Innovations for Advancing Women’s Rights: Beijing +25 & Beyond

2020-2021 Virtual Event Series

The 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing was a turning point for the global women’s movement. The outcome of the conference, the Beijing Declaration and the Platform for Action (BPfA), was adopted unanimously by 189 countries and is considered "the most progressive blueprint ever for advancing women’s rights."

What did the Beijing Declaration achieve? How are youth activists maximizing Beijing +25 to advance women’s human rights today? How can Art be a tool for activism? Through intergenerational dialogue between Activists and Artists, this series will explore innovations in women’s rights advocacy.

The series is organized by the Feminist and Women's Movement Action Plan, the Global Health Justice and Governance Program at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, and the Columbia Law School Human Rights Institute.

For more information on the history and significance of the Beijing Conference and the Platform for Action, check out these resources:

EVENTS

Lessons from the Movement to Overturn Ireland’s Abortion Ban: The 8th Film Screening with Panel Discussion (Recording here)
Friday, March 26 | 12:00-1:00 pm

In 2018, Irish people voted to overturn one of the strictest abortion bans in the world. Join Irish Activists Ailbhe Smyth and Andrea Horan, along with Aideen Kane, Filmmaker of "The 8th," Leah Hoctor from The Center for Reproductive Rights, and Dr. Wendy Chavkin from Global Doctors for Choice as they discuss how activists overturned the ban.

Cross-Sectoral Approaches to Ending Gender-Based Violence: Art, Activism, and Research (Recording here)
Thursday, January 28 | 12:00- 1:00 pm

Join the Human Rights Institute and the Mailman School of Public Health's Global Health Justice and Governance Program for an interdisciplinary conversation between researchers, artists, and activists about approaches to ending gender-based violence (GBV), and the increase in GBV during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moderated by Professor Terry McGovern, a panel of four experts, including Yolanda Dyantyi (South Africa-based activist/ artist), Dr. Nicoletta Mabhena (medical doctor and population-based epidemiologist), Anna MacDonald (international campaigner and advocate), and Etaf Reum (author, A Woman Is No Man), will discuss art, research, and activism as tools to bring to light and advocate for ending gender-based violence.

A Musical Meditation on Women's Suffrage and the Fight for Intersectionality (Recording here)
Monday, November 2 | 12:30 - 1:30 pm

This event will feature a recording of The Dream Unfinished: An Activist Orchestra’s community reading of Fanny Lou Hamer’s speech, “I am Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired.” In this speech Fanny Lou Hamer, voting rights activist and civil rights leader highlighted the injustices she and others in her community faced in securing their right to vote. Although Fannie Lou Hamer made this speech in 1964, these injustices are still prevalent today. The recording will play for the first 20-30 minutes of the event and the final 30 minutes will be a discussion about arts and civic engagement, voting rights, and current voter suppression. Featuring Sarah Overton, Production Manager, The Dream Unfinished Orchestra; Amshula Jayaram, Senior Campaign Strategist, Demos; and Jennifer Wilson, Deputy Director, League of Women Voters of NYS.

How the Beijing Women’s Conference Speaks to Us Today (Recording here)
Friday, September 18 | 12:00 pm - 1:20 pm

This event will also be a community-driven event for the UN75 Global Governance Forum.

This event features an intergenerational dialogue between activists who attended the Beijing conference and youth leaders facing the crises of our times. Did the Beijing Platform go far enough? How helpful is it to address gender issues today? Who wasn’t included in the original drafting? How can governments be held accountable for it? What are our demands for the future of women’s rights? Through personal narratives, the speakers will bridge the themes of the Beijing conference with current movements for gender equality. Join us for a conversation with women's rights activists and experts Charlotte Bunch (Center for Women's Global Leadership at Rutgers University), Zonibel Woods (Gender, Climate Change and Sustainable Development Consultant), Rahima Sajid (Malala Fund, International Alliance of Women), Dr. Uzma Gul (The Commonwealth Youth Network for Peace), moderated by Soon-Young Yoon (Women's Environment and Development Organization).

Art As Activism: Documenting Change (Recording here)
Friday, October 9 | 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm

From the Harlem Renaissance through the Civil Rights Movement, to today, we celebrate the radical practices of creatives across the globe working to advance civic and social justice issues. Join William Crow and Stacie Brennan from Lehigh University Art Galleries to explore the Doing Democracy Exhibition and Jennifer Mock from Columbia University's Wallach Art Gallery to explore the Uptown Triennial 2020 exhibition, as they create connections between visual representation and how artists and photographers document change through the creation of their artistic practice.

20 Years of UNSCR 1325: The Link Between Peace and Gender Equity (Recording here)
How the Beijing Women’s Conference Speaks to Us Today: Peace
Friday, October 30 | 9:30 am - 10:50 am

October 31, 2020 marks the 20th anniversary of the UNSCR 1325, which reaffirmed the contributions women make to peace. It urges actors to incorporate gender perspectives in all UN peace and security efforts and calls on parties to conflict to protect women and girls from gender-based violence. Join Krishanti Dharmaraj (Center for Women's Global Leadership, Rutgers University), Lina Abou Habib (Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship, American University of Beirut), Nicole Musimbi (Global Network of Women Peacebuilders), Elvira Pablo Antonio (indigenous lawyer), Efua Acquaah-Harrison Owusu (ICAP, Columbia University), and Soon-Young Yoon (International Alliance of Women) for an inter-generational discussion on the links between peace and conflict and women’s equity, including the culture of violence in the home, cities, and countries; and restoring the culture of peace by conflict resolution and through justice systems.

EVENT SERIES CO-SPONSORS

Columbia Society of International Law
Columbia University Institute for the Study of Human Rights
NGO CSW/NY
RightsLink
Soroptimist International

Please note that all sessions will be recorded and published, contingent on consent from presenters in each. Attendees should be mindful of this in case their personal information, including possibly name, picture, or video appears at any time during any of the recordings.

Columbia University makes every effort to accommodate individuals with disabilities. Please notify us at least 10 days in advance if you require closed captioning, sign-language interpretation or any other disability accommodations. Alternatively, Disability Services can be reached at 212.854.2388 and [email protected].