"I love feministing.com and always learn from it." Katha Pollitt, The Nation
"Many people need a morning "fix." For some, it's coffee. For others, it's "SportsCenter." For me, it's Feministing.com." Katie Stone, The Denver Post
"Feminism is fun again! Every bit as edifying as your women's studies books from college, but with a biting sense of humor that keeps things punchy, not preachy." Marie Claire, December 2006
Female military interrogators and civilian contractors at Guantanamo tried to break male Muslim prisoners by showing off their tight T-shirts and thong underwear, rubbing their breasts on prisoners’ backs and wiping fake menstrual blood on prisoners, according to a new book that is “classified as secret pending a Pentagon review.”
Did the military encourage women to conduct interrogations this way? Or did the women themselves come up with this “creative” method? Either way, it’s disgusting.
The Independent Women's Forum today defends statements by Harvard President Lawrence Summers. Summers suggested the possibility that innate differences between men and women contribute to there being fewer women in science and engineering at colleges and universities.
"President Summers is being vilified for telling the truth about women," said Nancy Pfotenhauer, president and CEO of the Independent Women's Forum. "Women have children and choose to raise those children and neurobiology shows us women are better in certain fields than men and tend to gravitate towards those fields they do better in. Men, likewise, gravitate to fields they excel in."
But lucky us—the IWF is conveniently giving contact info. Call away…
Become a prostitute or lose your benefits in Germany
What? Talk about a case against legalized prostitution!
A 25-year-old waitress who turned down a job providing "sexual services'' at a brothel in Berlin faces possible cuts to her unemployment benefit under laws introduced this year.
…Under Germany's welfare reforms, any woman under 55 who has been out of work for more than a year can be forced to take an available job – including in the sex industry – or lose her unemployment benefit…
The government had considered making brothels an exception on moral grounds, but decided that it would be too difficult to distinguish them from bars. As a result, job centres must treat employers looking for a prostitute in the same way as those looking for a dental nurse.
Great, so now the government can be your pimp…Hey Germany, how about giving decriminalization a try?!
What a weekend! We’ll have a full analysis up in a bit; sorry—I’m exhausted from the trip back. Despite some logistical problems on Sunday (we were locked out of the building!), the conference was great and we had such an amazing time meeting all of the participants.
A special thanks to Erin, Terese and Claudia for being the last feministas at the bar with us on Saturday night!
Also stay tuned for posts from some of the women who participated…
Lauryn asking all the participants to write about their experience at the conference to possibly post on Feministing. Doesn't she look so professional?
...or closeted love letters. Depends on how you look at it.
Some hilarity to get you through the weekend:
Corky Loomis: If you all weren't so young I'd try to have my way with you, but you'd never give me the time of day. Bitches. I suppose I'll have to save it all for the spank bank...
Robert Trojan: Haven't you heard? Feminism is dead.
Matt Dietrich: Hi Cupcake, Rush (Limbaugh) was right when he penned the First 35 Undeniable Truths of Life. Here's a sample. You're welcome. #24: Feminism was established so as to allow unattractive women access to the mainstream of society.
Awesome. I�m particularly fond of Matt's nah-nah-nah-boo-boo style of political debate. Nothing says smart like resorting to "well-you're ugly!" when faced with views you don't like.
(But really, check out the whole article. It seems women have nothing to complain about because we have "television channels like Lifetime or Oxygen.")
A little update to Lauryn's post on SorryEverybody.com -- the site that makes an official apology for the re-election -- apparently another site has been developed in response, ApologiesAccepted.com.
The original site also had a photo gallery of thousands who are open to express their disappointment for the four more years with Dubya. Apologies Accepted has a more optimistic photo gallery that urges viewers to send their pic in again, but with a better outlook. "Bush's inauguration does not mark the end of all dispute -- it is just the beginning." Word.
Check out the gallery, thousands of viewers worldwide are sending their thoughts in. It's a nice thing to see.
From Ellen Goodman:
On Monday, abortion opponents held the 32d "March for Life." We barely notice the way the word "life" was hijacked and locked in the right-wing dictionary. "Life" now means fetal life; life begins with conception and ends with birth.
As an update to our previousposts concerning the hundreds of young women who have been killed over the past decade in Ciudad Juarez, I was happy to see that the United Nations has finally begun to recognize the horror that this city has endured.
It was reported by Reuters that last Thursday, a U.N. panel --specifically the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women -- accused Mexico of “grave and systematic” rights violations for the lack of effort that’s been put in to solve the murders of these young women.
They stated that the committee was “greatly concerned at the fact that these serious and systematic violations of women’s rights have continued for over 10 years.” In the report, it also “notes with consternation that it has not yet been possible to eradicate them, to punish the guilty and to provide the families of the victims with the necessary assistance.”
Although the Mexican government claims that the murders’ origin "lies in entrenched cultural patterns of discrimination,” an incredible film I mentioned in the previous post on the slayings, Senorita Extraviada, suggests otherwise. Director Lourdes Portillo delves into the possibility of bigger involvements with the murders, like the Mexican police, the government, or drug trafficking.
Let’s just hope that this address by the panel will motivate the government to finally take some action on this horrifying encroachment of women’s rights.
Something to check out if you’re feeling particularly vaginal today: The Online Vulva Museum. I shit you not.
Founder Kirsten says she is “continually saddened to see the widespread disrespect that is displayed towards women's genitals in most cultures and is offering this website as an alternative...”
Sounds good to me. Though I have to say, the vulva purse (above) made me highly uncomfortable.
Too funny. A German woman has created a thong dispenser in bar bathrooms for all the ladies who get caught out there wearing granny panties right before a potential hook-up.
For around $8, you can get a thong and a “toothpaste tablet” (can't have the stinky breath...) to make your night complete. Innovative or fucking ridiculous?
The gals over at Feministing are pleased as punch that we’ve been getting so many comments lately—the whole purpose of starting this site was to foster an open dialogue among young women.
Unfortunately, the increase in traffic we’ve had recently has also brought out some folks who are less than polite about their opposition to the content of Feministing. As I’ve said before, I’m not into censoring. If people disagree and want to argue in the comments section, I’m all for it.
But I’m not going to tolerate threats or verbal abuse. And as much as I’d like to respond to every comment we receive—even the insulting ones—I just don’t have enough time in the day. So from now on, if certain people are here just to be assholes, I’m going to erase their comments.
Now let me be clear—this doesn’t apply to those who come to respectfully disagree with us. This doesn’t apply to those who come to sarcastically disagree. This policy is only for those whose comments are outright threatening or abusive.
Now back to the real work…
UPDATE: Sometimes when I'm dealing with all the freaky comment spam we get, a legitimate comment gets erased by accident. We're trying to figure out a way to cut down on this; thanks for your patience!
Further to Jessica's post about SpongeBob SquarePants' "pro-gay" message, check this gem:
Cnn.com reported yesterday that America's new Secretary of Education denounced PBS for spending public money on a cartoon with lesbian characters, saying many parents would not want children "exposed to such lifestyles". The not-yet-aired episode of "Postcards From Buster" shows the title character, an animated bunny named Buster, on a trip to Vermont -- a state known for recognizing same-sex civil unions. The episode features two lesbian couples, although the focus is on farm life and maple sugaring. Lea Sloan, vice president of media relations at PBS, subsequently issued a statement saying: "The department's concerns align very closely with PBS' concerns, and for that reason, it was decided that PBS will not be providing the episode."
Ok, I would understand the government objecting to gay sex on one of these shows. That, it could be fairly argued, might be questionable to "expose" to children. But the purpose of this federally-funded cartoon project is to educate children about "people of different backgrounds." And, as much as the Bush administration would like to deny it, GAY PEOPLE EXIST! And they deal with farm life and maple sugaring in the same way straight people do! I find this unusually appalling. What do you think about this and/or the new "moral" trend in communications?
Check out Women’s eNew’s article today about a form of abuse that’s greatly ignored: emotional abuse. And a new reality show is showing it off on national television. Big shocker.
On “The Amazing Race”, a team of two that are married shows numerous accounts of Jonathan Baker berating his wife, Victoria Fuller, calling her “stupid”, “useless” and “dumb”.
Baker has made an official statement and posted on his website that he does not abuse his wife, and referred to his actions as a “heightened version of stress and obsession mixed with medication for a sickness called Sarcoidosis.”
Yet the fact that CBS chose to exploit this treatment on the air is problematic. Jill Morris, the public policy director for the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence in D.C., blames the producers. “By showing the program, they're telling the public it's OK to treat someone this way. They can edit this stuff out, yet they are choosing to show it to viewers. In our opinion, that is condoning violence against women.” Or at the very least, put out counter or prevention messages, says Esta Soler, founder and president of Family Violence Prevention Fund in San Francisco.
Medical research on emotional abuse has defined it as the use of verbal and nonverbal acts that symbolically harm the other or using threats to hurt the other. Researchers also claim that because of the fact that it is not illegal, women that suffer from it are not taken seriously.
Many emotionally abused women are also more likely to report poor physical health and depression (no, duh) and were at a higher risk of developing a chronic mental illness. Support groups who work with emotional abuse victims say that the psychological treatment leads victims to be afraid to make decisions for themselves, and can destroy friendships, leading them to isolation.
For more information on emotional abuse, click here.
Did everyone know that last Sunday was declared by Bush "National Sanctity of Human Life Day"? Bush called on all Americans to "reaffirm the value of human life and renew our dedication to ensuring that every American has access to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."
Think it's an accident that this came near the Roe anniversary? Think again.
Susanne Martinez, vice president of public policy for Planned Parenthood, said the timing of the announcement showed that the Bush administration "has made it clear they'd like the law overturned in the U.S."
Pennsylvania women take on Chastity Awareness Week
For those in Pennsylvania—here’s a great way to get involved. For others—take a look at innovative activism at work! Love it…
When faced with addressing unintended pregnancies, most states would take a look at sex education, insurance for birth control, and accessibility of EC for rape survivors. But not PA!
To take on unwanted pregnancies, the Pennsylvania State Legislature created “Chastity Awareness Week.” Cause if you get preggers, it’s cause you’re a slut...
If our lawmakers want to make chastity our only option, shouldn't they give us the right accessories? Order your chastity belt from the Pennsylvania State Legislature TODAY! Then, ask for more than a chastity belt this year - ask them for real choices.
