So what's the big deal about "The Vagina Monologues" anyway? Wait ... what? Vaginas? I can't tell you how many baffled looks I've received when talking about the one activity that has taken up all my time for the past seven months: "The Vagina Monologues" and the V-Day campaign. I'd like to set things straight about Eve Ensler's widely popular, yet controversial play and why we continue to organize and perform it every year at Tufts.
First off, "The Vagina Monologues" is primarily a tool used to educate, entertain, and spread awareness about the omnipresent violence against women and girls all over the world. Whether it is in the Middle East, Darfur, Asia or Massachusetts, women everywhere are victims of physical, sexual and emotional abuse.
According to Amnesty International USA, a woman is raped every six minutes, and a woman is battered every 15 seconds in the United States alone. Domestic violence is a very real problem that is often ignored out of fear, indifference, or simply because people keep quiet about it. "The Vagina Monologues" is meant to bring this issue to light in our own community and to raise awareness of this problem that we need to put an end to now.
The goal of the performance and campaign is to raise money for a local charity whose mission is to help women who are victims of domestic violence. This year we have chosen to give 90 percent of our proceeds to local charity Kol Isha. They specifically work with Jewish and Russian-speaking women.
According to data provided by Kol Isha, domestic violence is generally not discussed in Jewish homes because of the pressure put on women to raise families with strong Jewish values. It is considered shameful if women admit their homes are less than perfect. Furthermore, Kol Isha data states that Jewish women tend to stay in abusive relationships five years longer than women of other faiths.
Kol Isha not only helps women escape their pressured roles, but also offers counseling for all kinds of abuse, legal and medical advocacy, court accompaniment, and specialized services for exploited and trafficked women and children. The money that we donate to Kol Isha will go directly into their safety fund, which is used to pay for moving trucks, taxi rides and shipping belongings to women who have left their abusive homes.
The other 10 percent of our proceeds will go to the Global V-Day Campaign. Every performance of "The Vagina Monologues" around the world will also donate 10 percent of their profits to the V-Day campaign.
The money will go to women in Sudan, Iraq and Congo, as well as other places around the world. With war comes a huge increase in abuse, rape, prostitution, human trafficking and the torture of women and children. The V-Day campaign thinks big and never ceases to rise to the challenge. It will carry on until all violence against women is stopped for good.
As you can probably tell by now, "The Vagina Monologues" isn't just about screaming "vagina" from the rooftops. It goes without saying that the V-Day campaign tends to attract mostly liberal women who are one with their bodies and vaginas. However, this event is supposed to bring all kinds of people together: men, women, conservatives, liberals, every race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, size, shape, form, you name it! The V-Day campaign includes everyone who is willing listen and make positive changes in their own communities.
It is very difficult to get our point across to deaf ears. We ask that you, in 2007, be open and hear us. We have worked day and night to further our cause and to raise our voices to stop the violence. Instead of distancing ourselves from each other, let us join together to reclaim peace in the spirit of V-Day. V-Day 2007 is about creating a dialogue about what happens behind closed doors, raising awareness and money to help women locally and globally. Every year the V-Day campaign grows and is able to help more people.
Please help us to continue this important cause by coming to our show on Feb. 9 and 10 at 8 p.m. in Cohen Auditorium. Tickets are $9 in the box office. Every dollar that we raise goes straight to charity. It is the first step toward eliminating the violence which desperately needs to be put to an end. We cannot wait to see you at our show! With your support, change can happen. Let's make violence history!
Becca Katz is a senior English major and the producer of 'The Vagina Monologues.'
