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December 5, 2019 | Deeds Digest No. 153
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The Deeds Digest is your bi-weekly look into the latest news from Deeds Not Words and what's making us inspired, angry, and ready to change the world. 🌍
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Hey #Changemakers,
This past Tuesday, you probably received a swarm of emails about #GivingTuesday, which is an international charitable day of giving. Because Deeds Not Words is a non-profit, we rely strongly on supporters like you to fuel our work, so Giving Tuesday is an important day for us! This past Giving Tuesday, our supporters like you from around Texas (and beyond!) committed to empowering future generations to be the #Changemakers in their communities — and we can’t thank you enough.
When Deeds Not Words was started nearly four years ago, we made a commitment to galvanize the power of young people throughout Texas to strive for a more gender-equal world. Today, we’re proud that we are one of the few youth-led, youth-powered organizations here in Texas that are organizing around the issues that matter to us — from campus sexual assault and climate change to reproductive rights and abortion.
Giving Tuesday may be over, but you can still show your support by giving $19 to celebrate the work our youth advocates did in 2019. Our Changemakers have big plans to bring impactful change to their communities across Texas in 2020 — but they can’t do this alone. We hope we can count on you to empower our youth.
—Sydney Greene
Digital Coordinator
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In the last edition of our Digest, our Political Director, Andrea Reyes, talked about our Capstone Week of Action — a week-long civic engagement project at our college campus chapters. Our Campus Organizers decided what policy issues they wanted to tackle and then worked to create ways that made the most sense for their community to mobilize and effect change. This semester, our Changemakers did projects ranging from creating an awareness campaign to supply trashcans in all bathroom stalls at TCU so all genders can dispose of menstrual products to creating a Safe Space Brunch for students to openly talk about campus sexual assault at UT-San Antonio.
To read through a thread of what our campus chapters did for their capstone projects, click here.
Great job to our Campus Organizers!
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Global protests denounce violence against women
Last week, tens of thousands of people rallied across the world, from Spain and France to Sudan and Turkey, to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. In 2017, roughly 87,000 women and girls were murdered across the world according to the United Nations. Yes — 87,000.
Here’s a look at how women across the world are disrupting the status quo:
Russia: Crowds marched through the streets of Moscow to highlight the government's failure to pass laws protecting women.
Mexico: Demonstrators in Mexico City protested authorities' failure to halt soaring rates of femicide and rape in the country.
Spain: Thousands marched in Madrid after 52 women having been killed by their partners or ex-partners since the start of 2019. Also, earlier this year, a court in Barcelona cleared five men of sexual assault charges after saying the crime did not fit the legal definition of rape because the unconscious teenage victim didn't fight back.
There’s even a global rallying cry for the protests. Started by a local feminist collective in Chile, the song and accompanying dance tackles both gender violence and victim shaming, saying: “Y la culpa no era mĂa, ni dĂłnde estaba, ni cĂłmo vestĂa,” / (“and the fault wasn’t mine, not where I was, not how I dressed”).
We’re powerful in numbers — and women have shown time and time again that we will not be silent in the face of injustice.
Here’s what’s also inspiring us:
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[Trigger Warning: Sexual Violence.]
Online dating can be a scary world to navigate — and this recent report exploring the link between sexual violence and dating apps proves this. According to a recent investigation, Match Group, which owns most major online dating services, screens for sexual predators on Match — but not on Tinder, OkCupid or PlentyofFish. Through the investigation, more than 150 incidents of sexual assault involving dating apps, gathered from a decade of news reports, civil lawsuits and criminal records, showed that most victims, almost all women, met their male attackers through Tinder, OkCupid, PlentyofFish or Match — all apps that Match Group owns.
This is an infuriating report, further showing that even online, women are not safe nor are they protected. It’s up to these apps to protect its users, and that means vetting users who have a history of harming others.
If you have been affected by sexual assault and would like confidential help and support, please call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800-656-4673 to talk to a trained staff member from a nearby group that helps victims of sexual assault.
Here’s what’s also has us fired up:
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Calling all Changemakers! Deeds Not Words is looking for Campus Organizers to play a unique role in mobilizing the next generation of Changemakers on to ignite change in your campus and community.
To date, our Changemakers have championed ideas that have ranged from stocking campus restrooms with menstrual products to re-writing the laws that govern response to campus sexual assault and building their own voter engagement and turn-out teams.
Do you have a Changemaker in your life who would be great for this role? Are you interested in becoming a Campus Organizer? Apply today! http://bit.ly/374pGmM.
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This Week's #Changemaker:
Ann Tran, Texas Christian University
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Our Changemaker of the Week is Ann Tran, who is the Campus Organizer at Texas Christian University! Just months ago, Ann started the first Deeds Not Words chapter at TCU, and she’s already done tremendous work for her campus.
“This semester, I chartered the first-ever Deeds Not Words chapter at TCU. Aside from collecting pledge cards and voter registrations, our chapter has made Halloween goodie bags for our students and tabled at an event with the Department of Women & Gender Studies. Our Capstone project spread awareness about the need for trash bins in men's bathrooms at TCU, which would provide equal menstruation access to our trans students. Currently, I am working with the Gender Resource Office (GRO) and TCU student organizations Spectrum and SAGE (Students Acting for Gender Equity) on an initiative to bring gender-neutral bathrooms to campus."
"While starting a new organization is always daunting, I'm glad I chose Deeds Not Words. This is an organization that empowers youth to rally for equal representation and rights for all people in every space. True to my personal life mission, working with Deeds has made me an active community leader and a better global citizen.” —Ann
Ann, thank you so much for your leadership! We see you, Changemaker!
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