In the country formerly known as Burma, these free thinkers are a force in the struggle for democracy.
By Joshua Hammer
Photographs by Adam Dean
Smithsonian Magazine, March 2011
Since 1991, approximately 1,700 organizations in 130 countries have participated in the 16 Days Campaign, which originated from the first Women's Global Leadership Institute sponsored by the Center for Women's Global Leadership. During 16 days, participators are encouraged to organize events and act in their local communities to:
It has been a tumultuous and anxious week for women in Turkey. When President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a decree at midnight last Friday, annulling Turkey's ratification of the Istanbul Convention on violence against women, women poured onto the streets of Turkish cities to protest. Further demonstrations are planned.
The 15M movement in Spain grew out of a desire for liberation and greater access to social and political rights for marginalized groups. At its core the activists of 15M were visionaries and used voting for a utopian society as a creative act to reimagine the world they created. Reality is socially construed by the forces that determine individual agency.
Founded in 2008, the French Feminist Collective, La Barbe, targets inequities of female representation in media and cultural/governmental institutions. La Barbe, meaning "beard" in French, is also an old colloquial expression for "enough is enough!". Known as barbues, the female members are all ages. Any woman is welcome to join.
During the 2020 and 2021 social protests in Chile, Colombia, and Peru, Latin American fans of K-pop, Korean popular music and culture that mixes rhythms, styles, dance routines and has a defined aesthetic, went from using social networks to support their favorite artists to using them to sabotage the hashtags of conservative influencers that discredited the mobilizations.
Brick x Brick is a public art performance that builds human “walls” against misogyny. It is organized by the Public Displays of Affection, a collective of artists, designers, educators and organizers that engages in nonviolent direct art action. During the wall performances, participants wear brick-patterned jumpsuits adorned with colorful brick patches bearing statements of misogynistic violence made by US President Donald Trump.
Established in 2015 in the Tennōzu neighborhood of Tokyo, and attracting industry professionals and art enthusiasts from both Japan and abroad, PIGMENT TOKYO has emerged as an art supply store specializing in the materials and tools used in traditional Japanese painting, such as mineral pigments, washi paper, and brushes. However, it’s more than just a store.
Long before the red ribbon became an innocuous symbol of AIDS
“awareness” and celebrity philanthropy, there was the pink triangle and
there was ACT UP and there were thousands of people taking to the
streets for their lives. Once a symbol used to mark suspected queers for
death in the Holocaust, ACT UP appropriated the pink triangle for
This week, I got to make history. At 18 years of age, I received an honorary doctorate from the University of London for my work in climate justice, making me the current youngest holder of the award globally.
In the Ukraine, a country where females are victims of sexual trafficking and gender oppression, a new tribe of empowered women is emerging. Calling themselves the “Asgarda”, the women seek complete autonomy from men. Residing in the Carpathian Mountains, the tribe is comprised of 150 women of varying ages, primarily students, led by 30 year-old Katerina Tarnouska.
"Black Lives/White Light and TABLETRIBES, a D.C.-based tech startup, are coupling art and technology to create The Radius Project, which aims to take conversations surrounding Black Lives Matter beyond newsfeeds and comment sections...TABLETRIBES is a social networking app that allows users interested in similar topics to connect with each other offline...Their goal is to globally scale empathy development by developing opportunities for users to e
At least three international companies have committed to join the fight against slavery in a campaign that aims to make Hong Kong the hub in Asia to tackle human-trafficking.
a picture is worth... provides youth with the opportunity to find their voice, surface their values and connect with others in creative and affirming ways. The project integrates academic skills such as literacy, the development of critical thinking, communications, community engagement, photography and technology with values of integrity, self-awareness, empathy and leadership.
The Free Breakfast for School Children Program was initiated at St. Augustine's Church in Oakland by the Black Panther Party. The Panthers would cook and serve food to the poor inner city youth of the area.
Rooted in decades of grassroots organizing, the cannabis reform activism at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is one of the longest-running student-led efforts for marijuana legalization in the United States. Led by the Cannabis Education Coalition (CEC), founded in 1991, this movement combined cultural celebration with political advocacy, using public festivals like Extravaganja to destigmatize cannabis and promote drug policy education.
The forests of India are a critical resource for the subsistence of rural peoples throughout the country, but especially in hill and mountain areas, both because of their direct provision of food, fuel and fodder and because of their role in stabilising soil and water resources.
Initially organized to respond to holes in service provision following Hurricane Katrina, Burners Without Borders has since 2005 "emerged as a community led, grassroots group that encourages innovative, civic participation that creates positive change locally." One ongoing project headed by BWB's Will Ruddick is a complementary currency program in Mombasa, Kenya.