In 2012, at the age of 19, Oksana Kononets  suffered an injury to the C5-6 vertebrae as a result of a fall from a 5th floor, which left her paralyzed. Oksana refused to let her disability stop her and stubbornly pushed on. Through months of rehabilitation, she learned to adapt herself in many ways. It was then, that she realized that, despite her disability, she is a complete and self-sufficient person; which gave her the strength to move on. Okasa’s disability is not an obstacle to fulfilling her dreams. She returned to and graduated from university twice, she created a beauty blog to inspire other girls like her with weak hands, and, she decided to pursue her dream of becoming a model.  Able to escape shortly after the war began in Ukraine, Oksana and her mother are now safely in the United States.

What you will hear

• Ukraine
• What life was like in Ukraine before the war.
• Oksana’s injury and surgery.
• What life in Ukraine is like with a disability.
• Ms. Wheelchair World Pageant.
• The need for better infrastructure in Ukraine.
• Oksana’s journey from Ukraine in late early March.
• Runway of Dreams.
• Impact of COVID for people with disabilities in Ukraine.
• What is the most powerful action the world can take to show support and solidarity for the people of Ukraine.
• Non-profit organizations
• 
  
•  Messages of Hope

As part of her seven-part print and podcast series for Women’s eNews, “How Would the ERA Impact Our Daily Lives?” journalist Rachel Leventhal interviews constitutional scholar and Academic Advisor to The ERA Project at Columbia Law School, Professor Julie Suk, about the structural impediments that were built-in to the US Constitution that keep women (along with other marginalized groups) from changing the Constitution in a way that would enable greater equality and more democracy. But even in the face of all these structural roadblocks, women have navigated nimbly, increased their political power, and continue to make significant gains.

ABOUT THE SERIES: “How Would the ERA Impact Our Daily Lives?”

A few months ago, journalist Rachel Leventhal had a conversation with three young women of color about gender equality and the Equal Rights Amendment. It was one of those conversations that yielded more questions than answers, namely: Why don’t women already have constitutional equality, and what would it really mean if we did? In this series, through interviews with lawyers, scholars, activists, and the young women themselves, Rachel sets out to uncover answers to the question many of us have: “How Would the ERA Impact Our Daily Lives?” Hoping to keep her young friends empowered and engaged in the face of rollbacks and uncertainty, this print and podcast series is her “love letter” to them.

The interviews for this series took place January, 2022, at the ERA's two-year ratification anniversary, the date it met all the constitutional requirements to become the law of the land.

SHOUT OUT TO OUR FUNDING PARTNER

This series was created with generous support from the Sy Syms Journalistic Excellence Program of the Sy Syms Foundation: https://sysymsfoundation.org/

WHERE TO FIND THE REST OF THE SERIES

Read the print series on Women's eNews:

https://womensenews.org/2022/03/how-w...

Other video interviews for this series:

Interview with Kimberly Peeler-Allen, Board Chair of the ERA Coalition - https://youtu.be/G9GqL4Mp1PE

ORGANIZATIONS AND PEOPLE ASSOCIATED WITH THIS INTERVIEW

Professor Julie Suk

https://juliecsuk.com

"We The Women: The Unstoppable Mothers of the Equal Rights Amendment," by Julie Suk

The Sy Syms Journalistic Excellence Program at Women’s eNews welcomes Kimberly Peeler-Allen as she joins journalist, Rachel Leventhal, to discuss the ERA (Equal Rights Amendment) Coalition and its mission.  Kimberly is the Co-founder of Higher Heights, a national organization building the political power and leadership of Black women from the voting booth to elected office.In 2018, Kimberly served as the Co-Executive Director of New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Transition Committee. A highly skilled political fundraiser and event planner, Kimberly was the principal of Peeler-Allen Consulting, LLC from 2003 to 2014, the only African American full-time fundraising consulting firm in New York State. Kimberly serves also serves as Co-Chair of Higher Heights for America PAC, and is a Board Director of NARAL Pro-Choice America Foundation. She is currently a Visiting Practitioner at The Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University. 

What you will hear

• What is the ERA Coalition and how Kimberly got involved.
• Wage inequity and equal protection under the law.
• Men’s rights vs women’s rights.
• Revamping the narrative and ensuring that all voices are heard.
• Recognizing the harm that is happening in the most marginalized communities
• The history of the Equal Rights Amendment.
• The purpose and goal of the ERA Coalition.

Quotes

“It is important for us to all play a role in revamping the narrative and saying we’re going to take our place in this movement.”

“To be fully seen as full citizens you need the right to vote and you need equal protection.”

“Many hands make light work.”

Mentioned

ERA Coalition

Women’s eNews

Sunsara Taylor is co-host of Revolution Nothing Less Show, host/producer of We Only Want the World (WBAI & WPFW), co-initiator of RefuseFascism.org, and leader of the Abortion Rights Freedom Ride. Sunsara talks with Lori Sokol about the new mass struggle called RiseUp4AbortionRights.org.  Rise Up is dedicated to fighting for women’s reproductive rights. In this episode learn why time is of the essence and why it is time for the people of this country to stand up and wage a serious, relentless, society wide resistance aimed at defeating the existential threat posed to women’s right to abortion and their humanity. 

What you will hear

• Fighting the fight for women’s reproductive rights.
• The Democratic party, fears and the fascist movements.
• The importance of timing and mass struggle.
• March 8, 2022 International Women's Day.
• Real Liberation and revolution.
• Initiators and supporters.
• Organizing and sparking off protests.

Quotes

“Women are not incubators and should not be forced to have children against their will be the state.”

“Through mass struggle, what seems impossible can be made possible.”

“We need to lift our sights to a liberated world and fight for what we want, not capitulate to what they give us.”

Mentioned

Riseup4abortionrights.org

riseup4abortionrights@gmail.com

Women’s eNews

Influenced by the second wave of feminism and the gay rights movement, Leslie Cohen and three others were inspired to open Sahara, a groundbreaking, elegant, woman’s night club in New York City. The Sahara was a groundswell of change and the first bar in New York City owned and operated by women for women. Sahara represented a milestone along the arduous and ongoing road to gay and lesbian liberation, a turning point from a negative perception and discrimination to the beginning of acceptance and inclusion. Leslie Cohen is the author of the memoir The Audacity of a Kiss (Rutgers University Press 2021). She received a Master’s degree in Art History and worked at Artforum magazine and asa curator of the New York Cultural Center in Manhattan.

What you will hear

• The significance of Sahara and its importance to lesbians and feminists
• The challenges women faced to acquire credit for gay women clubs
• The fundraising events at Sahara
• Why women lost the ability to inspire change and push for continued feminist rights.
• How Sahara existence helped assimilate the wave of feminist concepts against lesbians
• The impact of her fathers absence and her mothers resilience 
• Breaking through your personal glass wall
• Leslie and Beth love story
• The 1979 gay liberation public arts culture

Quotes

“Women’s experiences are not as valued as men.”

“There is nothing like going to a bar where there are all women.”

“Eventually it comes around, it just has to take time.”

“There is a lot of women who think their lives come to an end when realize they are gay. That is not the way it is. There is a lot of joy in being gay.”

Mentioned

Sahara Nightclub

The Audacity of a Kiss

1977 National women’s conferance

Women's eNews embarks on its 3rd decade as the only global non-profit news organization reporting on the most crucial issues impacting women and girls around the world. By seeking the truth and reporting it, we continue to shape how women and girls are represented in the media working toward creating a more equitable world that honors, respects and supports the lives of women and girls, acting independently, with accountability and transparency.

Nahid Shahalimi is a filmmaker, artist, activist, and author of the book, We The Women of Afghanistan. Born in Kabul, Afghanistan, Nahid was forced to leave her country in 1985 and moved to Canada with her family. Nahid holds degrees in international politics, Southeast Asian studies, and Fine Arts from Chaplain College and Concordia University. Nahid is the founder and chair of the Hope Foundation for Women and Children of Afghanistan. Today, she is one of the most resilient female voices in the world. She joins us to speak about the current situation in Afghanistan, especially about how the Taliban takeover has impacted women and girls in the country.

What you will hear

• The current impact of the Taliban on women and girls in Afghanistan.
•  How women are being intimidated
• Life before the Taliban takeover
• Time Magazine giving recognition to a Taliban leader
• Salvaging the progress women previously made in Afghanistan
• Humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan
• How the challenges in Afghanistan reflect challenges throughout the world

Quotes

“People are afraid to go to the streets, especially women, because of the treatment they have seen.”

“Another person on TV said women cannot wear perfume, shoes that make noise (high heels), socks, or show their hands or feet.”

“We are very careful who we criticize in the Western world, because they may cause our doors to close.”

“People have been selling their babies and children for $500 so that the rest of the family can feed themselves.”

“The problems in Afghanistan may geographically be far, but these kinds of extremist ideologies do not have any borders”.

Mentioned

Author, Filmmaker, Activist, Artist - Nahid Shahalimi

BBC report on Afghan baby sold for $500