More #RISEINSOLIDARITY Events in India

Published: 9 February 2017

Gender Fair at Shivaji College– On the 2nd of Feb, the Shivaji College of Delhi University celebrated its first day of a two-day Gender Fair, held in partnership with One Billion Rising and others. Kamla Bhasin was invited as chief guest to this fair, and spoke to several hundred students and teachers about gender equality, violence against women and girls, masculinity, and One Billion Rising. The Gender Fair also saw the participation of many of our OBR partners, including Manas Foundation, Azad Foundation, CFAR, Centre for Health and Social Justice, Asmita Theatre and others. Kamla Bhasin also moderated an excellent panel discussion on ‘Gender Identity: Myth or Reality’, which hosted a series of panelists, including a police officer, writer, professor, transgender advocate for transgender rights, and activist who has been working on masculinity and engaging men for gender equality for over a decade. The panel discussion was rich and vibrant, and the engagement of the students was very meaningful. The gender fair also hosted a session with garment workers, as a key theme for this year’s OBR is the exploration of women workers. The fair will also honor a number of women who are working at a grassroot level on issues of gender equality, including a number of Sangat’s friends as well as Sangat Core Group Member Rukmini Rao.

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Challenging Hatred and Violence through Music-On the 19th of January we challenged violence and hatred through music, through an evening organized by One Billion Rising and Ek Saath*. For three hours, Dhwani, Sonam Kalra, Shabnam Virmani, and Parvathy Baul mesmerized us with their music and messages of love, equality, and peace. We ended the evening with our hearts full of joy and hope, hope that a world free of hatred and violence against women and girls is possible. More than 450 people joined us for this program, held at the Stein Auditorium at the India Habitat Centre. The evening may have been cold, but our hearts were very warm.

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