Being on twitter and watching women I know and women I follow and other women who I have no connection with sharing stories of the same type of abuse was Powerful.
Women took over a section of twitter, made it their own safe space, shared stories and supported each other. Complete strangers read echos of what happened to them in the words of another woman, and saw other women struggling with the same feelings of frustration, anger hurt and disappointment.
It was the best solidarity and awareness raising excise I have ever seen and over 10,000 women took part over 36 hours. I saw men shocked and learning, I saw women connecting and finding each other and finding others who lived near them.
While being on twitter denotes a level of education to be literate enough and to have access via phone or pc, it is a very democratic space.
#Yesallwomen I see as a tipping point, yes it is by no means a goal in it’s self, but a start to more women not putting up with such treatment and knowing they are not alone and will be believed. They know that they have other women they can share with if they are in that situation again and are looking to gather up their courage to speak up and speak out.
Never underestimate the power of having 20 other kickass and supportive women (and men) in your pocket, whom you can talk to via twitter.
“Men; when women are sharing their lived experiences of violence and sexual abuse and harassment, your first impulse should *not* be to fire back a wounded “Hey, we’re not all like that!” Believe it or not, everything is not about you. Just because you’re not like these men you’ve decided are monsters, that doesn’t mean that your work here is done. Examine your attitudes and behaviour. Have the courage to call out friends. Listen to women; sometimes the best way you can contribute when marginalised groups are speaking out about their lives is to take a step back, listen, reflect.
Voting is important, the more people in your housing estate which are registered and bother to go and collect a ballot, not matter who they vote for or even if they spoilt the vote, it’s noted. The level of participation does make a difference when it comes to allocating resources. It will take 5 to 10 minutes out of your day to to go trade your polling card for your ballot and then what you do with it, it is up to you.
Even with all the candidates which are running in the 3 regions very few of them are openingly prochoice.
* how ever it seems that the person whom Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan has nominated to take his seat if he can not fill the one in the EU parliament is pro life.
But the garda whistleblower, John Wilson, is happy to chat. Wilson, who underwent bowel cancer surgery in March, had intended to run as a Mingist independent candidate here (there is an actual inky Ming stamp of approval, bestowed on 15 approved local election candidates) but has just withdrawn for health reasons. He remains Ming’s “deeply proud and honoured” first sub for Europe.
“I’m pro-life and anti-drugs – I’d ban tobacco if I could”, says Wilson, “but he still chose me. He’s just a really genuine, decent individual . . .”
If you have any more info about candidates, leave a comment or catch me on twitter.
11am 23/05/2014 Updates
South independant Jillian Godsil
Midlands north west Independant Cordelia Níc Fhearraigh
This is very hard to do it seems. Each county Council is meant to have a list online of candidates who are running and how to contact them. But from talking to friends, it’s spotty at best.
However as I have stated in my other blog it is easier for us to try and communicate with them and to pool resources with each other to ask the questions we think are important and that for me is who is ProChoice. If two candidates are weighing up for me equally this will be the decider, or may rule out someone who other wise I would vote for.
So here is a link to a list of all the candidates I could find who are running in the local elections and how to contact them.
This week I will be voting in the Eu elections, local elections and a by election in Dublin West. So why am I asking Candidates to the EU parliament, if they are pro choice?
Policies set in the EU parliament effect us here in Ireland and it is to the EU court of human rights Irish women have to go again and again to try and get access to the health care we need in our own country. Currently there is report, called the Estrela, which sought to make clear that reproductive rights are human rights and
the importance of making contraception widely available, comprehensive sex education and quality family planning services. It also says that women have the right to decide freely and responsibly the number, timing and spacing of their children and underlines the importance of safe abortions.
It was rejected by an anti-choice alliance, will the candidate you are voting for join that anti choice alliance or will they work in Europe on your behalf to ensure that Ireland moves to give women the health care we the need here?
So why am I asking Candidates in the local elections if they are pro choice?
The majority of candidates who are running the local elections to be members of the County Council are members of political parties. They get to have input to party policy and to the debates and discussion which happen before a party adopts a stance on any issue. Often those who get elected to the County Council go on to seek election to the Dáíl, so it’s good to know what their stance is.
Also over the last 12 months we have seen County Councils passing motions in support of a referendum on the issue of Marriage Equality, hopefully we will see County Councils passing motions in support of a referendum to Repeal the 8th Amendment.
So why am I asking Candidates in the by elections if they are pro choice?
The Dáil is one of our legislative bodies, we have seen the how important it is when we have has several bills come to be voted upon in the Dáil chamber that our elected representatives be willing to vote in accordance with the wishes of the people who elected them. We need to let them know we are pro choice, that we will not wait 20 more years for the next abortion legislation and we do not want them to wait either.
So why I am Voting Prochoice ?
Because I don’t ever want to give any preference to someone who thinks women like me who have had abortions are murders, who think that they can be the gate keeper to the abortion rights which the majority of people in Ireland agree we should have. I do not want any one who thinks it is ok for women to have to travel to get the health care they need to be voted in to a position of any significance via my vote.
