Sahar Speaks: Voices of Women from Afghanistan

Professional Development Event Reflection

7 October 2019, 4pm, Wexner Center For the Arts

I attended this event with Caitlyn.  I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I ended up really enjoying the theatrical performance of Parwana: They Bear All the Pain.  It featured just two actresses, an empty stage, and no props except for a book, yet was able to deliver a powerful message.  Inspired by an article by a female Afghan journalist mentored by the Sahar Speaks program, the performance illuminates the  violence experienced by children in everyday life on the streets in Afghanistan. The Sahar Speaks program was created to draw attention to the female voices in Afghanistan by recruiting and training Afghan female journalists.  Likewise, Zari and Parwana, the two sisters in the performance, command attention and claim the right to tell their own stories.

I thought it was interesting how they performance manages to show the harsh reality of life for women and children in Afghanistan, yet featured characters who resist the the narrative of victimhood assigned to them by outside voices and assert the right to speak for themselves.  I was reminded of the novel A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, which centers around two Afghan women who likewise must search for ways to assert their own stories when their voices are threatened.

Young Women in Nonproliferation Initiative Information Session

Non-IA Campus Event Reflection

4 October 2019, 11am-1pm, Page Hall

This event was hosted by Dr. Amy Sands, who discussed her impressive career as an intelligence analyst and expert in nonproliferation and disarmament.  As a first-year Security and Intelligence major, I valued the opportunity to hear about her diverse experiences in the field and get a sense of the different career paths within the intelligence community.  Especially interesting was Dr. Sands description of often being the only woman in the room in discussions about nonproliferation and the “thoughtful risks” she had to take in order to end up there.  I learned that women make up only a small minority of professionals in the field of WMD proliferation, which is problematic for several reasons.  This gender discrepancy was the driving factor behind the foundation of the Young Women in Nonproliferation Initiative, which aims to encourage female students to consider careers in arms control.

Dr. Sands gave several pieces of advice for those considering such a career, emphasizing flexibility of perspective, openness to networking early on, and calculated risk-taking.  She spoke on the real need for women to be involved in the analysis of WMD threats, as more diverse views and perspectives lead to better teamwork and better analyses.  Ultimately, this event opened my eyes to the importance of and opportunities for a career in nonproliferation and arms control.