Feminism | Posted by UnpopularPerspective on 06/19/2013
On Having Big Boobs: My Anatomy Has Nothing To Do With My Morality
As a kid, I was taught to believe many restricting things about my body, but one stuck with me more than others: the bigger your boobs, the better — but they better be covered. I accepted that. Then, out of nowhere, I got boobs (at the age of fifteen, I now have have triple D’s). And everything changed.
For a long time, I hated them. My friends teased me about them, I got unwanted attention, and I couldn’t (and still can’t) find a bra that fits. But over the years, I’ve discovered some positive things about breasts. They aren’t just objects for men to drool over and indulge in as they please (although that’s how they’re almost exclusively portrayed by the media): they are a friggin miracle that nourish and …
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Feminism | Posted by Camille E on 06/17/2013
What If I AM Like The Feminist Stereotype?
Am I giving feminism a bad rap by not shaving my armpits? I worry that people will take one look at my pits, label me as “one of those feminists” (the only kind they think exists), and dismiss what I say and stand for. I don’t want people to further solidify the stereotype that all feminists are hairy mammoth, lesbian, man-hating bra-burners, except it’s more important to me that we get across that there isn’t anything wrong whatsoever with being a lesbian or a woman who doesn’t shave in the first place. I also firmly believe that not shaving is a feminist statement, albeit one I do not expect many to understand or apply to their own lives.
I love my armpit hair. At the moment, it’s my special little …
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Feminism | Posted by Hannah H on 06/14/2013
Tomboy Exceptionalism: “I’m Not Like The Other Girls”
I grew up a tomboy. That meant no dresses, no dolls, and even biting my kindergarten boyfriend who dared to give me a party favour bag at his birthday that was princess themed. It meant playing in the mud, wearing clothes from the boy’s section at Old Navy, and (most importantly) being tough, rough, and powerful. I wasn’t “like the other girls” — I wanted the boys to value and play with me, rather than try and look up my skirt when I jumped from the monkey bars as they did with my friend Lauren.
So I got to play in their reindeer games because, as a tomboy, I was free from gender expectations that devalued me as a women. I wasn’t a threat because I wasn’t “ like the …
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Pop-Culture | Posted by Blake W on 06/12/2013
Female Stereotypes on Glee
Glee gets a lot of crap for the way they portray their female characters. They are mostly vain, obsessed with themselves, or are solely focused on their love interests. Since it’s probably way too much to hope that a show like Glee actually portrays multidimensional, realistic characters, I’ve decided to come up with three female archetypes that Glee could use to create more compelling characters (but, let’s be honest, will probably mess up).
The Feminist
How Glee could get it right:
She could be one of the rare female characters that isn’t obsessed with a guy on this show, and have a Jack and Liz kind of thing going on with Mr. Shue. Most importantly, she could bring a focus on women’s issues to the show. She could be involved …
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Feminism | Posted by Sarah M on 06/10/2013
On Internalized Misogyny
The other day, as I sat in math class, I couldn’t help but eavesdrop on a couple of girls seated directly in front of me. They were discussing the volleyball game that was supposed to happen that day after school. At one point, one of the girls noted that the girls on the team had to wear their athletic uniforms around the school for that day (to invigorate school spirit and what not). The other girl responded that it was ridiculous and unfair that the athletes were permitted to break with the school’s dress code for the day (their shorts were *gasp* above their knees), and continued to say that the shorts were “an invitation for rape.” At this point, I was struggling to keep my mouth shut. However, they …
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Feminism | Posted by Julie Z on 06/8/2013
Saturday Vids: La Barbe
Who says feminist activism is dead? If you haven’t heard of La Barbe – a group of French feminists who fight inequality with sarcastic humor and fake beards – you’re missing out.
About La Barbe (in French)
LA BARBE – March 8th 2012 from Elena Rossini on Vimeo.
A La Barbe Protest
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Feminism | Posted by Talia on 06/7/2013
In Defense of “Freshperson”
Next Fall, I’ll be enrolling in my first year of college. I’ll be a freshman – a concept that’s giving me pause not just because I’m questioning the existentialist quality of being a freshman, but because of the word itself. Why must I be a freshman?
According to dictionary.com, the word “freshman” comes from the words fresh (as in new) and man (as in not woman), and has been used to refer to first year university students since the 1590s. This term is clearly a relic of ye olden dayes (or, for some schools, a few decades ago) when higher education was a realm solely accessibly to (usually rich, upper class, white, able-bodied) men. Although we have abolished or significantly limited the usage of numerous gender-insensitive …
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Feminism | Posted by Claire C on 05/29/2013
Margaret Thatcher: How An Anti-Feminist Inadvertently Contributed to the Cause
With the passing of Margaret Thatcher in recent months, her achievements and contributions have been much analyzed. Thatcher has been described as “the most influential politician of her generation” and a “key political figure of the twentieth century.” One area of Thatcher’s life which has been examined is her contribution to the feminist cause. This is something that cannot be overlooked, especially as Thatcher was the first (and to this day, only) female Prime Minster of the U.K. Political pundits cannot help but describe Margaret Thatcher in regards to her sex, with terms such as “Lady Thatcher” and “the Iron Lady.”
It is generally believed that Thatcher did next to nothing in the fight to further women’s rights in the U.K. For instance, there was only one other woman in …
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