A 10-year-old girl in Paraguay, pregnant and alone.
Jordanian women who do not have equal rights as citizens.
A human rights lawyer working for democracy in Libya was murdered and almost a year later, there has been no investigation.
Young girls are still subject to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in Liberia.
Italian lawmakers are discussing laws that would decriminalise prostitution and make it easier for sex trafficers to take advantage of young girls. They also want to teach secondary school boys how to "safely use people in prositution".
What do these have in common? They are all projects that Equality Now (EN) is working on with their international partners - actions that need money. And that's where we come in.
Each year Can't Stop The Serenity events are held around the world to benefit Equality Now and, in some cases, local charities. Our local beneficiary this year is again the Avalon Recovery Society which provides drop-in centres for women who are recovering from addictions. Money raised for Equality Now at CSTS events helps EN push forward with their mission to end violence and discrimination against women and girls around the world.
So when you are buying a ticket to your local CSTS event, when you are singing along to Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, when you are buying bingo cards or bidding on an item or two or three in the silent or live auction, and especially when you are watching Serenity, remember where your dollars are going and what good they will be doing and give generously.
On a personal note, after 10 years and nine events, this will be my last CSTS as organiser so I would love to go out on a high note with our best donation yet! I hope you have enjoyed coming out to the events over the years - I know some of you have come almost every year - and I hope that someone else will step forward to organise future events. My thanks as ever to those who donate, sponsor, volunteer and support by coming out, enjoying and spending generously. We couldn't do it without you!
To see previous posts on Why "Can't Stop The Serenity"?, click for 2013, 2012, and 2011.
Showing posts with label equality now. Show all posts
Showing posts with label equality now. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 09, 2015
Saturday, May 11, 2013
WHY "CAN'T STOP THE SERENITY"?
Why do we do this? Why do organisers spend so much time and money for each event? Why do people volunteer, paying for their own tickets to do so? Why do Browncoats - and others - keep coming out to CSTS events?
Partly of course, because the events are fun. Each city is different and has ideas and plans that work for them. A lot of people come out to see Serenity on the big screen or to sing along to Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. Some people come to spend an afternoon or day with their friends at a fun event - or to bid on an auction item they can't find anywhere else, especially handmade items. All those are legitimate reasons, of course, but I think a lot of people come because the events enable them to make a contribution to better the lives of women and girls globally and locally.
Last year I wrote again about D'ua Khalil Aswad and how it inspired many of us to continue to work hard for Equality Now. This year I want to talk about Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl who was shot in the head by Taliban gunmen for having the desire to get an education - something we in the west take for granted. She was targetted because, at 15, Malala was already known around the world for her blog on education and the state of women's rights in Pakistan. Here is a video from the New York Times, recorded with Malala and her father when she was only 11. Even then she was determined to continue her education. Now she is doing that, albeit in Birmingham, England, where she was taken for her surgery and safety.
I also want to talk about the heinous crimes committed against women and girls as young as five in India. There have been numerous accounts lately of girls being kidnapped and raped. Some have died as a result; some have committed suicide. These things don't just happen in India or Pakistan or Iran or Ethiopia or Egypt, of course, as we saw this week with the rescue of three young women who had been held captive for a decade in a house in Ohio. But when it happens in the United States or Canada or England, our laws are (usually) strong enough to punish the perpetrators - and deter a lot of people from committing the crime in the first place.
This is where Equality Now comes in. They work with groups in various countries to educate and to change the laws to protect women and girls from violence and discrimination aimed at them BECAUSE they are female. You can check out some of their successes and some of their ongoing campaigns on their website.
Our local beneficiaries also work to help women and girls to a better life. BC Women's Hospital & Health Care Foundation supports BC's only hospital just for women and focuses in areas of research, teaching and care for women and their families. The Avalon Recovery Society provides safe drop-in centres for women in recovery from alcohol or chemical dependency with programs for education, recovery and peer support.
Over the past seven years, CSTS Vancouver has raised close to $25,000 and CSTS Global has raised over $800,000 to support Equality Now and various local charities around the world.
This year, we need you more than ever - to buy a ticket, bid on an item or two or more, to spread the word and bring your friends to support these causes - and to have fun while you're doing it. Dress up in a Whedony costume, sing your heart out along with your fellow fans, maybe enter the Evil Laugh contest - or write some Vogon poetry. We will come together to have an enjoyable afternoon, made more so by the fact we know we are helping women and girls around the world - and locally - have a better life.
Tickets are available by clicking on the button at the top right or with cash from Gian at La Fontana Caffe, Boundary at Hastings. If you can't make this year, you can use our Donate button on the right. See you on the 25th!
Partly of course, because the events are fun. Each city is different and has ideas and plans that work for them. A lot of people come out to see Serenity on the big screen or to sing along to Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. Some people come to spend an afternoon or day with their friends at a fun event - or to bid on an auction item they can't find anywhere else, especially handmade items. All those are legitimate reasons, of course, but I think a lot of people come because the events enable them to make a contribution to better the lives of women and girls globally and locally.
Last year I wrote again about D'ua Khalil Aswad and how it inspired many of us to continue to work hard for Equality Now. This year I want to talk about Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl who was shot in the head by Taliban gunmen for having the desire to get an education - something we in the west take for granted. She was targetted because, at 15, Malala was already known around the world for her blog on education and the state of women's rights in Pakistan. Here is a video from the New York Times, recorded with Malala and her father when she was only 11. Even then she was determined to continue her education. Now she is doing that, albeit in Birmingham, England, where she was taken for her surgery and safety.
I also want to talk about the heinous crimes committed against women and girls as young as five in India. There have been numerous accounts lately of girls being kidnapped and raped. Some have died as a result; some have committed suicide. These things don't just happen in India or Pakistan or Iran or Ethiopia or Egypt, of course, as we saw this week with the rescue of three young women who had been held captive for a decade in a house in Ohio. But when it happens in the United States or Canada or England, our laws are (usually) strong enough to punish the perpetrators - and deter a lot of people from committing the crime in the first place.
This is where Equality Now comes in. They work with groups in various countries to educate and to change the laws to protect women and girls from violence and discrimination aimed at them BECAUSE they are female. You can check out some of their successes and some of their ongoing campaigns on their website.
Our local beneficiaries also work to help women and girls to a better life. BC Women's Hospital & Health Care Foundation supports BC's only hospital just for women and focuses in areas of research, teaching and care for women and their families. The Avalon Recovery Society provides safe drop-in centres for women in recovery from alcohol or chemical dependency with programs for education, recovery and peer support.
Over the past seven years, CSTS Vancouver has raised close to $25,000 and CSTS Global has raised over $800,000 to support Equality Now and various local charities around the world.
This year, we need you more than ever - to buy a ticket, bid on an item or two or more, to spread the word and bring your friends to support these causes - and to have fun while you're doing it. Dress up in a Whedony costume, sing your heart out along with your fellow fans, maybe enter the Evil Laugh contest - or write some Vogon poetry. We will come together to have an enjoyable afternoon, made more so by the fact we know we are helping women and girls around the world - and locally - have a better life.
Tickets are available by clicking on the button at the top right or with cash from Gian at La Fontana Caffe, Boundary at Hastings. If you can't make this year, you can use our Donate button on the right. See you on the 25th!
Sunday, April 08, 2012
Why "Can't Stop The Serenity"?
This is the seventh year for the global events known as Can't Stop The Serenity or CSTS and we have no intention of slowing down. Originally founded by Portland's theonetrueb!X and friends to enable them to see Serenity again on a big screen while raising money for Equality Now, the movement has spread around the world, drawing Browncoats together in a great cause. Many cities also support local charities. In Vancouver, we have raised over $20,000 in the past six years, also donating to BC Women's Hospital & Health Centre Foundation for several years and in 2012 we are adding Avalon Women's Centres Vancouver as a beneficiary.
Equality Now focuses on helping women and girls throughout the world in areas such as female genital mutilation (FGM), human trafficking, equal rights and ending violence. Check out their website for some of their current campaigns as well as some of their successes.
Five years ago, a young woman - a teenager, actually - named Du'a Khalil Aswad was stoned to death by a group of men, including members of her family, who disapproved of her actions. During the stoning, many of the men filmed her death on their phones and posted them to the Internet. Suddenly the world could see in full colour the violence of so-called 'honour killings'. And at least some of the world responded. Joss Whedon posted his thoughts on Whedonesque when the story hit the mainstream media and as a result, fans became involved in projects such as Nothing But Red. It also made many Browncoats more determined than ever to fight to end violence and discrimination against women and girls, wherever they may be.
If you are moved by Du'a Khalil's story or by any of the stories on Equality Now's website - or stories that can be heard on the news on any given night - please consider donating to the Can't Stop The Serenity movement. Buy a ticket to your local event, buy a t-shirt or hoodie to show your support, donate or sponsor an item for an auction, raffle or prize, or just make a donation through your nearest city's blog or webpage, or through Equality Now, letting them know what CSTS city you are supporting. Every dollar helps. If you can't afford a donation, buy a ticket and volunteer. If there isn't a CSTS event near you, consider organising one of your own next year. It doesn't have to be a full-fledged, all-day event. It can be a smaller affiliate event, even a gathering of your friends to watch Serenity and raise some money for Equality Now.
Now more than ever is the time to get involved and stand up for women's rights and especially their right to be safe from violence. Please think of Du'a Khalil Aswad and the women and girls all over the world who need our help and give generously to CSTS 2012. Not only will you feel good that you are doing something to help others in need, but you'll have a great time at your local event, whatever they do. CSTS Organisers put in a lot of time and money to make their events fun for attendees and successful in terms of raising money, so come out and support your local event and be a part of a global movement. See you there!
Equality Now focuses on helping women and girls throughout the world in areas such as female genital mutilation (FGM), human trafficking, equal rights and ending violence. Check out their website for some of their current campaigns as well as some of their successes.
Five years ago, a young woman - a teenager, actually - named Du'a Khalil Aswad was stoned to death by a group of men, including members of her family, who disapproved of her actions. During the stoning, many of the men filmed her death on their phones and posted them to the Internet. Suddenly the world could see in full colour the violence of so-called 'honour killings'. And at least some of the world responded. Joss Whedon posted his thoughts on Whedonesque when the story hit the mainstream media and as a result, fans became involved in projects such as Nothing But Red. It also made many Browncoats more determined than ever to fight to end violence and discrimination against women and girls, wherever they may be.
If you are moved by Du'a Khalil's story or by any of the stories on Equality Now's website - or stories that can be heard on the news on any given night - please consider donating to the Can't Stop The Serenity movement. Buy a ticket to your local event, buy a t-shirt or hoodie to show your support, donate or sponsor an item for an auction, raffle or prize, or just make a donation through your nearest city's blog or webpage, or through Equality Now, letting them know what CSTS city you are supporting. Every dollar helps. If you can't afford a donation, buy a ticket and volunteer. If there isn't a CSTS event near you, consider organising one of your own next year. It doesn't have to be a full-fledged, all-day event. It can be a smaller affiliate event, even a gathering of your friends to watch Serenity and raise some money for Equality Now.
Now more than ever is the time to get involved and stand up for women's rights and especially their right to be safe from violence. Please think of Du'a Khalil Aswad and the women and girls all over the world who need our help and give generously to CSTS 2012. Not only will you feel good that you are doing something to help others in need, but you'll have a great time at your local event, whatever they do. CSTS Organisers put in a lot of time and money to make their events fun for attendees and successful in terms of raising money, so come out and support your local event and be a part of a global movement. See you there!
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
CSTS LA with Joss Whedon
For those of you who didn't get to see Joss Whedon et al live on Saturday night, I've posted the video on the right. The Q & A at the end is very good. Don't miss the mini-speech by The One True b!X, founder of Can't Stop The Serenity, as he gives some examples of what Equality Now does with our donations.
CSTS events are fun and entertaining and we get to see old friends and meet new ones, but we cannot forget the reason we do this is to help stop or prevent some of the atrocities happening to women and girls around the world. With your donations, Equality Now is making a difference. So from those of us who spend hours, days and months working to make each of these world-wide events a success, thank you for coming out each year, choosing to spend your time and your money for such a worthwhile cause. Of course it doesn't hurt that we get to see our Big Damn Movie and have some fun in the process. Nobody said raising money had to be depressing!
If at any time you feel you have a little extra you want to donate, feel free to use the 'donate' button on the top right of the blog. All monies go towards EN and BC Women's Hospital & Health Centre Foundation.
We will have an exciting announcement shortly about one more item that has been donated. Stay tuned!
CSTS events are fun and entertaining and we get to see old friends and meet new ones, but we cannot forget the reason we do this is to help stop or prevent some of the atrocities happening to women and girls around the world. With your donations, Equality Now is making a difference. So from those of us who spend hours, days and months working to make each of these world-wide events a success, thank you for coming out each year, choosing to spend your time and your money for such a worthwhile cause. Of course it doesn't hurt that we get to see our Big Damn Movie and have some fun in the process. Nobody said raising money had to be depressing!
If at any time you feel you have a little extra you want to donate, feel free to use the 'donate' button on the top right of the blog. All monies go towards EN and BC Women's Hospital & Health Centre Foundation.
We will have an exciting announcement shortly about one more item that has been donated. Stay tuned!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Why "Can't Stop The Serenity"?
Four years ago, a young woman named Du'a Khalil Aswad was stoned to death in northern Iraq for the sin of falling in love with a young man of a different religion. There are conflicting stories about why she was actually stoned - whether she had converted for her boyfriend, was thinking of converting or just seen talking to him in the street. Whatever the reason, while she was being stoned, many people of her village stood around and watched, some taking pictures and videos on their cell phones and posting them on the Internet.
At the time the story made headlines around the world, Joss Whedon wrote a post on Whedonesque about it that had little of his trademark humour in it, just heartfelt questions about why this was happening and some suggestions to counter it. Out of that came a website and a book, Nothing But Red. Can't Stop The Serenity was gearing up for its second year of global fundraising events and Joss's post about Du'a Khalil Aswad served to strengthen our efforts to raise money for Equality Now, Joss's favourite charity and one that works to end violence and discrimination against women and girls throughout the world.
CSTS is now celebrating its sixth anniversary and the fact that the worldwide events have raised over half a million dollars for Equality Now and various local charities. This year one of the moderators of Whedonesque, Damon Schmidt aka zeitgeist, wrote an eloquent reminder that what happened to Du'a Khalil was not, unfortunately, an isolated incident.
So each year we get together with other Joss Whedon fans to watch his movie, Serenity; to sing along to Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog; to dress up as our favourite Whedon characters; to win prizes and buy swag; and to have fun. And have fun we do! But let's not forget the reason we do this: to help those women and girls who are less fortunate than we are and who may not be able to help themselves.
In Vancouver, 80% of the net proceeds from our CSTS event go to Equality Now, with the other 20% to BC Women's Hospital & Health Care Foundation, which helps to give children a good start in life and to do the best to keep women of this province healthy. So far, in five years, we have raised over $15,000 and we hope this year is the best one yet.
Remember when you buy your ticket, or grab bag, or bingo card, or bid on one of the exciting items in our Silent Auction, that you are helping to improve the lives of women around the world as well as those right here at home.
So do you have your costume ready? Have you rewatched Firefly so you can answer all the trivia questions? Have you stashed away a bit of extra cash to bid on that special item that you just must have? Have you practised your evil laugh? Is your singing voice ready? Then make sure you buy your tickets early and bring your friends because raising money for such a good cause has never been more fun.
Keep checking the blog for some of the shiny items we will have in the auction and details of the day and we'll see you on June 25th at 11 am!
At the time the story made headlines around the world, Joss Whedon wrote a post on Whedonesque about it that had little of his trademark humour in it, just heartfelt questions about why this was happening and some suggestions to counter it. Out of that came a website and a book, Nothing But Red. Can't Stop The Serenity was gearing up for its second year of global fundraising events and Joss's post about Du'a Khalil Aswad served to strengthen our efforts to raise money for Equality Now, Joss's favourite charity and one that works to end violence and discrimination against women and girls throughout the world.
CSTS is now celebrating its sixth anniversary and the fact that the worldwide events have raised over half a million dollars for Equality Now and various local charities. This year one of the moderators of Whedonesque, Damon Schmidt aka zeitgeist, wrote an eloquent reminder that what happened to Du'a Khalil was not, unfortunately, an isolated incident.
So each year we get together with other Joss Whedon fans to watch his movie, Serenity; to sing along to Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog; to dress up as our favourite Whedon characters; to win prizes and buy swag; and to have fun. And have fun we do! But let's not forget the reason we do this: to help those women and girls who are less fortunate than we are and who may not be able to help themselves.
In Vancouver, 80% of the net proceeds from our CSTS event go to Equality Now, with the other 20% to BC Women's Hospital & Health Care Foundation, which helps to give children a good start in life and to do the best to keep women of this province healthy. So far, in five years, we have raised over $15,000 and we hope this year is the best one yet.
Remember when you buy your ticket, or grab bag, or bingo card, or bid on one of the exciting items in our Silent Auction, that you are helping to improve the lives of women around the world as well as those right here at home.
So do you have your costume ready? Have you rewatched Firefly so you can answer all the trivia questions? Have you stashed away a bit of extra cash to bid on that special item that you just must have? Have you practised your evil laugh? Is your singing voice ready? Then make sure you buy your tickets early and bring your friends because raising money for such a good cause has never been more fun.
Keep checking the blog for some of the shiny items we will have in the auction and details of the day and we'll see you on June 25th at 11 am!
Sunday, March 13, 2011
FINAL TOTALS FOR 2010
We had our best year ever in 2010, raising a total of $4,436.56, which meant $3,550 (rounded up) to Equality Now and $900 (also rounded up) to BC Women's Hospital and Health Centre Foundation. We received lovely thank you notes from both.
Before we get to CSTS 2011 (planning has already started!), I would like to thank all of our generous sponsors, especially The Comic Shop, Happy Bats Cinema and Serena's Everything Jayne's Hat Emporium for donating each of our five years. We hope those relationships will continue in the coming years. Please continue to support our sponsors as they support us. I'd also like to thank all the volunteers on the organising committee, those who helped out throughout the day, those who contributed prizes or items for the silent auction. This fundraising event could not continue without you and would not have been possible in the first place without the support of Serena Reynolds, Organiser of the BC Browncoats.
Coming soon: Date and time for CSTS Vancouver 2011, the winning artwork and more. If you would like to be involved in any way, please e-mail us at CSTSVancouver@gmail.com. (Hope you like the new look.)
Before we get to CSTS 2011 (planning has already started!), I would like to thank all of our generous sponsors, especially The Comic Shop, Happy Bats Cinema and Serena's Everything Jayne's Hat Emporium for donating each of our five years. We hope those relationships will continue in the coming years. Please continue to support our sponsors as they support us. I'd also like to thank all the volunteers on the organising committee, those who helped out throughout the day, those who contributed prizes or items for the silent auction. This fundraising event could not continue without you and would not have been possible in the first place without the support of Serena Reynolds, Organiser of the BC Browncoats.
Coming soon: Date and time for CSTS Vancouver 2011, the winning artwork and more. If you would like to be involved in any way, please e-mail us at CSTSVancouver@gmail.com. (Hope you like the new look.)
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