Crafty Poetry - Bears Rebellion

Check out some rad poetry by Bears Rebellion, warning this woman is empowered!

at http://bearsrebellion.wordpress.com/

Here is a sample,

She Said

Posted on October 13, 2014by bearsrebellion

She said “Have you got your life sorted?” and I replied “A little bit more than I did before” and I skipped off down the road.

Bears Rebellion 13/10/14

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged bears, before, life, more, rebellion, sorted | Leave a comment

Around The World

Posted on October 12, 2014by bearsrebellion

As I lay my head down to sleep, I’m aware at this same moment people the world over are sleeping eating drinking feasting kissing hugging loving laughing driving riding smiling sewing baking choking killing stealing lying feeling running swimming boxing chilling smoking poking cleaning demeaning treating hoping seeping and dying for a better world.

Bears Rebellion 12/10/14

Flighting Sexism: Adventures with the Craftivism Fence and Paper Planes

At the Flighting Sexism Exhibition we wanted the true spirit of Craftivism to be represented, that is to get everyone to participate: young, old, mums, daughters, sons, partners and even fashion designers, took part.  So we put up a craftivist fence, so everyone could show their protest at Air NZ's sexist safety video, that this type of sexist advertising leads to the sexist and rape culture in our society that is so damaging to all those who identify as female.

So this is how the fence began at the exhibition with mini protest banners and a three planes...but this was to change.

Children at the Plane Making Zone

Girls are Cool

Choirboys daughter wanted her planes to be by daddy's art work of Russian punk band Pussy Riot and suffragette Kate Sheppard's paintings.

Fashion designer the Under Class Merchant (UCM) got in on the action saying, "No to Sexism"

After the opening the fence was so full of protest planes.

Flighting Sexism Opening

Awesome opening to Flighting Sexism Exhibition. A truly transformative experience, we broke the silences on sexism and the link this has to rape culture. Thanks to all the artists, to Choirboy for his amazing musical performance, Marewa Glover for her powerful and thought provoking poetry. The children who made planes for the craftivist fence, with feminist messages, totally cuted me out. Thanks for all those who came, this was beautiful community experience. Thanks also to Tory Street for providing this wonderful space.

No More Sleeping Beauty - Installation organised by Marewa Glover

Fuck AirNZ by Ron Tekawa

Mother and daughter artists - Marewa Glover and  Tiraha-Ana Glover (Nga Puhi)

ICU by Molly Rangiwai McHale

ICU by Molly Rangiwai McHale and partner Keteiyau Tora 

The Underclass Merchant - "Poetry is like Rap but Fancy" for Justice

Marewa Glover, our poet and artist

Flighting Sexism Exhibition - 3 days to go

3 days to go until our exhibition Flighting Sexism!

Date: August 26th, Tuesday
Time: 6pm - 9pm
Location: 19 Tory Street Gallery

This is an exhibition to celebrate our victory of getting the AirNZ Sexist Safety Video Remove. 

The exhibition will included community made installations from, Wellington Craft Collective, Members of a Feminist Mothers Group and Members of a Queer Group who helped make hundreds of paper planes.

As well as an installation of radicalized flight sleep masks, sent by supporters all around New Zealand and the World. Organised by Marewa Glover.

Also, there will be works of art challenging why we are still having to fight sexism, and the intersectionarily related issues of colonisation and homophobia in 2014.  Works include, the following artists, Charlotte Sirvid, Choirboy, Emanarchy, Molly Rangiwai McHale, Ron Tekawa and others.

Come along and make some paper planes and write feminist inspirational message with your friends and children. While listening  the Music of Choirboy and the poetry of Marewa Glover.

Parental guidance recommended: Includes words rape/rape culture and partial nudity in some images.

Oi All You Kiwis, Last Day Today 2 Enrol 4 Easy Vote!

This coming NZ election if you kiwis want to vote, Yeltz who helped us out for Occupy Your Ears with his art work, has a reminder for you all,that it is the last day today to enrol for easy vote!

Our Occupy Blankets Adventures Continue

Our Occupy Blanket features in a new book about the vegan adventures of one of our members Anderson Santos.  The cover is by our own Emily Strange, who did this sketch for Anderson as a good bye present when he left to tour the blanket around the world.  Here is a link were you can read this book, Meatless Adventures 2 and his other book Meatless Adventures 1, http://www.andersonsantos.info/#books 

We are also hoping to display the Occupy Blanket again at our Flighting Sexism exhibition, as this blanket sought to address issues of sexism at occupy.  It is important to remember that we have to fight sexism not only in society but within activism itself, to ensure woman have equal chance of participation and thus equal voice, as well as a safe space to practice activism free of sexual harassment.

Flight Sexism

Hey awesome arty and crafty people, we looking for 5-10 artists and crafts people to contribute work for our up coming exhibition, which includes a series of community based installations too. The theme is fighting sexism and the opening date is August 26th. Also, it would be awesome if you are willing to donate your work and any sales will go to Rape Crisis, though this is not mandatory to participate.

Victory is Ours!

Its official the AirNZ video is gone and Change.org the petition organisers have given us a certificate to say we won.  We are still going ahead though with our exhibition, so keep those sleep masks coming as we demand a formal apology from AirNZ and a donation to Rape Crisis.

Ban AirNZ Sexist Safety Video

Our initial protest of the AirNZ sexist safety video has grown and with members of a feminist mothers group also giving us support, we have set up a temporary project group to mount a significant campaign to get this video banned.  There is a seperate blog where you can keep up to date with whats happening, http://banairnzssexistsafetyvideo.blogspot.co.nz/ and we would greatly appreciate your help and support, as this is an international protest, as this video is flying around the world.

This safety video is spreading 50 year old style of sexist ideas of marketing, as AirNZ have colluded with a peddler of female objectification Sports Illustrated. Children and adults alike are forced to watch this advertising as it has been used to co-op a safety video for a capitalist agenda. This video not only objectifies woman, promoting a single ideal of beauty, leaving woman passengers feeling humiliated and unsafe and female staff flight staff embarrassed, and sending dreadful messages on body image to young children on these flights, this video also enforcing a colonizing agenda of Pacific Island people.

To view the offending video click on, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQDip9V49U0

There are several actions proposed,

1. Art Exhibitions: A craft and art exhibition, you can take part in, one involving paper planes and complaint letters and airline sleep masks with radical messages, for more information follow this link, http://banairnzssexistsafetyvideo.blogspot.co.nz/p/auckland-exhibition.html

2. Petition: A petition is circulating to ban this video, with now over a 1000 signatures, please sign, http://www.change.org/en-AU/petitions/air-nz-remove-sexist-in-flight-safety-video?share_id=NPEnesNFTb&utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=facebook&utm_source=share_petition.

Greyhound jackets - fashion fittings

Well last week we had our first greyhound bunting and jacket making sessions.  And today one member took them for a tryout on two four pawed supermodels, to check and adjust our pattern.  Don't the models look fabulous?