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Last week it seemed that a compromise had been reached between abortion rights supporters and opponents. The compromise was based on the idea that health reform is so important that no one would try to use a single controversial issue as an excuse to bring the whole thing down. So, language was drafted that would sustain the status quo on abortion; no federal funding, but people could still use their own money to buy insurance that would cover them. But just hours before the final vote on the House reform bill, anti-abortion Democrats threatened that unless they got new restrictions on abortion rights they would vote against health reform. Here's the breakdown:
The compromise: Under the language currently in the Senate Finance Committee's bill and formerly in the House bill, no federal funding would be used for abortions. Under this provision, called the Capps Amendment, all insurance plans in the exchange would have to keep the money from private premiums and the money from government subsidies separate. Only money from private premiums would be allowed to pay for abortions covered under the plans. This is how current law on abortion works; for example, under Medicaid, federal funds are not allowed to be used for abortions, but some states provide funding by separating their state funds from the federal funds. Republican Senator Collins said that the compromise provision "did a good job of putting up a firewall that would prevent federal funds from being used to finance abortions." Under the compromise, at least one plan in the exchange would cover abortion services and at least one plan would not cover abortions services, giving every American the option of what type of plan she would like to purchase while ensuring that no federal funding would be used to cover abortions.
Judith Warner gets it right in her blog post about studies that show women's happiness has decilned. Her point: Why aren't women happy? Because we're not equal yet, that's why.
As a frequenter of the Feministing community, I've learned a lot about the things I enjoy reading, the things I learn the most from and what stories/articles hit closest to home. Since I discovered the Feministing community, I've come to find that the things that I care about most are the stories of women. The things that affect them on a day-to-day basis, the things that make them ask "What is the appropriate response" or say "Maybe I'm over-reacting or wrong to feel this way".
We all encounter sexism in our daily lives, and its not always possible to find feminist friends offline. The lack of that emotional outlet can lead to self-doubt and intellectual loneliness. It makes me wonder how many feminists have lost their fire because they were so alone in their beliefs that they didn't have anyone to share their ideas, their actions, their words, or their experiences with.
I truly appreciate the Feministing community for being that kind of outlet, but I honestly believe that is just the first step. I think there is an overwhelming need for an active, online space where women can discuss their lives. The importance of this being, if we can see how other women live, we can learn. We can understand that its not a singular experice, that other women are facing the same issues we are facing, or even learn issues that some women are facing that we aren't. We can offer our own insight, our advice, or what helped us pull through in especially difficult times. We could congratulate others on our successes, and lend some compassion when things don't go as planned.
I did an admittedly unthorough check for online spaces like I described above and was a little disheartened. The vast majority were links to news articles, which while important, don't address the need.
If anyone knows of active blogrings for feminists, please let me know.
I strongly encourage feminists of all ages, races, sexes, genders, of all educational and economic backgrounds, to start a blog or update your old one. Visibility is so important. I understand that its not always possible or desired for everyone to dedicate the time to blogging, but if you've thought about it and weren't sure if you should, know that there is the chance that someone could learn from you, or that you could learn from them, simply by sharing your knowledge and understanding.
Until I find a community, I'd like to open my blogroll to feminists everywhere, because I'd love to read what you have to say, just leave a comment or send me a message.
- Syrian Women Observatory was lunched in 5/1/2005 as a dialogue project about the Syrian social issues particularly the following axis: woman, children, and disabled people. It focuses on all kinds of violence.
- Observatory adopted the concepts of human rights and citizenship as posed by the processor. The link to these issues is the relationship with development and not a secondary basis
- It resists all kind of violence against women and children, and also it refuses any religious or educational background as an excuse for this violence
Hey Feministing community!
I just wanted to alert you to a new blog that myself and friends have created to discuss gender, gender identity and sexuality in Lexington Kentucky. The blog is called Gendered Lexington, and you can check it out at www.genderedlex.blogspot.com.
So far we have some really great posts about being trans and trying to find a bathroom in Lexington that you feel safe in, coming out day at the University of Kentucky, what it's been like for one person who is queer identified going through the process to become a teacher in Fayette county schools, and how another contributor feels about the term "lesbian."
We're super excited about this blog, especially because Lexington is a relatively small southern town, where people aren't as open about these discussions. Our hope is that through this blog, we can better understand one another, and ideally make Lexington a more open and progressive place to live.
We invite you to check it out, and we're also looking for folks to contribute!
Ondine
It’s disturbing to read comments such as, “Who really cares if PETA is calling out fatasses? overweight= unhealthy. Period. If that’s how they want to inspire vegetarianism, so be it.” This was a comment posted earlier today on Twitter by a self-described vegetarian and mother.
Sigh. Where to start? This "fatass" quotation is another example of how vegetarians and women do not have any kind of monopoly on qualities such as sensitivity, empathy, and compassion.
And since I’m on the topic of PeTA and their latest dehumanizing ad campaign, I thought of something else. I have never once heard anything but praise for Captain Paul Watson, who just happens to be a larger person and a vegan —one who is actually in the business of saving whales! I’m willing to bet there are many people who find Capt. Paul Watson a very attractive figure. As I tweeted earlier today, I doubt if Captain Paul Watson is rarely if ever made to feel shame for his size, nor should he! But you know what? There are young boys and girls bullied and verbally abused in school every day. Popular verbal attacks? Fat. Pig. Whale.
It is therefore my view that Ingrid Newkirk and her supporters are bullies (among other things).
Melissa
vegetarianwomen.com/blog
This video came along my way while browsing you-tube. Lady Gaga is asked questions towards her sexual references in her music. She responds with explaining if a man was reciting the same lyrics he would be a rock star but because she is a women she is judged. After hearing that i was quite impressed with and yelled GO GIRL!!! Then the question popped up "Are you a feminist?". No i am not i love men.... Since when does being a feminist have to do with hating men... Why is it so hard for some people to just admit they are feminist?
A yahoo! sports blogger writes about ESPN's Erin Andrews' privacy invasion and brings up some excellent points in the process. Short and sweet.
So, Jezebel and I called it quits about a year ago after the start of what I thought could be a promising relationship. The reason for this was, of course, the Thinking and Drinking debacle. However, recently, I picked back up the affair where I had left off, and found the site to be much more appetizing. Sure, it's still first and foremost a site run under a regime of gossip. But pop culture's pervasity makes it a topic worthy of exploring, and I think for the most part Jezebel does it well. The feminist tinge and the Gawker-mandated quantity of posts make for some interesting reading. I have been turned onto a lot of women doing great work through Jezebel, and been alerted to a lot of things relevant to a young feminist. Long story short, it's not so much the quality of content on Jezebel I'm objecting to, it's the weird class structure under which it operates.
In other words....it's still Gawker. And being Gawker, it's got some really creepy-ass habits that I just can't seem to get past. I was weirded out enough by the fact that commenters had to "audition" for the privilege of commenting. But, I didn't comment on Jezebel anyway, nor did I have any immediate plans to, so it didn't really bother me. However, I am big on reading comment threads, and with their recent introduction of "starred" or "featured" commenters and their "best comments of the day" feature, I noticed a trend that is either alarming or just really, really stupid.
Firstly, I am thrilled to be heading to Mills College, a private liberal arts women's college, as a first-year student in the fall. The campus is located in Oakland at the base of the hills of the East Bay. Gorgeous. :) I will be majoring in Art History, with a double-minor in English and Women's Studies, and am very excited to explore this trifecta of subjects.
But, additionally, I am looking forward to better exploring the Bay Area. I've visited San Francisco, Berkeley, and Palo Alto, and I love love love the colorful and ever-progressive culture.
I'm from Eugene, Oregon, a small college city in the Willamette Valley (known for the University, Saturday Market, breweries, excessive coffee shops, organic food, theater, and the commune-like Country Fair). I love my hometown, and I know I will come to love Oakland just as much, but I'm really looking to make the transition as smooth as possible.
So, my question: Where are the best feminist centers (bookstores, cafes, organizations, clubs, events, etc.) in Oakland/San Francisco? Do any of you live in the area and have advice for how to connect and become familiar with the best parts of the city?
I adore Feministing and thought I might utilize the community feature to, well, scope out a new community. ;)
Thank you for your consideration and suggestions!
On any major site, there will be problems with trolls. This is particularly true on a feminist site, where society, media and advertising have twisted the cause into something for frat boys to throw beer cans at. So it's natural for people to be on the lookout. But it's important to keep in mind what a troll is.
Trolls are people who post purposefully ignorant or "controversial" (in the juvenile "I'm gonna offend them all!" sense) messages with the sole intention of stirring up shit. The bolded parts are absolutely crucial. If you don't have them both, you don't have a troll. You may have someone ignorant, someone naive, someone wrong -- but not a troll.
There is no group of people that consists 100% of trolls. You can be sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, sizeist, an MRA, an acai berry spammer (ok, maybe not), whatever, but none of that in and of itself makes you a troll. You start trolling when you start posting dumb, purposefully inflammatory messages just to piss Teh Feminists off.
Hello Feministing Community,
I am currently working at an organization in Chicago and trying to find a media sponser for an event we are planning. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on Chicago or Illinois based progressive blogs/online magazines/newspapers that you read.
Thanks!
In writing in a feminist vein for the last couple months, I've been trying to figure out what kind of feminist I am trying to be, and how to handle the privilege that blinds me, by looking at where other bloggers I admire have fucked up recently and a while back.
As a feminist writer, you can't not fuck up. People are essentially flawed, and even when we should know better, even when we do know better, we offend, oppress, and enact the privileges of our bodies upon problematized bodies. It happens. Maybe it shouldn't, but it does. As a woman of immense privilege, I identify with those that fuck up. I can see myself doing it. Maybe I've done something very like it before. When feminist writers of privilege get called out, it's not bullying (usually) - it's just hard to look at these writers, see where they fucked up, see where I might fuck up, and face it. And I want to be right. I don't want to be a part of the problem.
Feeling my privilege acutely for the first time is a bit like feminist puberty. As when I grew hips, all of a sudden, I realize that I have these adult responsibilities. I am no longer a preadolescent feminist, who can rant against the patriarchy and be righteous and oppressed without recognizing that I'm complicit too. As I was suddenly forced into recognizing sexuality at 13, I am forced to recognize privilege , too. Some may choose to pretend that feminism exists in a vacuum , that it's just about ladies. These folks are refusing to take responsibility for their own participation in a system they decry.
It's not that my privilege never existed before - I just didn't realize that sexism didn't cover all oppression. As I felt fat at 13, I feel bloated with privilege today . I can't just benefit from all kinds of systems of oppressions, be a feminist, and act like it doesn't exist. I can't pretend that I know what it's like to be a trans woman. This limits the conversation I can have - I cannot unilaterally declare that something is heterosexist , and I cannot tell others that they are being victimized.
Suddenly, I'm so aware of my embarrassing, awkward privilege, and I'm self-conscious. I feel like throwing up my hands and walking away, as I walked away from femininity when I was 13 because suddenly being a girl was too hard. That didn't help then (partially because I'm cis ) and it won't help now. I have to face it, and try to negotiate, and accept it when I fuck up. It's a part of being in a conversation in which my privilege should marginalize me , in which I am not the authority.
For a model of white women fucking up responsibly, I turn to Daisy's Dead Air:
And now, I have hit the wall. The delirious happiness of falling in love and honeymooning is over, time to pay the bills. And the hard work has proven very difficult for me to do, or even admit that it needs doing...
And so, I apologize to my transgendered friends for my offenses, for insulting them, for repeating my clueless brainwashed blather wholesale when exhausted and not paying close attention. But where, I wondered, did it come from? How could this be? And I know: there are some things that we will never be able to transcend. Some damage is, unfortunately, permanent. We may compensate for it, we may learn new ways to deal, we may try "recovery" and yes, we may improve. But it is also likely that these things will be perpetually difficult, a constant trial, always confusing. I am willing to take on this trial, but please know, my friends, it is not easy, since I didn't even know it would be necessary in the first place. I thought I had it in the bag! Ha.
Daisy apologizes honestly, and from the very bottom of her heart . Once she realizes that she has fucked up, she takes responsibility and explains how and why she came to fuck up. This kind of introspection is invaluable to young feminists who don't yet realize that feminism is not a get-out-of-racism-free card (or whatever paradigm of oppression). Daisy takes responsibility and directly recounts how and why she is wrong, without whining about being misunderstood. She takes full responsibility for her fuck-ups, and humbly asks for forgiveness from the groups she betrayed. Time and scarcity of charges permitting, I think that this model of sensitivity and responsiveness is ideal, and it's what I hope to swallow my pride and follow when I, inevitably, fuck up.
Crossposted (with some editing) at my blog, Deeply Problematic
I write a mildly feminist, mostly pop culture and arts related blog. Until yesterday, only people I knew actually read it regularly. I've been getting quite a bit of positive feedback, and I want to keep blogging and maybe it'll get big one day.
Last night, someone linked my blog on a thread on 4chan, and everything's exploded. I've got 900 page views and about about 600 diferent viewers since then. Also, 13 comments on individual posts.
Of the blog comments, maybe half of them say anything worthwhile at all (though I may disagree). The rest are trolls of the "make me a sammich" variety. Of the posts in the 4chan thread, maybe 10% is worthwhile.
I fully realize that 4chan is the asshole of the internet. But how do other feminist bloggers deal with that kind of shit? I feel like the whole internet is watching me now- what do I do next?
Hi Friends- Here's a post that I wrote for the Wisecrack: Feminism and Comedy blog, and was encouraged to X-post here at Feministing. I'd love feedback, as I'm still struggling with these issues. I wrote this to clarify "'feminist humor" for people who haven't a clue what that means, but I bet the Feministing crowd might have valuable insight on how to better frame "feminist humor." If anyone is really interested and would like to guest blog about something related to feminism and comedy, please let me know. Thanks, Caitlin ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When I talk about this feminism and humor project, a considerable number of people shift their glance, squirm a bit. Sometimes they smile politely and change the subject. Sometimes they smile and ask what I think of 30 Rock/Roseanne/this one prostitute joke. Once, a guy tried to bait me into an argument over Andrew Dice Clay. (My response: "Yeah... I guess his rise was before my time.") More than once, I've been treated to the "Feminism and comedy? Isn't that an oxymoron?" quip. Zing! Way to prove you know nothing about feminism.
But you can't really blame people for being confuddled, especially if they're not hip to what feminism actually is, compared to its stereotype: angry, male-hating bra-burners with a not-so-secret agenda to lesbianize our daughters, refinish our garage cabinets and rule the world. And these people have jokes?
The internet is littered with "Feminist Humor" sites, only adding to the miseducation. These sites feature anti-male or anti-feminist jokes (like this, this, & this). They were not written or labeled by feminists (we were too busy refinishing our cabinets). But nonetheless, they reinforce the idea that feminism is about putting men down, which, if you're still confused about, isn't true. (There are millions of phenomenal feminist guys!)
Yesterday, I turned sixteen. And I didn't really like it.
I am used to being small and adorable and cute, and I feel a little like these things have been robbed from me now that I am sixteen. Fifteen sounds so innocent. Fifteen is a child. But sixteen- that's an adult. That's a woman.
Well, A strange hybrid of a woman.
Something that someone might mistake for a woman?
...a woman shaped thing?
(Okay, Okay. Fine. Young woman. I am a young woman. Jesus.)
I don't quite remember how I stumbled upon this website, but as I read through the comments on several different blogs, I found out how many mixed feelings I have about feminism and on what it means to be a woman.
I've always kind considered myself some sort of feminist. Mostly, I just say I have a feminist 'side'.
Now, I'm not actually sure what I mean about that. Doesn't that make it sound like my feminist side is separate from me? A separate department of my life? Like I'm some giant grocery store? "Clean up on aisle 'FEMINIST'."
So, I decided, under the anonymous shroud of the internet, I am going to write about my experiences and how they relate to this wonderful, controversial and baffling idea of 'feminism'. And hopefully, I start being able to draw some conclusions on my own.
Thanks for reading,
-Fio.
So, this is my first post and first time on feministing.com
Can I just say that I think this may just about be my new favorite website??? No joke.
Anyway, I am currently reading "The Purity Myth" by Jessica Valenti and I love it. I am only about 50 pages in, but I am already finding myself becoming more fascinated and intrigued with every page I turn. My university's FMLA (feminist majority leadership alliance) chapter gave us the book to read over the summer. Who knew that summer reading could be so enjoyable!
I am really looking forward to coming to NY this summer. I have an internship there, but will of course save time for some of the feministing events ;-)
Just a quick note that some of my fellow women astrophysicist friends/colleagues and I have a new blog up:
We'll be talking about all the aspects of being women in a male-dominated science field. Check it out!
This blog entry could've been so interesting, especially since it was featured on the Yahoo! homepage.
However, when I read it, I grimaced. While these may be bad wedding traditions, they are hardly 'the worst.'
Basically, it just says "waa, I don't want to go to another long, boring wedding or be in an ugly bridesmaid dress."
Excuse me, but I think the worst wedding traditions are:
-The bride being handed off from father to husband.
-The bride being expected to change her last name to match her husband's.
-The phrase "I now pronounce you man and wife/husband and wife/Mr-and-Mrs (his last name). What about same-sex couples? Also, why do we need to be pronounced as such? How about, 'I now pronounced you married?'
-The virginal white dress that is traditional in our current culture.
Anything to add to the REAL 'Worst Wedding Traditions?'
Hey, Feministing!
I'm a longtime follower of Feministing, but this is my first time posting to the community. I would like to let you know I have started a little blog of my own called "I'm Not a Feminist, but..."
As a young, feminist, Midwestern, queer activist I wanted to share my perspective of what it was like to live in the generation of "I'm Not a Feminist, but..."
So, please stop by my blog and let me know what you think!
Thanks,
Rachel Gadd-Nelson
Reading Ted Casablanca's gossip blog on the E! website is an embarrassing guilty pleasure, but I was delighted to see yesterday's update about a supposed altercation between Woody Harroldson and Gloria Steinem. While the "confrontation" is nothing exciting, Ted adds a link to an article at Feminist.com and calls out Hustler Magazine for its pro-rape past.
He's also railed against Twilight infantalizing its female protagonist.
The page is here (and fear not, the comments aren't even upsetting).
Cross-posted from Art of the Possible
Lots of drama, (via). Okay, let's start at the beginning with some vocab: "cis" or "cisgender", (if I am understanding it correctly by way of context as well as this post on Feministe), means that your genetic gender and the way your mind perceives itself gender-wise match up; cisgender people are people who are not transgender or otherwise gender-queer. For a lot of people (including those who are offended by the term), being cis means you are "normal", and I think that perception is what's causing a lot of the drama in Feminist Bloglandia. For some reason, some people just don't understand that pluralism applies to everybody. If we get to live in a pluralistic society and have whatever sexuality we feel is normal or natural, that means everyone else does. And it doesn't stop at sexuality or religion or racial issues, it extends to gender. The funny thing is that feminism started as a gender issue, yet radical feminists are the last people to get on the gender-plurality bandwagon, and stop being assholes to people whose gender doesn't fit in with the binary gender our culture has forced upon us because our biology (mostly) limits us to one or the other.The issue is that some feminists think that trans women aren't women. They get offended at the idea of a woman who was born male using the women's restroom. They think that the woman who was born male really is still male, and so will act like a man, and of course the transwoman, who identifies as a woman, who dresses as a woman, who experiences society as a woman -- who sometimes experiences society on even worse terms that ciswomen because she gets the sexist end of the stick from men and the cissexist end of the stick from some women -- is a woman. Period. We've got all of this shit floating around about what makes a "real" man, what makes a "real" woman; but the large and small of the whole thing is that if you identify as a man, you are a man and if you identify as a woman you are a woman; if you identify as something other than a man or a woman, you are something other than that. And believe it or not people, there are those out there who identify as neither male nor female, or as both; those people exist and they need to be acknowledged as part of society and as part of feminism. Feminism isn't just for women who were born female, who were born white, who were born middle class. Feminism is for the betterment of all women everywhere, and that happens to have a pretty cool side effect (in theory) of making the life better for everyone else who do not identify as women.The real issue here is prejudice... and well, outright hate in some cases. We can't do this. As feminists we can't do this. Those of us who are not transgender/genderqueer need to educate ourselves rather than expecting people who are transgender/genderqueer to do it, thereby othering them (either purposefully or subconsciously). After we get educated, we need to reach out to trans and genderqueer people and tell them we are sorry for excluding them from feminism and from society. These women (and men) are women and men. They experience society differently from cis-people, but part of that is because we make them. That's not fair. And I'll tell you something about forcing someone to experience society differently because you think they deserve it: it's not okay. Men have done it to women because "god" made them bigger and stronger. White people have done it to non-whites because "god" advanced their technology faster so they could colonize the rest of the world. Straight people have done it to gay people because someone's god somewhere said that being gay was "an abomination". And now cis feminists are doing the same fucking thing to trans and genderqueer feminists (as well as poor, nonwhite, etc feminists) because god has made it so their brains and biological gender are the same? Come on. We feminists rail against sexism in all of its forms... but when we start acting like assholes because the people we're being sexist against were born male -- this is okay?Newsflash: it's not. Sexism is wrong. Racism is wrong. Homophobia is wrong. Transphobia is wrong. Cissexism is wrong. We can't play this game, feminism. We can't cut people out like this. It's only going to make our job as feminists harder and our world uglier for all women.People don't get to be treated well because they were lucky enough to be born "normal"; you treat people well because it's the right thing to do.
T.E.N. is working to fight this unthinkable reality by helping survivors rebuild their lives, as well as working to stop slavery in high-risk areas before it starts. One of the ways that T.E.N. empowers these women is by helping them to learn new skills and sell their handicrafts through the Made By Survivors store, helping them develop a sustainable income.
In order to raise more awareness for this cause, I'm holding a giveaway on my blog for a gorgeous necklace handmade by a survivor in Bangkok. Anyone can enter just by leaving a comment - so if you'd like a chance to win free swag and learn more about this important organization, you can do so by clicking here.
Stay updated on the latest choice news at our blog!
It takes a lot of courage to willingly put yourself out there as a blogger. Feministing.com has recently allowed a whole slew of us to take a step into the blogosphere, but a strange cadence has emerged.
...I apologize for any difficultly in following or the sheer length of the post.
.... if I missed something, my apologies for the double posting.
Sorry for the rant...
Notice a trend?
And these examples are by no means the only ones, merely the most recent. This is not an attack on the aforementioned posters, because their posts were wonderful, but rather a commentary on the community forum as a whole. Community posters, the things you write on the community blog are pertinent, well crafted, insightful, and DESERVE to be there. Those with dissenting opinions, and women in particular, have been taught to apologize for their presence and general tendency to speak their minds. Please fight this! It is something I personally try to unlearn each and every day, and even our wonderful full-time feministing bloggers struggle with the over-apologizing-syndrome, as Courtney has recently noted .
So this is a call to make your posts bold, kick-ass, and, most importantly, unapologetic .
Last weekend I posted asking for help with talking points for a column I was writing about Women's History Month. I appreciate all the feedback.
I thought I would offer a link to the finished column for all to read and (ahem) enjoy.
The column I write is usually only about 750 words and I wanted to cover a lot of different topics, so I couldn't go quite as deep into each one as I would have liked. But that may be for the best, as the general population of a college campus might not want to read an overly-detailed take on these issues.
Thanks. :)
Dear Feministers,
New Blog desifeminists.wordpress.com is up. we welcome any "desi" feminists to contribute to the blog, and all feminists to continue critical discussions. Drop by!
While bored and rummaging through the blogosphere the other evening I came across this blog . The author talks about her own experiences with anxiety and the extra baggage that comes with being a woman with anxiety.
An excerpt from the post...
There are many things though I hear, even from other women, about anxiety in general. They are stereotypical and completely incorrect. In general, many of them are used as stereotypes against women as ways to dismiss them.
Just the thought made me mad.. not mad at the author but mad at society for finding ways to 'dismiss' real problems as just 'feminine issues', like PMS (which she talks about).
I'd actually suggest anyone who has anxiety or knows someone with severe anxiety read the blog and not just the one post (start from the beginning or some references may leave you clueless). It is a very keen look into the mind of someone who has an anxiety disorder and the fight they go through knowing what they feel is irrational but not being able to reconcile it with how they should feel.
A new blog! Myself and a few friends started Women's Glib a couple weeks ago. Our mission is to make feminism easy, witty, and accesible for young people, particularly other high school students.
Come on by, we'd love the support and readership.
This coverage, from the Women's Media Center on the recent conference in D.C. to bring together bloggers and mainstream feminist groups is really interesting. Shireen Mitchell, of Digital Sistas is quoted in the article as one the primary organizers of the gathering. Women like Eleanor Smeal and Kim Gandy spoke at the conference as well, joking about themselves as "older" and more like the "1.0 version" when it comes to online presence. Bloggers could comment while speakers presented, and asked questions like, "Why haven't you reached out to us?"
From my own experience in some maintstream feminist orgs, state and national, I think that one of the main issues these groups have to tackle in order for a good relationship to develop with bloggers is that of control . Blogosphere is a free, somewhat ugly place at times, with trolls and miscommunicated messages, and for some founders of movements, there is simply too much risk that a message to promote something would get co-opted, changed, altered or taken away from them. But as Peggy Simpson points out in this article, bloggers are not constrained by office rental space, super-funding sources, or in most cases adhering to a grant/funders requirements for work. This makes me think of many of the issues raised in The Revolution Will Not Be Funded , and the freedom and responsibility that is increasingly falling to feminist bloggers to keep movements and energy alive as other groups struggle with finances. I can do this during my lunch hour of my not-so-revolutionary-job and join voices with all of you. That feels powerful.
What do others think? Any feministing folks go to this conference? Any impressions?
This is an interesting blog I found on Women and Skepticism, trying to find an answer to the question "Why are there not more women skeptics?" The author outlines a brief history of Womens' contributions to skepticisim. Among some other ideas, she broached the idea that skeptics have the potential to be mostly men, 'macho' and condescending, and that women are turned off by that, and would rather spend their time with their supportive friends who believe in the paranormal than hang around a bunch of rude men they agree with.
I've had this problem, and not all skeptic communities are very good. I've had some bad experiences with the Rational Response Squad, which might be said to be more of a militant atheist group than a skeptic society. But their tactics involve ridiculing debate opponents, and I don't agree with that at all. Ad hominem attacks are rarely a good idea. The debate we were having was over feminism and chivalry. I suggested that treating someone in an overly kind and chivalrous way just because you desire to have sex with them, and then getting angry at them when they're not interested is sexist and patriarchal. It was infuriating to hear a group of otherwise intelligent human beings spew the most sexist s***.
Greetings to all, first post here.
I live in Japan and work in the international relations office of Yokosuka, a city hosting an American naval base.
Recently, a conversation with my Japanese boss drew out an observation I couldn't resist posting here. Boss, who has excellent English skills and loves showing them off, was discoursing to a captive mealtime audience on gendered nouns in English...ships and cities, for example, are "she"...
Me, inserting with grin: "English is a sexist language, so ships and cities are about it. Most everything else is assumed to be male."
Boss, almost tripping on his enthusiastic agreement: "Yes! Absolutely! When I was first studying English [note: about 35 years ago], I saw that the basic versions of nouns were usually male...waiter/waitress, steward/stewardess etc...but then I came across widow/widower, and I thought, boy, that's weird! The original noun is female only for bad or unlucky things."
Huh...I had never noticed that one before.
I know I should stop being dismayed at boingboing's consistent celebration of misogynist gadgets, but really ? (I'm not including the picture on principle).
The title of the image is "unusual mp3 player." No its not unusual, its misogynist, and boingboing's lack of commentary is a more than an implicit rave review.
Cross-posted from Art of the Possible .
In light of the fact that Christmas and New Years are over and it is now time to move on to the next corporate holiday (Valentine's) we have this fun little article care of Frisky via CNN (via Salon Broadsheet ). Headline, "Why women shouldn't say 'I love you' first ". Was your first thought, as a woman "well, if I don't say it, who will?" Well, you're naive.
"...but at the risk of having my feminist card revoked, I think it's naïve for a woman to utter those three little words before a man does."
Why is that, Wendy?
"And the truth is, it often takes men longer to get there than it does for women. Men process their emotions more slowly, they're usually more cautious about taking their feelings and relationships to the next level."
Ooooooh. Now, aside from the broad stereotyping (well, and the gent stereotyping), what is wrong with this sentence? Elsewhere in the article, Wendy goes on about how it's okay to be rejected when you ask a guy out or make a move on him (she even green-lights women to propose to their man -- which, I don't see as being all that different circumstantially than saying the L-word first), but somehow it's not so okay to risk rejection by expressing your emotions to a guy you're getting serious with. Er?
I recently found a new blog through the other physics blogs I read: On Becoming a Domestic and Laboratory Goddess .
I often stay away from blogs by women in science and academia because they fill me with regret. I declined going to grad school in favor of becoming a volunteer teacher, and then got my masters degree in education instead of physics. When I did my thesis on gender and science education I realized I was now one of THOSE women, who left a male dominated field (physics) for a more female-friendly field (education). These blogs often make me feel like I am less because I didn't soldier on in academia.
I just read Dr. Isis's latest entry Ask Dr. Isis , and it was still painful to read but it also filled me with feelings of solidarity. We (women in any science field) all struggle with this, and it's not just the impossibly tough and perfect ones who survive in academia. Thank you Dr. Isis for giving us a glimpse of your confusion. It helps other women with their own confusion, too.
First of all, a shameless plug: feminist students at Old Dominion University now have a Feminism is for Everyone page (UVA also has one) - with frequent contributors. Our intent is to make it a community blog, where feminists from the area and our school can blog with us.
If you could, share the link with everyone, as we need more visitors.
Also, from now on, I will be posting both on here and on the page. Check it out and do whatever you can to help us promote this, please. Below is the link and my first post. There will be more features and developments to come!
Recently, with the nomination of Sarah Palin as the GOP's vice-presidential candidate and the historic run by Hillary Clinton, I've been confronted by many people who beg the question: why do we need feminism anymore, now that women have achieved equal rights and can do all that men can do?
I have a postcard posted on PostSecret this week, and that kind of makes me giggle, but this one just makes me sad. It's hard to read the handwriting behind the image, but it seems like it just unfairly blames a lot of things on feminism, like the alleged rise in popularity of the one-night stand. Depressing.
So a bunch of girls on my myspace keep posting this stupid survey.. you have to mark your "x"s then talley them up and calculate how much you are a girl.
MY BOY SIDE:
[] you love hoodies
[] you love jeans
[ ] dogs are better then cats
[ ] its hilarious when people get hurt
[ ] you've played with/against boys on a team
[ ] shopping is torture
[ ] sad movies suck
[ ] you own a XBOX
[]you played with Hot Wheels as a little kid
[ ]at some point in life you wanted to be a firefighter
[ ] you owned a DS PS2 or Sega
[] you used to be obsessed with Power Rangers
[ ]you watch sports on TV
[ ] gory movies are cool
[ ] you go to your dad for advice
[ ] you own like a trillion baseball hats
[] you used to/do collect baseball/football collector cards
[] baggy sweatpants are nice to wear
[ ]its kind of weird to have sleepovers with a bunch of people
[] green, black, red, blue, or silver are one of your favorite colors
[] sports are fun all the time / some times
[] you sometimes talk with food in your mouth
[ ] you sleep at night with your socks on
[] you have fished at least once
TOTAL=
MY GIRL SIDE
[] you like to shop
[] you wear eyeliner
[] you love the color pink
[] you go to your mom for advice
[ ] you consider cheerleading a sport
[] you hate wearing all black
[] you like going to the mall
[] you like getting manicures and/or pedicures
[] you like wearing jewelry
[] you cried watching The Notebook
[ ] skirts are a big parts of your wardrobe
[] shopping is one of your favorite hobbies
[] you don't like the movie Star Wars
[] you are/were in gymnastics
[] it takes you around one hour to shower and get dressed
[] you smile alot more than you should
[] you have more than 10 pairs of shoes
[] you care about what you look like majority of the time
[ ] you like wearing dresses when ever you can
[] you like wearing body spray/deodorant
[ ] you like high heel shoes
[] you used to play with dolls as a kid
[] you like putting makeup on others
[] you like being the star of almost everything
[] pink is one of your favorite colors
total=
FUCKING STUPID. I honestly can't believe girls do this and don't see that it is completely sexist.
Undoubtably you will, at some point, read something on a blog that you disagree with in a serious manner. It goes with the territory of being in a community, online or in person. When you disagree with your grandmother, however, you generally take a moment to think about how you will react. Perhaps you won't say anything, maybe you'll gently let her know that you don't agree with her. Maybe it's your best friend, or significant other that you find yourself on the brink of an argument with, seconds away from saying something you'll regret- but you manage to not blow up.
Dear Greg,
I just read your post comparing Barack Obama to a "really hot chick". I must say that I am dismayed and disgusted at your allegories. Must have been a slow news day eh? I have heard some pretty obscure arguments, but you my friend, take the cake. First, as an Obama supporter, I am outraged that you would belittle a prominent figure to that extent. I myself, critical of Palin, was disgusted at the repeated references to her as a VPILF, because I felt it belittled what talent she may have. To belittle a man who has taken himself from nothing to being inches away from the White House, who has inspired more Americans to be good to others and hopeful for the future, and put that on a stripper pole? Who the hell do you think you are? You blog for Fox? Wow, impressive.
I've recently been thinking about a lot of the sites I view through links on feministing and things I link to in my own life. If I'm using a link to "monitor the enemy" I don't want to give them hits that improve Google's results status. The teen breaks site linked to on the main page claims to appear on Google before any abortion clinic when you search for "teenage pregnancy." (I tried. And went through four pages. And didn't see it. But this is neither here nor there...)
I've been thinking about this because I use threaded discussions that are exactly like blog commenting sections in an online class I teach. In my experience when the topic is a controversial or emotionally engaging one (as it often is in Contemporary Moral Issues, and here on Feministing), the comments and responses can get pretty heated and snarky. I often find that, in this kind of situation, people will say things to and about each other that they would never say if that person was physically present. So this semester we brainstormed and arrived at a new rule which the class named Thumper's Rule for Blogs. It goes like this: If you wouldn't say that to my face, then don't say it at all.
I'm a bit of a pop culture junkie, and clearly I'm also a feminist. Therefore, I was interested to read a post on Entertainment Weekly's popwatch blog from a writer debating the merits of showing her niece Sleeping Beauty. She asks "How do you handle Sleeping Beauty?" and while there are some intelligent comments, the rest bring to mind the article in this issue of Bitch entitled Lowest Comment Denominator. Confession: I haven't read the article yet. I skimmed it while waiting in line at the book store. However, my point is that we at Feministing are so fortunate to have such honest, insightful discussions (excluding the occasional Troll) and I wanted to thank you all for that. Yay us!
Fortissimo (ff) is a magazine that challenges norms in consumerist and patriarchal worlds. Formerly a school project, it now continues as a blog. Please download the first (and only) issue and check the blog. Join the Facebook group and promote it if you think it's good enough.
I just started a new co-operative blog with my friends! It's called City of Ladies, after a Renaissance feminist text I just read for a research paper. Check it out here!
(I've made the inaugural post - it's an analysis of a pro-Israel mailer I got in the mail.)
A friend forwarded this blog written by her coworker. Its hilarious and a great read. Enjoy.
This is kind of in relation to my last blog titled "Women's Ed" I would like to speak out about how hard it is being a young feminist. A few people have probably already blogged about this before, but I feel that I MUST make myself heard.
Being 13 I understand there is a bit of controversy surrounding the fact that 13 year olds haven't experienced the real prejudice that women are faced with in the "real world" but to heck with it; I understand a hell of a lot more than most 13 year olds so on with it!
Cross-posted (slightly edited) to The Mind of Genevieve
So, I read a lot of blogs, mostly of the feminist/progressive sort. And being an observant person, I've come to see a lot of the same sort of behavior from 'dissenters' in comment threads. One of the most common patterns:
Feminist [/anti-racist/fat activist/LGBT rights] Blogger: This degrades women [/people of color/fat people/LGBT people]
Privileged Trolls: Nuh-uh ! My fiancee[best friend/co-worker/brother]'s a woman[/black/fat/gay], and [sie]'s not offended by it!
It's really, really easy to scoff at this kind of crap. Possibly because we see it all the time. People don't like having their privilege called into question, so whenever anyone does, they have to assert that we're all talking out of our asses so that they can go on mindlessly consuming their various forms of pop culture in peace.*
So, I have varying levels of in-head meanness towards these trolls, and from meanest to nicest (and even my nicest isn't totally nice):
I just wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude for this site and all of the wonderful women who run it and all of the women before, famous or not, who spoke and called it like it is/was.
I used to be one of those women who would say, "I'm not a feminist, but..." I never wanted to be labeled as a bitch or a lesbian or, *gasp* too non-conformist. One other reason I didn't want to be labeled as a feminist is because I wanted my point of view to be heard and it seemed to be that once the "f" word was out there, my argument was no longer being heard. I don't even remember when I first became aware that being female meant something about me was deficient. I was the sometimes-tomboy who was always trying to beat the boys while wearing pink jellies and bangles from my wrist to my elbow. I remember watching Point of No Return in my early teens and longing to become an assassin. I even cut my hair like Bridget Fonda's. I was decent at sports and competitive in the classroom. And yet, it seemed that I was constantly having to prove myself over and over again to my male peers.
I have always been pretty open and frank about sex and strangely, I escaped the slut label, despite having more than one sexual partner in high school. I always thought that was strange, especially since other girls who had slept with fewer guys did not escape the slut label.
I have no idea what this post was supposed to be about, but I wanted to connect in some way with other feminists and share a little about myself and also to confess that I was one of those women belittling other women, one of the Female chauvinist Pigs...and to apologize and say that I have reformed.
(Doesn't "Edition" make it sound like i've posted before and know what i'm talking about?, yes it does)
I saw that Brooke Hogan video ( It was posted here too recently) posted up at perezhilton.com a few days ago and after my initial outrage wore off I decided to take a look at the comments posted about it there. Normally the comments on that sight are pretty hate-filled, vapid and ridiculous (not to mention misogynistic) so I was pretty happy to see that every one of the commenters there were utterly disgusted with Brooke's sexist statements and thought she was a complete moron...., and, of course, a ..."cunt". It was so weird how the majority of the comments there were condemning Brooke's ignorant sexism while peppered with insults aimed at her of the "whore" "bitch" and skankmuffin variety. I find the sentence "way to set the women's movement back fifty years, cunt." kind of ironic. And i'm pretty sure it wasn't being used in the let's-take-back-the-word sort of way.
As for why I was on perezhilton.com in the first place.... MY FINGERS SLIPPED I SWEAR.
Okay, so before I begin my blogging... i figured a brief explanation of who I am may be appropriate. I am currently just starting my last year of undergrad for Women's and Gender Studies. I am very involved with the social justice movement, and am proud to say that I am a feminist. I am the ecofeminism coordinator at my campus' Women's Center and just recently finished about 58 hours of training in rape, sexual assault and domestic violence. Starting this fall I will finally be able to apply my knowledge by presenting lectures and meetings to fellow peers, community members and professors.
Needless to say, I have a pretty awesome life. BUT, I've decided to dedicate this blog to all of the amazingly ignorant and awful things that have come out of peoples mouths.
Seeing that its summer, I am not working on campus and have managed to grab myself a job as a receptionist at a plumbing company, and well... there is always a great story at the end of the day that I can't wait to tell my feminist friends. I also have a very ignorant, sexist, racist step-father (whom I hate, naturally) and every time I return home, there is always a fight and always something idiotic that comes out of his mouth.
So, I'm gunna share the wealth. I need to rant, and I need to feel more connected with my fellow feminists, as these past few months I have encountered a world that doesnt exist within a social justice bubble, and well... It totally sucks. So, here are my rants, and feel free to comment, laugh, cry and be frustrated with me.
And finally, every single one of you feministing readers totally rock. You are all amazing men and women.
