If anyone had forewarned me that I'd be delving into the world of politics and lobbying governments in my quest for peace and justice, I'd have considered taking up another cause. But there I was in New York, on February 22nd, standing in a long line, along with 5000 other women, waiting for the desk to open so that we could register for the UN Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW) and pass all security screening to receive our brown delegate ID cards. I have to say, I often felt as though I was in the middle of some Hollywood drama. It was thrilling. People from around the world—mostly women, in this instance—wearing native or religious attire, hustling to the various plenary sessions, caucuses, or debriefings. What was even more amazing is that many of the represented countries were at war, fighting each other in their respective homelands but, here...sitting, walking, standing, talking together for a common cause.

Interestingly, when I first met up with my delegation of Anglican Women (the largest delegation at the UNCSW), it was awkward revealing that I was from Texas. Two issues were at play.

First, the Episcopal Church is being spanked very soundly for fulfilling its baptismal vows: "seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself" ; "strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being". Some of the illustrious bishops in Texas have raised quite a bit of money and offered it to their compeers in Africa to collectively kick the U.S. church out of the Anglican Communion.

Secondly, on a global scale, people from Texas are eyed with great suspicion. For obvious reasons. When I asked a woman from Afghanistan what was really happening in her country, she immediately asked where I'm from. When I told her "Texas", she said, "I don't know that I should talk to you." After convincing her that I'm not related to George Bush—by blood or politics—she told me, in no uncertain terms, what a disaster we've left her country and how America has abandoned the people. By the end of the week, I almost changed my name tag to state I was from Rhode Island.

I can't tell you how psychologically overwhelming the 12 days at the UN were. Addressing the Millennium Developmental Goals established by the UN in 2000 and the 12th area of concern from the Beijing Platform created in 1995, the theme for this year's session was “Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination and Violence Against the Girl Child.” (You can read the direct mandate of the UNCSW by visiting HERE.)

Since I'm going to be covering international issues related to The MDGs and Beijing Platform, here's a list of the goals:

I'm still working through the depressing state of the world presented through the voices of young girls that I listened to, repeatedly, over the course of nearly two weeks. I heard from a Congolese girl who'd been forced into the military at a very young age, to serve as a sex slave. Very few of the girls conscripted into service see actual armed conflict; most serve the military for sex. This isn't just an African problem.

I heard from several girls and women who've suffered the rapidly growing tradition of Female Genital Mutilation (or Cutting). These procedures are performed on girls in order to guarantee their virginity to their elderly husbands. One girl from Kenya, of the Maasai tribe, ran away, at age eight, when she was betrothed to a 90 year-old man. She knew of a home for girls in the city, and has lived there for almost ten years, receiving a wonderful education which has empowered her to speak out for girls in her country.

I heard from girls who'd been rescued from the sex slave trade, girls who've experienced horrible violence due the wars in their respective countries. Girls with HIV/AIDS spoke out. Girls who work in factories for at least 12 hours a day, while still trying to attend school, weighed in. You get the idea; the list is endless.

The United States is the only developed nation that hasn't ratified CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women), nor has it ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The only other country that hasn't ratified the resolution on Rights of the Child is Somalia. This was just the beginning of my learning how far the United States has slipped in the "developed" classification.

Apparently, the main opposition to ratifying CEDAW is that some "concerned citizens" have stated that this resolution would open the door for wide-spread legalized abortion. I can guarantee you that is not the case, and not once did I hear this issue even being discussed at the global level. In the meantime, millions are tortured, starving, and abused, and the U.S. is currently one of eight countries refusing to ratify. Here's a letter to Senators Biden and Boxer, drawn up by our delegation since the UNCSW in New York, requesting immediate action by the U.S. government:

So, what's being done, at this point? Well, I'm involved, to some degree, in the North American Caucus, but I also jumped into the Peace Caucus as it was much smaller, at the UNCSW, and needed additional people. Every Caucus, from every country and area of concern, has wordsmith-ed the UN Draft Resolution on the Status of Women and submitted it to respective governmental Missions. The language in the original draft resolution was very weak on any protection, education, and enforcement of laws protecting girls from violence. As the U.S. Mission isn't the most engaged and responsive Mission at the UN, many of us from the Anglican Delegation lobbied other governments, as well. I just received the Draft Agreed Conclusions at the final writing of this article and you may read it here.

I'll continue to bring stories of situations and developments from around the world to each issue of The Bohemian Aesthetic as there's, now, a newly formed UNCSW-NGO (Non-Governmental Organization) Caucus since we've all returned home, working together to pass legislation protecting girls and women.

I'd like to mention, also, that—despite the war raging in the Anglican Communion—the nearly 100 Anglican women from around the world comprising our delegation, and recognizing that there are, certainly, more pressing issues in the world right at present, wrote the following response to the Primates: