Is She a True Grit Woman?

True Grit women walk the talk of feminismSome women might be affronted, having money people discuss whether or not she (me) has the temperment to walk into a distressed-company lion’s den.

Not me. They had better discuss my temperment under pressure. When the wasps are stinging, I can’t exactly jump up on my chair, short skirt and all, suggesting we all take a deep-breath, cleansing moment.

Being ‘still’ is probably the best strategy in a wasp attack, but a woman risks being called ‘soft’ and not understanding her enemy.

The ‘still’ strategy didn’t work for Jews and it hasn’t helped the women of Sudan much either, since the mid-eighties.

When you’re losing millions, businessmen tend not to be in a good mood. Tempers are short and everyone’s out to get you.

The same can be said for the largely-male, international cadre of usually ultra religious zealots, who believe us women shouldn’t be let out of the house in the first place.

Life’s mighty interesting when Harvard guys are telling me: “You’re tough enough to solve this corporate mess, Anne; just stay the hell out of Sudan.”

No Visa In My Future

I think we all agree that I would not be granted a Sudanese visa at this point, unless a blond-head beheading was on the government’s ToDo list.

I keep telling my friends not to worry. Anne’s in a state of perfect emotional/psychological balance, even if I do wake up to Blackberry messages bootlegged out of Sudan. I hate starting the day with the f-word, but that was my reaction Tuesday morning, reading P’s message out of London.

Lubna Ahmed Hussein, the courageous Sudanese ‘trouser girl’ woman was not allowed to leave the country last night.

Hussein’s defiant “I dare you to flog me” voice has turned me inside out, with her bravery. Consider the global reaction one fierce women has launched, in her act of controlled defiance and refusal.

Lubna Ahmed Hussein on the streets of Khartoum, appearing in court on August 4, 2009

When a woman cries defiantly “You can flog me 40,000 times, I want this 152 law changed for women in Sudan”, I really can’t stand by saying “and what do you want from me? I have my own problems.”

Overwhelming Atrocities Against Women in DR Congo

When you open the flood gates, the women’s rights news is overwhelming.

Secretary of State Clinton was in the Congo yesterday. Once I got beyond the ignoramus who queried Hillary about being the channel for Bill her husband, the real man in charge of American diplomacy — I descended into the hellish stories of the most unimaginable brutality that defines the lives of women in the Congo.

In many countries of the world, the rape of women is now officially a tactic of war. Misty-eyed at my computer, I read one sickening story after another. I found inspiration, too, in features and news of people trying to raise our consciousness about the plight of Congolese women.

When I travelled 50% of the time internationally, I always had an excuse for not knowing what was going on. Those days are gone from my life, so how is it that I don’t know about Brooklyn-based, Pulitizer-Prize winning playwright Lynn Nottage and her play ‘Ruined’?

Listening to Lynn Nottage’s podcast on Human Rights Watch, this Smart Sensuality woman tries to capture fleeting moments of joy, beauty and flirtation in Congo, straws standing next to the pillars of horror.

Lynn Nottage and Lisa Jackson HRW podcast“A sole focus on the ugliness and atrocities of the play will consume her audience”, says Nottage.