Upcoming Events

February 6, 2025
"Know Your Body, Know Your Rights" Panel
Where: International Lounge (Usdan) (Max capacity: 120 people)
- Panel from 5:30-6:15pm
- Q&A 6:15-6:30
- Panelists will each have a table from 6:30-6:50 to address/engage in 1-1 questions?
KNOW YOUR BODY, KNOW YOUR RIGHTS!
ENACT, the ProChoice club, and the Women's Studies Research Center at Brandeis are hosting a multidisciplinary panel on Thursday, February 6th from 5:30-6:50pm in Usdan in the International Lounge. The event will feature three expert panelists in an effort to foster an engaging and informative discussion on reproductive health issues:
- Sarah Curi, JD, MPH – Associate Professor of the Practice at Brandeis University, Professor Curi brings expertise in health law and public health policy. Professor Curi has worked in-house as a health care lawyer for several hospitals, health care providers, academic research and development organizations, and health tech/biotech companies.
- Kristen Brewer, PhD – Professor Brewer is a Professor at Simmons University and brings academic insights into reproductive health research and education. Dr. Brewer co-founded the grassroots organization Ruth’s Army Tennessee in 2022. The nonprofit’s mission is “to provide comprehensive sexual and reproductive education, outreach, and access."
- Marti Soffer, MD, MPH – A medical professional and Brandeis Class of 2010 alum, Dr. Soffer offers a clinical perspective on reproductive healthcare. Dr. Soffer is an Obstetrician Gynecologist and Maternal Fetal Medicine Specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital and an Instructor at Harvard Medical School.
The event aims to provide a multidisciplinary exploration of reproductive health topics, combining legal, academic, and medical viewpoints. Elie Hersch (Class of 2027), President of the Pro Choice club, and Sarah Jafary (Class of 2028) will moderate the panel, encouraging dynamic dialogue and audience engagement. Students will have an opportunity to meet with panelists following the event.

March 6, 2025
when: 5:00pm
Join WSRC Scholar Aditi Malik, Associate Professor of Political Science, College of the Holy Cross, as she discusses her most recent work.
Note: This talk discusses sexual violence and contains details some attendees may find distressing.
In societies marked by high levels of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), how do we account for citizens’ varied responses to such incidents? Drawing on comparative case studies of five lethal rapes in India and South Africa, which generated strikingly different reactions from ordinary citizens, this talk will demonstrate how victims’ social locations—that is, their urbanity, class, caste, race, and/or religion—crucially shape the possibilities for one key response to such violence, namely anti-rape protests.
Combining original event data on demonstrations against rape in India with insights from over 80 original and in-depth interviews in the two countries, as well as ethnographic observations of anti-GBV forums in South Africa, the talk will highlight the conditioning impact of women’s intersectional identities on the mobilization of protests against rape.