A young Zambian woman goes to her boyfriend’s house. They both love each other, but that does not mean she is ready to have sex yet. He wants things to move faster; “if you loved me you would do it” he says. She does love him, so what can she do? Can she find a way to make him respect her feelings? And when he becomes more forceful, is there nothing she can do except give in to his desire?…
“Girl Power II – ‘No’ means ‘No’!” – is a Zanelic Theatre Group Production. It can be viewed on its own – or as the second of three new interconnected films. Film 5 – deals with being assertive and saying what you think to avoid being forced to have sex against your wishes. Love is a powerful emotion and can be manipulated by a partner. This film explores ways to ‘find the right words’ to deal with the emotionally charged conversations that occur between partners in the private spaces of relationship negotiation.
The Zanelic Theatre Group are a group of young people from Linda compound near Lusaka, Zambia. The film was shot in 2013 in association with Dr Mike Kesby from the Department of Geography and Sustainable development, University of St Andrews, Scotland, UK. The film was produced as part of a Participatory Action Research project investigating the issues that young urban Zambians face when negotiating relationships and sexual health.
The research identified that young men often coerce their partners verbally and that this can transition to physical coercion and then to rape. Assault is not uncommon among young people who would say that they ‘loved each other’. Love becomes a mechanism of coercion, with young men frequently asking that girlfriends ‘prove’ their love [by having sex], or asserting; “if you loved me you would do it [have sex]”. Young women find it hard to counter this challenge. Part of the problem is that society expects men to be sexually assertive, and women to be passive. Therefore young men often feel that it is necessary to ‘persuade’ a reluctant partner. In the meantime, young women are frustrated that although they say ‘no’, their partners often misinterpret the message. In the study, the phrase ‘no means no’ emerged as a form of communication that both genders felt clarified what young women were saying in these highly charged situations. These words were said to be particularly empowering for young women.
This film emerged from discussions lead by young women.
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