we are the mainstream - International Womxn's Day
(Image Credit: Nicole Cadelina @the.western)
In light of International Women's Day, we are the mainstream, a collective of Black, Indigenous and Femmes of Colour hosted an all day event on Saturday, 29 February to celebrate the BIWoC community. The atmosphere was inspiring, just being surrounded by like-minded women who were ambitious to challenge the status quo.
Upon entering Bankstown Arts Centre that morning, seeing women of colour scattered across the courtyard gave us a powerful energy of community and connection. Stalls upon stalls of creative businesses surrounded the perimeter - from Dayo’s hand-woven ‘slow fashion’ backpacks from the Philippines, to Mami Wata’s delicately woven jewellery and accessories weaved by Colombian Indigenous women.
After a warm Welcome to Country by Dharrawhal and Darug woman Rowena Welsh, we moved over to the main stage, where we were introduced to creative all-rounder Nancy Denis. Nancy is no stranger to the performing arts scene in Western Sydney, lending her music and acting skills to several productions like Home Country and Right Here, Right Now by Bankstown’s Urban Theatre Projects. Filling the room with waves of laughter and love, she loosened up the crowd with her rich, soulful voice, with acoustic back-up supported by her brother Hilton Denis. Even when the tunes didn’t feel like enough by the end of her set, she blasted the stage with heavy hip-hop beats by Missy Elliot to get us groovin’, movin’, and out of control!
(Image Credit: Nicole Cadelina @the.western)
The first panel of the day featured an all-star cast of women who have created platforms and spaces for BIWoC to feel safe, supported, and most importantly, seen - from Ascension Magazine’s founder Sasha Sarago and August Inc.’s co-creator Sahra Tohow, to the dynamic duo behind Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander initiative Tiddas4Tiddas, Marlee and Keely Silva. The panellists generated a fruitful and important discourse on decolonising the industries we work in, and finding the resources and courage to build these spaces. One of the highlights from the panel was from Folk Mag’s very own Moreblessing Maturure, who paraphrases Sydney-based artist (and The Western’s Nicole’s favourite Pinay bad b*tch) Bhenji Ra - ‘If you’re not accused of reverse racism this year, then are you really working hard enough?’.
After morning tea, we were split into interactive break out sessions, such as Health and Wellbeing, Youth and Education, Suiting Up, ShowBiz, Media Magnates, and Advocacy and Activism. We sat through Suiting Up and Youth and Education. Suiting Up was focused on entrepreneurs and side hustles, and was led by Financial Review’s Woman of Influence Mariam Mohammed. Mariam led the discussion on how to ask for money from third parties. Marlee, Keely Silva, and Dusk ‘Devi’ Nand shared their experiences navigating their startups. Marlee expressed that she had to be straight forward and passionate with what she wanted and did not shy away with asking for too much. Pacific Runway Organiser Devi explained ‘If you don’t value your worth, you’re not going to get what you want’. This then opened a can of worms about the different beliefs we had about money. These beliefs were inherited from our cultural upbringings - the idea that ‘Money is evil’. Mariam challenged us to unlearn those beliefs to understand that money is a resource, a tool that allows us to add value to ourselves and others.
(Image Credit: Nicole Cadelina @the.western)
The breakout session on Decolonising Education was a profound survey into the current climate of secondary education. Educators like Liza Moscatelli, Taryn Laleen Beatty, Sangeetha Thanapal, and Aneeta Menon fronted the panel with the Mainstream very own Priyanka Bromhead, discussing the idea that decolonisation does not just begin with representing teachers of colour, but also who we are teaching. We pose the question to ourselves ‘How do we respect kids of culture and their heritage?’ as Sangeetha shares an anecdote on a transgender Filipino student who faced both discrimination at home and at school for their gender identity. We warranted much greater scrutiny on the extent to which teachers are trained to teach anti-racism in the workplace, as well as the current curriculum of white supremacy taught at schools (examples include the celebration of Australia/Invasion Day, and the history of one fellow British explorer Who Shall Not Be Named).
The second panel featured industry leaders such as Rae Johnston, Katuri Wren, Sangeetha Thanapal, Sista Native, and Justine Toh. This panel shared their ideas about what the International Women's Day theme Equal for Equal meant to them. One opinion that stood out was that Equality is a process and that there is no end to it.
International Womxn’s Day (aptly named to be inclusive of all walks of womanhood) broadened our understanding of what it means to be a woman of colour and encouraged us to wear it loud and proud. If anything, leaving the event made us feel even more comfortable in our own skin. Bottoms up to our dear Priyanka and her stellar team - may you continue inspiring and paving the way for BIWoC near and far!
44 Likes, 2 Comments - we are the mainstream (@wearethemainstream) on Instagram: "#IWDWATM2020 | "The day was empowering and inspiring. Being surrounded by like minded women was..."
