Feminism

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    Feminist Daily News

  • FDA Approves Single-Dose Plan B Emergency Contraceptive

    The US Food and Drug Administration has approved a single-pill version of the Plan B emergency contraceptive, which is currently available as a two-pill dose. Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd announced yesterday (see

  • Obama Appoints Regina Benjamin as Surgeon General

    President Obama announced yesterday his appointment of Regina Benjamin, MD to the position of surgeon general. The President commented that Dr. Benjamin, who has lost relatives to diabetes, high blood pressure, and blood cancer, has a deep understanding of the health needs facing the United States. ...

  • Sotomayor Hearings Commence

    Judge Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings for the United States Supreme Court began yesterday. Though the first day of hearings was dominated by the Senate Judiciary Committee's opening statements, Sotomayor made a brief introductory statement at the close of the proceedings. In her opening ...

  • Law Protecting Clinic Buffer Zone Upheld

    The US 1st Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a Massachusetts law on Friday, allowing a 35-foot safety buffer zone between protestors and abortion clinic entrances. The law, established in 2007, protects clinic patients and staff from harassment. Five anti-choice protesters

  • Appeals Court Rules Pharmacists Can't Refuse Plan B

    The US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last week that pharmacists in Washington State must dispense Emergency Contraception (EC), also known as Plan B, even if they have personal religious objections to the medication. The ruling overturned a temporary injunction from the US District Court in Sea...
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    Strong Girls

  • Left Out of Leadership!

    Dr. Janet Rose
    20 Nov 2009 | 11:55 am
    Today the Washington Post ran an informative article entitled: Our leadership crisis: Where are the women? This timely article states that according to the Whitehouse Benchmark Project on Women, the majority of Americans are comfortable with women leading in all sectors. The bad news is that women hold only 18% of leadership positions across the 10 sectors examined in this project, including politics, business, law, sports, academia, journalism, religion, film/TV, nonprofit, and military. This current research indicates that women continue to be under-represented in all arenas in the halls of…

  • Gender-Bias Live!

    Dr. Janet Rose
    19 Nov 2009 | 1:16 pm
    So, I meet this interesting man on an airplane last month, a superintendent, and we engage in a great conversation about education, our goals, our successes and failures. As our flight ends and we part, we agree to keep in touch and he offers to mentor me in my quest to move into a superintendent’s position. We also discuss the possibility of co-authoring a book together. I excitedly tell two people about this chance meeting…a man I am dating and my mother. Both reply “He probably just wants to have sex with you”.I have an interview for a superintendent’s position. I feel it goes…

  • Teach Your Girls To Tinker

    Dr. Janet Rose
    12 Nov 2009 | 11:02 am
    Girls now surpass boys in nearly every measure of academic success.Yet, even as girls open new gender gaps by outpacing their male peers in most subjects, men still receive roughly 77 percent of the bachelor’s degrees awarded in engineering and 85 percent of those in computer science. Why aren’t girls choosing to enter these critical fields of the future? A Study reviewed in Education Week (November 11,2009) entitled "Teaching Girls To Tinker" indicates that the number of females choosing careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics is low because girls are not encouraged…

  • How Much Is That Doggie In The Window?

    Dr. Janet Rose
    9 Nov 2009 | 2:21 pm
    How much is that doggie in the window?The one with the wagglely tail.How much is that doggie in the window?I do hope that doggie's for sale.Today I was having lunch with two male adminstrators and we began talking about finances. I was amazed when both of these men stated that they manage all the finances in their families. They also stated that their wives have never written a check or paid a household bill! I was shocked. "What", I asked, "will they do should something awful happen to one of you?" This conversation prompted me to ask a few other staff and I found many similar responses. I…

  • Parental Impact on Educational Outcomes...Revisited!

    Dr. Janet Rose
    8 Nov 2009 | 8:35 am
    I was reading a study the other day about the effects of poverty on the educational success of our children (The Impact of Poverty on Educational Outcomes for Children,Ferguson,Bovaird,and Mueller,2007) and was once again reminded of the powerful impact of parents' messages on our children. This study shared that "Children from low-income families often do not receive the stimulation and do not learn the social skills required to prepare them for school. Typical problems are parental inconsistency (with regard to daily routines and parenting), frequent changes of primary caregivers, lack of…
 
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    Wikio - Feminism

  • Palestine: Gaza Reading Club Learns About Kindle (Global Voices Online)

    20 Nov 2009 | 8:15 am
    In Gaza, the members of the Qattan Foundation Reading Club were recently introduced to the Kindle, and photos have been posted on the club's blog [Ar].Source : Global Voices Online (subscribe)Explore : Politics, World

  • Fundamental Conflict Between Rape As Crime Second Only To Murder And Proceeding When Other Person's Willingness Not Certain (abyss2hope: A rape survivor's zigza)

    20 Nov 2009 | 7:42 am
    Since I started blogging over 3 and half years ago I have watched many people who claim that rape is a crime second only to murder or who use some other way of expressing that they find rape to be horrific quickly shift the focus away from this belief to finding most victims of rape to be at fault for their own rapes. This gives us statements such as inviting trouble , deserved rape and many...Source : abyss2hope: A rape survivor's zigza (subscribe)Explore : Health, Mental Health and Behavior

  • Branded: The Good. The Bad. The Ugly. (Brutal Women)

    20 Nov 2009 | 7:41 am
    New guest blog post up at Ecstatic Days: Branded: The Good. The Bad. The Ugly.Source : Brutal Women (subscribe)

  • Transgender Day of Remembrance (Salon.com)

    20 Nov 2009 | 7:21 am
    Today is the eleventh annual Transgender Day of Remembrance , which is set aside to memorialize people who have been killed because of anti-transgender hatred and prejudice. According to TDOR's website, "Although not every person represented during the Day of Remembrance self-identified as transgender -- that is, as a transsexual, crossdresser, or otherwise gender-variant -- each was a victim of...Source : Salon.com (subscribe)Explore : Artists, Jethro Tull, Music, Progressive rock, Sossity

  • HealthCare Concerns (Brutal Women)

    20 Nov 2009 | 7:13 am
    Is anyone else really concerned that the latest "health screening reversals" have targeted women? See mammograms , and pelvic exams . I have yet to see the "let's stop screening men for prostate cancer" and "forget the colonoscopies" announcement.Source : Brutal Women (subscribe)Explore : Health, Men’s health, Music, Prostate Cancer, Prostate diseases
 
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    Bitch Blogs

  • BitchTapes: That's Gay

    Sara Reihani
    20 Nov 2009 | 12:41 pm
    Bryan Safi... total dreamboat, am I right, ladeez? I sort of wish he wasn't gay, but if that were the case, we wouldn't have the excellent "That's Gay" segment on CurrentTV's brilliant infoMania. So here's a Bryan Safi-inspired mix of catchy songs to help you blur the gender lines and celebrate the sexuality spectrum. Put on your rainbow suspenders, donate to Stop 8 and rock out with your softpack out. 1. I Wanna Be A Girl – King Khan and the Shrines King Khan, you can be anything you want to be. 2. Sex me up – Datarock “I’m into S&M/I’m neither butch or femme/now don’t you…

  • Girls Just Wanna Play With Dolls

    Sara Reihani
    20 Nov 2009 | 12:12 pm
    Mattel has recently released Barbie versions of Joan Jett, Cyndi Lauper and Debbie Harry as part of its “Ladies of the 80s” series. Stare into the empty plasticized eyes of your youth!! I’d rather see a child playing with a Joan Jett doll than Malibu Beach Barbie or a Bratz, but the dolls still look pretty much like your everyday Barbie (with a few alterations for individual features) gussied up in rock star costumes. They’re marketed as collector's items, but they’re only $35 – more expensive than a regular Barbie, but still affordable enough to be actual playthings for actual…

  • Sapphic Salon: Kristen Stewart will share a mere moment with Dakota Fanning in "The Runaways"

    Natalie Stein
    20 Nov 2009 | 11:42 am
    At the premiere of New Moon last night, there were screams of "Team Edward" and "Team Jacob," but I was the only one thinking "Team Bella." To be more accurate, I'm more Team Kristen Stewart — I didn't like the movie too much, and appreciate the actress's other work a little more, as she seems to do herself. What I can't wait for is Kristen's turn as Joan Jett in The Runaways, a film about the first ever mainstream all-female rock band. I have faith that she'll do it convincingly, as she's spent a lot of time with the lesbian legend in preparation. Kristen's…

  • Today is Transgender Day of Remembrance

    Kjerstin Johnson
    20 Nov 2009 | 11:21 am
    Today marks the eleventh annual Transgender Day of Remembrance, a day to honor and grieve victims of hate and ignorance (a disproportionate amount of who are trans women of color) and a day to respect and celebrate those with us today. Read on for thoughts from the blogosphere.... From TransGriot: The Transgender Day of Remembrance exists so that we don’t get so consumed living our own lives, dealing with our own drama and fighting our own battles to live our lives that our fallen brothers and sisters fade from our consciousness. It’s a vehicle to help us remind the world that the people…

  • Across the pond, they say Bird, not Bitch

    Briar Levit
    20 Nov 2009 | 10:27 am
    Lovers of art and design—you'll be pleased to make the acquaintance of the blog: Birdwatching. States the site itself: This blog is set up to collect, share and recognize the work of female graphic design creators everywhere. Relatively new on the scene, the blog has already managed to showcase work from South America, Continenetal Europe, The UK , Japan and North America. In the style of design blog ffffound.com, Birdwatching offers just one photo to catch your interest and then a link to the site belonging to the creator. There's no commentary, which is sometimes refreshing (you can form…
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    CommonDreams.org Headlines

  • Biodiversity Loss Is Earth's 'Immense and Hidden' Tragedy, Darwin's 'Natural Heir' Warns

    20 Nov 2009 | 11:48 am
    by James RandersonThe diversity of life on Earth is undergoing an "immense and hidden" tragedy that requires the scale of global response now being deployed to tackle climate change, according to one of the world's most eminent biologists.Prof Edward Wilson, an ecologist who has been described as "Darwin's natural heir" and hailed by novelist Ian McEwan as an "intellectual hero" and "inspirational&read more

  • My Lai Photographer Ron Haeberle Exposed a Vietnam Massacre 40 Years Ago Today in The Plain Dealer

    20 Nov 2009 | 10:03 am
    by Evelyn TheissForty years ago today, black-and-white photographs of slaughtered women, children and old men in a Vietnamese village shocked the world -- or that portion of the world willing to believe American soldiers could gun down unarmed peasants and leave them to die in streets and ditches. The Plain Dealer, in an international exclusive, was the first news outlet to publish the images of what infamously became known as the My Lai massacre, which had taken place on March 16, 1968. read more

  • Tea Partyers Turn on Each Other

    20 Nov 2009 | 8:20 am
    by Kenneth P. VogelAfter emerging out of nowhere over the summer as a seemingly potent and growing political force, the tea party movement has become embroiled in internal feuding over philosophy, strategy and money and is at risk of losing its momentum. read more

  • CIA 'Ran Secret Prison for al-Qaeda' in Lithuanian Riding School

    20 Nov 2009 | 8:00 am
    by Andrew Osborn in Moscow The allegations have sparked a parliamentary inquiry after President Dalia Grybauskaite said she harboured "indirect suspicions" that such a facility existed.According to unnamed former intelligence operatives quoted by ABC News, the CIA built the secret jail in 2004 and used it for more than a year, flying in at least eight suspected al-Qaeda terrorists from Afghanistan.read more

  • Report Says Nuclear Plants Are Poisoning Our Water

    20 Nov 2009 | 7:15 am
    by Mike De SouzaNuclear facilities and power plants are contaminating local Canadian food and water with radioactive waste that increases risks of cancer and birth defects, says a new report to be released today.read more
 
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    Women's eNews

  • Semenya Retains Title; Somali Stoned to Death

    Kimberly St. Louis
    21 Nov 2009 | 1:57 pm
    (WOMENSENEWS)-- Cheers South African runner Caster Semenya--who underwent gender verification tests this summer--will retain her gold medal, title and prize money for her August victory at the women's 800 meter race at the world track and field championships in Berlin, Reuters reported Nov. 19. The results of her gender test, which stirred much controversy this year, will remain confidential. read more

  • Ensler's 'Emotional Creature' Starts Off in India

    Kavitha Rao
    20 Nov 2009 | 10:16 am
    MUMBAI, India (WOMENSENEWS)--In her new play "I am an Emotional Creature: ,"The Secret Lives of Girls," which had its world premiere here on Nov. 12, playwright and activist Eve Ensler provides a global stage for the oppression faced by girls worldwide. read more

  • Feminist Voices Missing in Climate Change Debate

    Anushay Hossain
    19 Nov 2009 | 6:45 pm
    (WOMENSENEWS)--I grew up knowing my country, Bangladesh, was drowning. read more

  • Kissling's Menstruation Blog Talks All About It

    Jackie Bischof
    18 Nov 2009 | 1:52 pm
    (WOMENSENEWS)--Elizabeth Kissling, president of the Society for Menstrual Cycle Research, says she's used to people saying: "You study what?" Since the 1980s she's researched the social and commercial treatment of menstruation and has written one book and numerous articles on the topic. read more

  • Fear of Death Chills Journalism in Congo

    Danielle Shapiro
    17 Nov 2009 | 7:38 am
    BUKAVU, Democratic Republic of the Congo (WOMENSENEWS)--Jolly Kamuntu hasn't missed a single day of work. read more
 
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    BlogHer - Gender

  • Things do happen for a reason…sometimes you just have to wait…

    DNRgal13
    20 Nov 2009 | 3:45 pm
    I haven’t posted in a while. I have been incredibly busy with work and school and family-but that is not the topic of this post. I recently made a tough decision. I have decided to go a different direction in my educational career, a choice that will ultimately change my entire life.I have always been the creative type – one of my favorite pictures is one of around age 2 taking a photo of my mom in front of our house. It was a little Brownie camera but I loved it. Just recetnly mu husband and I were trying to re-organize our home office and we came upon box after box after freakin’box…

  • Time to Pitch the Bitch

    goddessdreams
    20 Nov 2009 | 3:20 pm
    To be a Womanist, means that I don’t get to sidestep the dog doo in the middle of the sidewalk. Today’s big steamy pile is a word. The B-word. A word every bit as ugly, devastating, and horrid as the N-word. The word bitch and nigger joust for first place in my mind in terms of the amount of damage they do. Neither one wins. They both tear at my soul. I’ve learned to cope with the racial slur in ways that allow me to breath. Bitch…not so much.  Let’s begin with the etymology of the word:  O.E. bicce, probably from O.N. bikkjuna "female of the dog" (also fox, wolf, and…

  • A mother's stark choice: foster care or providing for her child and serving her country

    Morra Aarons Mele
    19 Nov 2009 | 4:43 pm
    What if a white male single dad had a 10 month-old, adorable baby boy. Say his wife had died tragically and he had no extended family….The dad was in the army, and he was deployed to Afghanistan. The dad had nowhere for his baby to go while he was deployed… what would happen? I bet that baby would not go to foster care.Blogger Julie Kang really shifted my thinking on the case of Alexis Hutchinson, the 21 year old Army Specialist who did not show up for her deployment to Afghanistan because she had no one to care for her 10 month old baby Kamani. Julie writes, “…hello!  I think…

  • Do Working Moms Lose Child Custody in Divorces?

    Suzanne Reisman
    19 Nov 2009 | 12:45 pm
    Not long after I graduated from college, I worked at a government agency. One of my co-workers was in the middle of a bitter divorce. Prior to the divorce, he stayed home caring for his two young sons. Once his wife left him, however, she filed for custody of the children. At the time, he did not contest the filing, as he did not want to upset his kids any more than they already were. However, he was clearly heartbroken and missed nurturing his children. I left my job to return to school, as did my colleague. Over the years, I lost track of him. Then, many years later, I was at LaGuardia…

  • Women's Health Newsmix: Female Viagra, Mammogram Regulations, Michelle Obama on Health Care

    WVFC
    17 Nov 2009 | 7:07 pm
    Equality with Viagra? We don't know about you, but WVFC was more than a little startled to learn that there's an organization called the "European Society for Sexual Medicine." We've also been a little skeptical of all these drug-industry studies calling lack of desire a disorder, though one such study issued in January stated that women reporting less desire were "more likely to be depressed and to suffer physical symptoms such as back pain and memory problems than women who report higher levels of desire." Still, we suspect that today's news about a new drug called flibanserin may fit the…
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    Salon: Broadsheet

  • New health advice hurting women?

    Tracy Clark-Flory
    20 Nov 2009 | 2:50 pm
    Immediately after reading about the new cervical cancer screening guidelines, which recommend delaying pap smears and having them less often, a friend sent me an e-mail reading: "I mean, should this month's headlines be summed up as, 'New medical guidelines recommend that women get a lot less healthcare than they used to?'" Indeed, this advice comes on the heels of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force's controversial new guidelines that bump the suggested age for mammograms up to 50. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, which issued the new pap smear guidelines, says…

  • Fatherhood isn't in the genes

    Tracy Clark-Flory
    20 Nov 2009 | 11:30 am
    A man is supposed to take care of his children. If he gets a woman pregnant, he's expected to step up and take responsibility. But what if that man discovers that the child he thought was his own -- the kid he read to, cuddled and tucked in at night -- is another man's? Then who is responsible for the kid -- the biological father or the nurturing adoptive dad? That is the quandary increasingly being raised by DNA tests. As Ruth Padawer writes in a fascinating cover story for the upcoming New York Times Magazine, the rise of paternity tests -- bought on the cheap online or…

  • Could "New Moon" be a feminist triumph?

    Kate Harding
    20 Nov 2009 | 10:10 am
    OMG, you guys, it's here! "New Moon" opens today! In fact, it started with midnight screenings last night, over a thousand of which sold out via just one service, Fandango, according to the L.A. Times. Entertainment Weekly reports that Fandango has also sold out thousands more showings of the film -- "the most the company has ever sold prior to a film's release date" -- and that "AMC and MovieTickets.com report the same information. Both the movie chain and the online ticket buying service have said the film has broken records set by "Harry Potter" and "Lord of the Rings." ("New Moon" even…

  • Conservative men love rape metaphors

    Mary Elizabeth Williams
    20 Nov 2009 | 8:21 am
    I'm not in the camp with those who believe that using the word "rape" as a metaphor is always verboten. After all, when we say "screwed," we're using it largely to describe something unpleasant happening to someone unwilling. And if we from time to time use over-the-top terminology of slaughter or ass-kicking when no real earth is being scorched, I can allow that sometimes a person's sense of violation can be couched in terms of sexual violence. But that doesn't mean I have quite the same fondness for the term that others do. On Wednesday, "Modern Family's" Sofia Vergara prompted nervous…

  • Transgender Day of Remembrance

    Kate Harding
    20 Nov 2009 | 7:21 am
    Today is the eleventh annual Transgender Day of Remembrance, which is set aside to memorialize people who have been killed because of anti-transgender hatred and prejudice. According to TDOR's website, "Although not every person represented during the Day of Remembrance self-identified as transgender -- that is, as a transsexual, crossdresser, or otherwise gender-variant -- each was a victim of violence based on bias against transgender people." That includes, for instance, a human rights worker, Cynthia Nicole, believed to have been killed for her work on behalf of transgender people, and…
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    feminist blogs

  • Hold On

    Sula Lee
    20 Nov 2009 | 9:52 pm
    My dear friend T sent me this a few days ago. He found it as he was going through his partner's things, who recently passed. I thought it was beautiful.Hold on to what is goodeven if it is a handful of earth.Hold on to what you believeeven if it is a tree that stands by itself.Hold on to what you must doeven if it is a long way from here.Hold on to lifeeven when it is easier letting go.Hold on to my handeven when I have gone away from you.-Pueblo Verse

  • Better music biopics, please

    amanda marcotte
    20 Nov 2009 | 7:55 pm
    by Amanda Marcotte I think I’ve blogged about this before, but briefly, but fuck it, I’m annoyed.  As you probably know by now, a biopic about The Runaways is in the works.  on paper, this sounds like a fabulous idea, since The Runaways have a story that’s ripe for exploring the tension between the ideals of rock and roll and the ugly reality of the music business. Like The Sex Pistols, The Runaways were put together by a greedy, exploitative manager who was looking to cash in on this punk trend.  Or at least, that was the claim made by their manager Kim…

  • Why right-wing populism works

    Violet
    20 Nov 2009 | 7:08 pm
    (This started out as a paragraph in the working session thing I’m knocking together, but it got so big that I decided it needed its own post.) Why does right-wing populism work? Short answer: because left-wing populism is dead. Or, to put it another way, and more accurately: Republican cultural populism — which is all Republican populism really is — works because Democratic economic populism is dead. Neither party is addressing the economic needs of the citizens. Both parties are essentially corporate-owned oligarchies that merely perpetuate the status quo. The only…

  • Student Protests at UC Berkeley Campus

    Bridget Crawford
    20 Nov 2009 | 5:50 pm
    Keep your eyes and ears open for news of what is happening right now at UC Berkeley’s Wheeler Hall (not part of the Law School).  There are unconfirmed reports of arrests of students occupying a University building and possible use of rubber bullets against the protesters.  Here and here are Twitter feeds from people on-site. -Bridget Crawford

  • Tips for Conveying How Busy and Important You Are

    Bridget Crawford
    20 Nov 2009 | 5:35 pm
    Productivity advice — in the form of books and blogs — has become so ubiquitous that an entire sub-genre of criticism has developed in response.  Now it’s hip to critique as unproductive any focus on day-to-day work productivity (a la David Allen of Getting Things Done fame). The anonymous blogger  at Grad Hacker offers some “advice” (here) about “How to Act Productive.”  Here’s my attempt at a spoof version for law profs: What good is your inner, clandestine productivity if your dean, colleagues, students and even you yourself don’t really know the extent of…
 
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    Feministing

  • What We Missed.

    Samhita
    20 Nov 2009 | 2:41 pm
    Sexual harassment is a big problem on the NYC subway. Just a sad story about a young man released from prison after wrongfully serving 17 years for a murder he didn't commit. Students at UC Berkeley are striking because US Regents has approved a 32% tuition increase. A study from UNFP about why women are hit hardest via climate change. Latoya on what is being taught in college rape protection programs. A ten year old in Arkansas is refusing to stand up for the pledge of allegiance until gay marriage is legal. In solidarity my brother.

  • Friday Feminist Fuck Yeah: National Women's Studies Association Conference

    Samhita
    20 Nov 2009 | 1:20 pm
    **Also, something I didn't mention-a shout out to my undergraduate adviser at the Women's Studies Department at SUNY Albany, Vivien Ng, who I saw after 10 years and facilitated me in finding my feminist courage to speak on intersectionality. This weeks Friday Feministing Fuck Yeah goes out to the National Women's Studies Association Conference which was last weekend in Atlanta, GA and I was there with Miriam and Courtney, and we have a really good time. I had a really transformative experience this year meeting several really well known feminist theorists that have influenced my work over the…

  • Suicide ends transgender lives too

    Jos
    20 Nov 2009 | 12:23 pm
    The focus of Transgender Day of Remembrance is on those killed by others because of anti-trans fear and hatred. However, it is worth noting that too many trans folks lose their lives to suicide as well. The number of trans folks who have attempted suicide ranges from about 30 percent to over 50 percent in studies. One study found that 83 percent of trans folks have considered suicide. According to another study: the risk factors associated with attempted suicide among transgender people were younger age (under 25), depression or a history of substance abuse, forced sex, and gender-based…

  • Precious, my Precious: Black Female Citizenship, Complexity, and the Politics of Unrelenting Survival

    Samhita
    20 Nov 2009 | 10:53 am
    [Editor's Note] I haven't seen Precious yet, but I have read about it endlessly and already cried just reading reviews. One of the most powerful interpretations I have read so far on Precious comes from my good friend, colleague and mentor Malkia Cyril from the Center for Media Justice. With her permission I am posting it in full here (cross-posted from the CMJ blog). It was also posted at WIMNblog. As I sit against the florescence of the television screen, watching the conservative Fox News pundit Glenn Beck drive political nails into progressive leaders using the fear of U.S. blacks and…

  • Kate Moss, "Nothing tastes as good as being thin feels..."

    Samhita
    20 Nov 2009 | 8:44 am
    What a sad state of affairs. Well, I disagree Kate! But then again, I don't make millions off of being thin, so I guess starving does feel good for her, since she is paid to do it. Seriously, sad! Food is good and we need it to survive. This makes me feel sad for Kate Moss, I mean, even though I know she is rich and famous and got to make out with Johnny Depp, but she is the product of a system that values thinness over her other attributes. And a pretty high value at that, since she is one of the top paid super models. It would be nice to think that maybe privately her self worth is not also…
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    Feministe

  • Your Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes

    Jill
    20 Nov 2009 | 3:58 pm
    Thanksgiving is coming up and I am hosting for the first time. This means I have no idea what to make. Any great recipe suggestions?

  • Transgender Day of Remembrance 2009

    Cara
    20 Nov 2009 | 7:45 am
    Today is the Eleventh Annual Transgender Day of Remembrance. Today is a day to remember the transgender people (or people perceived by their killers to be trans) who have died as a result of hatred and violence, and as a result of the hateful and violent cultures that support the perpetrators. Today is a day to remember those whose deaths authorities and media attempt to sweep under the rug, whose identities are devalued and erased once they are gone, whose murders usually go unsolved. Today is a day to read their names, and not forget. Here is a list of the 162 known trans people who were…

  • Is taxing plastic surgery sexist?

    Jill
    19 Nov 2009 | 10:20 am
    Part of the funding for the Senate’s health care bill will come from a 5% tax on cosmetic surgery. The tax would generate $5 billion over ten years, and would only tax procedures where surgery “is not necessary to ameliorate a deformity arising from, or directly related to, a congenital abnormality, a personal injury resulting from an accident or trauma, or disfiguring disease.” It sounds fine and good on its face to tax unnecessary procedures — especially those that are primarily accessed by the upper middle class. I couldn’t find statistics on the average income of…

  • The Abortion Compromise in the Senate Health Care Bill

    Jill
    19 Nov 2009 | 9:38 am
    As you have probably read by now, the Senate introduced its version of the health care bill yesterday. As expected, it’s good and bad — it includes a public option, but leaves a lot of people out in the cold, and opens up the healthcare debate to an other four years (at least) of what FDL aptly calls “partisan football” (and I would recommend reading their take on the bill — it’s the most comprehensive and critical I’ve seen). 31 million more people, though, would gain health care coverage, and there would be expansions of Medicaid and CHIP. The good…

  • Recollecting and collecting ourselves

    Chally
    18 Nov 2009 | 1:49 pm
    I watch how those around me do activism, and I wonder about how to serve ourselves and the world better. I so often see people hurtling along, trying to cram in as much as possible, falling apart, hitting the dust. I have no problem with trying to do as much social justice work as possible; what an immensely valuable thing to do. But I think we can do it better, and leave ourselves a little more intact at the end of the day. How often do you stop and reflect on what work you’ve done? I think it’s not only important to do so in terms of assessing how well you’ve been doing, but as a…
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    Finally, A Feminism 101 Blog

  • Updated FAQ on Patriarchy

    tigtog
    3 Nov 2009 | 12:48 pm
    The post FAQ: Isn’t “the Patriarchy” just some conspiracy theory that blames all men, even decent men, for women’s woes? has been edited and modified to include material on the concept of “kyriarchy” and to clarify other issues which were not as well expressed as they could have been back in 2007. If you have a quote from the Patriarchy FAQ somewhere on your hard drive that you like to use, it might be a good idea to check whether it’s still there before using it again. Comments are closed on this post so that any relevant discussion can take place on the FAQ…

  • FAQ: Rape Culture 101

    shakesville
    18 Oct 2009 | 3:04 pm
    This post was written by Melissa McEwan and originally published at Shakesville on October 09, 2009Editor’s note: this post does not follow the usual FF101 FAQ conventions, but it’s being included in the FAQ list anyway. [Trigger warning.] Frequently, I receive requests to provide a definition of the term “rape culture.” I’ve referred people to the Wikipedia entry on rape culture, which is pretty good, and I like the definition provided in Transforming a Rape Culture: A rape culture is a complex of beliefs that encourages male sexual aggression and supports…

  • Press Release from Equality Now

    tigtog
    23 Sep 2009 | 2:11 pm
    Remember the RapeLay video game, written about by Melissa and Cara back in February? Equality Now has been working to persuade Japan to uphold its obligations under UN conventions with respect to material that normalises and/or promotes violence against women and girls. EQUALITY NOW CALLS ON NEW JAPANESE ADMINISTRATION TO BAN ALL GAMES THAT PROMOTE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS JAPAN MUST FULFILL ITS OBLIGATIONS UNDER THE UN WOMEN’S CONVENTION BY IMPLEMENTING RECENT RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE CEDAW COMMITTEE Equality Now calls on the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), the country’s…

  • On the Mommy and Daddy Binary

    shakesville
    13 Jul 2009 | 5:19 pm
    [this post was originally posted on Shakesville with the title Mommy v. Daddy ] Via Media Matters, I find this gendered analysis of Tuesday’s debate in the LA Times: The late conservative economist Jude Wanniski once dubbed Republicans the “Daddy Party” and Democrats the “Mommy Party.” On Tuesday, Obama seemed to prove his point by laying out the more expansive government role in caring for middle-class Americans. And he mentioned not only his mother, but his wife and grandmother too. First, let’s talk about how this is insulting to men, via its implicit…

  • On Gendered Language

    shakesville
    13 Jul 2009 | 5:09 pm
    [this post was originally posted on Shakesville with the title I Write Letters ] Dear English-Speaking World: Pursuant to yesterday’s letter regarding the cessation of your use of the terms “man’s man” and “ladies’ man,” I would also like to request that you jettison the following from your vocabularies: “He’s all boy” and “She’s all girl.” These terms are used to refer to children, anywhere from infancy to about 10 years of age, who are regarded as conforming nicely to the sex- and gender stereotypes prescribed by…
 
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    Hugo Schwyzer

  • Class, culture, and moving away from home (a reprint)

    Hugo Schwyzer
    20 Nov 2009 | 11:39 am
    This post first appeared in May, 2005. This month, I’m writing two appeals letters on behalf of two students who were denied admission (inexplicably, in both cases) to UCLA.  Both students are very bright young women, but one of the two presented me with a bit of a dilemma: my alma mater accepted her, while the so-called "Southern Branch" rejected her.    I must admit that my Golden Bear pride was hurt.  I know that admissions decisions can be capricious; a few years ago, I had one student get into Stanford while being rejected from UC Santa Barbara. …

  • Jack Kissell, 1930-2009

    Hugo Schwyzer
    19 Nov 2009 | 9:17 am
    I read this morning of the death of Jack Kissell, a legendary figure in Southern California recovery circles, and my “sponsor” (on and off) for many years during the 1990s and the beginning of this decade. Alcoholics Anonymous and the legion of Twelve Step programs that sprang forth from it have always insisted on, as the name implies, anonymity for its members. (In my writing, I’ve danced very close to the edge of “outing” myself, of course, but on this blog claim no membership in any particular organization.) For years, it has generally been understood that the…

  • Thursday Short Poem: Wagoner’s “Night Song”

    Hugo Schwyzer
    19 Nov 2009 | 5:19 am
    A dark poem with a familiar theme from David Wagoner. Night Song from the Apartment Below The argument begins. One voice is overcoming another because it’s had it, it’s had enough of all this shit and, unaccompanied, rises to the edge of screaming and past it till the column of air in that throat has nearly abandoned everything under it. Only the vault of the forehead and the bridge of the nose are left to resonate. An abrupt pause. A brief intermission. Lotte Lehmann, who knew all there was to know about singing, said in the upper register one should always have two notes in reserve…

  • Happy update

    Hugo Schwyzer
    18 Nov 2009 | 11:14 am
    Heloise said “dad-dah” for the first time this morning. She had said “Mama” for the first time three weeks ago, and I had been waiting very patiently.

  • Neither too much to expect, nor too much to ask: how Lesley Garner gets rape, marriage, and men all wrong

    Hugo Schwyzer
    18 Nov 2009 | 9:50 am
    Via Amber, whose blog I’ve long admired, I found this horrific English advice column and this blistering retort from M. Le Blanc. A woman, Eva was raped by her boss while abroad on a business trip. Upon her return to the UK, her husband noticed something was wrong, and Eva told him the terrible story. She also discovered that the rapist had impregnated her; she made the difficult choice to keep the baby. Too upset at the prospect of raising another man’s child, the Eva’s husband left her, and has never seen the son to whom she gave birth. Seven years on, she’s still…
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    The Curvature

  • Transgender Day of Remembrance 2009

    Cara
    20 Nov 2009 | 7:45 am
    Today is the Eleventh Annual Transgender Day of Remembrance. Today is a day to remember the transgender people (or people perceived by their killers to be trans) who have died as a result of hatred and violence, and as a result of the hateful and violent cultures that support the perpetrators. Today is a day to remember those whose deaths authorities and media attempt to sweep under the rug, whose identities are devalued and erased once they are gone, whose murders usually go unsolved. Today is a day to read their names, and not forget. Here is a list of the 162 known trans people who were…

  • Meet The Predators: But Which Ones?

    Cara
    17 Nov 2009 | 9:32 am
    Trigger Warning for discussions of sexual violence Last week, Thomas wrote a post at Yes Means Yes, called Meet The Predators, about recent studies which found that many rapists will admit to rape so long as the word “rape” is not actually used. It’s a great post, and important information to have — I’m particularly interested because I’ve seen similar statistics from the ’80s quoted numerous times, and was literally thinking a day or two prior to Thomas’ post that someone should do a new study and provide anti-rape activists with updated and…

  • Man Allegedly Murdered Albanian Woman Because She Was Trans

    Cara
    16 Nov 2009 | 12:10 pm
    Trigger Warning for transmisogyny and discussions of violence against women In September, Kristina Muça was brutally murdered in Tirana, Albania. Her neck was slit, allegedly by a man she had only just met. The alleged motives for the crime were, according to prosecutors and to defendant Sefedin Hoxha’s now recanted confession, transphobic hatred towards the victim. I’ve learned of this story through reader Kim Burton, who translated the local media reports into English and forwarded them to me, among others. She has verified the translations with a colleague and friend. All…

  • Support Sex-Positive Sex Education

    Cara
    13 Nov 2009 | 12:38 pm
    Scarleteen is, in my view, the absolute best sex education website out there. And while I can’t claim to be entirely impartial about that assessment — I know Heather, Scarleteen’s founder, and also received a free sex education training through the site this summer — I can say that it’s an assessment I’ve held since long before I had any room for bias. And right now, Scarleteen needs your help with their fundraising drive. You can read the full letter here, if you wish to learn about all of the things that the site has done this year, and what they plan on…

  • Rape Kits: Yes, Still Going Untested

    Cara
    11 Nov 2009 | 12:01 pm
    Via CBS News: A government report released Tuesday found that essential DNA evidence in rape cases is often never sent to crime labs for testing. But what our investigation also found is that even when police departments do send rape kits to crime labs, they can go untested for months — even years — while rapists go free. … Now, a five-month CBS News investigation of 24 cities and states has found more than 6,000 rape kits from active investigations waiting months, even years to be tested. On average, six months in Rhode Island, Alabama and Illinois. It can take nearly a…
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    Crucial Minutiae

  • Map of The Middle East

    Molly May
    20 Nov 2009 | 6:45 am
    At 7.30 yesterday morning, my boyfriend and I hovered over our new Montana friend Greg as he took this Middle East geography test in our kitchen. We’d remembered it while speaking with him about the arbitrary nature of political borders and hooting about the 50 elk we saw yesterday in the field. He fared better with his country placement than we had originally. PLEASE take it yourself. It’s fun, I promise. What surprises/shocks you about your knowledge as you try to place each country? http://www.rethinkingschools.org/just_fun/games/mapgame.html **Thank you to Samantha Dabney for…

  • How We Didn’t Become Famous

    Cristina Pippa
    19 Nov 2009 | 10:17 am
    … and how I became that mom. You can already guess, this is more minutiae than crucial. If you want something on the grounded and meaningful side from me, go back and read my birth story. This all starts back when I was a kid and wanted to be an actress more than anything besides having lots of dogs and rabbits and a pony. I took acting classes, got headshots, and did a victory dance when a local talent agency wanted to sign me. Then my lawyer mom read all the fine print and became concerned about someone “owning” any part of her daughter. End of my career, thanks Mom. (Just…

  • Skateboard and Poop

    Jennifer Gandin Le
    18 Nov 2009 | 6:46 am
    (But not at the same time; that could be dangerous.) Today, I highlight two very cool creative fathers - one whose writing I’ve read gratefully for seven years, and a friend of his who’s taking his son on the adventure of his young life. My friend Michael is a brilliant writer and father of two almost unnaturally gorgeous little girls, one of whom is currently being potty-trained. The Poop Monologues is a running list of things his two-year-old says while pooping, or while trying to. My favorites are “My drink. MILK ON IT,” “My school, my lunch, my turn around,…

  • Pre-Existing Condition

    Cristina Pippa
    9 Nov 2009 | 7:49 pm
    I was thinking of going to the dermatologist. Should I tell my provider that I have skin? This was my reaction to a dizzying fight over the bill I received for the delivery of my baby and our hospital stay. We’re lucky to have insurance, I know that. But imagine my surprise when my provider wanted me to pay a penalty of several hundred dollars for not clearing it with them when I arrived at the hospital at 2:30 a.m. to have a baby. “You must have known at some point that you were pregnant, and that’s when you should have told us.” “You’ve been paying for my…

  • The Tribe You Cling To

    Molly May
    9 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm
    In Sherman Alexie’s novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, the lovable narrator, 14-year-old Arnold Spirit (based on Alexie himself), touches on an idea that’s been goading me for years. We spend most of our life running from or trying to get into a particular tribe. By tribe, I mean social group identity.  Being from nowhere once made me feel like I had no place and therefore no “people.” Of course, I have many tribes, probably three of four that resonate most with me. There is something poignant about Arnold’s quote below, with its wonderful…
 
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    Holla Back New York City - If You Can't Slap 'Em, Snap 'Em!

  • The METRO talks about the newest version of Hollaback!

    20 Nov 2009 | 6:02 am
    Amy Zimmer, a member of our HOLLAfame, wrote an article yesterday in the Metro about our new IPhone app!Here's the story:"NEW YORK. HollabackNYC, the Web site that encourages people to upload pictures of their harassers, is developing an iPhone app. They hope to use GPS mapping, to tag people’s pictures and reports, to an online map. E-mail alerts will be sent out in real-time. The data would be compiled in an annual report sent to police, public officials and the media."RightRides has generously offered to incubate this initiative, but we need help. Hollaback has been running with zero…

  • "Sexual Harassment Is ‘No. 1 Quality of Life Offense’ on Subways"

    20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 am
    Yesterday there was a public hearing on harassment and assault in the subways. There, the police called sexual harassment "No. 1 Quality of Life Offense." Hey NYPD, people talking loudly on their cell phones is a quality of life offense. Harassment and assault is violence.Still, we are glad the NYPD has taken notice and grateful for all the press on the issue:"Subway Perv Reports Going Up" Metro International. (Check out the sidebar on the next generation of Hollaback!)"Sexual Harassment Is ‘No. 1 Quality of Life Offense’ on Subways, Police Say" New York Times. (Check out the mention of…

  • On the bridle path in Forest Park, Queens

    19 Nov 2009 | 8:08 am
    This little man apparently wanted to have a measuring contest with my horse. He lost.Submitted by Kit

  • Men Who Harass Me: One Woman's Partial Collection

    18 Nov 2009 | 11:10 am
    This is the 37th in the series.Submitted by Sally N.

  • "show us your titties, cigarette girl"

    18 Nov 2009 | 6:08 am
    i was parking in the parking structure at work at university of Michigan hospital. as i turned around the corner i saw 3 men walking up the ramp towards the door of the hospital. as i drove by one of them yelled something about showing him my titties. i stopped my car and yelled "are you talking to me?" and he says "show us your titties, cigarette girl." i told them to go fuck themselves and then i went inside and told security. they sent an officer out to talk to them and also kicked them out as they didn't have any reason to be there. the officer asked if i wanted to press charges but i…
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    Jezebel

  • Oprah : 25 Years Of Screaming Celebrities' Names [Clips]

    Tracie
    20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 pm
    Television will never be the same after Oprah goes off the air in 2011. If we had a "Favorite Things" list about O, in the top spot would be the way the talk-show host introduces celebrity guests. Mashup at left. Earlier: Oprah's Favorite Things 2007: The Audience Freaks Out!

  • Her Number One Fan [Snap Judgment]

    Anna
    20 Nov 2009 | 4:50 pm
    [London, November 20. Image via Bauer-Griffin]

  • Miley's Fatal Bus Crash; Vatican Official Condemns Twilight 's "Deviant Message" [Dirt Bag (After Dark)]

    Margaret
    20 Nov 2009 | 4:40 pm
    Last night, one of the four buses in Miley Cyrus' tour caravan swerved off the road in Virginia and crashed. The driver was killed, and one other person was injured. It's unclear if the driver died in the crash, or if he died at the wheel, causing the accident. Miley's personal bus was not involved in the accident and the concert they were heading to in North Carolina is still on. [TMZ, TMZ] This statement was posted on Miley Cyrus' website: "We are deeply saddened by the loss of Bill 'Uncle Bill' Douglas... Members of our tour are like members of our family. Our thoughts and prayers go out…

  • Stick A Fork In It [Hi/goodbye]

    Anna
    20 Nov 2009 | 4:30 pm
    Superfudge! Otherwise known as the title of a Judy Blume book or, the fancy version of a popular supermarket candy given its due thanks to National Peanut Butter Fudge Day. Dig in - see you Monday. [Nibble]

  • Eli Roth Attempts Glitter Vampire Look [Tweet Beat]

    Tracie
    20 Nov 2009 | 4:20 pm
    Today in Tweet Beat, Eli Roth doesn't recommend glitter for men, Martha Stewart parties with Diddy, and Jon Favreau cuts his hair with a Flowbee.
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    The Angry Black Woman

  • Linkspam Hollywood FAIL edition

    unusualmusic
    16 Nov 2009 | 9:08 pm
    Is there ever a time when Hollywood is not FAILing? First up, What these people need is a honky syndrome goes off planet in: James Cameron’s Avatar Lawd ha’ mercy internets. Lord ha mercy. Because Hollywood sure as hell won’t. You know, a lot of those bullshit tropes that show up in movies like this are based on some real inaccurate history. If you haven’t read it yet, may I rec 1491? You’ll find that it goes a good way in clearing some of the…um…cobwebs. EDIT: Just in case you were a bit iffy on whether Mr. Cameron was an asshole, he opened his mouth…

  • Race, Psychology, and Family Dynamics

    karnythia
    9 Nov 2009 | 6:04 pm
    Someday someone will explain to me this fascination America has with the idea that Michelle Obama has white relatives like it’s remotely unusual for a descendant of slaves in America. I notice with all the talk of “So and so was impregnated by X slaveowner” and the rush to interview the white relatives so they can say the obligatory “I’d love to reunite with that side of the family and talk about our history” no one discusses exactly how so many mulattoes came to be born during and after slavery. I know the story of the relationship between Thomas Jefferson…

  • Linkspam on the Weekend: Posts rattling around in my head edition.

    unusualmusic
    8 Nov 2009 | 9:32 am
    Does teen literature exaggerate the mean girl phenomena too much? Neesha Meminger: “This is a question I’ve often pondered myself. I think my main concern with the “mean girls” phenomenon is that they focus on inter-personal dynamics without also looking at the larger, social, economic, and political constructs within which we all function. In the case of books, films, television shows, and other mean girls representations, certain isolated incidents are used to somehow prove that *everyone* can be abusive and that violence is a natural and intrinsic part of human…

  • American Women Athletes Part Five: At the Movies

    unusualmusic
    4 Nov 2009 | 7:59 pm
    EDIT: So I deleted this cause I was having trouble cutting the post, saw nojojojo and decided to leave it deleted, but it got crossposted anyway. Whoops. Have a midweek linkspam. (Alas a blog? This post is video heavy) I went to see Whip It a few weeks ago. It was absolutely wonderful! The Roller Derby scenes in particular left me cheering and full of adrenaline, and the fact that the movie made the love story a secondary plot and focused on her sporting evolution was the icing on the cake! And it got me thinking, of course. Sport movies featuring men are a dime a dozen. Sports movies…

  • The Appropriateness of Appropriation

    nojojojo
    4 Nov 2009 | 3:39 pm
    In the wake of unusualmusic’s ever-so-fun linkspam, let’s talk about cultural appropriation! Again. (C’mon, you know you love it.) Or not. I’ve become aware in recent months of a growing movement in the creative world that I’m going to call, for lack of a better term, anti-appropriation. I’m seeing this mostly among fellow writers (probably because those are the circles I run in), some of whom are arguing that white writers should write only about white characters because they can never fully comprehend the experiences of PoC. But I’m seeing mutters…
 
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    Muslimah Media Watch

  • Friday Links — November 20, 2009

    Fatemeh
    20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am
    Lebanon has appointed Raya Haffar Hussein as the country’s finance minister. Women’s eNews covers the politics surrounding the burqa and niqab in Canada. Clandestine same-sex marriages are organized in Kuwait. Turkish and Kurdish mothers join together for peace. The Faster Times interviews Ghada Karmi. Philly.com reviews The Glass House. Aden, Yemen, will host a conference on science and women next month. The British Council has partnered with the Qatari Businesswomen Forum to continue the Springboard program, which organizes training and workshops for Qatari businesswomen. The…

  • One Afghan Woman’s Words: Malalai Joya’s Book Tour

    Krista
    18 Nov 2009 | 10:06 pm
    Malalai Joya, an Afghan activist for women’s rights (and many other things), was in Toronto tonight on a cross-Canada tour to promote her new book, A Woman Among Warlords: The Extraordinary Story of an Afghan Who Dared to Raise Her Voice.  For those unfamiliar with her story, the book description is as follows: Malalai Joya has been called “the bravest woman in Afghanistan.” At a constitutional assembly in Kabul in 2003, she stood up and denounced her country’s powerful NATO-backed warlords. She was twenty-five years old. Two years later, she became the youngest…

  • Saudi Cartoonist Hana Hajar Sketches a Path for Female Cartoonists

    Malika
    18 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am
    Hana Hajar doesn’t consider the work she does groundbreaking–to her, transforming her thoughts into satirical drawings is simply a means to express herself. But as Saudi Arabia’s sole prominent female cartoonist, Hajar is an undeniable trailblazer. She has worked since 2005 for the Saudi-based English language newspaper, Arab News, where her sketches challenge everything from the role of women in Saudi society, to the war in Iraq, to the on-again, off-again status of peace talks between the Israelis and Palestinians. Her cartoons are eye-catching, with many featuring vivid colors…

  • Grassroots Politics and Women’s Activism Forum in D.C.

    Yusra
    17 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am
    While in Washington, D.C., last month, I attended a forum on Muslim women’s rights titled “Women and the Politics of Change in the Middle East,” at the John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. It was sponsored by the Women’s Learning Partnership, an international NGO dedicated to women’s leadership and empowerment, especially in Muslim majority countries. The event was held to honor the 30th anniversary of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination (CEDAW). CEDAW is a U.N. treaty aimed at providing a universal framework for women’s rights.

  • Marketing Muslim Lifestyles and Rethinking Modesty

    Alicia
    16 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am
    If a hijab in Pucci-designed print could speak, what would it say? I attended a seminar presented by Professor Reina Lewis on Muslim women’s lifestyle magazines last night and was faced with this bizarre question. It all started with the actual seminar itself, which showcased the latest research adventures of the fashion and design professor. Weaving together previous work that included alternative Orientalist narratives in the 19th century and queer lifestyle magazines, Lewis’ paper focused on the Muslim women’s magazines that emerged at a crucial time (post-9/11) when more…
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    Womanist Musings

  • White Thoughts/ Black Thoughts

    20 Nov 2009 | 10:34 am
    Hashtag games are a very popular feature on twitter.  What makes them interesting, is that they occur spontaneously; with people from various class, race and sexual identities playing along.  The anonymity of the internet means that people more often display a truer side of their nature.  There are certain thoughts or ideas, that we censure because we know that an open discussion may lead to a negative feedback.  This can readily be seen by the hostility that regularly appears in the comment section of many social justice blogs.         There can be no…

  • Transgender Day of Remembrance

    20 Nov 2009 | 9:10 am
    This is not a day of celebration. This is a day when  we must mourn the fact that we live in a world that is so intolerant, that it means death for many.  Being trans in this world is not an easy identity. As a cisgendered woman, I can only work to challenge my assumptions and dismantle the privileges attached to my body.  I can never for one moment walk even a single footstep in their shoes.  This year, once again too many names have been added to the list of those who have been murdered for being transgendered.  These are not just names; they represent living…

  • Your Scooter Means You’re Poor

    20 Nov 2009 | 8:39 am
    Each day I interact with the public, I learn something new about dealing with my disability.  At first, I thought that I would only have to learn the new changes and or limitations of my body, but it quickly became apparent that with an obvious disability, the way that people understood me also changed dramatically.  One of the largest assumptions I have learned is that my class status is understood to be decidedly poor.   I am not one for affectations or obvious displays of wealth.  This means that I don’t wear jewellery or brand label clothing.  I could…

  • But Accessibility is too Expensive

    18 Nov 2009 | 11:28 am
    Last night I froze watching my oldest child play hockey.  It is part of the duty of a Canadian mother to tolerate this little ritual.  Destruction got his second assist and though they lost the game, he played well.  As I stood there, my body wracked in complete pain, I decided that it was time to make management aware of exactly how inaccessible their arena was. If one is a wheelchair user, it is impossible to see over the rink to actually watch the game.  There are no play by plays and therefore; if one is blind, accessing the game in any form is impossible.  Due to…

  • Couples Retreat Erases Black People

    18 Nov 2009 | 8:56 am
    When Universal decided to market Couples Retreat in the UK, it removed the Black actors from the both the poster's photo and the list of stars typed out. Of course, Universal did not mean any offence by this action. The Mail on Sunday reports The studio said it regretted causing offence and has abandoned plans to use the revised poster in other countries... A Universal spokesman said the revised advert aimed 'to simplify the poster to actors who are most recognisable in international markets'. “Simplify” is a very interesting word to describe the racism that Universal employed to market…
 
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    Our Bodies Our Blog

  • New Mammogram Guidelines Are Causing Confusion, But Here’s Why They Make Sense

    New government guidelines recommending that women start screening for breast cancer at age 50 instead of 40 set off a round of criticism this week and caused much confusion for women who for years have been told that early detection saves lives. But a number of women's health organizations, including Our ... [This is a content summary only. Click the headline to visit Our Bodies, Our Blog for the full post, links, other content and more!]

  • CDC Officially Reverses HPV Vaccine Requirement for Immigrant Women

    Last week, the CDC issued revised vaccination criteria for U.S. immigration which will reverse the requirement that female immigrants seeking permanent residence or entry to the U.S. be immunized against HPV. The new criteria require that any mandated vaccine must be age-appropriate for the immigrant applicant, and must either protect against ... [This is a content summary only. Click the headline to visit Our Bodies, Our Blog for the full post, links, other content and more!]

  • Judy Norsigian Featured on “Liberadio(!)”

    OBOS co-founder and executive director Judy Norsigian has been in Nashville, TN, for the weekend, and this morning she was a guest on  Liberadio(!), Mary Mancini and Freddie O'Connell's local political radio show. Topics covered include the history of the organization and the need for its work (including the landmark book ... [This is a content summary only. Click the headline to visit Our Bodies, Our Blog for the full post, links, other content and more!]

  • Searching for Credible Health Information Online?: Ask Rachel

    In our second self-referential moment of the week, I wanted to point to several posts by OBOS blogger Rachel Walden that are featured in this month's MedLib’s Round, a monthly blog carnival that highlights some of the best writing on medical librarianship. From the carnival intro: A 2008 study by the Center ... [This is a content summary only. Click the headline to visit Our Bodies, Our Blog for the full post, links, other content and more!]

  • If the Shoe Commercial Doesn’t Fit, Don’t Buy It: Reebok Ads High on Objectification, Low on Value

    by Meg Young Our Bodies Ourselves intern Reebok recently launched a new ad campaign for its women’s “Easy Tone” sneakers that is definitely not focused on feet. The shoe's selling point is that the sole is supposedly constructed in such a way that it works the wearer’s hamstrings, calves and glutes ... [This is a content summary only. Click the headline to visit Our Bodies, Our Blog for the full post, links, other content and more!]
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    Shakesville

  • The Virtual Pub Is Open

    20 Nov 2009 | 9:59 pm
    Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your screen name...TFIF, Shakers!Belly up to the bar,and name your poison.

  • Quote of the Day

    20 Nov 2009 | 3:22 pm
    [Trigger warning.]"If they were put in front of me I'd probably watch it."—Billy Arnone, Carrie Prejean's brother, on his sister's sex tapes, in an interview with Radar Online, during which, btw, he was wearing a t-shirt reading "Loose Lips."Seriously: WTF? I don't even know how to deal with that.I know this makes me the Queen of Obvious Statements, but there is something deeply, deeply wrong with our culture.

  • Today in Rape Culture

    20 Nov 2009 | 2:14 pm
    [Trigger warning.]In three parts...Part One: Shaker Richard Gadsen emails about this theater review in The Guardian, in which Mark Lawson wonders if he should have walked out on a play in which there was objectionable content about sexual assault:It's a rightly angry play and I shared the writer's rage, until a moment when it turned against him. A young woman, Dora, is raped by three of her classmates in turn. The characters look back on the action of the past – from either old age or the afterlife, depending on their luck – and Dora's reflections on this violation are: "I screamed, but I…

  • Daily Kitteh

    20 Nov 2009 | 1:01 pm
    FluffyLazySmall

  • Friday Blogaround

    20 Nov 2009 | 12:48 pm
    This blogaround brought to you by Shaxco, makers of CaitieCat's Wootmobile.Recommended Reading:Marti: The Daily Transadvocate Twitter DigestAnna: 60th Disability Blog Carnival: IntersectionalityLauredhel: Rape Is Now a Girl's "Secret Sex Shame," Says Brisbane TimesResistance: The Browning of Disease, Part IVMelissa: Sexism Watch: Hollywood Reporter's Cinematographer RoundtableLeave your links in comments...
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    Kate Harding's Shapely Prose

  • Transgender Day of Remembrance

    fillyjonk
    20 Nov 2009 | 9:34 am
    Today is Transgender Day of Remembrance, a day to remember transgender victims of violence. Here’s a list of the people we’re remembering in 2009. Please take a moment to read their names and stories — what is known of them — and think about these people, mostly young women, who suffered often exceptionally brutal violence [...]

  • Wednesday One-Liners

    fillyjonk
    18 Nov 2009 | 2:28 pm
    • Remember how Starling gave a rough number of 1 in 60 when guessing how many men commit rape? And Dude Nation went ballistic about how it wasn’t a robust figure? They’re right. At least in some populations (in this case, college students of all ages) it should have been four times higher. • The calorie [...]

  • Relax, He Wants You to Maw Down and Wear Cheap Chonies

    snarkysmachine
    18 Nov 2009 | 7:22 am
    According to Glamour, there are seven reasons why your “man” adores you as is. I have a bit of a problem with the concept of “as is”. I associate the concept with final sale sweaters with ink stains not coverable by a cabbage rose brooch, not loving relationships. But then again, I’m still doing [...]

  • Weekly Wish List

    snarkysmachine
    16 Nov 2009 | 6:23 am
    When I was college I took a graphic design class. I eagerly enrolled encouraged by the 100 level of the class but possessing no artistic talent. I dreamed of prismacolor markers, art bins and black bound sketch books. I fantasized about being locked in an art store and sleeping on a bed made entirely of [...]

  • …A Grown Up Fairy Tale

    snarkysmachine
    14 Nov 2009 | 5:47 pm
    1981 saw the release of Sharky’s Machine, a Burt Reynolds helmed taut crime thriller. The film is both a love letter to the city of Atlanta and an astute critique of the systemic corruption that held the city hostage for much of the seventies and eighties. Critic Roger Ebert had this to say: SHARKY’S MACHINE [...]
 
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    The F-Word: Latest features and reviews

  • A gude cause maks a strong arm

    Wisrutta Atthakor
    18 Nov 2009 | 7:35 am
    Wisrutta Atthakor reports back from the Gude Cause march through Edinburgh, 100 years to the day since Scottish suffragettes took to the city's streets

  • Bright Star and women in film

    Jess McCabe
    16 Nov 2009 | 3:51 am
    Producer Jan Chapman spoke to Jess McCabe by phone from Sydney about women in the film industry - and her latest movie Bright Star

  • Gender and sentencing

    Rachel Thwaites
    14 Nov 2009 | 4:01 am
    Are the scales of justice in alignment? Rachel Thwaites looks at how women and men are so often treated differently by the system if they commit violent crimes

  • A streamlined new me

    Laura Thomas
    13 Nov 2009 | 4:43 am
    Laura Thomas talks through her experience going from red mane to shaved head

  • Gender in the playground

    Kate Townshend
    25 Oct 2009 | 2:29 pm
    Primary schools are no utopia of skipping rope and gender blind comradery. Instead, girls are already learning to worry about their looks - and boys are learning male privilege, reports teacher Kate Townshend
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    wowOwow | The Women on the Web

  • Let Down and Felt Up? by E.D. Hill

    20 Nov 2009 | 2:00 pm
    How the new mammogram recommendations impact a high-risk womanA Friend Stopped By | 11/20/2009 4:00 pm Editor’s Note: Emmy Award-winning journalist E.D. Hill is a nationally known TV and radio host and author. She spent the past ten years hosting several daily programs on Fox News Channel and was Bill O’Reilly’s sidekick on The Radio Factor, heard on 400 stations. She currently hosts "Good Day" with E.D. Hill on americaswebradio.com Tuesdays and Thursdays 8 - 9 AM EST. E.D. and her husband have eight children and pets too numerous to mention. She splits time between their…

  • Could Mammograms Fall Victim to Obamacare? by Liz Peek

    20 Nov 2009 | 9:15 am
    If you disliked the autocratic decision making practiced by your HMO, wait until you have to argue your case to Beltway bureaucratsWall Street Weekly | 11/20/2009 11:15 am Bears, Bulls, Chickens and Pigs: wOw’s Wall Street Weekly with Liz Peek (Week of 11/16)  Editor’s Note: Liz Peek is a financial columnist. An English friend recently described an example of the kinds of practices that so alarm opponents of Obamacare. Her mother, who is 83 years old, is a breast cancer survivor. She has had surgery and subsequent chemotherapy twice and is currently in excellent health. The…

  • Dear Margo: When Dad/Gramps Just Ain't Interested

    20 Nov 2009 | 3:30 am
    Grandpa’s a grouch, but shouldn’t we try to get along? Margo Howard’s bright advice … Dear Margo | 11/20/2009 5:30 am When Dad/Gramps Just Ain’t Interested Dear Margo: By his choice, my father-in-law, "Herman," has had little to do with my wonderful family. He is a negative, toxic individual whom I don’t trust, given his manipulative and abusive behavior. When his wife finally moved out some years ago, Herman did as he had long ago threatened: He cut off contact with his son (but not his daughter). He seems to have a particular dislike for me,…

  • Liz Smith: Sharon Stone, Steve Tyrell, Sarah (You Know Who), Glamour, Lesley Gore – and More!

    20 Nov 2009 | 2:15 am
    Our Gossip Girl’s weekend dish runneth overThe Liz Smith Column | 11/20/2009 4:15 am"For the record, I don’t believe Sarah Palin will ever hold national office. She inspires many right-wing activists and enchants some members of the conservative news media, but the independents and moderates decisive to any presidential bid won’t send her to Washington with ‘quitter’ on her resume. Still, she’s likely to remain in the limelight for years to come. "If that makes you scream, don’t scream at Alaskans. We only made her governor. The nation made…

  • Lily Tomlin Is Coming to NYC!

    20 Nov 2009 | 2:00 am
    On Monday, November 23, our Lily will be appearing in a one-night-only performance on New York’s Lower East SideJoni Evans | 11/20/2009 4:00 amOn Monday, November 23, our Lily will be appearing in a one-night-only performance on New York’s Lower East Side. Her performance will benefit Dixon Place, kicking off the official Grand Opening festivities for its brand-new state-of-the-art, almost-completed theater at 161A Chrystie Street. Lily will, of course, bring along the beloved Ernestine and treasured Edith Ann for the evening. The celebration will be hosted by Lily’s pal,…
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    Feminocracy

  • What say you?

    Ophelia
    5 Nov 2009 | 5:13 pm
    What do you think of this image? (Jeff Brunner) I agreed up until Belle. Perhaps it’s my inner little girl speaking but I don’t have as much of a problem with Belle as I have with the others. She’s independent and intelligent and isn’t waiting for the right man to come along and make all of her dreams come true–she knows that’s something that happens in story books not real life. I do understand the criticism of the message it sends that no matter how terrible he is to you, you can change him (there’s also a hint that potentially violent partners are…

  • Ableist Language in Advocacy

    manafanana
    5 Nov 2009 | 2:21 am
    Advocacy in Flawed Systems: Using Shackling Language to Help a PWD? This is a great post from FWD/Forward, an awesome blog that focuses on the intersection of feminism and disability issues. The post discusses how advocates are often obliged to use ableist language in order to get aid from government programs for their clients. Making their clients seem as helpless and tragic as possible helps ensure they qualify for the programs. This puts advocates in the impossible position of having to be complicit in the perpetuation of stereotypes about people with disabilities in order to get their…

  • Eddie from stereotype-ville

    Ophelia
    4 Nov 2009 | 9:54 am
    Good thing we made reference to him being a real person who works at the company or else this might be a commercial featuring a racial stereotype. Luckily the taste of the product will serve to keep people away. Yesh. Tagged: Bad advertising--no biscuit, Stereotypes

  • Rihanna To Speak Out On ‘Good Morning America’

    Ophelia
    4 Nov 2009 | 9:37 am
    From Mtv.com Although Rihanna hasn’t spoken publicly about the incident in the nine months since it happened, Brown has given several high-profile interviews in which he talked about the assault as well as his breakup from the singer. Rhianna’s new cd is about to come out and it would have been impossible for her to do the interview without the assault coming up so it seems like she’s facing it head on. Speaking to “Good Morning America,” the singer will send the message, “This happened to me. … It can happen to anyone,” according to excerpts of…

  • “Hospital forces lesbian to die alone”

    Ophelia
    29 Oct 2009 | 1:35 pm
    “Hospital forces lesbian to die alone“ I found the allegations in this post terrifying. We tell people that the living will and power of attorney are important documents that will prevent this very thing from happening. If the hospital won’t pay attention to legally valid documents stating that someone is authorized to make medical decisions/recieve medical information about a partner–what do we tell them? How can they protect themselves? I doubt a hetero couple would have run into this problem–married or not, signed legal documents or not. Tagged: Hospital,…
 
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    Skepchick

  • Drinking Skepchickally, Atlanta, featuring Boy Skepchick Wonder, Sam!

    Masala Skeptic
    20 Nov 2009 | 2:02 pm
    Come one, come all, to see the wondrous MALE SKEPCHICK! Our own Sam Ogden is coming to visit from far-off lands. Ok, actually from Texas, but still… When: December 4, 2009 7:30 PM Where: Thinking Man Tavern 537 W Howard Ave Decatur, GA 30030 (404) 370-1717 Let’s show him a nice Georgia welcome! If you can make it, please RSVP at Meetup!

  • AI: Maternity Leave

    Tracy King
    20 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pm
    In the UK, maternity leave is 52 weeks. A year off after having a baby, the first 39 weeks of which are paid for by your employer. In addition, the mother is entitled to 13 weeks unpaid leave until the child is five. That is of course incredibly fantastic for the mother and child, and a very good incentive for large companies who want to encourage valued female staff to return to work after, but a minefield for small companies like mine. In theory, if I employed a woman who became pregnant, and she decided to take the full year off, I would be able to afford to pay the maternity leave because…

  • Skepchick Quickies 11.20

    Amanda
    20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 am
    New “reversible” paralysis rays turn victims blue, flaccid – Nope, not making it up, that really is the headline. From Zapski. Muslim countries seek blasphemy ban – “Documents obtained by The Associated Press show that Algeria and Pakistan have taken the lead in lobbying to eventually bring the proposal to a vote in the U.N. General Assembly.” From James Fox. Girls can be scientists, say women scientists – A group of women scientists wrote in to The Guardian in response to an article which said that girls should be ‘realisitic’ about…

  • Oprah Quits!… sorta

    Elyse
    19 Nov 2009 | 5:46 pm
    Me: What’s new in Chicago? I’ll just check in on my good friend ChicagoTribune.com. ChicagoTribune.com: OPRAH IS GOING OFF THE AIR! Me: What the WHAT?! ChicagoTribune.com: No, for serious, she’s quitting. Me: Please… please tell me and my vajayjay and my cancer curing herbal moisturizing cream that this is not a joke. ChicagoTribune.com: Elyse, it’s our top fucking story. You don’t announce Oprah leaving television… especially in Chicago… without a professional (and maybe even very personal literal) death wish. Me: I’m sorry… I was…

  • AI: Girding Your Loins

    Sam Ogden
    19 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pm
    I’ve always been curious about human behavior, and so I watch people quite a bit. Not in a creepy way, but in a waiting-in-an-airport-for-my-flight kind of way. Perhaps “observe” is a better term than “watch”. At any rate, whether it be in preparation for a social gathering, an athletic competition, a trip, a purchase, an encounter with a stranger, or any number of other things, I notice people getting ready by deploying all kinds of rituals; a young lady plays jazz CDs and drinks a glass of wine while applying her make-up before a date; a basketball…
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    Viva la Feminista

  • There will never be closure in the Nicarico case

    17 Nov 2009 | 9:03 pm
    Originally posted at the AWEARNESS blog There will never be closure in the Nicarico case as long as Jim Ryan continues to run for public office. The Nicarico family never missed a court date. For years they sat in courtroom after courtroom listening to the lies from Attorney Jim Ryan's team as they refused to admit their mistakes and consider Brian Dugan as a suspect. Instead, Ryan kept the case rolling along to wrongfully convict two innocent men and send them to death row. Jim Ryan is now running for Illinois Governor and "spent a decade as DuPage state's attorney, previously had said he…

  • Book Review: Impossible Motherhood by Irene Vilar

    14 Nov 2009 | 10:50 pm
    The book is traumatic with a capital, bold T. At one part about 1/3 of the way thru, I threw the book down in disgust and decided I was done. You are warned. Impossible Motherhood by Irene Vilar has received a lot of press and been a topic of debate on many a listserv due to the subtitle "Testimony of an Abortion Addict." When I first found out about this book my first thought was "Oh shit." Many people, including Vilar, believe that this book will be used by anti-abortion activists as proof of women using abortion as birth control and thus a reason for the procedure to be banned outright.

  • Aren't Latinas women too?

    14 Nov 2009 | 11:52 am
    Originally posted at the AWEARNESS blog The Stupak amendment is the disappointment that just keeps on giving. Monday morning, my inbox was flooded with emails from many organizations appalled by the passage of the House healthcare bill. One email stood out from the rest (including a few celebratory emails) and that was from the National Council of La Raza. It was celebratory and failed to mention the Stupak amendment, which would ban abortion coverage in public and private insurance plans: "The health care reform bill passed by the House is a fundamental step toward making health care more…

  • Interview: Lise Eliot, Ph.D. Author of Pink Brain, Blue Brain

    11 Nov 2009 | 8:54 pm
    Lise Eliot, Ph.D., has been getting a lot of media attention about her latest book, Pink Brain, Blue Brain, and it was a pleasure to chat with her over the phone and an honor that she did it despite one of her sons being sick that day.This is far from a transcript of our conversation, but a summary of what we discussed. VLF: Why did you write this book?  LE: The size is reflective of my compulsive nature. My first book was on brain development and it was inspired by my pregnancies and children. I kept running into brain development stories and began to wonder what do we really know about…

  • Living in a culture of rape - From AWEARNESS

    11 Nov 2009 | 7:24 am
    Originally posted at the AWEARNESS blog: Our culture is still in a state of shock over the gang rape of a 15-year old girl outside her homecoming dance last week. But what is even more upsetting to me than the news of this crime is the type of responses I have seen regarding her attackers and the victim-blaming. Fellow students (and administrators, and people who don't know the victim or have any real information on the subject) are saying the rape is the victim's fault because she was drinking, and that the rapists themselves are not to blame for their actions. What should shock us is not…
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    Feminist Review

  • Earth in Our Care: Ecology, Economy, and Sustainability

    20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 pm
    By Chris MaserRutgers University PressIn Earth in Our Care: Ecology, Economy, and Sustainability, Chris Maser sets out to explain the interconnectedness of life on this planet and the importance of promoting the functioning of healthy ecosystems. Rather than being a dry treatise on biological systems, the text is engaging and draws on all kinds of disciplines.I consider myself to be an advocate for sustainability, but am not overly familiar with the technical aspects of environmentalism or ecology. Reading this from the perspective of someone who is not a scientist, Maser does a good job of…

  • Trouble the Water

    20 Nov 2009 | 9:17 am
    Directed by Tia Lessin and Carl DealZeitgeist FilmsIf you missed the exhaustively, deservedly lauded Trouble the Water in theaters last year, now you can catch it on the small screen. Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature (it lost to Man on Wire), Trouble the Water follows New Orleans residents Kimberly "Kim" Rivers Roberts and Scott Roberts from the day Katrina makes landfall to a year and a half afterward, when Kim and Scott have moved back to the city.Kim’s video footage of her neighborhood just before and during the storm, shot on a Hi-8 camcorder, provides the…

  • The Madwoman of Bethlehem

    20 Nov 2009 | 1:03 am
    By Rosine Nimeh-MaillouxSecond Story Press Before I started to read The Madwoman of Bethlehem, a story about a woman’s struggle against her patriarchal culture, I wondered whether it would be depressing. It wasn’t. From the beginning, when Rosine Nimeh-Mailloux sets up the present, where Amal is incarcerated in an asylum for women, the writing captivated me.Yes, the main character, Amal, is born into tough Palestinian life as a female, subjected to her mean grandmother and later, drunken husband, but I never once feel sorry for her. She gives off the energy of a feisty spirit and does not…

  • Social Theory: The Multicultural and Classic Readings

    19 Nov 2009 | 5:03 pm
    Edited by Charles LemertWestview PressThe fourth edition of Social Theory: The Multicultural and Classic Readings offers a lesson in sociological practice that moves beyond the atmosphere of a university auditorium. This collection is arranged in chronological order and organizes the Modern Era into distinct historical categories. However, the overarching themes of decentering, discourse, and difference are incorporated into the discussion of each era in a way that is seamless yet meaningful. Lemert’s expressed goal in creating a comprehensive collection that combines sociological…

  • Golondrina, Why Did You Leave Me?

    19 Nov 2009 | 9:00 am
    By Bárbara Renaud GonzálezUniversity of Texas PressGolondrina is the Spanish word for a (female) swallow, a noun. But to accept that in such strict terms would be an injustice to this literary artwork laid out by Bárbara Renaud González in Golondrina, Why Did You Leave Me?. To swallow—the verb—would be to envelope or take in and also to accept or believe without question, anger, or protest. To embrace the former, this long-winged migratory bird with the deeply-forked tail is to embrace all of these definitions within the context of Amada García’s journey.Amada’s story is…
 
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    My Ecdysis

  • Why Zeba Khan Can

    17 Nov 2009 | 8:41 am
    be my next great pundit.Not only is this her short bio:I am a social media consultant for nonprofits. I have researched women and minority issues in the Muslim World, Islam in America and counterterrorism finance with the U.S. Treasury Department.but for the love of God - SHE'S FROM TOLEDO, OHIO!::gratitude and pride oozing from the northeast Buckeyes::CLEVELAND SAYS: VOTE KHAN!(Her Ohio-ness is a creamy icing on the cake...she's also an original and intelligent writer who focuses much of brilliance on Detroit. What's not to love?)

  • The Frontlines of Motherhood

    16 Nov 2009 | 10:42 am
    A first time pregnancy is fraught with fears and questions. Existence, as I have known it, changed the moment I realized my life had reproduced another. A raw wonderment framed these fears and questions as the human body illuminated itself with miracle after miracle of unfolding life.Beyond scientific reasoning, the body simply knows its duties, its problems, and negotiations. It produces milk and ajusts its supply according to demand. The body releases hormones that strengthens hair, nails, and bones while moving emotions around in preparation for a new life.There are things in pregnancy…

  • Unapologetically Me

    13 Nov 2009 | 6:59 am
    SO - my new website is underway and I am feel like a kid peering into a toy store that hasn't opened yet. I'm fascinated by any and all glimpses of what could be inside.I have to say that this experience - co-creating a website with a webmaster - has brought me to a high level of admiration for artists, creators, designers who truly LISTEN to clients, who genuinely desire to incorporate feedback and thoughts into the final project.My webmaster is this kind of brilliant, listening soul. I absolutlely cannot wait to unveil her work.Even more, I am excited by how excited I am by her work. Isn't…

  • Letter #12

    11 Nov 2009 | 7:10 am
    Dear Isaiah,Sometimes I still wonder what our pregnancy would have been like had you turned out to be a girl. I wonder if you'd have received more letters from me. Frankly, the idea of raising a son is a new unchartered territory - even in my mind!The closer we come, though, to receiving you in this world, outside my body, the more unspeakably excited and tender-hearted I become. You are going to make me a mama.We've made it to 32 weeks (and counting), although the doctor says you're looking three weeks ahead of schedule. I marvel at the slow journey of pregnancy, yet, when we reach weekly…

  • The Revolution Will Be Blogged!

    10 Nov 2009 | 6:36 am
    If you want to know the difference between the feminist blogosphere and radical womyn of color, read this beautiful article by Lex. Not many can say it better than Alexis Pauline Gumbs:The energy transmitted through the radical women of color blogosphere (a.k.a. those of us who are seeking to build community and create transformation across space and time, bringing ancestors and babies every step of the way) is a life-giving force. This magic, this potential is also why we are punished for loving each other. This is not the glorification of a scene, this is a distinction between scene and…
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