Blog posts from December 2009
On Yoko Ono
by Jess McCabe // 29 December 2009, 17:47
Bitch Magazine asked 20 artists, writers and activists for their reflections on Yoko Ono for their Art/See issue. They've now posted the resulting feature on their website - it was definitely one of my favourites from that issue. The responses...
Round-up!
by Jess McCabe // 28 December 2009, 12:10
We missed Convention of the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women's 30th birthday - definitely deserves more than a mention in this round-up, but for more reading see Gender Masala's post at IPS. Also at IPS, an interesting...
Carnival of Feminists, December 2009
by Helen G // 27 December 2009, 19:30
The latest Carnival of Feminists is up at Penny Red. At a time when many people are in a festive mood, it's encouraging that Penny Red has resisted the temptation to roll out a host of "cheery, unproblematic links and...
AP thinks the second best female athlete of 2009 is a horse
by Jess McCabe // 22 December 2009, 21:24
UPDATE: Feministing got the full rankings and found out there are actually two horses in the AP's top 10 female athletes of 2009. Really! First off, well done to Serena Williams, named best female athlete of the year by the...
Guest post: Reclaim the Night Leeds
by Guest Blogger // 22 December 2009, 17:06
Rosie, a member of the RtNL steering committee, reports back on the event. On November 28th 2009, 300 women, children and supporters reclaimed the night in Leeds. The weather held, and from 6pm the crowds gathered outside Leeds City Art...
November feature and review comments up now...
by Jess McCabe // 22 December 2009, 15:17
Comments on features and reviews from November up now for your reading pleasure. My favourite comment is the last one included in this round-up, scroll to the bottom to see what I mean. See here for more. And thanks...
The Ghosts of Christmas Past
by Guest Blogger // 21 December 2009, 21:38
A guest blogger talks about dealing with Christmas as a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. (NB This post is not graphic, but for some it may be triggering) So, it's that time of year again. Compulsory happiness and lots and...
Setting boundaries in 15 words or less
by Jess McCabe // 21 December 2009, 12:45
What do you do when someone says something sexist - or equally when someone says something racist, transphobic, homophobic, etc? In the heat of the moment, it can be hard to find the right words to call someone out. ZorraThinkTank...
CRAP! Collective
by Laura Woodhouse // 20 December 2009, 18:21
The CRAP! (child rearing against patriarchy) Collective are a group of parents, educators and people who care about children, demanding a feminist upbringing for the next generation: We want to actively challenge the tirade of sexist literature and other aspects...
New feature: A question of (sexism in) sport
by Jess McCabe // 19 December 2009, 11:08
Despite plaudits from politicians, women’s sport gets less media coverage than men’s sport, says Natalie Davis, and sports pages largely feature women as eyecandy not athletes The British Sports Personality of the Year awards ceremony, held last week, highlighted a...
New review - Women's art in Paris: elles@centrepompidou
by Jess McCabe // 17 December 2009, 22:28
Susan Gilbert takes us on a tour of the Pompidou Centre’s groundbreaking rehanging of its collection to showcase the last 100 years of art through work by women A minor feminist art revolution took place in Paris in 2009. The...
A Thursday round-up!
by Jess McCabe // 17 December 2009, 15:44
2009 is not yet finished, but already we've got details for next year's Million Women Rise. Put in your diaries, the London march will take place 6 March 2010. Also please start emailing us the dates of any other actions...
New feature: Piggy banks and budget cuts
by Jess McCabe // 16 December 2009, 22:32
Cuts have become politically popular again, but the new thrift is targeted at the most not least vulnerable, says Clare Gould Thrift is a virtue. As the days shorten and we begin our swift decline into winter rains, politicians' thoughts...
James Chartrand, Men With Pens, male psuedonyms
by Jess McCabe // 16 December 2009, 15:47
Probably you've already read James Chartrand's story by now, as it's been whizzing around the feminist blogosphere since it broke. James Chartrand is the blogging psuedonym for the woman who created web design and copywriting blog Men With Pens....
Sponsor a book, or a shelf, at the Glasgow Women's Library
by Jess McCabe // 15 December 2009, 17:48
The fantabulous Glasgow Women's Library is raising money for its relocation fund right now. As part of this, they're offering the chance to sponsor a book, a shelf or even a section of the library: Glasgow Women’s Library is working...
Supporting NI and Irish women seeking abortions
by Laura Woodhouse // 15 December 2009, 17:33
Further to my post on the Irish women seeking to challenge their country's abortion ban at the European court of human rights, you can support Irish and Northern Irish women by donating to the Abortion Support Network: While other organisations...
Quick hit: sex education
by Jess McCabe // 14 December 2009, 10:59
Heather Corinna has a succinct response at CiF to the latest stats on the numbers of young women having repeat abortions. What can be done to reduce the numbers? Provide better sex education and information about and access to contraception,...
Trans activist Sass Rogando Sasot’s speech at the UN
by Helen G // 14 December 2009, 07:41
You Tube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrOc6CIQjtc A written transcript of the speech Reclaiming the lucidity of our hearts may be found on the blog of her organisation, link here United Nations, New York, 10 December 2009: Panel discussion organized by the...
Women challenge Irish abortion ban
by Laura Woodhouse // 13 December 2009, 17:19
Three Irish women who were forced to travel to the UK to get an abortion due to Ireland's total ban on the procedure challenged the ban in the European court of human rights earlier this week . While 'the right...
Guest post: "Facebook rape"
by Guest Blogger // 11 December 2009, 12:56
Alex Corwin reports on the insensitive and potentially triggering use of the word 'rape' on Facebook and explains how to report it. Today while skimming through the list of status updates and the like on Facebook I was horrified to...
New feature: On sisterhood
by Jess McCabe // 11 December 2009, 10:12
Katie Sutton was called sexist names at Reclaim the Night, amid continued disagreements between feminists over the issue of prostitution/sex work. Where now for sisterhood at these public events? Includes a response by Finn Mackay Katie Sutton: I'm writing this...
Hymen renamed
by Jess McCabe // 10 December 2009, 11:38
The hymen has been re-named the "vaginal corona", in a bid to dispell some of the mythology and misinformation about it, via Jezebel. The Swedish Association for Sexuality Education has produced an information booklet on the vaginal corona (or, slidkrans...
New review: The Wisdom of Whores
by Jess McCabe // 10 December 2009, 10:10
Elizabeth Pisani’s book breaks down the facts on HIV/AIDS, but loses points for offensive language and playing too cool to care, says Charlotte Cooper Many of my problems with things in life stem from an emphasis on aesthetics while skimping...
Latest issue of Subtext Magazine out now
by Jess McCabe // 9 December 2009, 14:55
The eighth issue of Subtext Magazine is on sale now. Check out Subtext's overview of the contents on their website; I've got a piece in this issue, by the way, about women film-makers, as part of the magazine's coverage of...
Guest post: Protecting choice in childbirth
by Guest Blogger // 8 December 2009, 15:14
Albany Midwives Practice is facing closure. In this guest post, Amity Reed reports on the effort to keep it open and why it's so important for reproductive rights When we think of reproductive rights, we often automatically associate the term...
New feature: Girls in the lead
by Jess McCabe // 8 December 2009, 10:30
Girlguides can offer girls a respite from pressure of gendered expectations. Clare Burgess offers her perspective as a late-joiner Starting Guiding at the rather late age of 20, I was admittedly being a hypocrite. All of the benefits I claim...
Update: Trans inclusion in the Equality Bill
by Helen G // 7 December 2009, 20:05
Further to my recent post, an update has now been emailed to members of the Facebook group Trans inclusion in the Equality Bill - ACT NOW. Subject: What happens next? Hello everyone, Thank you very, very much for joining this...
Buy "Beautiful Star - the Songs of Odetta" and raise money for women's rights
by Helen G // 7 December 2009, 19:04
A tribute to folk musician and civil rights activist Odetta Holmes has been produced by Wears the Trousers magazine, which highlights the world of women in music, and all profits from sales of the album will be split between Fawcett...
Stern Review now inviting evidence on handling of rape complaints
by Laura Woodhouse // 7 December 2009, 18:20
Baroness Stern is carrying out an independent review into the handling of rape compaints, due to be published in February 2010.The Stern Review is examining the whole process of a rape compalint from first disclosure to the verdict being given...
More Philippa!
by Laura Woodhouse // 7 December 2009, 18:11
I'm very pleased to announce that our guest blogger from last month, Philippa Willitts, has agreed to join the F Word bloggers' collective as a full-time blogger. You can read Philippa's previous posts here. We're all delighted to have her...
A progessive intro to comics
by Jess McCabe // 7 December 2009, 12:49
New readers... start here! is an attempt to open up the comics genre to new readers, by way of reviews. Set up by regular F-Word commenter Saranga, the blog has this as a mission statement: We will cover superheroes, manga,...
Who are the subjects of psychology research?
by Jess McCabe // 7 December 2009, 08:33
What impact does it have on psychology research, that the vast majority of subjects are from Western, Educated, Industrialised, Rich and Democratic (WEIRD) countries? Vagina Dentata has posted a really interesting analysis of this, based on some recent research. Probably...
New feature: Moving towards solidarity
by Jess McCabe // 6 December 2009, 18:37
Transphobic feminism makes no sense, argues Laurie Penny For decades, the feminist movement has been split over the status of trans people, and of trans women in particular. High-profile feminists such as Germaine Greer, Jan Raymond and Julie Bindel have...
Amanda Knox
by Philippa Willitts // 5 December 2009, 13:36
Philippa Willitts writes about the treatment of women in the legal system compared to men, in relation to the conviction of Amanda Knox in Meredith Kercher's murder.
New review: Daphne Du Maurier's feminist fairy tales
by Jess McCabe // 5 December 2009, 12:36
Sian Norris reconsiders Daphne du Maurier’s novels When I was a young teenager, I loved Daphne du Maurier's novels - the suspense in Rebecca, the romance of Frenchman's Creek, the cold horror of Jamaica Inn. I devoured them, imagining myself...
Feminist-friendly books for kids
by Laura Woodhouse // 4 December 2009, 13:17
Guardian journalist Viv Graskop has been testing feminist-friendly books on her 3-year-old daughter and six-year-old son in a 'gender stereotyping intervention'. Out of five novels, the kids give Princess Smartypants by Babette Cole and The Pirate Girl by Cornelia Funke...
Another provocative Fay Weldon headline
by Holly Combe // 1 December 2009, 21:47
According to the headline and subheading in today's Telegraph, Fay Weldon thinks Katie Price "drinks too much and sleeps with too many people and talks about it too much for common decency". The more detailed quote, as it appears in...
Call out for guest bloggers
by Laura Woodhouse // 1 December 2009, 20:33
We're looking for new guest bloggers to join us initially for a month's blogging at The F Word. While we have been actively reaching out to people, we thought it would also make sense to do a call out on...
Can you spare a gift for women at Eaves?
by Laura Woodhouse // 1 December 2009, 20:16
Eaves, the London-based charity that provides housing and support for vulnerable women, would appreciate any Christmas gift donations: Over the festive season, Eaves will be supporting more than 100 vulnerable women who have been trafficked or otherwise affected by violence....
ACPO lines up for some Christmas victim blaming
by Jess McCabe // 1 December 2009, 16:00
A "rape awareness" campaign by the Association of Chief Police Officers has spawned some seriously victim-blaming coverage in the media. Check out this headline in the Metro, for example, which admonishes "Don't become a rape victim this Christmas": (Thanks to...
A woman's place
by Jess McCabe // 1 December 2009, 10:49
A Woman's Place is a short documentary about the UK women's liberation movement in the early 1970s. According to Journeyman Pictures: It’s the 28th of February 1970 and women's groups from around the country have assembled at Ruskin College, Oxford,...
Founder of The F-Word, Catherine Redfern, has co-authored a new book with Kristin Aune. Find out more at the 
