Mondays Are For Media Maladies

So now I think maybe New York City is in the cards for me. I feel like a swinging pendulum with equal momentum in both directions - Washington, New York, Washington, New York. If only something would spring forth to pull me closer to one.

NYC is all things international this week with the convening of the United Nations General Assembly, Climate Week, and the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI). I perused several news sites today and noticed something: Former President Bill Clinton was getting a lot of press for CGI - it has been touted as the new United Nations for the level of effectiveness in resolving international disputes and crises.

Amidst all this lauding, however, Secretary of State Hilary Clinton received minimal press, even after her excellent negotiating skills a few weeks ago with the Israeli/Palestinian talks. It was as if Big Bad Bill came on the scene with his media-making presence and blew away her credibility (okay, a bit strong, but read on).

Then I came across one of the most ridiculous and sexist news clippings I have ever seen. The Huffington Post headline: "Hilary Revives the Hair Clip". In the article, the author debates whether Clinton wearing a hair clip to the United Nations was appropriate or "too casual". Um, excuse me? Who cares what she's wearing?! The woman has proved her foreign relations chops and salience in one of the highest positions of power in the world. She can wear ten clips in her hair and I would be more interested in what she had to say about the detiorating situation in Sudan. I just find it so darn intriguing how Clinton the husband is lauded for work of his incredible organization (and it is a marvel) and Clinton the wife is covered for the way she decided to wear her hair.

A Woman's View of Afghanistan

The evening before the ninth anniversary of September 11th,  I attended a talk given by American photojournalist, Paula Lerner, who discussed the lives of Afghan women today. Lerner has collaborated with The Globe and Mail's (an excellent news source) Jessica Leeder to produce a series of multimedia presentations called Behind the Veil, a look into the experience of being a women in Afghanistan.  I highly recommend checking out all the website has to offer: vibrant interviews and on-the-ground knowledge of the current Afghan situation from the view of the women, who I believe are the most affected by the strife currently plaguing a country that has so captivated the Western world.

During her talk, Lerner spoke about her travels to Afghanistan and what it is like to be an American female freelance journalist reporting from one of the most dangerous places in the world.

Things I learned/realized from this talk:

• Due to Islamic customs, Afghan women are not allowed to be in the presence of men who are not their family members, therefore male journalists cannot report the stories of these women. Therefore, it is only the female journalist who can tell the story of the Afghan woman, which signifies the incredible importance of training intelligent, compassionate female journalists and sending them safely to places such as Afghanistan to tell the underreported stories of groups whose story might be missed due to local laws and mores.
• Security is at an all-time low in Afghanistan - the epicenter of danger residing in Kandahar. Kabul is relatively safer place, so Lerner has done most of her reporting there. The fact that the Behind the Veil takes place in Kandahar makes it all the more fascinating that a Western female journalist was able to report these stories of women who were brave enough to risk their lives for the interview.
• Despite the strict Sharia customs, Afghan women have found ways to make a living, mostly by sewing or beekeeping, both of which can be done at home and do not cut into the industries of men. An example of this is Kandahar Treasure, a soon-to-be online marketplace that sells the wares of Afghan women working to support their families. Their income means protection for themselves and also for their daughters. Young girls are married off when their family needs money. Additional income earned by Afghan women mean that Afghan daughters may have more time to be little girls. 

Much of the conversation after Lerner's talk centered around gender issues, and many people decried the chauvinistic, oppressive nature of Afghan men. On this point, I take issue about the often superficial level of criticism. I do not believe that berating the male gender will solve any problem (in fact, it may exacerbate the issue). Most areas in Afghanistan where Sharia law is strictly enforced are controlled by the Taliban, a select group of male extremists who instill fear through display of menace and force. An entire group should not be condemned for the actions of a few members. In fact, many Afghan men support the liberation and rights of women but might be killed if they voiced/showed their opinions too loudly. The situation for Afghan women is not black and white but rather a rare grey color not unlike the veil worn by a Kandahari woman as she discreetly makes her way down the street.

Photo credit: Paula Lerner 

Character Icon: Madeleine Albright

So I find myself in Washington trying to figure out how to make a career work down here. It certainly is anything but easy. It seems to end up being all about who you know and whose campaign you worked on. That's fine. I am making in-roads as I can. In the process, I have been listening to people's stories of success here and trying to figure out how I can write my own story.

I was strolling through the Smithsonian Museum yesterday when I came upon an exhibit of Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's pins, or rather, brooches. Each pin represents a significant time in her career and a particular diplomatic message: the large, glittering American flag she wore to visit Kim Jong-Il in North Korea, the dazzling bumblebee to negotiate with Yassar Arafat, or the gold snake pin she wore after Saddam Hussein's government called her "a serpent." Details of each pin are depicted in Albright's book, Read My Pins.

I found this use of pins fascinating, and stopped by a nearby bookstore to browse her biography. Not only was she the first female secretary of state in the United States, but she was the first female to hold that high of an office in this country.

Albright was born in Czech Republic (she became a naturalized citizen, but was never part of the nuclear contingency plans for the president), and moved to the U.S with her family when she was in her teens after living all over Europe. Her father, a diplomat, eventually received a teaching position at the University of Denver. Albright attended Wellesley College on a full scholarship, and after graduation, moved back to Denver and worked as an intern at The Denver Post, where she met her husband, Joseph Albright, part of a major newspaper legacy. After they married, the couple moved to Chicago, where they both continued to work in the media, which later took them to New York City.

After the birth of their twin daughters, Albright enrolled in Russian language and international studies courses at a local university. After having a third daughter, she eventually earned her Master's and doctorate from Columbia University (after moving between NYC and Washington in the 1960s).

Um, she had three kids and earned a doctorate degree...there are no words for my admiration.

After to moving to Washington, DC with her family, Albright made a broader foray into politics by fundraising for Senator Ed Muskie (of Maine) presidential campaign, and she later earned a staff appointment with his team. Her career then moved swiftly from congressional liaison with the National Security Council to working on a research project of Polish dissidents with the Smithsonian Institution (during which her husband divorced her for another woman).

In the early 80s, she taught at Georgetown University and became a foreign policy advisor for the Democratic Party. In January 1993, President Clinton nominated her to be the Ambassador to the United Nations (during this post, she was criticized for her language around recognizing the 1994 Rwandan genocide and supporting the UN sanctions of Iraq during the Gulf War). In 1997, she received the nomination to be secretary of state with the Clinton administration.

I go into such detail about her biography because I am so impressed. She began her professional career at 39, raising three girls and weathering a divorce. It proves that it is never too late to educate oneself, make career moves, and follow a dream that could make a huge difference in this world.

She also guest starred on Gilmore Girls. She pretty much had the ideal career.

Image found here.

The Land of Golden Chariots

I watched The Happiest Millionaire (1967) the other night, remembering those summer evenings from my childhood doing the exact same thing - lying in front of TV with a bowl of ice cream and watching an old movie, nothing in the days before me but swimming and riding my bike around the neighborhood. One of the songs from the Disney musical is "Detroit," which praises the city as the "land of golden chariots" and the promise of a new American future in automobile manufacturing. The movie takes places in the early 1900s, so it makes sense that there would be much anticipation over this Michigan city.

However, I could not help but reflect sadly on the irony of this song in the context of today's Detroit. If you are not already aware, Detroit has become one of the worst cities to live in the country - overrun by high crime and depressed real estate and job markets. Oh, how the mighty has fallen. We are at a critical point in the US. We are so far behind much of the world in terms of innovation and sustainable development. For a view into how we compare to other places in terms of our transportation infrastructure, read this article by The New York Times' Thomas Friedman. We need to make some changes and improve our nation's infrastructure. This article suggests putting more resources into our public transportation system instead increasing the number of automobiles that our world will eventually be unable to sustain. Coming from someone who rides a packed and dilapidated subway system each day, I wholeheartedly agree. What we need - and I think we are developing - is the kind of enthusiasm in the video clip below for innovation and a new way of (sustainable) living.

Mauvaise Eau

I have always assumed that access to clean, safe water will always be an option for someone like me who lives in a developed country. Au contraire. Over the weekend, Boston and several surrounding communities lost their supply of fresh water when a main pipe that funnels waters to these locations broke. Until further notice, we have to boil any tap water for at least a minute before consuming as the water now coming through our faucets is from open- air reservoirs, homes to geese and ducks who are not really particular about where they relieve themselves...yeah. I discovered the situation by checking Twitter after downing two large glasses of tap water. I had a minor freak-out but determined that the water I had drunk was not part of the pond cocktail now flowing from my faucet.

The run on bottled water in local stores and the unseasonably warm weather of last weekend prompted some to label this this "aquapocalypse." Which is both funny and a tad over dramatic. I mean, seriously, there are over a billion people in this world who don't have access to clean water. These people bathe in and drink water contaminated by animal and human feces as well as a myriad of other contaminants. As inconvenient as this water situation is, it's so very temporary and the water that we are currently using is 10 times as better as the highest quality water found in developing countries.

In 2005, the United Nations estimated that 1.1 billion people did not have access to clean water and 2.6 billion people lacked access to basic sanitation. The UN's Water for Life plan promotes efforts to fulfill international commitments made on water and water-related issues such as cutting the number of people without access to safe water in half by 2015. Progress has been slower since more donations and aid have been going towards health, education, transport, energy, and agriculture. However, it's argued that all these categories would see improvement if populations had access to clean drinking water and sanitary living conditions.

Beyond that first initial panic with the Boston water crisis, I feel grateful for the small conveniences afforded where I live. The clean water will soon return, but its absence opened my eyes to the value of clean water and the hundreds of millions who live every day without it.

Image found here.

I May Be Your Leader Someday

Ms. Magazine Blog just posted a series of vintage postcards from the National American Women's Suffragette Association. The postcards were meant simplify the aims of the organization into a series of pithy one-liners. The 1916 postcard featured above is my favorite because of how cool and bossy this little girl appears in her stance and speech while the little boy seems shrunken and somewhat dumbfounded. She's telling him! Let me clarify, though, that I don't believe that suffrage rights or feminism should subordinate men in any way. I still find great humor in this postcard. I think this quote also included in the post, says it best:

"WOMAN should not condemn MAN because she has not the right of franchise–rather condemn parents for having trained their sons since the beginning of time, in the belief that MAN only is competent to vote."

That's right. Always blame the parents.

I cannot believe that women won the right to vote less than a hundred years ago. Ninety years to be exact (August 26, 1920). My grandmother lived in a time when women did not have the right to vote. There are still several countries today that restrict or qualify how women can vote. Most notably, Saudi Arabia, with whom the US has always maintained close ties despite the Middle Eastern country's subordination of women. Bhutan only allows one vote per household and in Lebanon only women with an elementary education are allowed to vote (there are no restrictions for men). For more information on global suffrage, see the CIA's World Factbook.

As for women leaders, we have made huge strides, but there is still a long road to traverse until we become equal contenders in the political arena, especially and, maybe surprisingly, in the First World. Sure, the US has Hilary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi as high-ranking officials and Germany has Angela Merkel as a president, but look at developing countries like Liberia with President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf or India's President Pratibha Patil. How is it possible that these places, where women often have less rights and opportunities, are able to elect women leaders so easily? I find it ironic firstly, but also, fascinating that these traditional cultures are so open-minded.

I don't believe in voting for a woman just because of her gender. I always vote for the individual regardless of their race and gender. In the 2008 presidential election, I did not feel that Hilary Clinton was the right person for the job in 2008. And while I am here, I will say that being a woman should NEVER give Sarah Palin the right to say the word "president" let alone ever consider running for that office (or any other office for that matter). Sarah Palin irks me to no end because she abuses her position of power and influence and just makes women look stupid (and I think she does this on purpose).

Several global organizations exist to promote the inclusion of women in politics, especially in developing countries. Once such program is run by the Hunt Alternatives Fund, the non-profit of Swanee Hunt, former Ambassador to Austria during the Clinton Administration, who has made an indelible mark in current international affairs. The Institute for Inclusive Security works to advocate for fair and just representation for all stakeholders in a nation, which often means supporting the role of women in politics in nations around the world.

In sum, I think the above postcard was ahead of its time and its architects would be proud of the progress around female leadership while still encouraging us to be even better, more assertive, and more accepting as we strive to make this world a better place for everyone.

What are your thoughts? Do we have more female leadership than we think? Or is there still a long way to go?

First-Class Wives

{Glenn Close and Christopher Walken in the film version of Sarah, Plain and Tall}

To this day, one of my favorite books is Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan (as well as its sequels, Skylark, Caleb's Story, and More Perfect Than the Moon). Jacob Whiting, a Kansas farmer and a widower with two children, places an advertisement in the paper for a "good, kind woman to share a life with a widower and his two children. To make a difference" Sarah Wheaton, a single woman living in Maine, answers the notice and travels to Kansas to see if she can make that difference. I always thought it was so romantic and courageous for Sarah to travel to a new land to marry a man she had never met.

Sarah's character is strong-willed, intelligent, independent - almost as though she didn't need to marry but wanted a change in her life so she chose to embark on this journey of her own accord. MacLachlan's writing is beautiful on the page in its honest simplicity. Across the series, a family forms and the bond between Sarah and Jacob is particularly compelling as is the relationship develops into an incredible love. Though it's a children's book, I highly recommend it to those who haven't read it. It's a reminder of simpler, sweeter times.

Though the book certainly conveys the struggles Sarah, Jacob, and his two children, Anna and Caleb (my favorite boy's name), have as they get to know each other, it really romanticizes the whole mail-order bride experience. I realized the other day how incredibly scary it must have been for a single woman to travel to a strange land to live with a man she has never met.

Mail-order brides have been glorified and parodied on the page and on the screen for decades. In The Harvey Girls (1946), Judy Garland's character arrives in Sandrock, New Mexico, to meet the "man of her dreams," with whom she found in a newspaper advertisement and began corresponding with letters. In the film, the "man of her dreams" actually turns out to be a dud, so she joins the Harvey Girls, a troupe of women who traveled out west to work for a chain of restaurants owned by the Fred Harvey Company in the late nineteenth century.

{Judy Garland in The Harvey Girls}

As much as I love both of these stories, they are romantic versions of a business that, while lucrative, can sometimes extremely scary (not to detract from these wonderful stories). In the 1800s and early 1900s, mail-order brides were often women who left highly developed areas to marry men in underdeveloped areas such as those pioneers forging a new life on the western frontier of the United States.

Today, the reverse is true. Women from underdeveloped countries are traveling to the developed world to marry established, successful men. In particular, mail-order bride companies from the Ukraine and Russia have seen a booming business exporting willing ladies to the West, including the United States and parts of Europe. While the majority of the mail-order brides enter legitimate, prosperous marriages, but there have been a number of human trafficking cases, instances of marital abuse, and situations where the women are brought to marry a man under false pretenses like Nika, who traveled to Canada from the Philippines to marry a man only to discover that she would be his fifth wife and would be beaten and severely abused.

{An ad against Filipina mail-order bride abuse}

In this case, Canada's marriage laws relating to immigrants are much less stringent and there is little regulation of these overseas marriage agencies. The US has a better record of regulation around mail-order bride abuses, but it still remains a questionable practice and means of relocation for women in underprivileged situations. But sometimes it may be a woman's only option. We think we have come so far with women's rights (although it has been only 90 years since we've earned the right to vote in the US, a fact that still shocks me). Then we realize that the majority of the world's women still suffer in cultures who have either removed their rights or limit them so much that they are forced to marry men who may do more harm to them than good.

Images found here, here, and here.

President Obama Arrives

President Obama spoke at MIT this afternoon and I had the chance to see his motorcade drive down to the building at which he was scheduled to speak. It was some kind of thrilling to see the place in lockdown, all the cops looking stately and serious. It made me really appreciate the grandeur and honor of his position. Smiles spread across everyone's faces as they watched the motorcade go by and a positive energy hung in the brisk fall air. I think this sense of peace and renewed confidence in the American possibility is enough to warrant the receiving of the Nobel Peace Prize. I acknowledge the criticism of the president's win - it being premature and unfounded compared to the accomplishments of others. But President Obama's election shows an achievement of the American people to push beyond their fears and inhibitions and vote for the individual who is best suited for the job, regardless of superficial reasons. That is worthy of an award, which was won for us all.

{The Obamas on Inauguration Day - photo by Annie Leibovitz}

For the full set of Leibovitz images taken of the Obama administration for Vanity Fair, click here.

A Woman Can Do Anything

{Saima Muhammad and her daughters | Lahore, Pakistan}

"A woman can do whatever she attempts...But she needs skills, she needs effort and learning...A woman should have self-confidence and she should trust in herself that she can do anything."

~ Mohammed Daoud, a teacher at the Mirwas Mena School, Mirwas Mena, Afghanistan.

An excerpt from Dexter Filkin's "A School Bus for Shamsia," The New York Times Magazine, August 23, 2009.

Image found here.

The Right Kind of Journalism

In a 2008 Vogue interview, Nicole Kidman said, "I don't believe in flittering around the edges of things. You're either going to walk through life and experience it fully or you're going to be a voyeur. And I'm not a voyeur."

Her comment pinpoints one of the biggest problems that I have with myself, media outlets, and sometimes, our society. I fear that we've become a nation of voyeurs rather than doers. Today's media spends an excess amount of time covering celebrity and trivial human interest stories, whose ubiquity encourages voyeurism. We know intimate details about people we don't even know. We are accustomed to watching this glitz and glamour, expecting it, and even craving it. I myself am guilty of being tempted by the brain candy of People and PopSugar. It's escapism during a monotonous work day. Lately, however, it's worn on me. I know entirely too much about the Jon and Kate Plus Eight drama and not enough about how women are being treated in Afghanistan.

We need a re-prioritization of US media values. So much of today's media coverage focuses on trashy, low quality stories like the Levi Johnston's opinion of the Palins or dare, I say, "My husband caught crabs. Is he cheating?"(no joke, a featured story on The Today Show). The frequency of airtime and amount of media resources dedicated to "celebrity reporting" is too much.

Through this celebrity reporting, we become addicted, idolizing the lives of high-profile people - actors, actresses, athletes, musicians. If we spent less time reading Us Weekly, more time learning about and acting to provide educational opportunities for Afghan women or refugee children in Bosnia, the world just might be a better place. I'm thinking of the phrase many hands make light work. Not many readers of OK! magazine make light work.

My main question here (to myself and to others) us: why are we spending so much time observing other people's lives instead of focusing on improving our own and that of others?

I think that the mainstream media misses out on so many wonderful stories that educate people on the larger issues of immigration policy, women's rights, education, health care, poverty and homelessness. Journalism is meant to tell the larger, world-affecting headlines of the day, but also the small, untold stories of human struggles and triumphs in such a way that will inspire readers to affect change where it's needed. In their first written piece after their release from captivity in North Korea, journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee cite their understanding of a journalist's role in society: "[W]e believe that journalists have a responsibility to shine light in dark places, to give voice to those who are too often silenced and ignored." This is the essence and duty of every journalist and the main reason why I wanted to enter that profession.

{Journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee return to
US soil after their North Korean imprisonment}

Another excellent example of media covering the often untold but culturally and politically-significant story is the NPR/American Public Media program, The Story, hosted by Dick Gordon. Gordon used to host The Connection for Boston's NPR station, WBUR. He understands ow to mix the interesting with the serious. He's a wonderful interview - kind, gentle, intelligent. He asks the tough questions while keeping his interviewees at ease. To broach the subject of US immigration policy, he interviewed two families: a construction worker in Florida and the undocumented Mexican family that she employs. His reporting humanizes the important issues that should be on American minds.

{Dick Gordon, host of APM's The Story}

Image can be found here and here.

Little Women

Look at the eyes of these young Afghan women. These are girls grown up too quickly in a war-torn, occupied country that has been ripped to threads over ethnic and religious turmoil. Despite horrific events and insurmountable obstacles, these girls show fierce determination in their eyes as well as intelligence and compassion. They humble me with their courage and perseverance to get an education and make a life for themselves, things that I have been given naturally and without impediment.

The New York Times has a running series called "Saving the World's Women," the features a special article on the schoolgirls who survived acid attacks in Afghanistan. Nicholas Kristof also co-wrote a beautifully-written piece, "The Women's Crusade," that provides a comprehensive view of women in our current world. The most shocking fact is the 130 million have experience genital mutilation or cutting. That fact almost made me vomit. I am at once ashamed of my humanity and inspired to fight against such violence aspects of our race.

Afghanistan has been on my mind a lot this week as the country held its presidential election yesterday, August 21st. A new president (aka not Karzai) is needed to do a manual overhaul and reorganization of the countries processes. Part of the reason why there is so much violence against women in Afghanistan is due to the government corruption, drug trafficking, and power given to the Taliban (all intimately connected). This needs to be changed under a new ruler. The results have not been released yet, but my heart is hopeful that perhaps Dr. Asraf Ghani might be able to triumph over Karzai so that women can receive more help and support from their own government.

Image found here.

Supreme Sotomayor

Another sign that good and fair times are here is the confirmation of Sonia Sotomayor as the 111th Supreme Court Justice. She is the third woman and the first Hispanic to assume this role. I watched her Senate hearings last month before I made my final opinion of her. I was very impressed with her unemotional, intelligent responses to the bating questions from certain Mid-Western senators (you know who you are, Tom Coburn). I think her insight and tough rationale will be a valuable addition to our Supreme Court. One hopes that, should the need arise for another Justice to be appointed, President Obama will continue to balance the Court with varied, yet reasoned individuals instead of the old white boy's Court additions from the Bush administration. See below an example of Sotomayor's coolly calculated responses to Senator Coburn's queries on gun control.


Video found here. Image found here.