http://www.ncreview.com/ 2729-1157 http://www.ncreview.com/activisism/half-the-sky-turning-oppression-into-opportunity-for-women-worldwide Just by chance (or was it?) I turned on television last night and saw the first of a two-part series of this film on PBS. Inspired by the book published in 2010,it takes a long, hard look at the oppression of girls and women worldwide. Recognized as "the greatest moral challenge of our time," it visits five countries and gives an in-depth journalistic look at the linked problems of sex trafficking and forced prostitution, gender-based violence, and maternal mortality (which still needlessly claims one woman every ninety seconds). If what you see and hear doesn't enrage you, inspire you, shock you, and break your heart, you don't have a pulse. Overall, the message is one of optimism and hope, not only for the survivors we meet in the film, but for the world. For, only when we, the marginalized half of the population, are treated with the full rights and privileges of being human will any of us have the opportunity to heal the human family. Then the real work can begin. More than just a film, this is a movement-- not fighting against something, so much as relentless pushing forward toward the ultimate goal of rendering the obstacles that women face obsolete. ]]> Tue, 02 Oct 2012 19:04:16 -0700