Dancing is when you rise above worlds, tearing your heart into pieces and giving up your soul.
–Rumi
Dancing to change the world – does the idea seem a bit grandiose to you? It did to me too at first blush.
But each day I see a little more clearly how the dance we choreograph – step by measured step – through life’s ever-changing rhythms is the world.
Mallika Sarabhai’s Ted Talk recently forced me to reconsider the power of the arts. Her video (embedded below) takes less than 20 minutes to watch. If you are strapped for time, the first 5 minutes alone are quite enlightening.
Last May I had the pleasure of dancing in Shimmy Mob 2012 with the Memphis group. Shimmy Mob is an international flash mob event that raises awareness and funds for women’s and children’s shelters.
The video below will give you some idea of what this event is like. It is a “mash up” of the dancers across the world who participated.
So why raise awareness and funds for these shelters?
Consider the sobering statistics:
Every 15 seconds a woman in America is battered (UN Study on the Status of Women, 2000). Almost a third of female homicide victims are killed by an intimate partner (FBI, Uniform Crime Reports, 2001).
Only about a quarter of rapes or attempted rapes are reported to the police (U.S. Justice Department). Many victims of rape do not report violent acts against them because they are ashamed, fearful of not being believed, or afraid of further violence. Of the reported rapes in the U.S., around 18% of females have survived a completed or attempted rape. I use the word females here instead of women because children make up a large proportion of this number: 12% were younger than age 12 when they were first raped and nearly 30% were between the ages of 11-17 (National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 2010).
Of course this is not just a “female problem.” Boys raised in violent homes are 10 times more likely than those raised in non-violent homes to later abuse their spouses (Family Violence Interventions for the Justice System, 1993). In 2010, of the 200,000 rapes or sexual assaults that occurred in the U.S., around 15,020 of those were among males (2010 National Crime Victimization Survey, Department of Justice).
Numbers offer a depersonalized, abstract answer to the “why?” question. For additional answers, you might consider listening to the voices of individuals who have experienced violence personally. I recently read two vastly different and fascinating perspectives from self-proclaimed “predatory teen-aged girls.” These perspectives, which can be found HERE and HERE reveal two truths which seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum. There again is that paradoxical tension, which is, in the words of Parker Palmer, the “power that wants to pull [the] heart open to something larger than itself.” It’s enough to make your head spin if you think about it.
As for me, I’ll be dancing because my head looks pretty ridiculous spinning without the rest of my body.
If you want to join us in the dance for this cause, registration is now open to participate in this year’s mob. It will be held on World Belly Dance Day, (yes there really is such a thing) which falls on Saturday, May 11, 2013 this year. The choreography is beautiful and accessible to beginners. You do not have to have belly dance experience to participate. Check out the website shimmymob.com for more information about how you can join us.
This year locally we will have team leaders in Memphis (Lucie) and in Southaven (Penny).
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.
–Margaret Mead
19 comments
Comments feed for this article
January 10, 2013 at 6:40 am
petspeopleandlife
Can’t enter the dance thing. However, this is a well written post and good info for other bloggers/viewers to read and learn about violence toward women and children as well.
January 11, 2013 at 8:08 pm
Lunar Euphoria
Thank you for dropping in the blog and reading. 🙂
January 10, 2013 at 1:13 pm
skatturcast
Nice…where is Memphis dancing this year? You know I won’t dance hehe but I can come pass out brochures about the cause, while y’all dance. Is the Memphis mob being held somewhere more public this year, where we could even do that? Just a thought.
Btw folks…If I’m not mistaken you’ll find Lunar dancing in the second video for the Memphis mob, in front of the “I heart Memphis” sign. Starts about 4:30 minutes into the video.
January 11, 2013 at 8:11 pm
Lunar Euphoria
I don’t know yet where we’ll be dancing, but it would be great if you come pass out stuff! It was public last year – at a farmer’s market, but then afterwards we went and danced again in front of “I Memphis” because we wanted to represent!
February 24, 2013 at 5:22 am
yfuentes
If I was in Memphis I would dance in Beale Street, where else? I am in Miami and our group is small (our first year) otherwise it would be in Miami Beach!
February 24, 2013 at 1:28 pm
Lunar Euphoria
Miami – nice! It’s so cool to be working with dancers around the country – and the world – on this project. Best of luck to you! The beach sounds like it would be amazing place to dance.
January 12, 2013 at 12:01 pm
Tori Nelson
I might just have to come! I’d be more than happy to dance… thought I’ve been told my style tends to scare small animals and children 🙂
January 12, 2013 at 7:52 pm
Lunar Euphoria
Oh! I do hope you join the dance Tori and then write a delicious post about the experience. 😀
January 12, 2013 at 2:39 pm
Amy
I’m going to look into it 🙂 I love dancing, though I never dance. I’m a dancer trapped in a lumberjack’s body. I love the idea of dancing, especially for such a great cause! 🙂 Thanks for the info.
January 12, 2013 at 7:56 pm
Lunar Euphoria
You ARE a dancer! Come dance with us please!
January 15, 2013 at 8:31 pm
Chelsea Lynn
What a great cause!
January 18, 2013 at 1:37 pm
Lunar Euphoria
Yes.
Thank you for visiting and reading about it.
January 16, 2013 at 5:38 am
Maddie Cochere
This is really wonderful, and something I wasn’t aware of. I watched some of the first video, and I watched up to Memphis in the second. It was nice knowing that you were dancing in that group. Really great cause. Thank you for sharing.
January 18, 2013 at 1:41 pm
Lunar Euphoria
Thank you for taking time to watch the videos and to comment. There’s a “gag reel” at the end of the dance video with examples of the silly sorts of things that happen when your dancing in the streets – like little kids running up to join or just coming in to stand amongst the dancers and stare at the audience.
January 18, 2013 at 7:12 am
Debra Parmley
It will be such a joy to dance again with you this year. This is a well written post which I am sharing. I wish to add my voice to yours and encourage every woman reading this to consider joining us in dancing for this cause. If for some reason you cannot dance, there are also other ways to support your local Shimmy Mob and your local women’s and children’s shelter.
January 18, 2013 at 1:46 pm
Lunar Euphoria
I’m looking forward to dancing with you!
And yes — Thank you for the reminder that there are other ways to participate without dancing.
March 8, 2013 at 2:04 pm
Unbreakable | My Little Spacebook
[…] That is why we will dance to change the world. […]
May 11, 2013 at 3:19 pm
Shimmy Mob is Today | My Little Spacebook
[…] Shimmy Mob 2013 – We’ll Be Dancing to Change the World […]
March 3, 2014 at 6:12 pm
Ending Violence & Strengthening Families | My Little Spacebook
[…] Mob Memphis is dancing to change the world. This is our fourth year of dancing for the […]