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It’s back again. There will be three performances of the Vagina Monologues at WLU in March. Information is as follows courtesy of the VAGINA MONOLOGUES 2008 Facebook group.

Come and check out this year’s performance of the Vagina Monologues, an award winning play by writer and activist Eve Ensler.

This year’s audition turnout was so good that we’ve created two casts, which means four possible performances for you to come out to!

This will be the most fun you’ve had all year.

All proceeds go to both the V-Day Organization and Kitchener-Waterloo’s own Women’s Crisis Services.

Tickets can be purchased for $10 at the C-Spot or at our Vagina Bazaar booths in the Hall of Fame, or for $12 at the door.

Performance dates and times are as follows:

March 12th at 8:00 pm (Doors 7:30)
March 13th at 8:00 pm (Doors 7:30)
March 14th at 1:00 pm (Doors 12:30) AND 5:00 pm (Doors 4:30)

All performances will be located at the Turret.

For the first two performances, there will be a cash bar available from 7:30-8:30.

I’ve only seen the Vagina Monogues once, and that was in my first year of university. Even in my nieve ignorance at that time, I was glad I had attended. Sure it left me jaded, but it opened my eyes to issues I had never even heard of. Issues that are often overlooked, ridiculed, and stigmatized in our everyday lives. So I encourage everyone to attend.

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I haven’t been following the whole debate (some would call it a controversy) over the recent approval of an Africentric school in Toronto very closely, but it really intrigues me that this is such a huge issue. Why are people so against a school that recognizes the need to recognize how prevalent and important issues of race and ethnicity are to education and the current curriculum? Especially with regards to the inherent racism and Eurocentracism that is embedded in the Ontario curriculum. I mean most, or at least a good portion of people, have quite strong opinions on the approval of this school. Some of the arguments made against this school is that it is segregating and that it should not be publicly funded.

Personally, I think the first argument is pretty weak considering that we already have schools segregated by class, gender and religion. We have private schools for those who can afford it [class]. We have all-girls and all-boys schools [gender]. And we have religious schools [publicly funded Catholic schools and numerous privately funded schools]. So why is race and ethnicity such a touchy subject? Well, publicly funding religious schools was an issue in the last provincial election, but I believe it was more of a race issue than anything else. Sorry, I digress. So if we have all these other forms of educational spaces, then why is a racial/ethnic social space so threatening? Could it be that the embedded racism that exists in the curriculum also exists, and is perpetuated by, the racism held by a good portion of Ontario residents? And just to clarify, the school is not only for Black students. It is open to everyone. So how exactly is is segregating?

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A couple of nights ago I was watching TV with my mom and sister. It was a discussion between the audience, the anchor and an Ontario MP on the debate over whether the Lord’s Prayer should be removed from the Ontario Legislature. I was interested to hear what the responses were from viewers (which I acknowledge is obviously screened). After hearing numeraous individuals call in, I was quite appauled by the consistent Othering language used by many “Christians” who called in. Some of the response were along the lines of these statements:

1. They come to our country and they should accept our traditions.
2. We have to give up our traditions to those people who come here.
3. Canada is more than accomodating to their religions and I don’t see why they should come here and tell us to throw away our traditions.

At what point will they become us? What is it to be Canadian? Does it even matter that I am legally a Canadian citizen? Will the colour of my skin always trigger labels of Other, immigrant, and alien to these Canadians? Does it even matter that I am typically classified as a Christian? According to the statements I heard, I am not a “real” Canadian because I immigrated here.

Well what about “those people” who have been in Canada for generations and are NOT Christian? Are they still not seen as Canadian? Why? What defines a Canadian? Whiteness? Christian-ness? Why are Others still seen as a threat to Canada? Why aren’t they allowed to shape Canada and Canadian culture the way that other “Canadians” are allowed to? When will they be accepted as equal citizens? It is so disappointing to see the same rationality that existed during overtly racist policies designed to keep Others out and Whites in, still resides in the hearts of many Canadians. Of course, I know these comments do not represent all Canadians, and I certainly hope (although I’m more likely being naive) that most Canadians don’t hold these beliefs.

What also bothered me while watching this was that the facilitators of the discussion did not even attempt to draw attention to the inherent racism in the words of these callers. The MP was quick to correct them on the details of the debate, but didn’t even think it was necessary to clarify the Othering that was taking place. Sure it would have diverted off topic, but at least give some discretion to the viewers and future callers so that they can recognize how their words were creating an “us” and “them” labelling session. And to think that this moron was voted into a seat to represent Canadians…can our society be any more pathetic?

Lastly, in reference to the popular arguement of keeping with tradition that was used to keep the prayer in the Legislature, I need to state this. Keeping a tradition for the sake of tradition is dangerous. Traditions have been used in this country to voilate human rights numerous times, so you need to come up with a better justification than ‘it has always been like that’. That was (and is) the same rationality that was/is used to justify the secondary status of women, the oppression and marginalization of racialized peoples, homophobic laws, etc. Ask yourself why you want to keep a tradition. If it is just because that’s all you’ve ever known, then keeping the tradition is more about your own alientation and complacency than it is about benefitting Canadian soceity and the peoples who call it home. Serving yourself, especially in reference to your irrational fears, is harmful to those you Other as well as the people you pass your irrational fears onto.

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Death is a weird thing. We all have to deal with it at some point in our lives, and we’ll all have to face it sooner or later. It’s inevitable and yet it usually always comes as a shock when it happens. Even when we are wanting someone to pass (hopefully to put them out of their suffering), we still feel pain when we have to let them go. Death goes hand in hand with mourning. If you don’t mourn right away it WILL wait for you. Sadly, it will hit you at an unexpected (and usually) and inconvenient time. Better to deal with it when it happens than let it linger. That’s what I think.

Jack’s grandfather passed away this weekend. It was expected, but it’s still hard to deal with. Did I like the man? I wouldn’t say I hated him. I didn’t really know him. Yet when I found out he died, I still cried. I don’t know if I was crying for him or for my grandmother that passed away almost at this same time last year. One of those quirky things about death I guess…it’s not always about the one who died.

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“Lieutenant-General Roméo Alain Dallaire,is a Canadian senator, humanitarian, author and retired general. Dallaire is widely known for having served as Force Commander of UNAMIR, the ill-fated United Nations peacekeeping force for Rwanda between 1993 and 1994, and for trying to stop a war of genocide that was being waged by Hutu extremists against Tutsis and Hutu moderates.”

I got that description off the facebook group =P. So yes, Roméo Dallaire will be at WLU giving a talk on March 7. Tickets are $5 for students and $15 for the general public. My friend went to his talk previously and said it was amazing. So expect good things from this one as well. I already have my ticket. =D

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