WOMEN’S CENTER TO CELEBRATE 25TH ANNIVERSARY WITH FLASH MOB DANCE AND OTHER EVENTS, FEB. 17-21
The Hawai‘i Community College and University of Hawai‘i at Hilo Women’s Center is celebrating its 25th Anniversary with a series of special events scheduled for February 17-21, including the “One Billion Rising Flash Mob Dance” and other performances.
TOP PHOTO "One Billion Rising" T-shirts will be distributed free to the first 100 participants in the flash mob dance. Modeling the T-Shirts are: first row, Pansy Lindo-Moulds. Second row, Meg Elimon, Juanita Revell, Marcie DaSalla. Third row, Sandra Silva, Kealani La'a, Veronica Vital Flores, Laura Sherwood, Trina Nahm-Mijo. Cast members not pictured: Holly Kaanana, Sia Paul, Sharon Petrovsky, Kiki Ogle.
BOTTOM LEFT PHOTO Youth cast members strike a pose for "I Am An Emotional Creature." From left to right are Hiwalani La'a, Annalise Gibson, Brittany Williams, and Jasmin Silva.
The week of events will draw attention to the Center’s role supporting the success of women in higher education and the community during the past quarter century, as well as the launch in Fall 2015 of a new Gender and Women’s Studies Bachelor of Arts degree at UH Hilo.
The Women’s Center has offered a variety of services over the years like peer counseling; a library and resource center; support for events like “The Vagina Monologues” and internationally recognized women activist guest speakers like Angela Davis, Audre Lorde, Gerda Lerner; and the hosting of conferences, summits, and workshops.
The following is the listing of upcoming events:
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 17: One Billion Rising Flash Mob Dance
The launch event will be the “One Billion Rising Flash Mob Dance” on Wednesday, February 17 at 12 noon on the UH Hilo Plaza. One Billion Rising is the biggest mass action to end violence against women in human history. The campaign, launched on Valentine’s Day 2012, began as a call to action based on the staggering statistic that one in three women on the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. With the world population at seven billion, this adds up to more than one billion women and girls. This year’s One Billion Rising theme is “The Revolution Escalates,” as the necessity to end violence against women and girls is critical to cultural survival.
One Billion Rising is the biggest mass action to end violence against women in human history.
The first 100 participants to either one of the practice sessions or the actual flash mob dance will receive a free One Billion Rising T-Shirt through a Domestic Violence Prevention Department of Health grant received by Hawai‘i CC counselor, Kenoalani Dela Cruz. Practice sessions for the dance routine “Break the Chain,” choreographed by Debbie Allen, will be held on Wednesday, February 10 and Friday, February 12 from 12 noon – 1 p.m. at the UH Hilo Old Gym on Kapiolani Street. All members of the college community and the general community are encouraged to attend to join the call for global solidarity to end violence against women. The goal is to have one billion participants world-wide.
THURSDAY, FEB. 18: Reception Celebrating Birth of the Women’s Center
On Thursday, February 18 from 3:30 - 5:30 p.m. at UH Hilo Campus Center 301, a reception with light refreshments will be held. A historical display entitled “The Birth of the Women’s Center” will be on display.
Special guests will be Dr. Noelie Rodriguez, first Coordinator of the Women’s Center (1990-93) and Cassandra Wylie, who was the longest serving Coordinator (1994-2001). Also, Senator Malama Solomon will be recognized for her crucial role in championing the passage of Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 83 creating and funding the Women’s Centers at both UH Mānoa and Hawai‘i CC/UH Hilo in 1989. Dr. Trina Nahm-Mijo, who wrote the original proposal to start the Hawai‘i CC/UH Hilo Women’s Center in 1989, will co-emcee the event with Dr. Celia Bardwell-Jones, current Chair of the Gender/Women’s Studies Program at UH Hilo.
FRIDAY, FEB. 19: “The Vagina Monologues” Preview
On Friday, February 19, a preview showing of Eve Ensler’s iconic “The Vagina Monologues (TVM)” will be presented free at the UH Hilo Plaza at 5:30 p.m. TVM premiered in New York City in 1997 and was written and performed by Ensler based on 200 interviews she did with women around the world who spoke candidly, enthusiastically, and movingly about their vaginas. By 2015, TVM was being performed in over 170 countries and had raised over 100 million for women’s organizations actively serving women who were victims of violence. The general public is encouraged to attend, and information about women’s services and organizations will be available from 3:30-5:30 p.m. on the UH Hilo Plaza.
SATURDAY, FEB 20: “The Vagina Monologues” Performance
On Saturday, February 20, the full production of “The Vagina Monologues” will be presented at 6 p.m. at the newly renovated UH Hilo Old Gym on Kapiolani St. This 14th showing of TVM on Hawai‘i Island is produced and directed by Junaita Revell, a student majoring in Psychology and Communications at UH Hilo with a diverse cast from both the campus and general community. Tickets are $10 and all proceeds go to supporting the Women’s Center programming. To learn more about the V-Day movement and its global impact, visit: www.vday.org.
SUNDAY, FEB 21: “I Am An Emotional Creature” Performance
As the culminating event of the 25th Anniversary Celebration of The Women’s Center, a presentation of Eve Ensler’s work: “I Am An Emotional Creature” will be premiered on Sunday, February 21 at 2 p.m. in the UH Hilo Old Gym. In Ensler’s inimitable, non-flinching-but-poignant style, this production explores girls’ issues like child labor, relationship abuse, teenaged pregnancy, sex trafficking, and more from the eyes of youth aged 15-24 years. The seven cast members are: Annalise Gibson, Brittany Williams, Hiwalani La’a, Jasmin Silva, Lyric Lee, Olivia Boucher, and Sequoia Aurora. It is directed by Laura Sherwood, a Hawai‘i CC and UH Hilo alumnus and current Master’s candidate in Change and Leadership in Organizational Development at Antioch University in Seattle, Washington.
Additional Sponsors
Besides The Women’s Center, other co-sponsors of the 25th Anniversary events are: UH Hilo’s Board of Student Publications, Hawai‘i CC Social Science Department, UH Hilo’s Gender and Women’s Studies Program, and Hawaii Youth Business Center. For more information or to participate in tabling on the UH Hilo Plaza February17-19, contact Trina at: nahmmijo@hawaii.edu or p. 934-2574. Contact Lehua McClung at The Women’s Center to purchase tickets for the Feburary 20 performance at lmcclung@hawaii.edu or p. 932-7280.
