The fight for women’s suffrage
In the United States began with the women’s rights movement in the mid-nineteenth century, between the years 1848-1917.
One hundred years ago, women were expected to be wives and mothers, tasked with raising good, moral citizens and keeping comfortable homes.
Most women didn’t have careers, with the exception of teachers, nurses, seamstresses, maids, and others who performed jobs considered to be appropriately feminine.
Today many of us are experiencing a variety of emotions based on our gender and who we thought we were made to be in this world.
As I thought about what it meant to be a woman in today’s world I immediately turned to google.
I hesitated, do I not know what it’s like to be a woman in 2022?
Are you struggling with what may be happening in the news with Roe vs Wade?
These topics can bring our emotional status to an all low, struggling with communicating with people that may be close to you and may have other viewpoints and beliefs.
How can we navigate support, communication and non verbal attacks towards one another?
Who can we turn to and who can we trust?
How to create a safe space for discussion taken from Girlboss;
Below you will find guidelines on how organizations such as places of employment and schools can co-create safer spaces that reduce the possibility of re-traumatization by:
- Embrace transparency– Be clear about the expectations, goals, limitations and the
itinerary for the space - Protect everyone’s privacy– Someone may share something personal, ask a question or say something they wouldn’t want to be attached to their name outside the safe space. It is important to respect their confidence and exercise discretion. Offer multiple mediums for sharing-Some people will prefer to share verbally, some written and some anonymously. Leave room for all of these methods of participation so every voice can be acknowledged.
- Check-in-After the discussion- be sure to follow-up and check-in with people through various communications channels. Communicate reminders around confidentiality, key takeaways from the space and potential action-items.
- Know your resources-Be ready to share any organization-specific resources and inclusive policies in addition to local community resources that could provide support for people especially in the area of mental health and healthcare access.
- Protect the space– Place of business or shared company should be vigilant that participants/others are behaving in accordance with the values and purpose of the safe space. They should take immediate action if someone is violating the sanctity of the space.
- Validate people’s pain and struggle– Enable people to vulnerably share their stories, acknowledge their suffering and try not distract from it by sharing your own story immediately in response. Remember your story could help someone’s courage to heal.
- Use inclusive language-Communicate in ways that are affirming and not overly biased, Actively consider lived experiences different from your own.
- Avoid violent communication– Refrain from overly critical interactions designed to punish, shame, humiliate or isolate each other. Allow space for vulnerability, courageous dialogue, learning and positive change.
- Promote empowerment– Come into the space centering the understanding that people are the experts on their own experiences, that trauma can be overcome and that healing is always possible. Try to share decision-making with the group as much as possible and encourage collective goal-setting.
- Be mindful of representation– Try to ensure that a wide cross-section of identities, backgrounds, levels of leadership, departments, roles and lived experiences are represented in the space (unless the space is intentionally for one particular community). Remember who is amongst you and respect their identity and opinions.
- Establish shared working agreements– Make this collaborative among everyone in the space before getting into the discussion. Ask people what they need most to engage in the space vulnerably and without fear and with comfortability.
- Name injustices explicitly– Leave no confusion that your organization/work understands that exclusion, bias, inequity, underrepresentation, marginalization, oppression and injustice exist and affect your workplace.
These examples are not always expressed nor respected in many settings. This was designed for knowledge on feeling comfortable as a woman and how to utilize your stories, thoughts and feelings in a professional and private setting.
With struggling America and being a woman today we need to empower places we feel comfortable in, surround ourselves with better company who inspire us and accept our views.
Where we can get treated with dignity and respect regardless of what others may feel.
What is right for ourselves and our body is our decision based on our individual heart.
This post was written by Lauren K., and published by Convenient Counseling Services.
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