Summer 2013 Alumni Newsletter - Oldenburg Academy

Twister Values Travel Abroad
Taryn Fledderman ‘05 (front, far left) poses
with her group in front of the Taj Mahal
On December 27, 2012 a group of nursing and social work students from
Northern Kentucky University embarked on a two week journey to India to
study gender discrimination and its effects on women’s health. Being a Master’s
of Social Work student, I was fortunate enough to be able to apply and
be selected as one of the fifteen students, and received a scholarship to aid
in the expenses. The opportunity for our group to travel to India arose when
a member of the Art department at Northern Kentucky was on sabbatical in
India and met with Dr. V. Mohini Giri. Dr. Giri is a social activist in India.
She was born into the Brahmin caste, the highest caste in India, and was
married to the President of India’s son before becoming widowed at a young
age. Dr. Giri is a Nobel Peace Prize nominee, the founder of the War Widows
Association and the Guild of Service. Dr. Giri’s Guild of Service is an umbrella
agency for a variety of non-government organizations (NGO’s) across India that provides services for oppressed
women. Dr. Giri has also met with the United Nations on several occasions to speak on women’s equality globally.
Most recently Dr. Giri was interviewed by Oprah Winfrey to bring global attention to the cause she has fought for the
past four decades.
Besides a trip to Niagara Falls when I was in elementary school, I had never been outside of the country, but remember
clearly during my World Religions and Social Justice classes at Oldenburg Academy that there was a world much
larger than Southeastern Indiana for me to explore someday. Our first day in India we learned of the death of “Damini”
a 23 year-old Indian woman who, two-weeks prior, was raped on a bus and left for dead on the street in New Delhi.
Her rape and death sent the social activists and young people of India into an uproar; it was an act of fate that our
group of all women was in India at this transformative time.
Our journey in India began in New Delhi, we met with many NGO’s, attended a meeting with the Lieutenant Governor
to offer recommendations to aid victims of rape and assault, and many services in memory of “Damini” where
we met Tara Gandhi, the grand-daughter of Mahatma Gandhi. Dr. Giri arranged for us to stay at the Guild of Service
widows’ home called MaDham in the city of Vrindavan. A cultural tradition that spans the many ethnic backgrounds
and religions of India is the rejection of a widow by her husband’s family after his death. In many cases, although it is
slowly changing, the woman will be given minimal belongings and transportation to get to Vrindavan, which is known
throughout the country as the “city of widows.” Upon arrival in Vrindavan the woman will ask around to find which of
the multiple widows’ shelters has availability and take up residence in that ashram. When hearing some of the widows’
stories it became evident that these ladies had experienced a life I never deemed possible. When initially hearing of
this dynamic I wondered why the widows did not just return to their parents’ home. The answer to this became evident
after I learned more about the gender discrimination culturally placed upon women in India. There, women are seen as
“burdens” and in “need of protection” by a male family member; whether it be her father, brother, uncle, son or husband.
This burden and power differential is evident in many ways in India: female feticide and infanticide are national
epidemics to the point where gender identification during pregnancy is outlawed in many areas; men are fed the most
and first resulting in an average of 1,000 calorie daily deficit for women; men are provided with more years of education
and taken to the doctor or given medicine in more instances than females; and even though women do 2/3 of
the total work in India they receive 1/3 of the total wages. We ended our stay in Vrindavan by visiting schools, many
temples including the birthplace of Krishna, lectures from internationally known philosophers and professors, and
witnessing the unpredictability of the many monkeys that line the streets. Our journey then took us to Agra, the home
of the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal is known as one of the wonders of the world, and I could not agree more! To witness
this immense marble structure, with all its intricacies, leads to many nights of critical thinking as to how it could be
built so many centuries ago.
The many smiles and warm hugs from all of the women and children I met showed to me that support, encouragement,
and understanding know no boundaries. They translate despite having a language barrier, looking different, dressing
ALUMNI NEWS - 9