2010 Chapter Activities
October 24th, 2010

United Nations Association- Orange County Chapter presents
 1st Annual Human Rights Film Festival featuring The Rights of the Child

Screening award-winning short films from India, Cameroon, Mexico, Afghanistan, Uganda & the USA and showing UNICEF animations on the rights of the child
July 17th, 2010

On July 17, UNA-OC held a meet-and-greet membership event at the Borders bookstore in South Coast Plaza. Chapter President Gerri McNenny made a powerpoint presentation on the UNA, and on the 2010 national UNA conference held in Washington, DC from June 6-8, which both she and chapter VP Opal Richardson had attended. The California delegation was the largest at the conference, and the chapters of the Southern California Division were well represented. Gerri clarified for members and visitors alike the upcoming merger of UNA-USA with the UN Foundation, making many of the same points that she makes in her column in this issue of the newsletter (p. 2). Following her presentation there was time for socializing, and several interested members of the audience filled out membership forms right there and then!

Building our membership is a chapter goal this year, and we will be having more such meet-and-greet events in various parts of the county. Watch for announcements on the chapter website
 
April 15th, 2010
THIRD CRITICAL ISSUES LECTURE TO ADDRESS ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND THE LAW
 

The Copenhagen Accord: Back to the BASICS of climate change negotiations was the topic addressed by Chapman University Professor of Environmental Law Dr. Deepa Badrinarayana for a small but appreciative audience on April 15. As a delegate to the U.N. Copenhagen Climate Conference last December, Dr. Badrinarayana was able to give a firsthand account of the conference and explain why it fell short of what many people the world over had hoped for in terms of a binding international agreement on measures to slow the  momentum of serious climate change which is already under way.

Before coming to the United States, Professor Badrinarayana was a Research Officer for a Government of India/World Bank Environmental Capacity-Building Project, at the National Law School of India University. In addition to research and advocacy, she also trained government officials and legal professionals in environmental law.  Professor Badrinarayana was part of a team that advised the Government of India on its new legislation to manage biomedical waste. She is a Member of the World Conservation Union, Committee on Environmental Law, and a consultant to the United Nations Global Compact on issues of corporate voluntarism and regulations.
 

March 8, 2010: International Women’s Day
 International Women’s Day speaker warns against simplistic thinking
 by Nicole Tellier

“The role of women in Islamic societies” was the topic addressed by Dr. Nayereh Tohidi, CSU Northridge professor of Gender & Women’s Studies, at Soka University on March 8. 

Co-sponsored by UNA-OC and the university, Tohidi’s appearance marked International Women’s Day 2010.

Professor Tohidi opened her lecture with a warning against the tendency to fall for simplistic stereotypes about Islam. She reminded her audience that Muslim communities are diverse across and within different cultures and countries. The violence and sexism that we may read about is not due only to religious fundamentalism, but has more important roots in underdevelopment and the tumultuous process of democratization.

Surprising to many in the West, a great paradox exists: Muslim countries like Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Turkey have elected more women chief executives than has the United States. Western media rarely show images of women in Islamic societies who are educated, outspoken, and fighting back against oppressive forces. While the hijab, or headscarf, is seen in the West as a sign of patriarchal oppression, it can be used to make a political statement. Women throughout Iran, for example, wear green headscarves as a sign of their solidarity with the movement towards democratization.

So, we need to make a distinction between the compulsory veiling by fundamentalists (Islamists) for the purpose of limiting women’s role and equal rights in society and cultural adoption of veiling by choice by some Muslim women as a statement of faith or identity that is not meant to segregate or limit women’s participation in social life or public sphere.
 
February 10th - Dr. John Hall at Soka University 
 

The Khmer Rouge Tribunals Lecture by Dr. Hall
by Kelsey Pennington & Nicole Tellier

On Wednesday, February 10th, the United Nations Association Orange County Chapter and SOKA University’s International Studies Concentration presented Chapman Law Professor, Dr. John Hall, who lectured on his role as an investigator for the United Nations-sponsored Khmer Rouge tribunals in Cambodia.

He spoke of how, as global citizens, we must shine a light on the worst abuses of our time–to learn from and not repeat the mistakes of our past.  Throughout the 1950s-1970s, youth who had studied abroad were returning to Cambodia and radicalizing the national identity.  The coup in 1970 was seen as “imperialism in sheep’s clothing.”  Guerilla warfare ensued, and Marxist nationalist groups were fighting against the government.  When the Khmer Rouge assumed power in 1975, it became known as “Year Zero.”  Cambodia’s culture and history would be reshaped in order to eradicate foreign influence.  Read the full article in the March 2010 Newsletter.
 

January 24th - Annual Champagne Brunch/Meeting/Silent Auction

Jane Roberts was our keynote speaker. She is known worldwide for her tireless efforts in the field of international family planning, Roberts, co-founder in 2002 of the 24 million friends of the United Nations Population Fund, She has been the recipient of many awards and was nominated for the Nobel Peace prize in 2005.

The OC chapter hosts the Annual Chapter Meeting and Brunch each year in January at the Hacienda Restaurant.  This has traditionally been one of the chapter's most enjoyable fund raisers. A very brief meeting for business included the presentation of a slate of officers for 2010, followed by nominations from the floor, and the vote.

Officers installed at the meeting included for 2010 President: Geraldine McNenny, V/P Programs, Gaye Christoffersen; V/P Membership, Opal Richardson; Treasurer, Carl Mariz; and Secretary, Virginia Bernal. Committees are now being formed and this is an excellent time for you to learn more about how you can be more involved in the work of the chapter.

 

                                                                
Listening to Jane Roberts New Officers Virginia Bernal, secretary; Carl Mariz, treasurer; Opal Richardson, VP for Membership; and Gerri McNenny, President. Not shown: Gaye Christoffersen, VP for Programs
                                                                     
Chapter President Gerri McNenny and
SoCal Division President Mel Boynton		 Fred Curtis, Native American musician
Event Photos by Julia Errat