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By Bryce • 13 years ago

In defense of niqabs and burqas

Since I’ve been asking progressives to walk and chew gum a lot lately, i.e. be able to hold support two values at once that might seem in conflict, I want to speak up against France’s veil ban that went into effect today. As a feminist who believes in women’s ability to function in society on equal footing with men, it’s hard to throw my support behind garments that only women are asked to wear and which hide their faces. It’s even harder for me to support burqas, which are heavy and cloak a woman’s entire form.

But women choose to wear these, and it’s not the state’s place to enforce laws saying what women can and can’t choose to wear. Some people may find stilettos unfair or even offensive (in fact Muslim cultures view much of Western women’s clothing as such), but I would never support the United States government banning their usage, even though they can cause long-term foot problems and only women are expected to wear them. The problem doesn’t lie with women who choose high heels; the problem lies with a culture that expects them to. The way to deal with inequalities around social expectations in clothing isn’t to outlaw certain garb. It’s to work on the the cultural expectations women face.

And by banning veils, the French government has made the women who wear them victims. This seems to be the opposite of what the outcome of ...
By Bryce • 13 years ago

Janette Sadik-Khan, NYC Transportation Commissioner and…Wacko Nutso?

The NYTimes has an in-depth article on New York City’s controversial transportation commissioner, Janette Sadik-Khan. New Yorkers are easily riled up about their transportation options – I myself have fallen prey to early morning subway rage. There is an ongoing three-way fight between cars, bikers, and pedestrians, and all are at times at fault. Cars park in bike lanes and blow through crosswalks; bikers ride the wrong way on a street or up on the sidewalk; pedestrians cross in the middle of the street and without the walk sign, scaring the bejeezus out of cars and bikes alike.

So Sadik-Khan’s policies that add bike lanes and pedestrian plazas quickly and sometimes with little community input are likely to stir ...

The NYTimes has an in-depth article on New York City’s controversial transportation commissioner, Janette Sadik-Khan. New Yorkers are easily riled up about their transportation options – I myself have fallen prey to early morning subway ...
By Bryce • 13 years ago

This just in: South Dakota worst state for women

Kate Sheppard at Mother Jones has the scoop on a new bill that makes killing an abortion provider a-okay:

A law under consideration in South Dakota would expand the definition of “justifiable homicide” to include killings that are intended to prevent harm to a fetus—a move that could make it legal to kill doctors who perform abortions. The Republican-backed legislation, House Bill 1171, has passed out of committee on a nine-to-three party-line vote, and is expected to face a floor vote in the state’s GOP-dominated House of Representatives soon.

Feel like killing a abortion provider? South Dakota may soon be the place for you! Of course, the bill may run into a few ...

Kate Sheppard at Mother Jones has the scoop on a new bill that makes killing an abortion provider a-okay:

A law under consideration in South Dakota would expand the definition of “justifiable homicide” to include ...