Yes yes, I know, I said I was going to write a daily summary of proceedings at the Empowering Women through Secularism conference! But I realised during the first panel this morning, after already filling 2 pages with notes, that this would be an impossible task, there was just too much information, substance and goodness here to be covered in one blog post at the end of the day.
So instead, I will point to the twitter hashtag #EWTS2013, where plenty of people covered all the panelists and their talks all day long, so you can read them up there instead of me writing a wall of text here.
There’s also a summary of PZ Myers’ talk up on Pharyngula, as well as Anthea McTeirnan’s talk here.
I met some great and fierce people today, and I also learned something, the term “Magdalene laundries“. It’s a very depressing chapter of Ireland’s history.
Now, to another matter that has to be addressed. I got a few concerned retweets from slymers this morning after I tweeted this:
The whole scene is entirely bizarre. A room full of nice people, and shyly off to the side one MRA drone with his laptop. #ewts2013
Here’s the thing people, and let me make this absolutely clear. Today at this conference we had feminist women stand up and criticise the sexism in our movements, we had them ask for men to talk to other men about this, to not just stand idly by and pay lip service to ongoing sexism and male privilege.
I’m terribly sorry, but I will not be quiet for the sake of nettiquette, I will not hesitate to point out and make it quite clear for everyone that one of the attendees of our conference is here thanks to donations he accepted from anti-feminists, from harassers of female atheists and secularists, in fact harassers of speakers at this very conference.
If that gets me expelled from EWTS, so be it, and I will accept it. But I will not be quiet on issues that are of relevance to the conference goals, issues that the feminists supporting the event, and paying for the event, should in my view be aware of.
Now for some tea.
