Blog posts from February 2009
Spread the feminist message from Trafalgar Square!
By Laura Woodhouse | 27 February 2009, 17:05
Antony Gormley on the Fourth Plinth from One & Other on Vimeo. Angel of the North designer Antony Gormley is putting together a fantastic-sounding art project for the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Sqaure, entitled One and Other. Every day, 24…
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Lawsuit reveals working culture at Penthouse
By Jess McCabe | 27 February 2009, 12:41
Penthouse is being sued by a former employee, who alleges she was fired without cause from her job on one of their websites, reports Gawker. Without commenting on the impact of the porn Penthouse produces, the lawsuit has brought up…
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Would you Eve it?
By Louise Livesey | 26 February 2009, 14:15
We all know women are to blame for everything but three guesses where this question leads: Does the woman in your life really need a job? Yes apparently working women caused the credit crunch. Not those irresponsible bankers over lending…
The Oscars and the White Male Gaze
By Jess McCabe | 25 February 2009, 23:21
Campbell has a great post up about the effect of mainstream cinema’s white male bias, and the general lack of women directors: Cinema is a way for people to get lost in a fantasy world. A way to experience life…
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A record a mile long
By Guest Blogger | 25 February 2009, 22:51
In this guest post, Rachael Jolley from the Fabian blog Next Left explores the history of the Daily Mail of blaming poor people for being poor, and poor mothers in particular You might imagine that the Daily Mail suggesting that…
Disabled woman “too scary” for TV according to some parents
By Louise Livesey | 25 February 2009, 16:10
Oh yes, presenter Cerrie Burnell has been slated by some parents - did she go topless in storytime? Did she eat a live animal on TV? No she was born with no lower right arm and apparently that makes her…
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Why everyone loves to hate clever women….
By Louise Livesey | 25 February 2009, 16:03
Gail Trimble has been declared amazing in the admittedly small world of University Challenge. The PhD student from Corpus Christi College Oxford demonstrated a remarkable degree of general knowledge recall and led her College to victory. So far so good….
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Upskirting.
By Laura Woodhouse | 25 February 2009, 11:03
Emine Saner has a piece up at The Guardian on the practice of “upskirting”, where men take photos or film up women’s skirts in public. Apparently, hundreds of thousands of these invasive images have been placed online, and no doubt…
Sexism in football: FC Zenit
By Jess McCabe | 25 February 2009, 10:17
Female fans of Russia’s FC Zenit are no longer able to freely buy season tickets to watch the team’s games from the fan sector of its home stadium, reports Natalia Antonova at GlobalComment. I couldn’t find any English language news…
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Rape myths still perpetuated by one third of students
By Laura Woodhouse | 24 February 2009, 22:43
A LondonStudent survey carried out on over 1,000 students at 119 Higher Education institutions around the UK has found that around a third still believe a woman is at least partially to blame for being raped if she is…
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Oxford International Women’s Festival is 20 years old!
By Louise Livesey | 24 February 2009, 15:28
So we managed to catch a few minutes with one of the organisers, Christine, to ask some questions…. I know this is really hard as an organizer but what are the highlights of this years’ programme? What are you most…
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You’re not designed to be alone…
By Louise Livesey | 24 February 2009, 13:56
Gold stars for anyone naming the song! Anyway here’s a round-up of interesting links…. Firstly can I recomment the fantastic Pink Stinks! campaign which aims to challenge the ubiquitous “culture of pink”. And whose blog highlights this delightful nugget that…
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Limited terms for MPs: the answer to under-representation in Parliament?
By Laura Woodhouse | 23 February 2009, 21:58
The Head of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), Trevor Phillips, will tomorrow propose reforms to parliamentary law which would restrict the number of terms any one MP can serve in office to four (16 - 20 years). The…
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Of interest?
By Louise Livesey | 23 February 2009, 17:05
This is a great piece about men’s responses to women talking about their abortion. Makes for interesting and awesome reading. This piece on Islamic Feminism is also exciting, sadly the only coverage of this I could find in my limited…
Racism and sexism in gaming - redux
By Jess McCabe | 23 February 2009, 12:15
Latoya Peterson of Racialicious has a great piece on Comment is Free, about sexism and racism in video games and the communities built around gaming. The post does a good job of highlighting how so much of the industry is…
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Every woman is a super woman
By Louise Livesey | 23 February 2009, 09:23
Unless you believe Coca Cola and singer Duffy in the latest ad campaign. I spotted a poster near Heathrow yesterday and intensely disliked it immediately. Why? Lets see Duffy who won a plethora of awards at the Brit Awards and…
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T-shirts in Greenwich Market
By Jess McCabe | 22 February 2009, 23:11
Me and zohra were at Greenwich Market this weekend, when we noticed this t-shirt on one of the stalls: It says: Vagina (ve. ji, ne) n. 1. The box a penis comes in There was another t-shirt on sale which…
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Comedy cabaret fundraiser for Abortion Rights
By Jess McCabe | 22 February 2009, 22:20
Abortion Rights is holding a comedy cabaret fundraiser at the end of the month: Celebrating Obama’s scrapping of the anti-abortion Global Gag Rule and International Women’s Day 2009. Join us for an evening of laughter and fun! Friday 27th February…
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Star Trekking
By Catherine Redfern | 22 February 2009, 22:05
After watching the trailer for new Star Trek movie, my partner commented: “There’s no women in that trailer apart from a woman taking her top off.” Good point. Whilst I enjoyed pondering what the Kirk/Spock slash fanfiction writers might make…
A weekend round-up
By Jess McCabe | 22 February 2009, 00:24
Entertainment Weekly named its top 25 film directors, and guess what, all of them are men. The Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has been ordered to find a gay man who was seeking asylum and was illegally deported, and return him…
Target Women: Skincare
By Jess McCabe | 21 February 2009, 11:57
The latest from Sarah Haskins:…
Sport is a whore. And female
By Carrie Dunn | 20 February 2009, 22:03
Remember this little spotlight on the Times’s sports coverage last year? Well, Simon Barnes - the well-known appreciator of Russian pole vaulter Elena Isinbaeva - has written about the ongoing Allen Stanford saga. Fair enough. Except apparently the whole debacle…
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The F Word credited for major rethink of “Cervix Savvy” advertising campaign…
By Louise Livesey | 20 February 2009, 17:48
See here….. Just goes to show that activism online can and does have an impact! Lets just be very clear - it’s really important women are screened regularly for cell abnormalities on the cervix. Really important. Don’t put it off….
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OK I truly give up on PETA
By Louise Livesey | 20 February 2009, 10:59
Yes they have done it again…….
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Apparently Wales doesn’t count….
By Louise Livesey | 19 February 2009, 09:48
The Home Office’s integrated strategy on violence against women which is being drawn up as we speak will not apply to Wales. Secretary of State for Wales, Paul Murphy, has decided Wales should not be included because it already has…
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Grissom & Sara
By Bill Savage | 18 February 2009, 12:35
Crime Scene Investigation has long been the televisual highlight of the week in my house, so it was with some sadness that I tuned in last week to witness the apparent demise of one of the show’s greatest assets: the…
New guest blogger… Bill Savage
By Jess McCabe | 18 February 2009, 12:29
It’s time to introduce our first new guest blogger for February! Bill Savage is a zine-writer, former Ladyfest organiser and during daylight hours teaches women’s studies and sociology at a London university. Bill enjoys doing painting by numbers, wearing ties…
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Take a Picture
By Louise Livesey | 18 February 2009, 12:14
My previous entry got me thinking about photo’s and who gets included and who doesn’t. So I did a quick content analysis of the Guardian’s The World in 24 Hours section. I did a basic gender content analysis and here’s…
Can someone explain to me….?
By Louise Livesey | 18 February 2009, 11:09
Why the ASA upholds complaints because the advert has the word S-E-X in it but doesn’t uphold complaints about the objectification and sexual exploitation of women? (See here and here and here and here and here and here and [OK…
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Tell It WOC Speak
By Jess McCabe | 18 February 2009, 00:19
Renee of Womanist Musings has put together a fantastic women of colour & allies carnival. There’s loads of excellent stuff to read, so I suggest going straight over there. Hopefully there will be more carnivals in future. Renee says by…
What’s with the aviation industry?
By Jess McCabe | 17 February 2009, 23:51
The Southwest Airline blog posted enthusiastically about how they’ve wrapped one of their planes with an advert for Sports Illustrated magazine: This definitely seals the deals on Southwest Airlines’ FUN and edgy factor! Err, well, that’s one way to see…
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Object Leeds
By Laura Woodhouse | 17 February 2009, 22:21
There’s a new(ish!) branch of anti-objectification activist group Object in Leeds and they’re looking for new members to help out with the following local and national campaigns: Planning protests with FemSoc against Miss Leeds (regional heat of Miss England) Involvement…
Some news
By Louise Livesey | 16 February 2009, 16:19
So first off, yes there are no depths to which PETA will not sink, Yes apparently the American Kennel Club is much like the KKK according to PETA. Not sure how that analogy works, given I’ve not heard about the…
Action Aid campaign on HIV and violence against women
By Laura Woodhouse | 16 February 2009, 12:53
ActionAid UK are running a campaign to persuade the government to take into account violence against women when tackling HIV and AIDs: A girl born in South Africa has a 50% chance of being raped. Combine this with the number…
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‘Miss Atom 2009’
By Jess McCabe | 16 February 2009, 12:14
Women working in Russia’s nuclear power industry are competing to become ‘Miss Atom 2009’, according to Wired Magazine blog Danger Room, which decided to post a shot of one of the contestants in front of a nuclear power plant: Alyona…
US group lists feminist books suitable for kids aged 0-18
By Jess McCabe | 13 February 2009, 19:39
If you’re shopping for feminist-friendly books for the under-18 crowd, the 2009 Amelia Bloomer list looks like a good place to start. The evaluated over 400 fiction and non-fiction books this year, selecting books suitable for all age groups. It’s…
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Profile of Ruta Pacifica de las Mujeres
By Jess McCabe | 13 February 2009, 17:11
Ruta Pacifica de las Mujeres is a Colombian feminist/women’s movement protesting violence of all kinds, and particularly violence inflicted on women during the long conflict in the country. Upside Down World has interviewed Alejandra Miller Restrepo, a regional co-ordinator for…
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Two IDs for transgendered people?
By Laura Woodhouse | 13 February 2009, 13:00
Yet another reason why the National ID scheme is a crock: transgendered people will be forced to apply and pay for two cards, one in their “birth gender” and one for their self-identified gender: guess which one is viewed as…
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Amazon selling ‘rape simulation game’
By Jess McCabe | 13 February 2009, 11:08
Yeah, you read that right. Amazon was hawking a Japanese-language game, where the gameplay revolves around raping women. The game has now been removed from the site. The Belfast Telegraph reports: A game that involves the player stalking victims and…
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Brazilian woman slashed from head to foot by Swiss neo-Nazis
By Jess McCabe | 13 February 2009, 10:32
Update: the Swiss police have suggested that the attack was faked. However, I’m pretty sceptical - see AP for more info. Paula Oliveira was attacked by skinheads near Zurich, after they heard her speaking on the phone in Portuguese. Reports…
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Another round up
By Jess McCabe | 12 February 2009, 12:28
Scottish judge Roger Craik threw a rape victim in prison overnight, after she got so upset that she fled the witness box. Un-fucking-believeable. Pegah Emambakhsh has won refugee status at last: She fled Iran for the UK almost four years…
Have you experienced sexual harassment or violence at school?
By Laura Woodhouse | 11 February 2009, 20:58
FEM Conferences organiser Kat Banyard is conducting some research into girls’ experiences of harassment and violence at school / college, and she needs your help! Sexual harassment can come in many forms, including unwelcome sexual propositions, sexually explicit comments or…
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New review: The First Person and Other Stories
By Jess McCabe | 11 February 2009, 17:07
Ali Smith’s latest short story collection teases the reader and plays with the conventions of literature, says Kirsty McHugh Ali Smith is “one of the most inventive writers we have. She jumps from high places and lands on her feet,”…
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New measure of national wellbeing finds women less happy than men
By Lynne Miles | 11 February 2009, 17:05
When I’m not being a very lax feminist blogger, I’m a public policy wonk with an interest in local economic development. So I’ve been waiting with bated breath for the publication of the new economics foundation’s groundbreaking National Accounts of…
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New review: Embarrassing Teenage Bodies advocates cosmetic labiaplasty
By Jess McCabe | 11 February 2009, 10:46
Channel 4’s series Embarrassing Teenage Bodies is meant to reassure young people. But an episode which saw doctors perform labiaplasty on a 19-year-old achieved exactly the opposite effect, argues Bellavita I was initially a fan of Channel 4’s Embarrassing Illnesses/Bodies…
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A Consortium of Pub-going, Loose and Forward Women
By Jess McCabe | 10 February 2009, 11:48
Last month, women drinking in a pub in Mangalore, India were attacked by a group of men, linked to the right-wing Sri Ram Sena. In response to this attack, a protest is being planned for this Saturday, Valentine’s Day, via…
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Slut shaming in school
By Jess McCabe | 9 February 2009, 10:57
A careers advisor at a Hampshire school told a 13-year-old pupil that her short skirt made her “look like a slut”, and was “not doing much for your cellulite”, reports the Daily Mail. Good to know that schools are doing…
New feature: Alright darlin’
By Jess McCabe | 8 February 2009, 23:55
Selina Jervis reports that sexual harassment in public spaces has reached critical levels As I sat down write this, my sister arrived home and said a man tried to pull her into a car. She was walking home from the…
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New feature: Pity in Pink
By Jess McCabe | 8 February 2009, 23:12
On a mission to buy a new laptop, Posie Rider found that manufacturers and sales staff believe the best way to get women to buy a laptop is to make it pink I’m in the market to buy a laptop….
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Just another taxi ride…
By Carrie Dunn | 8 February 2009, 18:13
I was travelling home on Wednesday night, and hailed a Hackney carriage (a proper black cab, fully licenced, with the driver’s ID displayed etc etc) by West Hampstead station in north-west London to take me the short ride back to…
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Reclaim the Night Bristol
By Guest Blogger | 6 February 2009, 14:57
In this guest post, Sian Norris urges Bristol readers to Reclaim the Night this 20 February Bristol Feminist Network started up with the aim of creating a space for women and men to come together to discuss feminist issues and…
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London’s only Rape Crisis Centre faces closure, as Boris ignores funding plight
By Jess McCabe | 6 February 2009, 12:53
The Guardian carries a piece outlining the continuing funding struggles of London’s sole remaining Rape Crisis centre. Yvonne Traynor, chief exec of the branch of Rape Crisis (I can’t quite work out from the story which it is) explains: The…
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LGBT History Month 2009
By Laura Woodhouse | 6 February 2009, 09:47
We’re a week into the fifth annual LGBT History Month, which celebrates the lives and achievements of the LGBT community. This year’s theme is Education and Youth. Many events are planned to take place during the month at various places…
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Real men & rape
By Jess McCabe | 6 February 2009, 09:14
This poster was stuck up in the bus stop of the University of Western Ontario: Later, another photographer found the same poster had been mangled: As Lisa at Sociological Images says: Until inequality is challenged, things often seem to be…
FPA trains youth workers to address teens’ porn use.
By Laura Woodhouse | 5 February 2009, 17:50
Misleading, and moral panicky as ever, The Mail headline reads ‘Could teenage boys get lessons on porn?’, but the actual story here is that the Family Planning Association has begun to train youth workers to engage with teenagers who use…
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Pamela Izevbekhai
By Jess McCabe | 5 February 2009, 15:04
The Irish government is intent on deporting Pamela Izevbekhai and her two daughters to Nigeria, even though they face female genital mutilation if they return. Izevbekhai has already seen one of her daughters die from the aftereffects of FGM, and…
The F Word on Facebook!
By Laura Woodhouse | 5 February 2009, 11:05
Just a quick reminder that The F Word is on Facebook: you can find us here. I send out weekly updates of what’s going down on the blog and details of upcoming events, as well as monthly updates of features…
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Women, agency and sexuality
By Laura Woodhouse | 4 February 2009, 22:15
As a feminist who has spent a considerable amount of time struggling with my sexuality and sexual desires in the face of condemnation from certain feminist theorists and their followers, the following comment from Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha really resonated with…
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How we talk about fertilisation
By Jess McCabe | 4 February 2009, 20:17
You may have read about feminist critiques of the story of fertilisation before, but if not Discover Magazine has a great overview in its archives. They interview Emily Martin, an antropologist, and talk about her 1987 book ‘The Woman in…
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Bodies are Important
By Louise Livesey | 4 February 2009, 12:08
Over at Sociological Images is an interesting piece on the downsizing of bodies. The pictures are particularly striking! The point I want to make is that these women have ALWAYS been beautiful. They were considered beautiful enough to be stars…
BBC and sexism - why it’s more complicated than that
By Louise Livesey | 4 February 2009, 09:02
So the BBC has said Carol Thatcher is dropped from reporting for The One Show for an obscenely racist comment made off-camera and out of studio in a conversation about a tennis player. The analogy she drew was grossly racist,…
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Yes Means Yes: with Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha
By zohra moosa | 3 February 2009, 19:48
The Virtual Tour of Yes Means Yes: Visions of Female Sexual Power and A World Without Rape has begun! It kicked off yesterday at feministing with a live chat with the co-editors and some of the contributors, and today…
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Bad science? Bad gender politics?
By Carrie Dunn | 3 February 2009, 17:55
I love reading Ben Goldacre’s Bad Science columns. Though I may be one of the arts graduates he scoffs at from time to time, my PhD does involve quantitative data analysis so I’m not entirely scientifically illiterate. So I was…
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‘Mapping the feminist web’
By Jess McCabe | 3 February 2009, 16:34
During the Fem2.0 conference going on state-side this week, a firm called Linkfluence produced a lovely map of the feminist blogosphere: You can see the full, interactive map here, logging on with the username/password fem2pt0/linkfluence. (They also listed the 30…
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Dr Jill Biden, the first ‘second lady’ to draw a paycheck
By Jess McCabe | 3 February 2009, 11:29
Dr Jill Biden is married to Joe Biden, the vice-president of the US. That makes her, apparently, “second lady”. According to the LA Times, she’s the first “second lady” to hold down a paying job while her husband is in…
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Sexuality Feminism?
By Jess McCabe | 2 February 2009, 23:18
Paradox at the blog Fourth Wave Feminism calls for a new category of “sexuality feminism”, for feminists that put sexuality at the centre of their activism, but do not necessarily identify as pro (or anti) porn, etc. I have an…
New review: On the herstory of feminist coalitions
By Jess McCabe | 2 February 2009, 21:33
Michelle Wright reviews a book which sketches the history of coalition building between second-wave feminists and other social justice activists In contemporary feminist circles – particularly amongst feminist academics, but increasingly amongst grassroots activists too – it’s become commonplace to…
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The Mail takes on make-up (and fails).
By Laura Woodhouse | 2 February 2009, 14:22
I must admit it came as rather a shock to the system to read the headline for Liz Jones’s latest piece in the Mail: The bare-faced truth: If confidence comes from within, why do so many emancipated women still need…
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Some interesting worldwide stuff….
By Louise Livesey | 2 February 2009, 13:40
Rwanda has sworn in members of it’s gender observatory designed to ensure future generations of Rwandans grow up in a society with gender equality. The Chief Gender Monitor, Oda Gasinzigwa, was sworn in along with Eugenié Kabagema, Deputy Chief Monitor…
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The Bank of England dress code and more
By Jess McCabe | 1 February 2009, 22:54
Women working at the Bank of England, a public institution let’s remember, have been told that heels and makeup are mandatory. A memo was sent around to all female employees, ahead of a ‘Dress for Success’ day. “Look professional, not…
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