Vaginas are natural in nature but still not so natural in conversation. The Vagina Monologues are here to change that.

Now part of the Femhawks series, this is the fifth year the monologues have been performed by ULM.

Back in 2010, Vanelis Rivera heard from a friend who’s university wouldn’t allow her to perform the Vagina Monologues on campus. That baffled her.

“I was like, ‘hmm I wonder if ULM will allow me to do it?’” Rivera said.

Now the Vagina Monologues has become a presence on ULM’s campus. It’s something that students look forward to. It’s something Rivera uses to spread awareness about women’s issues to both men and women.

Rivera recalled her first Vagina Monologues at ULM where an international student thanked her afterwards. The student said she had never experienced anything like it before and it meant a lot to her.

“That’s when I realized the power of spreading that knowledge,” River said. “Especially for women who have never been able to talk or think about their bodies.”

Recently, a Nepalese student told Rivera she performed the Vagina Monologues in her country because there is a huge feminist campaign in Nepal right now. After learning that, Rivera loved seeing all of the male Nepalese students in the crowd during last Wednesday’s performance.

Rivera hopes that many of them will bring what they learned at the Vagina Monologues back to Nepal.

“It’s awesome to be a part of that. You’re still a part of a change even though it’s in another country,” River said.

That knowledge and power of change is the reason Meredith McKinnie, an English instructor, encourages her students to attend, and even perform in, the Vagina Monologues.

“I never feel more empowered than while I’m performing and when I leave that evening,” McKinnie said. “It’s about taking the shame out of certain words and ideas and occurrences.”

It’s about promoting women and giving them a voice, especially women who feel like they don’t have one or can’t have one. That is why all donations made from the event go towards The Wellspring and the V-Day Organization. V-Day is a global movement to end violence against women and girls.

“For once we didn’t hear a man talking or a man’s voice. That’s kind of good. Men might need to be quiet sometimes,” said Will Rogers, an assistant professor of English.

Rogers thinks it’s great to see an intergenerational group of women standing up together to reclaim language about their own bodies.

Rogers, who began teaching here in August, didn’t expect Northeast Louisiana to be the place to see something like that. He wasn’t prepared to be as moved it as he was.

The Vagina Monologues covers a wide range of issues from comical grievances about tampons to sexual assault. Eve Ensler, the creator, gave women from different backgrounds, race and orientations a chance share their experiences.

“I laughed like a goofball through most of it and there were parts that made me cry,” Rogers said. “I think I cried during the monologues that were dedicated to the victims of sexual assault.”

Rivera performed in the monologue called “My Vagina Was My Village,” about women subjected to rape camps in Bosnia. She has an affinity for that monologue because it brings awareness to the heinous crimes that still happen to women around the world.

McKinnie, who performs “My Angry Vagina” every year, said a monologue that speaks to her is “My Short Skirt.” The monologue tackles the issue that a woman’s outfit is not an invitation.

“I think from an early age we’re teaching girls that how men treat them and respond to them is their fault,” McKinnie said.

Anastasia Hanson, a junior English major and Femhawks member said it’s great to be a part of something so inclusive that “really encapsulated female, queer and transgender experience.”

Rivera wants to thank her performers and students who attended for being adventurous, open-minded and courageous enough to take on these issues.