Activism is making an effort to intervene, direct, impede, and promote environmental, economic, political, and social reforms to have a better society after the reforms. The text I read gave examples of activism, such as the French revolution and the salt march. The French revolution on page 6 was a rebellion against the brutal authoritarian rules. It was bloody and led to the end of the monarchy and the establishment of the French republic. The salt march on page 7 was a peaceful protest against the oppressive rule of British colonialists. The Indians, led by Mahatma Gandhi, a social activist, politician, and lawyer, marched to the Arabian sea coast and picked up salt as a nonviolent way of protesting the British salt act of 1882, which prevented Indians from selling or collecting salt.

I have watched the film ‘American Revolutionary The Evolution of Grace Lee Boggs, who is a Chinese American woman in Detroit with several revolutionary works. Jeremiah (8:43) begins to give her story where Boggs devoted her life to a revolution that involved America’s past contradictions and its potential future. Her actions cut across major US social movements such as feminism, black power, civil rights, and labor. Jeremiah (13.31) explains how jobs were few for the blacks and Boggs felt she needed to do something about it. Her constant strategy is the willingness to re-evaluate and change tactics in relation to the changing world. She believes that revolution does not involve aggressive behaviors and protests but is an act rooted deep within the human experience involving the ability to change oneself in order to transform the global society.

Activism is seen in the multi-generation urban gardening program named Detroit Summer, which was founded by Boggs and aimed to create change in the community. She did this after witnessing factories closing, municipal resources drying up, white residents moving out of the city, and the soaring unemployment rates. She believes that such social changes need to be two-sized transformations involving evolution and revolution. Revolution is the evolution into impressive ways that help human beings.

I can engage in activism around gender justice by getting the press involved, engaging in gender-related community services, doing surveys of gender injustices and sharing the results, demonstrating, creating public awareness campaigns including on social media platforms, running for gender-related office positions, advocating for legislation by collaborating with groups having similar goals and writing letters to advocate for specific federal, state and local laws, and educating others on the importance of gender justice. Demonstrating or protesting can have symbolism that shows ender injustice, such as using songs, lying dead, and having posters. Engaging in community service can be done by donating time to help families with gender injustice and talking to people directly. For issues that carry more injustice, the press involvement through doing press interviews and writing press releases conveys the message to many people.

• List a few ways you have engaged in activism and how you think you can realistically engage in activism around gender justice.

Activism is fighting for the rights of the things we deem essential. When our government fails us, we must take action upon ourselves, or the ruin spreads. The film I chose to write about was “Girl Connected.”. “Girl Connected.” is a fantastic film that documents the stories of five teenage girls and their activism within their community. Their shared goal is to fight against “gender discrimination and violence.” I was very empowered and saddened by their hardships. It was amazing to see women who were a lot younger than me take a stand to find sexism. To raise awareness on sex education, child marriage, women’s creativity, and education. I thought one of the most interesting ones was Latifa from Bengaladesh. Her focus was to stop child marriage and help girls instead focus on their education. It was very inspiring to see another woman risk her safety and defy multiple communities by being a full-time activist and help young girls and their families realize how unethical and immoral it is for a child to get married at such a young age. She raises awareness of the harm it can do to one’s future. She asserts the respect and worth of a woman’s individuality by doing this. Another story that really inspired me was Josi from Peru. I felt like I personally connected to that because coming from a south American country such as brazil. These countries have conservative politics and a poor educational system. Josi took it upon herself to help unite a group to raise awareness on sex education. Being that the pregnancy rate increased in her neighborhood she felt like she had to take a stand since no one else cared about women’s health or sex education. Growing up there where many girls I knew that got pregnant at a very young age. They regret not being responsible because though you get to begin a new chapter a teenager can not hold the responsibility of an adult/ Furthermore you get to miss out on many things that you would wish you didn’t. Overall all the women showed me various way I can be a successful activist in a communal level which is much more valued. Michelle showed me that doing workshops with women to exercise self-love and passion. Host classes of karate for women to learn to protect themselves against rape or any violence. All of these little things heavily impacted the community each of these women lived in. It makes me overjoyous to know that people actively working for the future of women exist. I was genuinely inspired. The many ways I’ve down activism is constantly try to track down Go-Fund Me’s or Petitions about that are for law, or homelessness, or helping children etc. Constantly sharing to others. I also try to gather as much information on communist ideals and expose political leaders and parties for lying.

Activism can be defined as the act of speaking out and rebelling against injustice in one’s society to reform the practice or practices that may oppress certain groups in that society. I chose to watch “Girl Connected”, in which five young girls used their voices to battle against discrimination of women in their communities. The teenage girls spoke out against the ways in which young girls in their communities were mistreated by standard practices in their societies, such as forced marriages, and encouraged others to speak up against these practices as well. One of the young women, who stood out to me very much, taught other girls self defense to fight against men who would try to take sexual advantage of them or even commit violent acts against them. I thought this was very important as women are naturally unsafe even walking down the street and are constantly lured by predators. These young girls are seen as prizes by these older men with no remorse for their actions. It is also very important that girls know self defense because it is a strength to obtain that skill. Usually, men are thought of as the “strong” individuals, but it is very important for women to also know how to use their bodies to protect themselves. The one girl who spoke up against forced marriages noted the importance of one’s childhood and the ability to create your own future. She stated how their lives are predetermined for them when they go into forced marriages at such young ages and have children, further oppressing them and not letting them advance in life. One way which I can engage in speaking out against gender injustice is teaching other people the concepts that I have learned in this class and teaching them to act in ways that defy social standards that may be unfair to us as a whole. I can teach them ways in which we are the system and we are responsible for how that system treats us as individuals in a society. Particularly, considering how popular social media is nowadays, I could use my social media platform to bring about more awareness towards these topics and concepts, rather than have learned them and forget about them the second this class finishes. I have also always wanted to attend a protest or rally to speak up for members of the LGBTQ community.

In today’s world most individuals see themselves as an activist but being a dissident implies numerous things. A Part of the issues that are happening nowadays are driven by our social, natural, and political frameworks. One or two cases of extremist behaviors are Neighborhood Observe, Women’s Rights Dissident or Creature Rights Activist. After perusing the book How To Think Like An Dissident by Wendy Syfret basically revolves around political society. Activists are individuals who raise the up and coming era, somebody who talks truth to control, somebody who puts themselves on the front line and breaks down restrictions we put among ourselves. Activists lock in in talking out and attempting to move the world or keep the world from moving. Activists must know that most alter does not happen rapidly so what propels them or keeps them propelled? In order to do any of those a dissident must have self-knowledge. I observed the “Girl Connected” film which reflected ladies’ strengthening. All through the film there were five high school young ladies utilizing their person qualities to handle sexual orientation segregation and savagery in their communities. In these nations these young ladies are seen elevating, empowering, and motivating their other peers to convert their lives. In one of the scenes a youthful woman offers with a bunch of girls that she was the primary young lady to play football at her school. She stated that young ladies set boundaries for themselves in which they do things they are concerned with as if it were for boys to portion take in like Football. In another situation a youthful young lady by the title of Ayesha Noor who lives in India, began preparing another young lady self-defense after hearing a child was assaulted. In India another young lady is dissenting child marriage and is teaching others in her town and is building a base for them to begin them little establishment. I locked into activism approximately five a long time back when I came to live within the United States. My cousin had presented me to a theater program whose center was on Ladies Strengthening. At that time, I was a artist who composed melodies primarily around race, sex, status, and balance by and large. I performed in Unused York and grandstand my ability and projection on welcoming all ladies to stand up for each other and breaking down boundaries. Amid this time, I had the opportunity to work among gifted and advanced ladies who stood up and are still standing tall for ladies strengthening. Shockingly, due to school and working a full-time job I was incapable of proceeding with the theater program.

Activism is defined as the ability to practice ways that create awareness towards improving and protecting individuals’ social, political, environmental, and religious rights and freedom in a specific society. According to the reading, “How to Think Like an Activist” by Wendi Syfret, every right, security, and liberty which the world has s because of the act of activists; they not only fought and stood for the freedoms that the society enjoys (6). The past activists developed new strategies of thinking in the society, by creating elements such as resistance approaches. The Activism film that I have watched entitled “United in Anger” is an activist piece. The film is about the poor response from the government on the rise in cases of AIDS and the history of the activists’ movement during those times, and how they fought for those who have AIDS (Jurj). The documentary is about the history of the ACT UP movement. The film talks about how the government is reluctant to care for the sick population and the helpless, dying people. Victims, friends, and family members of victims through the ACT UP movement turned up. They united to protest against the government for their greed, social discrimination, and government ignorance in dealing with the AIDS epidemic. I see the activism in the film moved by anger and grief. Anger towards the government system and grieving their loved ones who lost their lives to the disease. Through the various organizations and movements such as the ACT UP movement, Guy and lesbian solidarity committee, human rights movement, the Invisible Women group, and The Minority Taskforce on AIDS came and worked together to address their grievances. They stood united despite the several arrests of their members by the police. The activists in the film use ways like public protest, songs, and live streaming media to air their grievances.

 I have participated in activism several ways and times in my life. In school, one day after the election of the student body, I was among the protestant against the school’s decision to allow students choose a female school president. The protest came as part of our efforts to get the institution on board so as to address the issue to the issue of gender equality. We gathered at the student center and matched the administration with banners, posters, and shouting slogans. The purpose of our protest was to stand up for the right to equality in leadership positions against the institution. The activism worked in our favour because the school later allowed the female students to participate in top-most leadership position. There are several other ways I have engaged in activism around gender justice. Those ways include supporting the victims financially and psychologically, using social media to create awareness about gender justice, organizing talks and programs that address the issues, and supporting and attending physical demonstrations. Engaging in activism displays the picture of support and care towards the affecting individuals and parties in matters of gender justice.

To me, activism is a movement you create that influences others to want to push or change issues that are affecting humanity. The film I watched is Girl Connected, which talks about how 5 girls from around the world and their goals and inspirations are helping them break down stereotypes and oppression that they face in their communities. For example in the film one of the girls that struck me the most was the girl who wanted to try and stop young pregnancies. I find that very important especially since we live in a world or at least in their world where women are expected to stay home, cook, clean and raise children. This young women named Josi really is advocating and educating young girls to have safe and protected sex. For Josi to do that in the type of community she lives in and influences its very powerful and can make a huge effect on how women live their lives. Something else that stood out to me about Josi’s message is that she is teaching young kids about making decisions and that they have control and power over their own lives, which is super important because living in a society where we put a lot of stereotypes and pressures on young kids can make them feel like they are stuck in a box. But Josi is trying to change that mentality and say that we have a lot of free will and power to decide what we want to do. I would say that for me the way I would make a difference is by doing the same thing that Josi is doing and teaching children especially. Unfortunately a lot of kids don’t have good education and some don’t have any at all. And kids not knowing about sex or pregnancy or even STD’s is very importantant because they could do something that will untimately keep them in that small box forever. Teaching them that there is a life outside of just cooking, cleaning and raising kids can help them be more motivated and want to actually make something of themselves. There are some women who feel like their calling is in fact to be a mother and that is also valid. The main point is that women are well educated in the pros and cons of being a mom and for them to decide if they want to or not on their own, without outside pressure.

Activism for me has always been speaking out on injustice, standing up for what’s right and sparking the conversation and starting action on change. After watching the film “girl connected” that was about teenage girls navigating their countries there was definitely certain ways of activism that I missed, they showed activism through the community, encouraging and teaching other young women of safe sex, domestic violence etc. although I personally haven’t engaged in anything physical such as protests, or community groups I keep the conversation with those close to me, When someone’s being ignorant about a certain topic I educate them. I always to try to speak anyway I can, and I hope I can go to protests in the summer. There are many ways one can engage in activism around gender Justice, calling out misogynistic comments, being an ally for all women regardless of sexuality, social class . Supporting women owned businesses etc. there are so many little ways that you can support and show activism that don’t have to be physical that still matter.

In today’s society most people see themselves as an activist but what does being an activist means. Many of the issue that are happening today are driven by our social, environmental, and political systems. Some example of activist/activist behaviors are Neighborhood Watch, Women’s Rights Activist or Animal Rights Activist After reading the book How To Think Like An Activist by Wendy Syfret’s mainly revolves in the political society. An Activist is a person who raises the future generation, someone who speaks truth to power, someone who puts themselves on the front line and brakes down barriers. Activists engage in speaking out and trying to move the world or keep the world from moving. Activist must know that most change does not happen quickly so what motivates they or keeps them motivate? In order to do any of those an activist must have self-knowledge.

I watched the “Girl Connected” film which reflected women empowerment. Throughout the film there were five teenage girls using their individual strengths to tackle gender discrimination and violence in their communities. In these countries these girls are seen uplifting, encouraging, and inspiring their other peers to transform their lives. In one of the scenes a young lady shares with a group of girls that she was the first girl to play football at her school. She stated that girls set boundaries for themselves and that they do things are concerned only for boys to part take in like, Football. In another scenario a young girl by the name of Ayesha Noor who lives in India, started training other girl self-defense after hearing a child was raped. In India another girl is protesting child marriage and is educating others in her village and is building a base for them to start them small foundation. I engaged in activism about five years ago when I came to live in the United States. My cousin had introduced me to a theater program whose focus was on Women Empowerment. At that time, I was a singer who wrote songs mainly about race, gender, status, and equality overall. I performed in New York and showcase my talent and projection on inviting all women to stand up for each other and breaking down barriers. During this time, I had the opportunity to work amongst talented and evolved women who stood up and is still standing high for women empowerment. Unfortunately, due to school and working a full-time job I was unable to continue the theatre program.

I always thought that activism was a big gesture, something extreme that makes people talk. I believed that big-scale events that immediately change the course of the world is the only valid form of activism. However, after reading the Wendy Syfret’s How To Think Like An Activist and watching the documenter Vessel, I realized that it all starts from one person, one idea, and no activism is small or insignificant. The historical example of activism all started small, and what they later became was the amalgamation of many such people believing in the same thing and working towards it. Like Syfret says, “No one person can save the world. But every one of us can shape it”.

One such example is covered by Vessel, which shows how the ‘Woman on Wave’ started with a few women from Netherlands trying to help a few women and ended up changing the lives of thousands of women. Woman on Wave is a Dutch pro-choice nongovernmental organization that work for the reproductive health of women, more specifically, giving access to safe abortion to women in countries where abortion is illegal. It started out by turning a ship into a mobile clinic, the A-portable, and taking it to different countries, so that women could come aboard and take the abortion pills (through the loopholes of international water laws). Of course, it wasn’t as simple, since abortion is a very polarizing topic in a majority of countries. However, the dedication of the women involved to jump through every hoop, use every tactic they could think of, turned Women on Waves into a safe haven for women worldwide seeking information and resources for a safe abortion. Furthermore, they provided support to the women going through a scary, painful and frankly traumatizing situation on their own. Women on waves advocates and works for the reproductive health of women, and their right to safe abortion. This movement and activism is very important because women all around have been having abortions throughout history, for multiple reasons, risking their lives in the process. No matter what people’s religious or cultural beliefs are, one must acknowledge this is something that happens and that women have every right to make decisions about their bodies, their lives, in a safe manner.

After learning more about activism, I have realized that I have been participating in activism in my own little ways. I used to volunteer for organizations that work for the benefits of women back in Nepal. Since coming here, I have done no such thing and I used to feel guilty about it. However, I now know that holding my friends and family accountable when they make sexist remarks, making the little Twitter followers I have, aware about the gender issues in our society and basically, not being indifferent to the cause is also activism. Sure, I can, and I WILL do more, but now I also understand that no small activism is invalid or insignificant, and it all starts with one person willing to make a difference.

Activism is defined as the policy or action of using vigorous campaigning to bring about political or social change. Yet, the tireless work that has been done and that is continuing to be done by fearless individuals to bring change means so much more than the few words written in its definition. After reading this week’s notes and watching “Knock Down The House”, I am left in awe of what these individuals do to spread awareness about their campaigns. I, of course, had a good understanding of what one does when running for office, but getting to see behind-the-scenes footage of the tremendous work that is done, was eye-opening. “Knock Down The House”, a Netflix film directed by Rachel Lears, follows the journeys of four Democrats, and even more inspiring, female Democrats who ran for Congress in the 2018 elections.

As supporters, we watch, predominantly men, and luckily in recent times, women, compete for a seat in Congress. We vote for who we believe is the best fit in helping make the changes we hope to see in our communities. You could only wish that these kinds of races are fair, but many hold stereotypes about specific candidates and don’t even give them the chance to explain their value. In this Netflix film, fellow New Yorker, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez along with Amy Vilela, Cori Bush, and Paula Jean Swearengin make their voices be heard in a series of rallies. As they express their hopes to make a change in regards to their communities’ concerns and wishes, they still end up receiving backlash for their race and sex. What I enjoyed most about this film is watching these strong, independent women, taking a stand for what they believe is right, and being strong enough to laugh off many of the comments made. What was even more inspiring, was getting to learn about their backgrounds and experiences. Once hearing where these women came from, it was easy for me to see that they genuinely understand and want what’s good for the people, especially the people whose voices are often not heard and ignored due to where they are from and even what they look like. As AOC stated in the film, “I am running because everyday Americans deserve to be represented by everyday Americans”.

I have engaged in activism is by participating in the Women’s March, which took place in DC, and by marching in one of the largest demonstrations following George Floyd’s death. I believe that if there is something you feel is worth fighting for, then take the time to make the change, especially when you have thousands around you who want just the same. It is one of the most inspiring and lifting feelings to march not only for yourself but for the basic rights of others. As also stated in the film, to fight for change, “You must meet the machine with a movement.”