Deadline:
June 15, 2017, at midnight
Local artists are being asked to add their
power to the Fem iExpress campaign in support of a project that increases
access to safe abortion services for South Africa's women.
Fem’s iExpress Art Campaign calls on local
artists to submit a visual concept, supported by a written explanation, to the
organisation that will help advocate the importance of safe and legal abortions
in communities to eradicate the high rate of illegal and unsafe abortions of up
to 50%.
The winning artwork will be used to support
wall mural adverts that Fem aims at placing in township communities and a
bursary worth R20,000 which can be invested towards a current or prospective
fee requirement or any other general professional development such as attending
a conference or taking motivation speaking classes. Please refer to Fem
iExpress flyer for terms and conditions.
Fem’s iExpress Campaign accepts all forms
of artwork including illustrations, photography, paintings, graffiti, etc.
Artwork submissions should explore the realities surrounding access to safe and
legal abortion in South Africa, and include a positive message on the issue.
Fem by safe2choose (https://safe2choose.org)
is a new mobile health initiative that leverages popular technology channels to
remove obstacles between women and their decisions. To do this Fem has invested
in a SMS platform, “the Referral Campaign”. The Fem platform uses the power of
mobile phones to refer women to safe and legal abortion service providers in
their area, quickly and privately. The user simply sends the trigger word FEM
to short code 30816 via SMS. After answering a few questions, they receive a
referral SMS to a legal and safe health facility in their area. A user requires
a positive airtime balance to access the platform, but is not charged for using
the service.
"The iExpress Art Campaign is a vital
project," says Phephisile Mathizerd, Fem’s Associate Programme Officer.
"Far too many of our people are risking injury simply because they don't
have access to the right information. The Fem platform can change this quite
dramatically, but we do need support, and that support is not necessarily
always a matter of money. Artists can help us spread the word very effectively
just by putting their skills to work. We hope a lot of them will be motivated
to join us on this journey."
Entrants are required to write a
motivational letter no longer than one page on why your artwork should be
considered, and an explanation of the inspiration behind your creation.
If your original piece of artwork is not
photography or an illustration, please take a picture of your artwork for the
actual submission.
Email your submission to: iexpress@fem.safe2choose.org
For enquiries email to: hello@fem.safe2choose.org
Entries close on the June 15, mid-night
Fem’s iExpress Campaign accepts all forms
of artwork including illustrations, photography, paintings, graffiti, etc.
Artwork submissions should explore the realities surrounding access to safe and
legal abortion in South Africa, and include a positive message on the issue.
Terms and conditions apply
Even though abortion is legal and every
South African's constitutional right, a shocking 50% of abortions in the
country still take place in illegal and unsafe environments. As a result, many
South African women are placed at risk of physical harm for no other reason
than they are unable to access appropriate health facilities for their
reproductive healthcare.
"We launched the Fem pilot phase in
Gauteng in February of this year, and it has been very successful," adds
Mathizerd. "We are expanding quite quickly, including hiring new staff,
taking feedback on the system, and modifying it. These are exciting times, and
now we're hoping our arts community will get involved to drive public exposure
for the platform whilst helping us create awareness and inspiring a positive
mind-set shift.”
For more information, visit Fem’s social
media pages:
Facebook Page: https://web.facebook.com/FemRSA/?fref=ts
Twitter Page: https://twitter.com/Fem_RSA
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