| INTRODUCTION In spring 2000, US Women
Connect (USWC) launched Girls Speak Up, an online working group for girls to discuss
progress that has been made since the UN Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing,
China, in 1995. Throughout the five weeks, girls were encouraged to discuss the following
topics:
Leadership
Self-esteem
School
and careers
Health and wellness
Violence
Research
about girls
Girls' rights
Goals:
To assess progress in the U.S. toward the goal of
advancing girls participation and rights five years after the World Conference on Women in
Beijing.
To identify obstacles to progress
To identify lessons learned
To identify future actions and directions to be taken
To connect girls' voices from around the country to
strengthen the national women's movement in the context of the Beijing review process.
Scope:
The Girls Speak Up listserv was in operation for five
weeks. It was launched April 22 and ran through May 27, 2000. Participation was limited to
girls through age 18.
Twenty five girls registered for the Working Group.
The result of this working group is a set of ideas about
how far the public and the U.S. government have come in realizing the goals of the
Platform for Action at the national level.
Although the results cannot be interpreted as a
comprehensive survey of girls' experiences, they do serve to enlighten us about a number
of U.S. girls' concerns. The girls' words suggest ways in which both girls and adults can
work to meet girls' needs and improve their lives. Finally, as one girl explained, the
working group was a much-needed opportunity for girls to talk about their lives in their
own words:
Thank you so much for doing what you are doing. I'm
tired of girls being all pathetic and helpless because they are girls. We have to dress in
tight things, talk about boys and wear makeup to be popular,' and it's getting old. It's
time something happened to make us girls known! Thank you!
OBSTACLES TO PROGRESS:
Throughout the working group conversation, girls repeatedly
identified common obstacles they believe hinder girls from achieving equality and respect.
These barriers include:
Inadequate formal and informal education about topics
such as sexual assault and women's history;
Lack of reliable and comprehensive health information and
services;
Persistent and widespread stereotyping of girls and
devaluation of their abilities;
Insufficient public awareness of girls' needs and issues.
LESSONS LEARNED (with
selected discussion highlights)
The girls' conversation clearly identified ways in which
girls and adults can improve girls' lives. Their suggestions include:
˜ Girls and women's issues must be integrated
into all aspects of school curricula. Both schools and families must do a better job of
incorporating women and girls into formal and informal education.
Discussion highlight:
When girls were asked if they learn about girls' and
women's lives at school, most girls answered negatively. One girl explained, AI really
can't think of one woman or girl that we actually learned about. In contrast, another girl
detailed the support and comprehensive education she receives at an all-girls' high
school: AI am fortunate enough to learn from a faculty that believes as strongly as I do
that we need to learn more about women and their place in history. Every class that I take
is required by the school to touch on different things that women have done in this
field....
˜ Adults must take an active role in mentoring
girls and encouraging their opinions. They must also be active participants in creating an
environment that validates girls' ideas and teaches girls and boys about girls' needs.
Discussion highlight:
Mentors play an important role in one 17-year-old
girl's life. She told the group, As far as mentors go, I think I have been very lucky. I
have several adults in my life with whom I can discuss personal issues.... Personally, I
have been treated with a lot of respect for the most part.
˜Girls' issues must become more prominent,
both at community, national and international levels.Women, men, boys and girls must be
more aware and informed about issues affecting girls.
Discussion highlight:
One girl specifically noted the positive outcomes of
increased awareness about girls' issues: I think that there needs to be a lot more
international awareness against harassment, discrimination, etc. Maybe if there was more
awareness, the amount of violence, discrimination, etc. would go down by a lot.
˜ Health education must begin earlier and must
address girls' specific needs. Girls also must have access to reliable health information
and services.
Discussion highlight:
Many girls noted the lack of information about health
issues particular to girls. Said one girl, I think some of the biggest issues for girls
are issues such as STDs and their period, etc. In school, we don't learn very much about
it until we know about it already, or it has happened to you already, and we should be
better informed ahead of time. She further explained that secrecy surrounding girls'
health issues makes many girls think their bodies are gross: Society has made girls think
that getting their period is gross and disgusting, and most girls are afraid to get it
until it happens. This makes it hard to talk to your friends because they think it's
nasty.
˜ Girls want and need the opportunity to take
an active role in issues and programs affecting girls and women. Community organizations,
especially, can play a role in meeting girls' needs.
Discussion highlight:
Girls gave specific examples of activism they have
participated in. In my youth group, one girl explained, we learned about battered women
and
then made signs with phone numbers to hang in bathrooms
in nearby buildings. Another contributed: I went to a special thing that the YMCA put out
called Girls Night Out, where we learned some self-defense moves and how to generally
protect yourself. That made me feel more confident about being able to protect myself, and
I think it is a good program.
FUTURE
ACTIONS/DIRECTIONS
The Girls Speak Up working group outlined specific steps
educators, parents and others can take to better meet girls' needs. Such actions include:
Schools must incorporate girls' and women's lives and
history into curricula.
Adults must serve as role models to girls.
One example is by not participating in violence but instead by taking a noticeable stand
against it.
Schools and community organizations must provide
literature and programs on girls' and women's health and other issues.
The media and others must work to dismantle harmful
stereotypes about girls and women and create inclusive and diverse representations of
girls' lives.
Girls and adults should educate themselves about girls'
issues and become active in their community around these issues.
CLOSING
Girls want and need the support of parents, mentors and
teachers. Such adults can validate girls' experience, teach them about themselves and help
them become strong women. Girls are experts about their lives, and we must continue to ask
them about their experiences and desires. It is imperative that more comprehensive
programs and policies are established, with girls' input, to fill the gaps in girls'
education and meet girls' needs. By doing so, we will ensure that girls will achieve their
full potential.
Submitted by: Alison Pflepsen,
Working Group Moderator Northwestern University Graduate Peace Corps Volunteer- Mali,
Board Member, US Women Connect
* Organizational names are listed for
identification purposes only. |
