Social Justice Event: The Vagina Monologues

The Vagina Monologues
Thursday, February 11, 2016

To say the least, this event was awkward. I took my friend who went to it last year for her social justice event and she filled me in on everything. I went on a Thursday night and it was held in the Student Union Ballroom at RIC. All proceeds went to the Sojourner House, which is a domestic violence agency. There were 19 monologues, plus an introduction. All of these monologues definitely touched a nerve...some you were able to laugh at, some actually included you yelling out and being a part of it, some were just so awkward that everyone laughed, and others were like 

oh my god

I can't believe those things happen

and

wow yeah I agree, that is true.

This was an eye-opening experience because you got to see these students from RIC perform with such emotion and also hear a few of their stories at the end. In the pamphlet, there were short biographies of each individual who participated at the RIC event. I read through them before the show and again after the show and was able to put faces to the name and description and was like

WOW I would have never guessed that happened to this person!

It shows you don't know what happens behind closed doors and you need to be able to talk about these things and open up and voice your opinion and that will help others do just that. I would recommend that everyone go see this at least once in their lifetime. If not, then just google "The Vagina Monologues" and watch a few videos. Here are a few links to monologues:

My Angry Vagina

Reclaiming Cunt

The Woman Who Loved to Make Vaginas Happy

Connection to articles read in class:

1. This event relates to our class discussion of SCWAAMP (Straight, Christian, White, American, Able-bodied, Male, Property Owner). Male-ness was definitely not a factor because this was an event about women and to help end domestic violence. There were no men on stage but there were some transgender people. This shows Straight-ness because definitely not everyone was straight. White-ness was also shown because not everyone was white and that domestic violence can happen to anyone, no matter the color of their skin and also because every female has a vagina, also no matter to the color of their skin.

2. Gerri August's article, Safe Spaces, relates to The Vagina Monologues because it shows how people of the LGBT community should feel safe no matter where they go and that people should be educated about it and not fear it or bully the people. A few of the actors were transgender in this event but you could tell by the way they performed that they were comfortable in their own skin. They wanted to share their story to help others out. That takes a lot of confidence because you never know how people will respond to that. I am glad that they were able to share their own personal stories with us and trust us because there is no reason anyone should be afraid to "come out".

3. The last article that The Vagina Monologues relates to is Allan Johnson's Privilege, Power, and Difference. People in the LGBT community should not be bullied. People should stand up and say the words, like Johnson says. People need to know they are safe no matter their orientation. Not standing up for someone is pretending that there is no elephant in the room. The more you talk about the issue, the more comfortable people will feel and the less the LGBT community will feel like an outcast. Being LGBT is a change in this world because people are being more open about it. The more it is talked about and understood, the less problems people will have and will be more accepting.