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I will not shut up: Raising voice against sexual abuse

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RAHI (Recovering and Healing from Incest) Foundation, established in 1996, is an organization focused on women survivors of incest and Child Sexual Abuse (CSA). Volunteers at RAHI have made it their mission to spread awareness about the issue of sexual abuse, thereby bringing it to the fore and in the agendas of the social change makers.

The first and only organization in India for women survivors of Incest and Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) since 1996, RAHI has now come up with their ‘I Will Not Shut Up’ campaign. The campaign which is the first of its kind in India was launched in August and is aimed at breaking the silence, both literally and metaphorically. As a part of this campaign, they have recruited campaigners in many colleges of Delhi University, including IP College for Women, Jesus & Mary College, Ramjas College, Daulat Ram College, Janki Devi College, Dyal Singh College, St.Stephens College and Miranda House as agents of change, who will take this message forward.

On being asked how this campaign took birth, Veronica Xavier, Programme Assistant at RAHI, explained, “RAHI has been working closely with the student community since the last 18 years. In our college programmes, we train young students who then go out and spread awareness about CSA to their peers and reach out to survivors amongst them. This year, I Will Not Shut Up is witnessing an expansion of wings and reach, both through on the street activities on campus as well as online campaigning. Thus came the idea of a campaign which was an open dare to anyone who asked us to shut up about CSA and be in denial about it in our families.”

RAHI has come up with a variety of activities to be performed on-campus as well as online activities, placard campaign, movie screenings, poster-making competitions, to name a few. Recently, they held a poster-making competition in Indraprastha College for Women.

In barely two and a half months, they have reached out to over 12,000 students. Swati Varma, Programmes Coordinator at RAHI, is glad with the success of the campaign and the alacrity of the college students. “The response that we have got from the students is overwhelming! Be it a stall at a Diwali Mela, a movie screening or a poster drive, the students from the campus have been very enthusiastic and have, very passionately participated in all our activities in huge numbers.” When asked whether the experience has been easy, she said, “Of course, there were the usual ups and downs. A few times we did find students being apprehensive and uneasy with the issue. But then again, that is what our campaign is aiming to do: breaking the silence and discomfort around CSA in the campus.”

DUB Speak: The unabated existence of child sexual abuse is a horrendous reality. To aggravate the trauma further, Indian society often attaches a stigma to this, deepening the scars that the survivors of child sexual abuse and incest grow up with. To deal with such a sensitive issue, which has hitherto remain untouched and unspoken of, is perhaps the biggest quandary. For long, such matters have been shunned from being discussed, they have been censored from the public discourse, and the victim has been compelled to maintain silence about her suffering. Sexual assault victims suffer not just the pain of abuse, but also the fear of ignominy posed by the society which often terrorizes the victim into silence. All this borders on cowardice, our reluctance to change and on society’s cowardice.

Kritika Narula
[email protected]

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Indraprastha College for Women

Diwali festivities across Delhi University

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Delhi University is in the habit of going beyond the cliché, bringing out exclusiveness in everything it does. With people’s houses being festooned with illuminations one by one and the market flooding with myriad diyas and candles, DU colleges celebrated the festival of lights in their own distinctive way. Jesus and Mary College, Gargi College, Lady Shri Ram College for Women and Indraprastha College for Women saw its students dressing up the Indian way and celebrating the festivities with beats of music and shopping their hearts away at the NSS Diwali Melas. Here’s a peek into the exuberance of festivities celebrated by these colleges.

Kamala Nerhu College

Every year, the NSS unit and the Students Union organize an NGO cum Diwali Mela where they invite about 20-25 NGOs to provide them with a platform to not only generate awareness about the various works that they have been doing but also to showcase the talent of the people associated or being helped through these NGOs. On the auspicious occasion of Diwali the mela is organized keeping in mind with the festivities. Adrith’14 was graced with the presence of about 22 NGOs like Save the Quest, Umeed, Rhythm of Life and Can Support.

 

Jesus and Mary College

15th October, 2014- merely a week away from the most widely celebrated festival of India, JMC organised its annual Sparsh Diwali Mela. The college’s amphitheatre was decorated with brightly coloured dupattas and attractive stalls. Apart from the usual Chaat and Pao Bhaaji stalls, the Mela had stalls selling quirky pajamas, customized t-shirts, Kurtis, bangles and other accessories.

 

Gargi College

The much-talked about college for Diwali Melas organised Zistatva, its annual NSS Diwali Mela on 17th October. The engrossing games, the diverse stalls offering multitude of varieties for multitude of choices along with the musical beats added a lot more charisma to the atmosphere. The photo-booth was a major attraction where all you needed was to dress up the way you like and let the funky accessories colour your life.

 

Indraprastha College

IP College  organised its Diwali Mela on 18th October. Among the highlights of the Mela was the Enactus Society fundraiser stall. Conventional food and games stalls attracted huge crowd too. Keeping the Indian festive spirit alive, all stalls made offerings to the kids of the non-teaching staff of the college that served as a perfect culmination of the event.

 

Lady Shri Ram College for Women

Diwali Mela at LSR  was a roaring success. 18th October saw LSR getting together to celebrate the beauty of Diwali. From Kurtis to T-Shirts, Pao Bhaaji to Cakes; it was a perfect setting to celebrate the diversity of this festival. The Mela was a shopper’s paradise and met the expectations of spectators and visitors alike.

 

Arushi Pathak
[email protected]

With Inputs from: Vani Vivek, Shaily Sharma, Aditi Soni, Kritika Narula and Mugdha

Image credits: Mugdha for DU Beat

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AIESEC holds India Youth to Business Forum 2014

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On Friday, 10th October 2014, 450 young minds came together for Indian Youth to Business Forum at the Indian School of Business, Mohali. Themed ‘Next. Big. Leap’, the event was crafted to sequentially take the audience through futuristic, audacious and actionable stories and ideas from a pot-pourri of achievers. While Viral Oza, the Marketing Head of Microsoft Mobile Devices and Shireesh Joshi,  ?COO, Strategic Marketing Group at Godrej had stimulating insights into the world of business and marketing, Saachi Soni, the youngest Indian girl to have scaled the Mt.Everest, stole the show with her story of passion, simplicity and excellence.

A story that certainly seemed to have made a mark was that of young, globally acclaimed photographer, Vicky Roy. The crowd was moved by his humbling journey towards greatness from the streets and his remarkable take on life. The agenda was well packed with several interesting workshops that were conducted by big brands like Microsoft, Young India Fellowship, Teach for India and KPMG and compelling conversations with people like Vimal Sumbly, Managing Director of Triumph Motorcycles, India and the dynamic Vivek Atray, IAS Officer and novelist.

What set this event apart was its closing. Pradeep Singh, the Deputy Dean of ISB delivered a heartening talk on some of the indispensable essentials for the youth and marked the commenecement of a unique, never-before activity. Th 450 students sat under one roof to sketch a consequential output, knitting together the problems faced by the youth and concrete solutions to deal with the same. AIESEC will be releasing this output to the general public soon.

Image from India Y2B Forum Facebook page

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DUB News

Bringing finesse to recreation: Photography Workshop at IPCW

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Simulacra, The Film and Photography Society of Indraprastha College for Women organized a Basics Workshop in collaboration with Delhi University’s Photographers’ Club (DUPC) on 13th October 2014 where the students learnt about the basic elements and rudiments of photography. This was followed by followed by an Interactive session which enabled the participants in the workshop to get their queries addressed by the experts in the field.

Keerthi Thilakan, the President of Simulacra was elated with the idea of equipping beginners with photography skills. She said, “Considering the fact that so many people own a DSLR now a days, it is best that they be guided through the basics of direction, positions, lighting, angles etc.” There was a participation tally of 15, with students from Delhi Institue of Hotel Management, Shivaji College and Lakshmi Bai College as well.

In accordance with that workshop, they organized a Photowalk in the college the next day so that the knowledge garnered by the students could be practically applied. Tanvi, the General Secretary at Simulacra opines that the follow-up competition was a great culmination to the workshop, “It is a great platform for students to get creative, explore different avenues and think beyond the usual”, she said. The Top 15 pictures will be displayed during the Festival Mela in the college apart from prizes and certificates for the best entry. The theme for the competition was “Breaking the Symmetry”, which received some great entries.

 

Kritika Narula

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Campus Central

Environmental Studies' course now mandatory in Delhi University

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University Grants Commission has now made it mandatory for students enrolled in the undergraduate courses at Delhi University, to take up the course in Environmental Studies in their first or second semester.

The qualifying course introduced in the current academic session will consist of 100 marks as per the scheme notified for the three-year undergraduate programme, of which 25 per cent weightage will be given to field work. Various mediums of teaching would be lectures, seminars, video presentations, field visits, excursions, project work, report writing and presentations.

“The evaluation for the course shall be undertaken by the respective colleges. The responsibility of evaluation will be of the teacher in charge for the conduct of learning of the course. After evaluation, the marks shall be sent to the examination branch through a pre-developed process,” Dean of Examinations Prof. Rup Lal wrote in a circular to the principals.

“Delhi University took a lot of time to implement this decision. Now the faculty will ensure that students are taught the subject and various topics like waste management and global climate change in detail. The college students can only educate the masses further.” – Prof. Pardha Saradhi, Department of Environmental Sciences

Ecosystems, renewable and non-renewable natural resources, biodiversity and conservation, pollution, environmental policies and practices, exploitation of mineral, land, water resources and deforestation will be among the subjects covered as part of the course.

“Although the new course will be available only in English for the current batch, future batches will be able to avail it in Hindi as well. Also, the interdisciplinary course will help impart knowledge about the earth and its resources to students from all educational backgrounds which will in turn help them develop lateral thinking in this area through better understanding of environmental issues at the local, regional and global level”, as told to ET by Prof. M.K. Pandit from the Department of  Environmental Science.

According to University officials, directives for a six-month mandatory environmental science course were issued by the UGC in 2004, however, its implementation was delayed due to issues of curriculum development and upgradation of infrastructure.

Feature Image Credits: www.genee-india.com

Ishani Rajkhowa [email protected]

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DUB Speak

Beyond the cliché: English Honours

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According to popular belief, majoring in English leads you towards an M. A. and Ph.D. in English, after which the staple job is of a career in academics, publishing or performing Arts. English Honours is a rigorous course where you are made to cover texts belonging to various periods of literature and their social and historical backgrounds. For most English students who have completed their graduation, it’s hard to relate to avenues that do not involve literature directly. Students of English should be open to a wave of other career options as the course comprises not only of literature related texts but also texts related to political, social and economic opinions.

 

Search Engine Marketing

This is a growing industry which is suitable for many English majors. This job requires you to use digital media to market products through online advertising and search engine optimization for companies. You don’t need to be a programmer, all you need is a strong analytical ability and creativity in you.

 

Digital Copywriter

If you’re intelligent, funny and have a way with words then you could opt for digital copy writing. One can do a masters or diploma in creative writing before applying. Creative social media, blog posts, e-books, web promotional ideas and banner advertisement are some of the things you would be working on.

 

Journalism

It’s a myth that you need to take a journalism and broadcasting course to get a job as a news reporter or journalist. This industry values people with good writing skills and who are able to analyze and produce quality work. They also expect you to have a strong researching ability. One can do a post-graduation or diploma course in journalism.

 

Public Relation

Another option after graduating in English is to work in a public relation firm. One needs to write news releases, newsletters and find content to send out to social media companies and writing web copies and brochures. Later on you can get into the strategic side of things where the aim is to help companies shape the public’s perception through media. The government also hires PR writers to work in house in order to keep the public informed about the various governmental activities. A course in Mass Communication or Media and Communication will be a boost to one’s career.

 

Social Media Manager

As an English major if you have strong communication skills then this job may excite you. Sports teams, brands, government and companies need people to take care of their social media programs and find ways to engage the public and fans.

 

Brand Manager 

This job involves taking care of the development and promotion of their brands and products. People with a good grasp of the English language and good communication skills are suited well for this job. One has to have an understanding of marketing; an MBA in marketing will definitely help.

 

Job Sector

Even though a large number of people get into the creative and publishing business after doing English, it can’t be stated as a norm. An English graduate can very well manage a marketing job or get into the corporate sector. Your degree should not hold you back from the vast career choices that are out there for you.

 

 

Meghna Mitra

[email protected]

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Bazinga

Bazinga: Fee refund for outstation students attending first day post mid sem break

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Losing the fight against lack of attendance right after summer and mid-sem breaks, the DU administration is preparing to leave no stone unturned this year. In the same spirit, it has announced that outstation students of DU who attend their classes on the first day of college right after mid-semester break will be given fee refund equal to 20% of their annual fees in the form of cash.

The move has met with a lot of cheer. Bus and train tickets are selling out quicker than Thursday movie tickets, resulting in a slight boom in the transport industry – a BJP MP took no time to term the boom as ‘Achhe Din’.

Some students, however, are not content with the fees waiver and are waiting for more incentives like attendance and internal assessment marks. Delhi students are also preparing to launch a protest soon. “It’s suddenly a good thing to be in a college that charges high fees!” yelled a student sitting atop a DTC bus already ordering things off e-commerce sites.

Disclaimer: Bazinga is DU Beat’s weekly column of almost believable fake news!

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Features

LSR introduces Queerosity, a society to understand and explore sexuality

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Lady Shri Ram College has come out with a new society called Queerosity, which will look into the various facets of understanding and exploring sexuality. It aims to address the rigidity in the mind of the people against lesbians, transgenders and gays. The society aims to bring in different questions in its discussion forum and sensitize through  movies and discussions. The main reason for the birth of this society is to question the norm and to simply point out the fact that it’s not ‘cool’ to accept queer. ‘I am cool with accepting that you are a queer but I am straight, so don’t hit on me’- This is one of the ideas which Queerosity wants to impede. The society wants to stop the segregation of these people as one community and enlighten the regressive mindsets.

 

Even though the society hasn’t yet become an official, it has still started work at its end. A movie screening on ‘Are We so Different?’ a 30 minute film, directed by Lok Prakash and Anurupa Prakash, an eye opener about the gays in Bangladesh, was screened in the college auditorium.  The society also had a presentation at Delhi College of Arts & Commerce for the same.

 

A rather unique way of awakening curiosity among people in the college campus is through small cue cards put around the college campus which have different questions like, ‘Why was Harry Potter banned in various school libraries?’ Evoking a sense of curiosity, the cards answer the question, the reason being because Dumbeldore was portrayed as a gay character.

 

The future plans of the society is to collaborate with various other societies in the college like Interface and DramSoc. It wants to reach out to the people who don’t have the environment to talk about such issues. Snigdha, a core team committee member of Queerosity, said,” What we want to basically do is inculcate the feeling of openness and educate them. The basic aim of the society remains to give everyone the space to question issues.”

 

 

Ishita Sharma

[email protected]

 

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