From iwtc@igc.apc.orgSat Aug 26 01:56:40 1995 Date: Thu, 24 Aug 1995 12:56:48 -0700 From: International Women's Tribune Centre Reply to: beijing-conf@tristram.edc.org To: BEIJING-CONF@tristram.edc.org Subject: NAACP Workshop Announcement ***************************************************************** This message was posted by IWTC to the GlobalNet list at the request of NAACP Legal and Educational Fund, Inc. For more information please contact: Lucy Taylor at telephone (1-212) 219-1900 and fax (1-212) 226-7592. ***************************************************************** BEIJING AND BEYOND: LINKING UP BLACK WOMEN IN THE U.S. TO A WORLD WIDE STRUGGLE -- DEVELOPING A GLOBAL STRATEGY TO STEM THE GROWING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN Sponsored By: Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Dear Sisters: The Lawyers' Committee invites your participation at a workshop on violence against women at the NGO Forum on Women in China on September 2, beginning from 9:00 - 11:00am, in Room 11-M61. This workshop will focus on violence against Black women in the United States and will explore differences and similarities to violence against other women. All too often, the experiences of African American women specifically and women of color generally have been obscured or treated as invisible in feminist, antiracist, and other discourses that do not fully reveal the multiple-dimensions of their lives. By highlighting violence against African American women, the workshop will attempt to initiate a conversation around dilemmas women face at the intersection of race and gender in confronting violence. The goal of the workshop is to identify the historical and current contexts of violence against African American women, as well as to explore effective responses to and solutions for this violence. We will also examine global strategies, such as the Call For A Worldwide Campaign to End Violence Against Women. Clearly, violence is an issue that concerns all women. The rape and murder of and brutality against women around the world is on the rise. In the U.S., domestic violence accounts for 30 percent of all emergency room visits by women. There is a growing consensus among all regions of the world that violence against women must be combatted. When understood as a human rights concern, violence against women embraces a broad range of concerns, including the violence associated with poverty. Through personal testimony, presentations by advocates, and discussion, some of the issues we hope to explore include the following: * identification of the particular needs of African American women -- similarities and dissimilarities with other women around the globe * creative strategies implemented by women on a grass roots level and bold public policy and legal initiatives that work -- the potential for replicating effective strategies that are sensitive to community needs, e.g., preventive educational programs, victim assistance efforts, enhanced law enforcement * public responsibility for violence against women in the "private sphere" -- dilemmas posed when law enforcement officials devalue claims by women of color, but target men of color for police brutality and disproportionate arrests and prosecutions * the relevance of feminist, antiracist, international solidarity, and human rights movements and paradigms for addressing violence and mobilizing opposition to it * our rights as human rights -- bringing lessons from Beijing back home to our communities so that our local struggles can benefit from global action These are not the only important areas of discussion, so please bring your own ideas to the workshop. There will be a few presenters, as well as general discussion. The room can accommodate 70 participants. We are very excited to have the opportunity to meet women from around the world and hope that through collaboration, we can help to forge a global network on this important issue. We look forward to your participation!