Pride. Proud. Proof.

As many of you know, I teach digital technologies and digital marketing.

When I asked some of my students to do a SWOT analysis of their own digital skills, one of my brood, said she couldn't write.
She felt her content writing skills were crappy and that blog writing was an alien concept.

WELL. Move over kids.

This little diamond in the rough smashed it out of the park.

On the day of the unveiling of the Emmelin Pankhurst statue in Manchester, I took my students, to watch the moment in histroy unfold - with an ulterior motive; I wanted them to absorb the atmosphere, take some photos and duly write me a super duper, SEO maxed out, engaging piece of content.

Hey presto, in week two of her digital marketing course, the wonderous student that is Grace, created this; so I'm sharing it with you guys because when I think about International Women's Day I think of girls like Grace, who are the future, and the hope, that women move forward in postivev ways every day.
In education, in employment, in equality and that is its the Grace's of the world who will bring about a brighter future.

"Looking around me, surrounded by my fellow strong northern females, a huge sense of pride filled my body. Singing along at the top of their lungs to the 1985 hit by the Eurythmics and the late Aretha Franklin, who set out to create the feminist anthem ‘Sisters Are Doing It for Themselves!’ Amongst the vast sea of suffragette themed straw-bonnets, sashes and feminist slogan signs, the overwhelming feeling of freedom and strength for women filled the busy streets of Manchester. Although the true meaning behind this magical day was not just for celebration, but in fact the remembrance and honour of a truly remarkable woman and the legacy she has left behind, Emeline Pankhurst.

December 14^th 2018, will be a historical landmark for any Mancunian, and one that I hope to one day share with my future family. On that day females of all ages stood proudly together, and I was a part of it. It is a day that marks the first statue of a woman in Manchester in 117 years, to become the second within the city. Which in reality, is an upsetting yet somewhat not-so-shocking fact.

From an early age I have always loved History, and learning about the events that has shaped the world we live in today. However, I cannot ignore the fact the majority of what we learn and what we know about our past seems to only praise the success of men. Winston Churchill, Charles Darwin, Martin Luther King – all undeniably key figures throughout history, and children across the world learn about their work and success.

But what about all the women who have made a difference? Why are they not celebrated and taught to our children in such detail? This day has shown me just how bright the future really is for young women like me. There are no limits to what I can do - I think that myself and others owe that to the suffragettes and the pain that they went through.

One of the most significant things for me about the unveiling of the ‘Our Emeline’ statue was the diversity of age amongst the crowd. The past, the present and the future stood together as one all sharing the same sense of joy and watching on in awe of how unified our city can be. I couldn’t help but feel proud to be from Manchester, not to mention the home of the brave woman that is Emeline Pankhurst.

An exceptionally informative video, educated the 6,000 strong crowd in depth on Emeline’s journey and how it all began. It’s something in which I can only begin to imagine, being born into a world where your parents wished you were a boy and that as a young women you were only ever told ‘no’. Although, the rejection is what undoubtedly gave her the fuel and the passion in her fight for women’s rights.

As the ‘big reveal’ drew closer I didn’t think the ceremony could make a bigger statement – or get much busier! The sound of footsteps, stomps and spine-chilling chants filled the streets surrounding me “WHAT DO WE WANT? EQUALITY, WHEN DO WE WANT IT? NOW!” school children bellowed. Boys and girls of all ages, in their thousands, carried their hand made green, white and purple suffragette themed signs. ‘Deeds not words’ is one of the most famous phrases coined by the suffragette movement, which was reinforced by the huge turnout and could be read on the signs carried by hundreds.

I was filled with nostalgia as I thought back to the days of learning about these courageous women and how they ever so radically fought for their right to vote. They were bold and they were loud, and I think some of that was channelled on this day in commemoration of all the women who fought. But this was done in a much more peaceful manner; a breath taking service showcasing heart-felt songs, and a whole host of speeches including one by Emeline’s great granddaughter Helen Pankhurst and also the talented sculptor behind the monumental statue Hazel Reeves. However one of the most poignant speakers at the unveiling was 12-year-old Fatima Shahid who spoke so articulately, as she told the crowd that she hoped this was “just the first” of many Mancunian women who would be honoured in sculpture form. It was incredible to see such a bright young girl speak about her future and the future of our city during such a poignant day.

As an 18 year old woman, who has grown up in Manchester, I never really knew just how close I have always been to the heart of the suffragette movement. I didn’t expect to feel so overwhelmed and empowered by the service. As the statue was revealed to the thousands cheers and claps consumed the crowd. Helen Reeves chose to portray Pankhurst standing on a chair as she rallied a crowd, similar to scenes you would have seen back then. The statue helps you see how tough it really would have been for a young woman like Emeline to have been to be so fearless and strong willed in a time where that was not accepted of women.

The unveiling of the stature marked 100 years to the day after some women got the vote for the first time in the UK. I can only image the determination and the fight all those women suffered all those years ago. Today we live in a world in which many of us take for granted, a world where we now have a female Prime Minister, a world in which women are now 35% more likely to go to university than men. It’s something I’m sure Emeline Pankhurst, stood on her wooden chair, would have thought seemed so far away from achieving, yet never gave up the hope of it becoming a reality. I think the women of Manchester, and women across the world owe a lot to the suffragettes. They embody ‘Girl Power’ and the very principle of standing up for yourself and what you believe in. I think we should all be more Emeline.

I am blessed, to have a job I love, that I work hard for, and that I get to work with such a great group of people. Who just so often, surprise and inspire me when I least expect it.

A proud tutor, thats me.

Happy International Womens Day

Lifers

I was brought up to understand that there are good people and there are bad people. It was always very black and white. A bit like coffee in the Barker household. You can't sit on the fence.

There are those that live within the law, and those that break it.
Then it's jail.
Do no pass go. Do not collect £200. You're done.

Which is ironic, considering I was living in a house built upon shaky morals and interesting manipulations of that very concept. I think good and bad are perpetually open to interpretation and generally twisted to fit our own morality. These things change over time and evolve, shaped by the situations we find ourselves in.

I was a bad egg.
I was the apple that fell from the tree, undoubtedly said apple from the garden of Eden, that lead to the downfall of two virtuous souls.

Such things will happen if you pluck the unwanted puppy from the pound.

I grew up in awe of the powerhouse mother, the champion of women, the career woman who had it all.
The looks, the family, the house, the job, the car, the dream really.

It occured to me as we approach another International Women's Day, is it our mothers we gravitate towards and when asked "who inspired you?" are they the first people we think of?
For me, yes.

What about for others like me?

For people who lived their lives the wrong way, but didn't know how to flip it back to the right way?
Or for those of us who were so set against living the right way, that we hurtled down the road to ruin never looking back with ferocious determination to set the world on fire.

Every day I get my coffee from the same place, I'm a creature of habit as you all know, and if the coffee happens to be good - well then you've got me for life (ask Sarah!)
But more than good coffee, I'm drawn to this place, like it's my own personal Mecca.

You place your hand on the glass door and feel the irony of cold glass, and wonder how many people touch the windown pane and expect to see and feel iron bars.
I feel warmth, I open the doors and in the vast open space, there's women dotted around, like little worker bee's in a hive, busying themselves with one task or another.

I have been coming to this place for some time now, and there's always one smile that radiates across the room - her name is Chrissy, and she is sunshine on a rainy Manchester morning.
We have got to a place in time, where I don't need to ask what I want, and she has already hit the coffee machine to make me a hot cup of loveliness.
General chit-chat ensues - the british banter, the origianl banter, good lord, I hate the word banter, I sound 100 years old whenever I use it, and whilst seeing it on my computer screen, I find it all the more cringeworthy. I have been teaching teenagers too long.

Who is this woman? How did she get here? Why is she always so damn smiley - the weirdo.
We have an affinity you see; she's the baker! She's the super star cake maker. How could I not be drawn to such a gem?

So this International Women's Day I decided I would write about Chrissy; because every year I write about who inspires me, motivates me, who has made an impact on my life, and I can safely say that in 2019 - it's this lovely lady.

There is a not so subtle question that mars the life of any exoffender, people don't ask "how are you?" "who are you?" - they always, without doubt ask "what did you do?"
I hate it.
So I don't ask - the differene being, Chrissy tells, and the fact of the matter is, I don't care. Who am I to poke into her past and the roads that lead her here? Does it change how she cheers up my day with coffee and cake? No.
I think what inspires me about the girls who work at The Clink Cafe is that they are so happy to do so. We as exoffenders exist with the noose around our neck, for life, we are lifers. We carry the guilt and the chains that bound us, forever. Don't kid yourself in your millenial world that beacuse the prison gates and the probation centres are long gone, that we forgot what we did and we are free.
We are never truly free, but it is our ability to look forward that sets us apart from the stereotype.
To hope where there has been none and challenge what the world and what we ourselves think about who we are and who we should be.

These women work HARD. Every single day. They work with grace, and kindness, and honour. They take pride in every single thing that they do, and they never ever take such opporunity for growth for granted.

That is what International Women's Day is about for me, it is women seizing the opportunities they never thought they would have, and holding onto them, nurturing them, like a little plant in the spring, it grows, and evolves into a life.
An opportunity becomes, a life. A future, a hope, a way forward.

There is a strange vein of thought in this country that people who have been to prison don't deserve opportunity and second chances and it fills me with sadness, which was once upon a time, rage.
These are the people who write on forums and article comments, about leopards not changing their spots, about an exoffender cafe serving up porridge. The uneducated, ignorant masses that shout "Count your change!"
Fuck you.

I asked Chrissy what she wanted to be when she grew up - she tells me she wanted to care, for children and the elderely, and that she did, and the look of happiness and nostalgia on her face tells me it's a dream that she remembers fondly and achieved.
This makes me happy.

When asked as a child what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would tell people that I wanted to work at TGI Fridays - obviously. That was a job that came with a jazzy shirt, a sash, reward badges and ice cream sundaes. Much to my mothers despair. A privately educated Cheshire girl does not work at TGI Fridays; she eats there and make sure no-one sees or hears about it, and for the love of god, orders the salad and not the fries.

I think about my own mother; not the Cheshire powerhouse, the cockney criminal. The biology that coarses through my veins and I sigh. At the ineptitude of her. At the lack of care she gave herself and power she gave others, to just fail. To give up and give in and become everything the system said she was. She's no Chrissy that's for sure.

Chrissy's pride and joy is her daughter, and that beautiful look of pride shines from her face as she talks about her, about her passing her driving test, getting a job, for just being downright wonderful; this Chrissy credits to her own mother. Her inspiration. Her International Women's Day wonder.
A trio of women working together, in different moments in time, supporting one another through the rough, the tough, the good and the bad. Regardless of stints in Styal, they pull together, a fusion of love and hope. This is women. This is solidarity. This is what we are. Together.

Women have the inate ability to champion one another.
Whether it be baking cakes at The Clink or sending love heart emoji's via social media to rally one another.
We are love. We are kind. And we are in this together.
We are Chrissy. We are women.

So as I sit here and type a little story of a woman I met, who makes my life a little happier, I urge you to do the same, spend a minute today and feel grateful, feel pride, feel love, for yourself and for the women who make you great - go one step further, thank them <3 I'm sure they feel the exact same way about you.