One Billion Rising for the Retreat

Eve Bishop & Me

I was very excited to be part of "One Billion Rising" a celebration of song, performance and spoken word to raise awareness for Domestic Violence. One Billion Rising is a global movement, founded by Eve Ensler, to end rape and sexual violence against women. It was started in 2012 as part of the V-Day movement. The "billion" refers to the UN statistic that one in three women will be raped or beaten in her lifetime, or about one billion. 

Helen Atkinson-Barnes, Education Program Manager for the Teen Leadership Project was the representative for the Retreat.  The Feminist Club from Pierson made "hats" to raise money for the Retreat.

My Friend Eve Bishop made the cover of the program, Kate Mueth and the Neo-Political Cowgirls organized the event at  Guild Hall in East Hampton on Sunday, February 12th, at 2pm. It was Free and open to the public! 

Dad, me, mom, Mrs AB-Barnes

Photo Credit: Tom Kochie

Here is the Poem I wrote and performed at Guild Hall.

Our Time

This is our time, this is our place

I will not stand for this outbreak

I love my body and I love myself

I will let no one stand between me and my health

I will do what I need to do when it needs to be done

I stand with not one but everyone

I bloom like a flower and bring happiness

But when it is time to bring the power I get serious

I am a nasty women who you can’t avoid

I will say my peace because I’m not a toy

When you mess with one you mess with all

I believe "pussy fights back" is the phrase we call

We are beautiful but not only that

We have the strength and power to fight back

We will not use violence or mean slurs

How would we be better than them

We stand arm to arm, sister to sister, and we show them off

We have the right, we have justice, we have freedom

We are beautiful creatures who stand tall

We don’t want justice for one but for all

'When they go low we go high'

This slogan speaks this truth, it has no lie

It’s not for the democrats, republicans, liberals, or conservatives on this Earth

But for the women, men, LGBQAI, those who are genderless brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, black, white, asian, latino, latina, every individual with self-worth

We will take a stand and no one will stop us with that

When they take it all we fight back

Don’t mess with us we have more than you think

We are the Women of the world and we will speak up for what we believe

-Allura Leggard