The Real Heroes of Feminism
Feminists: Partricia Arquette, Zooey Deschanel, Emma Watson, Mindy Kaling, Taylor Swift, Beyonce and Lena Dunem. These celebrities are integral to the feminist movement and it is very much part of their identity. Without them, feminism would not be as much of a talking point for women. But here’s a list of feminists we don’t hear about in the media as often, the woman that have fought for women's rights but are currently in jail or are under threat for fighting for feminism.
China: Wu Rongrong, Wang Man, Zheng Churan, Li Tingting and Wei Tingting.
In China, five feminists are currently being detained on suspicion of “picking quarrels and creating a disturbance”, for their plan to highlight sexual harassment on International Women’s Day.
The women are famous for their work in women’s and LGBT rights and have performed such stunts as shaving their heads for inequality in higher education, storming male restrooms to demonstrate the inadequacy of women’s facilities and paraded through the streets in wedding dresses splashed with blood to increase awareness of domestic violence.
On Woman's Day 2015 the woman had planned to distribute stickers with slogans such as “Police: go arrest those who committed sexual harassment” but were arrested.
Image Source: BBC
Guatemala: Norma Cruz
Guatemalan human rights defender and winner of the 'International Woman of Courage Award' Norma Cruz is the leader of the women’s rights organization ‘Survivors’ Foundation’ and has received a severe backlash for her work in supporting victims of violence against women, including death threats.
Currently, there is an Amnesty investigation and petition to protect Cruz and her work by prosecuting those that have threatened her.
The campaign will play a role in guaranteeing that the Guatemalan authorities continue to provide security to her, her family, and other staff at the 'Survivors' foundation.
This will not only help her protection but also the protection of all girls that have been victims of violence.
But her threats have still not been investigated by the Guatemalan authorities, so her work in helping woman that have suffered violence and the families of those who have been brutally murdered is still under threat.
Image Source: zimbio.com
Egypt: Azza Soliman
Lawyer and WHRD (Woman’s human rights defender) Azza Soliman is currently under persecution in Egypt.
Soliman is the founder of the Centre for Women's Legal Assistance (CEWLA) , a feminist organisation that campaigns to promote gender equality.
Soliman was witness to the killing of Shaimaa ElSabbagh, an activist who was shot and killed on 24 January 2015 for participating in a peaceful assembly.
Soliman voluntarily gave a testimony to prosecution office on the same night of the incident and blamed the police for the death of Shaimaa ElSabbagh.
Soliman at the time of the incident was near in a restaurant but not part of the actual assembly.
But on the 23rd of March 2015, the Prosecution Office in Cairo changed Soliman’s status from being a witness to the killing of Shaimaa ElSabbagh to a defendant and was accused of protesting illegally and breaching public order and security under the Protest Law #107 of 2013.
Human rights defenders and journalists are continually being persecuted by their own government in Egypt.
As well as Soliman, 15 members the Socialist Popular Alliance Party who witnessed the killing of Shaimaa ElSabbagh have been charged also with unauthorized protesting.
Image Source: kvinfo.com
Honduras: Gladys Lanza
Human rights defender Gladys Lanza was arrested following her conviction, on charges of defamation and slander, after she supported a victim who was fired after they were reportedly sexually harassed by their boss, the Executive Director of the FUNDEVI (Foundation for Development of Urban and Rural Social Housing). He was cleared of all charges.
Lanza is the coordinator of the Honduran Women's Committee for Peace "Visitación Padilla", a group of women human rights defenders from Honduras who work on issues such as gender violence and democracy and human rights in Honduras.
Lanza has been arrested before, for speaking out about sexism in Honduras before.
In Honduras, violent deaths among women increased by 263.4% from 2005 to 2013 and in 2013, a woman was murdered somewhere in the country every 15 hours. (The Guardian)
Image Source: The Guardian
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