Events / Films

 Trans Rights Revolution: The Path to Equality in the UK

Thursday, 5th October, 2023

London, Everyman Cinema at Borough Yards 

On Thursday 5th October, a curious and engaged audience joined our expert panelists for a discussion on transgender identity in the UK. 

In our short film, our audience saw how film and TV over the years has portrayed trans people. We heard perspectives from young people advocating for their own rights and witnessed a heartfelt plea for solidarity. We heard from those with lived experience about how British society and media can inhibit people's ability to fully discover and express themselves, and the shocking consequences that can have.

After the film, we welcomed the panel of human rights experts and activists to the stage to start the in-depth and compassionate discussion. It is rare to be able to hear such a frank and well-informed conversation on controversial topics, and we appreciate our panellists for helping us to host such an event.

Time was escaping us, and it was time to take the microphone to the audience. We never know what questions await, and we loved hearing the perspectives from our inquisitive friends who had joined us from across London. The audience Q&A is always the part of the event that turns our focus from learning and empathy towards action and making our own impact. With this in mind, Tina Kothari wrapped up the audience Q&A with our curated list of Calls To Action (from the experts and those with lived experience).

Our Calls To Action list has become somewhat of a trademark of our events, and we will track engagement with these over the coming weeks to see what impact has come from our time together at Borough Yards Everyman Cinema on Thursday, 5th October.

• See the list of Calls To Action for this event

• Visit our LinkTree here to find out more about our upcoming events and event recordings from recent years

Learn more about the panel:

Panellist: Dr Charlotte Proudman

Dr Charlotte Proudman is an award-winning barrister, Cambridge academic and campaigner fighting for women's rights in and out of court. Charlotte represents survivors of rape, domestic abuse and coercive and controlling behaviour in court whilst also challenging misconceptions across the sector. She uses her knowledge and experience of the justice system to advocate for legal change to ensure protection and support for victims and survivors. Ranked as Legal 500’s Leading Junior, Charlotte is described as: ‘Charlotte is taking the protection of vulnerable women and children in the Family Court to the next level by a unique combination of academic rigour and unashamedly activist passion. Charlotte has fearlessly promoted gender equality under the law. She has successfully spearheaded campaigns to change the law for women. Charlotte was instrumental in the criminalisation of forced marriage, virginity testing, hymenoplasty and child marriage. Alongside Girls Not Brides, Charlotte advocated increasing the age of marriage from 16 to 18 years old.

Panellist: Freddy McConnell

Freddy McConnell is an award-winning journalist, writer and speaker. In 2018, he became a dad and shared his experience of pregnancy as a transgender man in the BIFFA-nominated BBC documentary, Seahorse: The Dad Who Gave Birth. In 2023, Freddy is now nominated as a Top 10 Outstanding Contributor to LGBT+ Life in the British LGBT+ Awards.

Freddy holds a degree in Arabic and has spent extended periods in Yemen, Syria and the West Bank. For Vice World News, he hosted an episode of the groundbreaking, global documentary series, Transnational, which went on to win Peabody and GLAAD Media awards in 2021. His episode for series two is forthcoming. In 2022, he wrote his first children’s book for Puffin, about a solo-parent family, called Little Seahorse and the Big Question

Freddy has become a committed campaigner for LGBT+ equality, in particular the rights of trans people and their families.

Panellist: Robin White

Robin White became the first barrister to transition from male to female in practice at the discrimination bar in 2011. She practices in all aspects of employment and discrimination law and lectures regularly on the area, including transgender rights, in which she has appeared in a number of notable cases, and she acts for employers and employees. She has published ‘A practical guide to transgender law’ in May 2021, written jointly with Nicola Newbegin of Old Square Chambers.

In September 2020 Robin was named ‘Barrister of the Week’ by The Lawyer Magazine for her work on the Taylor v Jaguar Land Rover case. She won the award in 2022 for ‘Outstanding Contribution to Diversity & Inclusion’ at The Chambers UK Bar Awards.

Panellist: Hiba Noor

Hiba Noor is the first Pakistani to have achieved her higher certificate as a trans woman. She started her career as an Assistant Director for a morning show for Pakistan national TV and is the first trans flmmaker and director in the Muslim world. 

Hiba is a Pakistani human rights defender, activist, social scientist, poet, sketch artist, photographer and painter, with 6 years experience of working through the lens of her camera with gender equality, livelihoods and economic empowerment.

Moderator: Sam Fowles 

Dr Sam Fowles is a barrister, author, and Director of the Institute for Constitutional and Democratic Research. Sam’s practice focuses on public and constitutional law and human rights. Notable cases include Miller/Cherry v The Prime Minister, Hamilton v Post Office, and the Clapham Common inquiry. Sam was recently part of the team representing Stonewall, intervening to support the Scottish Government in its challenge to the Secretary of State for Scotland’s decision to veto the Gender Recognition Reform Bill. 

Sam’s book, “Overruled: Confronting Our Vanishing Democracy in 8 Cases”, explores the UK’s democratic decline through the lens of the cases he has argued. 

Sam is an associate at St Edmund Hall, University of Oxford, and writes a regular column for Perspective Magazine.

 
My Body, My Choice:
‘No womb for politics'

 26th September

London, UK

On a special night in September, an audience with many new faces joined us to discuss the future of abortion and reproductive healthcare in the UK, with an expert panel.

In the wake of Roe v Wade falling in the USA, the team at AnotherWay Now decided to dedicate an event exploring reproductive rights in the UK. We curated an expert panel to host an intersectional discussion with our engaged (and sometimes enraged!) audience.

After watching a short film looking at the past, present and future of reproductive rights, we welcomed the panel to the stage. We heard their perspective from legal and medical experience, and our audience were shocked to hear some of the statistics on this issue.

We heard from those fighting to defend our access to reproductive healthcare 

We met the activists advocating for birthing people's rights

We explored the history of British abortion rights

We learnt how to fight for pregnant people's right to choose

The conversation could have continued for another hour, but by this point our audience were desperate to join in and ask their burning questions!

The theme of the Q&A quickly became inclusion – discussing who, where and when all people can have reproductive rights. Whether it be on the basis of race, identity, gender, geographics, legal and migration status, there is more to be done for reproductive rights and conversations such as ours on this fantastic night.

In somewhat of a coincidence, we begun discussing the rights of trans parents, which is a significant part of our October event – ‘Trans Rights Revolution’ at Borough Yards on 5th October. It was fantastic to hear the support the audience has for this imperative topic.

We were proud to see our panel and audience be able to have these tough conversations in a space of compassion and education. We thank them all for their bravery, honesty, and trust throughout the evening. We handle human rights from an intersectional feminist stance, and know that together, we can continue to learn from each other and must support the rights of all. This event was a beautiful demonstration of how this looks in ‘real life’!

The Panel

Panellist: Dr Charlotte Proudman

Dr Charlotte Proudman is an award-winning barrister, Cambridge academic and campaigner fighting for women's rights in and out of court. Charlotte represents survivors of rape, domestic abuse and coercive and controlling behaviour in court whilst also challenging misconceptions across the sector. She uses her knowledge and experience of the justice system to advocate for legal change to ensure protection and support for victims and survivors. Ranked as Legal 500’s Leading Junior, Charlotte is described as: ‘Charlotte is taking the protection of vulnerable women and children in the Family Court to the next level by a unique combination of academic rigour and unashamedly activist passion.'

Charlotte has fearlessly promoted gender equality under the law. She has successfully spearheaded campaigns to change the law for women. Charlotte was instrumental in the criminalisation of forced marriage, virginity testing, hymenoplasty and child marriage. Alongside Girls Not Brides, Charlotte advocated increasing the age of marriage from 16 to 18 years old.

Panellist: Jonathan Lord

Jonathan is a consultant gynaecologist at a large acute NHS Trust in the South West where he is the clinical lead for the abortion service. He holds several national roles, including co-chair of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (Home | RCOG) abortion taskforce and the British Society of Abortion Care Providers (www.bsacp.org.uk) – the organisations that are responsible for and promote quality in women’s health and abortion care. 

Along with improving abortion care provision, his other clinical priority is in teaching good techniques to reduce pain and discomfort in gynaecological procedures like coil fittings and outpatient procedures, advocating for much wider use of simple but effective local anaesthetics like self-administered numbing cream, local anaesthetic sprays and inhalation agents.

Panellist: Dr Sonia Adesara

Sonia Adesara is a medical doctor, campaigner, and former National Medical Director’s Clinical Fellow. She is on the executive committee for Abortion Rights UK, and is the former co-chair of the Young Medical Women International Association. Her non-clinical work includes working for the National Cancer Charity Macmillan and the women’s rights charity Fawcett Society. She has written for newspapers alongside political journals and regularly features on the broadcast media discussing women's health and UK politics.

Moderator: Phoebe Davis

Phoebe is a reporter with Tortoise Media covering health, education and government for their flagship daily newsletter – the Sensemaker – and award-winning podcasts. Before joining Tortoise, she worked as a freelance researcher for Unreported World and Channel 4 Dispatches and with major Iranian network ManotoTV. Her writing has appeared in the Daily Mirror, the Sunday Times and the Daily Telegraph. 

 Those Left Behind : A Night for Afghan Journalists

Thursday 20th July

The Chapel at King’s College

AnotherWay Now and Index on Censorship recently collaborated for a unique event at King’s College, with an urgent call to action at the heart.

We began the night with footage from journalists on the ground in Afghanistan, bravely working to alert the world of human rights abuses taking place under Taliban rule.

The Footage

As with all AnotherWay Now events, we showed our audience footage from people with lived experience of the issue we were there to discuss.
We shared testimonies from Afghan journalists, all of whom have either fled the Taliban or are no longer permitted to work in journalism in Afghanistan for fear of their lives. Our audience also saw a clip from the incredible documentary ‘Homeland’, by Zahara Nabi, a young female journalist who is documenting her experience in Afghanistan right now.  

Our passionate audience then filed into the antique wooden pews lined in the Chapel to a welcome from Tina Kothari (Founder, AnotherWay Now) and Jemimah Steinfeld (Editor-in-Chief, Index on Censorship).
As a hush settled upon the chapel, we began the panel discussion and Q&A session, led by Channel 4’s Keme Nzerem.

The Expert Panel

Moderator: Keme Nzerem (Channel 4)

Emma Graham-Harrison (The Guardian)

Sana Safi (BBC)

Zahra Joya (Rukshana Media)

Our panel spoke passionately on the damaging Taliban restrictions for journalism in Afghanistan, and explained the long term consequences for journalism and arts across the region. These insightful and compassionate experts helped our audience understand how to meaningfully support human rights in Afghanistan.
The audience then had a chance to put their questions to the panel, which quickly turned the focus of the panel to the rights of women in Afghanistan. We heard how restrictions on healthcare, education and public life have cost thousands of lives already, and will likely destroy the future of many young women across Afghanistan. Our expert panel shared stories from their own investigations, demonstrating just how dire the situation has become.

We were honoured to be joined by award-winning poet, Suhrab Sirat, for a unique spoken-word performance for our audience. In both Farsi and English, Suhrab shared his family tales of fear, hope and fleeing - a tale painfully familiar to many British refugees. A wave of empathy and solidarity was felt over the chapel, marred by frustration at recent headlines on small boats and deaths at sea.

But this night was not one of grieving, but of hope and action.

We had all gathered to make a difference where it is most needed, through targeted action and support. With this in mind, our event came to a close with Jemimah (Index of Censorship), taking the audience through a list of specific Calls to Action, enabling them to make their own waves in this fight for human rights.  

Here’s how to support Index in their work to give a voice to the persecuted.

Please visit:

https://www.indexoncensorship.org/

With huge thanks to:

Katherine Schofield for the incredible venue
Annabel Moeller for stunning photography
Keme Nzerem for expert panel moderation

Coercive Control : Understanding the Red Flags with Refuge

Thursday 25th May, 2023
Everyman King’s Cross, London

On Thursday 25th May, AnotherWay Now and Refuge hosted a passionate audience at Everyman in Kings Cross for a film and panel discussion, to learn about coercive control and how to support Refuge in their work to end domestic abuse.

Trigger Warning: Domestic Abuse

As our audience took their seats for this event, they heard an anonymous testimony by a young woman who has experience of coercive control early on in a relationship. In this testimony she explained how much of her partner’s early behaviour had not initially been recognized as red flags. 

Once our fully booked audience had all arrived, we watched a short clip kindly provided by the Joanna Simpson Foundation, from the Netflix documentary, ‘When Missing Turns to Murder’, an incredibly powerful and poignant film about the tragic case of Joanna Simpson. In this film, our audience learned how domestic abuse and coercive control can sometimes lead to tragic consequences. This was a truly moving experience for our audience, and we were all motivated to find out - what can we do to make sure there’s #NotAnotherJo.

After the film, Tina Kothari welcomed the expert panel to the stage to tell us of the red flags of coercive control, how to spot them, and most importantly, what to do when we spot them.

The Expert Panel

Moderator: Ranvir Singh (ITV)

Ruth Davison (Refuge)

Hetti Barkworth-Nanton (Refuge, Joanna Simpson Foundation)

Djanomi Headley (Sistah Space)

Our panel explained the specific behaviour that constitutes coercive control, and how to spot these behaviours in our own relationships, and in the relationships of those around us. The panel were compassionate, empathetic and insightful, and our audience heard all about what can be done to support those who may be subject to this red flag behaviour. The audience then had a chance to put their questions to the panel.

Our event came to a close with our expert panel taking the audience through a list of specific Calls To Action that everyone can choose to engage with, to start making their own waves in this fight for human rights.

Need help? Or want to support these incredible organisations?

Please visit:
www.Refuge.org.uk
www.JSFoundation.org.uk
www.SistahSpace.org

Further information on domestic abuse and coercive control can be found on Refuge’s National Domestic Abuse Helpline, by calling 0808 2000 247 (24 hour, freephone)

Defying The Taliban

with Alex Crawford, Martin Bright, Zahra Joya + Zehra Zaidi

13th April 2023, Borough Yards Everyman, London

‘An evening of conversation, inspiration and action’

On Thursday 13th April, we hosted over 100 people at Everyman in Borough Yards, for a film and panel discussion with one of Britain's most respected front-line reporters, Alex Crawford.

First, we watched ‘Women at War: Afghanistan’, a Sky News documentary reporting from within one of the most oppressive regimes in the world. In this film, our audience saw Alex meeting the underground resistance in Afghanistan who work every day to fight for human rights. We saw on screen how women, young and old, are risking arrest, torture and imprisonment every day in their pursuit of education.

After this incredibly moving film screening, we heard from an Afghan woman who has been forced to flee her homeland, and now fights the battle for women’s rights from the UK. Her testimony was inspiring and revealing, helping our audience understand how dire the situation is, and how dangerous this work can be.
For the second part of the event, Tina Kothari welcomed the expert panel to tell us more about the reality of life in Afghanistan, and what can be done to fight for women’s rights from afar.

The Panel

Moderator: Martin Bright (Index on Censorship)

Alex Crawford (Sky News)

Zehra Zaidi (Action for Afghanistan)

Zahra Joya (TIME Woman of the Year, Rukshana Media)

Together, we heard what it’s really like to work and live under Taliban rule, and how we can all play a part in supporting these brave journalists and activists. Our audience had a chance to put their own questions to the panel, and it certainly felt like we could fill another hour if we had the chance - alas, perhaps we’ll just have to host more AnotherWay Now events on this topic.

We wrapped up the formal part of the event in our usual way - with a list of specific Calls To Action that all audience members can choose to engage with, to start making their own waves in this fight for human rights.

After the main event

As we filed out of the screening room, the panel and audience reconvened in the Everyman lounge to continue the conversation. AnotherWay Now supplied authentic snacks cooked by refugee chefs from Syrian Sunflower, and the Everyman team kindly hosted us for the rest of the evening.
There were new connections being made throughout the evening, and - without saying too much - we can’t wait for the projects that emerge from this casual after-event mingle.

Meet the Panelist : Alex Crawford

Alex is Special correspondent, and during her 30-year career has been arrested, detained, abducted, interrogated and faced live bullets, tear-gas, IEDs, mortar and artillery shellings.

Based in Istanbul, she reports on major stories around the world. Formerly based in Dubai, Delhi and Johannesburg, Alex has covered events in Africa, South Asia, the Gulf and the Middle East including covering the Arab Spring uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Libya and Syria.

Alex was the first correspondent to independently access Myanmar's Rakhine State and get first-hand evidence of what the UN called ‘ethnic cleansing' of the Rohingya. This eye-witness reporting is now being used as part of an International Criminal Case currently being processed.

She was the first reporter to broadcast live from Tripoli's Green Square as rebel forces took over the Libyan capital.

Over her career Alex has earned numerous honours and accolades and is the only journalist to have won the Royal Television Society's Journalist of the Year an unprecedented five times.

She has won four BAFTAs and has had a further six nominations. The wins were for reporting on the spread of Ebola, obtaining rare access to the war-ravaged Syrian city of Idlib, the 2020 Hong Kong protests and exposing the persecution of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar.

Alex has won three International Emmy Awards. She was part of the Sky News team recognised for investigating the role of the Taliban in Pakistan and received further awards for reporting on the perilous sea crossings made by migrants from Turkey to Greece and her coverage of Rohingya claims of Genocide. She was also nominated for gaining exclusive access to the Taliban in Afghanistan.

In December 2010, she was named Woman Journalist of the Year by Women in Film and Television for her work in Afghanistan, and the following year became the only woman to win a second accolade from the Women in Film and Television when she was awarded Best Achievement in 2011 for her reporting from Tripoli.

In June 2014, she won a fifth Golden Nymph award, the highest accolade from the Monte Carlo Film Festival for her coverage of the conflict in the Central African Republic. Previous wins included her reporting the year before of the South African Marikana Mines Massacre, the Fall of Tripoli; Battle for Zawiyah and the Mumbai Terror attacks.

She has also won the Bayeux War Correspondents Award, James Cameron Memorial Award for what was described as her ‘moral integrity’, the inaugural Woman of the Year at the British Journalism Awards in 2022 for her coverage of the Ukraine war as well as womens’ rights in the Taliban’s Afghanistan - and she was made 2023 Journalist of the Year at the Society of Editors’ Media Freedom Awards for her reporting from Ukraine.

Meet the Moderator : Martin Bright

Martin has worked for over 20 years in journalism on national newspapers and magazines before setting up a youth employment charity, The Creative Society, in 2009. He is currently Editor-at-Large for the free-expression magazine Index on Censorship. He has has also worked in politics, academia, film, radio and TV. Official Secrets, a major film about the challenge to democracy in the build-up to Iraq War based on a story he broke for the Observer in 2003, was released in 2019 starring Keira Knightley, Ralph Fiennes and Matt Smith.

Meet the Panelist : Zehra Zaidi

Zehra Zaidi is a lawyer and activist. She co-founded ‘Action for Afghanistan’ to help resettle Afghan refugees, act as a cross-party virtual think tank and push through several campaigns. Such campaigns include Homes for Afghans that appear to have been adopted in part by the Government; an APPG for Afghan Women and Girls that was launched in November 2022; an asylum route for Afghan women at risk; calls for greater participation of Afghan women in national and international policy making; and a call for a Global Summit on Afghan women and girls. Zehra started her career as a UK Solicitor in the City of London. She brings 15 years of experience in legal reform, and programmes and policy design in international development working with international and multilateral organisations, as well as sovereign governments. She is currently working on global governance, resilience, and climate issues.

Meet the Panelist : Zahra Joya

Zahra Joya is an Afghan journalist who was born in 1992 in Bamyan province, and she has been working as a journalist in Afghanistan since 2011. She has worked on women’s and children’s stories and has also written investigative reports. During her journey as a reporter, Joya was often the only female reporter in the newsroom. In 2020, she decided to create Rukhshana Media through personal savings. She chose the name of her news agency, Rukhshana, to commemorate a 19-year-old Afghan girl who ran away from home in Ghor province for a forced marriage and was stoned to death by the Taliban in 2015. Zahra was evacuated to Britain in August 2021 after the fall of Afghanistan. She managed Rukhshana Media for a year from her hotel room in London. Joya was chosen as one of the 12 women of 2022 by Time magazine because of her work. She also received the freedom of expression award from the city of Valencia, Spain, and the changemaker award from the Bill Gates Foundation.

#LetAfghanGirlsLearn

Meet the expert panel

Tamana Ayazi

Born and raised in Balkh, in the northern region of Afghanistan, Tamana Ayazi is a passionate advocate of freedom of thought and human rights who uses storytelling as a tool to advocate for equality and positive change. She became a National Geographic Explorer in 2018, and in 2022 began assisting Amnesty International in its research focused on women and children in Afghanistan.

Ayazi’s film credits include the 2019 Academy Award-winning short documentary Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You're a Girl). Her first feature-length documentary, In Her Hands, co-directed by Marcel Mettelsiefen, premiered at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival in September 2022, won the Audience Award at the 2022 Camden International Film Festival and the Cinema for Peace Dove for Women's Empowerment Award in 2023. In Her Hands is available on Netflix. 

Ramita Navai 

Ramita Navai is an Emmy and Robert F. Kennedy award-winning journalist, documentary maker and author who has reported from over forty countries. Her recent documentaries include investigating rape and cover-up by politicians in India and AFGHANISTAN: NO COUNTRY FOR WOMEN, an investigation into the Taliban’s abuse of women. Her first book City of Lies: Love, Sex, Death and the Search for Truth in Tehran won the Debut Political Book of the Year and the Royal Society of Literature’s Jerwood Prize for non-fiction. She is the creator and host of THE LINE OF FIRE, a top 10 Apple podcast about facing death.

Dominique Van Heerden

Dominique Van Heerden is a multi-award winning senior foreign news producer at Sky News, who has produced major global stories in the field across Latin America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. 

Dominique specialises in breaking news and original storytelling. Her most recent stories have focused on the war in Ukraine, as well as the consequences of the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan in 2021 - a chaotic event she witnessed first-hand at Kabul airport alongside her reporting team.

She also produced Sky News's ground-breaking coverage from Bergamo, Italy at the height of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, earning Emmy and Royal Television Society awards for the team. 

Dominique began her career at CNN, working in the field with CNN's Chief International Correspondent @ChristianeAmanpour, and now works with Sky's Chief Correspondent Stuart Ramsay, winner of the 2023 RTS Network Television Journalist of the Year.

#escapefromthetaliban  #documentary #bbc  #justice  #taliban #afghanistan #women #womenrights #humanrights #liberty #freedom #globalsouth #government #policy #politics #genderequality

Thursday, 23rd March, 2023

Everyman, Borough Yards, London

 The Taliban are stripping girls and women of their human rights including denying them of their right to an education.

This is only the tip of the iceberg. The Taliban's actions and their restrictions on the freedoms of women and girls is a fundamental human rights issue. We must talk about it to bring about change. How do we do this? Where do we start? 

On 23rd March, AnotherWay Now and HiddenLight Productions hosted an evening of conversation and film with the director of the Netflix film, 'In Her Hands', Tamana Ayazi, together with an informed and expert panel, including Ramita Navai, Emmy and Robert F. Kennedy award winning journalist.

This event was exactly one year after the Taliban abruptly announced that schooling for girls beyond grade 6 would remain banned. We didn’t want this day to go unmarked. 

#LetAfghanGirlsLearn

Carrick, Couzens & Corrupt Cops : Are British Women Safe?

Trigger warning: The content of this event may be emotionally challenging. Topics include: gender-based abuse, violence and sexual assault/rape.

This year, British police have been in the headlines for abusing their power and assaulting women, often with fatal consequences.

On Thursday 23rd February, our audience heard the true story from survivors, and learned what we can all do to turn the tide on police abuse.

Our expert panel shared their experience running the hard-hitting investigations and court cases we have all seen in the headlines this year. We heard how there is still hope, and considered the power each of us have in driving change to protect women and how to hold security forces to account.

As has become a much-loved tradition of AnotherWay Now events, the panel and audience had the chance to meet and chat at a nearby venue. These post-event mingles have created some interesting ripples, and they are gaining quite the reputation among our followers, old and new.

On 23rd February, we had one moderator and three panellists, each with their own perspective of the issue and potential solutions.

Panel Moderator: Meirion Jones, Editor, The Bureau of Investigative Journalism
An old friend of AnotherWay Now, Meirion Jones, joined us as our moderator. Meirion was a driving force behind this event, urging us to dedicate our spotlight to women’s safety, and introducing us to some of the UK’s top investigators in the area.

Meirion spent many years running investigations for the BBC at Newsnight and Panorama, and won the London Press Awards Scoop of the Year for his part in the Jimmy Savile revelations. Meirion continues to expose lies and corruption across the UK, speaking truth to power, often in the face of fierce backlash. We thank Meirion for his tireless work in the fights to uphold human rights.

Expert Panelist: Ruth Davison, Chief Executive, Refuge

Ruth leads Refuge in their work to end domestic abuse, and recently dumped 1071 bad apples outside the Met Police HQ to represent officers linked to violence against women and girls.

Expert Panelist: Anonymous Whistle-blower and Survivor

A serving British police officer joined our panel anonymously. They spoke of their own lived experience of abuse, and explained how the system is failing all survivors – even those blowing the whistle from within the force.

Expert Panelist: Suyin Haynes, Head of Editorial, Gal-Dem

Suyin is Head of Editorial at gal-dem, an award-winning media publication committed to sharing the perspectives of people of colour from marginalised genders.

Human Rights: The Battle For Truth and Democracy

Paddington Works, London

Thursday 26th January, 2023

This sold out event explored the reality of British democracy, borne out of the questions raised in barrister Dr Sam Fowles’ book, ‘Overruled’.

Together, the experts explored the ‘erosion of democracy, freedom of expression and truth’, and the growth of ‘bullshitting’ culture in the UK, with our expert panel.

The author was joined by Gina Miller (Leader, True and Fair Party) and Jun Pang (Liberty) for panel discussion and audience Q&A, moderated by Meirion Jones (Bureau of Investigative Journalism).

These experts tackled tough questions about the current state of government, such as:
Is british democracy being eroded?
Do we still have freedom of expression?
Are politicians lying to us while in power?

After the event, guests had the chance to meet and chat with the panellists at the nearby Bondi Green, to really dig into the issues raised at this panel event.

We started the evening with our tongue-in-cheek film about democracy. Check it out for yourself, below.

Calls To Action

Our expert panelists have suggested ways in which we can take action to protect British democracy. Feel free to explore their links below.

Join ICDR

Join Liberty

Sign petition to Justice Secretary to abandon plans to repeal the Human Rights Act

Ask your MP to defend the Human Rights Act

Sign petition to Home Secretary to drop the Public Order Bill’s attack on protest

@thebureauinvestigates @votetrueandfair @libertyhq@drsamfowles
#liveevent #liveevents #debate #learn #learning #education#political #democracy #democracy #freedomofspeech#speaktruthtopower

AnotherWay Now is a human rights organisation that hosts screening and discussion events to shine a spotlight on specific human rights. Our recent events have highlighted subjects including the death penalty, FGM/C, female safety and victim blaming, and education for girls. Our recent events have featured Richard Branson, Bonni Cohen, Maggie O'Kane and Lyse Doucet.

Learn more about us
Sign up for future events

AnotherWay Now presents:

How the media can end FGM by 2030

- With Lyse Doucet and expert panel -

3rd February 2022

For several years, AnotherWay Now has hosted an event in February to mark the Day of Zero Tolerance to FGM. As each year passes, we’ve gathered more activists and organisations on our side in the fight to #endFGM. This year, we were honoured to have the Global Media Campaign and Lyse Doucet (Chief International Correspondent at the BBC), join us for an incredible event at The Conduit in London. 

Lyse Doucet hot footed it from Kyiv, Ukraine (where she was reporting for the BBC) so that she could join our panel!

Our audience were moved to hear her take on the fight for women’s rights around the world. Lyse also explained how we can all play a role, whether it be public pressure, lobbying, social media interaction or direct funding via organisations like Global Media Campaign.

‘It Could Happen To You’

Film Screening and Panel Discussion

#enddeathpenalty 10.10.21

To mark World Day Against the Death Penalty, we hosted an online screening event in partnership with HiddenLight Productions , Virgin Unite and Witness To Innocence.⠀

We started the event with a powerful introduction from the film-makers, Johnny Webb and Ellie Kanner. Then, once emotionally prepared, we watched the incredible first film in the ‘It Could Happen To You” series.

Following the screening, we heard from the #inspiring woman at the center of the story, Sabrina Butler-Smith. The panel also featured Sir Richard Branson and Celia Ouellette, both vocal advocates of a fair justice system.

The fourth panelist, David Leavitt, provided a unique perspective as a law-maker who has changed his mind about the use of the Death Penalty.

watch the two-part series here

Want to see what other events we have coming up? Join our mailing list or follow us on social media:

#deathpenalty #advocacy #socialjustice #humanrights #innocent #law #socialissues #crime #deathrow #execution #injustice #nodeathpenalty #imlivingproof #prison #activism#enddeathpenalty

Our international panel was moderated by Johnny Webb from Hidden Light Productions, who raised some very difficult, but very necessary questions around the issues addressed in the film. 

We heard how life has changed for Bonni Cohen and Shael Norris since the film was made, culminating in the formation of SafeBae and forcing tough conversations to be had within families. Our two academics, Professors Freedman and Zurbriggen, explained how institutions are exacerbating rape culture, and what needs to urgently change. Rebecca Weeks, our UK activist on the panel, shared her shocking testimony and provided valuable insight into how survivors are treated when they approach the authorities. 

Our panel did not hold back! We could see the pain, anger, and frustration they had each felt in dealing with rape-culture at all levels. The audience too, demonstrated their own feelings around these issues, through dozens of powerful questions and comments throughout the event. 

For help on the issues raised in this event, please visit:

www.audrieanddaisy.com

www.RAINN.org

www.futureswithoutviolence.org  

'Audrie + Daisy' : Expert panel discusses victim blaming and rape culture

Wednesday 26th May 2021 

On Wednesday 26 May 2021, AnotherWay Now hosted an online event addressing rape culture, victim-blaming and media, as raised by the award-winning film, ‘Audrie and Daisy’. 

Most importantly, the panel gave us a sense of hope for the future, and meaningful ways in which we can all work to stamp out rape culture, and stop victim-blaming, while supporting survivors of sexual assault.

This was an emotional event, dealing with tough topics. We have gathered some resources for support with the issues raised. We hope that this event has sparked interesting conversations and even changed some thoughts and behaviour in the world. 

www.victimsupport.co.uk

www.samaritans.org

www.rapecrisis.org.uk

www.thesurvivorstrust.org  

www.safeline.org.uk   

ANOTHERWAY NOW + UNIVERSITY OF READING

BRAVE GIRLS: Film Screening + Panel Discussion

Thursday 18th February 2021

With the University of Reading, we hosted a film screening of the beautiful documentary ‘Brave Girls’ followed by online panel discussion.   

We were thrilled to be joined by an inspirational panel of women and would like to thank our chair Uma Kambhampati,  Rosa Freedman, Tallulah Sofia, Ellie Walton, Yashaswi Desai and, Brave Girl, Apsana Belim for contributing to such a fascinating discussion of the feminist battle between education and arranged marriage in India and other cultures.   

Also, to also shine a light on the making of the documentary; the film making process itself but also how taking part in this film served, not only to give a platform to these issues, but also gave the girls the confidence to make change.   How inspiring to hear directly from Apsana that she and the other brave girls will put the hopes and dreams of their girls first. 

Thank you to the audience, for engaging, commenting and sending through questions to our panel throughout.   

You can watch a recording of the event here including the panel discussion and Q&A from the audience. If you would like to watch the film ‘Brave Girls’ again or share with your networks then you can do so by following this link http://www.bravegirlsfilm.com/

If you would like to join our mailing list for future events, please contact us through us at info@anotherwayassociates.com

 A Girl From Mogadishu : Online
Film Screening + Panel Discussion 

ONLINE, 4TH February 2021  

In February 2021, AnotherWay Now hosted an online film screening and panel discussion with special guests to mark International Day of Zero Tolerance to FGM/C, in collaboration with Orchid Project and Together Films.

From the comfort of their own homes, our audience watched the incredible film, ‘A Girl From Mogadishu’, based on the true story of FGM/C activist Ifrah Ahmed. Then, on Thursday 4th February, we all met on Zoom to have a panel discussion with Ifrah Ahmed herself, plus the film-maker Mary McGuckian, Julia Lalla-Maharajh and Masooma Ranalvi.  

We were delighted to host a panel of experts and a diverse audience from all over the world. Orchid Project, founded by Julia Lalla-Maharajh, work tirelessly to end the practise of FGM/C, in culturally appropriate and sensitive ways. Julia moderated our panel discussion and, alongside women’s rights activist Masooma Ranavli, helped us understand the realities of FGM/C around the world, and why their campaigns are so critical.

Our audience quickly became a significant part of the evening, as their questions and comments flooded in during the Q&A session. We heard of how some had struggled to host conversations around FGM/C with their peers, and how the sensitive topics of culture and gender can prevent us from campaigning. Dozens of comments were sent expressing gratitude to Ifrah and Mary for bringing such a difficult topic to our screens, and once again we saw how online events can be (almost!) as moving as in-person discussions.  

You can watch the recording of the evening here, including the panel discussion and Q&A from the audience. 

“This was incredibly engaging and informative. Thank you so much for all of the work that you are doing to bring awareness and inspire change to issues I'm ashamed to say I never knew about. THANK YOU!"

“A thoroughly insightful event! Thank you for sharing such important and pressing human rights issues.” 

“It was wonderful, so incredibly well held, a complex and vital conversation“

“So many goosebumps!”

We want to thank those of you who helped make this event such a success, whether you were behind the scenes bringing expert panellists to us, or were watching and supporting our panel from the comfort of your own homes.

During our Zoom Webinar, we welcomed our fantastic panel: 

Ellie Walton, Co-Director, Brave Girls. Ms. Walton is an award-winning documentary filmmaker committed to sharing stories of everyday revolutionaries and misfits. The recipient of the DC Mayor’s Arts Award and a Fulbright Scholar, her work has been recognized by the Humanities Council of Washington, the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Yashaswi Desai, Co-Director, Brave Girls. Born and raised in Gujarat, India, Ms. Desai is a multimedia artist, facilitator and holistic healer. She worked on the film festival, YES I AM THE CHANGE, which encouraged communities across India to document their own motivational stories. BRAVE GIRLS is her first feature length film project.

Rosa Freedman, Professor of Law, Conflict & Global Development. Rosa has published extensively on UN peacekeeping and accountability for human rights abuses committed during such operations. She is a member of the UN's Civil Society Advisory Board on prevention of sexual exploitation and sits on the FCO Women, Peace and Security Steering Group.

Apsana Belim, One of the ‘Brave Girls’ from the film joined us from India to give her unique perspective on the film, and how her life has changed because of it

BRAVE GIRLS : Online
An International Day of the Girl panel discussion 

Online, 29th October 2020  

In October 2020, we hosted a panel discussion of BRAVE GIRLS to mark and celebrate INTERNATIONAL DAY OF THE GIRL. This beautiful film and inspirational panel really managed to do just that.

You can watch the recording of the panel discussion here.

We would like to thank Ellie Walton, Yashaswi Desai, Apsana Belim and Rosa Freedman for imparting their wisdom and taking part in the discussion.  The questions and answers certainly helped to shine a light on the conflicts felt between tradition and ambition, culture and women’s rights, gender roles and education.   It was great to get behind the scenes and hear more about the filming process as well as the update on where life has led these young women and their hopes for the future.

‘Brave Girls’ is a beautifully shot and deeply moving documentary that captures three young women in India attempting to find balance between their own drive for education and society’s wider gender roles.

The combination of film, panel discussion and passionate Q&A with the audience provided a unique and motivating evening. The range of experiences in the webinar allowed us to explore and discuss the intersectionality of both the feminist young women and of those of us working ‘outside the region’.

We debated the role of external NGOs and campaigners, and established appropriate ways for those of us in the room to support the Brave Girls in India.

We believe this AnotherWay Now event has provided a much-needed space for these discussions to happen, and helped in exploring the discussions around aid, intervention and women’s rights. ANOTHERWAY NOW look forward to hosting the Brave Girls team and film again in the near future. We believe this film generates conversation and debate desperately needed in the not-for-profit sector and in public discourse regarding women’s rights. 

You can watch the trailer of Brave Girls here.

Following the screening, we welcomed our fantastic panel: 

Kiran Stacey (our moderator for the evening), Washington Correspondent for the Financial Times.  

Niyati Shah, Senior Gender and Social Justice Leader: For over 20 years, Niyati has been working internationally to advance gender equality, inclusion and social justice. Now, Niyati prevents and responds to gender-based violence with a community-focused and survivor-centred approach. 

Ellie Walton, Brave Girls film-maker: Ellie has won multiple awards for her films dedicated to stories of ‘everyday revolutionaries and misfits’, including the DC Mayor’s Arts Award, the highest honour given to an individual artist in Washington DC. 

Yashaswi Desai, Brave Girls Co-director (via video link from India)

BRAVE GIRLS : An International Women’s Day screening and panel discussion 

WASHINGTON, DC 

To celebrate International Women’s Day on 8th March 2020, ANOTHER WAY NOW hosted a special screening and discussion of ‘Brave Girls’ at the iconic Busboys and Poets, Washington D.C.

 In true ‘Another Way’ style, our audience was truly representative of the city we were in and there was not a spare seat in the room.  Once the mixture of experts, campaigners, and interested members of the public took their seats, we raised an empowering cheer for International Women’s Day, and then began the screening.

‘Brave Girls’ is a beautifully shot and deeply moving documentary that captures three young women in India attempting to find balance between their own drive for education and society’s wider gender roles.

The combination of film, panel discussion and passionate Q&A with the audience provided a unique and motivating evening. The range of experiences in the room allowed us to explore and discuss the intersectionality of both the feminist young women and of those of us working ‘outside the region’.

We debated the role of external NGOs and campaigners, and established appropriate ways for those of us in the room to support the Brave Girls in India.

We believe this Another Way Now event has provided a much-needed space for these discussions to happen, and helped in exploring the discussions around aid, intervention and women’s rights. ANOTHER WAY NOW look forward to hosting the Brave Girls team and film again in the near future. We believe this film generates conversation and debate desperately needed in the not-for-profit sector and in public discourse regarding women’s rights. 

You can watch the trailer of Brave Girls here.

#DontCutHerShort :

International Day of Zero Tolerance to FGM/C

LONDON, UK

On 6th February 2020, at the Everyman Cinema in London, UK, ANOTHER WAY NOW hosted an event to mark the International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C).

This was an evening of film, art and debate hosted in association with Orchid Project and Youth for Change, to launch the ‘#DontCutHerShort’ campaign. The campaign aims to end FGM/C in the next ten years, in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

A THOUSAND GIRLS LIKE ME

WASHINGTON, DC 

On 22nd October 2019, at Busboys and Poets, Washington D.C. ANOTHER WAY NOW hosted a screening and discussion of the highly acclaimed, feature length documentary film ‘A Thousand Girls Like Me’, by Sahra Mani. 

Following the screening, our diverse audience heard from the expert international panel, featuring: 

Belquis Ahmadi, Senior Program Officer, US Institute of Peace: Belquis has over 20 years of experience working in Afghanistan on issues related to gender, human rights, civil society development, rule of law, governance and democracy.  

Sahra Mani (via video-link): Writer, Producer and Director of ‘A Thousand Girls Like Me’, Afghan filmmaker and founder of Afghanistan Doc House.

Arash Azizi: Filmmaker, co-founder Afghan Diaspora for Equality and Progress.

Amit Pandya:  Non-resident Fellow, Stimson Center, who has advised U.S. Departments of Defense, International Development, Planning and Labour, to name just a few!

This was an incredibly important evening, helping raise awareness of the plight of the women like Khatera (the focus of the documentary), the issues of incest, rape and injustice, women's rights and the failings of the legal system in Afghanistan.  

In particular, we discussed the importance of the role of lawyers, the public and social media in improving international women’s rights. Through our Q&A session, we also focused upon the huge responsibility men have to buy into the ideals of equality and justice for women. Without the support of men in the Middle East, real change will be very tough, indeed.  

ANOTHER WAY NOW continue to support the fight for international legal justice. A Thousand Girls Like Me is part of a campaign to reform and reinforce the justice system in the Middle East, supporting women to make their own choices and recognising gender equality. At the heart of the campaign is the aim to protect and exercise women’s rights and improve the lives of women and girls around the globe. Our event was one small part of this groundbreaking, fantastic campaign, from which we are already seeing ripples the world over. 

You can watch the trailer HERE

A THOUSAND GIRLS LIKE ME

DOHA, QATAR

On 30th May 2019, at The Embassy of The Netherlands, Doha, Qatar ANOTHER WAY NOW hosted a screening of the highly acclaimed, feature length documentary film  A Thousand Girls Like Me, by Sahra Maniand, in celebration of the 10th anniversary of Qatar signing the CEDAW Declaration. 

Following the screening, we were thrilled to host a Q&A with the Writer, Director and Producer of the film, Sahra Mani, and Mona Hamed, Curator of National Museum of Qatar.  

This was an incredibly important evening, helping raise awareness of the plight of the women like Khatera Golzad (who the film is about), the issues of incest, rape and injustice, women's rights and the failings of the legal system in Afghanistan. 

By raising funds through events such as this, we will contribute to the film's campaign to connect with lawyers who will uphold the law, end the systematic failing of the justice system in countries such as Afghanistan, supporting women to make their own choices; to recognise gender equality, to protect and exercise their rights and improve the lives of women and girls around the globe.

"The raw, heartbreaking film shows the double threat of a broken judicial system and ingrained oppressive and sexist attitudes. But the uplifting ending offers a glimmer of hope." The New York Times

"A gripping look at sexual and physical abuse, incest and societal restrictions upon women in Afghanistan" Medium

"An extraordinary film." The Guardian

You can watch the trailer HERE

EVEN WHEN I FALL

Sydney 2019

On Friday 10th May 2019, at the inspirational VivCourt, Sydney, Australia,  ANOTHERWAY NOW hosted a screening of the highly acclaimed feature length documentary EVEN WHEN I FALL, by Sky Neale and Kate McLarnon.

This gripping and sensitive film shines a light on the worldwide issue of human trafficking told through the story of a circus - a group of young trafficking survivors who form Nepal’s first and only circus, creating a livelihood for themselves and simultaneously working to educate and challenge the deep-seated stigma against trafficked women. The film has received glowing reviews in the mainstream and industry press alike.

For the Q&A afterwards, we were thrilled to host Robyn Simpson, Choreographer and Creative Consultant on the film and are proud to say that the audience reactions to both the film and the Q&A were enthusiastic and deeply thought provoking, as a very involved and inspiring conversation evolved from it.

EVEN WHEN I FALL is a Satya Films and Postcode Films production, produced by BAFTA nominated Elhum Shakerifar, distributed by Hakawati.

* * * * “The most feel good film of the week” Financial Times

* * * * “Gripping, occasionally dreamlike and unexpectedly uplifting” The Times

* * * * “Sensitive, intimate, graceful” Total Film

* * * * “Beautifully shot” The Irish Times

“Uplifting, immersive and spectacular” Birds Eye View

You can also watch the trailer HERE

A Thousand Girls Like Me is part of a campaign to reform and reinforce the justice system in the Middle East, supporting women to make their own choices and recognising gender equality. At the heart of the campaign is the aim to protect and exercise women’s rights and improve the lives of women and girls around the globe.

Our event brought together key players in the world of human rights and social justice campaigning. After the film, we hosted a strategy discussion (while being fed by Mother at the Mosaic) to explore ways in which the film could be used further to help the wider campaign.
More information about the campaign can be found here, and the trailer for the incredible film is below.

A Thousand Girls Like Me

London, UK

On 30th April 2019, at Everyman Cinema, London, ANOTHER WAY NOW hosted a screening and strategy discussion of the highly acclaimed, feature length documentary film ‘A Thousand Girls Like Me’, by Sahra Mani.

#VotesForWho

Manchester, UK

On 26th June 2018 in Manchester, UK, ANOTHER WAY NOW hosted a special event to mark 100 years of the Suffragette women’s vote movement. We invited the inspiring teams at the Runnymede Trust and Gal-Dem magazine to host a special panel with us, led by Dr Sumita Mukherjee. We debated how far women’s rights have really come, and to what extent race and identity has left out of the discussion.
This evening was a fantastic gathering of intersectional feminist campaigners, and was well attended by an audience truly representative of Manchester.

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