inspirationalmovies

Wadjda (2012, Haifaa Al-Mansour) is exactly what you expect when watching a well made movie telling you tales about cultures very different from the one you live in: gives you a general picture of a society while stating very clearly that it's by no means completely homogeneous. Very well. And when such a movie come from the first ever Saudi-Arabian female movie director, your feminist obligation is to go and watch!

The premise is very simple and compelling: What happens when a girl that's already struggling with quite restrictive cultural norms of her society gets a strong urge to trespass even more? Or, in other words, what happens when Wadjda, a young Saudi-Arabian girl, wants a bicycle?

So get the movie, gather all the children (and not so children) you care about and watch Wadjda with them. And if you live in a context different of that of Wadjda be prepared to answer many questions. Why is everybody against her having a bicycle? Why are all the women covering themselves in black when leaving their own spaces? Why are girls not to be friends with boys? Why can men have several wives (and abandon their wives if they are unable to give them male children)? Why are girls followed very closely by their teachers to make sure they behave in a certain way? Why girls suspected of a lesbian relationship publicly shamed? And so on... Most importantly, what is likely to happen with Wadjda when she gets older? What kind of life is she likely to lead?

It may also help to ask those questions to yourself too. Just to realize what are the things that you most likely take for granted in life.

Friday is the (Inspirational) Movie Night: Tomboy (2011)

#inspirationalmovies

It may be very difficult for older people to admit, but the life of young - and very young - can be extremely complex. Classical literature is full of examples, but today's one is a recent French cinema gem.

Tomboy (2011, Céline Sciamma) offers a moving story about trying to fit in better in your own body while living in an extremely gendered world.

It will (well, it could, if you'll let it) get you thinking about:
- How little external appearance tells you about people. And how - at the same time - you should respect the signals people are sending. Even if that takes you into an uncharted territory (even beyond gender binary, uh oh).
- How much inner drama and struggle is brought up when you realize that you should make serious adjustments in order to fit in. Especially if you feel that you cannot share that with anybody. Especially if people assume that you are too young to have any coherent idea about what's going on.
- How beyond the "oh, children are so cruel" stands nothing more than the boxed thinking of the adults transmitting certain notions. You cannot expect little children - those people still just ordering basic ideas about human life - to question and bend the old toxic ideas right away. Adults should lead by example.

It's bittersweet, short, and very touching. What else do you need?

Friday is the (Inspirational) Movie Night: Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)

#inspirationalmovie

Probably the most gender-not-in-the-picture movie about a girl-child that you will ever know. Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012, Benh Zeitlin) is at the same time scary (be aware of the possible trigger of very rough kind of parenting) and somehow inspiring...

If you treat it as a metaphor (yes, again, as with Picnic at Hanging Rock) - and not as an actual story of a small child wandering around, lost and scared - it is a journey of a free person in the big, wide world. Occasional damage is caused, being nature and all, but things somehow make sense, there are people you can trust and even the scariest monsters (storms, police, actual monsters) can be tamed if you stand brave and look them into eye.

An additional gem is the very young Quvenzhané Wallis who we are waiting to see in upcoming movies. While so, she's already known for not playing dumb nor fake humble. And having been nominated for a Best Actress Oscar when you're 9 is, well, AWESOME! 

Friday is the (Inspirational) Movie Night: Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

#InspirationalMovies #WesAnderson

Finally, a Wes Anderson movie where girls - OK, a girl - take active (and not sobbing and passive aggressive) decisions. Moonrise Kingdom (2012) is a cute story about love and emancipation. Also about the fact that you don't have to wait until certain (legal?) moment of becoming person or adult in order to do things that resonate with your most authentic being. And a great amount of relationship dos and do-nots you'll see are the same at every age...

Most of all keeping in mind that both Suzy and Sam were persons with their interests, conflicts and preferences before escaping (this is not Romeo and Juliet stuff on sudden transformation and emancipation by love) just that they chose to be together, too.

Sunday is the day when #GirlsDecide: Halimah

Halimah's* journey takes us to Indonesia and through the difficulties of taking an informed decision about a pregnancy when your culture and your family might not be entirely with you.

And how comprehensive sexuality education could change the entire picture...

Friday is the (Inspirational) Movie Night: Babies (2010)

#inspirationalmovie 

Oh, yes, we so are doing the cheesiest, the sweetest New Year's feature. And it's better than Disney. No, seriously... we suggest you watch Babies (2010, Thomas Balmès).

It is a feature documentary showing the first year of life for four little people in four places in the world: Japan, Mongolia, Namibia and USA.
Not to suggest that you should or should not have babies in 2013 or in any other year, but to pay attention to how socially constructed our ideas of upbringing, of care, of socialization, security, hygiene and so on are. How at the same time different and very alike we are.

And to send some unconditional love! 

And don't be afraid of watching in original version with no subtitles as they just speak baby.

International Day of the Girl Child

On the 11 October 2012 the United Nations and the world celebrate the International Day of the Girl Child to recognize girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world. This year´s activities focus on ending child marriag.

¨Child marriage denies a girl of her childhood, disrupts her education, limits her opportunities, increases her risk to be a victim of violence and abuse, jeopardizes her health and therefore constitutes an obstacle to the achievement of nearly every Millennium Development Goal (MDG) and the development of healthy communities.¨

Child Marriage is an ultimate robbery in a girl´s life.

The IHBG project aims to see generations of young girls filled with dreams and hopes, able to learn and chose their path, able to make decisions, take changes and fully enjoy life.Girls who aspire!

That is why today we asked girls about their childhood dreams.

And what did you want to become when you were a child?

 

Speciall thanks for our lovely participants: Priyanka, Chen, Kaitlin, Silvia, Paola, Mirela, Pilar, Julia, Anna, Laura, Eva, Judith, Christina, Anna, Georgina, Carol and Christina 

If I should have a daughter ... (Smaranda)

"I found this video absolutely inspirational, if for no other reason, than the passionate honesty it portrays. In essence, it's all about having the power and courage of transforming something you are passionate about, into something that can help others, while staying true to yourself."

Sarah Kay has been writing and performing spoken word poetry since she was 14. Now 23, Sarah is a successful spoken word poet and co-directs Project V.O.I.C.E. (Vocal Outreach Into Creative Expression) which encourages people, particularly young people, to use spoken word as a tool for understanding the world and self, and a medium for vital expression. It encourages them to engage and explore the world around them to better understand their culture, their society, and ultimately themselves.

Jessica's "Daily Affirmation" (Marius)

Jessica, a very content 4 year old, telling how marvelous the life is and how
she can do "anything good".

Girls & Education (Katarína)

Katarína shares with us a "fun and positive and old song" called When I'll Be a Teacher One Day (Až raz budem učitelkou) sung by Dara Rolins, now a very famous Slovak pop-star.

"There will be a lot of singing, singing everywhere
I will teach the teachers how to sing “weeee”
In the classes of singing, singing, singing
Everyone will have to know every HIT

An when we will finish with the singing,
I will start examining in those grammar exceptions,
And large multiplication tables
So they won’t think
That I’m just like any teacher."