Two different representations of the feminist movement will offer University students wide discourse on women's issues this weekend.
Last night marked the Network of Enlightened Women's first event of the semester. NEW is a University Contracted Independent Organization established in September 2004 that seeks to foster the "education and leadership of conservative University women," said NEW President Karin Agness.
The group sponsored a presentation by Dr. Christina Hoff Sommers, resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research. Sommers advocated what she called "equity" rather than "victim" feminism.
Agness said the group decided to host Sommers in order to expand the discourse of women's issues at the University level. Agness said there was a need for "the viewpoint of a strong conservative woman" at the University. She added that she hoped the event would draw an audience of diverse opinions.
The NEW event coincided with the opening weekend of "The Vagina Monologues," a performance shown annually at the University as part of the National V-Day Campaign established by playwright Eve Ensler as a global movement to end violence against women and girls. The group sponsors benefit performances of "The Vagina Monologues" at college campuses around the world.
Sloane Kuney, president of the Sexual Assault Leadership Council, is the director of this year's show.
"'The Vagina Monologues' provides a chance to create dialogue about how to continue to make women's lives better in the University community," Kuney said.
The performance will be particularly relevant this year, Kuney said, because sexual assault has been such a high-profile issue at the University.
This is the fifth year that the University has participated in the National V-Day Campaign, Kuney said. Last year's sold-out show raised $7,500 for the Victim Emergency Fund, a program established to assist victims of sexual assault.
Agness said the NEW event purposely coincided with "The Vagina Monologues." Speakers such as Sommers can contribute to the University community because a solid liberal arts education should encourage a variety of perspectives, she added.
"'The Vagina Monologues' is an example of how feminism has co-opted the discourse on women's issues," Agness said. "The feminists are brainwashing us that their viewpoint is [the only] viewpoint, and this isn't true," she said.
Kuney said she was skeptical of the attitude NEW and Sommers represent.
"Feminism didn't make me a victim, it made me a survivor," she said.
Kuney said she agreed with Agness about the value of intelligent discourse on women's issues.
[NEW] "creates dialogue, and it's making people talk, which is probably a good thing," she said.
Kuney said she did not expect the NEW event to affect attendance at "The Vagina Monologues."
Read More
Students have federal internship offers rescinded due to hiring freeze
By Nina Broderick | 3 days agoUntil July 15, no presently vacant federal civilian positions may be filled, and no new positions may be created.
Man dies from self-inflicted gunshot wounds at the Rotunda
By Ford McCracken | 3 days agoThe investigation is ongoing, and additional details are not available at this time.
Virginia primary elections feature contested race for Democratic Lt. Gov. candidate
By Nicolas Biernacki | 3 days agoEligible voters can find more information about early voting by consulting the City Department of Voter Registration & Elections website or the County Department of Elections website.
