November 2008 Archives

Our hearts go out to all those affected by the attacks in Mumbai. Bastard.logic has a list of resources.

Cecelia at Ojibway Migisi Bineshii gives her view of Thanksgiving, and Renee asks, "what are we really giving thanks for?"

Nezua on men who don the traditional costume of Zapotec women in southern Mexico, and constructions of Mexican masculinity.

The situation in Gaza has gotten really bad.

Shark-Fu on Nebraska's safe haven law, which allows parents to drop off children of any age, not just infants.

Horrible news: Jdimytai Damour, a Long Island Wal-Mart employee, was trampled to death on Friday. As Matt says, "Talk about a great reason to celebrate Buy Nothing Day."

Is the New York State senate backing away from its pledge to enact same-sex marriage rights?

Edith Kent, the first woman to receive equal pay in Britain, turned 100.

On anti-domestic violence programs that meet victims where they're comfortable.

Obama will reportedly wait until 2010 to remedy the fact that gay Americans cannot serve openly in the military. Dana Goldstein has more.

Toni Morrison talks to the Times about her new book.

Roy on a new twist on shaming women's bodies. More at Sociological Images.

Conservatives are freaking out because Planned Parenthood in Indiana is offering gift certificates. Granted, a pap smear is not the most exciting Christmas gift I can think of, but it sure is practical. Oh, wait -- you mean they're claiming these are going to be used for abortions? As if that's all Planned Parenthood does? I'm shocked.

Two different takes on seeing family this time of year...

from SLB at Post Bourgie:

Whenever I go back there, I never quite know what to say. How do you answer for why you're not in one of those townhomes? You, who insisted on going around the mulberry bush to get a couple of degrees instead of just stacking paper at the post office right out of high school? How do you return to a school reunion and tell your homeowning, child-rearing former classmates that you live on your fam's couch while you're building your curriculum vitae?

and from Antigone at PunkAssBlog:

Unpleasant aspects number two: This has been a problem for awhile now, but now that Hubby and I are married, it's put into even sharper relief: where are we going to spend Christmas? The various families all want us at their houses*, which are functionally on the other end of the country. The worst part of all of this? I don't want to go to ANY of the family for Christmas; because by some sort of unspoken contract that I was not a party to, we are only allowed to talk about: the weather, sports, new births, new relationships (on a very shallow level, and no talking about heartbreak), new jobs and food. Oh, and I'm no longer allowed to talk about the weather because I keep using meteorological terms and I brought up global warming once. I'm also forbidden from talking about, in no particular order: politics, books, movies, social movements, college, and the biggest one: religion.

Sure, you can go home again. But for some of us, it's pretty damn uncomfortable.

If only you knew Betty, if only you knew...

This is a stark reminder: women smokers lose 14.5 years off their life span.

I'm going to disclose a little, shameful secret: I'm a smoker. Well, not your average pack-of-cigarettes-a-day smoker, but depending on my stress level, I can be a pack-of-cigarettes-a-week smoker. And I hate it. I've been smoking casually, socially, whatever you want to call it, for over 10 years.

But that "I'm a social smoker" excuse is a complete cop-out. I'm in the process of trying to quit, and if you're a smoker, this is a great time to kick the gross-ass habit too. Reasons? Gee, let's see...

Are there any former smokers out there who can share their quitting stories? I know I can use all the help I can get.

The late Herb Ritts' piece with Derek and Drew Riker.

I went to the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) OUTAuction 2008 earlier this week, and it was pretty damn awesome. In fact, it was so awesome it raised over $135,000!

I've always been a huge fan of (and occasional attempted maker of) art, so this was quite the treat for me. While the auction had pieces by the famous Pablo Picasso and Marc Chagall, some of the newer artists were pretty phenomenal. Check out the winners of the Best Emerging Artists on GLAAD's blog.

This is pretty appalling. An Illinois woman is suing Waukegan radio station WXLC for being sexually assaulted on a "date" she won from one of their contests.

The station promoted Travis Harvey as a "great" and "kind" guy in their challenge, "Win a Date with Travis," which she ended up getting after being asked a series of questions by Harvey along with other contestants. So after being tested and judged as to whether she was an adequate "date" for the bachelor, Harvey invited her to his house on the night of their oh-so-special date where he drugged and raped her.

And this all happened despite the fact that Harvey had a record, which the station failed to find out:

Baizer [the rape survivor's attorney] said Harvey had previously been convicted twice of violating a domestic violence order of protection taken out by another woman. The radio station was negligent for not checking Harvey's record, and for promoting him as a safe--and desirable--date, the suit alleges.

To top it off, Harvey himself was only charged with criminal sexual abuse and is just serving probation for a measly year. (Since there was no physical evidence.) *Fuming*

h/t to Veronica.

The latest by fabulous Mikhaela Reid.

Click here for a larger version.

Not the massacre of native people "Happy Thanksgiving," but the thankful for our lives and communities and feminism and progress "Happy Thanksgiving." We're certainly deeply grateful for all of our readers and community posters--you all make this space truly alive and dynamic.

And, thus, feminism alive and dynamic. I'll drink a glass of wine and eat some mac n' cheese to that lovely thought.

By the way, we're taking the day off and will be back tomorrow with limited posting.

I am not totally sure how to respond to this commentary on CNN about Michelle Obama's choice to stay at home during the presidency of Barack Obama. I don't want to be too hard on it, because I do think on one level highlighting that there are also women of color that stay at home and sometimes feel isolated and alienated so they should build relationships, well that is great. Having the resources to be a stay at home is even better. However, suggesting that you should stay home to do it for the betterment of the country and to uphold traditional values-well that is just not OK.

She makes an apt argument about black women taking care of wealthy white people's children.

From breast-feeding to bathing to rocking them, the women tended their owners' children, while not being allowed to lavish such attention on their own. Long after slavery was over, little changed in this dynamic.

It was common for black women to leave their own children at home to fend for themselves and go to work for low wages as domestics in the homes of well-off white families. As African-Americans have gotten more opportunities, a college degree has been a ticket to the career ladder. Period. Devoting full time to motherhood is considered a waste of education by many in the black community.

And while I think there is some cultural impetus for black women working outside the home, I think more times than not, it is class privilege that gives people the ability or idea to "stay at home."

Outside of the class assumptions behind the idea of the "stay-at-home" mom, I don't necessarily think that Michelle Obama's choice to stay home is a win for us women of color that are just looking for a role model to let us know we can stay at home nor does it disrupt the racist idea that only white women stay at home. I think it feeds into antiquated notions of motherhood that make her more palatable to a wide audience suggesting that yes, she disrupts the idea of the "normal" American by being black, but is as American as apple pie, by staying in the home.

via CNN.

A reader writes in...

I went to the OBGYN for a check up, and while I was cooling my feet for two hours waiting for the doctor, I found myself staring at multiple shiny pamphlets advertising laser surgery, microdermabrasion, and botox. In an OBGYN office.

Then I found out that this Laser Surgery place shares all its rooms with the OBGYN. I feel like the two practices are completely antithetical. One should create a nonjudgemental, private, safe and caring environment. The other preys on negative self-image and unbalanced expectations for women's appearance. I felt outraged that they felt it was a good partnership.

Has anyone else found supposedly caring places for women sabotaged?

Yuck. Hopefully this is not a widespread trend.

A class-action suit against New York City for refusing to provide food stamps to nearly 9,500 households was settled back in 2006, but the reimbursements are just going out now:

The payback does not quite amount to winning the lottery -- the 18 largest reimbursements just top $5,000, and most average far less. And all of the credits can be used only for food.

Still, to many who had given up on or forgotten what they were owed, the money in their accounts, some of which arrived before any notice from the government to explain it, has been a rare moment of bounty at an otherwise dismal economic moment.

Monica Ryan learned of her good fortune when she went to her corner bodega in northern Manhattan to buy bread and milk. She was picking up just the necessities because she was conscious of having less than $5 in her account. But when the clerk swiped her card, it appeared that she had hundreds left.

Yeah, it's awful that it took this long for the money to come through. But at least it's some good news for a Thanksgiving when too many people are struggling.

Thanks to Susan for the link.

...because the Accolade, a rock band made up of four women, is looking for one. I know we're a little behind on this, but it's never too late to recognize some bad-ass women:

"In Saudi, yes, it's a challenge," said the group's lead singer, Lamia, who has piercings on her left eyebrow and beneath her bottom lip. (Like other band members, she gave only her first name.) "Maybe we're crazy. But we wanted to do something different."

In a country where women are not allowed to drive and rarely appear in public without their faces covered, the band is very different. The prospect of female rockers clutching guitars and belting out angry lyrics about a failed relationship -- the theme of "Pinocchio" -- would once have been unimaginable here.

But this country's harsh code of public morals has slowly thawed, especially in Jidda, by far the kingdom's most cosmopolitan city.

The band's namesake is this painting, which guitarist Dina says she likes "because it shows a woman who is satisfied with a man." In some ways, all women-only music groups are transgressive. But the Accolade takes it to a new level.

Here's how the band describes itself:

Dina -the ( guitarist ) was so interested in music.. especialy rock & metal music. Her dream was to make a band!she started learning how to play the guitar at the age of 16.. Also, Dareen ( bassist) was a huge support for her and even shared the same dream, so they started to look for members to create the band.. they met Lamia (vocals ) & Amjad who happened to be intrested in the same thing. By 2008, they took things seriously and started to practice and create their own music!!! Their music is inspired from paintings that tell a story of certain situations in our lives...it's a blend of art & music..

Hear them on their MySpace page.

Tracy Clark-Flory at Salon has an informative piece up about the increase of creepy upskirt photography. What is upskirt photography? When someone stands behind you or below you and snaps a pic on their camera phone up your skirt when you don't realize it. Then shares it with other upskirt fetishists on the internets. It is gross, offensive, violating, and a very popular form of pornography.

When it comes to voyeurs who photograph or videotape up a woman's skirt (known as "upskirting") or snap a photo down a woman's shirt ("downblousing"), though, "there are not many practical, legal remedies available to people who find themselves the victim," says Anita Allen, a privacy expert and professor at Penn Law. That's if the woman even realizes she is a victim in the first place, which is unlikely, as the voyeur typically manages to go undetected. If the photo or video is published online -- which, increasingly, it is -- it would be difficult for the subject to ever come across the material. Even if she did, how could she recognize one underwear-clad rear as her own?

Unfortunately, the debate that ensues is a question of whether or not your privacy is being violated since you are on the street and as a public place is free to be photographed with all participants or as John Morris, from the Center for Democracy & Technology, says in the article, "If you don't want to be photographed walking the street, don't walk down the street -- it's a public street."

But as Clark argues and I agree, there is a big difference taking a picture of someone on the street and strategically placing a camera between a woman's legs or down her shirt for kicks and jerk off material. Suggesting if a woman doesn't want to be upskirted, she shouldn't be on the street or shouldn't wear a skirt-well that just sounds like a "blame the victim" line of defense to actually be a legitimate excuse for a blatant violation of privacy.

Thoughts?

Please file this under-horrid short term solution plagued with serious ethical questions while not creating long-term change. It is unfortunate that this is considered a viable solution for the increase in rates of HIV infection in the state of Papua.

Indonesia's Papua province is set to pass a bylaw that requires some HIV/AIDS patients to be implanted with microchips in a bid to prevent them infecting others, a lawmaker said on Saturday.

Under the bylaw, which has caused uproar among human rights activists, patients who had shown "actively sexual behavior" could be implanted with a microchip to monitor their activity, lawmaker John Manangsang said.

"It's a simple technology. A signal from the microchip will track their movements and this will be received by monitoring authorities," Manangsang said.

If a patient with HIV/AIDS was found to have infected a healthy person, there would be a penalty, he said without elaborating.

Talk about big brother. What I don't see is how is this preventative (the only-ONLY-effective solution to stop the spread of HIV), if the purpose is merely to punish people after they have infected someone. Are they planning on monitoring these people at all times? That is enough resources surely to put into safe sex education, creating a healthier culture around sex, while having all types of support programs for "high-risk" populations.

Please, someone, help me here. This seems really fucked up to me.

No, I wasn't kidding.

A little sexism with your holiday spirits?

Thanks to Nate for the link.

Via Queers United

From the Miami-Herald:

A Miami-Dade circuit judge Tuesday declared Florida's 30-year-old ban on gay adoption unconstitutional, allowing a North Miami man to adopt two foster kids he has raised since 2004.

Moments after Lederman released the ruling, attorneys for Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum announced they would appeal the decision to the Third District Court of Appeal in Miami.

The attorney general's office had argued that gay men and lesbians are disproportionately more likely to suffer from mental illness or a substance abuse problem than straight people, rendering them less fit to parent -- especially children in foster care who already are under tremendous stress.

In a ruling that, at times, reads more like a social science research paper, Lederman dissected 30 years worth of psychological and sociological research, concluding that studies overwhelmingly have shown that gay people can parent every bit as effectively as straight people and do no harm to their children.

''Based on the evidence presented from experts from all over this country and abroad,'' Lederman wrote, ``it is clear that sexual orientation is not a predictor of a person's ability to parent. Sexual orientation no more leads to psychiatric disorders, alcohol and substance abuse, relationship instability, a lower life expectancy or sexual disorders than race, gender, socioeconomic class or any other demographic characteristic.

An article in Newsweek chronicles a new phenomenon: outsourcing US health care to Mexico. People have been going abroad to save money on cosmetic procedures for quite some time (Brazil is an infamous destination for this) but this is something different:

Dorthea, 72, a retired bank teller, lives in Harlingen, Texas, a city of about 67,000 in the heart of the Rio Grande Valley. Like a lot of Texans, she's crossed the border to Mexico a few times to buy cheap medication. But she'd never considered undergoing complicated medical procedures there--at least, not until she was quoted the prohibitive price of $30,000 for a gastric-band procedure, a treatment for obesity in which a band is placed around the stomach to limit food intake. It wasn't covered by her insurance, so Dorthea, who asked that her last name be withheld for privacy reasons, opted to drive south and pay less than $10,000 for the outpatient operation at an American-owned hospital in Reynosa, Mexico, 10 minutes over the border and about an hour from her home. The outpatient surgery was a success, and she's planning on returning for follow-up care. "It was very good treatment," she says.

We all know there are obvious gaps and fissures in the US health care system, even for those who are insured. Particularly with the economic climate, people are going to come up with inventive solutions to get the care they need. But now as Newsweek reports even US hospitals are getting in on it by building facilities across the border and charging far less for the procedures there. We need some serious solutions for lowering health care costs inside the US. Not everyone has the luxury of going to Mexico.

When you pair these types of cross-border transactions with projects like a new border fence and super-stringent immigration laws, you start to see the contradictions of a global free market that allows goods and services to cross borders, but not people.

Via Nuestra Vida, Nuestra Voz

Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Many of us are working to eliminate violence against women on a daily basis and we should be, but let's take today to really let it be heard, that we take a stand against violence and we will work to make a better world for women. According to the UNFPA,

Around the world, as many as one in every three women has been beaten, coerced into sex, or abused in some other way - most often by someone she knows, including by her husband or another male family member; one woman in four has been abused during pregnancy.

Violence against women crosses sectors, racial barriers, ethnicity, religion, sexual preference, size, ability, class and impedes a quality life for all types of women. It is a serious human rights issue. So let us commit again to eliminate violence against women and to let others know about it as well.

In Iran a cab company has started that is by and for women only. It has provided employment for widowed women and given them ownership over their own means of transportation.

At the centre, the women drivers are also given lessons in basic car maintenance and such essentials as how to change a burst tire. All the operators at the centre are women too. But the concept was the brainchild of a man, Mohsen Uruji, who says he spotted a gap in Tehran's transport system.

"What was missing was a role for women," he says.

"By setting up this purely private sector company, we've been able to provide jobs for many women, as well as a service for other women who want to travel around in a more relaxed way."

Many of the drivers are war widows or divorcees who really need the work, and are referred to the agency by some of the big welfare foundations.

The project has grown in popularity and is hoping to have 2000 women run cars soon. I think this is interesting and very cool all at once. As the article says, it does both reinforce traditional gender roles feeding into the very idea that women and men can't occupy space together alone, but at the same time solves and relieves many problems women are dealing with on a daily basis.

via BBC.

Last week Salon put up a list of the sexiest men alive and boyyyy they sure were sexy! The list included some hotties including, Kal Penn, Robert Downy Jr., Van Jones and even our favorite, Ill Doctrine. I had no choice but to tease Jay about his sexy status, but realized as I was joking that when I get written about as sexy on other people's blogs it is usually in a "get back in the kitchen-shut up bitch-you are hot" kind of way which is far from flattering.

So this morning I was reading through the HuffPo and came across the world's sexist woman alive. Here is the list as decided by E!

(How can one track be so wrong and so right at the same time?)

In a culture where what a woman looks like counts more than what is between her ears, it does make a difference that the first lady is not white, but is black and therefore disrupts normative standards of white femininity. Last week controversy stirred due to a Salon article titled, "First lady got back," a tongue-in-cheek response to the Obama victory as not only for Obama, but for black women with an overemphasis on her "back" a subject of mass introspection academically and in popular culture as a culture signifier of black women's beauty and oft sexualization.

It emerged right before our eyes, in the midst of our growing uncertainty about everything, and we were too bogged down in the daily campaign madness to notice. The one clear predictor of success that the pundits, despite all their fancy maps, charts and holograms, missed completely? Michelle's butt.

Lord knows, it's time the butt got some respect. Ever since slavery, it's been both vilified and fetishized as the most singular of all black female features, more unsettling than dark skin and full lips, the thing that marked black women as uncouth and not quite ready for civilization (of course, it also made them mighty attractive to white men, which further stoked fears of miscegenation that lay at the heart of legal and social segregation). In modern times, the butt has demarcated class and stature among black society itself. Emphasizing it or not separates dignified black women from ho's, party girls from professionals, hip-hop from serious. (Black women are not the only ones with protruding behinds, by the way, but they're certainly considered its source. How many gluteally endowed nonblack women have been derided for having a black ass? Well, Hillary, for one.)

Yes, it is imperative to push the boundaries of our racist structures that determine what is beautiful. But something about the unapologetic "booty" gazing of this piece rubs me the wrong way. Latoya hits it saying,

Reader Virigina sent in the tip, writing:

Although Erin Kaplan does make a few decent points about how black women are viewed in this culture, most of the article just reinforces stereotypes. She is defining Michelle Obama and black women in general by their butts and hair. There are so many other traits that she could have discussed.

After reading the full piece, I'm inclined to agree. I get the semi-tongue in cheek tone of the piece, but this article just feels a bit wrong for the audience. Perhaps if it was written for a magazine like Essence or Clutch, which routinely explore the issues of black women and how a lot of our politics are wrapped up in our appearance, I would feel differently about the end result.

And goes on to say, "my problem is that articles about Michelle Obama's wardrobe, booty, and mom duties are what is fit to publish, what is seen as relevant to a mass audience." I agree with what Latoya is saying here, at no point in the Salon piece is there some reflection on the fact that an overemphasis on what first ladies look like as opposed to what they think, feel and say is problematic.

Heh. A reader sent us this New York Times advice column:

Q: I've decided that marriage is not for me. But at 32, I'm missing the domestic "set up" that my friends received from their bridal showers. I love to cook and bake, and have so far made do with cheap appliances and tools.

I will soon be moving from an apartment to a house, and I would like to leverage this change into a housewarming that I can register for. After being in eight weddings, I feel it's time my friends and family set me up for domesticity -- even if it isn't in the traditional mode. But the Midwestern Puritan in me thinks this may be tacky and greedy. What's a girl to do?

- Sarah, Cleveland

A: Well, in this case, Sarah, you should thank your lucky stars for the Midwest Puritan in you -- since it saved you from making a tacky, greedy fool of yourself!

We've all felt ill-used by friends, especially if we make the mistake of totaling up the dollar value of our unreciprocated gifts. But you're forgetting all the other benefits of friendship: sitting through lousy movies our friends want to see, for instance, and waiting for them at busy restaurants for seeming eternities. (emphasis mine)

This may remind some of the Sex and the City episode where Carrie registers herself for a pair of shoes, which her friend (whom Carrie had spent plenty of dough on for her wedding and new baby) reluctantly buys in congratulations of Carrie's decision to not wed.

Many of us can probably say we've spent quite a pretty penny on friends' weddings. And while I've given all of my gifts to friends with love and happiness in my heart, I've also had to scrounge - and I mean scrounge - to give some friends' gifts. And it does become an issue when multiple weddings and bridal party's costs can easily add up to 10K over the course of just a few years.

In short, money can matter, and sadly does. More importantly, why is it that marriage and reproduction are the only things worthy of gifts to help loved ones settle into their adult lives? These occasions are largely celebrated because they're seen as "big moves" in one's life. Well, buying a house is a huge commitment; shouldn't she be celebrated and supported in her "big move"? She certainly shouldn't be shamed as "greedy" for wanting that.

It looks like 1,200 women deep investigations where women are interrogated for their personal choices dealing with their own bodies. A family planning center is under investigation in Brazil and subsequently so are potentially 1,200 women that have had abortions. Approximately 150 women are being charged along with 30 partners or medical professionals.

The authorities only became aware of the clinic following a television interview, which led to a police investigation that could eventually involve more than 1,200 women and some of their partners, as well as medical staff.

To gather evidence, Judge Aluizio Pereira dos Santos is said to have interviewed husbands, ex-boyfriends and relatives of some of the women accused of having abortions.

Oh, it gets even worse.

Human rights and women's organisations have complained that the process has been humiliating for those involved, and has included demands for intimate medical examinations.

At least 30 women have already been sentenced to community work in creches or schools for disabled children.

Perhaps not shocking as we have known the pope's position on abortion for a long time, but upsetting still. Also check out this interesting take from RH Reality Check comparing the treatment of women that have received abortions in Brazil and in Kansas.

I was glad to see that the New York Times is continuing their important coverage of veteran issues, especially when it comes to violence stateside. Sunday they ran a story about the Army's major domestic violence problem.

This piece continued their commitment to reporting on the ways in which veterans' families have born the brunt of much of their PTSD problems. In February, they gave a deep and broad view of the emotional and physical violence characterizing so many families lives when a loved one returns from war. Prior to the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Pentagon had committed to revamping the military response to domestic violence (there has been a rash of "wife-killings" that prompted response). But as task force members told reporters, the huge surge in violence both overseas and upon returning home, has complicated their efforts.

Complications are inevitable, but there is simply no excuse for not providing veterans' and their families the counseling they need. For example, USA Today reported last week that there are currently one drug counselor for every 3,100 soldiers; this at a time when the soldiers seeking help has skyrocketed by 25% in the last five years.

I think the Pentagon could learn a lot from feminists. When will the government commit to an intersectional analysis of what veterans and their families are experiencing, both in war and after? Violence, addiction, rape and sexual assault, suicide, PTSD etc. are all intimately connected afflictions. We have a moral obligation to bring this kind of sophisticated analysis to veterans' healing.

For more, check out my column from yesterday over at TAP on veteran's affairs and Michelle Obama.

So Monty loves his new cousin Tweet - I mean LOVES her. He goes absolutely nuts every time I bring her over to Jessica's, hence this adorable video of them playing. My favorite part is 0:50 in where Tweet starts batting at him at super speed; kitty don't fuck around.

Check out Hannah Seligon's great overview of how the entire world woke up to sexism in the media thanks to the last year of political coverage. There's a special focus on the Women's Media Center, definitely an organization to know. In fact, they're accepting applications now for their next class of the Progressive Women's Voices project, an experience I thoroughly enjoyed (media training + amazing community of women + publicity support for your organization or your own personal writing/activism). Check it out and send those applications in ASAP!

A guest post from my awesome friend, Kate Torgovnick!

Earlier this year at Bothell High School in Seattle, two photos made their way across the student body via text message. The first featured one of the school's cheerleaders topless; the second showed another cheerleader in the buff. When the school's co-principals found out about the photos, they suspended both cheerleaders from the squad--asking the first to forfeit her pom-poms for 30 days and the second to leave the team for the entire year. Conveniently, the football players who were suspected of circulating the photos weren't punished at all.

Last week, the parents of the two girls decided to sue the school, calling for them to wipe the incident from the girl's permanent records, reinstate them to their positions on the squad, and apologize for not punishing anyone else involved in the incident. "My clients fully realize what they did was stupid," said Matthew King, the lawyer for both families. "But there should have been some punishment meted out to those who were in possession of the photos. It seems the girls are getting the brunt of it."

"When you sign up to be a cheerleader--or for any student activity--you agree to certain codes of behavior," fired back school district spokeswoman Susan Stolzfus. "We consider them student leaders, and we want them to be role models."

Stolfus does have a point. But if these photos were of women in the math club or student council, it's hard to imagine that the photos would have had the same appeal or incurred the same punishment. For anyone who follows cheerleaders in the news--and as the author of CHEER!: Inside the Secret World of College Cheerleaders, I do--this incident sounds remarkably familiar. Remember the Fab Five cheerleaders from McKinney, Texas? They terrorized their school for months, but what seemed to set off an investigation (and national media attention) was them taking photos of themselves fellating penis-shaped candles at a sex store. Or what about the Carolina Panthers cheerleaders who in 2006 were making out in a bar bathroom and got in a fight with another patron who was waiting to use the stall? They were both dismissed from the team after newspapers ran with the story.

So why all the interest in cheerleaders gone wild? Cheerleaders are American icons, up there with the bald eagle and the McDonalds arches--they appear in every city, in almost every high school, which is our culture's lowest common denominator. Think through all of the images of cheerleaders in American pop culture. They fit neatly into two categories: the chaste A-student and the miniskirt-wearing slut. For every squeaky-clean Kelly Kapowski on Saved by the Bell, there's an Ali Larter in Varsity Blues, strolling into a room wearing a whipped-cream bikini. For every Claire on Heroes, whose safety is the key to saving the world, there's some anonymous women in Playboy's video special Cheerleaders and College Girls (not the other way around). Cheerleaders straddle the fault line between virgin and whore. They're a group onto which our culture projects its very complicated beliefs about women--that we can only be one extreme or the other.

So should these teens be punished for taking nude pics? In my opinion, no--they've no doubt learned their lesson. Is it a school's place to punish students for sexual activity? I just don't think so. But what I think schools can and should do is recognize that, so-called "sexting" is something their students are no doubt doing. It couldn't hurt to remind teenagers that a photo they think will be kept private can very easily make the rounds with just a click of a send button. And not everyone bounces back like Paris Hilton.

"I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, they will be forced to deal with pain."
-James Baldwin

Former New Life Church pastor Ted Haggard

There's a really in depth piece in this month's Atlantic about the growing movement to honor the wishes of transgender children and all the complexities therein. Though I don't claim to be anything near an expert on this issue, I thought that writer Hanna Rosin did a commendable job of bringing in plenty of diverse opinions and exploring so many different angles (and truth be told, I was shocked that the usually stodgy Atlantic devoted so much precious real estate to the issue).

She looked at the sociological, biological, and psychological implications of transgender children's rights through the story of one fascinating family living in a very conservative, small town. Tina, the mother of 8-year-old Brandon (who wants to be Bridget), had never even heard the terms "transgender" until Barbara Walter's special on the topic aired.

(I have my own beef with Barbara. While I admire her long and groundbreaking career, I sort of feel like she can't help but simplify most complex feminist issues into shock-and-awe nonsense. See her recent special on "the pregnant man.")

In any case, the article shows the ways in which this 8-year-old's mother and father come to grips with their child's gender nonconformity. They find community at the Trans-Health Conference, consider the pros and cons of hormone blockers, and experiment with letting Brandon be Bridget when they get back to their tiny town. It's not easy, as you might imagine, but I thought it was beautiful portrait of a family's honest struggle.

I leave you with my favorite moment in the story:

Nothing can do more to normalize the face of transgender America than the sight of a 7-year-old (boy or girl?) with pink cheeks and a red balloon puppy in hand saying to Brandon, as one did at the conference:

"Are you transgender?"

"What's that?" Brandon asked.

"A boy who wants to be a girl."

"Yeah. Can I see your balloon?"

You're heard of the slow food movement, right? Well now folks are bringing that same sensibility--a mindful, patient, sensual exploration of the full enjoyment of the present moment--to one of the fastest of mediums: the blog.

The New York Times had a fascinating story on this trend on Sunday. It turns out that there is even a Slow Blog Manifesto, written in 2006 by Todd Sieling from (of course) Canada. Sieling writes:

Slow Blogging is a reversal of the disintegration into the one-liners and cutting turns of phrase that are often the early lives of our best ideas. Its a process in which flashes of thought shine and then fade to take their place in the background as part of something larger. Slow Blogging does not write thoughts onto the ethereal and eternal parchment before they provide an enduring worth in the shape of our ideas over time.

It got me thinking...what are the effects--both short and long term--of our speed as feminist bloggers? Sometimes we will have an activist goal in mind--eg. get Walmart to pull their sexist, violence-promoting t-shirts or make sure that Bush keeps his paws off our bodies in these last legislative days). In these cases, time is of the essence. It is less important that we write well, or get at the deepest recesses of the issue at hand, as it is that we get the content out there, incite outrage, and create collective action.

But other times, we feministing editors do try to insert some slower, more reflective posts. Vanessa thought back to her own experiences working in direct service with girls last week. I tried to introduce some of the ongoing questions in my own head and heart as I continue my feminist journey (interestingly, commenters were quick to speedy answers rather than the slow reflection I had intended.) I think sharkfu's beautiful stuff, more than anything on feministing right now, tends towards the reflective (even when it has decisively time-sensitive content).

So while I certainly don't see feministing as a member of the "slow blogging movement," I do think that we try to balance our quick hits with our slowly-developing consciousness, our action-oriented items with our reflection-encouraging content, and our sass with our search. What do you all think? Do you ever wish we were "slower" or "faster" (haha, sounds like we're doin' it)? For those participating in the community blog (THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU), what do you notice about your own literary instincts in this regard?

*For more interesting, and very slow, writing on blogging, check out Andrew Sullivan's piece in this month's Atlantic.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. Each year I am blessed to spend it with my siblings and chosen family of friends.

Oh, and the non-stop feasting is fantabulous too (wink)!

This year, with the economy in turmoil and communities bracing for layoffs, I'm beyond thankful for all that I have...not the materials things, of which I don't have many, but the relationships and experiences that make a person whole.

I'm aware that there are many in my community who lack even that. Too often we tend to view poverty as a purely money-based thing and discuss it in terms of what a person can't afford or has had repossessed. And it is important to remember those among us who will go hungry or homeless or both...and it is so very important for us to give with the knowledge that those in need are our neighbors and friends.

But being poor often makes a person invisible. Even now, when many folks who have been getting by are getting a taste of need and hunger, features on the news focus on the newly poor and segments carefully avoid featuring the women and families who were living poverty long before the economy went o shit.

With invisibility comes loneliness and isolation...depression and desperation. As someone who regularly volunteers with women in shelters I have seen the numbness a life of want inspires in too many eyes and I have also seen the power of a simple conversation...the positive impact you can have on a person simply by asking them what their name is and how they are feeling.

This Thanksgiving I hope that y'all are able to give to a food bank or donate your time serving a meal or two, but I also encourage you to see the invisible among you.

Ask them how they are doing.

Discover the person within.

We have much to be thankful for and so very much to give.

Have a blessed holiday.

Just the headlines today, folks...

Proposition 8, The Mormon Coming Out Party: While the LDS Church's leadership role in the passage of Proposition 8 may have been a surprising new direction for observers here in the United States, the Church has been instrumental in the organization of a world-spanning alliance of right-wing Christians and Muslims.

Overthinking It: Why Twilight Will Be a Great Achievement for Women

Stereohyped: England's Black Women Overcome Pay Gap

The rise and fall of Rachida Dati: Born to a poor immigrant Muslim family, France's justice minister has had an astonishing political ascent, appearing in glamorous magazine shoots and holidaying with the Sarkozys. But now pregnant with a child whose father she refuses to name, and facing a rebellion by the country's judges over her 'incoherent policies', her future looks uncertain.

AutismVox: Girls and Getting a Diagnosis

Kay Steiger: Congresswoman Pregnant! (Psst. She's Not Married)

The "Bitch" and the "Ditz": How the Year of the Woman reinforced the two most pernicious sexist stereotypes and actually set women back.

Feministe: Tom Daschle for HHS Secretary?

Economy Hitting Women Hardest, Say Experts

Kristen Bell's victim vow: The actress says she will consider any type of film offer she is given, but has ruled out ever playing the part of a repressed character.

Writes Like She Talks: Secret to NH State Senate female majority: it doesn't pay

Kay Steiger: Wanted: Geekettes

Muslimah Media Watch:How to Use a Murder Victim: The Exploitation of the Aqsa Parvez Tragedy

Domestic violence: Your coworker's dark secret: The topic is taboo in most of corporate America. But the workplace is often central to the struggle - as sanctuary, source of income, and sometimes crime scene.

Stereohyped: Few Black Mastectomy Patients Opt for Reconstruction

Local Church Starts "Embryo Adoption" Service: "Embryos are not simply human material to be used for medical experimentation, vaccine cultivation, or trash to be discarded."
Counseling on alcohol key to teens' sexual health

Job Segregation as a Cause of the Wage Gap Between Men and Women

Chicks Rock: Musings of a Latina Immigrant

Questioning Transphobia: After Duanna Johnson: What Next?

abyss2hope: Colleges Can No Longer Impose Gag Orders On Rape Victims

Post Bourgie: 'Be Like Barack and Michelle. Get Married.' And on a related note, go read Ta-Nehisi on why he and his partner chose not to marry.

Events

Washington, DC: Chicana art exhibit at the AFL-CIO, Nov. 19, 2008-May 31, 2009

Goshen, MA: ROCKRGRL Day at the Institute for Musical Arts on Saturday, December 6, 2008

Boston, MA: Be the Media! Mini-Conference 2008 on Wednesday, December 3

New York, NY: Eve Ensler Presents Offensive Women: Talk is Dangerous! on December 5 and 6

Missoula, MT: Off the Rack: A Baring and Daring Fashion Show to benefit for Blue Mountain Clinic and UM Students for Choice on February 7, 2009. Deadline to submit wearable art for the show is Friday January 16, 2009.

The American Family Association has a new DVD out, "They're Coming to Your Town," so you can learn the "strategies used by gay activists" and avoid gay infiltration in YOUR town!

Yes, really.

I love how they show video shots of activists from afar like it's fucking National Geographic. Don't get too close, they're contagious!! This kind of stuff is proof of just how batshit crazy these people are. I really don't know whether to laugh or cry.

Full transcript after the jump.

New blog Awesome and Fablous! asked the question today, "Which Huxtable are you?"

This came up in conversation between the bloggers Soraya and Veronica when discussing how folks are more or less saying Michelle Obama is a 2008 version of Claire Huxtable.

I don't know who I'd be, but I'll say always wanted to be Denise - she seemed so free-spirited and unique. (And cool as hell, not to mention.)

Last night, the fabulous Deanna Zandt took me the 10th anniversary benefit of The Girls and Boys Project, a New York-based organization who have providing workshops, leadership training and social action initiatives for thousands of school-age kids in the New York area; this includes programs on gender stereotypes, body image issues, sexual health issues, violence against girls, and bullying. The thing I love about this program is that it not only creates awareness and improves self-esteem, but mobilizes kids to take action from an early age.

The benefit made me sorely miss my days at Girls for Gender Equity, another organization that works to better girls lives. While we all know of the broad reach that online activism has, working locally, doing ground work and seeing the faces of the lives I was changing will always be considered among the most important work I've done in my life.

Quite simply, it was a reminder that localized, grassroots work is the backbone of social justice. Sentimental babble over.

Oh eHarmony, you shouldn't have! Actually, you wouldn't have if your asses weren't brought to court for discrimination.

While this should be considered a victory, it still pisses me off to no end. After the New Jersey Attorney General's Division on Civil Rights (DCR) brought eHarmony to court for their discriminatory policy that doesn't match same-sex couples on the site (not surprisingly, the online dating service has ties to Focus on the Family), eHarmony settled by agreeing to launch a same-sex matching service, Compatible Partners in 2009. eHarmony attorney Theodore B. Olson said:

"Even though we believed that the complaint resulted from an unfair characterization of our business, we ultimately decided it was best to settle this case with the Attorney General since litigation outcomes can be unpredictable. eHarmony looks forward to moving beyond this legal dispute, which has been a burden for the company, and continuing to advance its business model of serving individuals by helping them find successful, long-term relationships."

A day after the New Jersey settlement, a woman in California was ok'ed to file a class action lawsuit against the company.

Salon's Rebecca Traister conducted an interview with Christian evangelical founder Neil Clark Warren a while back where she asked him why he wouldn't include same-sex marriages in eHarmony. He first claimed there wasn't adequate research on how to match same-sex couples, then got into rhetoric about the Bible, yet followed that with a story about his best friend's daughter being gay, where he concludes: "She's a dear person to us, and a very strong spiritual person . . . And when I start seeing things like that, I think we've got to start to think about that maybe this can work."

Apparently not; this interview was three years ago. So three years and a lawsuit later, yay for eHarmony?! What also irks me is that they're creating a new site rather than integrating same-sex matches into eHarmony.com. Obviously having an online dating service just for same-sex matches is not a bad thing, but I don't doubt eHarmony decided to go through the trouble of building a whole new site rather than integration to avoid the infection o' sins of their beloved hetero online service. And where does that leave bisexuals?

With all that being said, would you use Compatible Partners once it launches?

Last week I had the good fortune of going to see the play, "Angry Black White Boy," based on the Adam Mansbach novel of the same title at the Intersection of the Arts. If you are in the Bay Area, I strongly recommend you try and check it out. It is pay what you can on Thursdays.

It looks into the world of a young white man from the suburbs who becomes obsessed with black culture and overturning racism, only to find out that it in an effort to make whites pay for historical racism, he ends up caught in a self serving cycle. And watches the world around him collapse around his poorly thought out, yet bizarrely revolutionary, racial awareness.

It is excellent and if you are not in the Bay, pick up the book. That is what I am going to do.

Writer Jessica Wakeman recently had an interesting study published by media watchdog group Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting on the present number of bylines belonging to women on Huffington Post.

After two months of tracking the number of bylines on the homepage, she found that only 23% of them belong to women:

The Post does seem to be making a conscious effort to include women's voices; despite the low percentages, the study found at least one female byline on the home page at all times. But if there is indeed such an effort, it stops far short of parity. Of the 89 times bylines were checked during the study, not once did the number of women's bylines equal those belonging to men. Only eight times did women account for more than a third of all bylines. And Arianna Huffington, appearing 57 times, accounted for more than a fifth of all women's bylines; 45 of those occupied the most visible top post. Only once, in fact, did a woman other than Arianna Huffington get her byline in the most visible top slot--Post editor-at-large Nora Ephron (8/26/08).

I'd like to see a larger study around this; too many of us feel that women bloggers are underrepresented and undervalued in the progressive blogosphere, but hard evidence is always helpful.Thoughts?

Newsweek recently posted a Q&A with Jean-Claude Van Damme conducted by Sarah Ball, a female reporter in her early 20s. I know that women are sexually harassed at work every day. But not all of those women have got a tape-recorder on them...

There's a monologue in the film about being a washed-up action star. Did you improvise that?
I like structure--like driving: go past the school on the street, stay on the right side, no hitting the car, go in right, you'll see a big church, stop and take a left, and you'll have it. By doing this I'm giving a structure of life, a path of light, and showing what happens between me and me, which is something very beautiful.

Beautiful? Why?
I really opened myself up in "JCVD." I peeled back the skin of the fruit, cut the pulp and then took that very hard seed. In this film I cut that hard seed, and inside that seed was a kind of liquid cream substance of the man I am, or the woman you are.

OK --
It was like being naked--I would love to be naked in front of you.

Well, I --
Not being naked being naked. I say such things in Hong Kong and they thought I was being a crazy Frenchman. Being naked of protection.

So you've no regrets at all?
Believe me--I've done very good stuff and very crazy stuff, and I don't regret the crazy stuff. So are you in New York?

Yes, I am.
And are you 27, or 32?

I'm 22.
Oh, f---. That is very young. Will you come to the premiere?

I don ' t know. When is it?
I don't know. You will wear all black, a black dress and high heels?

Uh --
You can come find me, I will be the one with the very broad shoulders, dark hair and a simple suit. We can have some champagne, you and me.

Props to Newsweek for actually publishing this. Almost every female journalist I know has a story about being harassed while trying to conduct a serious interview with a male source. Van Damme illustrates this phenomenon so perfectly. What a fucking creep.

That's what I'm talkin' bout!

Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) introduced legislation today that would block the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from passing the midnight regulation being finalized as I blog. As most of you know, the proposed HHS rule would prevent family planning clinics from "discriminating" against employees who refuse to service women seeking reproductive health care.

Senator Clinton had this to say about their proposed bill, the Protecting Patients and Health Care Act:

"In the final days of his administration, the President is again putting ideology first and attempting to roll back health care protections for women and families. The fact that the EEOC was never consulted in the drafting of this rule further illustrates that this is purely a political ploy. This HHS rule will threaten patients' rights, stand in the way of health care professionals, and restrict access to critical health care services for those who need them most. Senator Murray and I are standing up once again to the administration against this rule and will continue to fight for women's reproductive rights. President Bush is making a last-minute attempt to undermine women's health care, but our legislation will stop this rule and ensure that women can continue to get needed health care."

Amen. Check out Planned Parenthood's community post on this.

UPDATE: Senator Clinton has a guest post up at RH Reality Check.

We're going to be taking the day off next week at this time, for one big serious Thank You Thursday (i.e. Thanksgiving), so I wanted to take this time to reflect on my own feminist legacy that I am so deeply grateful for. Feel free to write your own...

Thank you for the centuries of women who have listened to their own deep wisdom, even when society in various sexist forms tried to drown out their innate knowing.

Thank you for my grandmothers, Maryanne (pictured on the right) and Joan. Thank you for giving me the chance to live out some of Maryanne's unlived dreams and for the special time I had with Joan, her opening and softening and joyful nature.

Thank you for my mother, who is a fierce and rare mix of nurturing and fearless, brilliant and emotional, invested in both radical honesty and wise serenity. Thank you for the gifts she's given the world, including The Rocky Mountain Women's Film Festival and my feminist brother.

Thank you for Lesline, her certainty and resilience in every situation, her capacity to raise four amazing children with less support than she deserved, her laughter and her accent, and her tender, tender care for my partner.

Thank you for all of my amazing mentors--both older and younger. Thank you for the opportunity to mentor others.

Thank you for the opportunity to write and speak with an authentic voice. Thank you to the women who created institutions and structures (women's studies programs, feminist nonprofits, alternative media) by which I could be a professional feminist and still pay my rent.

Thank you for my amazing friends who help people every day--the social workers, the teachers and tutors, the comedians, the writers, the artists, the doctors, the nurses, the community organizers, the activists.

And last but not least, thank you for feministing, my community of hilarious, real, smart, dedicated feminist friends, the platform it gives all of us to change the world, end suffering, build community, and its indistinguishable capacity to inspire.

Today is the International Transgender Day of Remembrance, when we stop and take note of the fact that transgender people are murdered at 10 times the rate of everyone else. And, as queenemily says, "Many of the dead lost their lives because they were trans women of colour, doubly disposable."

Please take a moment to read about the people we memorialize today.

At least thirty people, most of them women, were killed this year because of who they are, because of their gender. Cara points out that four of the people on this list were killed in the past 20 days alone. Writes Mercedes Allen at Bilerico:

What's more chilling is what those numbers don't include. That number doesn't include the unknown numbers of transfolk killed alongside gay and lesbian brothers and sisters in the ethnic cleansing that has been taking place in Iraq (Activist Peter Tatchell estimates the total number of GLBT casualties at around 300 people targeted by religious extremists since the war began). Bordering Iran, where a GRS-or-die policy has become a horrific distortion of the medical model and has caused many gay and lesbian persons to forcibly transition, Iraq may have a higher-than-usual trans (by birth or legally mandated) population.

But remembering these people and reflecting on their lives should not be a quiet process, as queenemily writes:

Few will respect our lives as they were, and few will mourn them, and they must be mourned. Their lives were meaningful, their names and genders were real and important, and they lost their lives from hate.

Today we hold on to some memory, even if it only be a name and a photo, so that they are not as erased as completely as their killers would have.

Because the medical people treating them will have tried to erase them. The media. The police. The juries. Will try to excuse, to render less than real, the lives that have been lost. Because who would mourn? Who would bother?

We would. And we do. Today, when we say their names and remember them -- as individuals and as people, not "its" -- we reject that erasure.

Kellie Telesford. Brian McGlothin. Gabriela Alejandra Albornoz. Patrick Murphy. Stacy Brown. Adolphus Simmons. Fedra. Sanesha Stewart. Lawrence King. Simmie Williams Jr. Luna. Lloyd Nixon. Felicia Melton-Smyth. Silvana Berisha. Ebony Whitaker. Rosa Pazos. Juan Carlos Aucalle Coronel. Angie Zapata. Jaylynn L. Namauu. Samantha Rangel Brandau. Nikki Williams. Ruby Molina. Aimee Wilcoxson. Duanna Johnson. Dilek Ince. Ali. And two other Iraqi transgender women.

Again, I have to quote queenemily:

And yes, today we remember those of us still living-our fear, the fear that lives at the heart of every trans person, that someone will know that we are trans, and will kill us for it. Today we remember all the other times we murmured "oh fuck" as we read the news. Today we discover the deaths we missed, because we couldn't bear hearing about them anymore for awhile, even though we must. We must.

1. What is the accurate, once-and-for-all differences between men's and women's brains?
2. How can a woman who's super invested in mothering also protect her own creative/intellectual/professional life?
3. What truly works when it comes to rape and violence prevention?
4. When do I focus on being right and when do I focus on being effective?
5. When do I address sexism directly and when it is best to handle it indirectly?
6. How can society still be so invested in the categories hetero, homo, and bi when sexuality so obviously exists on a spectrum?
7. Why do so many feminists resist being critical about the institution of marriage?
8. How can we have no holds bar honest conversations about race and class disparities within feminist circles?
9. How important is it that women embrace the feminist label?
10. How ethical is it that feminist writers like Judith Butler and even bell hooks are hard for my women's studies 101 students to understand?

What are you still sorting out?

Richard Lingeman, a long time editor of The Nation, has edited a new book for all those lefty wide-eyed, save-the-word types. As the intro describes it:

The National Guide to the Nation is for and about a community of committed, passionate people who have active consciences and a lively sense of social justice. It's a mixture of the Whole Earth Catalog, 1000 Places to See Before You Die, and the Old Farmer's Almanac.

I was immediately sold. (And that was before I even realized that feministing got a mention! Which Nation 2007 intern was responsible for that? Thank you!)

Think of it as a guide to sustainable living--with lots of info about how to eat and drink locally, support small business, stick it to the man--but also a quirky intellectual and historical tour de force.

Feminist/activist landmarks--both metaphorical and literal--are listed in happy abundance. Susan B. Anthony's house in Rochester is listed, as is the Women's Rights National Historical Park in Seneca Falls. The Guerrilla Girls, The Sackler Center for Feminist Art, Beacon Press (whoohoo! my next publisher), Bluestockings, Women & Children First, Appalshop, Urban Bush Women, Vox Feminista, WOW Cafe Theater, Women Make Movies, Righteous Babe Records, the Hip Hop Caucus, Bitch, Ms., off our backs, oh yeah, and did I mention feministing.com (p. 157). They write:

This group blog is overseen by executive editor Jessica Valenti. It is one of the most respected blogs on feminism, gender, reproductive rights, and women's issues. Valenti and her coeditors are all young, and her blog self-consciously reflects their youthful perspective and opinion.

I don't know about the self-conscious part, but I'll take young and opinionated any day.

Keep an eye out for this baby's release in January.

As if we needed more proof that blogs and female friendships are both incredible forces of social change, check this out.

Russian lawyer, Svetlana Bakhmina, 39, has been in prison for over three years for tax evasion and embezzlement. Human rights advocates in and outside of Russia have argued, from the get go, that Bakhmina was basically a scapegoat for the real target of the investigation: crooked bazillionaire Dmitri Gololobov.

In any case, Bakhima became pregnant with her third child (she already has a 7 year old and an 11 year old) on a furlough and now the prison camp in Mordovia is refusing to entertain her plea for early release.

Outraged by this, Bakhima's middle school friend, Olga Kalashnikova, wrote a letter on her blog and later to the president about how outraged she was that her dear friend was forced to stay in prison on false charges while pregnant. An excerpt:

Respected Dmitri Anatolevich. I know that the courts in our country are independent. But I am certain that with your will it is fully possible to return a mother to her children. Whether she is guilty or not -- that's not important now. In any case, she has been punished more than enough. And she has already served as an example. But, it is her children who have been punished first of all. Both the two boys who are living without her for the fourth year, and that child that has yet to be born.

What has your middle school bestie done for you lately?

More and more cases are popping up where men are being acquitted of rape with the defense that they were sleepwalking so they didn't realize they were raping someone. Common sense-wise, this holds almost no water, yet it seems to be a viable defense for some courts.

Jason Jeal, a 37-year-old roofer with no medical history of sleepwalking, admitted sex had taken place. But he was cleared of rape after he insisted he had been asleep and had no idea what he was doing.

Mrs McKenna, a middle-class mother of one whose husband holds a respectable full-time position, said the acquittal in June had left her feeling 'shocked and degraded'.

Last night, she waived her right to anonymity to highlight her concern that attackers will increasingly use the defence that they were asleep. She has already gained the support of MPs and campaigners who argue the sleepwalking defence 'defies common sense'.

Apparently, carrying out sexually violent acts in your sleep is called 'sexsomnia' and is condition where you carry out "indecent" acts in your sleep. I think it should probably be more aptly titled "rapesomnia" since sex assumes consent.

I find this story and the other examples of the sleepwalking defense to be extremely troubling. Thoughts?

I'm sorry to say that the event I publicized this week, an interview I was doing with writer Marilyn French at NYC's Tenement Museum, has been canceled. So sorry for any inconvenience this may cause folks who were planning on coming!

My crush on Henry Rollins is no secret. As I have said before, he may be a complicated man, but I can appreciate that. Moreover, seeing that he not only reads, but recommends Feministing, well that just makes him my destiny.

*swoon*

The Washington Post has a piece up about the anti-choice movement's next moves now that Obama has been elected. Some movement leaders are abandoning their strategy to overturn Roe, instead focusing on ways to reduce the number of abortions. (Well, not really - but I'll get at that in a minute.)

Some of the activists are actually working with abortion rights advocates to push for legislation in Congress that would provide pregnant women with health care, child care and money for education -- services that could encourage them to continue their pregnancies.

...Although the activists insist that they are not retreating from their belief that abortion is immoral and should be outlawed, they argue that a more practical alternative is to try to reduce abortions through other means.

And yet, contraception is not mentioned once. I think that increased health and child care opportunities for women are a great thing - and frankly, it's about time the folks who blather on about fetuses start supporting social programs that actually help people - but the best way to reduce the number of abortions is to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies. That means birth control.

Despite efforts from pro-choice groups like NARAL Pro-Choice America - who launched their Prevention First campaign calling on anti-choice groups to support increased contraception access for a mutual goal of decreasing unwanted pregnancies - and proposed legislation like the Prevention First Act, anti-choicers continue to turn a blind eye. That's because reducing unwanted pregnancies isn't their goal, and they don't want women to realize that anti-choice groups don't support access to contraception - something 98% of American women will use at some point during their reproductive lives.

I also must admit that I'm wary of what kind of legislation anti-choicers have in mind when they talk about programs to support pregnant women. It's not like conservatives and anti-choicers have done such a good job in the past trying to "encourage" women to be mothers and wives.

So really, I fail to see how this is a change of strategy at all - anti-choice groups are going to continue to try and block access to contraception and limit women's reproductive choices. Sounds like the same old shit to me.

Heather at the Community blog has more.

I have a piece up at The Guardian that takes a look at some of the fab feminist comedians out there and how they're debunking the whole "women aren't funny" myth.

So who is your favorite funny feminist?

This Italian ad reads:

Who pays for man's sins? Only four per cent of women who suffer sexual violence report their assailants.

The poster is part of the national Telefono Donna rape helpline to help raise awareness for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on November 25th. It seems a bunch of male politicians are up in arms about it - what do you think?

Via.

The latest from Feministing favorite Sarah Haskins.

This is just sad. Remember the man that took modelizing to an even more deplorable level? Well, he was found guilty of 1 count of rape and 15 counts of sexual assault.

A Beverly Hills fashion designer, once touted as a future star of the catwalks, was found guilty Thursday of sexually assaulting seven girls and young women, capping a two-month trial that offered a sordid portrait of the fashion world.

The jury of six men and six women deliberated for seven days before finding Anand Jon Alexander guilty of one count of rape and 15 counts of sexual assault and other charges.

In general I don't really support incarceration, but since it is usually the only tool we have access to when sentencing for rape, it is sadly one of our only options. Anand Jon shouldn't be allowed to use his influence to manipulate women and then rape them. It is disgusting. It is necessary and should be noted when the criminal justice system takes the testimony of women seriously in rape cases.

But I do want to take an opportunity to talk about two factors that I think are also at play here that are not being talked about. The first is the way women are treated in the modeling industry and how they are often taken advantage of in unfair or abusive ways and the second is Anand Jon's race and citizenship.

An industry that functions off the objectification of women's bodies will create sexist work conditions if they are unchecked or deeply functioning within the constraints of capitalist patriarchy. Furthermore, women are frequently competing to get to the top and make a career out of modeling which also results in compromising situations whether by choice, by demand or by necessity. Unfortunately, I don't think Jon is alone in his sexual abuse of women in the modeling industry.

But I also think the fact that he is South Asian makes him an easy person to find guilty and throw our (deserved) disgust at, since he is not American, but an "other" that engages in those deplorable things that "others" do. Pushing the blame outside of the context of any type of homegrown abuse that happens within the US (or Western)-centric modeling industry gives us the ability to not be self reflective. This doesn't in any way minimize or justify Jon's deplorable behavior, but more to situate it within the historical power relations at play in the narratives surrounding the sexual assault of white women by brown men. Despite his own behavior that should be punished, I think it is high time we take a hard look at modeling as an institution and think about the sexist stereotypes it promotes that frequently fetishize and make normal the sexual abuse of women.

Hey NYC folks! I'm going to be interviewing Marilyn French tomorrow at the Tenement Museum about her new book. Info is below; hope to see you there!

Tenement Talks presents...

Wednesday, November 19 at 6:30 PM
From Eve to Dawn: A History of Women in the World
A Conversation with Marilyn French and Jessica Valenti

Tenement Museum Shop
108 Orchard Street (Delancey)
221-982-8420; events@tenement.org
Free - seating is first come, first serve

I am going to have to agree with Womanist Musings here and suggest that Dan Savage just say he is sorry for making racist statements about black voters and Prop 8. An issue that has been tackled by many bloggers. I won't say I am ready to throw him under the bus, but I do think as a thought leader in mainstream gay politics that Savage should figure out a way to articulate for his readers what exactly he is trying to say. Because the way it is coming out is not the strongest argument, if we are talking about a movement that puts at its center those most affected.

Check him out on Colbert.

Thoughts?

Lately I've noticed some pundits fretting that if "identity groups" (women, people of color, gay people, immigrants, basically anyone who's not a hetero white man) ask for a cabinet that looks like America, they are endangering Obama's presidency and the Democratic coalition. In a piece up at the Prospect today, I call bullshit.

In the context of this debate about cabinet appointments, "identity politics" is more or less derisive shorthand for "women, people of color, immigrants, gay people speaking up for themselves." But if not now, when are we supposed to raise these issues? After the decisions have been made? People who have traditionally been cut off from the highest avenues of power are well within their rights -- and, I'd argue, responsibilities -- to demand a seat at the table, before appointments have been made. I'm not going to retread the arguments for why diversity is important. I will say, however, that there is rarely the right person for any given position -- most jobs could be done competently by any number of people, and some of those people are no doubt women and people of color. Pointing out this fact must not be seen as threatening or petty, but as productive and necessary.

Read the rest here.

Hope you can make it!

Racialicious and Feministing Happy Hour:

When: Tuesday, Nov. 18, 5:30pm - 8:00pm
Where: Chi Cha Lounge, 1624 U St NW, Washington, DC

Facebook event here.

The New York Times has a piece this morning about the Health and Human Services (HHS) regulation that the Bush administration is planning to slip onto the books before he leaves office - you know, the one that would prevent family planning clinics from "discriminating" against employees who are opposed to abortion on "religious or moral grounds," even if they're working at an abortion clinic, and even if they believe birth control is abortion.

With the final version of the regulation (which may very well pass) to be released in a matter of days, Planned Parenthood, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights issued a joint letter to the U.S. Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) at the Office of Management and Budget. Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards said, "It's unconscionable that the Bush administration, while promising a smooth transition, would take a final opportunity to politicize women's health." The regulations will hit low-income women seeking reproductive health care the worst, allowing pharmacists to refuse birth control to Medicaid recipients and literally undo state laws that require hospitals to dispense EC to rape survivors.

This is all despite the 200,000 plus comments sent to HHS opposing the rule. While Obama is opposed to the regulations and his aides say he will try to rescind the rule, the process could take up to 6 months. And assuming Obama would be able to rescind it in the end, that's still plenty of time to make plenty an impact.

Click here to read the letter to OIRA, and take action here.

An article from this weekend's NYTimes chronicles the rising trend in home births in NYC. It partially credits the recent Ricki Lake documentary, The Business of Being Born.

The article does a good job of addressing the different challenges for women giving birth in their NYC apartments. It takes about space concerns, neighbor issues, clean up and hospital transfers. The article is also accompanied by a slideshow of photos from various home births.

What the article doesn't address is the huge class divide in these types of births. I, as a doula and general advocate of midwives and out of hospital births, am a huge supporter of home births. I think they are better for moms and babies who have low-risk pregnancies. I think moms feel more comfortable and are away from the stress and pressure of a hospital. She is on her own time line, no questions asked.

But the huge drawback to promoting home birth is that it is primarily an option for upper middle class women. Not everyone has a home that is safe to birth in. This could be because of family circumstances, overcrowding, lack of support from partners or simply lack of adequate space. There are also obvious financial barriers since most insurance companies won't cover home births.

It's unfortunate that an article about birth in NYC didn't address this issue at all, seeing as it is such a diverse city, in terms of both class and race.

Also, once again an article about women's health is marginalized, this one was placed in the Home and Garden section. At least it wasn't in Fashion and Style this time.

Let's jump right in, shall we?

This past Saturday I joined over 1,000 of my fellow equality activists...in the bitter cold, mind you (wince)...to protest in St. Louis the passage of Prop. 8 in California.

I had worried that the cold spell would discourage attendance...it didn't.

I also worried that the crowd wouldn't be diverse...but it was.

People often prove me wrong.

And sometimes they don't.

I am the daughter of Civil Rights activists...not famous people, but two of the many everyday Americans who volunteered and risked their lives in the struggle for the protected vote and equality. Growing up, my parents made sure that their children knew that our rights were fought for...and the how and why behind those battles.

So when Missourians voted in favor of a same-sex marriage ban in 2004, I was saddened but not discouraged.

History teaches us that Civil Rights are often won in the courts and society is slow to follow.

And when Californians voted in favor of Proposition 8, I'll admit to being surprised...but I sure as shit am not discouraged.

The night before Election Day, I watched a segment of the documentary Eyes on the Prize and saw young people, older people...women and men of every race and religion...participate in social change. And their efforts provided the fuel that led to legal changes which made it possible for me to stand before that crowd November 15, 2008 and add my voice to the chorus calling for justice.

The cold spell didn't discourage attendance.

The crowd was fired up and beautifully diverse.

And we begin again...

For all you law students out there, a fantastic reproductive justice writing contest hosted by the National Advocates for Pregnant Women. They are giving out significant cash prizes, $1,000 for first prize, $500 and $250 for the runners up. The deadline for submissions is May 31, 2009.

Issues of concern to pregnant and birthing women have often been missing from discussion in law school gender discrimination and feminist jurisprudence courses and among reproductive rights activists. Thanks in large part to public education efforts by writers, filmmakers, and community activists, there is an unprecedented amount of attention and momentum surrounding the rights of pregnant and birthing women. To advance these efforts further, NAPW has developed two writing contests. NAPW and numerous Co-Sponsors and Supporters hope that these contests will leverage the enthusiasm and creativity of a new generation of feminist legal scholars and spark critical thinking about the need to address childbirth and birthing rights as constitutional and human rights issues.

Contest I: Birthing Rights as a Matter of Gender Equality

This contest asks for a critical analysis of the absence of birthing rights issues from gender discrimination and feminist jurisprudence textbooks and curricula (in fact, none of the top three casebooks used in law school courses dedicated to gender and the law address the issue of childbirth or midwifery).

Contest II: Challenges to Bans On Women Having Vaginal Births after Previous C-Sections

This contest asks students to develop legal theories that can be used to challenge policies banning pregnant women from having a vaginal birth after a prior caesarean section (VBAC). This topic will encourage students to address a growing problem that has received very little attention from the feminist legal community both in academia and within the leading women's rights legal advocacy organizations.

For the full writing prompts, submission guidelines, more information about our co-sponsors and supporters, and periodic updates, please visit the NAPW website.

I'm going to echo Kate's sentiments and ask Helen Mirren - for the love of all things good - to stop talking about rape.

Back in September the actress said in an interview that she didn't think that women should bring date rape cases to court and now she's said that female jurors on rape cases are "sexually jealous" of the victims. Seriously.

"Whether in a deep-seated animalistic way, going back billions of years, or from a sense of tribal jealousy or just antagonism, I don't know.

...But other women on a rape case would say she was asking for it. The only reason I can think of is that they're sexually jealous."

I'm speechless.

Apparently Motrin got lots of mothers peeved when they ran the following ad:

Just a tad condescending. Ick. The response to the ad (yay online activism!) was so overwhelming, that Motrin apologized and is removing the ad from circulation.

Via Rad Campaign, Writes Like She Talks and LA Moms Blog.

I couldn't choose just one (there are so many!) but below are a few of my faves, in no particular order. Leave yours in comments...

Queen Latifah, UNITY

More after the jump!

One in three Australian boys thinks that it's okay to hit girls; one in seven think "it's OK to make a girl have sex with you if she was flirting."

Via Feministe.

In case you missed it...

Via Michelle Obama Watch, which also has Part II of the segment.

Sometimes the hate mail we get comes in the form of long rambling craziness. And sometimes, as is this case here, it's short, sweet, and incredibly stupid.

Marriage can only exist between a couple that can reproduce. Otherwise you might as well marry a farm animal. The people have spoken and you should shut down this site.

I'm sure all the couples having fertility issues will appreciate that one.

Hey all, you may have already noticed that we've changed up the comments format again. After some group discussion and listening to reader suggestions, we decided to tweak the comments rating system and only include the "I liked this comment," not the "dislike." (Of course, the "report abuse" link is still up so if you need to email us about trolls, that's how to do it.) This way, we're keeping it positive!

Here's Wanda Sykes, at a rally in Las Vegas on Saturday:

"You know, I don't really talk about my sexual orientation," the Emmy Award winner said. "I didn't feel like I had to. I was just living my life, not necessarily in the closet, but I was living my life,"

"Everybody that knows me personally they know I'm gay," she continued. "But that's the way people should be able to live their lives." [...]

Sykes said the ban (also known as California's Proposition 8) made her feel like she was "attacked."

"Now, I gotta get in their face," she said. "I'm proud to be a woman. I'm proud to be a black woman, and I'm proud to be gay."

Awesome.

via Amanda.

There's a new in-depth report on the Global Gender Gap (PDF).

The U.S. named the first female four-star General, Ann E. Dunwoody.

Audio: New America Media on the glass ceiling for Asian American women.

The latest Carnival Against Sexual Violence is up now at abyss2hope.

Rachel Setzer on why we still need an ERA.

Aimee Wilcoxson, a transwoman from Aurora, CO, was found dead in her apartment. Police say it's suicide, but her friends and family say she was murdered.

The Women's Appointments Project, which pressures incoming presidents to appoint women to high-level positions, is running out of cash.

Rebecca Traister on the mom-ification of Michelle Obama. Gina MacCauley's alternate take.

Die-hard Beatles fan Cara lists the top (bottom?) five anti-feminist Beatles songs.

A sex-trafficking group operating out of the UK and Thailand has been broken up.

How not to make the case for organ donation.

Single mothers' college attendance has dropped.

My review of Jeanne Flavin's Our Bodies, Our Crimes and Carol Gilligan and David A.J. Richards's The Deepening Darkness is up at Bookforum.

Girls in Afghanistan are staying home from school after a series of brutal acid attacks.

Check out the National Women's Law Center's Platform for Progress, which "offers concrete proposals and outlines steps that should be taken by the new Congress and Administration in the areas of education, employment, basic economic security, health, and legal rights."

A Pakistani 17-year-old, Taslim Solangi, "was forced to give birth, and the baby was thrown into a canal. Taslim was then put in front of dogs to be mauled, and subsequently shot dead." Female senators in Pakistan staged a walkout to demand better protections for women.

Another reminder that new media isn't much better than old media when it comes to women's bylines.

A woman was banned from British department store Marks and Spencer after she pulled an emergency bell because her wheelchair was stuck in a bathroom. The store deemed her a "health and safety hazard"?!! WTF.

The U.S. Dept of Veterans Affairs has new shelters and outreach efforts for homeless female vets.

Jessica Yee on Barack Obama and the Native vote.

Actions

A fund has been set up to help cover Duanna Johnson's funeral expenses. Jack at Angry Brown Butch suggests that folks match the donation they made to No on 8.

Tell the Bush administration -- again -- not to implement that HHS rule protecting employees who want to exercise their antichoice beliefs.

Call for submissions: The Body as a Site of Discrimination - A Multidisciplinary, Multimedia Online Journal.

Events

New York, NY: Paradigm Shift: A discussion of feminism and motherhood with Amy Richards on Nov. 19.

New York, NY: Toward a Greater Understanding: Transgender Identity and the Jewish Community on Nov. 25. More info here.

Portland, OR: Susie Bright speaks on the Sexual State of the Union on Nov. 18.

Washington, DC: Feministing/Racialicious happy hour on Nov. 18!

As I was walking through downtown Oakland today to get to the Facing Race Conference, my friend and I stopped by the No on Prop 8 protest. Adrienne and I were talking about how we wish we could merge the two spaces, Facing Race and fighting for gay civil rights. But it was a powerful moment and I caught one picture on my phone.

But I was seriously struck by the two men that were holding pro gay-hate signs against gay marriage. I know I shouldn't focus on the bad, but it made me so upset. They were two against about 400 people that were there to support the civil rights of gay people. But displays of anxious masculinity are always so curious. And frightening.

Please leave your own protest stories, pictures and thoughts in comments.

What is reproductive justice and why is there a session at Facing Race on it? According to EMERJ, "Reproductive Justice exists when all people have the economic, social and political power and resources to make healthy decisions about our gender, bodies, and sexuality for ourselves, our families and our communities."

This panel includes some seriously bad-ass women, Rocio Cordoba and Gabriela Valle from California Latina for Reproductive Justice and Marie Nakae from Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice. are talking about the difference between a movement that is focused on choice verses one that has a justice agenda. A justice agenda takes into account the greater conditions that serve as barriers to women's control of their own bodies, sexuality and health.

Maria Nakae is talking about nail salon workers and the chemicals they are exposed to. Apparently, 11% of chemicals in beauty products are actually tested so it is a great risk to these women that are exposed to them at high rates. Furthermore, exposure to these chemicals has reproductive health hazards. To learn more about their organizing work with nail salon workers check the project POLISH.

Techniques for Concealing Racism:

• Denying and Exceptionalizing

• Coding and Scapegoating

• Deflecting and Confusing

Techniques for Revealing Racism:

• Name it!

• Frame it!

• Explain it!

So, what does this look like? Any examples of how you have seen or used any of these strategies?

I am sitting with some lovely folks at the Facing Race conference (Jodie Tonita and Adrienne Maree Brown to name but a few) and listening to panelists debate the myth of post-racialism, asking the key question, is racism over now?

Obviously not. But what tools do we, as communicators and organizers, need to tell our stories of racism while recognizing the wins of this presidential election, yet recognizing that racism is alive and well. They are discussing two perspectives, one that is "colorblind" and the other that is "racial justice."

Here is one of the questions being debated:

Question 1: Are racial disparities responsible for differing health problems in different communities?

The traditional response is that health problems are based on personal responsibility and racist ideas of genetics, so if you want to be healthier you have to eat better and take care of yourself and no one can take responsibility if your community has a higher rate of certain diseases.

On the other hand, when you look at the way that resources are distributed and how low income communities of color rarely have access to healthy food, usually exposed to serious environmental toxins at work and at home and lack of access to affordable health care it is frequently not possible to even be able to take the personal responsibility.

What do you think? Why are health disparities so high?

I know this has nothing to do with feminism, but A. I think it's always good to end the week on a good note, and B. This little french girl was just too adorable and made me think of one of my favorite movies, Amelie. For fans of the film, is this not the real-life version of Amelie as a child?? Sigh.

Thanks to Michael for the link!

Need more reason to love Rachel Maddow? Probably not, but it is always good to love her more. In response to Palin's accusations of bloggers not being real media or not doing enough research, Maddow responds. Just watch it, it is so funny.

Rachel Maddow wins.

While there have been talks of former Harvard president Larry Summers (you know, the guy that said that women are naturally not good at math) being on Obama's shortlist for Treasury Secretary, folks are now saying it will be unlikely he'll be picked.

Of course Kathleen Parker (an author who contends that women who have sex are experiencing a "mental health crisis" and women raped in the military are responsible for the crime) had an op-ed in the Washington Post today about Summers and how we should give him a break for saying one dumb thing, that this shouldn't decide his fate.

Funny you say that Parker, when he's said plenty more than just one dumb thing. In fact, he defended his position as a "purely academic exploration of hypotheses" and then said in what he calls an apology: "I suppose I've done my part over these last several months to increase interest in these topics." And those are just the tip of the iceberg. Check out Jill's post for more enlightenment on Summers' record.

I thought Ian Welsh's comment today sums it up pretty well, "Brains aren't the same thing as good judgment, and while Summers may be smart, I am aware of no evidence that he is wise or even has any common sense."

Open Left has a petition. Sign it.

Are we really still discussing this?

While Dennis Miller being a totally sexist asshole is no big news, this takes the cake for me. On Wednesday's O'Reilly Factor, he plays into the whole "liberal women are just jealous of Sara Palin" nonsense, saying it's because we're just frigid and have no sex lives. He says:

She's a great dame. People are fascinated by her because the Left hate her. I think the Left hate her -- mostly women on the Left hate her -- because to me from outside in it appears that she has a great sex life, all right? I think she has non-neurotic sex with that Todd Palin guy. ... I think that snow mobile looks like mechanized foreplay to me and that's why people are fascinated.

Look up the whole segment too, where he also contends that most women in general are cranky and unhappy "mean girls." He's a sharp one, that Miller!

h/t to Brooke.

This is just peachy. Via Pam, we find that a South Carolina priest is telling his parish that folks won't be receiving communion if they voted for Obama:

A South Carolina Roman Catholic priest has told his parishioners that they should refrain from receiving Holy Communion if they voted for Barack Obama because the Democratic president-elect supports abortion, and supporting him "constitutes material cooperation with intrinsic evil."

The Rev. Jay Scott Newman said in a letter distributed Sunday to parishioners at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Greenville that they are putting their souls at risk if they take Holy Communion before doing penance for their vote.

"Our nation has chosen for its chief executive the most radical pro-abortion politician ever to serve in the United States Senate or to run for president," Newman wrote, referring to Obama by his full name, including his middle name of Hussein. (Emphasis mine)

This news comes just a few days after U.S. bishops met to discuss the new President-elect's support for choice. It's nice to know that at least others are saying Newman's statement is extreme. Steve Krueger, national director of Catholic Democrats, responded:

"He is acting beyond the authority of a parish priest to say what he did. ... Unfortunately, he is doing so in a manner that will be of great cost to those parishioners who did vote for Sens. Obama and Biden. There will be a spiritual cost to them for his words."

I love this picture, she looks so bad-ass here, popped collar and all. "Could I handle being Secretary of State? Pshhhhh..."

The news came out yesterday that Senator Hillary Clinton is being considered as a candidate for U.S. Secretary of State:

There's talk, indeed, that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) may now be under consideration for the post. Her office referred any questions to the Obama transition; Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor declined to comment.

The pick of the former presidential contender and Senate Armed Services Committee member would go a long way toward healing any remaining divisions within the Democratic Party after the divisive primaries. Also, Clinton has long been known for her work on international women's issues and human rights. The former first lady could also enhance Obama's efforts to restore U.S. standing amongst allies worldwide.

I think this would be amazing. What are people's thoughts?

Unfortunately, President Tabare Vasquez said he will veto the measure.

But despite the mostly Catholic population of Uruguay and the fact that only one country in South America (Guyana) permits abortion within the first trimester, the fact that Congress is taking this position is considered a significant step for the nation. The Senate voted to legalize abortion within the first trimester after the lower house of Congress voted in favor of it last week.

Abortion is currently only legal in cases of rape and when the life of the woman is endangered, although an estimated 33,000 abortions are performed each year. Women and doctors arrested for having an abortion or involvement will serve jail time, and have; three doctors were arrested earlier this year.

Jill has more.

Earlier this week, the president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops urged his fellow clergy to push President-elect Obama on his support of choice, in which the following day, 300 bishops held their annual meeting to discuss Obama's position on reproductive rights and other issues concerning the new administration.

With the Pope's threats of excommunication to pro-choice politicians, you have to wonder what will come out of this meeting. But Planned Parenthood's Cecile Richards reminds the bishops in a Huffington Post piece today that not only did exit polls find that 54 percent of Catholic voters had voted for Obama-Biden, but that Catholic Americans are actually pretty damn supportive of reproductive health rights. A snippet:

Catholic voters are more likely to support comprehensive sex education in schools (78 percent) than the general public (76 percent). And 86 percent of Catholics favor launching a major effort to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies by both increasing the availability of contraception for low-income women and by providing teens with comprehensive sex education.

Put simply, Catholic voters, just like the rest of America, want government to focus on solving problems for American families, such as increasing access to affordable health care and helping children stay healthy and safe and not become parents before they are ready.

Additionally, a Planned Parenthood poll found that Catholic voters' second largest concern on abortion and family planning was that "government was too quick to interfere with people's personal lives and private decisions."

Indeed. Read the whole piece here.

The secret is out! Much like TruBlood, feminists now satisfy their desire to eat fetuses by baking cookie-shaped representations of them. We also eat brownies shaped like "traditional marriage." And those penis gummies? Yeah, not just for bachelorette parties. In the gift bag at every feminist event.

(Full disclosure: I stole the title of this post from a Buzzfeed commenter. But isn't it perfect?)

There are many misperceptions about the role of women in the Iraq war. We have written about the role and rate of sexual violence in the military and this is an interesting radio interview with a several women that have served in the Iraq war. It goes into the role of women in the military and in combat, specifically debunking the assumption that women don't engage in combat or security. It also includes a call from a listener who asks if we as Americans want "our" women having the potential threat of being POWs and what that means to which Kristen Holmstedt replies that she doesn't feel women's bodies are any more valuable as POW's as men's. I think this is really really interesting.

While we talk about women and war, one listener asks, "why are we glorifying war?" So while we can on one-hand fight for the rights of women in war, it is always important to step back and think about what we are actually supporting. I know most of us anti-war folks do, but it is a slippery slope from full inclusion and equitable treatment for all constituents in the military to working for an end to the war in Iraq.

Finally I was waiting patiently for them to bring up sexual trauma in the military and towards the end they get into it and one woman speaks frankly about her experience with sexual harassment in the military and how the military dealt with it. Really upsetting.

Check it out here and let me know what you think.

This is an oldie-but-goodie; Samantha Bee reflects on her discovery at the RNC that there's a new c-word that's not to be uttered. Transcript below the jump.

I know we're all fixated on the Prop 8 defeat right now, but as protests gear up in front of Mormon temples across the country, we should note that it's not only extreme right-wingers who propagated anti-gay sentiments in this election.

This is an ad against Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell, a Republican: (via)

UPDATE: I originally wrote that this was produced by AFSCME, but apparently that's not the case.

And this is an ad against California Representative David Dreier, produced by Blue America PAC (via):

Both of these ads are truly disgusting. Alex at Bilerico is spot-on in his response to the Dreier ad -- but I think it applies to the McConnell ad, too:

It's worth noting that Howie Klein does great work with Blue America PAC to get more money to good Democrats and to run ads for them. He blogs over at Down with Tyranny and is himself a gay man.

But I don't think that excuses something like this. I know I'm a minority on this one, but I don't think that homophobia has a particular target. Using a homophobic ad against one person who, however we justify this one, deserves it stirs up homophobia against the rest of us. That might not have been the best idea about a week before Prop 8.

I know that some in the community would justify this based on "hypocrisy," but there is no discourse on the importance of honesty in this ad, why voters should not elect someone based on his hypocrisy, or even a mention of that argument. It's clearly meant to trigger the knee-jerk, lizard brain reaction of the people of California's 26th and make them go out and vote against the queer.

(Emphasis mine.) I'm completely with Alex on this. It's important for us to keep in mind, as we rally against groups like the LDS Church and Focus on the Family for their support of bigoted ballot initiatives, that the underlying sentiments are not the exclusive purview of those on the right. And that's something we should be working just as hard to change.

For those of you in the DC area, Racialicious editor Latoya Peterson and Miriam and I are co-hosting a happy hour on Tuesday! The details:

When: Tuesday, Nov. 18, 5:30pm - 8:00pm
Where: Chi Cha Lounge, 1624 U St NW, Washington, DC

RSVP on Facebook here, or just show up. Should be super fun.

Last June, Duanna Johnson was brutally beaten by Memphis police - and it was caught on video.

Johnson was in the booking area at the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center when she was hit repeatedly in the face and head by a police officer while another held her down.

"Actually he was trying to get me to come over to where he was, and I responded by telling him that wasn't my name - that my mother didn't name me a 'faggot' or a 'he-she,' so he got upset and approached me. And that's when it started," Johnson said.

This week, Johnson was murdered. Helen at My Husband Betty brings us the tragic story:

She was shot execution style while on her "usual corner."

I'm tired of this.

I want there to be no reason for the Transgender Day of Remembrance. I want there to be no new names on that goddamn list.

I hope her mother, and her family, and her friends, find peace, and that she has too.

Johnson was suing the city for $1.3 million over the June assault, so something tells me they're not exactly going to give Johnson's case top priority.

Pam has more, including a statement from the Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition.

This seems too insane to be real. (Click here for larger image)

Via copyranter, we find this old ad for Heinz soup that starts with:

"The things women have to put up with. Most husbands, nowadays, have stopped beating their wives, but what can be more agonizing to a sensitive soul than a man's boredom at meals. Yet, lady, there must be a reason. If your cooking and not your conversation is monotonous, that's easily fixed."

Just cook up some nice soup for your man to keep him preoccupied, because you wouldn't want to make him bored, would you, lady??

Totally. Speechless.

So for those of you in the Bay or those traveling from out of town, remember the annual Facing Race conference is this weekend (November 13th-15th) in Oakland and it is going to be awesome. Here is a trailer for some of the amazing speakers and panels in store.

There will also be plenary sessions on:
* Post-Election Reflections: Examining Race in the Presidential Race
* The Race Debate: Challenging Colorblindness with Race Conscious Solutions
* Compact for Racial Justice: A Proactive Agenda for Advancing Racial Equity
* Race and the Global Economy

I will be liveblogging, so be sure to check back for that and shoot me an email if you are going to be there or say hello if you see me!

Above is one of the "workouts" offered by Flirty Girl Fitness, a new line of gyms for women that focus on the raunchier forms of exercise. (If you can call it that - in all of Flirty Girl's videos, I have yet to see someone work up a sweat by rotating their ass slowly in circles.)

I have no idea of Flirty Girls is indicative of the pole-dancing-as-workout craze that everyone seems to be talking about, but I thought the video was a good intro to this piece in the Dallas Observer.

I try the first "trick," which is called The Swing and involves kicking your leg out in front of the pole, hooking the metal in the crook of your knee, and then grabbing on with both hands, hoisting yourself off the ground and swinging around in a full circle. My arm muscles strain to sustain what's basically a horizontal pull-up, and I make it about three-quarters of the way around before the pain in my arms peaks. I slide down the pole and into a heap on the dance floor.

Peeling myself off the ground, I survey the other students. They're hair stylists, event planners and executive assistants who are tired of the same old gym routine; singles looking for self-confidence or some moves to show a new boyfriend; and wives and mothers who--between chasing toddlers and laundering spit-up-laden clothing--can't recall the last time they felt the least bit sexy.

When I talked about pole-dancing classes in my class at Rutgers yesterday, the majority of women seemed to view them as yet another negative porn-as-mainstream trend. But a few brave gals fessed up to taking the classes - and liking them. What seemed to appeal was an all-female environment where they could act out "sexiness" and "femininity" in a safe space. (I use scare quotes because of the limiting versions of femininity and sexiness that I think pole dancing and such things offer.)

But the sexuality offered in classes like these seems to me - I've never been to one, so correct me if I'm wrong - so put on and so based on the male gaze. After all, many of the women interviewed in this article and others talk about bringing the workout back home for their significant male others. Thoughts?

Thanks to Patrick for the link.

In the November issue of The American Prospect, Jeremy Bearer-Friend and Daniel Redman report on the trans-rights movement in between the coasts:

Many would view the politically red heart of the country as a harsh, unwelcoming, and vaguely dangerous place for the transgender community. When we think of states like Nebraska and Wyoming, we don't think of M.J. -- we think of people like Brandon Teena and Matthew Shepard, both killed in vicious, nationally publicized hate crimes. But the truth of the matter is far more interesting, inspiring, and instructive. Away from the coasts and the urban havens, a vibrant transgender-rights movement is slowly emerging across the mountain and plains states. Through increased visibility, community building, legislative outreach, and face-to-face public education in churches, schools, and neighborhoods, trans people are building a foundation for equality in some of the nation's most conservative regions.

And Emily Douglas has a sidebar on the mainstream gay-rights movement's slow evolution on transgender issues.

Read 'em both.

Every once in a while (actually, more often than that but I try to stay positive and all) someone brings up an aspect of sexism or a kind of discrimination I hadn't thought about before. This is one of these cases.

I've never really thought about it before, but I don't believe I've ever seen a movie trailer narrated by a woman. Variety has an article which cites a quote from Don LaFontaine, known as "The Voice of the Movie Trailer", who as you might recall, recently passed away:

"I think women are vastly underrepresented in this area," LaFontaine said in 2006. "You'd think that for films directly aimed at women, chick flicks, the logical choice would be for a woman to narrate the trailer. But studios hold focus groups and the people in them, women included, seem to prefer the male voice."

[Reporter Caroline] Ryder also notes that William Morris represents only three female trailer voices, all of whom work primarily in television or scratch (aka temp tracks), compared with 33 male trailer voices.

Is it because male voices are considered more authoritative? What gives?

Thanks to Brad for the link!

Joe the Plumber, the apparent star of the McCain campaign, has just begun his foray into American society. Rumor has it he has an upcoming book, Joe the Plumber: Fighting for the American Dream as well as a website and country music deal. Really?

What about a book deal and website for Ann Nixon Cooper, who Obama eloquently referenced in his acceptance speech? There are a lot of American's whose experience deserves to be given a voice and platform. Sorry Joe, but I don't think you're it.

On November 15, cities in every state will host protests of the same-sex marriage bans in California, Florida and Arizona, and the unmarried-couple adoption ban in Arkansas.

Click here to find out where/when to protest in your state.

And New Yorkers, protest Prop 8 today:

Date: Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Time: 6:30pm - 8:00pm
Location: New York Manhattan Mormon Temple
Street: 125 Columbus Ave at 65th Street
City/Town: New York, NY

Dahlia Lithwick at the XX Factor highlights the assholedom that is Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, who thinks violence against women is "not that serious an offense."

Yesterday the Supreme Court heard a case about the reach of the Federal Gun Control Act and whether it includes someone convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence.

...Courtesy of the LA Times' David Savage, here's a report of oral argument, which evidently went poorly for the proponents of disarming wife beaters. Of note in the transcript is the following exchange between Justice Antonin Scalia and Nicole Saharsky, the Justice Department lawyer arguing for the stricter interpretation of the law.

JUSTICE SCALIA: And this was misdemeanor assault and battery, wasn't it?

MS. SAHARSKY: Yes, that's right. I mean, I really--

JUSTICE SCALIA: So it's not that serious an offense. That's why we call it a misdemeanor.

MS. SAHARSKY: Well, I mean, certainly the offense is this particular case was serious. The charging document reflects that Respondent hit his wife all around the face until it swelled out, kicked her all around her body, kicked here in the ribs--

JUSTICE SCALIA: Then he should have been charged with a felony, but he wasn't. He was charged with a misdemeanor.

Wow. Nothing quite like dismissive nastiness when it comes to beating up women!

There has definitely been an influx of media around trans people over the last year or so. Thomas Beatie (the pregnant man) now has a memoir out, and WE TV has a new show called Sex Change Hospital.

Based in Trinidad, Colorado, this six-part series follows patients as they arrive in this Old West mining town--dubbed the 'Sex Change Capital of the World'--to see Dr. Marci Bowers, formerly Mark Bowers, who'll provide them with the ultimate life-changing operation. From retired grandfathers to construction workers, businessman to office managers, each shares their unique story of how they came to terms with their sexuality.

I recognized the name of the doctor from the Sundance Channel's series from a few years back, Transgeneration. One of the young women on that series goes to Dr. Bowers for her own gender reassignment surgery.

This series chronicles a number of trans people (both male to female and female to male) along their journey of transition and particularly surgery.

I haven't seen the show--have any of you? On first glance I am glad to see realistic depictions of transgender people and their experience on television. On further inspection, things like the before and after style photo gallery on the website bother me, as I think they focus too much on our fascination with the physical aspects of the trans experience.

This type of media has the potential to really expose a wider audience to transgender issues, but also runs the risk of exploiting their experience as part of the "wow" factor of television. Also, focusing entirely on transition surgeries leaves out a large sector of the trans community that either can't afford surgery or chooses not to seek it.

Some of you may have read Anna Clark's fascinating piece in Bitch's last issue on women writers and ambition: "The Ambition Condition: Women, Writing, and the Problem of Success." In it, she looks at the broad and historical landscape of women writing, right up to our present struggles with blog visibility, the gap in op-ed bylines etc. Clark writes:

There's no simple gender indicator for the weird fusion of insecurity and ambition, of the feigned nonchalance and quiet competitiveness that's common in writers of all sorts. But these traits are complicated by the cultural caricatures of ambitious women and the uneven historical patterns that have dictated whose talent is rewarded and whose isn't.

For all of her young life, What Is This Light has been a secret blog or at least a semi-secret blog. A couple days ago I read Anna Clark's Bitch Magazine article, "The Ambition Condition: Women, Writing, and the Problem of Success" and it proved at once cathartic and terrifying. Clark says things I already know much too well but couldn't quite articulate...And so, I'm going public. I don't expect much to change around here, but I've mustered enough gumption to really take on this mental paradigm shift.

Thanks to Anna for inspiring women to cure their own ambition conditions.

In a recent interview, Sarah Palin - once again attacking the media for supposedly treating her unfairly - scoffed at bloggers as kids "in pajamas sitting in the basement of their parents' homes." The nerve! I haven't lived in my parents' house since I was a teenager. The pajamas are another story... (I like to be comfortable!)

Fat acceptance is not about you telling me I don't look fat. Fat acceptance is not about telling me I am a good person, smart or worthwhile. Fat acceptance is you, seeing me, as sexy, bold and beautiful AS a fat person. And that is the purpose of the Adipositivity Project that photographs sexy fat women to challenge our perceptions of beauty.

Their mission statement:

The Adipositivity Project aims to promote size acceptance, not by listing the merits of big people, or detailing examples of excellence (these things are easily seen all around us), but rather, through a visual display of fat physicality. The sort that's normally unseen.

The hope is to widen definitions of physical beauty. Literally.

And that they do. Check it out.

For days now, I've been meaning to blog about The New York Times' post-election headline:

The story's first paragraph read:

Barack Hussein Obama was elected the 44th president of the United States on Tuesday, sweeping away the last racial barrier in American politics with ease as the country chose him as its first black chief executive.

Um, what? Ok, first of all, this was easy?! Also, more importantly, one person of color at the top does not mean the glass ceiling -- or any other barrier -- is gone. Yes, Obama surpassed that barrier. But that doesn't mean it isn't still firmly in place. It doesn't mean that now the floodgates are opened, and we now live in an America where race is no longer a factor. A few months ago, I wrote about this in the context of women in politics:

And to be totally fair, I don't think Hillary Clinton's nomination for president (or even her election as president) would have, in and of itself, shattered the glass ceiling, either. That's because when we talk about the invisible ceiling holding women back, we're talking about broad, systemic problems that can't be solved by one woman, no matter how fierce.

Yes, Obama's election is historic. Yes, it is a sign of progress. Yes, it is a huge triumph. But the "racial barriers" to ascending the highest ranks of society and politics are far from gone. There is still a lot of work to do. Again, as I wrote with regard to Hillary Clinton,

Hillary Clinton would have been a far greater ceiling-smasher than Palin -- not because Clinton was a presidential candidate while Palin is a VP candidate, but because Clinton has shown she actually cares about dismantling the ceiling that holds all women back. She has advocated for policies guaranteeing equal pay and paid family leave, and elevated many women to positions of considerable power within her campaign.

Sorry to conflate two issues, because in the same breath that I was going to post something for Veteran's Day to remind us of the soldiers in Iraq and that we must hold a new administration accountable to get them the fuck out, this article popped up on my screen, and, well, it is really not cool.

We were outraged to find out Palin allowed rape victims to be charged for their own rape kits, but we didn't know she learned how to do it from the Pentagon. According to Penny Coleman at Alternet, TRICARE, the Pentagon's healthcare plan doesn't cover rape kits either.

Currently, forensic examinations are not covered for beneficiaries in civilian health care facilities through TRICARE medical plans because TRICARE "may cost share only medically or psychologically necessary services or supplies. Forensic examinations are not conducted for medical treatment purposes, but for the preservation of evidence in any future criminal investigation and/or prosecution."

The decision to treat rape kits as purely evidentiary, ignoring the very real medical and psychological benefits to the victim, is reprehensibly primitive thinking. Making sure that those legislative changes happen as planned would be a long overdue step out of the primal ooze that has slimed our military in the eyes of our citizens and the world.

Disgusting.

This is just so unbelievably disturbing. A new Japanese augmented reality (AR) software program features a "virtual girlfriend" that literally allows you to hit her with a paddle her until she cries.

All she seems to do is sweep the floor until you undress and paddle her until she cries herself into a fetal position, in which then you give her a teddy bear so she'll become happy again.

(Possible trigger warning)

This isn't a virtual girlfriend at all; this is a virtual torture victim.

h/t to reader Trish

(Trigger warning.) Last week, Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow, a 13-year-old Somali girl was stoned to death by insurgents because she was raped. They called it adultery.

"Reports indicate that she had been raped by three men while traveling on foot to visit her grandmother in the war-torn capital, Mogadishu," Unicef, the United Nations children's agency, said in a statement.

"Following the assault, she sought protection from the authorities, who then accused her of adultery and sentenced her to death," Unicef added. "A child was victimized twice -- first by the perpetrators of the rape and then by those responsible for administering justice."

As if that wasn't terrible enough, she was killed by 50 men who buried her up to her neck and pelted her with rocks until she died. In a stadium in front of 1,000 spectators. The details of this crime are just wrenching. At least some in the crowd tried to stop it:

Inside the stadium, militia members opened fire when some of the witnesses to the killing attempted to save her life, and shot dead a boy who was a bystander.

Cara at the Curvature and Tracy at Broadsheet have more. Cara writes,

But in the end, whether she was killed because of a rape, because of consensual sex, or because of sexual contact neither consensual or non-consensual because it was entirely imagined, it's not the point. To emphasize that Asha was murdered because she was raped, and that's why her death is a tragedy is to suggest that it would be less tragic if she actually had committed consensual adultery.

Asha's life was taken from her, quite simply, because she was a woman.

The Global Campaign to Stop Killing and Stoning Women has a letter-writing action:

You can write a letter to the representatives of Somalia, the African Union, and various UN human rights offices to encourage them to take action by investigating this murder, bringing the perpetrators to justice, and denouncing the actions of these insurgents.

None of Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow's killers have been arrested.

Olbermann calls out support for Prop 8 and it is damn good. Watch it.

Full transcript here.

Sorry for the day late post, folks. Will you stop sending me angry "where is Monty?!" emails now? :)

When we're upstate in Woodstock, there's nothing Monty likes better than to get filthy playing with his brother Banjo. Unfortunately, when it comes to water-fetch, Monty is a stealing little shit.

Awesome:

In Silverton, the sleepy Salem, Oregon suburb 40 minutes outside of Portland best known for its lush Oregon Garden and quaint antique shops, the small town's new mayor-elect is poised to get some major attention in the days and weeks ahead as people come around to realize we've got another Oregon first on our hands: the recently elected [Stu] Rasmussen is the first openly gender fluid, transgender-identified mayor of any American city.

Check out the whole article, which includes a short Q&A with Stu. Maybe I'm the only one, but it felt pretty good to read this nugget of post-election good news on the LGBTQ front.

via Bust.

This Veteran's Day I am remembering one of the thousands of women who served.

Pfc. LaVena Johnson was killed on July 19, 2005 in Iraq.

The cause of her death is still being questioned.

Her murder and the lack of information about it touch more than just those of us from her hometown.

As the nation pauses in remembrance this Veteran's Day let us not forget.

In our excitement over the hope inspired by our recent election...may we not lose sight of the questions still in need of answers.

And even in our sleep pain that cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, and in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom to us by the awful grace of God.
Aeschylus

For more information about Pfc. Johnson and the investigation into her death visit LavenaJohnson.com.

Pam lets us know about a new anti-choice organization that's sprouted out of attempts to define fertilized eggs as people.

Apparently the defeat of the Colorado amendment made anti-choicers think it would be a fantastic idea to take their failed state initiative nationwide.

A new pro-life organization, Personhood USA, plans to assist local pro-life groups in different states to put personhood amendments on their states ballot by using the petition process.

The 17 States that allow citizens to place constitutional amendments on ballots will be the target states. Personhood USA will also help with opinion petitions to encourage politicians to run personhood amendments in other states. During the Colorado Personhood campaign, organizers were contacted by individuals in many different states with excitement and the desire to start personhood efforts in their own state.

"Praise Jesus! The pro-life tide is rising in America, now is the time for the entire pro-life movement to turn the focus off from permitting murder but attempting to 'regulate' it, to pushing for the recognition of the God given right to life for all innocent persons. Persons are humans beings from the moment of fertilization." Cal Zastrow, Co-Founder of Personhood USA.

Um...yeah. Good luck with all that. Perhaps a creepy video will help...

PUSA Promo (Web) from Endfallow on Vimeo.

Ladies, did you know that your uterus is shaped like AMERICA? Yeah, I didn't either. I'd write more about the pathetic attempts by anti-choicers to limit women's reproductive freedoms, but my Texas is cramping like a mofo.

P.S. This is what a fertilized egg looks like. Yeah.

Amie Newman at RH Reality Check has a must-read post up about what a new administration (this was written before Obama's win) needs to focus on in terms of women's reproductive health and justice. Check it out.

I got a bunch of emails from readers about a recent episode of The Office that contained what all agreed was a non-funny joke about rape (though there's never really a funny rape joke, is there?). I hadn't seen the episode and couldn't find it anywhere - luckily, one of my students at Rutgers was kind enough to send it my way.

I generally really love The Office and think that its jokes - even on subjects like race and sexuality - are generally pretty smart and progressive. But I hated this. Thoughts?

Thanks to Alissa for the vid.

Pic from Grant Neufeld.

There's a great article in Minnesota's Star Tribune about college activists' attempts to focus sexual assault training and education on men.

Instead of teaching women not to walk alone at night or to carry Mace, some colleges are trying something much harder -- changing college men.

..."The fact of the matter is that prevention comes down to, largely, males. Because males are primarily the ones perpetrating these crimes," said Lauren Pilnick, sexual violence education coordinator at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

The piece also tells the story of Tyler Jones, a senior at the University of Minnesota who went through sexual assault prevention training and found himself using that education in a barroom exchange:

"Hey, see that girl over there?" Jones recalled an acquaintance asking, nodding toward a woman he wanted to take home. "She's almost drunk. Not quite drunk enough. ... What shot should I buy her?"

There was a time, Jones says, when he might have laughed off the remark. Not anymore.

"You want to buy her something really strong to like, basically knock her out?" Jones, a University of Minnesota senior, recalled saying. "Man, that's not right. That's rape. That's sexual assault."

The acquaintance looked stunned. "Whatever," he mumbled, and walked away.

I think moments like these are incredibly important: Having men name assault, and calling it what it is to their peers - especially in a culture that so often puts the focus of sexual assault prevention on women.

You know I can't resist anything Maddow related.

Thanks to Heather for the link.

Ann mentioned in the Weekly Feminist Reader that President Elect Barack Obama's transition team has compiled a list of Bush administration actions that can be undone quickly - and that the Global Gag Rule is one of them.

...The new president is also expected to lift a so-called global gag rule barring international family planning groups that receive U.S. aid from counseling women about the availability of abortion, even in countries where the procedure is legal, said Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

I just wanted to give this news item its own post, because - woo hoo! The Global Gag Rule, which was reinstated by President Bush on his first day in office, prohibits any international organization that receives U.S. funds from counseling women on abortion as an option, providing referrals, or discussing the dangers of unsafe abortions - even if the organization uses its own money to do so. The impact of the mandate has been deadly for women worldwide. About 70,000 women die every year from unsafe or illegal abortions - a number that could be significantly lowered by access to information and sexual health care.

So the importance of Obama potentially overturning the Global Gag Rule can't be overstated - women's lives are depending on it.

We rejected smears and race-baiting and Muslim-baiting and desperation. We rejected so much history and so many rules that have bound us to the way things have been and are supposed to be. We rejected fear. Most importantly, we rejected fear.

Despite the beliefs of certain cable-news talking heads, white privilege is, uh, still around.

Latoya rounds up some good links on the Prop 8 fallout.

New Hampshire just became the first state to have a majority of women in the legislature!

Veronica Arreola on Larry Summers topping the short-list for Treasury secretary under Obama. (Jill has more.)

Eliot Spitzer escapes prosecution for his involvement in a prostitution ring. (More thoughts from Bianca on the community blog, and from Figleaf.)

Echidne makes the case for why First Lady should be a paid job. Gina at Michelle Obama Watch has some related thoughts, and Dana also adds her two cents.

A voting-rights movement for the mentally ill is gaining ground.

One man's experience with taking his wife's last name. (via Renee)

Well-known anti-immigrant Sheriff (and all-around asshole) Joe Arpaio caused an incarcerated woman to lose her baby.

Beth Schapiro is a nationally recognized expert on political campaign strategy. With over 30 years of experience in the field, she has developed campaign strategies for successful candidates for all levels of office throughout the Southeast. She is particularly proud of her experience helping to elect several government officials who were the first of their race, gender, or sexual orientation to win a particular office.

Beth is President of The Schapiro Group, Inc. Here's Beth...

Cartoon by Mikhaela Reid.

Queers Without Borders reports that on the transition team's job page, the nondiscrimination page includes gender identity:

"The Obama-Biden Transition Project does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or any other basis of discrimination prohibited by law."

The Connecticut Employment Law Blog notes,

It's one thing to raise the issue in a platform. It's quite another to start implementing a change like this almost overnight. And this has significant ramifications for the entire Executive Branch once the new administration starts.

Nice.

New York City blog Gothamist reports that on election night, a teenager was beaten with bats in Staten Island:

17-year-old Ali Kamara, a black Muslim, was walking home on Staten Island Tuesday night after it was announced that Barack Obama was elected president when he was brutally assaulted by four white men. Kamara tells the Daily News: "I see the car coming. They looked at me and said, 'Obama!' They were not happy. They had hoodies on. They started hitting me with bats and my body started vibrating." Luckily, Kamara was able to break away and hide until the thugs left; his mother, who moved with Ali to Staten Island from Liberia in 2000, showed the News a bloody towel she used to staunch his wounds.

The NYPD's Hate Crime Task Force is investigating the attack as a bias crime.

Don't miss these pictures. I don't know that my tear ducts can take much more...

Richard Kim at The Nation has a great article up up about why Proposition 8 passed in California - specifically, he battles back against the notion that people of color are responsible for the conservative win.

Thousands in LA protest Prop 8. Pic via Lesbian Dad.

The passage of Proposition 8, which will amend California's constitution to define marriage as between a man and a woman, was a devastating loss.

Thousands of protesters took to the street on Wednesday night, and over a thousand protested outside of a Mormon temple yesterday afternoon - the Mormon Church bankrolled a big portion of the proposition's campaign.

For more, see The Advocate for videos of Wednesday night's protest.

In related news, AMERICAblog reports that famed attorney Gloria Allred will file a lawsuit against Proposition 8:

Attorney Gloria Allred and her clients, Robin Tyler and Diane Olson, will hold a news conference today November 5, 2008 at 12:00 noon at 6300 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1500 L.A. to announce a new lawsuit against Prop. 8. Prop. 8 intended to ban same gender marriages in California.

Ms. Allred and her law firm represented the couple in their victory before the California Supreme Court. Her clients became the first to marry in Los Angeles County in June.

It's so depressing that the same country that elected Obama could be so unbelievably hateful towards gay Americans. But I think Pam says it best:

If victories make us complacent, it is our defeats that rally us to a new level of community and activism. We stood up after mortal blows from Anita Bryant pushing her anti-gay vitriol in Florida. We rallied to the bedside of Matthew Shephard in his family's time of tribulation. More recently, we re-committed our vows to protect our youngest members in the wake of the murder of Lawrence King by a fellow classmate. In the wake of the passage of Prop 8, we see now and will see another historic re-awakening of our community.

I've seen lots of videos of the election night celebrations, but this one from Jay Smooth is by far my favorite.

Yes we did!

Pic from :tiOn: wanna glitza*.

Courtney loves it. Rebecca Traister loves it. What does Sarah Haskins think?

Leah, a blogger at the college anti-feminist organization the Network of Enlightened Women, has the following gem of wisdom to share about Obama's win:

This certainly is a historic night and only time will tell if this is to be a historic night for change a new generation has been hoping for or a night of change the founders feared hundreds of years ago.

Um, for serious? That is fucked.

The Women's International Perspective, a young online news site, will be presenting a free event tonight that looks really fascinating. I'm out of town, so I can't go, but I can live vicariously. Details below:

What: Women as Social, Political and Economic Agents of Change

When: November 6th at 7:30pm

Where: Millbank Chapel, 525 W. 120th Street, New York, NY

Who: Monisha Bajaj, Leymah Roberta Gbowee, Gloriana Guillen, Nomi Prins

For more info.

If a speech were a book, then President Elect Barack Obama's acceptance speech Tuesday night would be a Pulitzer Prize winner. Here it is, in its entirety. Notice not just how exquisitely beautiful the language is, but how sprawling and grand the themes. It will be studies for decades to come as just how moving the written and spoken word can be:

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.

It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled  Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.

It's the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.

Women's involvement in sports incites "you go girl" enthusiasm from feminists round the globe. I don't blame them--the image of little ladies running around a soccer field, having fun, or high school athletes gaining a sense of community and tenacity by sweating up and down the basketball court is truly inspiring. I was a serious high school athelte (lacrosse and basketball) and some of my best memories of adolescence take place on the court or the field.

BUT, and this is a big BUT, there is an ugly story that often goes untold. Many young women involved in sports end up disordered--whether over-exercising or under-eating. It's not just in appearance-based sports, like ballet or gymnastics. While researching my book, I found that women involved in cross country running were among the most at risk. In one NCAA survey of college women athletes, 70% reported aspiring to lose their periods. That's not a sign of dedication to your sport, ladies, it's a sign of delusion. Menstruating is one of the first signals of a healthy female body at the college age.

The worst part is that so many coaches and trainers don't know a thing about these issues. Some are downright disasters. I was speaking on a college campus recently and had a couple of young women approach me from the volleyball team, complaining that their coach weighs every single member of the team every Monday. She substitutes the words "big" for unhealthy and "thin" for healthy, and chastises girls who gain weight for any reason. Not. O. Kay.

Sports have the potential to empower and energize us, but we must beware of crossing the line between dedication and disease.

I wrote recently about Zimbabwean nonviolent activist Jenni Williams. Well, she was just released from prison, along with other members of her group, after a three week incarceration for "public disorder." I have a feeling that all the international media attention Williams and her crew, WOZA, have recently been getting may be pressuring the High Court in Zim to come clean. Let's keep the pressure on!

There is lots of exciting coverage of how women voters played a huge role in this week's election. We went for the Democratic president-elect by 12 percentage points.

It's exciting for so many reasons. First and foremost, of course, is that we were able to assert ourselves as an indispensable demographic--once again. Young women, and single women, in particular, established their reputation for participation. Future candidates will know they have to appeal to our interests and values if they want to get elected.

But, in my opinion, it's also exciting for a more abstract reason. We were faced with a really difficult primary season--where the feminist community was essentially torn apart--and we emerged unified and mobilized. I'm so grateful to the Hillary Clinton supporters who were able to heal and get behind Barack Obama. And I'm infinitely grateful for the women voters who were able to look at Sarah Palin with the sobriety and critical perspective necessary to see through the "hockey mom" folksiness. She didn't deserve our vote, and for the most part, she didn't get it.

A few of the other gems:

(PS: To leave comments that the moderators can get to and other participants can interact with please use the mogulus chat function!)

Tonight for the day after the election feminist town forum! Get more info here and check back at 7pm EST as we will be hosting a live broadcast.

Image via.

Some post-election thoughts from 'round the Internets:

Renee Martin:

In my mind I saw a vision of the middle passage. I saw my ancestors chained together, surviving on menstrual blood and feces. I heard the cruel cry of the whip as it sailed through air, permanently scaring the bodies of my ancestors. I heard the weeping of my foremothers as they watched powerlessly as their children were sold away from them. On this night I saw the culmination of all of that suffering for millions of Americans and beyond, for all of us.

Megan Carpentier:

I was actually sort of fascinated last night, flipping channels, Juan Williams, Eugene Robinson and Roland Martin (Fox, MSNBC, and CNN, respectively) were all crying. I mean, these are men who, while not anchors, are literally quite close to the tops of their professions, and yet it took this to make them feel actually accepted, was the sense that I got. It was kind of amazing.

Latoya Peterson:

Who exactly is the mythical Joe Six Pack (or Joe the Plumber, for that matter)? What happened to the soccer moms, NASCAR dads, and hockey moms? For far too long, these shifting labels have masked the political identity of white voters, who have had the luxury of not having to deal with the issue of their race in past presidential elections. For the only ethnic group that was permitted to be split into unique demographics instead of a monolithic voting block, Obama changed the game forever.

As many of you did, I had a pretty incredible night last night. I watched the election results come in surrounded by the company of some amazing friends. We were a rowdy bunch, cheering and yelling as the early results came in. We even did a jello shot in honor of Ohio. But at 11pm EST, when we counted down the closing of the West Coast polls and Barack Obama was announced as the President Elect, there was a total hush over the room.

We were in awe, we were shocked and we were brought to tears. Half my friends had their hands over their gaping mouths. It took a few minutes for the celebration to return, but return it did.

We then took to the streets of DC where it seemed everyone was out and rallying. I'm not sure if I will ever in my life see again what I witnessed last night. Such jubilation, such energy, such camaraderie. It was a hugely diverse crowd of young people, people of color, men and women, many of whom had never before been so excited about a presidential candidate. When we finally went home around 2:30am, the party was still going strong in front of the White House and in the historic African-American U Street district.

It is definitely a bittersweet day with the news of the anti-gay ballot measure results mixed with the excitement of the Obama win, but change is definitely on the horizon.

Where were you when Barack Obama was elected president?

photo from superspade

Marcia Fudge, former chief of staff to Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, who was just elected to Jones' seat, the 11th District of Ohio.

It wasn't exactly a landslide, but some progress for women in politics this year:

U.S. Senate
When the 111th Congress convenes in January, 2009, 17 women (13D, 4R) will serve in the U.S. Senate, besting the previous record of 16 set in the 110th Congress. Four women (3D, 1R) won Senate elections this year, including 2 incumbents and 2 challengers. Newcomers Kay Hagan (D-NC) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) will join incumbent Susan Collins (R-ME), who was re-elected. Incumbent Elizabeth Dole (R-NC) lost her race to Hagan. Thirteen incumbent women did not face re-election.

U.S. House of Representatives
A total of at least 74 women (57D, 17R) will serve in the 111th Congress, setting a new all-time high. Ten new women (8D, 2R) will join the 64 incumbents (49D, 15R) who were re-elected, topping the previous record of 71 women set in 2007. The newcomers include 5 challengers (4D, 1R) who defeated incumbents and 5 winners of open seats (4D, 1R). Among the congresswomen will be 12 (12D) African-Americans, 7 (6D, 1R) Latinas, and 2 (2D) Asian-Americans. One race involving a woman candidate (Darcy Burner, D-WA) challenging an incumbent remains too close to call.

Governors
Beverly Perdue (D-NC) was the only new woman governor elected in 2008. She joins Christine Gregoire (D-WA), who was re-elected, as the only women to win gubernatorial races. With six incumbent women governors not facing election, the total number of women who will serve as governors in 2009 is 8 (5D, 3R), matching the number and party affiliations of the current women governors.

The Feministing editors are getting over last night's festivities and I'm on my way to Ramapo College to speak, so things may be a little slow here this morning. So talk it up in comments in the meantime...how is everyone feeling?!

Also a reminder that the awesome event we plugged earlier this week, The Day After: A Feminist Town Forum, has switched locations for those of you attending in person in Boston. The new venue is:

LESLEY UNIVERSITY AMPITHEATER
1815 Mass. Ave in Cambridge

And of course, those of you who can't make it in person, check the Feministing homepage at 7pm EST tonight to follow the conversation virtually.

Not to rain on anyone's post-election parade, but the news on gay-rights related ballot initiatives is really grim. I'll admit that, seeing these results, it rings a little false for me that this election was supposedly all about hope and change, for all Americans. (I know I am being a bit melodramatic given Obama's landslide victory, but somehow that made this news even harder to take.) I was, however, thrilled to see the news that every radical anti-choice initiative failed.

As an update to my pre-election ballot initiatives post, here are the results: 

ANTI-GAY

Proposition 8 in California: Passed. This is such a crushing loss. I went to bed last night before the final results were in, and woke up to the news that the people of California actually approved the gay marriage ban. So devastating.

Amendment 2 in Florida: Passed. Yet another gay marriage ban. 

Proposition 102 in Arizona: Passed. As Dana noted previously, "Arizona became the first state in the nation to reject an anti-gay marriage amendment in 2006, but they're likely to pass the measure this year, now that it has been stripped of language that also denied domestic partnership benefits to hetero couples." Looks like that was the magic change to make bigotry palatable to Arizona voters.

Act 1 in Arkansas: Passed. Now gay couples are unable to adopt or foster-parent children. This from a state with 3700 children in the foster-care system, and only 1000 foster homes. Disgusting.

Question 1 in Connecticut: Failed! Lindsay at Female Impersonator explained earlier that this initiative would have allowed the state constitution to be changed -- essentially clearing the way for anti-gay and anti-choice amendments to be tacked onto it. Glad it didn't pass.

Amendment 48 in Colorado: Failed! By huge margins -- 73% voted against granting fertilized eggs full rights. I'm so glad voters saw this amendment for the radical piece of garbage it was.

Measure 11 in South Dakota: Failed! Voters rejected another radical abortion ban. 

Proposition 4 in California: Failed! Voters said no to a parental-notification requirement.

Measure 58 in Oregon: Failed! As Alas, a Blog summarized, it would have mandated "that school districts limit foreign-language instruction for non-English-speaking students to one or two years, depending on their age."

Amendment 46 in Colorado: They aren't calling this for either side yet -- it's neck-and-neck, with the "yes" side slightly ahead, unfortunately. The initiative would ban programs that work to eliminate the gaps between white dudes and everyone else. Let's hope the final reporting precincts swing the balance to "NO."

Initiative 424 in Nebraska: Passed. Voters said they're ok with re-writing the state constitution to eliminate equal-opportunity programs. Sigh.

I have never worked as hard on as many campaigns as I did in this election cycle...

...and, as I type this up, my home state of Missouri has yet to call a lot of them.

Some things never change.

But others?

Oh yes, they can (wink)!

I wish my beloved Grandmother had lived long enough to witness this. Oh how I wish that she who cast her first vote with courage and under the threat of hate filled violence in Mississippi had cast a ballot yesterday.

I wish so very much that my Father, who taught me to love politics and speak truth to power, was alive to share this moment...to speculate over the cabinet...and to debate the historical and social significance of America electing our first president of color.

But history is often bitter sweet because many of those whose work made it possible are not here to harvest the fruits of their labor.

Even as I struggle to put into words the emotion of this moment it is to generations long past that I am drawn.

To the women who organized then and now...who created the techniques that were applied so brilliantly in 2008.

To the brave people who sat when told to stand...who marched when warned to stand home...that spoke when cautioned to be silent...and to those who gave their lives to the cause of social justice.

And I am humbled that I watched the history of their creation last night.

Now, we begin.

Peace was not achieved last night.

Equality does not rain down upon the land.

The mountaintop remains on the horizon...and it is up to we the people to continue the climb.

So I shall cherish this moment and rest my tired ass feet for a spell, for we have miles upon miles yet to walk...

...and the audacity of hope to empower us.

Obama wins! OMFG! I don't know that I ever thought I'd write these words, but here it is: The US has elected its first African-American President. And I'm an emotional mess. Like many of you, I'm celebrating with family. I'm sure I'll have more to say tomorrow, but for now, I'm going to go do a happy dance and cry some more with my nearest and dearest.

In the meantime, let us have it in comments!

MSNBC and others are reporting that the proposed abortion ban in South Dakota has failed. Woot!

Make sure to send your thanks to Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and the South Dakota Campaign for Healthy Families!

Rebecca Traister brings us this great video of kids voting - it's cute, it's heart-warming, and it takes away some of my election night jitters.

Jeanne Shaheen, who looks likely to win her Senate race in New Hampshire

When we talk about women in politics, it's important to look down the pipeline. Political leaders don't start their careers as presidential nominees -- they work their way up after being elected to Congress, as governor, or to the state legislature. So to figure out the immediate future for women in U.S. politics, we have to look down the ticket.

The polls say this could be a landslide election for Democrats. But will it be a landslide election for women? Here's the breakdown:

Ok kids, tonight's the night, and we'll be here live-chatting as the results roll in. Check back around 7pm, when the festivities are slated to begin...

A quick note: Unlike our previous live chats, this time we won't be accepting comments in the chat window itself. Because we've had over 300 participants in previous chats, many commenters were shut out all together after we maxed out the software's limit. Several hundred commenters are also a LOT to keep up with -- both for editors and for readers-- and because we plan to keep the chat running well into the night (not just for two hours, like the debates), we thought it better to keep the chat just among the Feministing editors. The comments section on the post will be wide open, however, so everyone will still have a forum. Hope y'all understand.

I am assuming you are all as nervous as I am right now. To cheer you up, I thought I would share this really funny video of people reacting to things that McCain has said to really highlight how ridiculous his campaign has been.

Well, it will either make you laugh or cry.

My take on the Gossip Girl OMG ad campaign, for purposes of this blog post.

Time for a little break in the onslaught of election news and voting tales... This recent article in the Washington Post is basically fundie-bait:

Teenagers who watch a lot of television featuring flirting, necking, discussion of sex and sex scenes are much more likely than their peers to get pregnant or get a partner pregnant, according to the first study to directly link steamy programming to teen pregnancy.

Ok, try to stop laughing over the fact that the Post uses the term "necking." Moving on...

The study, which tracked more than 700 12-to-17-year-olds for three years, found that those who viewed the most sexual content on TV were about twice as likely to be involved in a pregnancy as those who saw the least.

When a study finds two things are "linked," that doesn't necessarily mean one causes the other. Maybe kids who watch more sexy TV have less parental supervision, as Matt at Pushback suggests, and therefore get it on more. But regardless of the study's merits, the abstinence-only-until-hetero-marriage crowd is up in arms, and ready to push their agenda.

I live in a predominantly black neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY--full of Caribbean food joints, barber shops and hair salons filled with folks late Friday night, and a lot of amazing older women who hobble around with their silver hair and wrinkled faces with all sorts of stories behind their eyes. It's a friendly place, a place where old dudes sit around in chairs on the sidewalk and shoot the shit, people smile at one another or don't (no hard feelings either way), a place where teenagers sometimes get riled up and shout on the streets, leaving candy wrappers and the sound of their ring tones behind like hip hop Hansels and Gretels.

As I walked to my polling place today, I took a look around and had to fight off tears about what this election means--not just to me--but to my neighborhood...the people who have lived her long before I did, the kids who grew up here, the folks who've grown old here. They were lined up 500 strong outside of P.S. 92 at 10:30 am. People drove by in vans and screamed, "OBAAAAAMA!" out the windows. Others called their friends from the line and said, "Get your ass down here man. It's crazy." People brought their kids--little three year olds in miniature Kangols and fat babies in strollers. People brought their grandmothers and grandfathers--sitting in wheelchairs, unmistakable pride on their faces as they rolled into the school to cast their ballots for the guy who might just be the first African American president in U.S. history.

Obama isn't the end of racism, but his potential impact on the way America sees and relates around race is unbelievably exciting. For the fat babies in strollers, he might just be a sign that they truly can aspire towards the highest office in the land. For the old women and men in wheelchairs, he might just signify that their struggle--at least in one small way--was worth it. For the first time voters, this could be the beginning of a commitment to citizen action. For the veteran voters, a renewal of faith.

Times do change.

This picture is from a series of very moving pictures that can be found here. This one was my favorite and has the captions: These two boys waited as a long line of adults greeted Senator Obama before a rally on Martin Luther King Day in Columbia, S.C. They never took their eyes off of him. Their grandmother told me, "Our young men have waited a long time to have someone to look up to, to make them believe Dr. King's words can be true for them." Jan. 21, 2008.

I have never been an overly patriotic person, maybe because I grew up in a South Asian household that dreamed of returning to India, but the role of the US military world-wide has always dampened any belief in the strength or character of the leaders of this "great" country. Despite growing up hearing, "well if you don't like it here, you can always go back to where you came from" more times than I would like to recall, I have always had a love hate relationship with this country that my parents decided to move to in the early 1970's. I claim a US citizenship, but have never felt like a real citizen as most of my life, no one has believed that I am. So yeah, it makes being patriotic for a country that doesn't really see you as part of it, difficult.

But despite my cynicism, I have always worked for the benefit of America, partly because that is the only kind of work available for liberal arts major, but also because I believe in the importance of civic duty. I was a school teacher in some of the most underfunded schools in America that are failing from neglect and racism, I have worked in non-profits and now I am a political writer. Despite my cynicism, like many Americans, I was still committed to making this country a better place. But as a result of the Bush Administrations regressive policies, irrelevant of my commitment to the public sector, I am in debt, I have no money to invest or buy a house or even think about raising a family and, oh yeah, I don't have health insurance. My country has betrayed me.

I voted for Barack Obama because all of these issues are ones that he has talked about and I believe he will change or affect in some capacity that will reinstall the good that comes out of civic minded work. I don't want to regret that I went to college, I don't want to be hateful that I worked for a public school district and I don't want to go into debt if goddess forbid something happens to me or a loved one and we don't have health insurance.

The American dream is bullshit and a ploy to ignore the actual conditions and struggles of people's lives in this country. My parents came to this country for a better life and we have lived a life of struggle and that struggle continues as my parents retire with no savings and limited social security. But even my cynical father said to me last week inspired, I am willing to give Barack Obama a chance because he on some level sees me and understands the struggle of immigrants. The election of Barack Obama will not be the end of our struggle for equitable rights for the people of color and immigrants in this country, but I do believe he is a step in the right direction.

I voted for Obama because I agree with his stance on reproductive justice and will fight to protect my right to choose, I think he will work to get people like me health insurance, I believe that he will fight for me to keep more money in my pocket and most importantly because he wants to begin to talk about stopping the illegal and expensive war in Iraq. I am also voting for Barack Obama because as a person of color in this country, I have never believed or felt that I belonged and I have watched young people of color through my work as a teacher never believe they have a shot. Is Obama's presidency going to all of a sudden solve racism in inner city and rural America? Probably not, but it will be much more effective working to hold someone accountable that at least on some level can understand where you are coming from. I, like many others, am not voting for Barack Obama simply because he is black, but it does mean something different and special to me, to my community, to my friends and to my students. I am still not feeling amazingly patriotic, we have a long way to go, and even writing this post is making me feel a little nauseous (where did radical anti-establishment Samhita go???), but I do think we have the chance to move this country in a better direction. At least I hope so.

There are many frightening propositions on the CA ballot that we have covered , specifically prop 8 and prop 4. We already know how you are voting on them. Instead of give a full voter guide, which Ann did already, I want to just shed some light on a proposition that will truly harm the young people of California and is a racist and seriously detrimental piece of legislation, CA Proposition 6.

Proposition 6 Facts

"Worst of the Worst"

1) Drops the age to 14 that a child can be tried as an adult

2) California already spends four times as much $ per prisoner as it does per public school student, prop 6 moves millions of $ away from schools and into prisons

3) Creates over 50 changes in law with redundant spending and duplicated bureaucracy

4) Explicitly removes community representatives from juvenile justice coordinating councils so affected communities have no ability to bring a voice to the table

5) Mandates yearly criminal background checks on everyone living in Section 8 public housing and removes the 30 day eviction notice requirement, destabilizing communities through forced evictions

Prisons are a feminist issue as we have written about before. Please vote no on prop 6! Go here for more info.

Like many of you, I voted for this first time ever (in person) today. It was pretty damn exciting, especially after all the build up over the last few years. I have to admit I wasn't on the Obama train until pretty late in the game, but as Dana Goldstein says, he's a pretty inspirational guy.

With all the hysteria about long waiting lines at the polls I was pretty apprehensive when I strolled in this morning around 8:45am. But good karma was with me because before I could even get to the back of the HUGE line I was led to the front by a woman who said my last name meant I could wait in a short line. I was in and out within 20 minutes.

I voted in Washington DC and I have to say I was surprised to see Ralph Nader on the ballot. I honestly didn't even know he was running again, which maybe is a good thing. I was kind of nervous, which is maybe why I accidentally filled in the arrow for Nader! No worries though, I was able to turn in my "spoiled" ballot and fill in a new one with the right choice.

I have to say I felt pretty proud on my way to work with my "I voted" sticker.

What's your voting story?

PS Something fun for your election watching this evening (thanks to Veronica for the link)

From Ironed Jaw Angels:

After all the ups and downs and nail-biting primary nights and crazy-making debates and smear campaigns and oppression olympics, I know I can't be the only one who needs a little mental break until results start rolling in tonight.

So take a breather. Here are some pictures I've seen this week that really made me feel inspired about this election:

via Melissa's awesome roundup, Girls 4 Obama

Ditto

A woman stands in the rain at an Obama rally in Chester, PA. via JJP

via Jezebel

Say what you will about the actual events and outcomes, but I have to say that, as a feminist, this was a pretty damn fascinating election to observe and participate in. But I am admittedly relieved it's almost over.

Oh, and if you haven't already, GO VOTE.

So while we wait in anticipation for tomorrow to arrive, we wanted to get some of your thoughts on what you're expecting from the next presidency.

Considering all the damage the Bush administration has done to women's rights for nearly a decade, what issue(s) do you think should be the new administration's priority?

We've posted on this before, but it's a good reminder to vote no on Prop 8. This is a video of San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders talking about his change of heart on legislation supporting gay marriage. It's pretty emotional stuff.

Transcript after the jump.

We damn well deserve it.

While many of you probably already know that Ben and Jerry's is giving away free ice cream tomorrow, prepare for an even bigger treat.

The fabulous sex toy store Babeland is planning to give away free silver bullets and sleeves to folks who come to New York or Seattle locations with voter registration card, voting stub, or word of honor. The giveaway love starts tomorrow and lasts all week long.

And what better during the insanity than a little self-indulgence? Add any other events/giveaways around the election in comments!

I know we're all deeply, deeply caught up in the presidential race, but I want to take a moment and highlight the fact that a lot of ballot measures are going to be voted on tomorrow, too. Most are anti-gay, anti-choice, anti-immigrant. Basically, the ballot-initiative process allows voters in certain states to directly pass measures, bypassing the legislature. Miriam already linked to a great voter guide, and my colleague Dana Goldstein highlighted several initiatives to watch.

These measures are all important because, at a time when America seems likely to elect the most liberal president of my lifetime (not that that's saying much...) and there is an overall feeling of hope, the motivations behind these initiatives are truly backwards and bigoted. As Katha Pollitt put it recently, "The culture war may fail at the top of the ticket, but it still has enough juice to do damage further down."

Here's my own list of what to watch tomorrow, down the ticket. The way states vote on these measures will say as much about our country as whether or not we elect our first black president.

All he needs is a an evil mustache and the baby carriage tied to the tracks.

Apparently, the Susan B. Anthony List (basically the antithesis of the fabulous Emily's List) have been sending out over a half-million these mailers to anti-choice supporters in Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, and Colorado.

I love how they say "vote for a team that values life" when Palin recently expressed her support (and her belief of John McCain's support) for the Republican Party Platform's anti-choice principles, which seek a constitutional amendment banning all abortion with no exceptions in cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the woman.

How 'bout that.

I know it seems impossible to think about after the election... but the Center for New Words is hosting an awesome post-election event on Wednesday:

 
The Day After: A Feminist Town Forum
Wednesday, November 5 @ 7:00PM

PARTICIPATE IN PERSON: Cambridge Family YMCA, 820 Mass. Ave., Cambridge

PARTICIPATE ONLINE IN REAL TIME: Participate by logging on 11/5 at 7PM EST to any of our participating blogs, including Feministe, Feministing, Girl with Pen, WIMN's Voices, No Cookies for Me, Writes Like She Talks, Heartfeldt Politics, TakePart, or at our mogulus channel.

It's been a long election season, and now it's time to come together to figure out what it all means and what's next.

At this culmination of our This Is What Women Want election project, please join us, our panel of national leaders and the feminist community nationwide to discuss what happened on Election Day, and what we should be thinking about and doing now to fight for equality and justice for all.

This is a first of its kind event convening feminists from around the country live via the blogosphere! Watch live, converse with other audience members around the country and submit your comments and questions in real time.

Panelists will include:

BYLLYE AVERY: Founder of the National Black Women's Health Project and MacArthur Genius Award Recipient

MICHELLE GOLDBERG: Journalist and author of Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism

ANNE ELIZABETH MOORE: Critic, activist, artist, journalist and author

PAULA RAYMAN: Founding Director of the Radcliffe Public Policy Center

LORETTA ROSS: National Coordinator, SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective

ANDREA BATISTA SCHLESINGER: Executive Director, Drum Major Institute for Public Policy

Come optimistic, disgruntled, angry, or just exhausted. Come in person or online. But come. We need to hear every voice and idea!

(Facebook users: Click here to RSVP and invite your friends!)

If you're not in Boston, you'll be able to follow the conversation here at Feministing. Just load up our site on Wednesday at 7pm, and you'll be a virtual part of the town hall.

We couldn't not post this, considering tomorrow is the big day. (And Jessica said it made her ovaries hum.)

Who would want to let these adorable babies down??

Just two days before the election, every single guest on the Sunday political talk shows is a man.

The first female judge was appointed to a Palestinian religious court.

We've discussed Biden and the Violence Against Women Act before, but RH Reality Check has more on his efforts to pass an International VAWA.

On a related note, men's rights groups are upset about a series of anti-domestic-violence ads in Dallas.

Check out and submit to the Transgender Carnival, which now has a permanent website home.

Women with disabilities are more likely to be victims of intimate partner violence.

As series of anti-domestic violence ads in Dallas have the men's rights crowd all riled up.

Rebecca Traister on women in nightly news.

JC Penney apparently doesn't do "black hair." WTF?!

Kay has a historical perspective on same-sex marriage.

A mailer from Bed, Bath and Beyond essentially promotes eating disorders.

Boston Magazine has a long feature about the lives of teenage girls in Gloucester, MA, and goes beyond the "pregnancy pact" label affixed by the media. (via)

I'm not sure how to reconcile the news that the Democratic party is running a high number of anti-choice candidates this year with the news that pro-choice messaging is also prevalent in this election...

Obama goes on the record against Prop 8 in California.

Jill has even more links.

Actions and Events

Take the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force's discrimination survey.

Nov. 14: Feminism and bioethics conference in New York.

What have you all been reading/writing this week?

Today, our Jessica turns 30. We'll have a little something special for her (and you all) tomorrow, but for now - Happy Happy Birthday, Jessica!

What can we say about this incredibly inspiring, intelligent, and hilarious feminist that hasn't already been said? One thing is for sure, finishing three books before you reach the age of thirty is a damn big accomplishment. And we are all so, so proud of her.

Send her birthday wishes in comments. Happy birthday, sis. Love you!