AKA Joins Crusade to Promote Healthier Media Images for Girls
Bill seeks to reverse negative trend

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. has joined forces with the American Psychological Association, the Congressional Women's Caucus Task Force on Young Women and Troop Capitol Hill to combat media images that impact girls' self esteem by cosponsoring H.R. 4925, the Healthy Media for Youth Act.

Alpha Kappa Alpha is the first organization of its kind to support this legislation, which was introduced on March 24 by Rep. Tammy Baldwin and Rep. Shelley Moore Capito.

In making the announcement, Alpha Kappa Alpha's international president, Barbara A. McKinzie, noted that the Internet and technology are po werful com m u nications outlets that have altered the way youth communicate.

While McKinzie acknowledged that there are some positives that filter out of the Internet, she noted a substantial amount of the media messages that bombards girls' psyche focus on their bodies, disorders and romantic relationships that are based on casual encounters.

She added that women and girls are often portrayed as sex objects in outlets that are most popular among girls and said the recurring images that promote the sexualization of women have long-term effects on girls' self perceptions and self esteem.

Citing studies that confirm these conclusions, McKinzie reiterated the message of the campaign: "Women and girls need to be saluted for their talents, intelligence and contributions they're making to better society. This bill represents a first step in reversing a dangerous trend."

She said that under the leadership of Alpha Kappa Alpha's international program chair, Loann Honesty King, the organization has mounted an all-out offensive to get members to persuade their legislators to support the bill.

This is an extension of the Sorority administration's ongoing effort to reach out to its undergraduates to lead programs on their campuses to blunt the negative messages that seep out of the media. AKA is also connecting with its graduates, so they can wield their influence in this area.

In stressing the importance of this campaign, Honesty King said: "Many of the challenges young girls face can be traced to the negative images that air on television and are broadcast on the radio. This bill seeks to provide a firewall against these depictions. At the same time, this legislation will serve as a filter where positive images of girls will be portrayed. At one point, these girls will grow up to be our leaders. This bill will help boost their self esteem and psychologically position them to be productive and healthy. In doing so, they will be better able to be a productive member of their family, community and the world."

Nigerian Women in Black say “Enough is enough”

Violent attacks occurred near the city of Jos in Nigeria that left hundreds of people dead, including many women and children, and forced thousands more to flee their homes.

These acts of violence resulted from tensions between ethno-religious groups in the country. Joy Yakubu from the YWCA of Jos, World YWCA intern in 2007, shared with us her personal reflections on the situation in her country.

“There has been a wave of prayer gatherings and peaceful demonstrations since the last insane attack on some communities, particularly Dogo na Hauwa village in Jos South local government area of Plateau state where close to 500 people, mostly women and children, were affected. I saw women wail and men weep at the sight of women and children burnt and/or hacked down in cold blood. The sight of the carnage left a lot to be wondered about on the future of humanity if human kind can debase one of its own in such a manner and many wondered for what purpose? If it was to instill fear, establish dominance or draw out a compromise, it failed because every sane human being saw the senselessness of it, which made it even more infuriating. Some refer to it as politically motivated, some ethnic and many more religious but then, what nomenclature makes it the right or an acceptable thing to do? On the Sunday following the attack, was declared Black Thursday by women on the Plateau and Plateau women living in other parts of the country. Women from all over the country also joined in to protest this vileness against women and children.

Thousands of women in black marched out on the streets of Jos and Abuja. Their agony was palpable and their message was clear: “Enough is enough” with the spate of violence that has engulfed a city that remains one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the Country and was once the most peaceful.

The recurrent unrest has become nothing short of an embarrassment to everything we stand for as a people. Why would women and children be deliberately targeted despite the local, national and international instruments designed to protect them in conflict situations? Our sincerity to the ratification of these instruments is called into question by this unimaginable act and this should perhaps serve as a wakeup call to reevaluate our commitment.

We took a trip to Dogo na Hauwa on Easter Sunday. It had become a shadow of itself. Some homes had one or two survivors and some none at all.

Disillusionment was evident on the faces of many, particularly young people, and not even a ghost of a smile on their expressions. What they feel can only be imagined. The sight of the community church brought tears to my eyes, a few people were going about their Easter service, clapping hands and playing plastic buckets for drums in the ruins of their burnt church and fervently holding on to faith for comfort and as some emphasized, ‘to learn to forgive’. That was what they believed Easter meant to them. I admired the faith and resolve of the community to move past the tragedy that had befallen them.

One thing I keep wondering, though, is how unshaken our faith will remain in an event of a reoccurrence or when there is an absolute absence of justice in handling the perpetrators and sponsors of such shameful acts.”

DOE Celebrates Women’s History Month

The Department of Energy (DOE) celebrated the 30th Anniversary of National Women’s History Month, using the theme “Writing Women Back into History.” Many members of the DOE community contributed to this successful event, including Dr. Kristina Johnson, Under Secretary of Energy; Jenny Kaplan, Deputy Director of the White House Council on Women and Girls; and Molly Murphy MacGregor, Executive Director and Co-Founder of The National Women’s History Project.

At the event, DOE staff members announced the formation of DOE’s own Council on Women and Girls (CWG).

While DOE is already represented on the White House Council on Women and Girls, the DOE CWG was created to be a department-wide system for collecting and disseminating information about women’s and girls’ issues and to develop, implement, and evaluate department-wide goals.

The DOE CWG is working to enhance oppor tunities for women and girls at DOE, increase participation of women in DOE programs and funding opportunities, and increase participation and leadership of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.

Representatives from every DOE office and other DOE employees interested in increasing the opportunities available for women and girls will participate in the DOE CWG.