Movie Review – Ginger Snaps – delivers what it promises. It’s a movie review of a film with feminist themes.
Megan tried to open a business called ‘The Center for Sexual Pleasure and Health’ and was well on her way until anonymous emails scared the Pawtucket zoning board. The hearing was surreal, with probing questions about yoga and reptiles. That was before Megan’s case even came up. It only got stranger from there… http://kmareka.com/2009/12/01/no-satisfaction-from-the-zoning-board/
Does the Mall make you swear a lot? It’s the X-mas spirit. Thank the gods it only comes once a year. http://kmareka.com/2009/12/13/no-truck-with-x-mas/
I wrote about an infuriating claim made by the local pop station’s morning show host that women’s rights activists have been largely silent on the issue of Chris Brown beating Rihanna, because he thinks we just think Chris Brown is hot. I’m looking for women who’ve been in heterosexual relationships to take a poll about whether or not they’ve experienced misogyny in these partnerships, and to what degree. N wonders what the <a href="http://ethecofem.wordpress.com/2009/12/15/3-options/"real reason is for the Obama administration not prosecuting the Bush administration for war crimes. New poll, where I just want to know if readers identify as a feminist.
Liberation Won’t Be Gained On Behalf of ‘Others’ Indirectly attacking women who wear hijab–whether by choice or not–is counter-intuitive to the promotion of freedom of speech and expression, as it positions veiled women in a double bind of silence whereby they are declared as having been duped by their culture or faith (and are, therefore, unfit to speak) and denies them agency in shaping their own lives. I’m Rooting for the Aliens Do the visitors on V seem more alien by virtue of their female leader and apparent lack of sexism? Or is the show merely setting up the 21st-century version of the Krystle/Alexis catfight? Bound by Raw Survival: Working Class Women Writers An Angle of Vision demonstrates the necessity of people from marginalized communities (particularly those who wind up in academia) to speak for themselves and present a version of their existence unfettered by stereotype and cliché. Disability Archetypes: Supercrip Supercrip provides a way for non-disabled folks to be “inspired” by persons with disabilities without actually questioning—or making changes to—how persons with disabilities are treated in society. A Glimpse of Life in Flux Varghese’s first narrative feature film, Bombay Summer follows in the footsteps of the director’s two previously released documentary films in presenting an intimate perspective of one of the world’s most populous and rapidly developing cities.
Many discussions about politics in Latin America leave feminism out, as discussions of feminism in general are often limited to the U.S. and Europe. Perhaps it is for this reason that I immediately warmed to Feminist Agendas and Democracy in Latin America, but it was the content and style that kept me reading. When I was diagnosed with Stage II invasive ductile carcinoma, I was angry not just because I now had cancer, but because no one seemed to be talking about its causes or, better yet, prevention. When my husband spied an opportunity for me to review From Pink to Green: Disease Prevention and the Environmental Breast Cancer Movement, I jumped at the chance: finally, someone was addressing prevention. Working with fair trade women’s cooperatives and artisan groups that employ individual women who work either from home or in collective spaces to create handmade clothing in safe conditions while earning a living wage, Mata Traders contributes to a growing consumer trend of fighting the worldwide feminization of poverty by “giving women economic power and viable working skills [in order to] transform a community (and so the world).”
Military Abortion Ban: Female Soldiers Not Protected by Constitution They Defend: Obviously there is inherent sexism in this ruling and yet this women are expected to give their lives if necessary. Christmas At The White House Failure: Michelle Obama used the word lame to describe Barack’s lip synching talents. Despite the fact that this was clearly ableist language it went unnoticed. Chuck Norris: ObamaCare, The Virgin Mary and Slut Shaming, Wow That’s A Trifectar: Looking at the levels that neo-cons will sink to, to fight choice for women. Illegals In My Yard: A Conservative Christmas Carol: Looking at the ways in which racism is a huge part of the debate surrounding immigration. Bulimia Study: “Treat Blacks” and “Treat Bulimia as an Addiction”: Looking at the ways in which race and class effect who gets diagnosed and treated.
This week in Evil Slutopia: We debunked yet another part of the AFA’s Christmas boycott, we told Joe Lieberman to suck it and we made fun of Cosmo not once but twice (first just for being Cosmo and then again for slut-shaming Daisy de la Hoya). We also promoted some of our holiday merchandise and greeting cards (today is the last chance to get orders in by Dec. 25).
The Leap Year trailers struck a nerve. I don’t know why I thought the movie would be bearable, but when I saw a new trailer, which promised a new level of desperation…I was really annoyed: http://winsomeicarus.blogspot.com/2009/12/in-which-i-lose-more-friends-potential.html
Responses from Target and McDonald’s: I share the form letter responses i received from both companies regarding the discrimination, and discuss why it doesn’t fix anything. Fuzz Therapy: fluffy kitty picture!!!! Random post: Jack Frost or Jack Frost: i reminisce about the time my stepdad brought home what he thought was a family movie… Hell, I wouldn’t mind some hot sex for MY birthday: discussing how people often suggest women give sex to their male significant other as a present, and why it’s problematic.
I was commissioned by the Louvre museum & the French TV network ARTE to make a short film for their “4 Semaines” (“4 Weeks”) multimedia project. I made a short documentary about beauty ideals in the arts vs. mass media. The video is available here: http://louvre.arte.tv/2009/12/la-femme-ideale-nexiste-pas/
Is it better to focus art inward, or outward? I reflect on my recent show and think about the value of art. Who decides what is Jewish? The British supreme court ruled on a landmark school-admittance case, which has prompted quite a bit of discussion about determining one’s religious status.
I wrote about the feminist who believes <a href="http://zeitgeistbitches.blogspot.com/2009/12/nb-sex-positive-doesnt-equal-sexually.html"sex positive women are just "sexually available" to men.
This week on Yes Means Yes Blog: Absence of Harm, a discussion of recent research that finds casual sex is not, in fact, psychologically damaging. I end up linking back to a host of earlier parenting posts on Yes Means Yes Blog. Also, though I was a day late with it, I marked the International Day To End Violence Against Sex Workers.
You wouldn’t believe just how bad sex writing can be, even from some of our most esteemed novelists. I took a close look at the link between lousy writing, misogyny, and the author’s gender in the Literary Review’s recent Bad Sex in Writing awards. Bouncing off Jill’s post on a Catholic ER nurse who’s suing her employer for “forcing” her to assist in an abortion, I speculated on the likely medical situation of the pregnant woman who needed an abortion, which the lawsuit is trivializing. I weighed in on how James Chartrand’s cross-gender posing didn’t just reveal sexism at work; it also showed how much gender can be a pure social construction, and how motherhood remains an obstacle to women being treated fairly as workers.
Talulah Mankiller wrote about poop. So I had to, too. Pondered a bit about family support systems. Responding to a clip of QI I saw a while back.
Why Do We Need to Believe that Men Are Inept? Patriarchal societies limit the areas where women can apply themselves and excel to the private sphere. Kinder, Küche, Kirche (Children, Kitchen and Church) are considered specifically female pursuits. The sphere of Church does not, of course, need women as pastors. they are only needed as sheep ready for indoctrination. Continue reading here: http://clarissasbox.blogspot.com/2009/12/why-do-we-need-to-believe-that-men-are.html What Women Need According to Washington Post http://clarissasbox.blogspot.com/2009/12/what-women-need-according-to-wapo.html
On James Chartrand: I weigh in on the Men with Pens story, and what the internet’s anonymity could mean for identity politics and male privilege.
this week — just last night! — i tried to think about how race plays into my reaction to getting sexually harassed in a cab.
Small linguistic observations on “y’all” vs “you guys” and Internet acronyms. Why my boyfriend always takes out the trash
This week at re: Cycling, we wrote about the New York Times piece about marketing menopause, period pride t-shirts, frequency of menstrual pain in teens, tampon crafts for the holidays, the Cycle Sisters Manifesta (guest post by Kaitlyn Elliott), Pfizer’s attempt to have opposing counsel’s video press release removed from YouTube, the first toxic shock death attributed to an IUD, freezing menstrual stem cells for future beauty products (guest post by David Linton), the role of health literacy in the Prempro and WHI stories, and a German teen magazine explaining that “every vulva is different”.
This week at Happy Bodies: Dementors: Lisa on how we talk about non-neuro-typical people, particularly family members with autism. I found some science!: Jill learns the exact right measurements to be beautiful! Bulimia study that says “treat blacks”: on what we don’t know about how women of color experience eating disorders skinny vs. fat: how we pin the two against eachother in a way that undermines body positivity.
From least to most recent, I wrote about an anti-sex trafficking organization’s leader who let it slip that he thinks prostitutes live “nasty, immoral” lives. I have a little list of google search tips, and I hate to brag since I didn’t invent google, but I think they are pretty good anyway. I found an interesting interview about Sweden and Karl Rove, but it probably won’t interest anyone besides sex workers’ rights types. Looking through the New York Times’ archive is always fun, and has a gold mine of anti-feminism from our collective past. Finally, just today I posted about reclaiming words and how hate works throughout all the land…..
This is my first attempt at feminist blogging. So far, I’ve just blogged about things I like, such as The Office, Legend of Zelda and Warped tour. Comments or input are welcome! Go easy, though, I’m new!
Last week, on Beauty Schooled: Why the American Apparel employee eyebrow policy is so creepy: http://beautyschooledproject.com/2009/12/15/eyebrows-made-in-america-extra-credit/ I weigh in on the teacher who cut her first grader’s braid, and the four-year-old getting suspended for his haircut: http://beautyschooledproject.com/2009/12/17/is-it-a-dress-code-or-a-body-code/ Twiggy gets photoshopped into fashion: http://beautyschooledproject.com/2009/12/18/twiggy-olay-ad-glossed-over/ Thanks for reading!
I wrote posts! I would be on Team Jacob,, about the crazy that is New Moon. Why I don’t want to go back in time, about Louis CK’s opinions on being white. By now I was supposed to be married to Elijah Wood,, about Up in the Air. Enjoy!
A post left over from last week talking about my gradual introduction to gaming, including a brief discussion of a couple of things I found problematic.
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year comes without consumer excess in a piece I wrote entitled, The Simple Joys of a Reduced Christmas Season
Nothing Says Happy Holidays Like Domestic Violence: An epic fail from Hallmark. Whedon’s Feminist Cred Intact: Fans of “Dollhouse” seem to be pretty clear about the meaning of the show and what it can bring attention to in the real world.
This week I talked about the group of misogynistic articles that came out about atheism last week and the reaction of the atheist blogosphere. http://austintotamu.blogspot.com/2009/12/back.html
I wrote an article about the secret lives of beautiful women and discovered that (surprise, surprise), even the most conventionally beautiful women are recognised as such only when they engage in feminine beauty rituals (long hair, high heels, make-up and so on).
I co-founded an online magazine for young, urban, professional women in the Toronto area. It’s feminist! Dollmag.ca
This week our contributor looks at whether sheer numbers of female law school grads will change the face of private practice. http://canadianwomenandthelaw.blogspot.com/2009/12/since-im-ontario-lawyer-i-get-copy-of.html
Hey all! Here’s what’s been going on at Gender Across Borders: What a Climate Deal (or Lack Thereof) Means for Women about the Copenhagen Summit Top Ten Healthiest and Unhealthiest Songs in the U.S.—see what songs you’re listening to promote healthy relationships or unhealthy relationships Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) Situation Report: Women and HIV/AIDS Also, check out our series on Women, Art, & War that took place Thursday and Friday (December 17 & 18)! Read, discuss, and comment on the articles! Don’t forget to leave your links in our weekly Global Feminist Link Love, which runs every Monday at 1pm CST!
I don’t have a blog, but did want to share this. The organization I’m working with just posted some work I did on the top women’s jobs and the pay rates for 2008. The top occupation for women is admin/secretary and men working full time as administrators make about $100 more a week than women in that occupation do. Proving, of course, that feminism is just SO irrelevant to today’s world /sarcasm. The website is here: http://www.wowonline.org/ The report is on the front page and here: http://www.wowonline.org/documents/WomensWorkin2008_Report.pdf
I’ve been posting a lot more about men and feminism lately but two really important ones for me are * Jessica Valenti Asks an Elementary Question About Men, Alcohol, and Sexual Assault and, relatedly * Men, Alcohol, and Sexual Assault: A Policy Proposal Modeled on the Successful Drunk-Driving Awareness Initiatives figleaf
Brittany Murphy died. She was a young woman who died, and that is all we really need to know. Why ‘What People Think’ Matters. How other people’s perceptions of your disability status can affect your self care and your life. Why the APOs are a pain in the ass, and why the shouldn’t be.