rabble.ca - Feminism

Introducing SlutTALK: Conversations on language and sexual violence

derrick — Fri, 25 May 2012 11:40:07 -0400

As a English student, I've often been inclined to defend the value of discussion as means of political and social change. Yet the numerous protests and uprisings that have swept the globe in the past year - from the Arab Spring, to Occupy Wall Street, to the current student strike in Québec - all seem to have powerfully illustrated that in many ways, the time for talking is over.

When governments and institutions do not respond to the needs of the people, we take to the streets. Slutwalk is no exception to this phenomenon.

I am a feminist and I am also a human being

The F Word Collective — Wed, 23 May 2012 19:17:42 -0400

I’m not sure if it came from Naomi Wolf’s critique of ‘victim feminism’ or if it’s simply another painful part of the backlash, designed as an attempt to further weaken and silence women’s voices and experiences, but somewhere in there we’ve managed to develop an understanding that to be feminist means you must be flawless.

Redefining beauty by putting health first

The F Word Collective — Tue, 22 May 2012 16:41:17 -0400

Lindsay Kite and Lexie Kite, 26-year-old identical twin sisters finishing their PhDs in Communication at the University of Utah, study representations of female bodies in popular media. Their website is Beauty Redefinied - spurned out of their passion for helping girls and women recognize and reject harmful messages about their bodies and what “beauty” means and looks like.

Solidarity in the streets: An interview with Judith Butler

derrick — Wed, 23 May 2012 09:57:29 -0400

Award-winning author and prolific feminist scholar Judith Butler will be speaking tomorrow night at the Vogue Theatre in Vancouver. Dr. Butler will be presenting a talk entitled 'A Politics of the Street' in which she will examine the different forms of public resistance, protests and their implications for contemporary politics.

The event, which is being presented by The Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies as part of their public forums for converging minds to explore freely, sold out 1100 tickets in just three hours.

Media and the new student movements

Why we should celebrate the real origins of Mother's Day

derrick — Tue, 08 May 2012 18:23:30 -0400

Across North America, Mother's Day is widely celebrated. Families pay tribute to women's contributions to the family with a nice meal, flowers, jewelry, clothing, even electronics. The National Retailers' Federation estimates that over $16 billion was spent in the U.S. last year to mark the day.

But the day did not begin as a day of consumerism to celebrate mothers' contributions to the home and family; once upon a time it was a day meant to celebrate their contributions to society.

A day rooted in social action

Is nude protest revolutionary?

The F Word Collective — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:14:05 -0400

Is going nude revolutionary within the context of feminism? Can women’s naked bodies present a challenge to patriarchal ideas and historic male control over female bodies and women’s sexuality? Is nude protest a radical way to draw attention to your cause? Or is it just exhibitionism? Does it merely replicate sexist ideas around the female body as a thing that exists for public consumption?

What I learned at the Feminist Porn Awards

rabble staff — Mon, 07 May 2012 15:29:01 -0400

In mid-April, Toronto was host to the 7th Annual Good for Her Feminist Porn Awards. The four-day event included a screening and discussion of Buck Angel's documentary, Sexing the Transman; a film night featuring the work of four feminist directors; the official awards gala hosted by Elvira Kurt; and a sex party to bring the whole thing to a highly appropriate finish.

Among the nominees and winners are films catering to the diverse tastes and pleasures of feminists and queers. After attending the awards, and mulling things over, here's some of what I think I've learned.

A lot of porn is bad, here's some that's not

Not Rex: Delivering the goods on #M312

rabble staff — Fri, 04 May 2012 12:27:58 -0400

A Con backbencher wants to pass a motion to debate the beginning of life. But Harpo swears, again, this isn't about reopening the abortion debate. But at least soon nobody will stop the trade in human ova and surrogacy!

Being anti-state does not equal being pro-freedom: Misogyny and the imagined 'Circle of Protection' in progressive communities

The F Word Collective — Fri, 04 May 2012 18:11:35 -0400

This post is not intended to be a blind celebration of the police. Let’s not pretend as though the police are not largely representative of white male power and authority. But that does not mean I am anti-criminalization or anti-state. As feminists and as women, we need the state on our side.

The science and art of defeating Motion 312

rabble staff — Fri, 04 May 2012 07:13:27 -0400

The pro-choice movement scored a significant victory last week in the Parliamentary debate over anti-choice Motion 312. It could prove to be a watershed moment, one that could end the abortion debate in Canada forever -- or at least until Christian fundamentalists stage an improbable coup and enslave Canadian women into a version of Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale.

Thirty things that will make you want to kill yourself whether or not you're 30, courtesy of Glamour

The F Word Collective — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 14:55:07 -0400

Hay ladies! Turning 30? Time to crawl into a hole and die.

That is, of course, unless you have a man, a sexy bra and tons of cash. That's right! Ever helpful, Glamour and Huffington Post have teamed up to squish women down, down, down just a little further and reinforce heterosexism and classism while they're at it.

The pro-choice poem I read last night

the regina mom — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 12:29:17 -0400

Preamble

Tonight I wear red in support of my feminist sisters,

the Radical Handmaids, who gathered today on Parliament Hill

in opposition to Motion 312 which re-opens the abortion debate

tomorrow afternoon in the House of Commons.

And I share this poem.

Birthing change

Once upon a time his blue eyes dazzled her

maiden dreams led her down dirt

roads, onto prairie trails, into abandoned

houses, churches, barns, unwittingly

preparing her for an entry that quivered her world,

sent her solo, pink-slipped, and with a growing belly

Radical Handmaids on Parliament Hill

the regina mom — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 11:06:58 -0400

Today, on Parliament Hill, the Radical Handmaids gather in opposition to Motion 312, the anti-choice motion that seeks to redefine when human life begins. The Motion will be debated in the House of Commons on Thursday. The Handmaids' action, based on Margaret Atwood's novel, The Handmaid's Tale, is sure to be an interesting one.

Sporting red garments and "Flying Nun" hats in an allusion to Margaret Atwood's classic novel The Handmaid’s Tale, the Handmaids are protesting Bill M-312 as a regressive attack on women.

It's a war on women

the regina mom — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 14:41:41 -0400

the regina mom collects links and writes blog posts. She had it in mind to do a series around abortion because Motion 312 will be debated in the House of Commons on Thursday. Not surprisingly, the links she's collected do in fact have to do with abortion. What has become exceedingly clear is that there is not only an attack on women's reproductive rights in North American, but one that is global.

Watch the rebroadcast. Reflecting realities: Women's rights in Sudan and Canada

rabble staff — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 13:40:32 -0400

Streamed live on April 23, 7:30 PM EST, watch the rebroadcast of the 2012 edition of the Inter Pares Speakers Series, as Asha El-Karib and Amanda Dale discuss the inspiration and the challenges of promoting peace and women's rights amidst violence and fundamentalism.

Part One

How a female athlete's body became a battleground for gender assumptions (again)

The F Word Collective — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 03:33:06 -0400

For those of you who follow women's basketball, you will have already heard of Brittney Griner. Though only 21 she has been making waves the past few years, most recently having received Associate Press' Player of the Year and the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. Like many elite level athletes, Griner possesses some unusual physical traits (think swimmer Micheal Phelps with his wingspan as long as 26 monarch butterflies lined up in a row… or more simply, 6'7"). Standing 6'8" tall, Griner wears a men's U.S. size 17 shoes.

All the abusive men I've known seemed super nice at first

The F Word Collective — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:33:05 -0400

It's true. I've known more than one abusive man in my day. Some I knew intimately and some were only acquaintances. You know, just friends of friends. Some men still think it's ok to maintain friendships with abusive men dontchaknow. At a certain point someone might accidentally let it slip that so-and-so, you know, that guy we party with, you know, maybe tormented or threatened or tried to strangle his girlfriend, and funny thing! I wouldn't want to hang out with those dudes anymore. How awkward for everyone. "Meghan, Meghan - we don't acknowledge those things." "Hey! Buddy never abused me so who knows, right? His girlfriend is probably lying about that abuse." If you don't see it with your own eyes you should just assume it isn't happening and go on with your life, yes?

#Resistmedia: How to create the media you want to see in the world

Battered Womens Support Services — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 13:17:03 -0400

From April 15 to 21, Prevention of Violence Against Women Week, guest blogger Joanna Chiu and guest videographer Camila Galdino, produce a series on resisting media representations as a way to prevent violence against girls and women.

Today, as I was walking down the street to write at my favorite coffee shop, I received the usual afternoon greetings from my neighbours: "Hey baby!" "Konichiwa!" "Ni hao! "Look at that ass!!"

As all Indigenous women and women of colour know, if sexism wasn't bad enough, we encounter racism on a daily basis as well-on the street, in the classroom, in the workplace, and in the media. (See the theory of intersectionality on how oppressions like racism, ageism and classism intersect.)

Survivors of violence face complex legal issues

redeye — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 20:24:18 -0400

Over half the women in Canada are survivors of violence. The vast majority of women who seek support services will also have to face legal battles. Angela Marie MacDougall talks about the kind of legal issues that women may have to negotiate. MacDougall is executive director of Battered Women's Support Services.

To find out more about Redeye, check out our website.

Violence sells? Time to say 'enough' to advertisers

Battered Womens Support Services — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 14:06:20 -0400

Before anyone had even heard of the show Jersey Shore, MTV leaked out a clip of Snooki (Nicole Polizzi) getting punched in a face by a man in a bar, and the clip went viral, prompting articles like "The Countdown to Snooki Getting Punched in the Face Is On!" (trigger warning for link).

The author of that article for Barstool Sports wrote:

Dancing with Identities: Inner Activist 5

Aalya — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 16:23:51 -0400

I've noticed my blogs about the Inner Activist training module "Building Conscious Use of Power" are getting longer and longer. For those of you who would rather explore the program for yourselves than watch my talking head, check out Inner Essentials, which is an online program offered by the same folks who are putting on this training. And honestly, they are not paying me to shill this program. I think it's a really good idea for those of us who are engaged in change work.

Nobody hates you because you're beautiful (they just hate you): On Samantha Brick and woman-hating

The F Word Collective — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 03:50:37 -0400

How many more times will we have to hear about how ALL WOMEN are horrible, insecure, jealous, other-lady-hating bitches? Probably at least a few more times.

In case you missed it a couple of weeks back, Samantha Brick, a lady who I'd never heard of until just now, but apparently is so beautiful that men give her booze and train tickets and stuff, wrote what is possibly the most entertaining article of all time, explaining that being the prettiest flower on the plane, in the bar, or in all of France isn't all it's cracked up to be.

How does she resist? Resisting media representations to end violence against women

Battered Womens Support Services — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 18:41:05 -0400

Like many students who were sexually assaulted in college, I didn't identify what had happened to me as sexual assault until after I graduated. That moment of realization happened when I was sitting at a lecture hall back at my alma mater, the University of British Columbia. I had just returned to Vancouver from New York City, where I had completed a magazine internship and observed the curiosities and arrogance in the world's media capital firsthand.

End the Ban: Adrian Lomaga

ProgressiveVoices — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 01:34:26 -0400

On this week's episode of Progressive Voices, Mcgill alumnus and lawyer Adrian Lomaga speaks to the blood ban on men who've had sex with other men, why the current policy is outdated and unscientific, blood donation trends in other countries, and the need for a change in policy in Canada.

Activist Toolkit Occupy roundup: The tools you'll need to #occupyspring

The Activist Toolkit — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 17:18:21 -0400

Occupy Wall Street is back this spring and with it, occupations of cities and towns across Canada are popping back up. Occupiers may have been busy working underground but now it's time to rise up and organize. The activist toolkit is going on a spring break but not without a bang. Here's a roundup of tools for occupiers to take you through the hiatus. Best of all, every tool and app featured is free.

Social media, apps and blogging have helped keep the movement alive. Now that protesters are organizing physical Occupy camps again, there are tons of new tech tools to help you organize.