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Investigating women and war
March 30, 2006 Andrea Khahil of Queens College faculty asks a question. Waiting in line are Jonathon Buchsbaum, a PSC member from Queens College, and Bill Henning, a PSC adjunct and a member of the NYSUT staff union at New York University. The role of women as leaders, victims and helpers in the Iraq war drew strong debate at a CUNY Queens College conference held to commemorate Women's History Month. "What must it be like for women living in war? — if they've lost a child to a stray bomb ... cannot go out in the street ... or are victims of lawlessness or collateral damage?" asked Joyce Warren, chairwoman of the Professional Staff Congress women's committee, which hosted the conference. Then there are women in power. Panelist Janis Karpinski, former commanding general for the U.S. military at Abu Ghraib prison, took heat from students and faculty who demanded she take more responsibility for the torture of Iraqi prisoners by American soldiers. Panelist Aseel Sawalha, Pace College anthropology faculty, said there needs to be a better understanding of women's needs in war's aftermath. For instance, cosmetic companies came to Afghanistan to help "liberated" women who really needed food, clothing and housing, she noted. Iraqi Houzan Mahmoud, of the Organization for Women's Freedom in Iraq , said the new Iraqi parliament is 25 percent women, but they have no political background and live rich, sequestered lives. Elections and constitutions were "a sham," she said. "Women are getting killed, beheaded and raped in prison," she said, noting that "terrorism has doubled" since the U.S. invaded Iraq. The conference was held on the third anniversary of the invasion. |
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