Feb 26, 2013 Posted by Joelle

Marching For Domestic Violence Legislation

On February 24, 2013, several hundred protesters marched on the streets of Beirut to call on the Lebanese parliament to pass the Law to Protect Women from Family Violence, which would criminalize physical, mental, and sexual abuse, marital rape, and honor crimes. Protesters marched from the Sanayeh Garden, facing the Ministry of the Interior in Hamra, to Ain el-Tineh, where the residence of Speaker Nabih... read more

Jan 18, 2013 Posted by Joelle

Why I Left Facebook

On January 16, 2013, I deactivated my Facebook account. I’m not the first one to do so, and I’m sure I won’t be the last. Before I deactivated my account, my home page looked like the photo above. In a lot of ways, my decision has been a long time coming because Facebook was bringing me down, one update at a time, one feature at a time. Over the past months, most of the stories and links... read more

Jan 15, 2012 Posted by Joelle

Rape Isn’t A Legal Right – Shout It Out Loud

On January 14, 2012, hundreds of people defied the rain and took to the streets of Beirut to protest against rape. Protesters marched from Sanayeh to Riad El Solh square in Downtown Beirut, where security officers cordoned off the area to prevent them from reaching the Lebanese Parliament. As the crowds gathered in the square, organizers read statements that called upon the Lebanese Parliament to: Pass... read more

Sep 4, 2011 Posted by Joelle

Expressing Sexuality Through Art

To commemorate World Sexual Health Day (September 4), an art exhibit entitled “Good Sex/ Bad Sex/ No Sex/ Your Sex” was held at AltCity, in Hamra. “Sexuality is such a profound part of our life. So is art,” explained event organizer Rola Yasmine, member of the Youth Initiative Committee of the World Association for Sexual Health (WAS). ”What we did here is create a space for... read more

Aug 20, 2011 Posted by Joelle

Industries Shaping Women’s Self-Esteem

Self-esteem is what a person thinks of their own self-worth. It includes beliefs and emotions, and is reflected by behavior. In today’s world, girls and women are supposed to follow ideals of beauty, appearance and weight, imposed by multiple interconnecting industries that benefit from making them feel bad about themselves. The more women hate their bodies, the more they can buy dieting products... read more

Jul 25, 2011 Posted by Joelle

Deconstructing Sexual Harassment

One of the challenges of addressing sexual harassment is that it is, to a large extent, hard to define. It could be reduced to “unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature.” But there’s a lot more to sexual harassment than just a range of hostile or offensive acts. And while the absence of laws to criminalize and... read more

Jun 19, 2011 Posted by Joelle

Speak Up Against Sexual Harassment

This illustration is my contribution to the blogging and tweeting day against sexual harassment and gender-based violence, a call to action on June 20 initiated by activists in Egypt. In Lebanon, the team behind The Adventures of Salwa joined the campaign with a parallel blogging day. So did activists in Sudan. You, too, can speak up about sexual harassment. If you’re a blogger, post a personal... read more

Jun 18, 2011 Posted by Joelle

In Solidarity With Saudi Women Daring To Drive

On June 17, 2011, tens of people gathered in front of the Saudi Embassy in Beirut in solidarity with Saudi women who defied the ultra-conservative Kingdom’s rule against women being able to drive, risking arrest and violence. Click here for videos of several Saudi women who braved the roads behind the wheel. Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world that bans women from driving. Even though... read more