April 2005 Archives

From the 13 year-old in Florida whose abortion was blocked by the state:

Girl: "Why can't I make my own decision?"

Judge Alvarez: "I don't know."

Girl: "You don't know? Aren't you the judge? I think if I want to make the decision, it's my business and I can do that."

Via DED Space.

Alabama State Representative Gerald Allen recently introduced a
bill into the state legislature that would keep "gay" books out of
public school libraries.

Banned books would include those written by gay authors - like
Tennesee Williams, Truman Capote, Gore Vidal - and books with gay
characters in them, such as Alice Walker's "The Color Purple."

Allen said he was afraid of the "homosexual agenda" and "I don't look
at it as censorship. I look at it as protecting the hearts and souls
and minds of our children." Allen must not have gotten the memo that
at every single point in history when politicians have banned books,
it has turned out to be a bad, bad idea.

Luckily, the bill died before it could be voted on, because not enough
state legislators showed up for the vote. But isn't it nice to know that asshole like Allen still exist?

Contributed by Jess Wakeman

Let's hope so. A UN spokesperson announced yesterday that there has been a number of U.N. peacekeepers that have sexually abused and exploited local women in Liberia, where they were stationed to protect them. Old news, my friend.

The official speaking on a condition of anonymity said that the number of total allegations could reach up to twenty. “The allegations range from the exchange of goods, money or services for sex to the sexual exploitation of minors. The peacekeeping department here in New York as well as the mission on the ground are taking appropriate follow-up action."

We'll see about that. These atrocities have been continuing for so long and near to nothing has been done about it. If you want to take some action, click here.

Here’s some other posts on the UN and violence against women in war:

What's (Not) Being Done in the Sudan

UN's Inadequate Response to Gender-Based Violence

Report Released on Women and War

Sexual Assault and the UN (AGAIN)

From gaming blog Kotaku:

Wired’s Sex Drive has a short review of porn star Jenna Jameson’s new game up. xStream3D Multimedia VirtuallyJenna sounds about as original as its name. Basically, you get to play around with a virtual dummy of Jenna Jameson that looks like some creepy plastic corpse in the screen shots. Regina Lynn writes that you can dress Jenna up and pose her and then plunge a variety of tools into her to try and get her to achieve climax. That’s the whole game. Lynn was able to get Jenna to moan a whole bunch and say she was almost there, but never landed the big O. xStream3D president says the thing is a game and that it empowers women.

And I’m sure that’s exactly what all of the pantless men playing the game one handed will be thinking. For me, this game has all of the appeal of making sweet love to a wax dummy.

I'm glad to know not everyone thinks this game is a great idea. Ew. But I love the company pres. trying to convince folks that the game actually empowers women. Cause what's more revolutionary and powerful than being a virtual dummy that gets penetrated?

Thanks to Roger for the link.

As the Ranking Member of the Committee on Small Businesses and Entrepreneurship, Senator John Kerry called out Bush and the Small Business Administration (SBA) concerning their lack of regard for women-owned businesses. Here's a snippet of Kerry's comments:

"Women business owners continue to be short-changed by the administration...The number of women-owned businesses is growing at more than twice the rate of all firms, but women entrepreneurs aren't getting their fair share of the capital, counseling or contracts. There's no place for the ol' boys club in our government. We need to ensure that, with a smart business plan and a lot of hard work, every American entrepreneur can achieve success."

Of the $300 billion in contracts awarded by the government, women-owned businesses (which are 30 percent of all businesses in the US) are expected to receive five percent. Yet they're only given three. Although it doesn’t seem like much, this means that they lose out on about $6 billion per year. Additionally, (and not surprisingly) the administration has refused to implement a women’s contracting program to help women-owned businesses obtain access to federal contracts.

As infuriating as this is, I’m glad to see that our old friend (sniff, sniff) is back and doing his thang for a good cause.

The book titles alone should be enough to get you interested (and laughing): You, The Warrior Leader; The Barbarian Way; Fight on Your Knees; God's Gift to Women.

Jeff Sharlet, a research professor at New York University's Center for Religion and Media, takes on the upsurge of Christian men's books in a recent Nerve article:

...What's sad about books like God's Gift to Women and Wild At Heart is that they attempt to contain the mystery of that question in metaphors that translate its inherent sexuality into codes of combat, and clichéd ones at that. The "enemy," of course, is Satan, but his names are legion: pornography, homosexuality, feminism, humanism, the monolithic foe Christian conservatives call, simply, "the culture."

And by the way, turns out us gals don't really like the sex so much:

In an interview with New Man, a Christian magazine, John Hagee, a popular pastor who is the author of What Every Man Wants in a Woman, explains what, in turn, every woman wants in a man (which is odd, since Hagee's wife, Diana, is the author of a book of that name, and would have presumably been the more logical explicator): "nonsexual affection."

Well, sure. That this is news to anyone is hard to believe. But more shocking is Hagee's announcement that nearly every woman he's counseled over the years has told him that "It's really no big deal if I never have sex again with my husband." This makes sense only if one accepts the division of identity increasingly popular in evangelicaldom: young men are knights and young women are virginal maidens, and even after marriage that formula, in a sense, continues: Men must get dirty in battle, women must stay pure at home. Sex is for the fellas.

Don’t know how much the boyfriend is going to like hearing that. Sorry honey; no more sex for me! Hand-holding will suffice from now on.

Make sure to read the whole piece...you'll thank me for it.

The ACLU of Ohio is representing NARAL in a lawsuit against the state of Ohio's sale of "Choose Life" license plates.

Effective May 18, Ohio residents will be able to spend an extra $30 for the specialty plates, $20 of which will go to anti-choice groups that "encourage women to consider adoption rather than abortion." The state will not be providing specialty license plates with an abortion-rights message.

The lawsuit hinges on viewpoint discrimination against pro-choicers, because the Ohio legislature rejected a license plate with a pro-choice message. Of the 10 states that have "Choose Life" plates, none offer plates that read "Choose Choice."

"This is a case about fundamental fairness," said Carrie Davis, ACLU of Ohio staff attorney. "The State of Ohio cannot open a public forum to one side of a debate without allowing the same access to all other sides."

It looks like the British Open organizers have decided to admit women into the competition beginning in 2006, reports BBC News. The Open is one of the four largest golfing events worldwide.

The word on the street is that fifteen-year old Michelle Wie is going to be the first woman to qualify. Check out some of her kick-ass achievements she’s made as one of the leading ladies of golf.

How many "Oh, your cell phone is on vibrate (wink, wink)" comments have you ever gotten? Well from now on those obnoxious comments will have some truth to them. Kind of.

Vibrafoon makes exclusive content for mobile phones. Our first product is the Vibrafonic. These Vibrafonics are small java applications that turn your mobile phone into a personal massaging device. Besides vibrating, they play a funny, flirty, or erotic animation or video clip. These vibrations, in combination with the visuals, give you a shaking sensation you'd never expect from a mobile phone.

Um, ok. But then I have to put it up to my ear? Don't think so. Not to mention the "erotic" visuals are anything but (see above).

But I do have to admit, their flash ad is pretty cute.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro (CT-D) is asking that Americans give great Mother's Day gifts this year--not shopping at Wal-Mart:

DeLauro, D-Conn., wants consumers to join with her in supporting a federal lawsuit that accuses the nation's largest retailer of discriminating against women.

DeLauro also wants the company to turn over wage statistics for congressional review.

Love it. You can participate in the “Love Mom, Not Wal-Mart” campaign at Wake-Up Wal-Mart.

For more info on Wal-Mart's scary practices, you can also check out Wal-Mart Watch and the AFL-CIO.

In other choice/teen news: make sure to check out The New Republic's article on all the recent brouhaha surrounding emergency contraception, Morning-After Sickness. Outside of discussing legislative threats, author Jonathan Cohn also takes on the fear of teen sex that seems to be behind much of the opposition to EC:

The other serious argument against Plan B is that it will increase risky sexual activity by young people. But peer-reviewed studies published in mainstream medical publications (like one just published in the Journal of the American Medical Association) have repeatedly found no such link. Of course, conservatives argue that making emergency contraception available sends a broader cultural message about the acceptability of premarital sex...

...When conservatives talk about Plan B, they conjure up images of lust-crazed college girls engaging in one-night stands, then reaching over empty beer bottles to grab their supersized Plan B jars. But the one group to whom emergency contraception would make the greatest difference is rape victims. According to Trussell, who studied statistics from 1998, about 22,000 of the 25,000 women who became pregnant from rape could have prevented pregnancy with emergency contraception. Unfortunately, the new federal hospital guidelines for rape treatment released in January mysteriously omitted Plan B, even though a previous draft had included it. In Colorado, conservatives have fought efforts to impose a guideline that includes emergency contraceptives...

I'm glad that Cohn points out that women who are suffering most because of the lack of EC availability are rape victims and not crazy spring breakers, as the conservatives would have us believe. But don't crazy spring breakers deserve EC, too? By focusing on victims of sexual assault as the primary users of emergency contraception are we somehow bolstering the argument that "irresponsible" teen girls shouldn't have access to it? Just putting it out there...

From the Associated Press:

The state's social services agency was granted a court order to block an abortion for a pregnant 13-year-old girl living in a state shelter, prompting an emergency appeal Wednesday by the American Civil Liberties Union.

The state agency argued the 13 1/2-week pregnant girl -- described as L.G. in court documents -- is too young and immature to make an informed medical decision, according to the ACLU appeal.

Of course, too young to make a decision but plenty old to have a kid. And yes, I know I brought the whole minors/abortion issue up yesterday, but I think it warrants repeating.

Because the laws that affect teen girls and their bodies tell volumes about how all women are viewed. Anti-choice legislators (and activists) see women as children, unable to make decisions on their own—at 13 or 30 years-old. We need to be protected from ourselves and our bad decisions. That's why our pharmacists won't give out birth control or emergency contraception, or our states act as parents when we're a 13 year-old with no family who wants an abortion.

This recent article from the Newark (NJ) Star-Ledger about adolescent gynecology made me think about how this issue is largely left out of the discussion on teen sexuality.

The first visit is described as a "gynecological encounter," which doesn't include a full pelvic exam, but allows teenage girls to start a dialogue with their OB/GYN. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends that healthy girls first visit a gynecologist between the ages of 13 and 15 and preferably before sexual activity. As a good friend of mine pointed out, the first visit is kind of like the "control" to which every exam after sex can be compared.

This also ties into the discussion on abstinence-only education. If teenage girls aren't getting accurate information about sex in school, then maybe they can get it from their OB/GYN. I'm wondering: Are parents who advocate abstinence-only education delaying the date of their daughters' first visit to the gynecologist?

Speaking from personal experience, my parents are conservative Catholics who believe strongly in abstinence-only until marriage. I made my first OB/GYN appointment by myself, and I was way older than 13. This article certainly makes the case that more girls would benefit from starting a relationship with their gyno at an earlier age, even if they aren't sexually active.

Thoughts? Do you think age 13-15 is too young to see the gynecologist, or should we be encouraging girls to be comfortable with their doctor at an earlier age?

My friend Gary recently sent me an article from the Wall Street Journal. (He knows just how to please me). The article is called "Girl Power as Boy Bashing: Evaluating the Latest Twist In the War of the Sexes," and before reading the piece, I groaned. I hate when people attribute things like cuts to men's college sports (or affirmative action) to girls "robbing" men of things they deserve. It's so tired to claim that women's progress is somehow meant to punish men.

Luckily, I was basically wrong. The article actually deals with the economics of the tween consumer market. (Shocking! An economic analysis from the Wall Street Journal!) The author shows that kids are now spending millions on products promoting the gender war. He points out the popularity of things like insult-laden clothing lines, confrontation-packed reality TV shows, and advertising that defines girl-power as boy-bashing.

Most of the girl power/boy-bashing argument focuses on the popularity of the David & Goliath "boys are stupid" clothing line, which is sold in 2,500 outlets and has an annual income of $100 million. As many of you know, the clothing line sells the infamous "Boys are stupid. Throw rocks at them!", "Boys are smelly," and "Boys have cooties" t-shirts.

I think this is an interesting point. I don't think, as people quoted in the article suggest, that this trend is a product of Title IX, and shows girls trying to get a leg up by pushing boys down. That seems like a far-fetched and quite serious claim. I do think, however, that this trend is useless, obnoxious and, given that people can see it as a negative product of feminist advances, potentially damaging. I'm also tempted to wonder why this article essentially ignores the AMAZING amount of anti-woman products selling millions out there. But alas...

What do you think?

Dag this is crazy.
Doctors say Kenya's strict abortion laws have forced thousands of women and girls to the backstreets where charlatans use all manner of sharp instruments -- metal wires, knitting needles, forceps -- to penetrate the womb and kill the foetus.
The picture is amplified across sub-Saharan Africa where 30,000 women die each year from unsafe abortions, and millions more suffer life-long problems.

Kenya realized last year this was a problem when some young boys found 15 fetuses dumped in a river near Nairobi. Catholic bishops, who hold moral sway in the predominantly Christian country, held a requiem mass to condemn "the terrible holocaust of abortion".

This is a major problem leading back to the Kenyian governments refusal to change a colonial era law prohibiting abortion. Doctors however want the law changed. One of them said,

"We cannot impose our morality on other people," Kiarie said. "What we are basically saying is that let these women die, they deserve it."
According to the United Nations Population Fund, about 530,000 women a year die in pregnancy or childbirth, nearly half of them -- 247,000 -- in sub-Saharan Africa. Activists blame male leaders for inaction on a continent where women's rights are at best ignored, at worst, violated. "The fact that women die from unsafe abortions I don't think impinges on the consciousness of the African male leadership," Ghana's Sai argued. "There's the thinking that maternity requires deaths."

According to a study conducted by the US National Cancer Institute that included more than 5,000 patients, a new treatment drug for breast cancer has a chance of (along with standard chemotherapy) bettering the chances of recurrence after surgery by more than half.

The drug, called Herceptin, is made by the biotechnology company Genentech Inc., who said they are in process of discussing with federal regulators of prescribing the drug to more patients. Herceptin is considered to be a "targeted therapy", for it can distinguish and attack diseased cells while leaving the health ones alone.

Just as a reminder, over 40,000 women die of the disease and 211,000 are diagnosed each year. It is the most commonly diagnosed form of cancer in women.

Last Friday, Spain’s parliament accepted the right for same-sex couples to marry and adopt children, reports BBC News. Now the Senate just has to pass the bill, which is expected within weeks.

In addition to a previous post on the new socialist (and feminist) Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero’s efforts to create a domestic violence bill, he has since made strong efforts to remove the strong influence from the Church in Spain, and create a secular state.

Under the bill, Spanish Civil Law will include the statement: “Matrimony shall have the same requisites and effects regardless of whether the persons involved are of the same or different sex.” Woohoo!

While the newly elected Pope Benedict XVI has not been a happy fellow about this, Zapatero said:

“If the new Pope wants to say something about it, I'm prepared to respect whatever he says, he can count on my respect for him...One of the guarantees of democracy is the freedom of religion, freedom of opinion and freedom to carry out a political project with the citizens' vote.”

In the meantime, the Texas House of Representatives has just passed a bill that will ban same-sex couples from becoming foster parents. There is an estimated 2,000 to 2,500 children presently in the care of gay and lesbian foster parents in Texas. So what are they going to do, send in teams to rip these kids from their homes? I wouldn’t be surprised if they quarantined them as well. Sigh.

A cadre of anti-choice women are descending upon Washington today for "REAL Women's Voices," a lobby day against abortion rights.

Sponsored by the Family Research Council, the National Right to Life, Concerned Women for America and other conservative groups, the event's "real women" speakers include such political heavyweights as Rachel Campos-Duffy of Real World: San Francisco, and pro-life singer/songwriter Kara Klein, who "will speak at the press conference and sing her new song about Terri Schiavo, 'Beautiful Still.'"

I'll be writing my legislators today to let them know that I am a REAL woman who is PRO-CHOICE and opposed to the so-called Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act.

(I'll also be waiting to hear about the number of "real women" who show up to this event. Who wants to bet it will fall short of the number of REAL women who attended the March for Women's Lives?)

Yes, I'm serious. Check this out from the Houston Chronicle:

Young women would need written permission from their parents to get an abortion, and the court process to bypass that consent would be much tougher under a bill passed by a House committee late Monday.While current state law mandates that minors notify their parents of their intent to have an abortion, the bill, filed by Rep. Phil King, R-Weatherford, prohibits a doctor from performing the procedure unless a parent, managing conservator or court-appointed guardian approves.

You have got to be kidding me. This isn't like missing class; it's a life changing decision. I always love the logic that says teen girls are too immature to decide to have an abortion, but adult enough to have a kid. Lovely.

Romanian men who want to get married will have to complete a course on domestic violence first.

The Telegraph (U.K.) is reporting that the three-day course is designed to deter men from abusing their wives. If they won't attend the course, the government won't issue the marriage license.

There are also classes geared toward women, who will learn about their rights and that they do not have to tolerate beatings. (The article doesn't say whether women will be compelled to attend.)

Romania has only recently begun to recognize domestic violence as a problem. The new law sprang from a government survey published this year that found many men regarded a marriage licence as permission to beat their wives. About 1/4 of all violent incidents in Romania are domestic violence-related. And Bucharest, a city of 3 million people, has only three battered women's shelters.

Dr Gabriela Kubinski, who runs a shelter at a textiles factory, said the classes were unlikely to do more than scratch the surface of the problem.

"The new plan has only one thing to recommend it, which is that after all these years of the problem being ignored, something is at least being done," she said.

Check out this belt ordered by an unidentified actress to be worn at the Cannes film festival. The diamond is 22-carat, by the way. That's some serious pussy accessorizing right there.

Via Nerve.

Don’t know if anyone caught this (I'm still trying to catch up)...

K-mart pharmacist Dan Gransinger recently wrote a letter to the editor to the Arizona Republic, recommending that other pharmacists who have a problem dispensing emergency contraception simply lie to their female customers:

The pharmacist should just tell the patient that he is out of the medication and can order it, but it will take a week to get here. The patient will be forced to go to another pharmacy because she has to take these medicines within 72 hours for them to be effective. Problem solved.

Yes, he actually wrote this. You have to love how fucking nonchalant he is about lying. As if it’s no big deal...not to mention illegal.

NARAL Pro-Choice Arizona is calling for his removal from K-mart.

Apparently bathroom humor isn’t beyond the Associated Press. Was this lead sentence really necessary though?

It's being called potty parity. The nine-campus Los Angeles Community College District has pledged to add more women's bathroom stalls across its campuses as part of a $2.2 billion construction program. The move calls for four bathroom stalls for every 50 women and one for every 50 men. That compares with state ratios of three for every 50 women and one for every 100 men.

Can’t wait for the anti-feminists to grab onto this one. We're taking over the toilets! Next, the world...

Got back from my Costa Rican road trip last night. Went to Monteverde for a couple of days and then was off to Puerto Viejo on the Caribbean coast.

Several things I learned on my trip:

Skirts make for easy road-side peeing.

There are still people who get their hair braided on vacation and think it’s super-cool. (We get it; you were on the beach. Now give it up already.)

Thanks to all the Feministing ladies for putting in more time while I was gone. And a tremendous thanks to Amanda for guest blogging; she did a fabulous job, as expected.

Now back to work...

More pics after the jump if you’re interested. (I'll be putting more up throughout the day. Just in case you want to really stalk me.)

Check out the brief but good article from the Village Voice, "Where The Welfare Queens Went", a simple reminder of the failure of our current welfare reform system. Jarret Murphy writes:

"The people who left AFDC could be different from the folks who've recently enrolled in SSI or Food Stamps. And even if they are the same people, getting Food Stamps or SSI might be an improvement over receiving AFDC. But it doesn't seem like the 'self-sufficiency' the White House boasts about. It seems like welfare reform has done no better than welfare at curing the underlying problem, which, once upon a time, was called 'poverty.'"

Did y’all hear about the NYU student who blew up Justice Antonin Scalia’s spot in the middle of a Q&A session at the NYU Annual Survey of American Law? NYU law school student Eric Berndt asked him, “Do you sodomize your wife?” Awesome.

Berndt first asked Scalia to explain his disagreement in Lawrence v. Texas, the Supreme Court case that overturned Bowers v. Hardwick and eliminated the nation’s sodomy laws. When Scalia bullshitted around the question, Berndt popped the big question. His microphone was turned off immediately. Check out the letter that Berndt sent to his fellow students in NYU in explanation for his behavior, reprinted by the Nation. Here’s a little section:

Although my question was legally relevant, as I explain below, an independent motivation for my speech-act was to simply subject a homophobic government official to the same indignity to which he would subject millions of gay Americans. It was partially a naked act of resistance and a refusal to be silenced. I wanted to make him and everyone in the room aware of the dehumanizing effect of trivializing such an important relationship. Justice Scalia has no pity for the millions of gay Americans on whom sodomy laws and official homophobia have such an effect, so it is difficult to sympathize with his brief moment of "humiliation," as some have called it. The fact that I am a law student and Scalia is a Supreme Court Justice does not require me to circumscribe my justified opposition and outrage within the bounds of jurisprudential discourse.

Well said. The only thing that sucked about the Q&A session was that it was closed-to-the-press. I would have loved to see the look on Scalia’s face.

It is now official. On Tuesday, Canada approved the sale of emergency contraception Plan B without a prescription. This is the 34th country to make EC available over-the-counter.

For the next few weeks, provinces and regions are to decide whether Plan B will be sold in front of the counter, allowing “totally unrestricted” sales of the pills. In the meantime, we are dealing with our own pharmacy war -- not only to get EC over-the-counter status, but to stop this crazy movement o’ pharmacists from rejecting our ladies of their reproductive rights.

This bullshit has been going on for long enough. To take action, click here.

Afghan leader Karzai is urging Islamic fundamentalists in his country to stop forced marriages of young girls. Reuters reports, In some parts of the country, girls of 12 or younger are still given in marriage to settle tribal disputes, especially in southern areas bordering Pakistan which are home to ethnic Pashtuns, Afghanistan's biggest tribe.

Karzai's hope is that Afghan religious leaders will follow the path of Saudi Arabia where they declared forced marriage un-Islamic.

"In this fatwa they mentioned that forced marriages of girls is unjust in Islam. We have similar problems in Afghanistan. I hope that the noble Afghan Ulema issues a similar fatwa like the Saudi Ulema to end the oppression of Afghan women and girls."

Check this article on Salon about this creepy new television show called Revelations. It seems to be aimed at religious audiences, touching on many recent themes from the media such as the Terry Schiavo case.

Some snippets...

Welcome to the latest nugget in a hailstorm of fundamentalist invective, from "The Passion of the Christ," to Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins' bestselling "Left Behind" series, in which skeptics and agnostics are left to fight for their lives against the forces of the Antichrist (centered in Baghdad, led by the head of U.N.), while true believers are whisked away to the comfort and safety of heaven like the lucky winners on "The Apprentice," whisked off to shop for $600 Jimmy Choo sandals at Bergdorf Goodman. All of the divine signs point to the same conclusion: The rest of us, it seems, are headed to the boardroom.

But what better way for NBC to round up a full month of hand-wringing and candlelight vigils for Terri Schiavo and the pope, than by ushering in a miniseries sure to capitalize on the fear whipped up by these two deaths, not to mention more terrorist arrests, the tsunami disaster, the war in Iraq, you name it? "All the signs and symbols set forth in the Bible are currently in place for the end of days," breathes Sister Josepha, and we believe her, because she looks like the Virgin Mary, except with cheekbones like Isabella Rossellini's. But is she talking about the latest tragedy in Baghdad, or the upcoming made-for-TV movie "Locusts"?

Has anyone seen the show?

This is an article published in Ms. a while ago, but I just came across it and wanted to get some feeback. It is written by Lisa Jervis, the co-founder of Bitch magazine and she talks about what she considers a dated term--"wave" when refering to feminist activism and thought. She believes that in our attempt to distinguish ourselves as "third wave" feminists, we have caught ourselves in the belief that there is a singular way to be feminist.

In her reluctance to answer questions about "third wave" ideology, she responds...

This reluctance isn’t just me being cranky and not wanting to answer any hard questions. Here is the reality: We’ve reached the end of the wave terminology’s usefulness. What was at first a handy-dandy way to refer to feminism’s history and its present and future potential with a single metaphor has become shorthand that invites intellectual laziness, an escape hatch from the hard work of distinguishing between core beliefs and a cultural moment.

Interesting stuff. I also found this quote rather interesting...

Here’s what we all need to recognize so that we can move on: Those in their 20s and 30s who don’t see their concerns reflected in the feminism of their elders are ignorant of history; those in their 50s and beyond who think that young women aren’t politically active — or active enough, or active around the right issues — don’t know where to look.

These are some pretty intense statements. Have we reached a phase where we can stop differentiating between the different moments of feminism? My entire experience with 3rd wave agenda is that it put me, women of color, at the center of it's (non-linear) discourse. Not in the age-old, or previous "native informant" type of way, but in a way that recognized my differing relationship to the movement, to patriarchy and to society. The second wave failed to effectively do this. That is why I consider myself not only a 3rd wave feminist, but also a 3rd world feminist. I don't think we have reached a place to completely make amends with our foresisters (at least not with my experience with 2nd wavers in academia!). But that's just me.

What I do agree with...

We may not all agree on exactly what it looks like or how to get it. We should never expect to agree. Feminism has always thrived on and grown from internal discussions and disagreements. Our many different and often opposing perspectives are what push us forward, honing our theories, refining our tactics, driving us toward a more thorough dismantling of the white-supremacist, capitalist patriarchy (to borrow another phrase from hooks).

What do you think?

Yesterday, the FDA approved the Today Sponge contraceptive, which had been pulled from the market in 1995 by its former manufacturer due to difficulties in meeting more stringent FDA guidelines. After being revamped by its new manufacturer, FDA spokeswoman Susan Cruzan yesterday confirmed that, "The product was found to be safe and effective."

The Today Sponge prevents pregnancy by covering the cervix and releasing spermicide. While heralded as one of the most popular forms of birth control, remember that the sponge does not protect against STIs and is not as effective at preventing pregnancy as other contraceptives.

The A.P. reports that the contraceptive will be available in the U.S. in two months through the Allendale Pharmaceutical website, and will available in retail drug stores within four months.

Allendale Pharmaceuticals CEO Gene Detroyer, told the A.P., "I am pleased both from a business point of view ... and from the point of view that we can add another contraceptive for women." Hmmm--well at least he's honest.

Check out Donna Brazile's reflections on Why Choice Matters for Ms. Magazine.

"With more vocal conservatives now in firm control of Congress, brave Democrats will begin to work with the anti-choice majority to seek some middle ground. Before this occurs, we must proactively stake our claim to the principle of freedom, and hold firm to our values. We must define the issues this time, instead of remaining on the defensive. We must control the dialogue and message.
The language used in defending our support of abortion rights makes some pro-choice supporters uncomfortable in discussing the issue. I know why many of these lawmakers have become weary.

As a black woman and abortion-rights activist (and former board member of Voters for Choice), I have found myself standing alone in church looking for ways to bridge the informational and cultural divide. Leaders of the reproductive- rights movement must work with civil rights leaders to help educate all Americans before it’s too late. Now that the right-wing extremists have entered our houses of worship, at the invitation of several black clergy, we must speak up."

Just like Carrie, I do my hair and make-up before I even think of sitting down to write.

Thanks, y'all, for having me guest blog for this week! The timing couldn't have been better, since my usual site, Pandagon is down to be moved and retooled. I have a huge backlog of stories to write about, but most of them are hugely depressing, and hey, it's Saturday. Instead, I'll turn your attention to this goofy story on blogs and dating that I got from Steve Gilliard.

As people put more details of their lives online, they're also finding love - or at least a little lovin'.
"Blog hookups" are becoming more common as more people read Web logs on everything from media gossip to online diaries, bloggers say.

"Find any attractive female blogger and I'm sure she's been asked out," said Jessica Coen, 25, editor of Gawker.com. "People say anything behind the keyboard."

Aw--goo.

Of course, the implication is if no one has asked you out online, then you aren't attractive. Of course, it helps you give your blog a title that says, "I need a man."

Minnesota high school students Carrie Rethlefsen and Emily Nixon loved "The Vagina Monologues" (who doesn't?) and, inspired by the play, decided to spread a little love for the multi-talented organ at their high school. Naturally, this display of female pride upset the powers that be.

Despite the threats of serious punishment, Rethlefsen has continued to wear her button to raise awareness about women's issues. As a show of support, more than 100 students have ordered T-shirts bearing "I (heart) My Vagina" for girls and "I Support Your Vagina" for boys.

Good for them--I'm happy to see this sort of outpouring of support for these girls and their cause. With all the paranoia over teenage sexuality, it's refreshing to see kids stand up and refuse to be ashamed of the fact that they have bodies.

I'm not surprised, of course, that the school officials are reacting negatively--far too many educators all too readily embrace the role of stiflers of young minds. But sometimes you just want to smack someone upside the head. This sort of openness and respect for women's bodies is exactly what it's going to take to combat rape, unplanned pregnancy, and sexually transmitted diseases, but no, we can't think about that because we are scared of the word "vagina".

Of course, it probably doesn't make the administrators feel any warmer to realize they've been exposed as a bunch of whining babies by a couple of teenage kids.

Check out this article from The Scotsman on a strip club owner in the UK who had to discontinue performances by his male strippers because of the “screaming banshees” that have been apparently making too much of a scene. He blames this “inappropriate” behavior on emancipation. Awesome.

Allan Santori, owner of the Rocket Club in Birmingham, actually had to hire extra security for his Saturday night show when men usually dance for women.

“These young women do not know how to behave and they are very vocal. They are completely disrespectful. I think the guys are intimidated.”

I actually begin to feel sort of bad for this guy and his strippers. He even claims that his male guests are always respectful to the female strippers. But then he says:

“I remember when girls were girls and lads were lads. It’s been all down hill since women got the vote.”

Oh, yeah. I forgot us lasses aren’t supposed to be “vocal.” Soft-spoken and “behaved” went out the door when the damn vote came in!

And is it just me, or would “The Screaming Banshees” be a dope band name?

Can I get that in the full-sized model?

Being conservative ruining your dating life? Do women walk out in the middle of dinner dates when you tell them you voted for Bush? How many times have those pants been pulled up in a hurry after you huskily whispered, "No woman is gonna abort a baby of mine"? Do you find yourself telling people that you're a virgin due to "moral values" rather than admit the shameful truth--that no woman will touch you after you waxed poetic about how her smaller paycheck was more womanly? Fret no more, my sexist friends! Help is on the way!

Germany - A German inventor claims to have created the world's most sophisticated robot sex doll.

He said: "They are almost impossible to distinguish from the real thing, but I am still developing improvements and I will only be happy when what I have is better than the real thing."

Well, at least in the minds of the target audience, whose knowledge of "the real thing" is bound to be a little bit limited, due to the fact that if you do have "the real thing" in the house, she's unlikely to allow an animatronic masturbation device have its own bed and spot at the dinner table.

Though I do have to wonder what "better than the real thing" means--is he working on a sex doll that can get pregnant, cooks and cleans, but knows better than to demand its rights?

You will absolutely flip when you read the most recent load o’ crap in Men’s News Daily on feminism. Even the title -- “Feminism, the WKKK, and the Gender-Lynching of Michael Jackson” -- exhibits just how ridiculous this shit is.

In the article, David Usher claims that “Feminism as we know it is the direct ideological and political descendant of the Women’s Ku Klux Klan (WKKK).” When I read this, I didn’t know whether I should burst out in laughter or throw my laptop across the room. He continues with a long list of “connections” between the WKKK and the feminist movement, and claims that feminists left the KKK, simply omitted the word “black” from its ideology and replaced it with “men.”

Usher also manages to insist that, “The greatest problem faced by blacks is not racism itself. Sexism and discrimination against the black male, both in family and society, is the greatest single factor keeping blacks a desperate underclass.” Wow.

To back this up, he then throws Michael Jackson’s trial into the mix, and how the feminist “lynch mob” is actually responsible for the charges against him:

“So the new WKKK set out to perform a lawyerly lynching of Michael Jackson. Every mob motive is present. He is a male. He is very rich, eccentric, and black too. It was an irresistible invitation to misuse false allegations of sexual improprieties, for profit and political gain.”

Wha?? Usher is constantly reiterating that while the feminist movement exists, no one questions our “agenda.” He seems to think he’s cracked the case. What do feminists really want? The King of Pop’s blood, of course!

I normally wouldn’t waste my time writing about such anti-feminist and racist bullshit, but this particular case is so fucking ludicrous (and a bit hysterical), I just had to share.

An article on the GNN tells us...One female detainee, who identified herself as “Noor”, said that U.S. soldiers at Iraq’s Abu Ghraib raped women and, in many occasions, forced them to strip naked in public. She also said that many female detainees got pregnant.

“Sexualized violence and abuse committed by U.S. troops goes far beyond a few isolated cases,” she said.

Remember the US military represents freedom. Not patriarchy, power and oppression. Fuck it, let's go sing America.

The South Carolina House Judiciary Committee decided yesterday to protect gamecocks, but not domestic violence victims.

The Republican-controlled committee voted to make cockfighting a felony, but tabled a bill that would have done the same for domestic violence.

Let's look to State Rep. John Graham Altman, of Charleston, to illuminate this issue.
On protecting cocks: "I was all for that. Cockfighting reminds me of the Roman circus, coliseum."
On protecting women: "I think this bill is probably drafted out of an abundance of ignorance... The woman ought not to be around the man. I mean you women want it one way and not another."
Altman's offensive comments don't stop there.

Prior to the committee's vote, both cockfighting and domestic violence were misdemeanors. If the cockfighting bill passes, harming gamecocks will be punishable by up to five years in jail. Beating your wife will result in no more than 30 days in jail.

Luckily, leaders have promised to revive the domestic violence bill. In the meantime, South Carolina feministas can tell their representatives that they value women above cocks.

Thanks to the Feminist Initiative at Furman University (in Greenville, SC) for the link.

We have more fun when the boys aren't around.

The new Pope Benedict XVI, formerly Cardinal Ratzinger, is known for having quite a few very conservative opinions, not the least of which are his backwards opinions on women's roles. The new pope supports the belief that a woman's place in in the home, a stance that has always puzzled me. What do a bunch of celibate cardinals care if women have jobs? Do they stand against women's rights out of some sort of misguided male solidarity? A small detail in this story about the new pope cleared up some of these questions for me:

After the traditional burning of ballots and the pope's triumphant balcony appearance Tuesday, Benedict XVI invited the cardinals back to a hasty celebratory dinner. Caught off-guard, 20 nuns at the cardinals' Vatican residence improvised a repast of soup, beans, cold cuts, ice cream and Champagne.

Damn, I'd give up sex too if I had a cadre of nuns on hand to make lavish dinners, complete with Champagne, at a moment's notice, too.

From Echidne of the Snakes.

According to an article in the Daily Telegraph, women in Iran have been wearing less and less clothing in the summer months. But this summer the Iranian police have decided to crack down.

Iran's Islamic dress code obliges women to cover all but their face and hands and to disguise the shape of their bodies. Violators can receive lashes, fines or imprisonment.
But many women, especially in the capital Tehran, shun the traditional head-to-toe black chador to don calf-length Capri pants, tight-fitting, thigh-length coats and brightly-coloured scarves pushed back to expose plenty of hair.

The President of Iran, Mohammad Khatami has been the attempting to bring forth reforms that encourage authorities to ease up slightly on social restrictions. But many are saying they may not go too far because of a fear of public backlash.

I was just talking to my friend who is Iranian (and thusly informed on ALL things Iranian, juss playin') about this extensively and ultimately I am torn on this issue. Although I recognize that the cultural/political climate of Iran is different then that of the states (duh!), I just can't relate to being harassed by cops because of what I am wearing. But again, there are many instances in this country where I DO get harassed, simply because of what I am wearing. (Don't really see how these things are related totally, but you get the point!)

Any thoughts?

The U.S. Senate will have an up-or-down vote on the Federal Refusal Clause as soon as this Thursday, April 21. Why does this matter, you ask?

According to NARAL Pro Choice America, the Federal Refusal Clause provision slipped into the federal budget at the end of the 2004 and "allows any health-care company (including hospitals, health-insurance corporations, and HMOs) to refuse to comply with any federal, state, or local law that assures women have access to abortion services. It lets a health-care company gag its doctors, and bar them from providing abortion services - or even information - to their patients. Doctors could even be blocked from referring women clients to another doctor under this proposal even when a woman's health is at risk. Under the Federal Refusal Clause, many women may lose access to vital reproductive health services, and in some cases may not even be told what options are available to them."

Take action against this insanity and write your senator today.

Chris Floyd at Empire Burlesque gave me an idea--challenge supporters of "conscience clauses" that allow pharmacists to veto a woman's legal right to use birth control at the counter to also support soliders who refuse to fight in Iraq for reasons of conscience.

Here's a thought: If a pharmacist feels he or she cannot in good conscience fully practice their profession (i.e., dispense all legal drugs), then shouldn't they, er, choose another profession? A conscientious objector refuses military service because he feels he might be called upon to violate his moral code by taking up arms; vegans don't open butcher shops. We can all agree that no one should be forced to act against their conscience (although try telling that to the IRS if you object to your tax money feeding Bush's war of conquest); but no one has drafted these pharmacists and forced them to dispense their nostrums.

Ouch--I wonder if the largely Republican politicians who whine and cry about the poor pharmacists having to hand pills over to women even though they know that Jesus cries when women fuck would be happy to support bills allowing those who desert for reasons of conscience to be let off without prosecution. I somehow doubt it....

A great article in the latest issue of Clamor magazine points out that abortion is the one controversial issue that television won't tackle.

Rachel Fudge (also an editor at Bitch magazine) writes:

"...there’s one thing you’re almost guaranteed not to see on TV, despite the reality of it being one of the most common medical procedures in the US: abortion. As many commentators have pointed out, as all of the old you-can’t-do-that-on-television taboos — sexual content, violence, cursing, nudity, homosexuality — have fallen away, abortion is the one hot-button issue that simply remains too hot for TV."

I think she makes an excellent point. But I have to ask, will dealing with abortion on TV do much to further our reproductive rights? Has "Will & Grace" actually created more acceptance of people who are openly LGBTQ? Has "Law and Order: SVU" changed the way our society views sexual assault/abuse victims?

One last point: Fudge notes that TV characters who are faced with unwanted pregnancies usually find the issue "resolved" with a convenient miscarriage or the realization it was a "false alarm."

I guess we always knew that TV was a fantasy world...

Thanks to Gwen for the link.

You gotta love American Eagle Outfitters.

Thoughts?

Check out Adam Cohen's NY Times editorial, Psst ... Justice Scalia ... You Know, You're an Activist Judge, Too.

First, Cohen calls out Scalia -- "Justice Scalia likes to boast that he follows his strict-constructionist philosophy wherever it leads, even if it leads to results he disagrees with. But it is uncanny how often it leads him just where he already wanted to go. In his view, the 14th Amendment prohibits Michigan from using affirmative action in college admissions, but lets Texas make gay sex a crime. (The Supreme Court has held just the opposite.) He is dismissive when inmates invoke the Eighth Amendment ban on cruel and unusual punishment to challenge prison conditions. But he is supportive when wealthy people try to expand the 'takings clause' to block the government from regulating their property."

Then he gives a big picture -- "When it comes to judicial activism, conservative judges are no better than liberal ones - and, it must be said, no worse. If conservatives are going to continue their war on the judiciary, though, they should be honest. They do not want to get rid of judicial activists, a standard that would bring down even Justice Scalia. They want to rid the courts of judges who disagree with them."

A dangerous tool of the left

The conservative assault on the judiciary for daring, amongst other things, to treat women and gays as equals in the eyes of the law to straight men, just catapulted into looney-land with this recent interview with Tom DeLay where he accuses Justice Kennedy of all sorts of things that make decent people blush.

"Absolutely. We've got Justice Kennedy writing decisions based upon international law, not the Constitution of the United States? That's just outrageous," DeLay told Fox News Radio. "And not only that, but he said in session that he does his own research on the Internet? That is just incredibly outrageous."

Research? On the Internet? You know that DeLay just spit that sentence out and I'm dying to know if he spat out the word "research" or "Internet" harder. It's a good thing that the wingnuts have targeted Reagan-appointee Kennedy instead of Reagan-appointee O'Connor, or we would likely be treated to rants about how not only is research inappropriate, but the very presence of women in the courtroom is questionable.

The attacks on the judiciary are hopefully being seen for what they are by the majority of Americans--an assault on our protection from the power-hungry who see the rest of us as plebians with rebellious impulses and notions that we have "rights" that need to be collared and controlled. I'm optimistic, though, that long after the bugman is sent back to Sugarland with his tail between his legs that Justice Kennedy will still have his spot on the bench.

As most of you have heard by now, the new pope has been named -- Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, or Pope Benedict XVI -- and is being considered the most conservative person that could have been chosen for the job. Lovely.

The successor has frequently been the voice of controversy in newly discussed issues of reform in the Catholic Church, such as priests being allowed to marry and women being ordained. You may remember the hoo-ha that resulted from his comments on how John Kerry shouldn't have been allowed to receive communion because he was pro-choice. No wonder Bush welcomed him happily to the papacy as “a man of great wisdom and knowledge.”

Ratzinger actually claims that abortion and euthanasia are “grave sins”, believes that rock is the “vehicle of anti-religion”, and once said homosexuality was a tendency towards “intrinsic moral evil.” He also dismissed the talk over pedophilia committed by Catholic priests as being a “planned campaign” against the Church. As far as feminists go, he once wrote a letter to bishops worldwide labeling us as "adversaries" to men. Great wisdom and knowledge, indeed.

He considers liberalism, atheism, agnosticism, relativism and Marxism all threats to the faith. He even criticized cardinals who have fought poverty through social action in the past because he believed it supported Marxist ideology.

Whew. Good luck, Roman Catholics of the world!

Check out The Nation's article, "The Vatican's Enforcer", for more of a descriptive history on Ratzinger. Thanks to Big Slutty for the link.

The blogger tiny purple elephant decided to write a letter of complaint to Wal-Mart complaining about their unwillingness to sell emergency contraception. She got a snotty form letter in return, which she has decided to translate for us.

Dear Fornicating Harlot,

Walmart believes that the “Emergency” in emergency contraceptives is ridiculous hyperbole. How could the possible pregnancies of adulterers, fornicators, monogamous heterosexual married couples, and rape victims be anything but a joyous occasion and source of future cheap Walmart labor? If you want to go against God’s will, you can always go to one of the many nearby pharmacies that we haven’t yet driven out of business.

Go read the whole thing. And when you're done with that, get educated on how to use emergency contraception at Trish Wilson's blog.

A UN report found that out of 115 million children worldwide not getting an education, the majority of them are girls. Specifically, Afghanistan and Pakistan have the widest gender gap in education. The report stated that part of the reason for the gap is poverty, HIV/AIDS and conflict. I guess that doesn't specifically get at why more girls then boys are denied education. What about things like cultural beliefs about where a women should be in society, or the lack of priority put on a women's right to education?

Either way Ms. tell us...
Meanwhile, the Global Campaign for Education is blaming 22 of the richest countries in the world for failing to provide the necessary funds to educate the world’s poor. According to BBC News, the Global Campaign for Education produced a report card for the 22 countries based on their spending on development aid in total and funding of education programs. Only two countries received an “A” grade – Norway and the Netherlands. The United States and Austria both received “F”s.

Did I mention I am a public school teacher in California?

Today, the working women of the US have reached the earnings mark that men achieved when, do you ask? December 31st of last year. Time for celebration!

Or not. This is just a day to remind us that despite the Equal Pay Act that was passed 40 years ago, the 60 million working women in the US still make 76 cents to every dollar a man makes. The case is even worse for women of color, where the gap is as large as 55 cents to men's dollar.

Via Avedon Carol, the biggest stretch yet in the excuse-making arena--Bush would've caught bin Laden, but for the stupid broads.

For those on Capitol Hill, the Pentagon and at the White House who think that women in land combat is a ho-hum non-issue, there is strong evidence the U.S. lost the opportunity to capture or kill Osama bin Laden because of politically correct Pentagon policies to have more female warriors.

I know. It seems ridiculous. But you see, it's widely believed that the terrorist-seeking radar the good Lord built into the human body is located in the penis, so as you can imagine, women are simply no good for looking for terrorists. In fact, even though a woman like me has seen bin Laden's face a million times on TV, I would not recognize him on the street without my penile terrorist sensors.

And that's a fact, not some silly theory like evolution.

There's only one thing to do, which is to pack up the female "warriors" and send them home, making sure to put enough into target range to be shot by American troops to give the Freepers plenty of fantasies about dead American women to crow about. Sure, there's the downside that stop-loss and other backdoor draft efforts will have to intensify, but if the men stationed in Iraq didn't want to be there, they were free to get a computer and join the 101st Fighting Keyboardists, weren't they?

The recent contraversy over Pakistani actress Meera kissing a Hindu actor in the movie Nazar, has provoked many. Bollywood films are very sexually provocative films, however you will never see characters kiss. They may dance in the rain in a see-through sari, or have gratuitious dance "encounters" with the male kind but that is about it.

The president of Pakistan's response to a Muslim actress kissing a Hindu film star in "public" has evoked a not too desirable response. He says, "people in his country would not like to see their women "dancing or displaying themselves" as it is done in India.

He continues, in an article in Central Times,
While "there was no problem (with Pakistani actresses) working in (Indian) films", Musharraf said."The sentiments of India and Pakistan are different, especially on women...Pakistani society is not as liberal as India and this is reflected in its attitude towards films", he said.

Understanding the different cultural context in which Bollywood films are produced, I see a conflict. Here in the Western world, we fight to change, deconstruct, critique existing images of over-sexualized women in the public sphere, specifically in popular media. Musharraf's comments are clearly coming from the belief that women should not be sexualized, or rather, a more traditional belief that they should not be sexual. To come out and say, we are not as liberal in our view of women, implies a belief that women's agency should be restricted.

But on the other hand, is female agency dependent on women in Pakistan playing roles in films that sexualize them? Naturally, they should have the freedom to choose, but is Bollywood sexual freedom? Or is it similar to Western popular culture which is dependent on over-sexualized images that consolidate norm-based beliefs (often times inaccurate and oppressive) of female sexuality?

And I think it is funny that the above pic is a scene from the flick and the most contraversial thing about it is a kiss!

The fabulous Liz from Blondesense brought my attention to this story about a Virgin Mary sighting in Chicago. As solid a message to the cardinals as ever there was that God wants some more cunt-respect from the next Pope, don't you think?

Like Liz, I will let the audience draw their own conclusions about how the shape of Mary and the more straightforward ancient pagan representations of the goddess resemble each other.

While cardinals deliberate over a new pope, it looks like a group of nuns and other Catholic women in Chicago have launched a protest about the role of women within the Catholic Church.

The women stood outside of the Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago this morning to urge those electing a new pope to include women in the decision-making process.

“We have to tell the cardinals this: We no longer want a secret, sexist selection process,” said Sister Donna Quinn of the Coalition of American Nuns. Many of the protesters there said that this message is also directed towards the new pope-to-be.

After the morning mass at Holy Name, the women set off some small smoke bombs (pink smoke, I must add) as a symbol of their movement.

Protesting? Smoke bombs?? It looks like we’ve got some feminist nuns on our hands. Fucking awesome.

The Supreme Court declined to hear a case challenging the constitutionality of a Massachusetts statute that regulates speech and activities within a buffer zone around abortion clinics.

The law prohibits *anyone* from approaching clinic visitors, passing out flyers, or "engaging in oral protest, education or counseling" within an 18-foot radius of an abortion clinic entrance. The Massachusetts legislature passed the law after a 1994 abortion clinic shooting in which two individuals were killed and five others wounded.

The suit was brought by the anti-choice group Massachusetts Citizens for Life, who claims that the law "denies protection to women and their unborn children" because they are unable to "educate" clinic visitors.

Ummmm, yeah. And by "educate" I assume they mean *harass*? (sigh).

Bitch Magazine's theme this month is Masculinity, and there's a really fantastic article by Juliana Tringali about how rock music came to be dominated by men, and female musicians who subvert that. Anyone who read Mouse Words regularly knows that this is a subject of much fascination for me.

Tringali tracks the early days of rock music, where men were mostly the musicians but there was a heavily female audience (think the Beatles' early days) to when rock music became "intelligent" and therefore women had to be shoved to the margins even further to maintain the illusion. Of course, things got weirder and weirder until the heyday of cock rock in the 80s with the hair metal bands, where women's main role was to be wet and roll around in music videos.

The Indianapolis Star had a piece yesterday about how black women with a family history of breast cancer are much less likely to get genetic counseling than white women. Researchers are saying that part of this is because of the mistaken belief that breast cancer is a white woman’s disease. Sigh.

While breast cancer is generally more common in white women, mortality rates are higher for black women with the disease. Data also shows that the genetic flaws that greatly increase the risk of getting the disease, known as BRCA mutations, are prevalent in both races. BRCA mutations account for 5 to 10 percent of the 1 million plus cases of breast cancer diagnosed worldwide.

A study that was recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association had researchers question 408 women with a family history of breast or ovarian cancer. Of the participants, only 22 percent of the black women received genetic counseling compared to a whopping 60 percent of the white women.

Dr. Katarina Armstrong, a cancer researcher at the University of Pennsylvania, led the study. She suggests that the results may reveal a fear of discrimination and an overall distrust of the medical establishment. Others say it may be black women’s underestimation of their perceived breast cancer risk, as well as a lack of education about the disease.

It may just be me, but I believe that this can all be summed up in one word. I’ll give you a hint -- it rhymes with bacism.

Washington State Governer Christine Gregoire signed a bill on Thursday allowing pregnant women to divorce their husbands.

Ms. Feminist Daily Wire writes:
The bill, sponsored by state Representative Mary Lou Dickerson (D-Seattle) and passed unanimously by both the state House and Senate, was prompted by the case of Shawnna Hughes who was denied the right to divorce her physically abusive husband last November by Superior Court Judge Paul Bastine because she was pregnant.

According to Women's eNews, Shawnna Hughes was denied her right to marriage not only because she was pregnant, but also because the divorce would make the child illegitmate. The court said the divorce was vacated in part because of the fetus' right to know who his or her father is. The court said it also vacated the divorce because Hughes' husband had not been legally notified of the pregnancy and noted that "it was the mother's voluntary act of engaging in sexual relations that caused any delay in granting the divorce." HUH!!!!

Either way, the abuse of women who are pregnant by spouses is statistically profound. Women's eNews reported that 6 percent of pregnant women in Washington reported abuse. And let's not even get into, those who didn't report due to fear.

Anyway, the bill passed and pregnant women in the state of Washington, do in fact have the right to divorce.

I'll be guest-blogging at feministing this week while Jessica is on vacation. My permanent home is Pandagon, and I'm honored to be trusted to roost here for a week as well.

Anyone ever idly wonder how the religious right would react if a vaccination for HIV was invented? Would they resist it, brainlessly reciting the "abstinence is best" bullshit, even though they know that this vaccination could save millions upon millions of lives? Are the leaders of the religious right so far gone in their sex-phobia that they are willing to use death, as well as pregnancy and STDs as punishments for people who dare to live their lives outside of right wing dictates? Well, wonder no longer.

DEATHS from cervical cancer could jump fourfold to a million a year by 2050, mainly in developing countries. This could be prevented by soon-to-be-approved vaccines against the virus that causes most cases of cervical cancer - but there are signs that opposition to the vaccines might lead to many preventable deaths.

The trouble is that the human papilloma virus (HPV) is sexually transmitted. So to prevent infection, girls will have to be vaccinated before they become sexually active, which could be a problem in many countries.

Historically, Iraq has afforded women more rights relative to other countries in the Middle East. After the US invasion/occupation of Iraq, there has been a resurgence of conservative Shiite politicians trying to overturn laws protecting women's rights in marriage, divorce, and inheritance. Dr. Raja al-Kusai is a gynecologist from Iraq who is currently part of the national assembly and helping write the new constitution. She has been one of the fighting voices for women's political and social rights.

An article on ABC via Reuters states:
Kusai wants the new Iraqi constitution to treat men and women as equals, but others want to put tighter controls on women's rights in the tradition of Islamic law, known as sharia.

Several of these Shiite leaders are now part of the new government and have a heavy influence on the potential re-codification of sharia laws, which restrict women's rights in several significant ways. If sharia were to be re-implemented, "Men would be allowed up to four wives. A woman would need to write into her marriage contract her right to work. Women would inherit only half what male relatives receive — though they would still be able to drive cars, vote and even be members of parliament." Well, that's a relief!

I think it is important to recognize a connection between the coercive acts of the United States military and the loss of women's rights within the country under attack. The emasculation of men (of color) from a greater force almost demands the simultaneous oppression of women. Almost every historical moment of colonization and de-colonization has forced the rights of women be put to the side in order for a new "democracy" to emerge. This is a frustration since it is on the very backs of these women that a new nation is built. Why is that? How do we stop history from repeating itself over and over?

In follow-up to Vanessa's post on the lawsuit filed on behalf of two Illinois pharmacists opposed to dispensing emergency contraceptives, Medical News Today provides more details on the issue. Specifically, the pharmacists are claiming that the emergency rule violates the Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act (which makes it illegal for public officials to discriminate against or punish people who will not participate in medical services that go against their conscience), the Illinois Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the Illinois Human Rights Act & Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.

The Christian Legal Society clearly didn't want the pharmacists to have all the legal fun, so they filed their own lawsuit yesterday. They claim that Governor Blagojevich's rule is void because it "violates state law and exceeds the governor's authority under both state and federal law." (sigh). Luckily, Gov. Blagojevich seems to be standing strong.

Are there any Illinois or reproductive rights lawyers that can shed some more light on this legal fight?

In the meantime, be sure to sign NARAL Pro-Choice America's pharmacy petition to tell national pharmacies that we *demand* to get our doctor-prescribed medication without delay or inconvenience.

Yesterday, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius stole the spotlight from her scary attorney general, when she vetoed a bill that would have required Kansas abortion clinics to adopt more rigorous guidelines. Sebelius explains that while she would support increasing regulations for surgeries in an out-patient setting, she won't get behind legislative action that singles out abortion.

Sebelius explains that, "Once again in 2005, the Legislature has chosen pure politics over good policy, has rejected uniform standards for all procedures and has instead chosen to regulate only one procedure — abortion."

Unfortunately, her battle with the legislature isn't over yet. It's expected that when the legislators returns from their break on April 27, they will attempt a veto override. While they were unsuccessful in their last override attempt on a similar bill vetoed by Sebelius in 2003, it looks like they may be successful this time. A veto requires 27 votes in the Senate and 84 in the House; the bill passed with 27 Senate votes and 88 in the House. (sigh).

Okay, pro-choice Kansas, I think it's time to contact your local senator and make your voice heard.

The NY Times has a wonderful expose on Ma'yan, a Jewish feminist organization that holds annual women's seders in New York. Ma'yan's mission is to serve as a catalyst for change and a resource for women working for change within the Jewish community.

Sadly, Ma'yan announced that this is their last year running the feminist seder. The director of Ma'yan, Eve Landau, explains that: "Our goal is to be a catalyst. We can give it up because it has become mainstream, because girls don't think there's something terribly unusual about a women's seder and because now a Miriam's Cup is part of what they see on their seder table at home." Any thoughts on this?

To learn more, check out The Women's Haggadah.

Check out Catharine MacKinnon's NY Times op-ed, Who Was Afraid of Andrea Dworkin? MacKinnon reflects on the powerful legacy of her long-time friend, and challenges any misogynists who undercut Dworkin's career along the way. Here's a snippet:

"Andrea Dworkin, an inspiration to so many women, died last week at the age of 58. Over the course of her incandescent literary and political career, she also became a symbol of views she did not hold. For her lucid work opposing men's violence against women, she lived the stigma of being identified with women, especially sexually abused women. Instead of being lionized and admired for her genius, instead of being able to earn a decent living as a writer, Andrea Dworkin was misrepresented and demonized. In the words of John Berger, she was "perhaps the most misrepresented writer in the Western world."

I love it. if you're in the D.C. area, check out the Bread and Roses Feminist Singers, a politically active chorus group who "strive for musical excellence" and "project a message of feminism, social justice and peace." I'm a groupie already!

They've been singing their music o' love and justice since 1978, when they were first formed as the D.C. Area Feminist Chorus. They've recently changed their name, but still sing the same message. "Our politics are still a very important part of what we sing." says Carol Wheeler, who's been a group member for more than a decade.

Check out their website for more information and concert dates. These ladies kick ass!

So I’m off to the lovely Costa Rica this weekend (see above, let jealousy ensue), to return at the end of the month. I’m already starting to feel blogging withdrawal, but something tells me I’ll get over it…

I leave you in the more-than-capable hands of the other Feministing gals, as well as super-special guest blogger Amanda of Mouse Words and Pandagon fame.

Don’t miss me too much. (Well, a little missing would be appreciated.)

It looks like Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has taken his first hit in the war on this ”conscience clause” garbage that’s been so widely debated as of late.

While some pharmacists are insisting that they should have the right to reject women of contraceptives based on their religious or “moral” beliefs, Blagojevich recently filed a rule that requires all pharmacists in the state to fill prescriptions for contraceptives without delay. Others are even beginning to follow his lead.

Not surprisingly, Blagojevich now finds himself with a lawsuit which was filed on Wednesday by a right-wing law group, The American Center for Law and Justice. They made it on behalf of two pharmacists, claiming that the order violates their religious beliefs, reports the Chicago Tribune.

But Blagojevich’s spokesperson Abby Ottenhoff doesn’t seem too worried.

“We'll fight any attempt to stand in the way of a woman's right to be treated with dignity at the pharmacy counter. If a pharmacy is going to be in a business of stocking and dispensing contraceptives, then they shouldn't be able to make judgments about who should or should not have access to those contraceptives."

Hell yeah! I’ve never loved a state so much that I know so little about.

Check out this commentary on Salon about the harajuku girls Gwen Stefani has been rockin'.

Some highlights:
They shadow her wherever she goes. They're on the cover of the album, they appear behind her on the red carpet, she even dedicates a track, "Harajuku Girls," to them. In interviews, they silently vogue in the background like living props; she, meanwhile, likes to pretend that they're not real but only a figment of her imagination. They're ever present in her videos and performances -- swabbing the deck aboard the pirate ship, squatting gangsta style in a high school gym while pumping their butts up and down, simpering behind fluttering hands or bowing to Stefani. That's right, bowing. Not even from the waist, but on the ground in a "we're not worthy, we're not worthy" pose.
She's taken Tokyo hipsters, sucked them dry of all their street cred, and turned them into China dolls.

Like the article says it's, "Springs must have accessory: Giggling Geishas." Awesome. And what of this hipster obsession with all things Japanese?

The Yale Daily News had an interesting article yesterday on the fetishism of Asian women that exists in American culture.

The article was written in lieu of the grad student from Princeton who was recently arrested for terrorizing over 50 Asian women on campus. (Check out Jessica's post on this for the disturbing details.) While the authors admit that this may very well be an isolated case of perversion, sexual assaults specifically targeted against Asian women do exist and the reasons behind it need to be addressed.

InSight, the only Asian-American women’s organization on Yale campus, held a meeting focusing on this issue of the sexual fixation on Asian women in the media, and society as a whole. They are typically portrayed as exotic, passive "geisha girls" who are sexually submissive and easily dominated. This oversexualization of Asian women not only causes the occasional sicko to terrorize a number of women, but has had more consequential effects than generally thought. For example, in a study conducted in 2002, out of 31 random pornographic websites that included the rape and torture of women, nearly half of the sites used depictions of Asian women receiving the abuse. The authors (who are members of InSight) also make it a point to show that while an estimated 26 percent of rape victims come forward to report the assault, only 8 percent of Asian female victims report it.

At the end of the article, the authors say:

“It may be easy to disregard the widespread existence of an Asian fetish as an ‘annoying’ but essentially benign phenomenon that does not need to be taken seriously. But, as the Princeton episode demonstrates, we need to be aware of the violent and perverse forms it can take and its serious ramifications.”

Word. Too many people just shrug off these racist and sexist images of Asian women (and all women of color, for that matter) that end up resulting in objectification, rape, and abuse. It’s time to wake the fuck up and smell the injustice.

The National Rifle Association (NRA) is poised to hire its second female president, Sandra S. Froman.

Froman, the NRA's current vice president, plans to focus on women’s issues—with an emphasis on self-defense—during her tenure. It remains to be seen what topics Froman thinks fall under the purview of “women’s issues.”

After her home was almost broke into 20 years ago, Froman bought her first gun—a .45-caliber semiautomatic pistol. “It was a serious gun,” she said.

I’m all for self-defense, but I just don’t think having a handgun would make me safer.

I’ve had several friends recommend Gun Women: Firearms and Feminism in Contemporary America as a good introduction to why some women think of gun owning as a feminist action:

Women, we are told, should not own guns. Women, we are told, are more likely to be injured by their own guns than to fend off an attack themselves. This "fact" is rooted in a fundamental assumption of female weakness and vulnerability. Why should a woman not be every bit as capable as a man of using a firearm in self-defense?

Thoughts?

You mean teens have sexual rights? You certainly wouldn't know it by all the nonsense going on lately. Whether it's abstinence-only education, parental notification laws or virginity pledges, it seems like teens are shit out of luck in the sexual autonomy department.

In the face of all this madness, it's nice to know that someone like Ellen Friedrichs is around.

Friedrichs, perhaps the busiest sex educator of all time, is profiled in the latest Village Voice. Friedrichs writes for Planned Parenthood's TeenWire site, teaches human sexuality at Rutgers, works with teens in a South Bronx after-school program, and has just started her own site, sexedvice.com. Whew!

Friedrichs is on a mission, in part because so few are willing to stand up for teens' sexual rights. "People are terrified of teen sexuality. But we're really fighting for the same goals. I think teen pregnancy is probably not a great idea, I don't want anybody to get a sexually transmitted infection, and a lot of kids aren't emotionally ready for sex, but I don't think that denying kids information is going to solve any of these problems."

..."Closing your eyes, putting your head in the sand, and telling kids to practice abstinence until you're in a heterosexual marriage isn't effective. Kids have a right to know this information. Parents let their kids watch the most violent, graphic movies but freak out that some kid saw Janet Jackson's nipple. Their priorities are so different from mine. I would much rather shield a child from violence than sex..."

Folks like Friedrichs give me hope. And articles like this one serve as an important reminder that despite the current anti-sex climate, there are people on the ground working every day for a healthy, informed brand of sex ed.

I think maxi pads are in my future...at least until I can get this picture out of my head.

Femdefence is based on a design by Anita Ingmarsdotter, a Swedish woman who wanted to invent a "rape protection device" after a series of rapes in Sweden that received a lot of public attention.

While the Femdefence website claims that the killer tampon can't hurt the wearer, I don't know how enthusiastic I'd be about putting anything near my vagina that has a fucking metal spike.

While I appreciate the sentiment, I can’t imagine that this is an effective way to protect women against rape. It doesn't take into consideration that women are raped anally and orally and that sexual assault is about violence—this thing could just piss a perpetrator off. Or maybe I’m wrong; it is a pretty terrifying-looking device!

Thanks to Ray for the link.

Taking a cue from "Rod the Bod" Blagojevich of Illinois, Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano vetoed a bill yesterday that would have allowed pharmacists the right to refuse to fill prescriptions for emergency contraception and abortion services.

Napolitano adds this action to an already stellar record on reproductive choice issues. (Last year she vetoed a 24-hour waiting period for abortions in her state.)

Thanks, Janet!

SportsIllustrated.com reported Wednesday that the two women alleging rape by University of Colorado football players and recruits will ask a federal judge to reconsider his decision to dismiss their lawsuit against the school.

As you may recall, the case was thrown out last month on the grounds that the victims failed to prove 1) that CU had "actual knowledge" of sexual harassment of female students by football players and recruits and 2) that CU was deliberately indifferent to any known sexual harassment. Both standards must be met in order to sue a public university under Title IX.

For those who don't remember, CU faced a slew of allegations of sexual harassment, sexual assaults and rape last year. Furthermore, CU placekicker Katie Hnida, in an interview with Sports Illustrated, said she was repeatedly harassed and groped by teammates and was raped by a fellow player during her tenure with the team.

I am not sure if the case against the school is legally viable, but I'm glad to see the victims trying to hold the school accountable for a shitload of bad (and potentially illegal) decisions.

For more angles/background on this case, see some of our earlier posts:

Fox News on Sexual Assault: Uh Oh; 4/22/04
Cuntroversy; 6/16/04

A high school principal in Columbus, Ohio was recently fired for failing to report allegations that a 16-year-old special ed student was assaulted in the school’s gym.

A group of four boys videotaped themselves as they forced the girl to perform oral sex and punched her in the face. Even though she told her teacher minutes after the incident occurred, school administrators delayed in calling the girl’s father. They then asked her father not to call the police.

The administrators later told police that after having viewed the videotape, they concluded that the sexual acts were consensual.

I’m disgusted.

From the Associated Press:

Irked by the success of the nationwide Day of Silence, which seeks to combat anti-gay bias in schools, conservative activists are launching a counter-event this week called the Day of Truth aimed at mobilizing students who believe homosexuality is sinful.

Participating students are being offered T-shirts with the slogan "The Truth Cannot be Silenced" and cards to pass out to classmates Thursday -- the day following the Day of Silence -- declaring their unwillingness to condone "detrimental personal and social behavior."

Just wanted to send a big thanks out to everyone who came out in force last night to help Feministing celebrate our first birthday!

A good, inebriated time was had by all.

Pics to come later tonight...

The LA times has an interesting (but terrifying) profile on Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline that really is a must read.

Kline's self-righteousness is impossible to ignore; he has a specific vision for Kansas and sees it as informing the moral compass for the nation:

"In many ways...Kansas leads the nation on social issues. And always will."

That wouldn't be so bad if Kline's version of social issues didn't mean robbing women of their right to privacy (and choice) and institutionalizing homophobia through a gay marriage ban. And let's not even get started on the "preaching from church pulpits" thing. Yes, you heard me right.

Some other scary tidbits:

...In the fall of 2003, he issued an impassioned defense of a Kansas law that subjected sexually active teens to much steeper criminal penalties if they were gay.

In a legal brief, Kline argued that the state should punish a boy who had sex with an underage boy more harshly than a boy who had sex with an underage girl because the heterosexual couple might some day marry, and "marriage creates families" — a desirable outcome for the state.

Wow. Sounds like a real reasonable guy.

As an addition to Jessica’s “manly” men post last week, check out this article in from the New York Times yesterday titled, “The Man Date.” The author explores the the occasional awkwardness of male hetero sexual friendships and the conditioned masculinity that exists in American society.

The article discusses how some hetero males tend to feel awkward going on a “date” with another male friend without the masculine security of a football game and wings; in other words, going to dinner and a movie with a buddy tends to make them feel less “manly” and more open to scrutiny from the surrounding public.

While the article brings up a subject that is interesting and well-needed within discourse on gender, I found an essential topic lacking. With this conditioned masculinity comes a harsh (and depressing) homophobia that is at the base of the conflict. Although the author does bring up this issue, he doesn't delve into it quite enough:

“Scholars say, two things changed during the last century: an increased public awareness of homosexuality created a stigma around male intimacy, and at the same time women began encroaching on traditionally male spheres, causing men to become more defensive about notions of masculinity."

Are men really so insecure and afraid of the scary women and gays?

At the end of the article, the author says:

“All men, however, agree that one rule of guy-meets-guy time is inviolable: if a woman enters the picture, a man can drop his buddies, last minute, no questions asked. A romantic date always trumps a man date.”

So just making sure y’all know -- these guys are straight. They love women. Not gay. Sigh. Is it just me, or is this dude just reinforcing the actual problem he’s talking about?

Now I know this gripe may be small in the face of all the other choice issues going on, but I don't care. It pissed me off.

From the San Diego Union-Tribune:

Amid the escalating hostilities over Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's political agenda, a little-noticed but highly emotional measure has been quietly gathering momentum and will probably be the first to qualify for the next statewide ballot.

The initiative would require an abortion provider to notify a parent or guardian 48 hours before performing an abortion on an unmarried minor, unless there is a medical emergency.

Obviously I'm not a fan of parental notification at all, but this whole "married" thing really got to me. So a young woman can't make a decision for herself unless she's married? Somehow a 16 year-old with a husband is more able to decide if she wants a child? I'm surprised there wasn't a clause in there about notifying women's husbands. Disgusting.

Don't forget! If you're in NY or San Fran, come help celebrate our one year of existence with some happy hour madness...feminist goodies and gear will be provided. (That and the pleasure of seeing me slur my words.)

Thank you so much for all the amazing support over this past year.

Via Nerve.

Make sure to check out Ellen Goodman's latest column, Whose conscience rules? Good stuff.

My favorite lines:

The pharmacist who refuses emergency contraception is not just following his moral code, he's trumping the moral beliefs of the doctor and the patient.

...To each his own conscience. But the drugstore is not an altar. The last time I looked, the pharmacist's license did not include the right to dispense morality.

Love it!

Looks like the mainstream media has finally decided to acknowledge Andrea Dworkin’s death. Here's her obit from the Associated Press and The Washington Post.

Two women have testified that they witnessed instances of sexual harassment and failure of compliance with safety codes within the AIDs division of the National Institute of Health (NIH). Their testimony is being used in a lawsuit by Dr. Fishbein, against the NIH, who is being fired after having raised questions last year about safety and compliance within the division.

NYT reports,
A boss sends a red bra to a woman who was once his subordinate but who had a falling out with him. Government e-mail messages are used to distribute profanity and a picture of a partly nude woman. An order that patients in a medical experiment be better protected takes two years to complete.

Two women, both senior officers at the agency, testified that the workplace was so uncomfortable and intimidating that some employees were afraid to speak up against frequent dismissal of concerns about patient safety.

The NIH spends hundreds of millions of dollars conducting AIDs experiments around the globe. NIH managers have acknowlegded that there are problems within the division and there is an investigation of the harassment allegations. The AP mentioned that part of the lack of compliance was pressure from pharmaceutical research companies to "find a cure."
Always looking at the dollars and cents of it, I suppose. Just at the cost of possible danger to a sample population and women being intimidated by asshole higher-ups in the workplace.

Make sure to check out SMUT, a Toronto-based queer, sex-positive magazine filled with all sorts of filthy writing, artwork, interviews and the like. And as you can see, it has the best logo ever.

And you really have to love their manifesto which, among other things, declares:

Fun, sin and smut will be essential elements of our magazine and parties!

We will support those committed to change, chance, discovery, and reinvention. Especially if they are wearing sexy underwear.

Go get a copy now.

Anyone ever hear of blaming the victim?

During a dance routine at a San Jose State basketball game, 74 year-old alumnus Ray Silva screamed at dancers that they were “trash” and to “get off the court.”

Silva said, “It was vulgar… It was like a burlesque, with bumps and grinds. I just came unglued.” Oh my god! Bumps and grinds?! (And doesn’t he know that burlesque is very in right now?)

The confrontation escalated after the game when Silva and 20 year-old dancer Tarah DiNardo got into a shouting match that ended with DiNardo being grabbed and bruised by an athletic director trying to break up the argument.

So what action has San Jose State taken to protect their dance team from harassment? They’ve suspended them until the team develops guidelines to “to represent the university at the highest possible standard.” How about developing some fucking guidelines for old misogynist assholes?

This suspension is especially interesting considering DiNardo says the team was only doing what sports officials asked: “They wanted more makeup, more hair and sexier uniforms.” Shocking.

Associate director of athletics Mark Harlan says that the dance team’s role is being “reevaluated” and that the claim of school-mandated sexiness “doesn't strike me as anything we'd want.” Of course you wouldn’t. Cause that’s not how you up ticket sales or anything.

By the way, this isn’t the first case of Reverend Moore-itis as of late; a Texas lawmaker is trying to pass legislation to end “sexy” cheerleading. Perhaps all the bumping and grinding is ungluing him as well.

Like most of us, Senators Hillary Clinton and Patty Murray have gotten sick of waiting for the FDA to decide whether the emergency contraception pill Plan B can be sold over-the-counter.

The senators are blocking the confirmation of new FDA commissioner Lester Crawford until the administration comes to a decision on Plan B.

The FDA has been dragging its feet on this issue for nearly two years. In 2003 an advisory panel voted 23 to 4 to approve Plan B for over-the-counter sale. But despite this overwhelming approval, the FDA rejected the proposal last May. They have yet to decide on a revised application, which would put Plan B not on shelves, but make it available from pharmacists without a prescription.

Over-the-counter approval is not only important to increase access, but also because it would circumvent pharmacists' refusals to fill EC prescriptions.

Opponents (the same people who support pharmacists' refusals) have said that increasing access to EC would make young women more likely to have unprotected sex. But research doesn't support that argument. The ultra-conservative Family Research Council has warned that over-the-counter sales will make EC "the new Saturday night party favor of choice." These groups are using all of their political clout to bully the FDA.

So I'm thrilled that Hillary and Patty aren't bowing to anti-choicers, but I'm also disappointed that they're the only two Democrats who have the ovaries to stand up for EC access.

Contributed by Ann Friedman

A city manager in a county Administration Building in Florida had an abstract painting of a nude woman, breasts and all, removed over concerns that it would be "offensive." He later resigned. (Good.)

The new manager recanted and offered to display the artwork again, but the artist, Ed Johnson, said he didn't want to display the painting, "Royal Lady," again for fear of vandalism. It's a sad state of affairs we're in when a woman's breasts are considered offensive in abstract art of all places.

Kind of reminds me of when dopey John Ashcroft spent $8,000 to cover
up a statue in the Department of Justice that had one breast exposed, apparently because he didn't like the boob poking out behind him in photographs.

Sigh. When will women's bodies be considered beautiful rather than shameful?

Contributed by Jess Wakeman

I'm sad to say that Andrea Dworkin died yesterday. Didn't always agree with her, but she was an amazing force in the movement.

The US is claiming that the Iraqi women detained last week were not being held hostage. Reuters reports, "The U.S. military said on Friday two Iraqi women detained for six days had been held on suspicion of complicity in insurgent attacks, not used as hostages to pressure fugitive male relatives to surrender.

"U.S. forces do not take hostages, nor do we participate in blackmail activities," Lieutenant Colonel Clifford Kent, spokesman for the 3rd Infantry Division, said in a statement."
Yeah, my ass we don't participate in blackmail. Either way, when the women were detained they were blindfolded. That's not intimidating or anything. The women themselves said that they were not harmed or treated badly, but the US is investigating the hostage accusation.

Nuff said.

A study done by eMarketer Inc. concluded that girls and women represented 51.6% of all online users in the United States. This is a change from when the internet first emerged, wherein as recent as 1997, boys and men made up 75% of internet users. The study also predicted that by 2008 women and girls would make up 52.6% of internet users.

An article in Information Week gives a few reasons why so many women are online (for reasons other then feministing of course!).
"Cultural, societal, and Internet business trends are combining to shift the balance toward women," said eMarketer analyst Debra Aho Williamson in a statement accompanying the release of the report she authored, Women Online In The U.S..

According to eMarketer, women have long embraced the Internet as a communications medium, and have shown a strong interest in online games, health content, and music. Traditionally, women have been the dominant offline shoppers, but they're shifting more of their shopping online.

Of course, eMarketer's conclusions were that the upcoming challenges facing the internet community was how to make shopping more interactive for women online. Not too shocking, since this was researched by a marketing firm, but I think this is an interesting statistic. Why do you think there has been such an increase of women using the internet? What does it mean? More online product obsessed shoppers or a hidden community of clandestine activists/gearheads?!

Phyllis Schlafly is taking a day off from lobbying against the Equal Rights Amendment to advocate for the impeachment of Justice Kennedy (because of his latest opinion which held that the death penalty was unconstitutional for crimes committed by juveniles).

To learn more about Schlafly and her scary friends, check out the Washington Post's coverage of the Confronting the Judicial War on Faith conference.

Seems like gender determinism is getting a lot of press these days. The latest "advocate" is Kevin Chesnik of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.

While unveiling the Wisconsin DOT's latest fair-employment plans, Chesnik was asked why more women weren't promoted in the structural reorganization. His response -- "it was hard to find women for high-level jobs because of their roles as mothers."

Wow. So what exactly does this mean? That women are just too damn nurturing to have a role in the DOT? Or that women aren't willing to work to the hours necessary to cut it at the DOT?

Luckily, Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle also explained that Chesnik's comments were "completely contrary to everything this administration is trying to do." And Chesnik is apologizing too. In fact, he says that he views "the flap as an opportunity to improve gender equity in the agency."

Great... he has been shown the err of his ways. Now, if only we could have a press conference for every sexist asshole in power...

While feministing has been providing regular coverage on the bullshit "right to choose" movement among pharmacists, check out CS Monitor's Culture War Hits the Pharmacy for a good overview.

• In Illinois, Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) last week issued an executive rule clarifying his view of state law: Any pharmacy that sells contraceptives must promptly fill a woman's prescription for them.

• In a related issue, Colorado Gov. Bill Owens (R) exercised a rare veto this week, for a bill that would have required all hospitals - including Catholic ones - to inform rape victims about the availability of emergency contraceptives. Among other concerns, he questioned the constitutionality of forcing religious institutions to engage in speech counter to their principles.

(sigh). Can anyone tell me how it came to this?

Check out the Guardian's article on Vanessa Beecroft's latest work, VB55. As you can see, she likes her ladies in tights -- all one hundred of them.

If y'all don't know her, Beecroft is an arteest that has been staging nude tableaux vivants since 1993. Critics say her work exploits women, while fans call her a feminist icon. All I know is that I will never understand modern art.

Check out this article from CSMoniter.com on new possible legislation working its way through Congress that will make it much more difficult (and expensive) to declare bankruptcy. The bill, if passed, will hit women the hardest.

During a time that personal bankruptcies have become more common, the bill’s aim is to promote personal responsibility and reinstate more power to creditors. Even without the reform, 150,000 more women find themselves filing for bankruptcy than men per year. Single mothers are in the worst shape: they are fifty percent more likely to file for bankruptcy than married parents, and three times more likely than childless couples.

Fabulous. And it’s so refreshing to see that our government is taking care of this problem! Sigh.

Thanks to Michael for the article.

A *very* cool initiative has been launched by the National Council of Women's Organizations (NCWO) to take on the sponsors of the Masters Golf Tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club, an organization that refuses women members.

Why? NCWO director, Dr. Martha Burk explains that, "Companies sponsoring the Masters Golf Tournament are associating themselves with a venue that openly and proudly discriminates against women, which sends a debilitating message to female employees."

"Today, the coalition of more than 200 national women's organizations representing over ten million women, sent letters to IBM, SBC Communications, and Exxon Mobil requesting employment data on hiring, pay, and promotion of women in their companies. All of these corporations have policies against underwriting discrimination, and all are in violation of those policies. It is incumbent on them to provide data proving that they in fact do not discriminate against women in their workplaces."

While it is clearly bullshit that Augusta won't allow women members, I still feel somewhat uncomfortable with the feminist community's use of its limited resources to tackle an issue that centers on gaining entrance for such a select group of women into such an elite club.

Burk counters that: "Far from being a place where friends gather for golf, Augusta National is a gathering of corporate power players like no other. Deals are made, careers are changed, and even national policy is affected through relationships such as those of the 19 members of Augusta National who sit on the Council on Foreign Relations. All of this while shutting women out." While I understand her point, I'm still glad that this campaign focuses on the "no-women-allowed" message of Augusta, to expose and contextualize a broader system of corporate sex discrimination.

To learn more, check out the Hall of Hypocrisy -- a site that lists all the firms whose top executives, board members, and CEOs belong to Augusta National Golf Club.

Larry Summers just can't get enough. Yesterday, Summers opened a Harvard conference on the advancement of women in the science, by noting that, "I suppose I've done my part over these last several months to increase interest in these topics."

"I wish that interest in these topics had been increased in a somewhat different fashion," he added. "But I believe that with the focus that now exists ... we have an opportunity to do some things that are truly important."

Like what, Mr. Summers -- taking the opportunity to apologize to all the women you offended? Ummmm, no. (sigh). I guess the cheap laugh is always the easiest way out.

UPDATE: Because Rebel Dad kicks ass (Kudos to Brian):

In the past where there have been efforts to show a caring man or a Mister Mom, the popular culture has a very low threshold ... They'll have one or two Mister Moms and the media will be filled with stories about how the sensitivity of the politically correct male has gone too far. Then we'll be treated to a wave of trend stories saying 'Real men are back.' So I predict next year you'll be doing a story on a brawny Brawny Man.

The Washington Times tells us that the "'metrosexual' look is on the way out." Was it ever really in?

A new survey profiled in the worse-titled article of all time (Hold the quiche: Manly men are back) says that women "want the 'man' back in manly." Cause the 'ly' just wasn't cutting it by itself...

The survey, which was commissioned by Dodge Trucks as part of their "Ultimate Guy" contest, is chock-full of useless information:

61 percent of women surveyed said they would rather see a man's hands rough and working hard than well-manicured.

90 percent of women said they prefer low-maintenance, easygoing guys. (Who the hell are the 10 percent who prefer high-maintenance, uptight guys?)

What's truly hysterical is that the Independent Women's Forum managed to use this survey--again, generated purely for a truck contest--to push their anti-feminist crap:

"It just shows that there are some things that you can't change and that, while feminism for a long time has been pushing us towards androgyny with little girls with trucks and guys with dolls, women tend to have feministic traits and guys the opposite," says Carrie Lukas, director of policy with the Independent Women's Forum. "If anything, it shows what feminism hasn't been able to accomplish."

Who knew that it would be Dodge trucks that dismantled feminism?

Oh, and Carrie--you may want to brush up on your vocab skills.

One more reason why the Ivy League isn't so cool.

NY Post:

Princeton University math whiz Michael Lohman had a creepy sexual secret, cops say.

When investigators finally caught up with Lohman and arrested him last week, they searched his campus apartment and found women's hair stuffed into mittens that he apparently used for sexual gratification, said Princeton Borough Police Lt. Dennis McManimon.

How much more "it puts the lotion in the basket" can you get?

Kinda makes me not mind Lawrence Summers so much. (at least for a second)

From the South Florida Sun Sentinel:

Even if she's a victim of parental incest or other abuse, a girl younger than 16 could not have an abortion without the doctor first telling her mother or father, under a bill approved by a Florida House committee Wednesday...

Well, at least they're being upfront about not giving a shit about women. No exceptions here...all pregnant teens are sluts who can't make decisions for themselves, raped or not.

In a similar bill [SB 1908] moving through the Senate, doctors would be required to tell the parent or guardian of girls under 18 who ask for abortions, but girls of any age could ask a judge to waive that requirement and keep the procedure confidential.

Confidentiality should be implicit, not something you have to go to a judge for.

What lesson are we giving to teenage girls by telling them they have no right to make potentially life-changing decisions without a parent or judge being involved?

According to Reuters and CNN International, by 2007, Norway will shut companies that refuse to recruit at least 40 percent women to their boards under an unprecedented equality drive announced on Tuesday.

In 2002, Norway's parliament told companies to ensure at least 40 percent of each sex in boardrooms by mid-2005 to force corporate leadership to match Nordic traditions of sex equality elsewhere in society. But, until now, Oslo had not threatened sanctions for non-compliance.

Norway has a long tradition of feminism. According to the article, sex equality is built into Nordic traditions of strong welfare, now funded in Norway by vast North Sea oil revenues. As long ago as Viking times, women ran farms when men went abroad on voyages of discovery or pillage. Furthermore, 40% of the cabinet of Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik and 37% of Norwegian parliamentarians are women.

Now all we need is to convince our own "progressive" country to think similarly.

From Reuters:

The U.S. military in Baghdad confirmed on Wednesday it was holding two Iraqi women and was investigating accusations that they were being held hostage to pressure their fugitive male relatives to surrender.

A spokesman said the women were detained as insurgent suspects, not hostages. The latter would be a breach of international law...

Cause the U.S. is all about adhering to international law.

Not that you need any reminding about the sexual assault edpidemic in the US...but here are some stats anyway:

1 in 6 US women and 1 in 33 U.S. men has experienced an attempted or completed rape at some time in their lives.

More than half of all rapes of females occur before age 18; of those, 22% occur before age 12.

Between 1 in 4 and 1 in 5 college women experience completed or attempted rape during their college years.

Fewer than half of all rapes and sexual assaults are reported to the police.

For more information on Sexual Assault Awareness Month, check out RAINN and the National Sexual Violence Resource Center. Click here for a calendar of events.

God, I love Barbara Boxer.

Yesterday the Senate passed (by a 52-46 vote) an amendment offered by Boxer and Olympia Snowe that would repeal the Global Gag Rule. Boxer said, "We are a country that believes in fairness, democracy, free speech, and improving the health and lives of people all over the world...But instead of promoting these values, the Global Gag Rule enforces a dangerous code of silence."

Nice!

This is great news, but it remains to be seen how much further this amendment can really go. The House has consistently voted to keep the gag rule in place, and naturally you have to expect that Bush would veto it...bastard.

But still, it gives me hope.

Make sure to check out the latest Sex Talk podcast from Rebel Dad. He takes on the Supreme Court decision on Title IX, NARAL's pharmacy petition page, and the controversy over Elaine Lafferty's "resignation" from Ms. magazine.

He also interviews June Zeitlin, executive director of the Women's Environment & Development Organization (WEDO), on their latest publication Beijing Betrayed. (Yeah, I'm pushing it...if you spent a year working on a book you would push it too!)

On Tuesday, April 12, Feministing will be celebrating its first birthday. Or anniversary, whatever you want to call it...

Either way, we figure the best way to celebrate is happy hour-style. Cause there's nothing better than drinking for cheap in the middle of the week. And if you doubt our party prowess, check out these pics from the last Feministing bash. (Yes, we were a little drunk. A little.)

So if you're in New York or San Francisco, come party with us! Meet other bad-ass feministas in the area, plan the revolution, you know, the norm...

New York:
6-10pm
@Musical Box
219 Ave B (bet. 13th and 14th streets)
212-254-1731
For more info, contact Jessica.

San Fran:
5-9pm
@ Bender's Bar and Grill
806 South Van Ness Ave (at the corner of 19th and S. Van Ness)
415-824-1800
For more info, contact Samhita.

If you're not in NY or San Fran, you can still support Feministing. You know, with cash.

I know I've written about gross over-sexualized commercials before, but this one for some kind of candy stick thing was fucking bizarre. The cut aways were way freaky...you'll see what I mean.

Via Nerve.

Here's the amendment Boxer is offering to repeal the Global Gag Rule.

Sen. Boxer offered this exact amendment almost two years ago, and it passed with bipartisan support. The amendment simply says that foreign NGOs cannot be denied funding solely because of the medical care they provide with their own funds, including counseling and referrals.

It also says that these organizations cannot be forced to give up U.S. funding in order to engage in free speech using their own money. If, using their own funds, they are taking actions that are legal in their own countries and would be legal in our country, they shouldn't lose U.S. funding because of it.

Damn Michael, I knew you loved the ladies--but collaborating with Lifetime?!

On April 10th at 11 PM EST/PST, tune in for a Lifetime Television Original Documentary, “Terror at Home: Domestic Violence in America,” and take a stand to stop violence against women.

Directed/Produced by Oscar-winning Filmmaker Maryann De Leo and Executive Produced by Grammy-winning Singer, Songwriter and Activist Michael Bolton, “Terror at Home: Domestic Violence in America” is a new ground-breaking documentary that puts a real-time lens on domestic abuse, the escape and the complex aftermath for women and their families. The film features women from all walks of life, who have endured the trauma of domestic violence and found the strength to come forward and share their stories in the hope of helping others. Airing commercial-free, the hour-long special, “Terror at Home: Domestic Violence in America,” merges De Leo’s acclaimed journalistic abilities with Bolton’s long history of activism on the subject of gender violence, including how men need to stand up and speak out against the epidemic.

I wonder if this coincides with Bolton cutting off his lovely locks...

Yeah, yeah, I know. He's a super-great guy for doing this. But I'm sorry, how often since Office Space do you get to make fun of Michael Bolton?

Oh yeah: watch the documentary.

I've heard through the grapevine that Sen. Barbara Boxer is planning to offer an amendment today—the Global Democracy Promotion Act—to the State Department authorization bill in order to repeal the Global Gag Rule.

I'll let you know when I hear more...

Fantastic. Jonathan Cohen of Human Rights Watch says that marriage isn’t the answer to HIV prevention:

Nicholas D. Kristof correctly notes that encouraging married people to use condoms might decrease the risk faced by African women of contracting H.I.V. from an unfaithful spouse ("When Marriage Kills," column, March 30).

Infidelity, polygamy, marital rape and domestic violence - this is the reality of marriage for too many African women. Instead of telling women to abstain until marriage, the administration must realize that this is precisely what many African women do, only to contract H.I.V. from their husbands.

Fun fact: You can be an “American Idol” if you beat up your girlfriend, but not if you pose for topless photos.

That’s just lovely.

The remaining four unconvincingly argue oral sex isn’t that cool anyway.

Seriously though...A report released today says that one in five US teenagers have had oral sex, largely because they view it as less dangerous than intercourse.

Okay already; I get it! Everyone is all oral sex crazy these days. Teens are doing it all time and adults can’t stop talking about how teens are doing it.

What has annoyed me the most is that generally when folks discuss the prevalence of oral sex among teens, it’s always framed in this girls-are-getting-taken-advantage-of argument. This assumes (in a total hetereosexual context) that girls are the ones performing and that if they are giving oral sex, it’s a bad and victimizing thing. So annoying.

The report says however, that “it was more common for boys to have performed oral sex on girls than vice versa.” Huh. Now how many people do you think will argue that these boys are getting taken advantage of?

You must go see this mock sex ed test that NARAL has come up with to highlight Bush’s terrifying abstinence-only sex ed programs.

My favorite questions:

Girls produce only female ovum. Boys, however, produce...
Ovaltine.
Male and female sperm.
Sperm whales.
A foul odor.

Which of the following will get 14 percent of its users pregnant within a year?
Old-school Prince CDs.
The halter top.
Using condoms for birth control.
Lambada: The Forbidden Dance.

Ovaltine. If only.

In the wake of Title IX’s Supreme Court victory comes a major step back. Great.

Last month the Education Department put out new guidance concerning Title IX that makes it all too easy for colleges to screw women’s sports.

From The Washington Post:

The issue involves how schools can show that they're providing the equal athletic opportunity called for under the law. They can prove this in one of three ways: showing that male and female students participate in intercollegiate sports in numbers "substantially proportionate" to their enrollment; that the school has "a history and continuing practice of program expansion" for women athletes; or that -- even if women athletes are underrepresented and athletic programs for women aren't growing -- female students' "interests and abilities . . . have been fully and effectively accommodated by the present program."

The Education Department's new interpretation defines that third test in a way that could undermine the enormous progress women have made in college sports. Under the new rules, colleges can demonstrate that they are responding to student interests simply by sending out e-mail surveys to students. If the results -- including a failure to respond -- show "insufficient interest to support an additional varsity team," the school will be presumed to be complying with Title IX, a presumption that can only be overcome with "direct and very persuasive evidence of unmet interest."

Email surveys? That sounds real comprehensive...

Marcia D. Greenberger of the National Women's Law Center writes that this new policy change is simply a stealth effort to undermine Title IX:

Before this policy “clarification,” schools had to make a serious effort to gauge interest, including by talking to coaches and students and surveying women's sports offered by high schools or other colleges in the region. Schools also had to examine whether their lack of recruitment effort dampened real interest in sports opportunities by potential female athletes. Now schools can simply say they've met their obligation by sending students mass e-mails.

Scary.

Ed. Note: Apparently Lauryn wrote about this not too long ago. My brain is mush. Apologies.

A recent poll of Catholics reports that most people feel the new pope should “allow the use of birth control, let priests marry and give women the chance to join the clergy.” The survey also showed that most thought that the church should relax their stance on stem cell research.

Sounds good to me...

On the downside, 59 percent said the church should keep its strict position against abortion.

Who says that I can’t have an imaginary relationship with Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich? My stalking tendencies aside, this man fucking rocks.

In response to recent incidents where pharmacists refused to fill women’s prescriptions for contraceptives, Gov. Blagojevich took emergency action on Friday, filing a rule that Illinois pharmacies “must accept and fill prescriptions for contraceptives without delay.”

In addition, he also announced disciplinary action against the pharmacy where this refusal to fill prescriptions had taken place and the creation of a toll free number where women can report “non-compliant” pharmacies.

Gov. Blagojevich said of these new provisions:

Our regulation says that if a woman goes to a pharmacy with a prescription for birth control, the pharmacy is not allowed to discriminate who they sell it to and who they don’t. The pharmacy will be expected to accept that prescription and fill it in the same way, and in the same period of time they would fill any other prescription. No delays. No hassles. No lecture. Just fill the prescription.

Holy. Shit. I think I'm in love.

NARAL president Nancy Keenan added, “there shouldn't be anything even remotely controversial about going to the drug store to pick up your birth control prescription, but the anti-choice movement’s willingness to intrude on our personal lives does not know any bounds...The women of Illinois should be very proud to have a governor like Rod Blagojevich, who wants government to support our personal choices instead of limiting them.”

Watch out Nancy--I'll fight you for him...

Terry Schiavo passed away this past Thursday bringing to a close the highly publicized and contraversial debates surrounding her case.

I don't have any interest in rehashing any of the aformentioned debates, but did want to bring attention to an article in the Daily News discussing how and why she became brain damaged. Ms. Schiavo was a severe binge dieter for many years and ultimately became bulimic.

The Daily News reports:
Her bulimia nervosa became so severe that the purging deprived her heart of potassium. An executioner's lethal injection does the opposite, flooding the body with potassium, but the effect is the same. A cellular reaction known as the sodium potassium pump is disrupted and the heart can no longer beat.

The paramedics got Terri Schiavo's heart thumping again, but not before she suffered irreversible brain damage. The video of her in a persistent vegetative state can be seen as a kind of an after-after picture.

Religious right/s groups, Congress persons and the President all became involved in the case of Ms. Schiavo and her right to life after she was in a vegetative state. But almost nobody was voicing outrage over the social pressures that landed Schiavo in a persistent vegetative state in 1990.

Well we are expressing outrage! I think it is interesting, that the right is willing to congregate around quality and right to life after a women can not be helped. What was going on, when she could be helped? What was her husband doing then? Did he notice that she had a problem? And what about other women that suffer from severe bulimia? Who is rallying around them?

Have y’all heard of 4parents.gov, the pro-abstinence website created by the federal government? If you haven’t, I have only two words to describe it: Fucking appalling.

According to the Associated Press, a number of advocacy groups are demanding that Bush take down the site, and with damn good reason. Their argument is that the “advice” that’s provided by the site for parents who want to talk to their kids about sex is inaccurate, outdated and biased. Particularly, they feel there’s a need for promotion of contraceptives, which the site actually trashes -- they provide a chart that displays how condoms are unreliable, prone to breaking, and ineffective. Fabulous.

Monica Rodriguez, an official at the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, said Thursday, “There’s this misconception that giving young people negative information about contraception will encourage them not to have sexual intercourse, when all it will do is encourage them not to have contraception, so the strategy backfires.”

The council, along with more than 100 organizations, sent a letter regarding the site to Michael Leavitt, the secretary of the Health and Human Services Department.

There is also concern about sections that discuss homosexuality which, to me, is the most horrifying part of the site. One section says: “If you believe your adolescent may be gay, or is experiencing difficulties with gender identity or sexual orientation issues, consider seeing a family therapist who shares your values to clarify and work through these issues.”

As simple as it may seem to the average jane ma or joe pops that reads this, the homophobic implications in here are so outrageous it makes me want to fucking spit. It was good to know that Joe Solmonese, the president of the Human Rights Campaign, addressed the language used in a separate letter to Leavitt. He assures Leavitt that describing sexual orientation as an "alternative lifestyle" is erroneous and misleading language that can alienate kids at a time when they’re exceptionally vulnerable.

Let’s hope Leavitt gets a hint and does something about this crock of shit, yet something tells me not to hold my breath.

It looks like the state Senate of New Hampshire has voted to permit the sale of emergency contraception without a prescription, and has also rejected the age limit, reports the Associated Press. Yay!

Actually, the Legislature voted in its favor last year, but then-Governor Craig Benson vetoed the bill. Present Gov. John Lynch supports the bill and will sign the measure as soon as it passes the House.

Opponents have argued that the bill will encourage promiscuity among younger people, but the age limit was outvoted, 16-8. The bill itself was voted in, 14-10. One opponent, Senator Robert Boyce, insisted that the bill would promote a “Sex in the City” lifestyle. Ha! Those four city girls...no good whores, they are! Good example, my man.

Sen. Maggie Hassan responded, “I do not believe the punishment for youthful indiscretion for unguarded sex is to force young women to have an abortion or unwanted pregnancy.”

If the House passes the bill, New Hampshire will become the seventh state to sell EC over-the-counter. Perhaps this will help the FDA finally get a grip and do the remaining states the favor.

There was an article from Washington Square News yesterday that caught my eye about an organized event by the National Organization of Women for Women at NYU on the evolution of the women’s porn industry.

Held at NYU last night, the speakers were Candida Royalle, the president of Femme Productions Inc., and Jayme Waxman, a Playgirl columnist and freelance pornographer who are trying to bring their feminist ideology into recent porn projects. “I wanted to give the genre a woman’s voice,” said Royalle. “It didn’t have to be something you would look at and feel dirty about.”

The event included screenings of some of Royalle's flicks, which featured more realistic-looking women and more sophisticated plotlines that appealed to female sexuality. Some of the films like “One Size Fits All” and “Studhunters” include a comedic tone that parodies the over-the-top cheesiness that typical porn flicks tend to have.

Although the event was a celebration of sorts, with a naked torso cake for the audience (yum!), Royalle and Waxman stress that female-friendly porn still has a ways to go. One problem with this type of porn is that it’s often difficult to get funding, as most mainstream movies typically appeal to heterosexual men. Rayelle and Waxman also feel there's a need for more women’s voices in the industry.

“If women don’t seize control of the reigns of production, men will continue to do it for us,” Royalle says.

One person in the audience asked about how Royalle would respond to the argument that all porn is wrong, she said, “It’s not going to go away, so let’s take it back and do it the way it should be done.”

Good job, ladies!