A Little F'd Up: Why Feminism Is Not A Dirty Word by Julie Zeilinger now available for pre-order on Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Pop-Culture | Posted by Julie Z on 04/13/2013
I recently got an email from Dylan Lambi-Raine, who wrote: “I’m a feminista, Genders Studies and Social Work student. I live in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and am interested in sharing a video that a group (Kayla Hatzel and Sarah Zelinski) and myself made. We were hoping to show the ridiculousness of gender stereotypes and tropes in advertising through switching gender roles in the images.”
I think their idea to reverse roles in sexist and sometimes violent ads is really thought-provoking. Check it out and share your thoughts! And for more on sexism in the media, check out one of my favorite organizations Miss Representation.
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Pop-Culture | Posted by Jasmine W on 04/12/2013
Sometimes I look at the pieces of my chemically-straightened hair that are scattered around my bathroom floor, and I wonder what it would be like if things were different. What if relaxers were never invented? What if having afro-kinky hair was okay?
I’ve been getting my hair chemically straightened since I was around eight, and before then, I got my hair pressed with a straightening comb each week. I have no idea what my natural texture looks like besides from what I can guess from childhood pictures and the tiny bit of roots that grow out before I straighten them again. My hair is at my shoulders and will not grow past them because of breakage.
The answer to my dilemma may seem simple: just go natural! But here’s the …
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Feminism | Posted by Becka W on 04/10/2013
There are so many awesome depictions of professionally ambitious ladies on TV right now. But after thinking about Equal Pay Day yesterday, and acknowledging that women still earn an average of only 77 cents to every dollar men earn, I had to wonder: what’s Liz Lemon’s wage gap? Are ALL of my favorite working women on TV underpaid? After looking into it, I came up with a depressing answer: yes. Here are my top five favorite underpaid female heroines. Who are your TV working heroines? Who did I leave off the list? Let me know!
1) Liz Lemon of 30 Rock
The very first person I thought of when I thought about hard-working women on TV was OBVIOUSLY Liz Lemon. Girlfriend works HARD. She works extremely late, keeps crazy …
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Feminism, Pop-Culture | Posted by Noelle S on 04/8/2013
Over the past several months, two rape cases have received widespread media attention. While the media could have used these cases as an opportunity to educate people and condemn the crime of rape, the media has instead reinforced rape culture.
The first case is the Steubenville Rape Case. On March 17, two Ohio high school students, Ma’lik Richmond and Trent Mays, were sentenced to Juvenile Detention in Steubenville, Ohio for raping a sixteen-year-old girl. What I find most disturbing about this case is that a number of the rapists’ friends knew about this rape and yet didn’t think the rapists had done anything wrong and failed to speak up about it.
When the judge found the two young men guilty, neither of them apologized. In fact, their complete lack of …
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Pop-Culture | Posted by Julie Z on 04/7/2013
Melancholic, charismatic, inspiring, and sincere – Toronto-based Chloe Charles breaks black female vocalist stereotypes right away as she arrives on stage with her classical guitar, accompanied by violin, double bass, or other unexpected twists and turns of her musical imagination. A singer-songwriter, drawing from many genres with hints of various ethnic inspirations, Charles’ uncategorizable canon postures an experimental pop sensibility, coupled with chamber folk and subtle flourishes of somber soul music. Chloe likes to express her genre as “Indie Art Folk,” and draws comparisons to Cat Power, Erykah Badu, Joanna Newsom, Etta James, and Bjork.
The 25 year old has been recording and performing music since 2005 while attending York University , influenced strongly by her childhood as a mixed-race person in a unique rural environment where she learned to …
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Feminism | Posted by Camille B on 04/5/2013
Last night I attended the Spring Dance at my (catholic, all-girls) school. I went with a guy named Enrique Iglesias.* He is a very nice guy, and by that I mean he knows how to effectively interact with other human beings and therefore instead of babysitting him I was free to just have fun. And that’s exactly what I did. I danced and danced…and danced. Now to be completely honest I have no rhythm whatsoever. But I do love to dance even if it is just failing my arms like a drunken chimpanzee.
As I was getting down on the dance floor a prepubescent freshman started grinding on me. Again, I just want to emphasize that I dance like an inebriated primate so I have to question hhis initial attraction. …
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Feminism | Posted by Chelsea L on 04/3/2013
I recently spent two weeks traveling with a group in Morocco and was fortunate enough to have the experience of going to a hammam. A hammam is a type of spa where women and men (separately) go once a week for 2+ hours to perform ritual cleansing. It’s relaxing, exfoliating, and a great time for female bonding. The “catch”? You must be completely naked. Maybe for some people this isn’t a big deal, but for me it was horrifying. My body has been a constant issue for me. I’ve done crash diets, Weight Watchers, lost weight, gained it back, struggled with days of self-loathing and through countless workouts. I have done many things to feel comfortable—much less beautiful—in my own body, and yet I found unexpected inspiration in this hammam.…
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Feminism | Posted by Meggan Watterson on 04/1/2013
I would always hesitate before opening the door to St. Elizabeth’s Infant Hospital because once inside, the rest of the world would cease to exist. Nothing else could compete with the presence I met once I entered. St. E’s, a Catholic Charities organization in San Francisco, was a place of mother’s milk and indigestible pain, a place for the excluded—the controversial population of pregnant teens and teen moms.
An icon of the Virgin Mary was perched on top of the refrigerator in the staff lounge. Her four-foot plastic frame was so light that she teetered every time a child-care counselor or Sister of Charity opened the refrigerator door to retrieve their lunch from inside.
She was the “classic Virgin,” I was told—the Mary most readily found in small enclaves in …
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