Sunila Abeysekera 1952-2013 I met Sunila a little less than a year ago in Nepal, where she was doing a session for us on conflict and feminism. I remember seeing her sitting in that circle of incredible women and being so proud that she was one of our own, the finest example of a Sri Lankan woman. We ate our meals in the shadow of the Himalayas and we talked about the women's movement in

Melo is back. Don't wear a white t-shirt (just in case).  August 3rd, 6.30pm, Nuga Sevana (On the Cathedral premises off Bauddhaloka Mawatha, Colombo 7)

Bravo. In a parliament of fools, you are truly king.  Your assertion that women in leadership positions obstruct the progress of work and that women "have a tendency to exert their authority over [a] place" and tend to "not listen to anyone" should come as no shocker to me, but forgive my silly womanly sentiments, for I am insulted.  Yet again. Mysogynist and sexist commentary is no

I've watched this video about ten times, and you should too. Dustin Hoffman has an epiphany about what it's like to not fit into a standard 'attractiveness' formula, and in doing so he realises something most of us never get around to: we are not the sum total of our physical attributes. This is why I write about my frustrations with beauty pageants and wage internet wars against skin

Reproduced here from a cached copy of the One Billion Rising website, because this wonderful piece of writing is inaccessible now that the OBR website has been updated for 2014 activities. --- The brave and courageous Delhi gang rape victim breathed her last on December 30, 2012. This article is a tribute to her and other victims of violence against women. Violence against women is as

Reproduced here from a cached copy of the One Billion Rising website, because this wonderful piece of writing is inaccessible now that the OBR website has been updated for 2014 activities. --- The brave and courageous Delhi gang rape victim breathed her last on December 30, 2012. This article is a tribute to her and other victims of violence against women. Violence against women is as

Let me keep this short. Yes FM has some kind of battle of the sexes radio competition in which girls answer boy-type questions and vice versa in a bid to win.. something. Behold today's questions: Boy's Qs: Who is the Carebears' leader, what is Bambi's friend skunk's name, who is Sheera (?) when she's a normal princess. I don't even.. Girl's Qs: What is a man's favourite fashion accessory, a

There is no end to the ways in which we will sell out women to make a buck. The Floor by O! is the latest addition to a long line of sexist marketing aimed at capitalising on the repressed and frenzied sexual nature of the men in our fair country.  When the Brewery at Dutch Hospital and then Floor opened, they were immediately noted for their pleasing locations, great atmosphere and

thank you for leaving me my love my muse you gave back to me she was hiding in the happiness forgotten, unwanted not needed to pen the sorrows to ink the tears I need her now. she took her time coming back having got too comfortable in dreams and laughter afraid of the storms ahead uncertain of how to put in to words the deep dark depths of regret but she is here now. I missed her.

My good friend and partner in feminist crimes Sachini Perera is having a photography exhibition of her work at live music gigs. Go check it out; it promises to be a stunner. More information on her facebook page and events page. 

My inbox is a treasure trove of memories A short keyword away from reminders that Somewhere Some day You really did love me And I, you. Erasing your digital footprint  Deleting you Is taking longer than I thought. 

The Melomanic Sessions are back! Over the break we had some pretty sad news: the Warehouse Project, with all its warehousey goodness is no longer able to host the Sessions. *tears* But the team has been hard at work location scouting and has found a new venue. Tomorrow (Saturday, 18th May), Melo will be held at the Dutch Burgher Union. More details. ps. be generous with your donations.

A Final Embrace. Photograph by Taslima Akhter As I write this the final search for those buried in the rubble of Rana Plaza comes to a close; a shocking 1127 lives lost, due to negligence, lack of ethics, and as always, that bottom line.  Even now, as the Bangladeshi government scrambles to introduce new labour laws, we must remember that a thousand people had to die for us and by

Have I mentioned lately how much I love Tinie Tempah? I've been a huge fan ever since Pass Out and I was crazy excited when I heard he was coming down for the Electric Peacock Festival. And he did not disappoint. He played an amazing one hour set; I have literally not felt such energy from a crowd since I saw Matchbox Twenty four years ago. He was the perfect combination of singer and

A Rally for Unity was held at Green Path yesterday, organised by this group. It was an admirable attempt to gather a group of people to stand up against the ugly, racist rhetoric that has been dominating the discourse for sometime now. It was well organised and peacefully held, save a small kerfuffle with some nefarious characters at the beginning. Halik has a better post here.  

I had the privilege of listening to Rev. de Chickera speak at a forum organised by the SL Young Journalists' Association, and this speech needs to be shared for a wider listen.   Also give a listen to Mr. Sumanthiran (impressive as always) and Mr. Pubudu Jagoda, whose Sinhala oration is so very beautiful. A more comprehensive coverage of the event can be found here and here.

What I've been reading, in no particular order.. * A bit of State sponsored satire for you: Strongly Recommended: Nobel Peace Prize for Lankan Army and more, but they probably don't like this one: Hail the miracle of Mattala * This is disconcerting: A 'like' on Facebook tells the world all it needs to know about you While the potential is exciting, all those clicks on videos, tweets

It seems like every day there is something to give me cause for serious alarm. Today it is this: the Bodu Bala Sena, in it's infinite wisdom, will start a new campaign to prevent Muslim women from wearing the abaya in public; details to be given at their rally in Kandy on March 17th. (via DBS Jeyaraj) Why do I write this now, before I have details? I contemplated waiting, but it always seems