In American society, there exists a stereotype that women are bullies to one another. Images in popular culture perpetuate the idea that females coexist in a state of competition with one another, whether for love, friends, success, or beauty. The result is a culture of mental, emotional, and even physical violence between girls who mistakenly believe that other females are their competitors, instead of their supporters. Nearly every girl raised in this culture can relate to instances of girl-on-girl bullying like rumors, name-calling, and cliques. It is up to every female on an individual level whether to break this cycle and instead choose to empower their fellow women by exhibiting kindness and genuine support of their successes.

On Tuesday morning, December 8th, all of Glenmont JCC’s female students gathered at the Recreation Center dressed in professional attire to participate in a day-long women’s conference. The day began with a breakfast of bagels, muffins, pastries, coffee and juice for all the ladies and a pep talk from Center Director Deborah Snape on the importance of building a community of strong, supportive women. After that, CSIO Supervisor Caitlin Hackett screened the film Finding Kind, a documentary detailing two girls’ travel around the United States to show how widespread the problems of girl-on-girl bullying is in our culture. The morning wrapped up with a presentation by our esteemed guest speaker, Tanesha Bundy, a social worker who also owns her own fashion consulting business and is a mother to a Job Corps graduate. She warned the girls to be wary of images they see in the media, addressing the power of self-love and how to command respect from people in their lives.

At noon, the young women took a break to enjoy a catered five-course lunch. For dessert, there was a selection
of cinnamon buns, brownies, Rice Krispies treats, and fruit to dip into white and milk chocolate fountains. The girls
were also instructed to write “Kind Cards” for one another, anonymously signing words of kindness and support on a
framed card to keep for inspiration. They later had the opportunity to decorate their Kind Card frames with paint,
stickers, glitter, jewels and beads. As a special surprise of the day, a build-a-bear workshop came to the Rec center so
each girl could create her own stuffed animal with its own outfit and birth certificate. When at the end of the day Ms. Hackett led the young women in the “Cross the Line” activity, all the girls participating learned that they had each been both the victims and the instigators of girl-ongirl bullying. The Women’s Conference was a day full of celebrating sisterhood and promoting strong female bonds on Center that we hope will last for a very long time tocome!