If you haven’t read ‘Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide’, you need to: It doesn’t matter if you are a man or a woman, rich or poor, educated or not, of one faith or another – this book needs to be read, it needs to be discussed, and it needs to be acted upon…
The title comes from a Chinese proverb: ‘Women hold up half the sky’. There are more women than men in the world today and they do more work, with much less pay, and very little ownership of property and possessions. This book highlights the conditions of many women in different parts of the globe, with the authors painting the shocking reality of many women’s lives; but it also celebrates achievements of those, who working with the women in need of their help, have created opportunity for a better life for all involved.
The authors are Nicholas D. Kristoff and his wife, Sheryl WuDunn, Pulitzer Prize winners for an earlier indepth study of China while they were both New York Times correspondents. Their dedication of the book is to their children, but also ‘for all those on the front lines around the globe, saving the world, one woman at a time’.
My goal is to reread the book, and encourage others to read or reread it also, in time to meet and discuss as a part of International Women’s Day celebrations. This will correspond well, time-wise, with the reading assignment for the JustFaith group in which I am participating. It’s an easy read as far as wording, but a difficult read as far as content: You may have to set the book aside occasionally to let yourself absorb the women’s stories.
International Women’s Day is a day set aside every year to observe the achievements and conditions of women globally. IWD has been observed annually on March 8th since the early 1990s. Unlike in the United States, IWD is an important holiday throughout much of the world. It’s time that we, American women and men, become a part of the global celebration!
International Women’s Day is two months away: A solid eight weeks, with a few extra days, for us to read the book and think about the messages… and the questions… that the book gives us. By then, I hope to have learned how to use ‘MeetUp’ and provide time and space, both physically and via the Internet, for discussion.
This initial invitation to the challenge is being done by email, along with social media sites, to hopefully all of my contacts. I hope to provide a weekly topic, pertinent to the goal of learning more about women’s conditions, with resources to whet and/or satisfy growing interests. I will not send you these via email, unless you request me to do so. You may access these resources through my blog,
www.creatinggraces.blogspot.com, or my Facebook page. I will send out a tweet on Twitter when each new set of resources are posted.
I would also like your participation. Your thoughts, suggestions, knowledge, ideas, prose and/or poetry is solicited to be a part of this process. Share your own experiences, a favorite poem, or a book suggestion to encourage us all to learn more. I have several favorite women poets and authors, but very few of them are of different cultures… I need literary globalization!
All people of different races, cultures, and religions are invited to be a part of this discussion: I/We need your input and your insights… please join in the conversations!
