It’s that time of year again, the 62nd annual Commission on the Status of Women. A month long event of global women leaders, NGOs, Non Profits and delegations coming together to talk about how we can basically come up with sustainable solutions for women and girls all over the world. Discussions range from poverty and education to ending all forms of violence against women and girls, which is what sustainable goal 5.2 claims to do. CSW is the red carpet of the humanitarian world....read more...
All of the top NGO and NGO leaders are met by doting UN staff who cater to their every need. The events taking place inside the UN is where a lot of people assume the action is at. I can assure you the same actions that are happening at side events in adjacent UN buildings is the same action that’s taking place inside the UN-just talking. Being in the UN during CSW can be a networking heaven for some people but the reality is if you are not well known internationally or have worked with any UN programme you can rest assured that no one will contact you. This is the top elite circle of human rights and if they’ve given you the privilege to be inside, then be grateful because that’s all it is.
UN Women lead most events in the UN that focus on the betterment of women and girls, but the conversation is the same every year. Global girl leaders, survivors and celebrities are paraded on panel discussions to just get recognition, publicity and fame for the not yet famous. There seems to be a certain change that happens to someone when they are asked to speak on a panel at the UN. It’s as if they no longer need to communicate with people they had previously regarded as colleagues and even friends. They have left one circle for what they feel is a more higher power that will take them to where they want to be. So once they have been placed on that high seat, they are now ready to talk about sustainable goals for other women and girls because now they have the power to do so. They talk about violence, child marriage, FGM, human trafficking and so forth but not one solution is made, nothing that is truly sustainable. The SDGs are getting higher every year with not much to show for it. They just think of clever ways to reword things so they sound new. Attendees of these panels are usually well to do women who probably won’t do anything but they’re great seat fillers. They rest are UN staff, NGO and non profits workers who are there to support a panel participant. The UN has created for itself a community of highly affluent, rich and what they say are well reputed NGOs that have the means to pay for these full room events leaving out struggling non profits from having a seat at the table.
I wonder just how sustainable the UN SDGs really are. When we talk about sustainability we realize that whatever the solution is, it has to last for the duration of time. It’s always good to have goals but at some point those goals must be met, not by just talking about it and adding on to something that wasn’t really achieved in the first place. Being sustainable is a step by step process that takes time and needs a lot of support. One of the ways that sustainability can be supported is by collaboration of organizations and resources. But when you are competing for funding, seats in the UN and full on media attention, it’s difficult to achieve. Being in the spotlight is not going to changes the horrors that so many women and girls face all around the world including the United States. Parading a celebrity around does not represent every woman, just Hollywood. Local and grassroots organization that are not seeking the spotlight know exactly what women and girls need and they do more than just talk about it-they do something about it.
This is a conversation that needs to happen more often, the de-funding of local and grassroots organizations. Badly needed funds are flowing in the wrong direction. It has been proven that local, grassroots organizations make a difference and support every woman’s voice, not just the popular ones. We need a lot. We need operating costs just so we can have a place and the capacity to do the work and hire employees. We need program funding so that we can help the women and girls we serve. But most of all, we as an organization and as women who have given up everything to do this work with no big bank account to back us up, we need to be sustained. Without us, so many women and girls will fall through the cracks, never be heard and never get the help they need. This is the March Madness that comes every year and we always seem to be right back where we started from. BeaSister2aSister is making their own SDG. We will call it SDG 6.0 where we are committed no matter how difficult, to see every survivor we work with be self sustainable, fully independent and not seeking the spotlight but seeking life.
UN Women lead most events in the UN that focus on the betterment of women and girls, but the conversation is the same every year. Global girl leaders, survivors and celebrities are paraded on panel discussions to just get recognition, publicity and fame for the not yet famous. There seems to be a certain change that happens to someone when they are asked to speak on a panel at the UN. It’s as if they no longer need to communicate with people they had previously regarded as colleagues and even friends. They have left one circle for what they feel is a more higher power that will take them to where they want to be. So once they have been placed on that high seat, they are now ready to talk about sustainable goals for other women and girls because now they have the power to do so. They talk about violence, child marriage, FGM, human trafficking and so forth but not one solution is made, nothing that is truly sustainable. The SDGs are getting higher every year with not much to show for it. They just think of clever ways to reword things so they sound new. Attendees of these panels are usually well to do women who probably won’t do anything but they’re great seat fillers. They rest are UN staff, NGO and non profits workers who are there to support a panel participant. The UN has created for itself a community of highly affluent, rich and what they say are well reputed NGOs that have the means to pay for these full room events leaving out struggling non profits from having a seat at the table.
I wonder just how sustainable the UN SDGs really are. When we talk about sustainability we realize that whatever the solution is, it has to last for the duration of time. It’s always good to have goals but at some point those goals must be met, not by just talking about it and adding on to something that wasn’t really achieved in the first place. Being sustainable is a step by step process that takes time and needs a lot of support. One of the ways that sustainability can be supported is by collaboration of organizations and resources. But when you are competing for funding, seats in the UN and full on media attention, it’s difficult to achieve. Being in the spotlight is not going to changes the horrors that so many women and girls face all around the world including the United States. Parading a celebrity around does not represent every woman, just Hollywood. Local and grassroots organization that are not seeking the spotlight know exactly what women and girls need and they do more than just talk about it-they do something about it.
This is a conversation that needs to happen more often, the de-funding of local and grassroots organizations. Badly needed funds are flowing in the wrong direction. It has been proven that local, grassroots organizations make a difference and support every woman’s voice, not just the popular ones. We need a lot. We need operating costs just so we can have a place and the capacity to do the work and hire employees. We need program funding so that we can help the women and girls we serve. But most of all, we as an organization and as women who have given up everything to do this work with no big bank account to back us up, we need to be sustained. Without us, so many women and girls will fall through the cracks, never be heard and never get the help they need. This is the March Madness that comes every year and we always seem to be right back where we started from. BeaSister2aSister is making their own SDG. We will call it SDG 6.0 where we are committed no matter how difficult, to see every survivor we work with be self sustainable, fully independent and not seeking the spotlight but seeking life.
Of course we cannot do it alone. Help grassroots organizations live and donate. Become a sustainable donor of $20, $50 or $100 a month or you can visit us at http://www.beasister2asister.org and go to the Give Today page & click donate.
Samantha Inesta
Founder/Executive
BeaSister2aSister
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