In May 2021 a social media discussion on casteism and predatory behaviour in school and colleges snowballed into a #MeToo campaign against educational institutions in Tamil Nadu. More than a thousand girl students and women alumni, mostly from Chennai, alleged sexual harassment by teachers and people in positions of power in various institutions. Following hundredsContinue reading “#MeToo in Chennai Schools: The Big Red Flag We Shouldn’t Ignore”
Author Archives: vaishc
A year since SWAN
I have been wanting to write this for the last one year. We (SWAN) are gearing up to release a video to remember or recall the last one year since the lockdown. This post isn’t going to be about any issues that would matter. This is my experience of being part of SWAN, a volunteer group forContinue reading “A year since SWAN”
Roundtable: A discussion with main political parties in TN on Environmental Justice
27 March 2020. A roundtable discussion was organised by Young people for politics and the Chennai climate action group. Both are small and relatively new youth-led collectives. CCAG works on Environment justice and YPP works to encourage youth in politics and I got an opportunity to moderate it. An invitation was sent to all theContinue reading “Roundtable: A discussion with main political parties in TN on Environmental Justice”
Adolescents’ Access To Child Services, Mental Health in Small Towns Still Poor
(This article was first published in the wire. Resharing it here) I don’t know why I am angry all the time’, ‘Is it okay to kiss my boyfriend?’, ‘I don’t have any friends and I feel very lonely coming to school’, ‘What do I do when someone follows me home?’, ‘Will good girls chat withContinue reading “Adolescents’ Access To Child Services, Mental Health in Small Towns Still Poor”
A Case for Contextualised Gender Dialogue from a School-Based Intervention in TamilNadu
Feminist research approaches in practice, Vijay Publications, 2020 The paper is based on gender sensitisation efforts with 600 children in a state school in Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu. The ongoing action research initiates and provides a platform for dialogue around gender sensitisation and sexual harassment through workshops among parents, teachers and students. Based on the primaryContinue reading “A Case for Contextualised Gender Dialogue from a School-Based Intervention in TamilNadu”
Why must we challenge our families for our Democracy to Thrive?
Sethu and I contributed to Feminism in India for their call on October 2020, #Childhood and Relationship With Parents and Family. Picture credits:FII “Family as a sacred space” is a myth in a deeply patriarchal country like India. Here, the conventionally heteronormative family many times functions as a toxic space employing abuse, manipulation, guilt, andContinue reading “Why must we challenge our families for our Democracy to Thrive?”
When I came on TV!
At 9.30 am, I woke up feeling very happy ( This rarely happens!). I was still lazing in my bed and obviously the first thing to check is whatsapp. So I opened the chats and skipped a few and noticed a buzz on my SWAN volunteer group. Some Backstory: On the previous day, on theContinue reading “When I came on TV!”
ONE YEAR!
Part II- Reflections based on the responses from parents The workshops and research were done in a school in Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu, a small semi-rural town known for its temples. C.P. Vidya Mandir matriculation school is a low-income private school and the gender sensitization programme was administered to 620 students while 418 students participatedContinue reading “ONE YEAR!”
ONE YEAR!
Reflections and Results (Part 1) Sethulakshmi V It’s been exactly a year since Vaishnavi and I started brainstorming about starting gender sensitisation workshops in her school in Kumbakonam. Now, after an year, when we have completed sessions for over 500 students, 60 teachers and 100 parents, it feels necessary to look at where it allContinue reading “ONE YEAR!”
The Long Road Home: A Day in the Life of a Stranded Migrant Worker in Bengaluru
May 17, 2020, 4 pm: A volunteer with the Stranded Workers Action Network (SWAN) gets a call from Sanoj. He is one among 15 migrant workers who had vacated their rented rooms in Bengaluru on May 10, hoping to return to their home states – in his case, Jharkhand. Sanoj recounts in Hindi that, whenContinue reading “The Long Road Home: A Day in the Life of a Stranded Migrant Worker in Bengaluru”
Thinnai 