International Women's Day 2011

Welcome to Mira Hamermesh's blog.

Revised and developed by Alexa, The Flow Of Time shares a unique insight into Mira's thoughts, work and daily existence.

Born in 1925, Mira Hamermesh is a writer, artist and filmmaker. You can visit her website to discover more about her extraordinary life and explore her portfolio. Her memoir The River of Angry Dogs was published in 2004 by Pluto Press.

This blog was created on 8 March 2011 to share a dynamic perspective and breadth of life experience. Please follow and comment - your thoughts are always welcome.

All drawings and paintings are by Mira Hamermesh. This special first-post selection have been chosen to commemorate International Women's Day 2011.

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International Women's Yesterday, today and tomorrow

History has caught up with me a few times in my life. One that is linked to current upheavals in the Middle East took place in Jerusalem when Sadat, the President of Egypt went there in a gesture of peace. The excitement it caused meant hundreds of people gathered from around the world, and not only journalists. One of them was Vivian Gornick – a well-known American writer and feminist, introduced to me by Swedish journalist Cordelia Edvardson.

When the current uprising in Egypt broke out I emailed Vivian to make sure I had correctly recounted the occasion we met and became lifelong friends. ‘Yes,’ she confirmed, ‘and what’s more you tried to make me join a tourist group planning to go to Egypt. Unfortunately I couldn’t, but it turned out they were scheduled to leave on the date of Sadat’s assassination.’

Although many of the group then dropped out, several of them including myself carried on, watching daily the newsreels tracking exciting scenes of how the Egyptian people managed to get rid of Mubarak. For me it was like a double view of the historical Egypt I uncovered which at the time, blew my mind. Asked for my impressions by Vivienne, I wrote to her,

Tall buildings - with every inch of their surfaces painted with the most beautiful decorations. Just imagine the skyscrapers of New York adorned with paintings. It made me realise what a great civilization Ancient Egypt represented.

Flow forward in time and I am glued to the TV, following the drama of Libya where a tyrannical dictator tries to hang on to power irrespective of the number dead amongst resisting Libyans. Gadafi, armed to his teeth with the latest high-tech military equipment and his pockets filled with money, unfortunately has many supporters. Like most dictators the media also fall victim to his manipulation, and women are particularly susceptible to these icons of adulation and regime. People old enough will remember the newsreels of Hitler’s parades in which women were almost hysterical with admiration for the Fuhrer. Another example, Stalin, used portraits of himself kissing children.

The resistance which started in Tunisia with great success in turn inspired the Egyptian uprising. Whatever weapons the resistors managed to obtain, it was the ultimate dedication to freedom which triumphed. The most important weapon of all was Facebook. Information was flowing in which, for instance, the Tunisians guided the Egyptians as to how to deal with tear gas bombs instructing women to put onions or vinegar under their scarves.