About Us- Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions- When and where is the convention?
The weekend of July 19 - July 21, 2002, in Athens, Georgia,on the University of Georgia campus. Some preliminary events for workshop facilitators will be held the daybefore the SGC on Thursday, July 18. - Why a Southern Girls Convention?
We believe that the South has a unique history of racial, gender, and classist oppression whose pain, while sharing a common root with the oppression of all women, has a unique face: the southern girl. We want to shed light on this face and explore all the diversity, strength and complexity it represents. We believe that the free and constructive flow of ideas, questions, and information about our lives and our communities, without fear of ridicule or backlash, will benefit, not only southern communities, but people everywhere. Therefore, we create SGC 2002 in the spirit of respect and equality, and open it to all that wish to be heard, listen, and learn. It is through this comradery and fellowship that true change will come; and true, meaningful change has always been at the heart of this organization. Finally, we want to express our love of the South and the parts of southern culture we chooseto embrace wholeheartedly. We want to continue the rich tradition of radical southern women andmen like Sarah and Angelina Grimke, Rosa Parks and the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee,who struggled to make their home a more free, safe, and just place to live. We want to celebrate thewarm, nurturing worthwhile parts of our culture that convinced our forebearers that the South wassalvageable and that still bolster us in our struggle for equality and freedom in all of our communities. While we can never be proud of the ugly aspects of its history; ultimately, we love the South, it is our home, and no one will change it if we don't. - Can you tell me more about the convention's history?
Yes! See the sidebar on SGC's history. - Who is the convention for?
Anyone interested in the Southeastern United States, social justice, activism, and theempowerment of young women, regardless of where you live. - Can boys attend the convention? Younger activists? Older activists?
Yes, everyone is welcome. - Can non-Southerners run workshops?
Yes, we invite everyone to run workshops, provided that is relevant to girls in the South.Please visit our workshop page to tell us your idea for a workshop. - Is this a trans-welcoming event?
Definitely! Trans and genderqueer people are encouraged to come to the convention. As feminists, we are committed to combatting thestagnant binary gender system that is so oppressive to women and girls. We encourage participants to facilitateworkshops on gender identity and issues facing trans and genderqueer people. In order to take responsibility for ensuring that SGC provides a safe space for trans and genderqueer people, and for dialogue about issuesof gender identity, we are developing a common statement for the convention program (similar tolast year's) and a preliminary discussion for workshop facilitatorsto welcome trans participants and to encourage other participants to be consciencious about gender identity and trans issues. - How much does the convention cost?
There is no required fee to participate in the convention. However, we do need yourhelp to make SGC2002 happen, and to keep it grassroots-funded and supported - whether in the form of acontribution, in volunteering, or just in spreading the word around your town. For more on how you can help,see the Help Out! page. - Where will I stay? What will I eat?
There will be four major housing options in Athens: (1) you can locate a hotel room or a place to stay onyour own, (2) dormitory rooms on UGA campus are available for $13.50 / night, (3) we can try to find floorspace for you in somebody's home, or (4) we can try to find space for you to camp outside. Be sure topre-register for the convention so that we can help you try to find housing!For more information, consult the page on getting to Athens. Food Not Bombs will be providing free first-come first-serve vegetarian meals for convention attendees. We'llalso provide a guide to several local restaurants. - Will there be childcare available?
Yes! - Why are you calling this a "Girls'" convention when theword "girl" has been so long associated with women's subordination?
We asked Robin, an organizer of the original convention in Memphis, whythey decided to use the word "girl" in the name instead of"woman." This is what she said: We opted to call it a girl's convention for multiple reasons.We are all about the reclamation of the word girl; taking it back and consequently helping to takeaway its negative connotation. Also, when we organized the conference, I was only 19 and Icompletely identified as a girl. Most of the people who came to the conference were in my agegroup. Because two years have passed, of course my identity has evolved a bit- but that doesn'tmean that I have no girl identity whatsoever. Also, I definitely think that we would have attracted adifferent audience had we called it the "Southern Women's Conference" or the "Southern RadicalWomen's Convention" or anything else. My suggestion would be to phrase it to attract whateverkind of women/girls that you feel you'd like to attract; whoever you feel needs it the most. I will saythis though- in a climate like Memphis, I doubt that young girls would have felt comfortable or eveninterested in attending a "women's conference".
- Where can I find press information?
On the Press page. - Questions we haven't answered?
Please contact us and we will try to get you an answer as quickly as possible!
| 
July 19th-21st, 2002
Athens, Georgia (UGA campus)
History of SGCThe original inspiration for Southern Girls Convention came from the Women's ActionCoalition in Memphis, Tennessee. The first annual SGC was held in July of 1999 at theUniversity of Memphis campus with a hundred participants from the South and all overthe United States. There were workshops on reproductive rights, sexuality, racism,classism, fatphobia, zine-making, women's health, queer issues, and much more. Afterthe huge success of the 1999 convention, we felt united, inspired, strong, and readyto continue the work of transforming the South. Local organizers from Louisville, Kentucky took up the task of organizing the secondSGC. SGC2000 was held in Louisville at the Bardstown Road Youth Cultural Center witha couple hundred participants. Organizers were involved in efforts such as Brat,Louisville Anti-Racist Action, the Autonomous Womyn's League, the Progressive StudentsLeague, Kentucky Student Progressive Network, and some with no affiliation. Participant-runworkshops included "Gettin' Phat: Truth and Beauty," "Adventures in Clinic Escorting,""Punk Parenting," "100 Years of Revolutionary Wimmin," "The Art ofRadical Cheerleading," "Challenging Racism," "Community Access Television,""Ethical Sluthood: An Intro to the Ethics of Non-Monogamy," "Gun Safety and Self Defense,""Unions and You: Organizing Your Workplace," "Alternative Menstrual Products,""Sexercises" and much more. As the Louisville convention wound down, a handful of people from the DEEP SOUTH got togetherto dicuss bringing the next year's convention to Alabama. The third SGC, organized by theAuburn Women's Organization and Free State Action, was heldJuly 20-22, 2001 at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama.Participant-run workshopscontinued to address a broad range of feminist and other social justice issues, provide opportunities forskill-sharing on everything from Internet literacy to D.I.Y. women's health to bike repair, and opened upcritical dialogues about how we organize in our communities. Organizers were nearly blown away when over 500radical feminists, labor organizers, anarchists, queer liberation activists, anti-sexist punks, and otherpro-woman activists came together in Auburn, practically transforming a quiet Deep South college town into theradical feminist activism capital of the South for those three days. SGC2001 was the biggest, most publicized,and most diverse Southern Girls Convention yet and one of the biggest events in Southern politics all summer. Following the tradition of local organizers bringing SGC to their own communities, a groupfrom Athens decided to bring SGC to Georgia. The fourth SGC will be held July 18-21, 2002 in Athens.Organizers plan to build on the momentum of SGC2001, and hope that SGC will continue to bring togetherSouthern women and pro-woman activists and remain a transformative presence in Southern politics andculture for some time to come. |