by Karen Castellon, AWC Berlin and Human Rights Team Chair
“Guided by empathy borne of my own experience, I gradually began to see the systemic nature of women’s suffering and its impact on all of us. Finally, I began to see the problem as patriarchy and feminism as the antidote.”
This excerpt is from Peter Pruyn’s book, Up: One Man’s Journey to Feminism, which he offers for free online here: www.UpTheMemoir.org
All FAWCO and FAUSA members are invited to share in a reading and piano playing (performance art) by Peter on Friday, February 12, 2021 (7:30pm–9pm CET; 1:30pm NY; 6:30pm GMT) for 90 minutes. The first 60 minutes is the performance; the final 30 minutes is devoted to conversation groups to reflect and share thoughts, feelings and experiences. Please visit the FAWCO calendar for the registration link or email
A Brief Overview
Peter’s book is divided into chapter by location, an aspect that we hope will resonate with the FAWCO and FAUSA audiences who have lived their lives in many places. Other themes include aviation (he was a pilot in Alaska and gave tours of the Grand Canyon!), space flight (worked at NASA in Houston), Peace Corps in the Seychelles, and his work in organizational learning. However it is his work as a therapist for trauma recovery (Massachusetts, USA) that ties together with the opening quote above.
While Peter acknowledges that his target audience is described as “ambivalent, curious or Learning” feminists, there are many stories in the book that can be savored by activist feminists, non-activists and their friends. Having more male allies to support girls and women is a win all around.