Fck normality

I found this picture on a facebook site and I felt inspired :P no, just joking... the message is simple yet clear... hate permanency, but love everything else.

Giving my first lecture at a university

Good news! Our Women's Group at the Amnesty International Hungary started it's work: several translations have already been made, we publish at least one post a day to our facebook page -- we already gathered some encouraged followers and likes.

What's more: we (as representatives of AI) were invited to give a presentation on maternal death at Pázmány Péter Catholic University!!

There is going to be a conference and exhibition over the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations. There are eight goals -- they encompass universally accepted human rights (like freedom from hunger, the right to basic education, the right to health etc.). The target date is 2015 by which the MDG are to be achieved.

The topic of maternal death is quite complex and considering the school's religious background it is going to be hard to talk about the problem of health care or abortion. These "factors" are of course inevitable when talking about mortality rates -- since we consider dignity, health, freedom and human rights more important than christianity... we love challenges, so we have to face the controversial milieu of "conservatism". Amnesty has a different interest in general: to raise awareness (yes, again my favorite expression), thus it focuses on social campaigns and lobbying. A catholic university is definitely not the place where we can spread petitions against unequal treatment... simply we are just not allowed to do so. However, organizing such a conference is a major step to promote human rights in a religious nature.

It was yesterday when we had our first session to put the presentation together and it seems, that I'm going to be one of the lecturers. Woaaah! It is a big thing for me -- while I'm a student at one university I'm giving a lecture at another one. This is a fantastic opportunity for me. We have nearly 2 weeks left, so I have plenty of time to prepare. Can't wait :)

6-day-long training on LGBTQ rights in the Balkans

It was yesterday when I applied. There is going to be a nearly week-long course on LGBTQ rights, focused on the queer community, held in Zagreb. I applied but on my own -- not as a representative of any NGO I regularly work for. Fortunately, accommodation and food will be provided, but I do have to pay for my travelling costs. Zagreb is not that far away from Budapest so I hope it is not going to be that expensive. So, I'm going to install a donation option for this blog. I'm not asking for money (or at least not directly), but whoever wants to support my work, I gladly welcome him/her and would be very grateful. :) thank you thank you.

Organized by the Green European Foundation, the title "Queering Green Theory / Greening Queer Theory" refers to an approach how the Greens can address LGTBQ as a Human Rights issue.

The term "queer" is quite a new expression that is usually and wrongly used as a synonym for gay/lesbian. However, it is rather a lifestyle than a sexual orientation... lifestyle? it is an "ideology" I would say. It is interesting that those associating themselves with lgbt communities are not even familiar with the meaning of queer.

During our last Pride meeting it also turned out that a "clarification" is necessary. We are going to have a sensitization training sometime during spring and the queer-question (oh, how much I hate this expression) is one of the topics that we need to discuss. Complicated or just too modern? Why aren't we aware of these things? Back to my point: this course will definitely be fundamental for me -- as a degree collector, I always say that :) awareness-awareness-awareness, key concept of my life. Hope they accept my application... we'll see... 

"So similar, so different, so European"

I've just found this short video on the facebook page of the European Commission. I don't think that it has a specific aim -- just wanted to show the colorfulness (yepp, besides awareness this is my second favorite expression). This is a simple, yet a quite important message if it is not the most important... so go on, watch this, pretty impressive!

Introducing Budapest Pride

So, today is the day of the CEU NGO fair. I've just read back the post that I published some days ago and realized that I have not written anything about Budapest Pride. 

I joined the organizer team last autumn, especially those coordinating the press. Later, when it turned out that I'm originally an art manager (or something like that), they convinced me to help the culture group arranging the events. I said ok, I welcomed this job because the Pride is an example how a cultural festival can highlight the importance of "colorfulness". The fight against homophobia and discrimination takes shape in a week-long cultural event with film screenings, exhibition, theater plays and of course the pride march. Its political message is inevitable -- due to the quite worrisome situation in the country -- but I think we should rather focus on the cultural values of such. It is more important to show that the festival is not only about saying "fuck off, I'm gay, get used to it", but about how diverse the lgbtq community is. 

I do enjoy working with them though it is not at all easy. I've already started contacting with gallery spaces, ruin bars, cafés -- wanted to find out who is open to exhibitions dealing with queer art. Meanwhile, I've also started a consultation with music artists, bands. We will see...

CEU NGO Fair

So, the Central European University is about to organize its 8th annual NGO Fair. The aim is to provide a platform for NGOs to present their organization. It is also an opportunity for those interested to join either by financial support or volunteer work. 

We are also participating in this event. As representatives of the Budapest Pride we are planning to give a short presentation about us: who we are, what we do (programs we organize), how you can help etc... Whoever is interested: from 11am to 2pm @ CEU (Nador utca)

Desperate students

No matter what the weather is like, desperate students protested against the educational laws in Budapest. This time organized by Hallgatói Hálózat (Student's Network), a demonstration, a march. Would-be and already university students (finally) stood up for their rights - our rights - and said no to the changes in the higher education system: dramatic cut on frame numbers, doubling and tripling of tuition fees, abolishment of government support. What's coming next is what remained unknown.



I  I took half of the article from politics.hu about a previous protest: 

"Students’ union HOOK has turned to the European Commission over Hungary’s new higher education laws, chairman David Nagy told a gathering of demonstrating students in Budapest on Wednesday evening. 

Nagy said that a clause in the new laws requiring students who receive state financing for their courses to stay in the country for some years for work is “no solution to the problem of brain drain”. He told a group of about 200 gathered in central Deak ter that the solution would be creating work conditions and wages on par with the rest of Europe and restoring the prestige of knowledge and getting a degree. He said students demand that the government reverse recent drastic cuts in certain areas of study based on professional considerations. He mentioned economics and law as two areas which unjustly took the brunt of the cuts. He cited Hungary’s basic rights ombudsman as saying recently that applicants’ rights were seriously violated over the past few months and pushing the deadline for applications forward did not help this." 

Continue! Continue! Continue!

United Nations Human Rights fb status

Well, I've just read the facebook status update of United Nations Human Rights: 

 “Today, many look to the world of social media. The majority of those who use it are women – and the Chief Operating Officer of Facebook is a woman. Yet many are asking: Why are there no women on the corporate board of Facebook, Twitter or other young, dynamic companies? I believe that’s a fair question.” – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, 16 February 2012

Valentine's Day

It is a symbolic day... the 14th of february... I don't personally celebrate that, but I do hate those who just share negative comments about that. What's the point in that? If you hate Valentine's or simply don't have anyone to spend with than just leave it that way... but it's quite disappointing that when I log into facebook most people desperately post how pathetic it is to celebrate the day of love. We all hate sexism, homophobia, labeling etc but saying that it is just another stupid heterosexual habit makes no difference...

Anti-Putin March in Moscow

It's the 4th of February, 2012, the place is Moscow. The temperature in the streets is around minus of 18-20 degrees of Celsius. Amazing crowd, thousands of demonstrators marched through downtown Moscow in order to keep up the pressure on Putin one month before a presidential election that would possibly extend his rule for six more years. All occupy movements have a message in common: protesters demand that their voices can be heard. And... it's right.

Launching Facebook Page

Oh, I nearly forgot to tell: we already launched a Facebook page (click here!) for the Amnesty International Hungary Women's Group -- whoever is interested can follow us, read what we publish, comment on our work etc. By the way, you can make comments here is as well, I gladly welcome recommendations! 

Women's Group of AI

And the day has come -- we founded the women's group of Amnesty International Hungary. Hurrraaahh! But, giving a name caused a problem:

• violence against women: too long
• women: too broad
• women rights: not exactly our profile
• women for women: already used...
• together for women: sounds awful

Not to mention the language, should it be in Hungarian or should we agree on an English one to follow the international trends? We still have time to decide... 

However, we could finally meet each other in person. Great start, everyone is enthusiastic, we already mentioned hundreds of projects to work on: monitor press, gather international news and make translations, arrange material for future university lectures and organize some cultural events -- yep, it's me:). All in all, no need to rush, we will see, but I am engaged. 

Introducing Amnesty International

The secondary reason why I started this blog is because I want to share my experience. I just jumped onto a new path -- non governmental institutions have long been things that I viewed from far, I never thought that one day I would work for free, but for good at the same time. Things have changed or I have changed or most probably: both -- I applied for various jobs at TASZ and Helsinki Committee, already joined the organizer team of the Pride and also, I am one of the 5 founders of a new group belonging to Amnesty International. Now, I'm going to introduce that one.

The group's main profile is violence against women, but we are not planning to become an emergency service, rather a support service (in terms of legal assistance for example). What is good in this "job" is that I know what I'm doing is important, helpful, and I can also use my art manager qualifications: I already highlighted some of my ideas about events I want to organize. As long as we follow and keep the basic rules and principles of Amnesty, the group has a relatively large autonomy, we can do whatever we want, arrange meetings, hold film screenings, open exhibitions etc. Awesome. I'm enthusiastic enough to make this good.

Actually, I was lucky enough: I never lived through any source of violence, nor did I ever had an aggressive partner, but I do think that without any personal experience I am capable of doing it well. I believe we (the group) can demonstrate the topics through various programs authentically and comprehensively. Fortunately, the office employs hundreds of activists, they are going to be helpful for the work we are doing.