Feminism Is For Everyone

Sep 14, 2008,9:36 PM

FIFE EMAIL

Upcoming FIFE events!

THIS TUESDAY (September 16) 8:30PM Newcomb Boardroom
FIFE, QSU and QuAA Joint Meeting: Come learn about the intrinsic connection between Feminism is for Everyone, Queer Student Union, and Queer and Allied Activism! Take advantage of this great opportunity to hear viewpoints from all three groups!

Next Tuesday (September 23) 7:00-8:30 PM McLeod Hall Auditorium (Nursing School)
FIFE and Charlottesville's Chapter of NOW are sponsoring "Human Papillomavirus and You:" This panel will discuss prevention and detection of HPV, teen and women's health issues, symptoms and diagnosis of cervical cancer, and the vaccine Gardasil. Panel members will be Mark Stoler, MD, Department of Pathology, UVA and Jennifer Young, MD, Fellow in Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, UVA.

Tuesday, September 30 (still kinda far away but start getting excited!)
Alternative Menstrual Month!: ever thought about trying a more eco-friendly product during your period? During the month of October, FIFErs will get this chance! This Tuesday we will have sign up sheets for you to try either the: diva cup, sea sponges, or luna pads. At the meeting on September 30, we will have these products for you to buy (15% off!), with instructions on how to green up your period! At the end of October we will come together and discuss the troubles and successes of these new products! Get Excited! P.S: Jessica Little, "I Have NEVER been so excited about a meeting as this one. Diva Cup, Here I come!"
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Want to get more involved in FIFE? Here's a few opportunities!:
1) If you still haven't done so, sign up for Fem Fams at our next meeting on Tuesday. The week after this meeting, you'll find out who your little/big sib is! Here's more info:
Feminist Families (aka Fem Fams) are meant to promote discussion and understanding of all feminist issues and specifically topics presented on the Tuesday weekly meeting. New and Experienced Fifers will be matched together. You will determine whether you want to be a feminist mentor or if you want to be paired with a feminist mentor. Each week after the tuesday meeting fem fams should find time in their schedule to hang out and talk about anything and everything they want. Most of the fem family event will be self motivated, but get excited for my coordinated fem family outtings like trips to women's soccer and lacrosse games, hiking, and dinners out on the town. (a few ideas for fem fam: coffee dates, lunch dates, ice cream dates YUM, study together and take breaks to find interesting feminist articles/books in the library, go running together)

2) Be an usher for our HPV info meeting on Tuesday, September 23rd. Hang out and get to know some of the fife exec! Tell people where to sit! It'll be fun!

3) Service Fest! Friday, September 26 from 5:00-9:00 PM. Come support TAKE BACK THE NIGHT by helping FIFE give out information, bring awareness to the event, organize activities, etc.

4) If anyone is interested in helping with publicity (chalking and flyering), let us know! This is also a great opportunity to get to know your fellow FIFErs.

5) Don't forget to check out our blog at http://uvafife.blogspot.com. If you are interested in writing, let us know!

E-mail uvafife@virginia.edu if you are interested in any of the above.

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And here are a few related blurbs:

UVa's LGBT Speakers Bureau aims at educating the UVA community on LGBTQ issues. Panelists share their coming out experience and answer questions on various panels at UVA throughout the year. Speakers range from students to professors to grad students. Anyone can opt to be a speaker, whether you identify as LGBT, as an ally, or have any knowledge of queer issues. A training session for new speakers is being held on Friday, September 19th, from 3-5pm.
If you are interested, contact Chris Trizna at ctt3n@virginia.edu. If you want to be a panelist, an email will be sent to let you know the training location soon.
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THETA WEEK

Come celebrate the tenets of Theta Nu Xi. Open to everyone!

Scholarship, Monday, Sept. 15: 7-9pm in NHL 168
"Get the Scoop:" Having trouble choosing a major? Picked a major...now what? Come discuss with the women of Theta Nu Xi how to best prepare for the upcoming years.

Leadership, Tuesday, Sept. 16: 7-9pm in CAB 337
"What's Your View:" Are there stereotypes in the media? In the business world? Come tell the sisters of Theta Nu Xi what your view is!

Service, Wednesday, Sept. 17: 7-9pm in NHL 168
"Say Thanks:" Help Theta Nu Xi Multicultural Sorority, Inc say "thanks" to the employees at the University of Virginia for all of their hard work and dedication to the students.

Multiculturalism, Thursday, Sept. 18: 7-9pm in NHL 168
"Show and Tell:" Ever wished you could be a part of another culture? Come travel across the world with the sisters of Theta Nu Xi to learn about different areas of their world and their cultures and how we view those cultures.

Sisterhood, Friday, Sept. 19: 2-5pm in Garden I (rain site/time: 7-9pm in NHL 168)
"Theta Extravaganza:" Like to eat? Like to talk? Come hang out with the women of Theta Nu Xi Multicultural Sorority, Inc in the beautiful Gardens of UVA. Enjoy tasty snacks and intriguing conversation.

Have questions? Want to learn more? Come to one of our meetings and feel free to email any questions/concerns to Meaghan at msa3h@virginia.edu

Presented by THETA NU XI MULTICULTURAL SORORITY, INC.
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Activism opportunities!:

[NOW Actions]

Support Our Valiant Sisters In Their Final Battle

Call For Them To Be Recognized With Official Veteran Status

The Cadet Nurses need our support to end their discriminatory treatment. Ask your Representative to support the United States Cadet Nurse Corps Equity (Act H.R. 3423), introduced by Rep. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.), to classify service in the Cadet Nurse Corps as active military service and recognize the members as veterans. These women are mostly in their 80s and 90s and have waited long enough; we need to help them achieve equal veteran status NOW!

ACT NOW

Action Needed:

During and just after World War II, more than 100,000 women served in the United States Cadet Nurse Corps, yet their contributions remain virtually unknown. Other women who were in WWII military services, like the Women's Army Corps (WACs), the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES), and the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs), have rightfully been granted veteran status and benefits -- and remain legendary to this day. Because the Cadet Nurses were under the Public Health Service rather than a military command, and performed their duties in this country as well as abroad, their services during and shortly after the war have gone unrecognized. It's time to include and salute them as veterans.

In a show of support for the integral role that the women of the U.S. Cadet Nurse Corps played during World War II, Congresswoman Nita M. Lowey (D-N.Y.) has introduced H.R. 3423, the United States Cadet Nurse Corps Equity Act, to classify service in the Cadet Nurse Corps as active military service and to recognize the members as veterans. The act requires the Secretary of Defense to issue an honorable discharge to each person whose service qualifies for one. This change in status would give Cadet Nurse Corps members access to services administered by both Federal and State Veterans' Affairs departments.

Over the past decade, numerous Cadet Nurse Corps Equity Acts have been introduced and sent to committees where they were left to languish. There has never been a hearing, no bill has ever reached the floor of the House for a vote and there is no Senate counterpart. Cadet Nurses and their families have waited too long, too quietly, and too patiently for Congress to do the right thing. 2008 marks the 60th anniversary of the graduation of the last class of Cadet Nurses, and the small, hearty band of surviving nurses deserves our support!

TAKE ACTION NOW - ask your Representative to sponsor this bill!
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Help Pass Paid Leave for New Parents

Right now 1.8 million federal workers need your support as they balance their work and family obligations. Ask your senator to sponsor the bill that will provide a modest amount of paid parental leave for these government workers and their families.

Virginia Senators Jim Webb (D) and John Warner (R) have introduced the Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act (S.3140), which will guarantee four weeks of paid leave for federal workers for the birth or adoption of a child.

Ask your senators to sponsor this bill. ACT NOW!

Action Needed:

The federal government -- the nation's largest employer, with more than 1.8 million civilian employees -- should set the example of workplace policies that truly meet the needs of today's working families. When enacted, a paid parental leave bill for federal workers will serve as a critical benchmark for achieving paid family and medical leave for all workers. This legislation is a first step toward providing economic support for new families, because no worker should have to choose between their paycheck and their new child, especially in these tough economic times.

TAKE ACTION NOW! Please tell your senators to support working women and their families by cosponsoring S.3140. There is a place for you to customize the text of the email. We suggest that you personalize it by telling your family's story about why paid leave is important and family friendly. And please share this email with your friends and family members and everyone you know who works for the federal government.-
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Whose Conscience Is It, Anyway?

The Bush Administration has now published the rewritten rules on "conscience" and those of us in good conscience must register our outrage.

Action Needed:

Send your comments to Secretary Mike Leavitt at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Tell him: "This Administration has lost its moral compass when the personal and private beliefs of a pharmacist or bookkeeper are more important than a woman's bodily integrity, her health, her future, and her right to family planning options. Birth Control is NOT Abortion."

There are less than 30 days before this restrictive and destructive regulation goes into effect. Act NOW!

Send an email!

Or post a comment on Secretary Leavitt's blog!