Celebrating Global Sisterhood Recognizes Women's Triumps And Struggles

By Kexin Yue

Miami University journalism student

Women’s rights are always a hot topic in politics, but the issue has gained more visibility since the Women’s March on Washington earlier this year. The march grew out of concern over the way President Donald Trump would handle women's issues while in office.

According to a Pew Research Center survey, 60 percent of voters say Trump has little or no respect for women, with 36 percent saying he has no respect for women at all.

Here at Miami, the Women's Center works to support women's "personal and professional development" while also advocating for women's rights at the university and beyond.

The Celebrating Global Sisterhood is one of the Women's Center's signature events. Formerly known as the Women of Color Celebration, the first such gathering happened in 2001.

Women's Center Director Jane Goettsch says the purposes of the event is to expose participants to the accomplishments, contributions, and struggles that women of different backgrounds experience and to explore the global issues women face.

Picking A Place In The World

Roxanne Ornelas was this year’s keynote speaker. An associate professor of geography, Ornelas also directs Miami's Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies program.

Ornelas highlighted the idea that having a sense of place could help people gain a better understanding of the world around them.

"It’s no longer acceptable to continue on from this space at place without a plan for actions in the future. It’s no longer a matter of finding our place in the world, it’s a matter of picking our place in the world," Ornelas says during her talk.

Goettsch thinks Ornelas’s ideas about picking a place to work toward change from is especially important for members of marginalized groups.

"I love her remark, I'm still thinking about her comment that space is a more temporary place," Goettsch says. "I think of that in terms of the Women's Center as an actual place, and how important it is for people with oppressed or marginal identity to have actual, physical places."

At the end of the talk, Ornelas encouraged the audience to deconstruct the abusive and violent patriarchy system by supporting women in leadership.

"We have the ability to rise and organize beyond our wildest imaginings," Ornelas says. "Women's rights are human rights."

Be Open About Experiences

About 150 people showed up for the event on March 7, with attendees coming from the university and broader communities.

In addition to Ornelas's keynote, Celebrating Global Sisterhood also featured student testimonials. Lydia Yellow Hawk was one of those.

Originally from Rosebud, South Dakota, Yellow Hawk is majoring in anthropology. As a Native American woman, Hawk talked about the U.S. government's treatment of Native Americans and how it has impacted people today. She says the response to her talk has made her feel more comfortable sharing her story.

“I was really happy to hear people say that my talk was motivational and encouraging for them,” Hawk says. “So I can keep expressing myself and my Native Americans identity and have it be respected in a positive light.”

Goettsch says the purpose of having student testimonials is to provide a variety of cultural experiences to the public.

"Those are just absolutely from the heart," Goettsch says. "They are such a window into what students can experience here, both positives and negatives."

Moving Forward

Ornelas told the audience that "all of you prove how far we have come" during her talk, as she explained that changes in the rights of women have progressed slowly.

The Celebrating Global Sisterhood event capped off with the Jennie Elder Suel Distinguished Woman of Color Award. Marsha Robinson, Michelle Thomas, and Patricia Ellis all received the award in recognition of their contributions to student success.

"This is one of the events that the community feels strongly about, because many women of color in our community have won the award in the past, so that is a strong connection to this event," Goettsch says. "We see a lot of them come back."

Megan Zimmerer is a junior from Finneytown and is a Muslim who began wearing hijab her senior year of high school. She also spoke at the event.

Zimmerer says she thinks Miami University deals with similar women’s issues to other universities and regions throughout the United States. When talking about what can be done to bring women's issues to light, she says the best way is to empower the Women's Center.

"The Women's Center does a fantastic job of bringing human rights to the public's attention," says Zimmerer.

For Yellow Hawk, she suggests Miami should be more open to helping women who deal with issues on and off campus.

"There is a Women’s Studies program that students can enroll in, maybe advertise those classes more, create a campaign for fostering women's protection," Yellow Hawk says. "Women need to be more respected and shouldn’t have their voices silenced."

Photo: Attendees waiting for the reception to start. --Photo by Kexin Yue