Editor’s note: The Rev. Dr. Laura Marie Piotrowicz is rector of The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, Saskatoon and acting co-chair, Ecumenical Women at the United Nations.
SASKATOON — Each year, around International Women’s Day (March 8), the United Nations hosts the two-week-long Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) at UN Headquarters in New York.
The CSW is an intergovernmental body dedicated to the promotion of gender equality, and has been active since 1946. This year, the CSW will focus on the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a 1995 document that identified 12 key areas (including concrete action plans) for countries to implement movement towards equality. *
During this commission (March 10– 21), members of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) also gather in New York and online to participate in events of solidarity, education, and advocacy. Often the largest gathering of civil society at a UN commission, this year more than 12,000 members of ECOSOC-accredited NGOs have registered to participate.
The Anglican Communion is one of the NGOs that will be present at CSW; with delegates from around the world, led by Martha Jarvis (the Anglican Communion’s permanent representative to the UN) and Mandy Marshall (project director for gender justice). This year’s delegation includes a large number of youths, as well as some of us who have attended for many years, from all over the world, bearing an exceedingly diverse scope of expertise and experience.
We connect with other faith-based organisations, collaborating and networking to enhance our awareness and efficacy in this context. These include the ACT Alliance, the World Council of Churches, and Ecumenical Women at the UN, a coalition that offers advocacy training, solidarity, national mission visits, and daily worship. (EW’s social media is very active during CSW and you can find us on Facebook and Instagram)
We know that our baptism compels us to strive for the dignity of all. The call in Micah 6:8 inspires us act with justice, kindness, and mercy. Ephesians 5:11-13 compels us to refuse to turn a blind eye to the suffering of others, to expose it and work against it. Jesus teaches his disciples to dismantle systems of oppression and domination, and to use power to enhance others’ well-being (see Matthew 20:26-28).
At CSW, we trust that together we are upheld as we navigate challenging realities, share stories of hope and resiliency, and are inspired to apply our faith focus to local action that will make a difference. We bring with us our experiences from home, and learn from our contexts. We recognise the intersectionality of global issues and local applications. We participate boldly at the UN, and forge relationships that span time and distance and language.
We also know that while we are engaging in these events, and nurturing ideas to bring home, that we are being upheld in prayer by our communities. So I invite your prayers for this CSW: For those who endure violence, may we surround them with support.
For those who perpetuate violence, may God change their hearts. For those who strive to break the cycle of violence, may they know their work to be valued and important. For all of us who seek God, may we demonstrate leadership in extending dignity to all.
*The 12 key areas are: Women and Poverty, Education and Training for Women, Women and Health, Violence Against Women, Women and Armed Conflict, Women and the Economy, Women in Power and Decision-Making, Institutional Mechanisms, Human Rights of Women, Women and the Media, Women and the Environment, The Girl Child. There are similarities found in the Millennium Development Goals, and the current Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
