Blog posts from January 2007
Single-sex carriages prompt sexist backlash
by Jess McCabe // 31 January 2007, 22:57
In an effort to provide women with a safe space away from gropers, Tokyo's subway has instituted single sex carriages. But, reports Mainichi Daily News, Japan's biggest selling men's magazine Shukan Post (2/9) has gone on a particularly misogynist...
Women being murdered and sold as 'ghost brides'
by Jess McCabe // 31 January 2007, 22:46
A gang has been buying women from their families, supposedly to sell them as 'wives', only to kill them because they are worth more as 'ghost brides'. Singapore's Electric New Paper reports that Yang Donghai and two other men have...
Rape victim jailed, denied morning after pill
by Jess McCabe // 31 January 2007, 22:33
A Florida woman was sent to jail and denied access to emergency contraception after reporting a rape to local police. FOX 13 reports that police officers initially took her to hospital and began processing her case. But a background check...
Perks to being in female minority, says gamer
by Jess McCabe // 31 January 2007, 16:55
Sometimes, being the lone woman - or one of a small minority - in a male dominated field like game development has benefits, says Michelle Clay over at WomanGamers.com. It’s like a sneaky little superpower, and I got it just...
Pillow fight!
by Jess McCabe // 30 January 2007, 20:23
It is not often that sports truly appeal to me, but I can safely say that pillow fighting does. Steven Wells over at the Guardian sports blog says: In December 2004 the competitive pillowfighting concept was tested at a Toronto...
Blair sees light on Catholic adoption row
by Jess McCabe // 29 January 2007, 19:27
Tony Blair has said that Catholic adoption agencies will not be allowed to discriminate against gay potential adopters. The Guardian reports that the Prime Minister has said agencies will have until 2008 to put the law - which bans discrimination...
Wife still equals mother for many
by Jess McCabe // 29 January 2007, 19:13
Charlie Brooker, the irreverent and hilarious Guardian TV critic, is not in search of a wife. But, he reports in a column today, everyone else thinks he should get one, to sew his buttons on, keep him tidy, organise his...
Japan's health minister calls women baby machines
by Jess McCabe // 28 January 2007, 20:22
Japan's health minister called women "birth-giving" machines, during a speech this weekend, according to The Japan Times. Addressing prefectural assembly members of the Liberal Democratic Party in Matsue, the 71-year-old Yanagisawa touched on the nation's declining birthrate and said,...
Ladyfest Leeds 2007
by Catherine Redfern // 28 January 2007, 15:09
LADYFEST LEEDS 2007 - CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: WORKSHOPS Ladyfest Leeds is a festival celebrating creativity, diversity and promoting gender equality, particularly promoting female artists across a multitude of artistic fields, and will take place from Tuesday 10th to Sunday 15th...
Rape case raises questions about judiciary
by Jess McCabe // 28 January 2007, 15:01
A case in which a Scottish judge put a footballer's career ahead of the needs of a teenage girl that police suspect was raped, has raised concerns about the Criminal Justice System. Reports the Scotsman, the case involves 16 year...
LAST CHANCE TO SAVE YOUR FEMINIST LIBRARY (London)
by Catherine Redfern // 28 January 2007, 14:38
The following notice is being circulated. Please feel free to pass it on. Forthcoming Event Feminist Library : LAST CHANCE TO SAVE YOUR FEMINIST LIBRARY (London) Dear Feminists The management committee of the Feminist Library is calling an emergency meeting...
Women and Work Commission will not back pay audits
by Jess McCabe // 23 January 2007, 23:29
A group set up by the government to investigate how to close the pay gap between women and men will not recommend mandatory pay audits, according to the Green Party. Jenny Jones, Green Party London Assembly Member, comments: "The increasing...
Stuff that's bugging me about Betty
by Jess McCabe // 22 January 2007, 08:32
Ugly Betty has a lot going for it, but as the season goes on a couple of things are starting to get my radar twitching. I'm watching the show on the US schedule, so I'll try not to include any...
Congresswoman applauds Ugly Betty
by Jess McCabe // 19 January 2007, 19:21
Ugly Betty has fans in Congress. According to People, Congresswoman Hilda L. Solis told the House of Representatives that America Ferrera, the actor who plays Betty, "is breaking down barriers for Latinos in prime-time television" Ferrera, the daughter of Honduran...
Big Brother reassures viewers
by Catherine Redfern // 18 January 2007, 22:10
Further to Jess's post below. From the Media Guardian: "The complaints were further fuelled when [Jack] Tweed was reported as calling Shetty a "Paki". Channel 4 insists that in fact the word he used, which was bleeped out, was "cunt"."...
Mail, Tories, scared of c**t documentary
by Jess McCabe // 18 January 2007, 20:13
The BBC is planning a documentary about the 'c-word', provoking cries of outrage from the Mail on Sunday. Capitalising on the nation's reaction to the totally unacceptable and racist behaviour on Big Brother, the Mail took a similar line with...
A headline writer with an empty brain?
by Jess McCabe // 16 January 2007, 22:09
When I read a headline like The Girl with a Boy's Brain, I prepare myself to be annoyed. This is the headline Psychlogy Today decided to give to a profile of a 24 year old woman with Asperger's Syndrome. Brains,...
Women you want to know...
by Jess McCabe // 14 January 2007, 23:41
When was the first time you were aware of your size? Piny at Feministe asked this question, and received (as of today) 151 responses, each more depressing than the last. In response, another Feministe blogger, zuzu, challenged readers to come...
More on Hitchens
by Jess McCabe // 13 January 2007, 11:16
[Update: apologies to Mary Birdsong. I mistakenly credited Claire Zulkey with writing the satire of Hitchens' rant] Remember that Christopher Hitchens article in Vanity Fair about how women aren't funny? Claire Zulkey Mary Birdsong takes him down a peg. Another...
Observer Woman tries to regain credibility?
by Jess McCabe // 12 January 2007, 20:41
Is the Observer giving its monthly Woman supplement a dose of sobriety? As Dawn Kofie explained last week, the magazine is a disappointingly prosaic offering. Aside from a few serious features, it is packed with fluffy stuff about clothes. Marie-Claire...
Mind Your Language
by Catherine Redfern // 8 January 2007, 23:32
Mind Your Language 'Political Correctness gone mad' is considered the ultimate insult whenever a feminist dares to speak up about language. Sarah Louisa Phythian-Adams isn't scared off though: she argues that we need to question and challenge the words we...
Another day, another dodgy study
by Jess McCabe // 8 January 2007, 22:09
Penetrative sex cuts your stress levels, according to the scientists hard at work in Britain's labs. And by penetrative sex, Dr Stuart Brody, the report's author, only means straight sex. Because only straight people do that. For a fortnight, 24...
New Review & Comments
by Catherine Redfern // 6 January 2007, 19:46
Girl With a One Track Mind - Abby Lee Abby Lee's diary has become a best seller due to the frank, humorous, and explicit descriptions of her sex life in London. Catherine Redfern considers some of the feminist implications...
I can't believe it never took off!
by Jess McCabe // 5 January 2007, 17:43
A sanitary towel with a fake vagina attached so your "husband" can have "external intercourse" with you while you've got your period. I wish I was making it up, but I'm not. One Abdul A. A. Al-Saleh was issued a...
200 years to equality
by Jess McCabe // 5 January 2007, 17:03
It will take women 200 years before we achieve equal representation in Parliament, according to the Equal Opportunities Commission. As reported in the Independent, it will also be 60 years before men no-longer outnumber women in City boardrooms and...
Review: Observer Woman Magazine
by Catherine Redfern // 4 January 2007, 22:34
Observer Woman It's now one year old and has won awards, but did it deliver what it promised to women? Dawn Kofie comments on the first year of the Observer Woman magazine....
Ipswich Reclaim The Night
by Catherine Redfern // 4 January 2007, 19:33
Via Charliegrrl - a report on Ipswich Reclaim the Night, 29th December is on Indymedia. Apparently around 250-300 people marched in solidarity with the murdered women and their families. There is a also a blog report by The Daily (Maybe)....
Why hasn't Christopher Hitchens been fired yet?
by Jess McCabe // 3 January 2007, 23:31
Sarah Silverman proving that only ugly women are funny Women are not funny, Christopher Hitchens insists. This is a point of view that gets bandied about surprisingly often. I have a theory about why some men and women think...
A Real Alternative?
by Catherine Redfern // 3 January 2007, 23:06
A Real Alternative? As feminists fight to expand the frontiers of sexuality beyond the one-size-fits all, bland world of lad-mag culture, do 'alternative porn' sites have something to offer the feminist cause - or are they the same old objectification...
Tories support EU anti-trafficking measures!
by Jess McCabe // 3 January 2007, 21:03
Here's an unusual story. The Conservative party has given its backing to a proposal which would see victims of trafficking given the right to stay in the UK for 30 days while they decide whether or not to help the...
Can I be a Detective Inspector in the Feminist Police?
by Catherine Redfern // 2 January 2007, 22:58
Feministing - they rock, don't they? Having been bogged down over the past few days reading the depressing gory details of feminists falling out (AGAIN!!!) on various blogs and mailing lists and discussion boards over the last few days and...
Fund in memory of Ipswich woman
by Catherine Redfern // 2 January 2007, 22:55
From the Guardian: "The parents of one of the five women killed in Suffolk have launched a charity fund in her memory. Gemma Adams' parents have set up the Gemma's Gift appeal to raise funds for the Ipswich Children's Hospice....
Blogger leaves stage
by Jess McCabe // 2 January 2007, 22:23
Blac(k)ademic has left the building. Actually, she gave her notice back in mid-December - it's just been that long since I went through my blogroll. The archive is still online, and well worth a read before it is swallowed by...
Founder of The F-Word, Catherine Redfern, has co-authored a new book with Kristin Aune. Find out more at the 
