Mandy Van Deven

Social Change Agent Award

elevatedifference — Wed, 02 May 2012 23:14:00 -0400

I am honored and humbled to be awarded the first-ever Social Change Agent Award from Girls for Gender Equity. At their 10th Anniversary event next month, feminist pioneer Anita Hill will speak in celebration of a decade of women’s and girls’ leadership at GGE. There is still time to be a catalyst for change and purchase tickets to this fundraiser. If you are unable to attend, please find another way to support this excellent organization.

Author Page

elevatedifference — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 07:10:20 -0400

Look who’s got an author page on Amazon.com.

Will You Be My Pinpal?

elevatedifference — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:54:54 -0400

For folks like me whose brains are wired to prioritize visual processing, Pinterest provides the opportunity to organize thoughts in an aesthetically pleasant format. Most folks are using this new site to swap things like inspirational quotes, travel photography, hipster fashion, gourmet food, and home design. While I’m not entirely outside of that group of users, I’m primarily using Pinterest to highlight cultural creators, media makers, and grassroots activists whose work I respect and admire. Get a glimpse here.

Ashley Judd ♥'s Women Who Inspire Change

elevatedifference — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 10:27:48 -0400

In honor of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, I am curating a storytelling series at IPPF/WHR’s blog called Women Who Inspire Change. Although most of the stories are about women whose names will probably never appear in history books, it has managed to capture the attention of a certain high-profile celebrity whose own work demonstrates her deep commitment to women’s rights and social justice.

IPPF/WHR: Women Who Inspire Change

elevatedifference — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 10:19:48 -0400

This month, IPPF/WHR is curating a series of stories about inspirational women, so I submitted one about my friend, Joanne N. Smith. Click here to read how meeting Joanne changed the course of my life.

RH Reality Check: HIV Innovations for Women in the Dominican Republic

elevatedifference — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 19:49:09 -0400

What Innovations Are Helping HIV+ Women in the Dominican Republic?

A UN-funded report released this week, revealed that sixty percent of the people living with HIV in the Dominican Republic are women. It is one of the countries with the highest prevalence of HIV in the Caribbean, and HIV is now the leading cause of death among women of reproductive age.

RH Reality Check: Reproductive Health and Global Poverty

elevatedifference — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:04:48 -0500

Sex, Reproduction, and the MDGs: Why Funding for Reproductive Health Care is Critical to Combatting Global Poverty

This week, the World Bank reported that Latin America and Africa are the only two regions that have not met the Millennium Development Goal to reduce extreme poverty. Latin America may be the wealthiest region in the developing world on a per capita basis, but it also has one of the most unequal income distributions in the world. Statistical averages across the region mask the existence of the significant inequality within it that hinders access to sexual and reproductive health services for the region’s most vulnerable — in particular, rural, poor, indigenous, and youth populations.

Hey, Shorty! in Jezebel

elevatedifference — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 07:08:00 -0500

Check out my Hey, Shorty! co-author Joanne Smith in this new article on men and street harassment at Jezebel.

Speaking: IvyQ

elevatedifference — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 10:50:42 -0500

On February 18th, Megan Andelloux, Lauren Marie Fleming, and I will be participants of “The Ethics of Lust: A Panel on the Politicization of Desire” at IvyQ. Held this year at Brown University, IvyQ is a conference that brings together students from the eight Ivy League universities to “create experiences which foster meaningful and productive social networks; educate students about the history and multiplicity of voices in the LGBTQ movement and the possible trajectories of its future; and empower all students to feel confident in their identities and their potential to instill positive change in their own lives and the communities they inhabit.”

I’m reading Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore’s Why Are Faggots So Afraid of Faggots?: Flaming Challenges to Masculinity, Objectification, and the Desire to Conform at present, and see it as an excellent precursor to the dialogue I hope my co-presenters and I are able to facilitate on the 18th. Don’t let the panel’s cerebral title and description fool you; I’m not one to dwell in abstractions and Mattilda’s book is a well appreciated example of how to make such conceptualizations concrete.

RH Reality Check: Evangelicals and Reproductive Justice

elevatedifference — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:49:00 -0500

STOKING FIRE: Millennials Stifled by Evangelical Doctrines

I was recently featured in an article by a friend and fellow writer about why many young evangelical Christians are turned off by the dogmatic intolerance of their faith and how the reproductive rights movement might capitalize on their disillusionment. A Bible Belt expat who just barely missed the Millennial mark, I chatted with Eleanor about how to make space for lapsed evangelicals at the reproductive justice table. Take a peek to find out more about the sexual evolution of evangelism.

Update: This article was re-published by AlterNet.

Abortion Rights in Latin America & the Caribbean

elevatedifference — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 21:37:00 -0500

On the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, I wrote an article for the IPPF/WHR blog about the state of abortion rights in Latin America and the Caribbean. Today, the post appeared around the progressive blogosphere in Daily Kos, AlterNet, and RH Reality Check.

Herizons: Sex and the Single Feminist

elevatedifference — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 20:20:00 -0500

How Feminism Can Help Your Sex Life

Two new books about sex and politics paint a provocative picture of feminist dating 45 years after the personal was declared to be political. Writers Samhita Mukhopadhyay and Jaclyn Friedman take the theory to the next level.

Choice Words: An Interview with Jennifer Baumgardner on Reproductive Rights

elevatedifference — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 20:04:00 -0500

I’ve interviewed Jennifer Baumgardner quite a few times over the course of our respective careers as writers and activists, and I’ve also had the pleasure of collaborating with her on a handful of projects. While Jennifer has a number of qualities for which she should be admired, one I am always humbled by is her generosity. Despite being in the middle of the Winter Feminist Boot Camp at Soapbox Inc., Jennifer made time to chat with me about her new book.

IPPF/WHR: 7 Billion & 16 Days

elevatedifference — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 20:42:00 -0500

As the online administrator at International Planned Parenthood Federation/Western Hemisphere Region (IPPF/WHR), I have the pleasure of working with fellow staff and community partners to develop blog content that reflects the organization’s work on sexual and reproductive health and rights in the Americas and the Caribbean. During the past two months, I’ve curated a 7-part series to mark the world population seeing the addition of it’s 7 billionth person, Our World at 7 Billion, and a 16-part series for the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence that explores the intersectionality of gender-based violence with issues such as HIV, unsafe abortion, comprehensive sexuality education for youth, natural disasters, and militarization. It’s not often that individuals have the privilege of marrying what they love to do with what they’re paid to do, and I consider myself to be among the fortunate few.

VIDEO: Activism and the Academy (NYC)

elevatedifference — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 07:02:09 -0500

If you weren’t able to attend the 40th anniversary conference of Barnard Center for Research on Women, Activism and the Academy, you can watch video footage of some of the panels here.

Writing, New Media, and Feminist Activism from BCRW Videos on Vimeo.

Crossing the Line

elevatedifference — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 07:58:10 -0500

Crossing the Line: Sexual Harassment at School is a newly released report from the American Association of University Women that presents the most comprehensive, nationwide research to date on sexual harassment in grades 7-12. It reveals sobering statistics about the prevalence of sexual harassment and the negative impact it has on students’ education and concludes with concrete recommendations and promising practices for preventing sexual harassment directed at school administrators, educators, parents, students and community members.

Girls for Gender Equity is recognized as one of the promising practices in Crossing the Line, and Hey, Shorty! is lauded as a resource. You can download a free PDF of Crossing the Line here.

AlterNet: Fighting for Americans' Right to Dissent

elevatedifference — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 20:14:20 -0400

Fighting for Americans’ Right to Dissent: A Review of ‘Hell No’ | AlterNet

Teaching for Change/Busboys & Poets (Washington, DC)

elevatedifference — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 17:13:00 -0400

One of the most exciting things about being a street harassment activist is the look on peoples’ faces as they figure out what on earth I’m talking about. Many of my friends have never heard the term ‘street harassment’, or consider it some sort of overblown synonym for catcalling, but when I start to describe the behaviors and attitudes it encompasses, their expressions transform from skepticism to understanding. Suddenly, the stories start pouring out, and I know I’ve helped them see that this all-too-common experience is an actual problem – which means that they then become a part of the solution.

Public sexual harassment and gender-based violence, though constant and pervasive, are largely invisible problems. The activists who spoke at September 26th’s Hey, Shorty! book event in Washington, D.C. at the Busboys and Poets restaurant and gathering space know that overcoming this invisibility is a critical first step in their work. Hearing their stories of broaching conversation with girls and boys in public schools, LGBTQ youth, D.C.’s transgendered population, and D.C.’s sex workers was eye-opening, especially in light of the incredible weight these issues carry. The potential for activists to raise awareness and teach acceptance in their communities is an important part of preventing tragedies, like the recent rash of violence against trans people that has happened in D.C.. Mandy Van Deven’s experience developing a curriculum about gender respect at Girls for Gender Equity stood out as an example of innovation in the face of huge challenges. How do you un-teach the traditional perceptions of gender and power that lead to public sexual harassment? How do you help young people un-learn what they have been socialized to know their entire lives? And, most importantly, how do you then empower them to fight back?

With the exciting and rewarding aspects of activism come the inevitable disappointments. In my experience, the idea that gender-based harassment and violence is somehow the responsibility of the victim is deeply prevalent even among otherwise well-meaning people. For instance, while representing Holla Back DC on a local radio show, I was asked twice by the genuinely concerned hosts whether I thought it would be an acceptable compromise on the way to ending street harassment if women would just stop dressing sexy on the street. The fact is, of course, that everyone has every right to wear whatever they want to wear without being harassed and intimidated. As Holly Kearl, the author of Stop Street Harassment, pointed out at the event, studies show that clothing has absolutely nothing to do with it. Women wearing sweat pants are harassed. Women wearing burkas are harassed. LGBTQ people are harassed for not fitting traditional gender norms.

When a woman who identified herself as a social worker asked the speakers whether transgender women should cover themselves up and stop “dressing so trashy” to avoid harassment, I wasn’t surprised. The speakers’ answers, however, were inspiring. Mandy explained that “trashy” and “classy” are socialized categories that reflect class-based values and highlighted the complex intersectionality of sexual harassment with other forms of bias. This kind of thinking, she explained, is counter-progressive. If the goal of our activism is to create a society where people are free to express their identities, Holly said, then we can’t judge those who already do. Vanessa Crowley from the D.C. Trans Coalition said that simply being transgendered is a display of “radical authenticity” that bravely flies in the face of gender norms, for which trans people are punished everyday. Instead of suppressing self-expression that challenges cultural perceptions of decency, we should interrogate where these perceptions come from and ask why we believe in them. I’m proud to be part of a group of activists that pushes our communities to do just that.

This post was written by Zosia Sztykowski, the Community Outreach and Events Director at Holla Back DC, for the Hey, Shorty! on the Road blog.

Pictured in photo: Holly Kearl, Stop Street Harassment; Vanessa Crowley, DCTC; Mandy Van Deven, Hey, Shorty!; Andrew Barnett, SMYAL; Catherine Paquette, HIPS

History/Present

elevatedifference — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 10:45:00 -0400

This picture magically appeared on my Facebook wall today with the note “I loved Altar Magazine!” (Thanks Jackie!) The photo gave me pause to consider the long and polymorphic relationship I have had with social justice activisms and the myriad ways this work has shaped where I’m at today and also remind myself that every step of the journey helps us to reach our destination — even if we don’t know precisely where we are going.

Activism and the Academy (NYC)

elevatedifference — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 11:55:00 -0400

I was humbled to be asked by the Barnard Center for Research on Women to speak as a part of the “Writing, New Media, and Feminist Activism” panel at their 40th anniversary event, Activism and the Academy: Celebrating 40 Years of Feminist Scholarship and Action. Many of us struggle with our understandings of the interplay among theories and activisms. In particular, we struggle with perceptions of them as being distinct from one another and the value each is assigned, culturally and within social justice movements. There are precious few spaces where the false division of scholarship and organizing is identified and examined, and this weekend’s event provided an exemplary moment of collision. It has been, and continues to be, a privilege to participate in such groundbreaking work.

Below are a few reflections from the high school students who attended the conference as a part of their Fierce and Fabulous: Feminist Women Writers, Artists, and Activists class, which is taught by of one of my co-panelists, Ileana Jiménez, a social justice educator and feminist activist. Their presence and participation in the conference was inspiring, and I was excited to read what they had to say.

Barnard Feminist Conference Encourages Unity
Is There Enough Awareness About Feminism?
Feminist Bloggers Take Action

BCRW has added an audio file of this panel to their website. So, download it (and other tracks) and take a listen.