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A reflection written by Women’s Center intern, Narges Ershad

It has been more than a month since Oscars has aired, speeches have been given, and many reactions have been shared. But as Pay Equity Day is approaching, I have been thinking a lot about that night, especially Patricia Arquette’s Best Support Actress acceptance speech. In her speech she talked about the gender pay gap, which is a reference to the fact that mostly men get paid more than women for holding the same position at work.

Since I was a kid, watching Oscars was one of my favorite days of the year. Until few years ago I wouldn’t understand the content fully due to language barriers, but I was always amazed by the pretty dresses, exciting faces of the people, the lights, amazing videography, and that huge and amazing stage. Later on I was able to understand the content fully and it was then when I realized Oscars is more than a fancy award ceremony to recognize the achievements within the film industry. The Oscars can also be about social change, a place to raise awareness regarding social issues, a stage for critical thinking and reading between the lines.

I was excited as always with the 2015 Oscars and made sure I had time to travel back to my childhood by watching the ceremony. But something was different in the 2015 Oscars, that made me love this ceremony even more, as well as also think more critically about it. Many amazing speeches  were given regarding social issues and problems that we are dealing with in the world, and most importantly in United States of America. Many moving speeches and performances were given that night, like John Legend and Common’s Glory from the movie Selma.

In my opinion Patricia Arquette speech was a great move, which took a lot of attention toward it in social media right after she left the stage. One part of her speech stated that “It’s our time to have wage equality once and for all, and equal rights for women in the United States of America.” I personally really appreciated her speech and her using her fame to give gender pay gap a platform at an elite event. As an individual who works and cares about the gender pay gap, I really liked the fact that now more people who might have not known about the issue now know. Perhaps from knowing more about the issue these individuals will be able to think about  it more in depth or even make strides to changing the situation for  the better.

Throughout much of the evening, our events of Critical Social Justice 2015 came to mind. Most especially, I was reminded by what they keynote speaker, Franchesca Ramsey, talked about in her keynote titled “Your Powerful Online Voice: Social Media for Social Change.” The Oscars were taking place in a room, but the conversations were also happening in our living rooms and entering various social media platforms. Social media became a tool for change and started many needed, important, and critical conversations. People used their “online voices” via social media, especially Twitter, to bring social change to talk about issues that famous people on stage were talking about in real time. This is where people used their voices to bring light to the speeches, read between the lines, and start a conversation about needed social change. For example many different readings, understanding, and reactions were seen on social media platforms after Patricia Arquette’s speech. People were able to take it in, analyze it, and and talk about it. Some people completely agreed with her, some people wished she would have talked about other communities as well, some people argued that her speech was gender binary, some people liked the specific points that she had. The conversation didn’t end when the Oscars did but they had only just begun. As we are approaching Pay Equity Day I think is important to take a moment, educate ourselves about this issue and see what we can do close the gap.

Last year’s pay equity bake sale! Be sure to stop by the 2015 bake sale on 4/6 from 11am-2pm!

In the past few years Women Involved in Learning and Leadership (WILL) at UMBC have hosted a Pay Equity Bake Sale, to start the conversation on campus. This bake sale is a great start to many critical conversations. Each person who visits the table and would like to purchase a bake good is asked to self identify based on the provided chart , to see how much they need to pay and they can see how much other individuals are going to pay. In other words these prices are link to the gender pay gap that exists in united states. This is a way to get people thinking, to see how much they are getting paid compared to others. Also we understand that the provided chart is gender binary, and is fully accurate but this suggests that more research and thinking is needed in this area.

Moreover one of the reasons for this wage gap, is that mostly women start working with a lower salary compare to men, therefore it is important to learn how to start smart from the beginning. WILL with the help of GWST department, Women’s Center,and the Honors College is providing UMBC students with a workshop called $tart $mart. As someone who has participated at this workshop I highly recommend it. I learned how to negotiate for my salary and ask to receive what I am worth. This workshop will be held on April 15th. Please visit this link for more information and registration as the space is limited.

Also I encourage you all to visit WILL table  Monday April 6th from 11:00AM-2:00PM. Visit this link for more information.

This reflection by Women’s Center Director, Jess Myers, was written for and originally shared on the ACPA’s Standing Committee for Women blog. It has been republished on our site with their permission. For more on ACPA SCW, check out their website.

When the Women’s Center at UMBC at celebrated its 20th anniversary, the staff wanted to make a commemorative quilt. Each student organization and department the Women’s Center partnered with over the years made a square that was patched together into a quilt that was unique to the history of the Women’s Center. We indulged in this practice to honor America’s rich history of quilting and patchwork. For centuries, quilts have told stories and were uniquely linked to their creators, who most often were women. The process of quilting encouraged women to share their stories and build community with other women. This felt like an appropriate nod at history as we celebrated our own. With this experience, I’ve especially enjoyed this year’s Women’s History Month theme of Weaving the Stories of Women’s Lives.

As our country has evolved so has the medium for telling our narratives. We now rely on various social media platforms to share our stories as we Instagram brunch with friends, share the latest viral blog on Facebook, and tweet our experiences throughout the day. What was once threaded and woven is now tweeted, liked, and hashtagged. And, while there may not be a beautiful quilt at the end of the day, many student activists of today are nonetheless weaving together an important story that will impact the future of women’s history. This is the story of the campus sexual assault movement happening now on college campuses.

Over the past year, I have been a part of a study with three other student affairs professionals exploring the strategies employed by activists involved in the movement to address sexual violence prevention and response on college campuses. Through observing online forums and the 23 interviews of both current students and recent graduates, a powerful story of activism unfolded. Our findings are rich and extend well beyond our original research question, but as I contemplate this year’s Women’s History Month theme, I am compelled to share the ways in which the participants used social media as a tool to weave together their stories and experiences as a medium to demand change on campuses and within our nation that support survivors of sexual assault and condemn sexual violence within our institutions of higher education. Participants in our study described using social media in several intentional ways, two of which I’ll explore here: to connect with other activists and as a tool for reducing power dynamics present in other spaces.

Sharing Their Stories with Others: Social Media as a Connection to Other Activists

Activists described the power of social media in helping them connect to other survivors and activists which supported a shift in momentum related to addressing sexual violence. By connecting with other activists, their story was no longer one of isolation but one that weaved into a greater context of support and validation. Several participants highlighted the power of solidarity when sexual violence related hashtags trended on Twitter such as Wagatwe Wanjuki’s #survivorprivilege which provided a forum to express their experiences. Moreover, one participant, Lynn*, captured the importance of this solidarity between and among activists from a variety of places. She said,

“There’s just a wonderful solidarity of knowing that you’re not alone… And when you see, as painful as it is to find other people who have been through what you’ve been through, there is an incredible level of empowerment that comes from knowing that somebody else has that experience, and that you’re not crazy.”

Creating New Spaces to Share Their Story: Social Media as a Tool for Reducing Power Dynamics

Closely related to the connection and solidarity activists felt from shared spaces online, some activists also identified the importance of online spaces as environments where power dynamics were reduced allowing their story to be told and heard. Some LGBTQ activists used online space because they did not have to out themselves in face-to-face settings. Other activists identified the importance of using social media as a forum where a variety of perspectives might be shared and validated, especially those that are historically marginalized. Vee, a participant who identifies as a queer woman of color, explained Twitter as community in which “I can breathe a sigh of relief, where I can get the validation I need.” When sexual assault stories highlighted by mainstream media often tell only the narrative of young, cisgnedered white women, the need for this counterspace online becomes even more important in ensuring all voices and stories are woven into the movement. Peter, another participant in our study, highlights this point:

“And if we’re talking about at risk communities, marginalized communities, communities that have been historically marginalized are not welcomed into the same spaces and so to a lot of people the only thing that they have access to and the only way that they are able to participate is through social media because of that anonymity that’s allowed that isn’t allowed for if you put your name to it.”

There is a power in hearing women’s stories. While remembering and recounting tales of our ancestors’ sacrifices and dedication is important, there is also great power in the stories being woven now. The story for these survivors and activists is still a work in progress, but during this Women’s History Month, I celebrate their efforts. Unlike a quilt which must be fully completed for the story to be told, social media is allowing me learn from activists across the country in real-time about their experiences, needs, and challenges. Their stories are already being woven into my practice as a student affairs professional and I am all the better professional for it. This will be a story not only tweeted, blogged, and hashtagged, but one that will be woven into the fabric of our national history.

*Although many survivors in the current campus sexual assault movement are choosing to publicly use their names and identities in their activist work and/or with media outlets our study uses pseudonyms to ensure confidentiality for all of our participants.