The World Through Our Eyes

Three young women explore how society’s standards obscure their identities.

BY: Sophia Romero, Amanda Arellano, & Arisbeth Sanchez

In the making of our film, “The World Through Our Eyes”, we discovered how society’s standards serve to obscure our identities. We wanted to define systems of oppression through the lens of a culture web, and express our separate identities as young women of color from different marginalized groups.

BEFORE YOU WATCH THE FILM, ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS:

• Have you ever faced discrimination? If so, please share if you’re comfortable.
• How has your privilege shielded you from experiencing discrimination? (We define privilege as the feeling of being fully accepted and of having the same opportunities as another demographic/group.)
• Have you ever discriminated against someone?

AFTER WATCHING THE FILM, LET’S ASK OURSELVES:

• What resonated with you about this story?
• How can you use your privilege to support people who have faced discrimination?
• How can you motivate people to advocate for the inclusion of marginalized communities?
• How can you educate yourself by preventing you from discriminating against someone in the future?
• Has your thought process changed after watching this film?
• Do you feel more proud of your race and disability after watching this film?

Organizations:

• Gyrl Wonder
• Girls Going Global
• The Women in Entertainment Empowerment Network
• National Youth Leadership Network
• Best Buddies
• National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth
• Special Needs Network
• Fiesta Educativa
• TASK
• Learning Rights.

Reading and Viewing Materials:

• The Marginalization of Women
• People with Disabilities Face Barriers. Inequality Shouldn’t Be One of Them
• Do People With Disabilities Feel Like One of Us? | Can Ask Meh?
• COVID-19 amplifies the complexity of disability and race

Social Media Accounts to Follow:

• Instagram: @specialneedsnetwork, @fiestaeducativa,
• Facebook: @specialneedsnetwork,@Fiestaeducativainc, @TASK, @LearningRights
• Youtube: TASKPTI, Learning Rights Law Center
• Twitter:@LearningRights, @SpecialNeedsLA

• WATCH + SHARE THIS FILM (with anyone and everyone) on your Instagram account and use this copy for your post:

The World Through Our Eyes explores how three young women of color are challenging systems of oppression created by our society’s culture web through sharing personal moments of overcoming gender, racial, and disability discrimination. @hello_world_mandy @sophia._romero @im_aris1470 @womens_voices_now

#girlsvoicesnow #womensvoicesnow #TheWorldThroughOurEyes #empathytoaction #ChicanaLikeMe #Chicanapride #Chicanismo #MexicanLikeMe #AutisticLikeMe #specialneeds #girlsofcolor #womenofcolor #womenempowerment

• Start or join a club at school/at your work that fights discrimination and encourages inclusivity
• Make a social media trend that encourages people to advocate for inclusion (marginalized/special needs communities), such as tagging a post, doing a TikTok challenge, etc.
• Talk to people who have experienced discrimination and include them in your own activities.

We are Girls’ Voices Now! To learn more about this program visit womensvoicesnow.org

To republish an article from The WVoice in its entirety or as a derivative work, you must attribute it to the author and Women’s Voices Now, and include a reference and hyperlink to the original article.

If you would like to contribute to The WVoice, please review the Submission Guidelines.