Global Women's Issues: AFSC Past, Present, and Future Work and Perspective

Kerri Kennedy, Interim Associate General Secretary for International Programs

AFSC History

• The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) is a Quaker organization that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace, and humanitarian service.

• AFSC was founded in 1917 during World War I to give young conscientious objectors ways to serve without joining the military or taking lives.

• In 1947, the American Friends Service Committee and Friends Service Council in Britain accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of all Quakers.

1975-Present

In 1975, AFSC created a Nationwide Women’s Support Group

Goal - To be an activist body within the organization

Key objective – Infuse a feminist perspective into all goals and activities of AFSC

1975-2010

NWP’s work:

• Engaged in movement for women’s rights

• Women’s leadership to oppose militarism

• Support for impoverished women

Examples of past work

• Intl tribunal on Crimes Against Women in New York (1976)• Discussing sexism in high schools in California• Helping workers organize for day care (including AFSC offices)• Work to develop a college in a women’s prison in Pacific Southwest• Teacher training program for Arab women• Seminars and conference on the women’s movement around the

world

Where we work today

Peace building

Women and Peace Building• Over the past 25 years only one in 40 UN Chief

Peace Negotiators has been a woman.

• Yet, studies and evidence show women are vital to peace movements.

Peacebuilding

Women and Peace Building

DEP on Women's Political Participation and Lessons from Peaceful Elections

Dialogue to improve women’s participation in elections. Participants discussed

women’s role “using non-violent approaches.”

Livelihoods

Women and Sustainable LivelihoodsAccording to some estimates,

women represent 70 % of the world’s poor.

Livelihoods

Women and Sustainable LivelihoodsWomen perform 66% of the world’s work, produce 50% of the food, but earn 10% of

the income and own 1% of the property.

Livelihood

Women and Sustainable Livelihoods• Hatcliffe Extension Livelihood Restoration Program, ZimbabweOrganizing women into self-empowerment groups with specialized training and

capacity building in trades such as peanut butter making, welding, dress-making, interior décor, hairdressing, carpentry and leatherworks.

Violence

From UN Women: “The proportion of women exposed to physical violence in their lifetime ranges from 12 per cent in China, Hong Kong SAR and 13 per cent in Azerbaijan to about a half or more in Australia and Mozambique (48 per cent), the Czech Republic (51 per cent) and

Zambia (59 per cent).” And numbers are considered underreported.

P ro p o rtio n o f w o m e n e xp erie n c in g p hys ica l v io le nce (irresp e ct ive o f the perpetrator)

at le a st once in the ir life tim e a nd in the la st 12 m onth s, 1995 –20 06 (la test ava ilab le) P er ce nt

S ource: Co m pile d by the U nited N ation s Stat ist ic s D iv ision from na tiona l and inte rnationa l su rvey s o n v io le n ce a g ain st wo m en . N ote : Stat ist ic s on physica l v io len ce ag ain st w o m e n in th e last 12 m o nth s we re n ot ava ilab le fo r a ll th e cou ntrie s . D ata fo r In d ia and C a m bo d ia re fe r to ever-pa rtnere d wo m e n . D ata fo r F in lan d re fe r to a t least o n e fo rm o f v io le n ce o r th reat .

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Violence

Examples of work: Violence against womenBurrita la Paz, Guatemala (Peace Bus)•The mobile mediation center provided mediation services on site.

Violence and Cultural Leaders, Indonesia •AFSC-Indonesia Program supports Women’s House, a local women’s NGO, to work with traditional and religious leaders.

Domestic Violence and Police, Indonesia•Law enforcement officials, such as police and prison guards, play a critical role in ensuring citizen security. Police abuse or inaction in cases of reported abuse are well-recognized contributors of gender-based violence worldwide.

Human Rights/Healing

Examples of work: Human rights for prisonersWestern Mass Prison Birth Project•Convenes women who are incarcerated, who have been formerly incarcerated, prison officials, and midwives who work in prison to discuss women’s health needs in prison using a restorative ‘circle’ dialogue model

Alameda County Prison HJ Program•Works in the Federal Women’s Prison to provide self-esteem and trust-building training for women prisoners who have been victims and are also sometimes perpetrators of violence.

Human Rights/Healing

Burundi Friends Women’s Association •Provides medical and traumahealing services to women.

Education

• 2/3 of the world’s illiterate adults (ages 15 and over) are women.

• When a girl in the developing worldreceives 7 or more years of education,she marries 4 years later and has 2.2fewer children.

Youth

• Support youth participation and civic engagement and advocacy around the world.

Youth

• Support youth participation and civic engagement and advocacy around the world.

Engage

• Women all over the world have the ability and the drive to address and resolve these global issues which stunt progress and hurt families and communities.

• When women’s participation increases to critical mass in politics, diversity and representation increase and corruption decreases. In the U.S., policy outcomes improve.

• The most important thing you can do to help a developing country is educate and invest in a GIRL so that she can change the world.

• http://www.girleffect.org/

Thank you!