Sad State of Affairs

moggins

I really, really want to learn to sew using a machine. So today I decided to ring the local womens centre and see if they were doing any free courses in September. All went well until she realised by my name that I was white/english when she said that it was a class just for Asian women to sew saris. She actually made me feel quite uncomfortable for even enquiring and I find it quite sad that they assume that a) white women don't want to learn to sew and b) if we do we can afford to pay for an evening class at college.

I rang the centre because a friend had told me that women of all races were welcome there, now I'm not so sure

Anyone have any ideas how I can learn to use a machine without it costing me a fortune? There are always machines going cheaply at bootsales around here.

squeaky

In the Craftwork section of the MEGA Index sticky there's a thread on "teach yourself to sew" listed under buffalo hunting. I mean, under sewing

kingshir

Ring them again and ask if the courses are for ALL women and don't let on you've rung before. Use the 'ringing on behalf of someone else' tack and get as much info as possible (so they can't back track) and then tell them you wish to go on the course. It doesn't matter what you are learning to sew, as long as you learn how to operate the machine and the basics of sewing.

What a flipping cheek - although this isn't the first time I've heard something like this. I help out at one of our local colleges and often the courses are free to some but not to others in very similar circumstances!

apprentice_tycoon

Hi Moggins, if you can't get in on the course then it's not too bad - using a sewing machine and making things can be learned by book, it just looks a complicated machine but it isn't when you really look at it calmly with a book to hand.
They all thread the same way and once you've learned how to use one you can use them all, just like driving. I'm afraid that I can't recommend a book but I bet that any library would have a beginners book, even if it means looking in the kids section.

Take the plunge next time you see one for sale, you won't lose any money on it becuase when you want a more complex machine you can car boot it yourself and get the money back

Spendless

Ahhh moggins. I had a similar thing recently trying to find some sort of course. I kept on being asked if I was a lone parent. I came home very upset and Mr Spendless thought he was being amusing by offering to move out!

not that I've got anything against lone parents being helped but I would like to see things on offer to everyone regardless of age, race,marital status and so on.

Anyway is the womens centre part of the YWCA? Ours is and does say something about not discrimating women. It's where I am doing my WP course. ahhh- I've just looked at the leaflet and noticed in addition to the computer course I'm doing there are others that come under 'asian womens project' and 'lone parents project' so whilst it might not actively discrimate perhaps they only receive funding for a certain group. If you've got the bottle ring them back -tell them you're quite happy to make a sari- after all it's techniques you're after

moggins

I could indeed make a sari, then I could give it to my lovely next door neighbour for all the help she gives me. Shame she can't sew either. We have this deal going at the moment, I teach her how to garden and she teaches me how to make a decent curry.

culpepper

I wonder if the womens institute could help?
One of our neighbours did spinning and machine knitting and gave demonstrations at WI meetings.
I borrowed a video from our library quite a long time ago which had excellent directions for simple sewing using a machine.

digp

that is quite tragic. ring up and complain.

Zziggi

Moggins,

Last year i saw an advert for sewing classes at a local community centre. It advertised sewing classes, courses lasting a term at a time and then re-enrolment, and it said that what is made during the course was open to negotiation with the enrolled students depending on the level of their sewing skill and what they wanted to learn to make. The advert said that in previous courses the students had made a variety of things including saris and shalwar-kameezs (indian suits).

I rang up to find out more details and after giving my name (un-Asian) and my address (definitely an un-asian area) I was told that the course was for Asian women. I asked them why it was only for Asian women and it transpired that it was NOT only for Asians. [It was also NOT only for women, but that's a different issue]. The lady answering the phone had taken the fact that they had only ever had Asian women enrolling for the course and the fact that the students had always opted to learn to make saris/shalwaar-kameezs as meaning that the course was only for Asian women. The receptionist had taken it upon herself to decide who could go on the course.

As it happens the course was held at a time i couldn't go so my sewing skills are still really bad. As a (white) woman who just about lives in shalwar-kameezs (if you've ever tried them, then do! so comfy, so cool in summer and so cheap and easy to make). Ironically it was the fact that it said you could learn to make shalwaar-kameezs properly that actually attracted me to the course!

I definitely ring back and check what they mean about it not being for non-Asian women. EVEN IF it is due to funding (i.e. funding directed at ethnic minority communities) they usually like a quota of students from the non-ethnic population for funding reasons - always looks good on ethnic monitoring if they can say that a course was aimed at ethnic minorities but was so popular even with the 'wider (indigenous) population'! At a different time i took Arabic classes at the community centre. They nearly fell over themselves to get white people through the doors. They said it really helped them with getting (&keeping) funding as it showed that it was not just aimed at ethnic monorities even though the funding was directed in this way.

Oscar

How sad...and the government wonder why some people are racist...unfortunately it is not the fault of the minorities but of those who make the rules!!

Zziggi

Oscar wrote:

How sad...and the government wonder why some people are racist...unfortunately it is not the fault of the minorities but of those who make the rules!!

I'd like to think there was a misunderstanding at the college where Moggins wanted to go. Irrespective of whether it was a misunderstanding or not, it's not nice to be on the receiving end of perceived discrimination.

Someone else earlier in the thread said they couldn;t take a course because it was aimed at single parents. Whenever i get told stuff liek this i ask them why and also ask if they'd like it to be more representative i.e. mostly single parents with some married people. I have often found this works as you are subtley pointing out that they are discriminating against you because you are married. The only place i have found this doesn;t work is with sure start. We live in a non-sure start area. I asked for my kids to join an activity but were told that it is done strictly on postcode, despite trying to argue we should be allowed to take part because (a) we are on benefits, (b) we couldn;t afford to do the activity without subsidy (c) social worker had told us to join in and (d) the health visitor had told us to take part despite knowing we live in a non-sure start area. I was told that we couldn't take part and that yes, a Millionaire living in the sure start area could take part - but no millionaires would chose to live there!