Dear Maya A Bajrang Dali is as much of an activist as Apne Aap or a Maoist - activist is a term that can be embraced by all hues and shades of political colour. My problem with Apne Aap and Ruchira is the politics that define this activism - the value system that they force on a constituency which in all probablity helps their career!!!!! That quote you mentioned actually points to their political position Thanks
2008/11/4 Maya <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > *Activism*, in a general sense, can be described as intentional action to > bring about social <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_change> or > political <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics> change. This action is > in support of, or opposition to, one side of an often > controversial<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Controversy>argument. > > The word "activism" is often used > synonymously<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synonymous>with > protest <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protest> or > dissent<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissent>, > but activism can stem from any number of political orientations and take a > wide range of forms, from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, > political campaigning, economic > activism<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_activism>(such as > boycotts <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boycott> or preferentially > patronizing preferred businesses), rallies, > blogging<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blogging>and street > marches <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demonstration_(people)>, > strikes<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strike_action>, > or even guerrilla tactics <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guerrilla_warfare>. > In the more confrontational cases, an activist may be called a freedom > fighter <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_fighter> by some, and a > terrorist <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism> by others, depending on > whether the commentator supports the activist's ends. > > In some cases, activism has nothing to do with protest or confrontation: > for instance, some religious <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious>, > feminist <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminist> or > vegetarian<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetarian> > /vegan <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegan> activists try to persuade > people to change their behavior directly, rather than persuade governments > to change laws. The cooperative > movement<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooperative_movement>seeks to build new > institutions which conform to cooperative principles, and > generally does not lobby or protest politically. > From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia ! > > On 11/3/08, Maya <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >> >> Yes, I too find their approach as problematic. This is what we usually >> consider as activism! She says like this , ( or she is made to talk like >> this , by the NGO or some other powers who are funding) >> 'It is time for us to celebrate and protect our daughters who are each >> goddesses in their own right'- trying to create gods again. ! And draw some >> Gandhian concepts etc! >> Wonderful thing is that, in the internet if we search activism we get this >> kind of news! >> So what is activism itself is a question, i think. >> >> >> On 11/3/08, Bobby Kunhu <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >>> >>> Apne Aap is a really "nice" initiative. But I find their approach >>> problematic. Despite their assertion on the top-down format, the morality >>> within which they work is, imposed on the "constituency". In other words, >>> professional social workers (of course mostly women) as part of their career >>> impose their value system for instance on sex workers (which is a major apne >>> aap constituency). I am seriously worried that they are working on the link >>> between caste and "prostitution" for the NCW, while they continously engage >>> with systems that facilitate trafficking in very much the same caste terms >>> I hope someone could respond a bit more on this confusion of mine >>> >>> >>> 2008/11/3 Maya <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >>> >>>> *Indian activist bemoans modern-day slavery at US conference* >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> *Aziz Haniffa in Washington, DC * >>>> >>>> October 30, 2008 22:21 IST >>>> >>>> Noted anti-trafficking activist Ruchira Gupta, the founder president of >>>> Apne Aap Women Worldwide--a grassroots Indian organization--of women and >>>> children involved in the flesh trade, told a White House conference on >>>> October 28 that thousands of young girls continue to languish as slaves and >>>> prostitutes in India but that her organization offers hope for these >>>> children through a model that can serve as a template for other cultures as >>>> well. >>>> >>>> Gupta speaking at the conference titled 'Success against Slavery: >>>> Strategies for the Future and Promising Practices in International >>>> Programming', said, "Today is Diwali, the festival that celebrates the >>>> goddess of wealth and prosperity Laxmi, while one goddess is being >>>> celebrated, there are hundreds of thousands of young girls in our country >>>> who are in situations of captivity as bonded workers and child >>>> prostitutes.It is time for us to celebrate and protect our daughters who >>>> are >>>> each goddesses in their own right," she said, while conveying to the more >>>> than 100 delegates at the conference which also included senior >>>> Congressional aides, Administration officials and representatives of >>>> leading >>>> nongovernmental organizations Diwali greetings and urging them "to take a >>>> pledge in your hearts to think of each girl at risk as a goddess to be >>>> celebrated not violated." >>>> >>>> Gupta won an Emmy for her documentary on human trafficking *The Selling >>>> of Innocents*, and has worked with several United Nations agencies in >>>> various capacities to develop international standards to combat trafficking >>>> and assist countries to develop national action plans against trafficking. >>>> >>>> Gupta argued that Gandhian community based initiatives were the most >>>> promising and sustainable strategy to protect survivors, victims and those >>>> at risk to human trafficking and slavery, combined with a concerted effort >>>> to curb the demand for sex trafficking by increased convictions of >>>> profiteers from human trafficking. >>>> >>>> She noted that the Indian government had an amendment to the Indian >>>> anti-trafficking law pending in Parliament, which if passed would penalize >>>> buyers and severely punish traffickers, and predicted "This would make a >>>> big >>>> dent in the sex-trafficking trade." >>>> >>>> She acknowledged that "we understand that change does not happen from >>>> the top down in the lives of nations or women. We help women organize and >>>> imagine the change that they thought could not be achieved. Apne Aap Women >>>> worldwide has been organizing these women and girls into small cooperatives >>>> known as self help groups all over India and these are linked >>>> simultaneously >>>> with livelihood, learning and legal protection by our team members." >>>> >>>> Gupta said that "the options that we create for trafficked women and >>>> girls are more sustainable because the livelihood options are based in the >>>> local economies and are braced with legal protection and the small group >>>> structure that allows women to support and rescue each other.As with every >>>> example of profound transformation from Gandhi's experiments in living to >>>> the civil rights movement in the United States and Alcoholics Anonymous >>>> internationally, we help prostituted women to create their own small and >>>> continuing groups, and do the same for their children." >>>> >>>> Gupta asserted that "our groups seek not to mitigate the circumstances >>>> of sex-trafficking but to end sex-trafficking�we seek complete >>>> transformation, not simply reform." >>>> >>>> "We have been able to bring out the link between caste and prostitution >>>> and are currently working on recommendations to reduce the same for the >>>> National Commission for Women," she noted. >>>> >>>> >>>> -- >>>> Maya S. >>>> School of Social Sciences >>>> Mahatma Gandhi University >>>> Kottayam-41 >>>> Kerala, India >>>> >>>> >>> >>> >>> -- >>> Bobby Kunhu http://community.eldis.org/myshkin/Blog/ >>> >>> >> >> >> -- >> Maya S. >> School of Social Sciences >> Mahatma Gandhi University >> Kottayam-41 >> Kerala, India >> >> >> -- Bobby Kunhu http://community.eldis.org/myshkin/Blog/ --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. 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