feminist blogs

TAPPED is doing a week long series on awesome, feminist organizations working on critical, domestic issues--spurred by my column this week on the need to balance domestic and international activism. Check it out.

Controversy in India over a proposed quota for female lawmakers.

Over at the Frisky, they've got the scoop on a preschool that has refused a student admissions based on gay parents. Damn it, Colorado.

I sensed some tension between Mo'Nique and Barbara Walters during Walters' annual Academy Awards interview special. Mo'Nique, continuing in her trend of badassery, unabashedly talked about her open relationship, hairy legs, and incest experience.

The magazine that made your mom a feminist, Ms. of course, is now in blog form.

She's got the unsexist job on the planet, in many ways, but damn if she isn't trying to make the best of it and save the American economy in the process. Check out this excerpt from her interview with Guernica:

I think partly that I always had my neck bowed, I was always going to do something else. When we were able to pick an elective in junior high school and all the girls picked drama, I, of course, had to pick debate. I said I was going to take physics, you know, just because. So, there was a little bit of the "just because," and it was a moment when Gloria Steinem was out there talking. Did I think I was going to be one of those "women's libbers"? Heavens, no. I wanted children, I wanted a family, and I somehow thought those were either/or choices. And yet, I also wanted to do things.

Sometimes it really feels like this is the extent of some people's understanding of the importance of reclaiming women's history, doesn't it?

Please put up the transcript in comments if you've got the time!

I was just speaking at Ohio University and found out about a blog on campus that two women started which is designed to be a discussion forum for hook-ups. Students anonymously post their torrid tales of drug and alcohol-infused sexual encounters. As you might imagine, the posts have gotten pretty ugly and incredibly sexist, in part because of the categories, which include descriptors like "coyote ugly."

This is, as many might remember, akin to Juicy Campus, shut down in February 2009 because of legal issues.

I understand the impulse to create these sites and participate in them. In a culture that stigmatizes hook-ups, especially for women, online sites feel like a safe place to talk about some of what actually goes on in dorm rooms across America. Unfortunately, what could be a safe place to talk frankly about sexual exploration, often ends up replicating a bunch of sexist norms that exist in the off line world already.

In light of the recent controversy surrounding Rachel Simmons' post on hook-up culture, I'm reminded why these kinds of blogs are so rampant and interesting. We are so hungry to talk out loud about hook up culture--both the sexually empowering parts and the totally sexist parts. We need a space where feminists can really delve into the complexity of this issue, without being labeled, writ large, traitors or female chauvinist pigs. The blog world serves some of that, but it seems like we're still searching for a more nuanced conversation.

I doubt these juicy campus type blogs are the place to do it, but is there a way to structure such a space that would lead to a real conversation about hook-up culture? Does anyone have experiences of these kinds of sites on their campuses? Is there any liberatory potential or do they all devolve into misogynistic free-for-alls where women's bodies, reputations, and very worth are ridiculed?

*Don't miss community poster Maya's super thoughtful take on hook up culture.

I was having dinner with someone the other night and she talked about a class assignment she'd had at her Catholic high school to design her ideal wedding. Students--men and women alike, thank God--had to pick a budget out of a hat and then price all the things they would want at their hypothetical weddings. In any case, it got me thinking about the ways in which our imaginations are so shaped by socialization, and more importantly, how our dreams create our future realities.

So here's your chance Feministing readers. You have one million dollars. Design your ideal feminist party...

To get your juices flowing, I'll tell you that mine would include Alicia Keys, Tina Turner, and Mary J. Blige doing a badass collabo, an all-night dance party, and some sort of philanthropic arm because, yeah, I can't possibly spend that much money on a one-night affair.

What would yours be?

Spoiler Alert: This is less a review than an analysis, so if you haven't read the book, I wouldn't read this post.

I was truly intrigued when a couple of feminist buddies emailed and asked if I'd read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, a book I'd also seen on both my mom and dad's nightstands over the holidays. They all claimed that one of the characters was a feminist heroines of sorts, and that the book, overall, had a surprisingly feminist bent.

I just finished this 600 page whopper and I feel conflicted. On the one hand, I can totally see how Lisbeth Salander--detective, hacker, and general badass--is basically a feminist avenger. She has so much power--tracking down information that other people can't get, punishing sexual predators and misogynists in unexpected and vicious ways, and not giving a shit about conventional femininity.

On the other hand--at least in this first book in the series--she doesn't seek very capable of getting her own emotional needs met or being authentic in relationships. She's obviously been through some real shit, so she's in a place of figuring out how to feel safe in the world, which leads to some seriously violent and escapist behavior. I don't blame her for this. It makes sense as a first step toward transformation, but I think her full realization as a feminist heroine would look different--less scared, less reactive, more emotionally courageous.

I also thought that it was interesting that the book has gotten so popular despite it's truly gruesome content. Altogether, the trilogy had sold more than 12 million copies worldwide. It was disturbing, and while I understand that it's a novel, and as such is technically imaginary, the horrific crimes described are the kinds of things that happen to women throughout the world. It's not a classic detective novel, in this way. There's obviously an underlying political and sociological analysis on the part of author Stieg Larsson, who died in 2004, but fought racism and right wing extremism throughout his life.

The Feminist Press is having their 40th anniversary party in New York on March 10th. If you're around, it's a do-not-miss extravaganza with all kinds of awesome feminists, including Toni Blackman, Karen Finley, and Justin Bond.

NOW has called for Paterson to step down.

The amazing Andrea Smith is going to be the keynote at this year's National Women's Studies Association meeting. So exciting. What's more? The deadline for presentation proposals has been extended to March 8th.

The French consider "tagging" domestic violence perpetrators.

Salon says: "Canada's women's hockey team has scored quite the controversy by daring to celebrate their win against the U.S. on Thursday by sipping beer, guzzling champagne and smoking cigars on the ice."

The California Assembly swears in its first gay speaker.

If you're in the DC-area this weekend, go check out "Solutions Through Film"--a film festival put on by Men Can Stop Rape that examines masculinity. Deets here.

Speaking of masculinity, Man Up is now looking for facilitator applications. Apply today.

It's been a little while since we shared some of our daily dose of anti-feminist upchuck, so I thought I'd throw a few your way.

The first is just an inquiry, really:

How goes the victim industry? Expressed lots of seething hatred and rage about males lately?

Thanks for asking, pal. The victim industry is booming thanks to the even more profligate perpetrator industry. If only we could figure out your Gobstopper recipe and take you down.

Another gem:

I read your article on the Stud/Slut theory. I find it to be a little flawed. I'm a male, and if there's a "male slut" we call him a "manwhore". Maybe you should look across the spectrum because religious individuals, such as Christians, don't split hairs with gender. If you're promiscuous you're a whoremonger. There ya go.

Oh, that article? Yeah, we were hoping that you would break it down for us mister man. No doubt the answer to double standards is just to ostracize everyone's sexuality. Guilt and shame always make for such great sex.

And this one comes from my own personal treasure trove of hate mail:

What did you major in, fisting?

I thought it was generous of this fella (who by the by, turns out to be a former candidate for Seattle city council) to believe I have the capacity to triple major--political science and sociology just weren't enough for this sexual deviant. I got a summa cum laude in...okay, I'll stop there. Too. many. jokes.

One of the activities we did as an ice breaker at our recent retreat was to talk about our very first concert on our own. Hilarity, as you might imagine, ensued. We thought we'd share some of the stories with you all...

Miriam - Alan Jackson and Deanna Carter, c. 1996, Raleigh, North Carolina
It's true, I grew up in the South! I went with a friend and her mom when I was in middle school. I can't say I was an Alan Jackson fan, but when Deanna Carter sang Strawberry Wine I was into it.

Ann - Cornershop and Gus Gus, c. 1997, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
I grew up in a small-ish town in Iowa where nationally known musical acts only play when their careers are long dead. Seeing live music meant driving several hours -- something my mom and dad were loathe to let me do. When I was a freshman in high school, I told my parents I was going to watch Hamlet (the longest movie I could think of) at a friend's house, and snuck off to Wisconsin to see the "Brimful of Asha" band (wow, um, yeah) and some random Icelandic act I had never heard of. I got in big trouble later.

Courtney-Smoking Groove Tour, 1998, Boulder, Colorado
As the Fugees were performing in a very small venue, a woman from the audience threw her bra up at the keyboard player. Lauryn Hill stopped singing and made everyone stop playing music, and then did a ridiculously amazing freestyle about how the girl needed to respect herself. I was stunned.

Lori-Musiq Soulchild/Mary J. Blige, c. 2002, Electric Factory, Philly, PA
At 16, my friend's recently acquired learner's permit enabled he and I to follow the neo-soul trail from S. Jersey to Philly Phil. Thoroughly wooed by the ridiculous r&b riffs, I'm pretty sure I cried tears of luv & joy at least twice between episodes of "Jusfriends" and "Soulstar". Afterwards, armed with the audacity only starstruck teenagers can conjure, my friend and I invented a story about winning a radio station contest to bust backstage and take a pic w the soulchild himself. To this day, I spell "musiq" with a Q.

Vanessa-Debbie Gibson Concert, c. 1989, New York
Sue me, I was 9. My cousin brought me and I was rocking the Debbie Gibson hat, leggings with a long shirt tied in a knot at the side -- the works. I begged my cousin to bring me to the front of the stage as hoards of girls my age and older were scrambling to get closer, my cousin lifted me up as Debbie reached down to greet her fans...and we touched hands. Electric Youth indeed.

Chloe: Avril Lavigne, February 2002, Sydney
I don't think I'll ever live this one down, music-wise. At the time, I was a huge Avril fan, convinced that, as the "anti-Britney," she was the greatest thing to happen to Girl Power since the Spice Girls. I went to the concert with my older sister and we jumped up and down like maniacs and screamed out the lyrics to all the songs. Do I still know them all? Stop asking questions.

Samhita-Ween, c. 1993, NYC
I was 15 and I was a nerd (as you can tell by the first band I went to see) and it was really exciting to be in NYC with just my friends at the age of 15!

Jos-The Polyphonic Spree, 2004, Boston
I needed a transition from the live music of my Christian fundamentalist upbringing, and this cult-y show certainly fit the bill. Two nights in a row.

And for vintage amusement:

Most of you have probably heard of Temple Grandin, noted autistic professor, writer, and inventor. Her work centers around psychological diversity and has so many implications. After all, if we're asking people to accept that there is no "normal" way of demonstrating gender identity or sexuality, then shouldn't we get hip to the idea that different ways of thinking and interacting with our world should also be seen as necessary diversity? This is her recent TED talk on "thinking in pictures":

I haven't seen the new movie starring Claire Danes, but I've actually heard fairly good things. Anyone have a chance to check it out? What did you think?

There's an interactive transcript here.