What We Missed

Rando fact of the day: Yesterday’s October 24th date in 1939 marked the first sale of nylon stockings in the U.S. (God, I hate those things.) Via Shelby Knox.

Shocker of the Day: Black GOP candidates are pissed that national party leaders aren’t doing much to help them get elected.

Headlines abound: “Angry gay voters could sway election.” Melissa weighs in, and PHB on why the LGBT community should not sit this election out.

Mojo: Can the Youth Brigade Stop a GOP Takeover? Also check out TheBallot.org, a database of progressive voter guides.

Any way you cut it, anorexia is not funny.

Rando fact of the day: Yesterday’s October 24th date in 1939 marked the first sale of nylon stockings in the U.S. (God, I hate those things.) Via Shelby Knox.

Shocker ...

More Bad News on the Motherhood Penalty

A new study that evaluates the motherhood penalty, or the average wages women lose over their career after they become mothers, reveals that low-income lose again and women who enjoy family friendly benefits aren’t usually mothers. Via today’s New York Times Economix blog:

In a startling new look at the “motherhood penalty,” however, two sociologists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Michelle J. Budig and Melissa J. Hodges, show that mothers with lower earnings suffer the biggest percentage loss in hourly wages…Women with lower earnings are more likely to cycle in and out of jobs, forced to quit if child-care arrangements fall through or they experience a family health crisis. ...

A new study that evaluates the motherhood penalty, or the average wages women lose over their career after they become mothers, reveals that low-income lose again and women who enjoy family friendly benefits aren’t usually mothers. Via ...

WTFS of the Day: Obama and “Illegal Alien” Halloween Costumes

And by WTFS, I mean this as an even more alarming WTF: “What The Fucking Shit.”

Yes, it’s true that Halloween brings out some of the most offensive costumes you could imagine — it’s like the holiday gives folks the opportunity to be openly bigoted — but this site in particular brings out some of the most disturbing stuff I’ve seen. Between this “Illegal Alien” costume (along with the Obama mask, of course), the “Super Hoops Afro Star Basketball Player” and, I shit you not, a “Berka” costume, it’s more than enough to make one seethe.

I couldn’t find a contact for the site, but I did find that they are an ...

And by WTFS, I mean this as an even more alarming WTF: “What The Fucking Shit.”

Yes, it’s true that Halloween brings out some of the most offensive costumes you could imagine — it’s like the ...

Women’s Empowerment Issue: An Upgrade from “Saving the World’s Women”

When I first saw the cover of the New York Times Magazine’s “Women’s Empowerment Issue,” I had a classic case of the side-eye: a presumably American white woman with the “all in a day’s work” smirk donning indigenous clothing with arms sprawling across 5 brown children in a field of green pastures. Emblazoned beneath her was the headline “Do It Yourself: Foreign Aid.” But after I got past my smh moment and my suspicions of yet again another sequel in the never-ending saga of white saviordom, I plowed through several articles that were insightful, gripping and helpful to the conversation on women’s rights.

Yes, Nicholas D. Kristof gives his hat-tip to a Harvard-educated, World-Bank-working young woman who ...

When I first saw the cover of the New York Times Magazine’s “Women’s Empowerment Issue,” I had a classic case of the side-eye: a presumably American white woman with the “all in a day’s ...

Willow Smith: “Don’t Be Afraid to Be Yourself”

Many people may know that last Monday, 9-year-old Willow Smith, daughter of Will and Jada and apparently freshest face in the pop music game, released a music video for her single “Whip My Hair”. So far, the video has been getting tons of play, making its rounds on the internets and just generally causing a stir. I personally have been jamming to the song, but hey, maybe that’s just me.

What many may not know is the meaning behing “Whip My Hair”. In a recent interview with MTV, Willow Smith explained the inspiration behind her lyrics:

“‘Whip My Hair’ means don’t be afraid to be yourself, and don’t let anybody tell you that that’s wrong. Because the best thing is you.” ...

Many people may know that last Monday, 9-year-old Willow Smith, daughter of Will and Jada and apparently freshest face in the pop music game, released a music video for her single “Whip My Hair”. So far, the ...

Breastfeeding: It Does a Body Good (as in, makes it look better)

It looks like the New York State Department of Health is trying to encourage breastfeeding (yay!) by telling women they’ll totally lose sooo much weight if they do! (Huh?)

Interesting how they succeed in mocking your run-of-the-mill diet commercial while still managing to say, as Sociological Images aptly put it: “[D]on’t ever forget, ladies: one of your main responsibilities as a new mom is to lose the weight as quickly as possible.”

Transcript after jump.

It looks like the New York State Department of Health is trying to encourage breastfeeding (yay!) by telling women they’ll totally lose sooo much weight if they do! (Huh?)

Interesting how they succeed in mocking your run-of-the-mill diet ...

rfm

The Feministing Five: Rachel Maddow

The subject of this week’s Feministing Five interview needs no introduction. But I’m going to give her one anyway.

Rachel Maddow is the host of The Rachel Maddow Show, a blend of news, opinion and unabashed geekiness that airs weeknights at 9pm on MSNBC. Since the show’s premiere just over two years ago, Maddow has developed the reputation as one of the most reasonable and intelligent pundits around, and she was a particularly welcome addition to the world of cable news, where reason and intelligence can sometimes seem thin on the ground. Maddow might not be your typically loud, blustery cable news show host, but she is nonetheless a (pleasantly) ruthless interviewer. Guests on her show, and conservative guests ...

The subject of this week’s Feministing Five interview needs no introduction. But I’m going to give her one anyway.

Rachel Maddow is the host of The Rachel Maddow Show, a blend of news, opinion and unabashed ...

When Meaning Well Isn’t Enough (One more response to the Yale frat)

I’ve been reading about the Yale situation all week (you know, the one where the DKE fraternity pledges chanted “no means yes, yes means anal” among other things). Ashley mentioned it here on Monday, and I’ve read a lot of great responses, both from Yale students and from other writers.

But today I watched the video for the first time (or listened, it’s mostly audio) and was really disturbed. Reading about it is gross. Hearing a large group of men chant those words, loud and aggressively, over and over is actually really frightening. And it was right after I listened that I read this interview Tracy Clark-Flory did over at Salon with a ...

I’ve been reading about the Yale situation all week (you know, the one where the DKE fraternity pledges chanted “no means yes, yes means anal” among other things). Ashley mentioned it here on Monday, and ...

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