Pornography contributing to atrocities against women in the Congo say GAD

12 February 2008 in Africa, Appeal, North America, Pornography, Violence Against Women

Women in The Congo Need Our Help

Last month, Stop Porn Culture (SPC) was contacted by Groupe d’Action pour le Droit (GAD), a non-profit NGO in the Democratic Republic of Congo that advocates for the human rights of children, youth and women affected by sexual violence. They do counselling for survivors of sexual trauma and community education about the issue. The conditions that GAD is working in are horrendous to say the least. The United Nations characterizes the conflict in the DR Congo as “one of the bloodiest the world has known since World War II.” According to Amnesty International,

“Tens of thousands of women and girls have suffered systematic rape and sexual assault since the devastating conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) began in 1998. Rape, sometimes by groups as large as twenty men, has become a hallmark of the conflict, with armed factions often using it as part of a calculated strategy to destabilize opposition groups, undermine fundamental community values, humiliate the victims and witnesses, and secure control through fear and intimidation. It is not unusual for mothers and daughters to be raped in front of their families and villages, or to be forced to have sex with their sons and brothers. Rapes of girls as young as six and women over 70 have been reported. Young girls are also regularly abducted and held captive for years to be used as sexual slaves by combatants and their leaders.”

You can read more about the rape epidemic in the DRC in this New York Times article from October 2007: “Rape Epidemic Raises Trauma of Congo War“.

GAD has identified pornography as a factor in these atrocities. GAD’s president, Kubuya Elie, has requested the help of Stop Porn Culture. He would like to come to our slideshow training in July (see below). We are deeply moved that GAD believes we can offer them assistance: there are no women anywhere who need our help more.

In order to bring Mr. Elie to Boston, we need your help. Besides the slideshow training, we plan to arrange meetings with human rights groups here that are working against trafficking and have resources for trauma victims. We estimate it will cost at least $4,000 to do this. As you know, SPC is an all-volunteer organization with an annual budget of zero. It can only happen if you make it happen. Please consider donating whatever you can to help us help GAD and the women of the DR Congo. The sooner you can do so, the sooner we will know whether we can make flight arrangements for Mr. Elie. No amount is too small to make a difference for the women enduring these conditions of sexual brutality and slavery. Please make checks out to Feminists Against Pornography, earmarked “for DRC.” And thank you for participating in this important work.

In solidarity,
Carol Corgan, Gail Dines, Matt Ezzell, Susan Falupel, Lierre Keith, Robert Jensen, Jesse Pierce, Denyse Snyder, and Rebecca Whisnant for Stop Porn Culture

Stop Porn Culture
PO Box 813 Northampton MA 01061
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Feminist Slideshow Training in July, 2008

Stop Porn Culture will be offering our third training for our slideshow this July. The training will be twice as long, more in-depth, and can also be taken for college credit.

* Media Madness: The Impact of Sex, Violence and Commercial Culture on Adults, Children and Society
* A summer Institute for Educators, Students, Human Service Professionals, Activists and Parents
* July 8-11, 2008, Wheelock College, Boston.

For the 14th consecutive year, Wheelock College is offering a very popular summer institute on the role that the media (television, magazines, advertising, pornography, video games and music videos) plays in shaping our gender identity, our intimate relationships, our children’s lives, and ultimately our culture. The institute is taught by Dr Gail Dines, author of Pornography: The Production and Consumption of Inequality, and Dr. Diane Levin, author of the forthcoming So Sexy So Soon

Participants in both tracks will learn:
* How media violence affects behavior and contributes to violence in society
* How media images perpetuate and legitimize sexism, racism, consumerism and economic inequality
* How political and economic forces shape the media
* How media affects children’s ideas about sexual behavior and relationships with others
* How to critically deconstruct media images and develop media literacy skills
* How to become active in advocacy, community building and grass roots organizing

As a way to accommodate the needs of the participants, this year two days of the institute will be split into the following tracks:
1. Fighting the porn culture: how to think about and organize against the increasing pornification of our society. Lead by Dr. Gail Dines with guest lectures by Dr. Rebecca Whisnant, Lierre Keith and Matt Ezell, founding members of Stop Porn Culture.
2. Combating the hazards of media culture with children, families and the community. Lead by Dr. Diane Levin, author of the forthcoming book, So Sexy so Soon

Credit Hours
* The institute is available as a 3 credit graduate course or a non-credit course. Scholarships are available.
* Housing is available on the Wheelock campus.
* For more information, please contact Gail Dines (write July Institute in the subject line)

See also earlier posting about SPC Free feminist anti-pornography slide show for group discussions etc.