Chapter 4: Celebrating Ourselves (International Women’s Day #BreakTheBias)

International Women’s Day - a day to celebrate, empower and support all the amazing, courageous, and bold women across the globe. Those who have faced detrimental experiences, and those who have used these to conquer and uplift themselves to achieve their goals. It is important to acknowledge not every woman has had the opportunities to overcome the challenges they face. This is simply because women around the world, albeit more in some countries, are not offered the same rights or privileges to be vocal, to be heard, and to fulfil their dreams. However, through collective trials and triumphs we as women have grown stronger as recognition, in the form of events like this one, has increased.

With this being said, I firmly believe more needs to be done, and we are definitely not there yet. On Tuesday 8th March 2022, the University of Reading held an event for International Women’s Day to embrace the progress made, and share stories which were emotionally inspiring. The theme of this year’s event was ‘Break the bias’, where numerous guest speakers appeared to share their values in various forms. First and foremost, we had the deputy vice chancellor, Professor Parveen. She spoke on a personal and cultural aspect of gender bias, something which I could relate to, discussing the lessons she had learnt, and that ultimately converted into a rage of empowerment. One of the values she taught me was that even with unsupportive relations and misogynistic perceptions, that stem from traditional views, you can still achieve your own aspirations. No matter how unattainable your dreams may seem, resilience is the key to unlocking your potential.

Another delightful insight was the performance showcased by a choir who sang passionately and delivered songs such as ‘Your Song’ by Elton John and ‘This is me’ from the movie ‘The Greatest Showman’, starring Zac Efron and Zendaya (who you may have heard of!). Next, we had Professor Rosa Freedman, the Professor of Law, Conflict, and global development. She touched upon the heartfelt humanitarian crisis that is happening in Ukraine, and she especially focused on the impact it had on women and young girls. She clearly stresses the significance of how women are being exploited to sexual harassment and trafficking. Professor Freedman raised awareness specifically on the unknown dangers of females being victimised, whether it was within sight or hidden. There were incidents that highlighted women and girls being abused. A few shocking points that Professor Freedman voiced surprised me, in 2001 a scandal occurred where a charity organisation was helping to distribute food to the targeted country, in exchange for oral sex or other sexual activity. In hindsight, this speech enlightened me by providing a new perspective on how women are treated globally, and more attention needs to be raised so that we can support the safety of women and girls.

Sarah Hacker, a community fundraiser from Alana House, proposed a profound and emotional talk on a project that encourages and empowers women by offering them a ‘confidential, women – only, and non-judgemental support system’. Women can seek advice and help about the trauma and disadvantages they have gone through as an individual. The utilisation of implementing a holistic approach means they can identify and understand the core, multiple struggles one may face. Alana House caters for all women, from any background, to ensure that they can be rehabilitated and restore the confidence that they once had. I see it as a source of therapy for women to rebuild, refresh and redirect themselves as a poised, assured individual. It gives them a chance to find themselves. Areas that Alana House oversee are the importance of ‘mental health, domestic abuse and the relationships they have with their child, partners or families’. Alana House have worked with the University of Reading to devise a book called ‘Love, Trust, Hope’, it is filled with nourishing and nurturing poems, stories and recipes that delegate and feed positivity and a source of love, trust and hope to all the women who are finding themselves, or who have found themselves but need a boost of encouragement, motivation and confidence.

For the next guest speakers, I held my breath with excitement, it was the Poets’ Café in Reading. Zannah Kearns and Vic Pickup, who beautifully shared their masterpieces, presented their favourite pieces of poetry as well as reading their own. Their production was inviting; they spoke on their values and what the poet café has to contribute. As an individual who writes poetry myself, I admired the powerful message they bought through their creative work. I feel it connected with a different audience and provided an innovative and diverse way of communicating various themes and ideas. I find poetry very rewarding, for me it is a source to express my thoughts and views. The Poet Café is located at the South Street Centre by the Reading Stanza (every second Friday of the month and it is an evening event), they have a variety of guest speakers to perform and an open mic (which I am looking forward to attend), this is a chance to share and vocalise your own personal message. The Poet Café also have online sessions which is held the third Friday of the month. Creativeness isn’t always valued or even noticed as an empowering element however, it is just as important as the use of academic skills and should be predominantly encouraged.

Now without the support of our next guest, we would not have been able to hold this event in the first place. A special thank you to the vice chancellor, Professor Robert Van de Noort, for supporting the team to organise and run the event. He gave a talk and acknowledged the struggles that women undergo, highlighting what he hopes to see alteration within the University. When discussing this topic with him, I found out he plays a huge role in advocating change made at the University, but more importantly to understand the problems and issues beforehand. I’m sure we can all agree that although it is vital for women to unite and vocalise their experiences and issues, it is also essential that it is a combined effort to reach the goal of breaking the bias, by educating everyone in the most effective ways. This may take some time but with perseverance, an optimistic mindset, and determination, we can do it!

To end the event, we had a team of cheerleaders who pulled off a thrilling performance. They began with a message on how cheerleading is perceived as a female dominated sport and how cheerleaders are often targeted as victims of sexual harassment and abuse, when performing in front of other male counterparts. Nevertheless, this didn’t stop them from giving an outstanding act. It is this message that requires awareness, the notion behind gender stereotypes and gender bias needs to be dismantled. We also need to work together to combat these and be well-informed, in the hope that we are able to achieve gender equality for all.

A massive thank you to everyone! Thank you to all the guest speakers for coming and making this event one of the best we have ever had, thank you for speaking with me and sharing your personal stories. Thank you to Suzy Tutchell, Carol Fuller, Cecilia Muldoon, Elizabeth Conaghan, Fay Alsawaha, Fatima Zahra Abbou, Ayishia Jones, Pam Cottrell, and Victoria Ely - the amazing team who have worked behind this for months to bring it all together! Without you all, this event would not have been a success, together we have united to support and celebrate all the amazing women around the world.

Together we can!

International Women’s Day, UoR

#BreakTheBias