If I were to ask whether women and men are equal here at Manhattanville, most students’ first response would be yes. “Of course,” they would say, “women and men have the same rights.” They would point to the fact that women are predominant at Manhattanville, with a ratio of 60% female students versus 40% male students. Men and women have the possibility to study the same subjects, join the same clubs, and participate in the same activities. There are no structural restrictions for women at Manhattanville. On paper at least there is total equality between men and women. Yet if you scratch below the surface, these general facts don’t take into account the full reality.

After spending two years at college, it is quite clear that men and women do not possess the same rights in regards to their sexual behavior. The prevailing attitude is that men are entitled to and even respected for displaying a casual attitude to sex and objectifying women in the process. They are the dominant species on campus, particularly if they play on a sports team, and they get away with irresponsible sexual behavior. In fact, they are often applauded for that behavior. In this regard, there is no equality between men and women at Manhattanville.

A classic example is a woman who sleeps with several men from the same sports team who comes to be considered a “slut,” or to put it in sports lingo, a “hockey puck.” She becomes an object for the team’s pleasure and later is often times mocked and teased.Yet, those same males, the ones who slept with the woman, are above reproach. They have the right to “share” the same woman between themselves without being looked down upon. All the fault lies with the woman and none with the men. They are looked up to, and she is looked down upon. Where is the social justice and equality in this equation?

Ironically, this demeaning attitude to women is not only ingrained in men but in women as well. Other women will also look down on the “hockey pucks,” claiming that these girls should know better than to put themselves in that kind of situation.

Men are entitled to be sexually promiscuous and women aren’t. This idea is accepted by the majority of society and by the majority of the students here at Manhattanville. Again, where is the equality?

It would be hard to call this patriarchal system fair. The point here isn’t to defend promiscuity, but if it’s wrong for a woman to be promiscuous it should be equally wrong for a man. Why doesn’t anyone turn the focus to the men and look down on them? Why is the finger always pointed towards the women? Why is she the irresponsible one and not the man? Why is the woman left to stand alone and be held accountable while the man is able to hide within the collective male pack and not take any individual accountability for his actions? If men and women had equal rights, these types of situations would not exist.

So what is to be done? Most people are aware of the situation, yet they do nothing to prevent it, falling right back into sexual patriarchy. Students should not just become aware of the situation, but start reacting. Change never comes about by waiting for someone else to change, but only when we ourselves change our attitude.

Let’s take a trip back in time forty years ago to the year 1970 and look at what the world was like back then. If we managed to accomplish this I’m sure all of us would be stunned to see how different things were and would be amazed at how people lived their lives. It’s certain that a majority of you reading this are picturing an age before the advent of the internet, when no computers, cell phones, or ipods existed- the Stone Age essentially. Well, technically you’re right, but this isn’t what I’m trying to get at. During this period when Disco was emerging and short shorts were all the rage, nature was being degraded to such a level that instead of saying “Mother Earth” Minnewaska Park people were sarcastically muttering “Mother-in-law filth”. This was a time when polluted rivers (one of which actually caught fire), smog filled skies tainted with lead from gasoline, and mass deforestation were commonplace. Eventually, when people began to have their fill of this corrupted world, there were talks about what could be done to improve it, and this is where Earth Day came in handy. A U.S. Senator had the brilliant idea of creating a holiday based on raising people’s environmental awareness; and the first Earth Day occurred on Apr. 22, 1970.

As we already know, this unusual holiday quickly took root and became highly successful, not because of religious or national events, but because of a global crisis. The world was put into peril by us through our thoughtless actions, and it was solely up to us to correct it. As the famous environmentalist and philosopher Henry David Thoreau once noted: “What’s the use of a house if you haven’t got a tolerable planet to put it on.” Back before the “Green” movement gained momentum a house certainly wasn’t much use on account of the rampant pollution. But luckily through years and years of remediation the earth in many (but not all) respects has become much cleaner, mainly through newly implanted laws, recycling, and a myriad of other programs that transformed the earth from a cesspool into a more pristine place. Despite this cleanup, many problems still exist and a greater effort will be required in the future to correct it. And we must act quickly if we want to avoid having our cities and towns along the coast inundated, due to global warming. If we continue to journey down the path we’re on right now and keep increasing our environmental awareness however, it is almost certain our negative actions will be undone and destruction will be averted; but that’s assuming though that the world doesn’t end in 2012 first, so I guess we’ll just have to wait to see!

It’s pretty amazing though to think about how far we have come since the advent of Earth Day, and in the last ten years alone things have drastically changed. At the arrival of the millennium the word “green” was hardly heard anywhere, but now anytime the T.V. is turned on every commercial is using the word ten times in a minute. And within the last few months the packing of SunChips has been made out of plant-based material that’s completely biodegradeable.

It’s almost unimaginable to think where we’ll be a decade from now. Who knows, we could be eating our meals off of edible plates made from vegetables. I’m sure Homer Simpson would have a field day with this- an all you can eat buffet of dinnerware…. hmm but on second thought maybe not, considering it would be healthy, I suppose it would have to be smothered in butter first.

Regardless of what new techniques we implement, it’s a certainty that we’ll have changed a great deal- hopefully for the better. Things may constantly change, as they always do, but this will not happen if we don’t change ourselves first.

This holiday which was celebrated for the first time forty years ago has helped us along. Today, here at Manhattanville the college offers a little known degree in Environmental Studies. And while most people tend to stay away from courses that deal with environmental science in the fear that they’re too hard; believe me, as long as you make a conscious effort to learn and understand the fundamentals of ecology and sustainability, you will not only find yourself receiving good grades, but you will look at the world in a different way, and will realize it’s not all about consumption and modernization. As an Environmental Studies major, I strongly advise each student to take at least one course that teaches about some sort of environmental policy. However, if you really are against taking a science class, I still highly recommend increasing your awareness either by joining some club that relates to it, one such being ACT on campus, or simply just by spending some time outdoors. Why not take a hike? There are plenty of places to go around Westchester and if you’re really daring you may feel compelled to do a section of the 2,179 mile long Appalachian Trail which stretches from Georgia to Maine, and can be reached in less than an hour from here. The point I’m trying to make is that you should do something to help make the environmental situations at hand known and cared about. The smallest of things can make a big difference, just like Earth Day. In the beginning it was paid little attention to, but now look at it. So in conclusion, if we truly want to make an effective change, we have to first shift our attitudes and actions in order to obtain it- and that’s what this holiday preaches.

Something to think about: “If a man walks in the woods for love of them half of each day, he is in danger of being regarded as a loafer. But if he spends his days as a speculator, shearing off those woods and making the earth bald before her time, he is deemed an industrious and enterprising citizen.” -Thoreau

The World Bank estimates released in August 2008 show that about 1.4 billion people in the developing world (one in four) were living on less than $1.25 a day in 2005, down from 1.9 billion (one in two) in 1981. About half of the world’s population lives on less than $2 a day. 40,000 people die every hour from easily preventable diseases.

The film “Black Gold” [to be shown on campus on April 22 @ 4pm] is a poignant view of some of the mechanisms that sustain global poverty. It describes the impoverished coffee farmers in Ethiopia, whose poverty results from the impersonal markets: the New York and London commodity exchanges. hundreds of millions of peasants. These markets determine the fate of hundreds of millions of peasants.

The current global development regime of “neo-liberalism” is based on the promotion of such free markets, free trade and free movement of capital. It is a regime comprised of the most powerful multinational institutions: the IMF, World Bank and WTO. (“The Unholy Trinity”). These institutions, linked with the enormous power of financial capital (where trillions of dollars move daily around the world in and out of “emerging markets”), have effective control over global development.

Structural adjustment programs (“conditionality loans”) that have been imposed on more than 150 countries permit the enforcement of free market regimes that promote privatization, reduce social spending, and open up markets to the exports from the industrialized west. Countries of the Global South argue that the world economy is set up to benefit the rich countries of the Global North to the disadvantage of the poor countries. Black Gold reveals this conflict very clearly. Studies have shown that women, although they produce much of the world’s wealth as first providers, suffer the most from these structural adjustment programs. The majority of the world’s poor are women and children.

Industrial development, which has been the main theme of economic development since 1950 has reproduced patterns of “uneven development” similar to those that characterized the early period of colonialism. It has favored the rich industrialized countries, urban elites, and a rich class of multi-billionaires that dominate the landscape of impoverished countries. Export-led industrialization favors the development of a small class of underpaid workers.

The anti-globalization movement challenges this model by offering alternative demands: for fair trade (see the article by Kendra White), sustainable rural development, the creation of regimes that respect indigenous cultures, protect women from violence, and safeguard the environment. We need to focus on alternative measures of development not based on how much MORE stuff is generated every year (GDP), but rather on human and gender development, poverty rates, infant mortality rates, and his quality of life.

The UN Millennium Goals are an ambitious attempt to address critical needs of “severe poverty” and gender equality. As well-meaning as the goals might be (as in the quote below from the World Bank), without fundamental structural changes in the world economy and of the power structure within countries themselves, these goals are unlikely to achieve an end to global poverty. The quote below from the World Bank is an example of a well-intended approach, but does not offer the tools for radical transformation, indeed some argue that the impact of these institutions such as the World Bank is to reinforce a free market regime that may even undermine these goals.

“ Poverty is a call to action — for the poor and the wealthy alike — a call to change the world so that many more may have enough to eat, adequate shelter, access to education and health, protection from violence, and a voice in what happens in their communities.” (World Bank.)

The discourse of development is dominated by patriarchal and capitalist values. There are powerful voices in the anti-globalization movement that call for human, non-patriarchal patterns of development that are based on cooperative and sustainable patterns of development. These can only come for the voices of the Multitude: the majority of the world’s population who are the poor and oppressed.

Suggested reading: Richard Peet, Unholy Trinity. The IMF, World Bank, and WTO (Zed Books, 2009); Maria Mies, Patriarchy and Accumulation
on a World Scale (Zed Books 1986); Vadhana
Shiva and Maria Mies, EcoFeminism (Zed Books, 1993); Michael Hardt & Antonio Negri, Multitude.

“What is Fair Trade?” This is a question my geography teacher asked my 5th grade class in my home country, Switzerland, back in 2001. That year we learned all about the concept of Fair Trade and the benefits it had for the local farmers involved. Not only did we learn about Fair Trade in school, but Fair Trade products were and still are common in our supermarkets
in Europe. Most people opt for Fair Trade bananas, sugar, and coffee instead of the regular free trade products.

This is why when one of my professors showed my “Introduction to Global Studies” class the documentary “Black Gold” and only a few students knew what Fair Trade was, I was shocked. After a long discussion with the class, I realized that Fair Trade is not a widespread phenomenon here in the USA the same way it is back in Europe.

I decided to take my investigation outstide of the classroom and sure enough my observation was confirmed. Although many of my friends had learned about Fair Trade in one way or another, they did not feel personally concerned by it. Of course, why would they be? Most people hear about Fair Trade through different classes or newspaper articles, and only see it as a system that benefits poor farmers. Most people do not understand how the system works and as a result, they do not realize that Fair Trade is something each and every one of us can participate in, and that through it, we can make a difference.

The problem is that coffee farmers in under-developed countries are becoming even more impoverished, going further into debt and losing their land because of the extremely low world coffee prices. For instance, according to Tadesse Meskela, the representative for the Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union in Ethiopia, big companies such as Starbucks sells Ethiopian coffee for $14.00 per pound, but only pays $1.20 per pound, which does not even cover the cost of production. The idea of Fair Trade is to offer local farmers an equitable and fair partnership between consumers in more developed parts of the world, such as Europe or North America, and producers in
Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. Fair Trade guarantees to poor farmers organized in cooperatives around the world a living wage, credit at fair prices, and a long term relationship. Although the idea is becoming more popular, according to the Fair Trade Labeling Organizations International, still only 20% of Fair Trade Farmer’s coffee is sold at Fair Trade. The reason for this is that there is not enough demand for Fair Trade coffee.

So what can we do as individual consumers in the United States? Fair Trade certified coffee is slowly making its way to the US and the only way for the movement to grow is to get involved. Although it is not well publicized, there is already Fair Trade Coffee around Manhattanville College. For instance, the coffee sold in the library Café is “Pura Vida Coffee,” which is part of the Union de Ejidos Professor Otillio Montano (UDEPOM) “which is a cooperative of farmers in Chiapas, Mexico, focused since 1995 on producing the highest quality Fair Trade and organic coffee while contributing to the preservation of the natural resources of the Mescamerica biodiversity hotspot (www.puravidacoffee.com).”

Also, since 2000, Starbucks has offered Brewed Fair Trade coffee as well as whole bean. Yet the only way Starbucks will make Fair Trade coffee is if you ask for it specifically. So if you are a Starbucks customer, buy Fair Trade. Furthermore, let your friends and family know about the concept of Fair Trade. It is only by spreading the word that the movement will be able to grow. Such little effort on one person’s part can go a long way.

What is Fair Trade?
Fair Trade Certification empowers farmers and farm workers to lift themselves out of poverty by investing in their farms and communities, protecting the environment, and developing the business skills necessary to compete in the global marketplace. Fair Trade also includes Fair Price, Fair Labor Conditions, Direct Trade, Democratic and transparent organizations, Community development, and Environmental sustainability.
(www.transfairusa.org)

European Fair Trade Association:
The European Fair Trade Association (EFTA) is an association of eleven Fair Trade importers in nine European countries (Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom). EFTA was established informally in 1987 by some of the oldest and largest Fair Trade importers. It gained formal status in 1990.The aim of EFTA is to support its member organizations in their work and to encourage them to cooperate and coordinate. It facilitates the exchange of information and networking, it creates conditions for labour division and it identifies and develops joint projects. (www.european-fair-trade-association.org)

Coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world (oil is the first.) (www.blackgoldmovie.com/economics.php)

Fair Trade labeling Organization International:
Fair Trade Labeling Organization International (FLO) is the organization that coordinates Fairtrade labeling at an international level. A key part of FLO’s role is to develop and review the Fairtrade standards. These standards apply to all Fairtrade producers. They also apply to the companies who market Fairtrade products, such as importers, exporters and licensees.(www.fairtrade.net)

Ethiopia’s labor force is 85% agriculture, 5% Industry and 10% services. (www.cia.gov)

United Students Against Fair Trade:
USFT is a collaboration of students and youth working in solidarity
with cooperative communities to promote fair trade principles, products and policies. Consciousness raising, leadership development and capacity building stand at the core of our grassroots organizing. (www.usft.org)

In a ranking of 177 countries and territories, Human Development
Index (HDI) places Ethiopia in the low human development category, near the bottom of the list at 169th place.(www.cia.gov)

Fair Trade Federation:
The Fair Trade Federation (FTF) is the trade association that strengthens and promotes North American organizations fully committed to fair trade. The Federation is part of the global fair trade movement, building equitable and sustainable trading partnerships and creating opportunities to alleviate poverty. (www.fairtradefederation.org)

42.7% of the population over the age of 15 years old is literate. Out of that 42.7%, 50.3% are males, while 35.1% are females. (www.cbsnews.com)

TransFair USA:
TransFair USA enables sustainable development and community empowerment by cultivating a more equitable global trade model that benefits farmers, workers, consumers, industry and the earth. We achieve our mission by certifying and promoting Fair Trade products.(www.transfairusa.org)

More than 20 million people worldwide work in the coffee industry.(
www.blackgoldmovie.com/economics.php)

United Students Against Sweatshops:
Formed in 1997, United Students Against Sweatshops (USAS) is a grassroots organization of youth and students who believe that a powerful and dynamic labor movement will ensure greater justice for all people. The association uses its unique roles of students as consumers, workers, and members of the campus community to win victories that set precedents in the struggle for self-determination of working people everywhere, particularly campus workers and garment workers who make collegiate licensed apparel. (www.usas.org)

In 2003, coffee was the world’s sixth-largest legal agricultural export in value (www.coffeefacts.com)

There is a growing level of global violence against women. As they increasingly form the backbone of the world economy, they are subject to structural violence of state-led “development” programs, i.e. sweatshop factories, trafficking and the personal violence of rape and sexual abuse. Femicide describes the massive rape and violence against women in the Congo (where 200,000-300,000 rapes have been reported), female genital mutilation that affects 100 million women Africa, dowry murders in India, killings of hundreds of women on the Mexican border, increasing levels of trafficking, and sex tourism. One in four women in the US has been subject to rape or attempted
rape.

Mville Students and faculty are organizing to publicize the global position of women through presentations at Bedford Women’s Prison on March 5, and in a presentation on the Mville campus on March 12. They are members of a recently formed campus group called the Coalition on Violence against Women that seeks to study and to educate about the situation of women both in the US and globally.

During the group’s presentations, Megan Angley presented on the global issue of violence, focusing on many aspects of violence against women including the topics of femicide, domestic violence and sexual violence. She discussed violence against women in five regions areas of the world: the United States, Mexico, Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Middle East, and Asia.

Christina Calbos discussed CEDAW, the UN Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women that has been signed by more than a hundred countries, although noticeably not the US. She described when and how this declaration was written, whether it has benefited women globally, and its implication for women and explain why the US has not ratified the convention, and what it will take to ratify it in the future Barbara Gonzalez discussed the issue of specific problems that face African women that make it far less connectable to the western world. Gender stereotypes act as a barrier to any type of progressive behavior in society. This hinders the African woman’s ability to move forward in life.

Anneka Preston describes many different modes of women’s empowerment: institutional, local, educational, and economic level Through the use of different development techniques, these organizations, nations, individuals, and methods have all tried to incorporate women into the globalization discourse. One successful case of empowerment is micro credit.

Prof . Peter Bell cited a recent study by Kristof & WuDunn entitled Half the Sky that documented the high levels of violence, discrimination and violation
of human rights against women globally. His research suggests that women hold up not half, but two-thirds of the sky. The economies of Thailand and Cambodia are built largely on the backs of women. The question for the 21st century is how might women enjoy full human rights, and how might their economic power be translated into social and political
empowerment?

Recently, Governor Paterson has decided that in order to balance New York’s budget a significant amount of the state’s parks and historic sites may have to be shut down. His reasoning is simple: with the state $8.2 billion in debt something drastic must be done so it can get back on track. However, closing down both important natural and historic sites is a risky maneuver and it just may cause more harm than good.

At the current moment about 57 sites, mostly parks, will be shut down if Paterson has his way. Altogether this plan would save New York about $29 million a year. This sounds like a great deal of money saved, but in reality it will not be that much considering
the locations slated for closing will fall into neglect and disrepair.

Guards would most likely have to be posted at some in order to prevent vandalism,
and eventually once the state recovers financially and wants to reopen them, an ample amount of work would be needed to get them up to par. Both of these measures
would undoubtedly cost huge sums of money. So, if it’s looked at from this point of view, in the long run the state is not saving any money at all. In fact, this could just worsen the economic situation further and plunge New York into further debt.

A recent study done by the Political Economy Research Institute found that for every dollar the state spends on parks and historic sites, it gets five dollars back, mostly from tourism. By slashing the budgets for these sites, Paterson is literally throwing desperately needed money away. In a time when many New Yorkers are spending their vacation within state lines it would be an abomination to close nearby recreation locales. This would either force New Yorkers to go out of state where they would spend their money, and much more of it, or it would cause many individuals and families to not take any vacations whatsoever. Either way the state and citizens both lose out.

Above all, New York’s parks should remain open for the sole reason of enabling every resident to enjoy the natural, historic, and cultural splendor that the state has to offer. On occasion each of us requires a respite from the everyday hustle and bustle of life; and the best way to enjoy our relaxation is to visit one of the myriad sites the state offers. Hiking, lying on a beach, or learning a bit about the state’s heritage are things which should not be taken away for any reason; for they transcend our worries and let us enjoy life a bit more.

Governor Paterson’s proposal to close our state parks is not set in stone yet; it can still be averted if enough opposition arises. It’s highly important for each of us to voice our concerns on this matter if we want to save New York’s parks. In a time when it seems as though everything is falling apart and the nation is at the verge of some great calamity, we must remember that there are places to get away from it temporarily. It would be a pity to see them shut down while we sink deeper into both an economic and psychological depression. To avoid all these negativities, the parks must stay open permanently!

The relevance of Black History month is something that wanes as the world becomes smaller—smaller in the expansion of communications around the world and the compression of biases through whole truths.

Black history month was something needed, as are all expressions of cultural identity to give fair foundation for the ladder of black accomplishment to lean upon.

In this great country there are truths that have been endowed to all men, but the recognition for the achievements that advanced this nation agriculturally, industrially,and culturally were caged away and left to starve.

This month is a tool of pride, a tool used that is similar to all groups of men who strive to leave a legacy for the children that they sow.

The need of black history month or the need to teach a more complete world history without the constraints of racism, is to include a fair detail of all people who have bettered this nation, a nation connected by the founding documents.

Not only concentrating on those who spoke and marched but those who wielded new inventions, planted new hopes, connected scars of the body that deemed impossible, and nurtured children who would later sit in these integrated classes to learn this complete history that was so desperately needed.

Where can there be found an aging (and some say a highly dangerous) nuclear power plant located in the Hudson Valley? Well, if you’re a resident of the region the answer is probably already known, for who could miss the bulky cooling towers and steam stacks that presides over one of the most dramatic landscapes in New York as they drive through the area? In Buchanan, a small picturesque town located about 36 miles north of New York City on a scenic and historic stretch of the mighty Hudson, looms the Indian Point nuclear power plant.

On November 24th, President Barack Obama hosted his first State dinner party. A couple, Michaele and Tareq Salahi, breached what should have been a highly private event with security and guest lists. This couple not only managed to get pass security but also managed to shake hands with the President of the United States himself. This occurrence has definitely caused uproar in our nation and has raised many questions of security.

The question that remains: how did this couple manage to get pass security and the Secret Service, as they were not on the guest list? This occurrence really makes people really wonder if this couple who did not intend any harm could pass security and get within arms length of our president, then it is quite possible that a dubious person who could intend harm could potentially accomplish the same. Also, there is the question of who really is to blame. The couple did breach security but it is obvious that the security was not quite so secure if this couple managed to easily breach it.

Not only did this couple breach security, they are now possibly going to be charged for their act as should be expected. However, I do wonder why they were not charged or arrested sooner. Also, if this couple’s act wasn’t bad enough, they are also now trying to sell their story for a rather handsome profit. Though I favor free speech and it would make sense that they share their story, is it not pushing a line to sell this story to the mass media for the entire world to know? What happened to keeping security of the President? Should the story be revealed, would others not try to see if they could do the same? President Obama’s security men and Secret Servicemen best improve on the security they are providing, as it would not do any good to have security if it is so easy to breach. This is not a good message to potentially send to the world or to our country. Citizens want to know that our country is safe and the safety of our president would do better to ensure that.

Our country and the citizens will hope to see this matter not only resolved in terms of how the couple will be sanctioned but also in terms of improving security. If we can’t trust Secret Service, who are sworn to President the President, to do their jobs, how can expect other law enforcement officials to not follow that suit. Granted this might be going a bit far but honestly, if the White House can be breached easily, it leaves an uneasiness of what else can be breached!