Walk Over to #WomensMarchMY Festival & Get Inspired by Music, Art, Films & Panels

By Karissa Lund  •  27 Feb 2020 in Events

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2020 is the year to both celebrate and act for women’s rights! As most of y’all know, Women’s March Malaysia will be happening this 8 March in conjunction with International Women’s Day. But before you hit the streets with your sisters and brothers, you can show some pre-march love and support at the Women’s March Festival–a fundraiser that’s filled with thought-provoking forums and discussions around gender equality; film screenings, poetry, music performances, and of course, food!

The festival, happening on 29 February at GMBB Mall, is a public fundraiser for the upcoming rally. While it’s great that many want to get woke on the issue, nothing beats hearing about the hard facts and struggles from the activists and NGOs working towards gender equality themselves.

To make it easy for you and your friends to navigate, here are all the activities that you can checkout at the festival:

1. Five forums by activists and NGOs

There is a long history of women’s activisms and struggles for equality and dignity in Malaysia. Topics like ‘Women’s Movement: Motivation & Challenges of Activism’; ‘Rape Culture & Sexual Harassment: Lived Realities, Legislation & Challenging Stereotypes’ and ‘Hospital Workers Share Their Fight Against Low Wage Injustice & Labour Exploitation’ will be open for all. There are a total of five panels for you to learn from. For full information on the panels, click here.

2. Exhibition on ‘What Were You Wearing? Malaysia’ & Workshop on ‘Art-ified: Facemask Illustration For March 8th’

Just like what the poster says – it’s debunking the myth of victim attire being the cause of rape and sexual harassment in Malaysia. This exhibition is free admission and is open for the whole day. There will also be a workshop dedicated to facemask! Not the skin-moisturising one, but the one you’ll be wearing for the rally.

3. Film Screening: Women Make Waves

Filemmakers Anonymous will be hosting a special screening of short-films by Malaysian-based women filmmakers from 12.30 pm to 2.30 pm. The screening will feature short-films by Sharifah Amani, Bebbra Mailin, Amanda Nell Eu, Nadiah Hamzah and Mien.ly. The two-hour programme will see a panel session right after with the industry experts, moderated by filmmaker Indrani Kopal.

The featured films tell a diverse range of stories about the struggles and triumphs of women, in the context of personal relationships, and those with the larger society. Take a look at some of the short films that will be screened:

4. Poetry & Music Performances

Let’s us all attend the fundraise AND the march, learn more about the realities and the struggles of women in Malaysia and of course, have fun!

To find out more about the festival, click here.