Seek to Speak

In this final installment of this series, we continue to honor International Women's Day by featuring six compelling stories from the Demi Gadis Creative Writing Competition. This episode presents essays narrated in Bahasa Indonesia, with one in English, offering profound insights into gender equality, women's empowerment, and the unique challenges faced by women in Indonesia and Malaysia.

1. "Tumbuh Besar dalam Lingkungan KDRT" by Anggi Vebryan Eka Putri S: A personal account of growing up in an abusive household and the impact it had on self-esteem, trust, and future relationships.
2. "Menjadi Perempuan Bali dalam Budaya Patriarkis" by Ni Made Tasyarani: A reflection on the triple roles expected of Balinese women in family, economy, and tradition, and the challenges posed by a patriarchal society.
3. "Motherhood Is A Balancing Act" by Kanina Ramaniya Kalyana: Highlights the resilience of a mother managing both household duties and professional responsibilities, and the gender biases that impact career progression.
4. "Perempuan dan Isi Kepalanya" by Ayu Prawitasari: An exploration of gender equality and the need for supportive family structures, challenging societal norms and advocating for balanced gender roles.
5. "Pursuing Dreams Amidst Patriarchal Ideologies" by Fani Agustina Pangaribuan: The journey of a young woman from Papua who overcame societal and economic challenges to pursue her education and career dreams.
6. "Stigma dan Diskriminasi Janda" by Fauziah Kurniasari: An insightful look into the societal stigma faced by widows in Indonesia, and the struggles they encounter in the workforce and daily life.

A heartfelt thank you to our dedicated volunteers for this episode: Elsa, Pitriasyana, Margaret, Sinta Damayanti, and Febiola, who lent their voices to bring these powerful stories to life.

In Part 2 of this series, we honor another six essays from the Demi Gadis Creative Writing Competition, spotlighting voices from Malaysia and Brunei. The entries offer diverse insights into gender equality, women's empowerment, and the varied societal challenges faced by women in these regions. A big thank you to the following authors for sharing their brave stories with us:

1. Sallyhani Hazman delves into personal narratives exploring struggles of self-identity and journeys toward independence in societies that often silence women.
2. Sash discusses the impact of cultural constraints on women's lives and the pursuit of empowerment despite these obstacles.
3. Etha examines how stereotypes affect the personal and professional lives of women and the importance of overcoming these stereotypes to achieve equality.
4. Ari Shares stories of personal triumphs against societal and familial adversities, highlighting resilience and the pursuit of personal goals.
5. Ruby Jusuh Explores how cultural heritage influences women's roles and responsibilities, and the potential for change and empowerment within traditional frameworks.
6. Izzah Offers an insightful look into societal expectations imposed on women, detailing how breaking free from these norms is both a personal and communal struggle.

A heartfelt thank you also to our dedicated volunteers for this episode: Farisah, Kah Yi, Gurleen, Thirtana, Alison, and Sufia, who lent their voices to bring these powerful essays to life.

In this special episode of Seek to Speak, we celebrate International Women's Day by sharing six essays from the Demi Gadis Creative Writing Competition. The essays, written by emarkable women, explore themes of gender equality, women's empowerment, and societal challenges, offering a deep and thought-provoking look into the diverse experiences and insights of women from different backgrounds.

1. Healing from Trauma by Chero: Chero recounts a survivor's journey, confronting societal constructs that perpetuate victim-blaming and finding empowerment in reclaiming her voice.
2. Women's Struggles in Palestine by Nur Syariha: Nur Syariha Binti Masri reflects on the challenges faced by Palestinian women, highlighting their resilience and the need for support and empowerment.
3. Traditional Gender Roles by Kheerthana: Kheerthana explores the realities of gender roles in different cultures, including the expectations placed on women in families and the societal norms that perpetuate inequality.
4. Overcoming Societal Pressure by Mireverie: Mireverie's story demonstrates a woman's journey in breaking free from societal expectations, pursuing her own path, and finding self-empowerment through entrepreneurship, travel, and independence.
5. Cultural Expectations and Duties by Puteri Nur: Puteri Nur's essay explores how cultural norms affect gender roles and how these pressures can be confronted and navigated.
6. A Tale of Independence by Ashwini Ravan: Ashwini Ravan highlights the journey of a woman striving to break free from societal molds, embracing her independence, and achieving financial stability through entrepreneurship.

Thank you to our volunteers who help voice the wonderful stories of authors, Ayuni, Casadra, Sunitha, Athirah, Li-Wei and Sharon.

For more information about the Demi Gadis competition, check out our socials at: https://www.instagram.com/demi.gadis/

Episode is produced by Renegade Radio.

In part 4 of this Special, you will listen to the final 11 stories that we have on gender equity! Yesssss, we are finally at the finishing line. If this is your first time listening to this special, please don’t forget to check out our episode 1, 2, and 3 to continue being inspired and in awe of the women and girls who shared their stories.

In this episode, we will hear experiences and opinions on equity and how it is different from equality, great observations on gender roles and unfair biases, as well as what we can do to do better. 

💜PART 4 AUTHOR & STORIES💜

1. Sofia A. - Nina

2. Mia - For the next generation

3. Sybil Yasin - Millennial Parents

4. Devy - L'ÉGALITÉ DES SEXES

5. Nufa Zulia - Jangan perkecilkan semangat aku

6. Anonymous- Strong Women

7. Amel - Bravery

8. Aina - Malaysia’s double standard

9. Flower - Women’s Potential

10. Yana Pekabee - Building a Fairer and More Justice Society

11. Tee Ying Yin - An environment that is equal, fair, and just for all

💜 PART 4 VOICE OVER VOLUNTEERS 💜

Ainaa, Aifa, Lingeswary, Celine Tan, Yashwini, Sharon, Vivien Lim Zhi Ling, Hani, Najihah, Eena, Alison

In this International Women’s Day special, we are celebrating the stories and experiences shared by all of you during our KisahKita short story competition with the theme, Embrace Equity. We received 43 entries from women and girls hailing from 10 different states with the youngest being 11 years old and the eldest being 54. We cherish the diversity in these stories they have been such a joy to read, compile and produced. 

In part 3 of this Special, you will listen to 10 stories tackling the issue of gender equity from the perspective of job opportunities and promotion, educational institutions, and family dynamics. Do check out our show notes for the full list of authors and voice-over volunteers for this episode. Do also check Part 1 and Part 2 of this special if you want to keep being inspired by the words and stories of women and girls in Malaysia.

Trigger warning: Stories shared here do touch on themes concerning gender discrimination and bias, schools, at the workplace and on a societal level. 

PART 3 AUTHOR & STORIES

1. cheekylizzy123 - This is for all the girls who dream 
2. Dum-E - The audacity of this woman
3. Kita tetap SAMA bersahabat - AMNA NAFISA BINTI SHAIFUL
4. a3ruh - let's #EmbraceEquity! #AndEquality!
5. Ahnusha - I am a fearless woman 
6. Rheya N - biased education systems
7. Yie - Meet our hero; Ayu
8. Janice Lai Yi Xuan - Biases & stereotypes
9. Anonymous - Growing up as a girl
10. Tifa Tifalis - Nisha

In this International Women’s Day special, we are celebrating the stories and experiences shared by all of you during our KisahKita short story competition with the theme, Embrace Equity. We received 43 entries from women and girls hailing from 10 different states with the youngest being 11 years old and the eldest being 54. We cherish the diversity in these stories they have been such a joy to read, compile and produced. 

In part 2 of this Special, you will listen to 12 stories ranging from school place discrimination, gender roles, and family dynamics. To find out more about these stories, check out our show notes! Also! Don’t forget to check out Part 1 of this special which we released last Sunday - lots of great stories there too!

PART 2 AUTHOR & STORIES

1. Aeva Poon - Gender inequality is like folding an angel's wings
2. Poorni Villai Samy - Nevertheless, she persisted
3. Mimi - Punishment should be equal
4. Foxy - Cerita Sya
5. Misya - Embracing equity & breaking the structural barriers 
6. Nurul Irdina - Our differences are what distinguish us
7. VV - Girls in STEM
8. Aireen - Maia & Toby
9. Vivien Lim Zhi Ling - Witnessing Inequality
10. Rin - Memperjuangkan hak-hak yang sama
11. Sofiya - Don't doubt yourself
12. May A. - Juggling many responsibilities

In this International Women’s Day special, we are celebrating the stories and experiences shared by all of you during our KisahKita short story competition with the theme, Embrace Equity. We received 43 entries from women and girls hailing from 10 different states with the youngest being 11 years old and the eldest being 54. We cherish the diversity in these stories they have been such a joy to read, compile and produced. 

In part 1 of this Special, you will listen to 10 stories, 2 of which were written in Malay, and 7 of which were submitted anonymously, touching on issues ranging from workplace discrimination, gender bias in schools, and generational trauma.

PART 1 AUTHOR & STORIES

1. Ashwinee Rvan Ravindran - Just like you
2. Missdhani - Gender Norms
3. Nur Farah Diana Binti Affnininirwandi - Sexual Harassment Survivor
4. Nia - Aireen Zafhira
5. KitKat - Workplace Discrimination
6. Valkie - Family Dynamics
7. Sorrowful Student - Girls in Leadership
8. Iman - Generation Gap
9. Kris - Adakah ini salah wanita juga?
10. Jananie Chandrarao - Down with the wooden fence

Just a quick trigger warning that the stories shared here do touch on themes concerning gender discrimination, victim blaming, bullying, rape, child marriage, and sexual harassment. Should you find this type of content triggering, please stop now and come back when or if you're ready.

In the meantime, don’t forget to celebrate women everywhere today and continue to #EmbraceEquity. Let’s keep fighting the good fight and champion women together.

The final episode of the season welcomes back our community members discussing Malaysia's biggest speaking fails! Why do we keep joking about rape? What happens when a member of parliament challenged another to a debate? What do we do about religious sensitivities?

Here, we discuss 3 recent speaking fails and deconstruct what happened, why did it happen and what do we do from here. We also provide our views on other speaking fails that did not quite make the list but were worth mentioning.

Speaking fails discussed:

Segment 1: Actor and hosts jokes about a movie rape scene on national television. Who is to blame? Who should be accountable?

Segment 2: Member of parliament in the sitting government challenges an opposition member to a debate on the cabotage policy. Is this a good thing? Do people care?

Segment 3: Locally produced, award-winning whiskey brand name enrages many quarters of society and politicians are quick to respond. What precedent does this set? Are they justified in their reaction?

Bonus lightning round discussion:

1) Lahabau Melaka, let's vote! Misguided use of slang.

2) Communications minister tweets on future video quality. But 1080p already exists?

3) Harassment of a journalist by PAS leaders. Why attack my family and the language I use?

This episode is all about Seek to Speak's journey through 2021 in the form of reflections, lessons learned, and hopes for the future. Explore our story through the lens of our Founder, Ain Aissa, and community member, Maslin Roslan, as we bring you through the challenges and joys that we face along the way. What we will be discussing in the episode would be:

• Challenges faced throughout the year
• How Seek to Speak has changed us
• Regrets or Lessons learned
• Hopes and dreams for the future

Welcome to our 2nd Speech Session where we highlight amazing speeches based on a theme. This episode’s theme is Purpose & Passion and along with our community members, Sasha and Abigail, we have curated a list of our top Purpose and Passion speeches. So what we will do is introduce the speech, play our chosen snippet, talk about the context of the speech, and the speaker’s style. There are some you may know and others may enjoy discovering as we go through the episode.

Speeches Discussed:

1. Chadwick Boseman - Howard University Commencement Speech 2018: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIHZypMyQ2s
2. Lady Gaga's speech at ELLE's 25th annual Women in Hollywood event (2018): https://youtu.be/14KX7xOJsqE
3. Beyoncé Knowles, Dear Class of 2020: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLo5XMjIJD8
4. Denzel Washington - University of Pennsylvania (2011) Commencement speech: https://youtu.be/JEFbfwg9dek
5. Taylor Swift accepting the Woman of the Decade Award: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVpkFb9-fts
6. Elizabeth Gilbert's TedTalk on Success, failure and the drive to keep creating: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_waBFUg_oT8