November 9, 2024 Breaking News, Latest News, and Videos

The Future is Female: Young Westside Women Head to the UN to Help Shape Our World

SMM_girlsBy Evelyn Taylor

 

For two Santa Monica High School (Samohi) Juniors, Larissa Lim and Chloe Gottlieb, who traveled to the United Nations in New York Saturday, March 11, to attend the 61st annual session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), the future is definitively female. Throughout the week-long leadership event, Lim and Gottlieb joined other student delegates to listen to speakers, participate in panels, and take part in other activities promoting women’s rights and gender equality.

The girls, also co-presidents of Samohi’s Girls Learn International (GLI) chapter, were two of 40 female students selected from a nationwide applicant pool of 600 GLI chapters. GLI, a sister organization of the Feminist Majority Foundation, primarily focuses on increasing access to education for women and girls around the world, and offers students the opportunity to attend the CSW each year.

This year, the CSW targeted women’s economic empowerment in the changing world of work as its priority theme, and the empowerment of indigenous women as a smaller focus. In addition to hearing speakers, the student delegates were organized into advocacy teams, each of which chose an individual Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) to tackle during the week. Lim’s group focused on sexual and reproductive health and education for refugee women and girls, while Gottlieb’s team chose the same topic in regards to immigrant women and girls.

“It was kind of a niche topic, but it was really cool to talk about it and get the word out,” Gottlieb said. “If you don’t have the words to describe something, people don’t know there’s a problem and don’t know that there’s something lacking.”

In order to implement change and spread awareness, Lim’s team created an Instagram campaign called “@rep4refs.” The students interviewed people throughout the week about the topic to post on the account, and plan to introduce the campaign to their respective high schools.

Gottlieb and Lim also attended the CSW’s second Youth Forum ever with other high school delegates to share the problems and opportunities in their areas of the country and abroad regarding the status of women.

“At the Youth Forum, I learned that we’re not some other part of the population – we are the population, and we don’t just have experiences as youth, but we have experiences as humans,” Lim said, “[We hold] a significant amount of experience and knowledge about things that older generations might not realize or understand.”

Lim said the most powerful part of the experience was meeting and learning from people from backgrounds starkly different from her own. Additionally, she said she appreciated meeting individuals who had taken unexpected paths to get to the work they were doing.

“I met a lot of girls from New Jersey and Pennsylvania, actually, which was really cool because you learn how their environments shape who they are,” Lim said. “I also met this girl from Iowa, who goes to a far-right school, and she was bullied for being a feminist. She had one ally, a teacher, and the rest of the school was totally against her.”

Lim and Gottlieb were also able to meet girls their age from distant countries such as Nigeria, Uganda, Ethiopia, and Mozambique, and listen to several survivor stories of assault and trafficking. Both students said it was empowering and important to hear their experiences.

“I got to go to a side event that was held by France, and it was all about abortion rights universally,” Gottlieb said. “It was interesting to see their perspective on that versus the America-centered view that I’m used to, living in the states.”

Gottlieb said much of the conversation at the CSW was focused on navigating the new landscape for women’s rights due to President Trump’s administration and decisions.

“It felt really inspiring to see that it’s not going to be an issue that we don’t talk about or don’t try to fix,” Gottlieb said. “We’re going to work towards finding solutions no matter who’s in charge of the United States.”

For more information on GLI, head to: girlslearn.net.

 

<>Related Posts

Film Review: Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One

July 19, 2023

July 19, 2023

FILM REVIEWMISSION IMPOSSIBLE – DEAD RECKONING PART ONERated PG-13163 MinutesReleased July 11th The story in this “Mission: Impossible” chapter, “Dead...

Film Review: Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

July 5, 2023

July 5, 2023

FILM REVIEWINDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINYRated PG-13154 MinutesReleased June 30th The director of Indiana Jones and the Dial...

Film Review: Past Lives

June 27, 2023

June 27, 2023

FILM REVIEWPAST LIVESRated PG-13105 MinutesLimited Releases June 2nd and June 9th, Full Release June 23rd The Korean concept of “In...

Film Review: Sanctuary

June 8, 2023

June 8, 2023

FILM REVIEWSANCTUARYRated R96 MinutesReleased May 19th In my humble estimation, this is one of the best movies of the year....

Film Review: The Little Mermaid

June 2, 2023

June 2, 2023

FILM REVIEWTHE LITTLE MERMAIDRated PG135 MinutesReleased May 26th With today’s technological developments, a live-action The Little Mermaid is not only...

A Riveting Revival of the Pulitzer Prize-Winning “A Soldier’s Play” Now Playing At The Ahmanson Theatre

May 31, 2023

May 31, 2023

On Stage With… Murder mysteries, whether cinematic or theatrical, are one of the most popular subjects. The list is quite...

Film Review: Chevalier

May 12, 2023

May 12, 2023

By Kathryn Boole  RATED PG-13107 MinutesReleased April 21, 2023 Chevalier is based on the true story of a historical figure...

Ballet at the Broad Stage Memorial Weekend – Meet the Talent!

May 10, 2023

May 10, 2023

Westside Ballet of Santa Monica returns to the Broad Stage with special guest artists kicking off Friday May 26th with...

Elizabeth McGovern Lights Up The Stage in “Ava – The Secret Conversations”

April 26, 2023

April 26, 2023

Play About Legendary Screen Star Runs Until May 14 At The Geffen Playhouse By Beverly Cohn Ava Gardner, born Ava...

Unconventional Art Festival “The Other Art Fair” Returns to Santa Monica This Weekend

March 31, 2023

March 31, 2023

140 independent artists, immersive installations, performances, DJs, and a fully stocked bar await visitors at Barker Hangar The Other Art...

Samohi Theatre’s “The Drowsy Chaperone” Takes the Stage in Santa Monica

March 1, 2023

March 1, 2023

Shows will take place at Barnum Hall on March 3 and 4 at 7 p.m. and March 5 at 3...

Film Review: “Marlow”

February 23, 2023

February 23, 2023

FILM REVIEW“MARLOWE”Rated R109 MinutesReleased February 15th “Marlowe” is a beautifully shot period piece that takes place in the late 1930’s....

Film Review: All Quite on the Western Front

February 22, 2023

February 22, 2023

I have never been a soldier at war, although I have close friends and relatives who have been. Universally they...

SMC Emeritus Concert Band to Hold Free Concert This Weekend at the Broad Stage

February 22, 2023

February 22, 2023

Concert February 26 will feature musical selections with an outdoor theme Santa Monica College’s Emeritus Concert Band, under the baton...