Blog posts by Jess McCabe: 2009
‘Impossibly perfect’, music video edition
By Jess McCabe | 7 November 2009, 13:36
There’s been a lot of awareness raising on use of Photoshop to make women’s bodies look impossibly beautiful. But what about in video? Via Sarah at Uplift!, this showreel advertising work by post-production firm Room demonstrates how much ‘correcting’…
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Vagina Rex and the Gas Oven
By Jess McCabe | 6 November 2009, 10:41
There’s a chance this Sunday to see a reading of the early women’s liberation play Vagina Rex and the Gas Oven in London. According to Arts Admin, Jane Arden’s play “was the first theatre work to come out of the…
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Women and Silent Britain
By Jess McCabe | 5 November 2009, 17:57
The BFI is holding a study day on women’s role in the film industry back in the days of silent movies. This study day will consider all aspects of writing for or about the screen by the large number of…
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First Weekenders Club x2
By Jess McCabe | 5 November 2009, 16:29
Two films by female film-makers are out in the UK tomorrow - Birds Eye View highlights films and encourages those interested in support women in the film industry to see them in the first weekend they’re showing. One of the…
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Oxfordshire Reclaim the Night - tomorrow!
By Jess McCabe | 5 November 2009, 10:11
Clare Cochrane from the Oxfordshire Reclaim the Night collective, talks through tomorrow’s Reclaim the Night march Here in Oxford we’re all getting excited as we build up to Oxfordshire Reclaim the Night 2009. Tomorrow, straight after work, we’ll march from…
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New piece on CiF - ‘Population control is not what makes climate change a feminist issue’
By Jess McCabe | 2 November 2009, 13:16
Just a quick note to say I’ve got a new piece up on Comment is Free, Population control is not what makes climate change a feminist issue. (Edit: Vikki Chowney has posted a nice follow-up about an Oxfam event which…
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More on Equal Pay Day - A Tale of Two Cities
By Jess McCabe | 30 October 2009, 12:52
As Helen mentioned already, today is Equal Pay Day - the average pay gap between men and women is 17.1%, meaning that while men in work will be paid for the full year, women in work are effectively working…
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Bermondsey suffragettes 100 years ago!
By Jess McCabe | 28 October 2009, 14:17
One hundred years ago today, two suffragettes poured ink and chemicals into two polling boxing during the Southwark by-election, reports London SE1, in a bid to disrupt an election in which women were not given the right to vote. But…
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Crime fiction reviewer refusing to review any more books because of misogynist violence
By Jess McCabe | 27 October 2009, 15:14
Crime fiction writer and reviewer for the Literary Review is refusing to review any more crime novels because of the high levels of misogynist violence, the Guardian reports. Jessica Mann, an award-winning author who reviews crime fiction for the Literary…
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Disney Princesses
By Jess McCabe | 26 October 2009, 16:06
Via Sociological Images and Fiona A, this is quite an interesting (if not exhaustive) deconstruction of some of the issues with Disney princesses….
New feature: Gender in the playground
By Jess McCabe | 25 October 2009, 23:39
Primary schools are no utopia of skipping rope and gender blind comradery. Instead, girls are already learning to worry about their looks - and boys are learning male privilege, reports teacher Kate Townshend I am in the classroom tidying up…
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Internship opportunity at Refuge
By Jess McCabe | 25 October 2009, 23:22
Do you want to intern at Refuge? Well, there’s an opening - applications close tomorrow at 5pm though! Refuge has come a long way since we opened the world’s first refuge in West London in 1971. What started off as…
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Nancy Spero RIP
By Jess McCabe | 22 October 2009, 10:18
Feminist artist Nancy Spero has died. I’m not familiar with her work, but Adrian Searle writing in the Guardian says: There was a memorable series devoted to Antonin Artaud, which included the phrase: “Artaud I couldn’t have borne to know…
Happy birthday to Ursula le Guin
By Jess McCabe | 21 October 2009, 16:10
Today is Ursula le Guin’s birthday, Ambling Along the Aqueduct reminds us. Le Guin is on the list of mindblowing science fiction by women & people of colour we linked to recently. You can read an interesting short story she…
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Consumer Direct - are we missing something?!
By Jess McCabe | 21 October 2009, 11:15
Consumer Direct is a government-funded service set up to advise consumers of our rights. They liven up this process with a series of slapstick photos of people in consumer-disaster situations, such as this guy whose jumper seems to have shrunk,…
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9 inspiring examples of women’s climate activism
By Jess McCabe | 16 October 2009, 14:58
Here is a list of nine fantastic and inspiring examples of feminist and women’s activism on climate change and environmental issues, put together in honour of Blog Action Day 2009. When I participated back in 2007, I set out why…
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Guest post: Girl Germs
By Jess McCabe | 15 October 2009, 10:23
Lydia Harris and Laura Wilson explain why they’re organising a zine, music and cake night in London this Saturday, and what to expect Girls Germs is a grrrl-tastic night of music, zines, cakes and dancing. Everybody who comes gets a…
New feature: Feminism in London 2009
By Jess McCabe | 14 October 2009, 15:38
Charlotte Cooper reports back from the capital’s second Feminism in London conference The Feminism in London conference, now in its second year, was an opportunity to bring together intergenerational, interfaith, black, white and minority ethnic women and men from various…
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Met may shut down human trafficking unit
By Jess McCabe | 13 October 2009, 17:51
The Metropolitan Police may shut its specialist unit to tackle human trafficking because of lack of funding. You might remember this is the second time that the unit has been threatened with closure due to funding issues; last time, it…
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Erasure of women from the arts
By Jess McCabe | 13 October 2009, 13:47
Bidisha has a good piece over on Comment is Free today about the way that work by male artists is overvalued and work by women artists is undervalued. Yet the support staff are usually all or almost all women. The…
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Mass lobby of Parliament on No Recourse to Public Funds, Wednesday 4 November
By Jess McCabe | 12 October 2009, 09:10
No woman should be left without support and protection leaving a violent partner. Yet this is the reality for the women caught under the government’s “no recourse to public funding” rule, which serves its anti-immigration agenda by putting up barriers…
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Gude Cause
By Jess McCabe | 11 October 2009, 21:38
Yesterday was a major day for feminists; as well as the conference which some of us F-Worders attended, women took to the streets of Edinburgh for the Gude Cause - a re-enactment of a key procession in the story…
Feminism in London 2009
By Jess McCabe | 11 October 2009, 21:19
I’ve just posted my photos from Feminism in London 2009 on Flickr, check out the whole lot here. Charlotte Cooper also took some at the conference and our feminist tweet up afterwards at the pub too!…
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Kate on Fourth Plinth in abortion access protest
By Jess McCabe | 8 October 2009, 11:09
F-Word contributor Kate Smurthwaite faked her way onto the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square in a protest about lack of abortion access for Northern Irish women. Here’s the press release (and you can see photos here) PRESS RELEASE: Fake plinther…
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‘Hallowe’en on the moonlit waters of Little Venice’
By Jess McCabe | 6 October 2009, 16:14
I went to this last year on Hallowe’en with some friends, it was great, I absolutely recommend it: Date: Saturday 31st October 2009 This Hallowe’en sees the return of our hugely popular boat event, but for one night only so…
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Probation officer on how social services handle domestic violence
By Jess McCabe | 6 October 2009, 14:27
A disturbing quote about how social services handle cases of domestic violence, in a piece by a probation officer over at CommentisFree today: We regularly tell social services of children living in houses where we know there is domestic violence….
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The Sun attempts to body-shame Mariah Carey with stupid slideshow
By Jess McCabe | 5 October 2009, 15:39
Via Tabloid Watch, comes this ridiculous story in The Sun, calling Mariah Carey “huge”. Yeah, really. They even put together a slideshow, with moment-by-moment snapshots of some dancers apparently “struggling” to lift her during a TV performance. Looking at…
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New review: The Raincoats play the National Portrait Gallery
By Jess McCabe | 5 October 2009, 11:11
The Raincoats are as vital as ever, argues Lydia Harris, who left their recent gig determined to join a grrrl band For just over three months, the National Portrait Gallery has been celebrating Gay Icons. This impressive exhibition features photographic…
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New review: Mysteries of the Iconographies
By Jess McCabe | 5 October 2009, 10:13
Artist Carolee Schneemann may be best-known for ‘Interior Scroll’, in which she read from a scroll she extracted from her vagina. But, at 70, her influence stretches far beyond that one famous performance piece. Kaite Welsh attended her recent lecture…
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New review: The Hour Past Midnight
By Jess McCabe | 5 October 2009, 09:08
Salma’s debut novel is a moving and beautifully-written must-read, says Sian Norris Salma, a renowned Tamil poet who has faced obscenity charges and violent threats in her homeland of India, has written what can only be described as an extraordinary…
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New review: Edinburgh Ladyfest 2009
By Jess McCabe | 3 October 2009, 17:42
Wisrutta Atthakor reports back from Edinburgh’s second Ladyfest, a festival centring women’s art and music, replete with workshops, comedy and stand-up. Includes an interview with Zorras Ladyfest Edinburgh 2009, the second to be held in Edinburgh and hopefully not the…
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Menarchy
By Jess McCabe | 3 October 2009, 17:02
Menarchy - or menstrual anarchy - includes “simple efforts to speak openly about periods, radical affronts to negative attitudes and campaigns for more environmentally friendly sanitary products”, Kira Cochrane says in yesterday’s Guardian. She profiles some interesting examples of ‘menarchy’…
New Sarah Haskins
By Jess McCabe | 3 October 2009, 16:53
This week, Sarah Haskins makes fun of the way adverts sell stuff to men by saying that “hot chicks” will literally flock to the man wearing their deodorant/chewing their gum/etc….
New play based on interviews with women trafficked to the UK
By Jess McCabe | 2 October 2009, 10:37
it felt empty when the heart went at first but it is alright now is a new play by Lucy Kirkwood, which is based on in-depth interviews with women trafficked into prostitution in the UK who have spent time in…
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September feature/review comments up now!
By Jess McCabe | 1 October 2009, 13:37
Our round up of comments on features and reviews from September is up now! This month, Melanie’s review arguing Stieg Larrson’s bestsellers are in fact misogynist and exploitative, not, as advertised, feminist, draws some interesting comments. Likewise Caitlin’s Twilight-inspired feminist…
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Photos from Asian women’s climate quilt parade at UN talks
By Jess McCabe | 1 October 2009, 10:43
People’s Action on Climate Change have posted a gallery of fantastic photos from the Asian Women’s Quilt Parade that took place today at the UN climate talks in Bangkok. More about the project from the press release: Asian grassroots…
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New review: How to survive and thrive as a creative professional for hire
By Jess McCabe | 1 October 2009, 09:19
Red Chidgey reviews a step-by-step guide to going freelance Hands up if you’re an office outsider. Tell-tale signs include: a rotating handful of ‘work clothes’ to feign respectability, perpetual feelings of wishing you were anywhere else, the sure-fire ability to…
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August comments up now
By Jess McCabe | 29 September 2009, 14:26
Comments on features & reviews from August are up now for your reading pleasure. This month, Francine’s explanation of her campaign against Page 3 drew some controversy and comment, along with Amity and Laurie’s reviews of Ellie Levenson’s book, The…
Learn about Feminists in Resistance against coup in Honduras, TONIGHT, London
By Jess McCabe | 28 September 2009, 14:47
A bit short notice, but if you’re in London tonight, there’s a great opportunity to learn a bit more about the work of Honduran Feminists in Resistance to the coup going on at the moment. Katherine Ronderos, women’s rights programme…
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Women still under-represented in climate debate
By Jess McCabe | 24 September 2009, 14:40
Out of 146 national delegations at the UN climate talks on Tuesday, only seven were headed by women. Oxfam says this is an example of how women’s voices are still absent from the debate on climate change and what to…
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The British Fantasy Society admits to ‘lazy sexism’. What now?
By Jess McCabe | 24 September 2009, 11:05
The British Fantasy Society has admitted that it was “lazy sexism” that was behind its failure to include any women in a collection of 16 interviews with horror writers out later this year. It’s actually nice to see that the…
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Why have there been no great women artists?
By Jess McCabe | 23 September 2009, 20:18
Another interesting screening by Club des Femmes is in the works this week, under the provocative title “Why have there been no great women artists?” It’s a chance to see two feminist shorts from the 1970s and one more…
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Sexual assault prevention tips guaranteed to work!
By Jess McCabe | 22 September 2009, 10:39
I’ve seen this list posted in several places in the last few days, so I’m not sure who originally wrote it. But I do think it nicely reverses the way these email circulars usually pull out a long list of…
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Mini review, feminist history: The Way to Paradise
By Jess McCabe | 21 September 2009, 22:52
When we talk about the foremothers of feminism on this blog, all too often we skew towards UK history and UK feminism. I’ve just finished reading Mario Vargas Llosa’s novel, The Way to Paradise, a double biography of French-Peruvian feminist…
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July comments up now!
By Jess McCabe | 19 September 2009, 18:00
Comments on features and reviews from July are up now. In July, Anna’s feature on her feminist ‘click’ moment got loads of praise, while Wisrutta’s piece on women engineers also garnered lots of responses. There’s lots more as usual, including…
Where does the word misogyny come from?
By Jess McCabe | 17 September 2009, 17:10
Misogyny is now in common usage to describe hatred towards women, but what is the origin of the word? On the Issues has posted an interesting article looking at when the word misogyny first began to emerge in English. It’s…
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New feature: How to organise a demonstration
By Jess McCabe | 17 September 2009, 11:06
In this case study, Carrie Supple explains how she and Louise Morris organised a protest to support Sudanese journalist Lubna Hussein - and how you can use the same techniques to organise a demo for your campaign too How it…
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LUZ
By Jess McCabe | 17 September 2009, 10:33
LUZ is a “reproductive justice think tank” in Colorado, in the US, which organises itself on a shared leadership model. In these videos, they tell the story of how the group came together, why they’ve chosen to organise themselves in…
UN approves women’s rights agency; IPS explains why it’s important
By Jess McCabe | 16 September 2009, 15:52
The United Nations has voted to create an agency dedicated to women’s rights, IPS reports. The vote by the 192-member general assembly of the UN is a landmark decision, but if you’re a bit vague on your understanding of how…
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Credit crunch exploited by abusive partners
By Jess McCabe | 16 September 2009, 13:55
The recession is making it harder for women to leave abusive partners, according to Women’s Aid (in Ireland?). The PA story draws attention to ways that abusers have been using money and control over finances to make life harder for…
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Getting priorities right second time
By Jess McCabe | 15 September 2009, 17:04
Via Radical Doula, the New York Times ran an interesting piece about a clinic in Peru, which was forced to change how it operated because so few women were choosing to give birth there. That is, in 1999, only 6%…
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Quick update, Moshe Katsav trial starts
By Jess McCabe | 14 September 2009, 13:10
Two years ago we reported the mass protests in Israel over the decision not to indict former president Moshe Katsav on rape charges. Well, I’m a bit late on this, but via womensphere, it turns out that his trial for…
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Only 6.4% of domestic violence cases end in conviction - Lib Dem research
By Jess McCabe | 14 September 2009, 11:02
The number of domestic violence convictions have risen dramatically, but 14 out of 15 cases reported to the police do not result in a conviction, the Daily Mail reports. (Yes, apparently the newspaper once again believes domestic violence is bad…
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Birmingham Reclaim the Night…
By Jess McCabe | 12 September 2009, 18:29
We’ve got a whole series of big marches coming up in the next month or so folks, including Gude Cause on 10 October in Edinburgh, which is a re-enactment of a key Suffragette march, up to the London Reclaim the…
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New review - Dirt: Quirks, Habits and Passions of Keeping House
By Jess McCabe | 10 September 2009, 13:24
Sian Norris reviews an anthology which explores our feelings about dirt (and cleaning it up) Dirt: Quirks, Habits and Passions of Keeping House is an anthology of women and men writers, journalists and commentators exploring their relationship with all things…
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New feature: Feminism and the vampire novel
By Jess McCabe | 8 September 2009, 22:00
Much has been written about sexism in the Twilight books and film. Here, Caitlin Brown puts the series in context of other popular vampire fiction Warning: spoilers follow Feminism and the vampire novel have not traditionally been particularly well-suited bedfellows….
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From 1980 to 2009
By Jess McCabe | 8 September 2009, 20:21
Sean Lennon and his girlfriend Kemp Muhl have re-created the famous photo of Yoko Ono and John Lennon taken just before he died. But, as Kittywampus points out, the 2009 recreation is so much more normative and boring than the…
The financial sector, where women are paid less, get 80% lower bonuses and face entrenched sexist culture
By Jess McCabe | 7 September 2009, 11:01
Women working in leading UK financial companies receive around 80% less in ‘performance related pay’ (ie bonuses) than their male colleagues, a report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission has found. The report is based on a survey sent…
New review: Feminist or misogynist?
By Jess McCabe | 5 September 2009, 13:46
Steig Larsson’s thrillers have been described as feminist, but Melanie Newman argues they are just the latest in a line of novels which aim to titillate readers with graphic depictions of men raping and murdering women This may be triggering…
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New review: Bluestockings
By Jess McCabe | 4 September 2009, 16:18
England’s first college accepting female undergraduates was established in 1869. In 1948, Cambridge became the last university in the country to grant degrees to its female students. Alexandra Roumbas Goldstein reviews a book which charts the years in between Originally…
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Protest in support of Lubna Hussein, tomorrow lunchtime, London
By Jess McCabe | 3 September 2009, 13:51
Tomorrow there will be a protest opposite the Embassy of Sudan in London, in support of Lubna Hessein, who faces trial next week for the crime of “indecent dressing” (ie wearing trousers). More on Lubna’s situation and the background to…
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‘Women given less subjectivity than cats’
By Jess McCabe | 2 September 2009, 20:14
Sociological Images highlighted this ad for perfume, noting that the cats “actually look at the camera and definitely appear to be alive, giving them more subjectivity than the women have”. See the full series of ads over at Sociological…
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1/4 of teenage girls suffer physical violence, 1/3 sexual violence in relationships
By Jess McCabe | 2 September 2009, 15:00
One third of girls age 13-17 have been forced or pressured into “unwanted sexual acts”, and a further one quarter have suffered physical violence by their boyfriends, according to a study by Bristol University and the NSPCC. A smaller number…
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Same-sex hand holding (Sshh!) Saturday
By Jess McCabe | 1 September 2009, 14:54
In what is planning to become a monthly event, the first international Same-sex hand holding (Sshh!) Saturday starts on September 26: On this day, same-sex couples and friends all over the world are encouraged to hold hands in public to…
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‘No Impact Man’ - or was that ‘No Impact Family’?
By Jess McCabe | 1 September 2009, 13:15
‘No Impact Man’ is yet another one of those projects where someone stops/starts doing something for a year - you might cynically say with the aim of getting a book deal/film. This latest example of the genre, dubbed “annualism”,…
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‘400 years of Black Female Leaders’
By Jess McCabe | 31 August 2009, 21:55
The Imperial War Museum in London is hosting a film and documentary screening this September, about black women leaders throughout history: Date: 27th September 2009 Time: 1.00pm - 4.30pm Women in war or peacetime do not always get the historical…
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Feminist book group
By Jess McCabe | 31 August 2009, 21:44
Our F-Word book group petred out a while back, but I’m sure there are plenty of readers out there who’d be interested in something similar. Well, here you go: Radical Readers & Feminisms for Dummies is the latest project by…
The Fat of the Land - Saturday 3 October, London
By Jess McCabe | 28 August 2009, 14:14
If you’re looking for a Harvest festival celebration this year in London, The Fat of the Land sounds good: London’s fat queers and their pals are coming together to challenge the greed of the diet industry and body fascism within…
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More on Caster Semenya
By Jess McCabe | 26 August 2009, 16:53
Just a quick one to say that Black Looks has posted a statement signed by a long list of feminists in South Africa about the decision to make Caster undergo a sex test: Caster should not be having to deal…
‘Misogyny, up close and personal’
By Jess McCabe | 26 August 2009, 14:50
Melissa from Shakesville has a fantastic piece up at CiF, about what it’s like for women to have close relationships and friendships with men who sometimes express misogyny or sexism, and how she doesn’t hate men, but finds it hard…
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Mindblowing science fiction by women & people of colour
By Jess McCabe | 25 August 2009, 20:54
Check out this fantastic list of “mindblowing” science fiction by women & people of colour, pulled together by The Angry Black Woman, with help from readers at her own blog, Alas, A Blog, and Feminist SF: The Blog. This list…
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Ladyfest Edinburgh, Sister Spit tour UK…
By Jess McCabe | 25 August 2009, 17:42
Ladyfest Edinburgh has posted the schedule for their weekend of women and girl-focused fun, art, poetry, workshops, music etc. The festival takes place from 25-27 September, and I have to say the most exciting bit for me is that lit/spoken…
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Evolutionary Psychology Bingo
By Jess McCabe | 24 August 2009, 17:48
Via Morrígan Reborn, comes this fantastic ‘Evolutionary Psychology Bingo’ game. As well as the square to the right, one of my other favourite squares is “‘Natural’ is always good, unless the evolutionary psychologist needs glasses”. See also: Antifeminist Bingo Antifeminist…
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Welcome to new and returning bloggers
By Jess McCabe | 24 August 2009, 12:19
I’m really pleased to let you all know that our guest blogger from last month, Lola Adesioye, is going to be joining us as a regular member of our blogging team. And we also have some more good news -…
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Old Girls to be performed in Glasgow
By Jess McCabe | 24 August 2009, 10:40
A new play by Zoë Strachan will be performed at Òran Mór in Glasgow, as part of its lunchtime theatre programme “a play, a pie and a pint”: Old Girls Thelma and Louise for the nursing home generation . ….
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Things to know about the history of UK immigration laws
By Jess McCabe | 19 August 2009, 21:58
What is the history of the UK’s immigration laws? Rahila Gupta has a piece in the Guardian’s CIF today. She puts the recent effort to reduce forced marriages by the UK government, by ruling that you have to be at…
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Mini review: She Should Have Gone to the Moon
By Jess McCabe | 17 August 2009, 21:06
She Should Have Gone to the Moon is a documentary about Jerri Truhill, one of 13 women who trained to go into orbit in the early years of the US’ space programme, but who never made it because of sexism…
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Film about women surfers
By Jess McCabe | 17 August 2009, 09:32
Via AfterEllen, this film about female surfers looks interesting. Dear & Yonder, with the tagline “Daring Stories of Women United by the Sea”, follows surfing stars including Coco Ho, Sally Fitzgibbons, Stephanie Gilmore and Silvana Lima and tracks the…
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Karzai backtracks
By Jess McCabe | 15 August 2009, 19:13
Bad news from Afghanistan: President Karzai looks to have backtracked on promises to review a law which would have legalised rape within marriage in the Shia community, among other provisions. An earlier version of the law triggered protests by hundreds…
New feature: Turn your back on Page 3
By Jess McCabe | 15 August 2009, 11:29
Francine Hoenderkamp explains her campaign to ban Page 3 Dear Clare, I have just finished reading your book and it has inspired me to start my own campaign against Page 3. I would love to discuss this with you as…
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New review: Creative writing at The Women’s Library
By Jess McCabe | 15 August 2009, 11:26
Yasmin Eshref attended a creative writing course for girls and young women at The Women’s Library This August, I was lucky enough to attend The Women’s Library’s fully-booked, female-only, creative writing course. I’m a long time fan of The Women’s…
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Women’s boxing returns to the Olympics
By Jess McCabe | 13 August 2009, 13:52
Women’s boxing will become an Olympic sport again in 2012, when female boxers will have a chance to compete in the London games. It will be the first time since 1904 women’s boxing features in the Olympics. You might remember…
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A voice for refugee women…
By Jess McCabe | 13 August 2009, 13:34
The Testimony Project seeks to amplify the voices of women telling their stories about the asylum system in the UK and life as asylum seekers and refugees. Women facing the UK asylum system do it on their own. Home Office…
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Tanzanian women set up bank
By Jess McCabe | 12 August 2009, 17:05
A group of high-profile women in Dar es Salaam have opened a bank aimed at providing basic financial services to female entrepreneurs, reports the BBC, Women on the Web and East African Business Week. According to the BBC: The bank…
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Coco Chanel, female directors
By Jess McCabe | 12 August 2009, 14:16
Interesting new site Fat Quarter has reviewed Coco Before Chanel, the latest film by Anne Fontaine, which is currently playing in UK cinemas: This is a film about a time, pre-war, pre-Suffrage, when, for women of a certain class, jobs…
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New feature: How do I look in this, on this, doing this, with this…?
By Jess McCabe | 12 August 2009, 10:34
Feminist artists have often used the tactic of exaggerating the objectification of women to the point of parody. But Alex Brew questions how subversive this strategy is in practice Titillation: to excite (another) pleasurably, superficially or erotically Capitalism: dominance of…
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New review: Baby Beauty Queens
By Jess McCabe | 8 August 2009, 19:24
Eleanor M. reviews a BBC3 documentary about a beauty pageant for pre-teen girls As with all documentaries delving into the perceived ‘freakier’ side of Britain, you have to take BBC3’s Baby Beauty Queens with a pinch of salt and remind…
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Saturday round-up
By Jess McCabe | 7 August 2009, 17:23
A shelter for women victims of domestic violence in Weymouth will be shut in order to provide more funding for women and families to stay in their homes, and because it does not cater to men. Rumbold at Pickled Politics…
Harriet Harman on women leading the country
By Jess McCabe | 5 August 2009, 09:36
Daily Mail has a reaI doozy of an editorial on the unfolding media hysteria over Harriet Harman’s week in charge of the country while Gordon Brown is on holiday (or, as the Mail headline writer put it “Seven days of…
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Rainbow Tea Party - fundraiser for London Reclaim the Night 2009
By Jess McCabe | 4 August 2009, 15:31
Scary Little Girls is organising a fundraiser for this year’s London Reclaim the Night. From 10pm on 21 August, at the Oak Bar in London: View Larger Map Tickets can be bought on the door and cost £5….
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Boris rape crisis funding update
By Jess McCabe | 4 August 2009, 10:44
UPDATE: Croydon’s Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre has asked us to publiish their number for any women that may be finding the increase in press coverage difficult. Their national freephone number is 0808 802 9999 and they are open…
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New review: Beyond Noughtie Girls
By Jess McCabe | 2 August 2009, 17:24
Ed: This month we’ve got two reviews of a book which has stirred up a lot of debate among feminists in the last few weeks. Ellie Levenson’s guide to feminism for the “noughtie girl” apologises too much and asks for…
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New reviews: The Noughtie Girl’s Guide to Feminism
By Jess McCabe | 2 August 2009, 17:18
Ed: This month we’ve got two reviews of a book which has stirred up a lot of debate among feminists in the last few weeks. Although Ellie Levenson’s feminist primer makes some sensible points, this is undermined by a raft…
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Non-feminist ‘more hostile’ towards men than feminists, study finds
By Jess McCabe | 31 July 2009, 17:26
One of the hoary stereotypes about feminists is that we are ‘man-haters’. I suspect that most feminists are more likely to roll their eyes at this sort of thing - I find it hard to take too seriously, although of…
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Shadow a councillor with Operation Black Vote
By Jess McCabe | 31 July 2009, 14:01
In a bid to increase the representation of black and ethnic minority women in politics, Operation Black Vote are taking applications for a shadow-a-councillor scheme: We are looking for fifty BAME women to shadow high level councillors for a minimum…
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Government misses UN deadline to report on discrimination against women
By Jess McCabe | 31 July 2009, 13:38
UPDATE: In the comments (see below) WRC says: In response to this press release, the Government Equalities Office has informed us that they submitted their report to the UN yesterday. We look forward to seeing the report to see what…
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Feminist art ‘the most important artistic movement since World War II’
By Jess McCabe | 27 July 2009, 15:50
This Washington Post article from the archives makes the case that the feminist art movement - particularly from the 1960s to ’70s and in the US - was the most important since WW2. “Wack!” has the same mix of media…
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Hackney Million Mothers March, 23 August
By Jess McCabe | 26 July 2009, 18:02
Starts 2.30pm from Bradbury Street, London N16 8JN What is The Hackney Million Mothers March? Hackney mothers have come together to hold a Million Mother March in Hackney to celebrate our children and young people and stand up against the…
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June’s comments, up now!
By Jess McCabe | 26 July 2009, 17:44
The latest batch of comments on features and reviews are online!…
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EA games invites convention attendees to sexually harass ‘booth babes’
By Jess McCabe | 25 July 2009, 18:05
To promote a game called Dante’s Inferno, Electronic Arts decided to hold a competition at Comic-Con: (male) attendees were encouraged to “commit acts of lust” with so-called “booth babes”, for a chance to win “a sinful night with two hot…
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Friday round-up!
By Jess McCabe | 24 July 2009, 11:39
Birmingham Fems yesterday held a fundraiser, Veg Out Against Violence. brand new feminist gave a speech about why the group is organising a Reclaim the Night march this year, which she’s posted on her blog: As some of you will…
New feature: Calendar girls
By Jess McCabe | 23 July 2009, 18:02
Molly Lavender considers a slew of calendars which reduce women to body parts Ah, January. Time for New Year’s resolutions, turning over a new leaf and so on. Time also, perhaps, for hanging up calendars. Actors, sporting heroes, comedians: it…
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New review: Body of Work
By Jess McCabe | 23 July 2009, 17:56
Gemma Sharpe reviews a retrospective of feminist video art As part of this year’s London Short Film Festival, queer feminist film club Club Des Femmes put on a programme called ‘Body of Work’ at the ICA. The programme collected six…
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Rachel Maddow - no access to abortion in 87% of US counties
By Jess McCabe | 22 July 2009, 21:13
Via AlterNet and @HumanFolly…
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Nottingham council withdraws funding to Roshni women’s centre
By Jess McCabe | 22 July 2009, 14:59
Nottingham City Council is threatening to withdraw funding from Roshni, the only specialist organisation that supports South Asian women victims of domestic, sexual violence and forced marriage in Nottingham. Roshni has put together a petition, which will be presented to…
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New feature: The woman engineer: are we really that incompetent?
By Jess McCabe | 21 July 2009, 18:13
What is really holding back women in engineering, and stopping girls from aspiring to careers in applied sciences? Wisrutta Atthakor investigates Women are rubbish at driving, women are rubbish at sports, women are rubbish at martial arts, women are rubbish…
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New feature: Coherent feminism doesn’t stop at Afghani women
By Jess McCabe | 21 July 2009, 18:11
Should all Muslim women boycott the burqa because some women are forced to wear it? Myriam Francois-Cerrah argues not Commenting on French president Nicolas Sarkozy’s intention to ban the burka in The Guardian, Rahila Gupta argued that because women elsewhere…
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Boris caught by the wheel, questioned on Rape Crisis funding
By Jess McCabe | 20 July 2009, 15:28
The-sauce has a report from today’s protest outside City Hall, calling for London mayor Boris Johnson to keep his election pledge to fully fund three additional rape crisis centres and continue funding the capital’s only existing centre. Clare Solomon, a…
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Lego, 1981
By Jess McCabe | 19 July 2009, 12:31
This ad for lego came out in 1981. Would the same ad be produced today? As Sociological Images says: I’ve seen other ads from the ’70s and ’80s, particularly for Tonka trucks, that show girls like this-in clothes that…
Domestic violence accounts for one in four suspects in custody in Glasgow
By Jess McCabe | 18 July 2009, 11:35
One in four suspects held in custody in Glasgow are under investigation for domestic violence, The Herald reports. This statistic drives home yet again how everyday domestic violence really is. The domestic abuse unit, the first of its kind in…
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Another round-up
By Jess McCabe | 17 July 2009, 10:28
Tesco has failed to improve pay and conditions for South African women producing fruit for the company, four years after ActionAid began its campaign on this issue: Jenny Ricks, ActionAid Campaigner said: “Tesco has increased its ethical checks in response…
Feminists set off attack alarms in City Hall to protest lack of Rape Crisis funding
By Jess McCabe | 15 July 2009, 13:19
Five women snuck attack alarms into City Hall today, and set them off at just after 11.30am to protest London mayor Boris Johnson’s failure to deliver on his election pledge to boost funding for Rape Crisis Centres in the capital,…
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Except it’s not every family, is it
By Jess McCabe | 15 July 2009, 10:27
The Tories’ patronising obsession with dictating the terms of the voting public’s relationships continues - a Tory think-tank report is calling for a compulsory three-month cooling off period in divorce cases, because apparently couples can’t decide for themselves if they…
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Protest deportation of cleaners; feminist poet among those denied artist visas to UK
By Jess McCabe | 14 July 2009, 17:41
A protest is planned in London this Friday lunchtime, in support of SOAS cleaners - nine cleaners were seized in an immigration raid shortly after they won union recognition and a pay raise to the level of the London living…
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New review: The Politics of Breastfeeding
By Jess McCabe | 14 July 2009, 11:04
Karen Gregory reviews the 20th anniversary edition of The Politics of Breastfeeding by Gabrielle Palmer Why has artificial feeding become the norm in many parts of the world? Why are worldwide sales of bottles and artificial feeding products still rising,…
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My kind of post-feminist
By Jess McCabe | 13 July 2009, 16:19
Feminist Webs is calling for young women to submit postcards on “what young women want”, for a book which will be sent to local and national decision makers. Here are the instructions: 1. Buy or create a postcard 2. Fill…
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New feature: Confessions of a brand new feminist
By Jess McCabe | 13 July 2009, 13:23
Once Anna Corbett would have laughed at the idea she’d call herself a feminist. Here she explains what changed her mind My name is Anna, I’m 22 and I’m a feminist. Six months ago, if someone told me that I…
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Get involved: Leeds Reclaim the Night
By Jess McCabe | 13 July 2009, 10:39
A group in Leeds is planning a Reclaim the Night march this year, and is holding a meeting tomorrow evening for women who want to get involved. We are very excited to announce an initial planning meeting for a 2009…
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Mini-review: Before Stonewall
By Jess McCabe | 12 July 2009, 11:40
To mark the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, Peccadillo Pictures has re-released the 1984 documentary Before Stonewall in some cinemas and on DVD. They sent me a preview disc, which I’ve been meaning to watch and review for…
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Fat Studies in the UK
By Jess McCabe | 10 July 2009, 15:58
Obesity Timebomb has posted an interesting interview with Corinna Tomrley, co-editor of recently-released book Fat Studies in the UK, and she has a lot to say specifically about women and fat and body image. Corinna talks about how the book…
Master Suppression Techniques - sexism in the workplace
By Jess McCabe | 10 July 2009, 11:38
If someone is outright sexist or misogynist towards you in the workplace, then it’s in some ways easier to identify and deal with than the subtler undermining that can happen. F-Word commenter A Different Helen sent in a link to…
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Introducing our new guest blogger… Lola Adesioye
By Jess McCabe | 9 July 2009, 15:28
Our newest guest blogger Lola Adesioya starts today, look out for her posts over the next few weeks! Lola is a British, New York-based writer whose area of speciality is race, politics and popular culture from a Generation Y and…
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Olive Morris Memorial Breakfast in London this Sunday
By Jess McCabe | 9 July 2009, 12:30
The Remembering Olive Morris Collective is organising a breakfast in Brixton this Sunday, on the anniversary of the activist’s death in 1979: On the anniversary of Olive Morris death we will convene for breakfast in a public space at the…
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Offside
By Jess McCabe | 9 July 2009, 11:40
Just a quick heads up, if you get a chance to see Offside, then do. Women aren’t allowed into the football stadium in Iran, and this is a documentary-style comedy about Iranian girls who dress up as boys in…
Another round-up
By Jess McCabe | 8 July 2009, 12:46
Women are up to seven times less likely to report homophobic and transphobic crime to the police than men, according to a survey by the Met. The survey, which builds upon 2002 research conducted on behalf of the Home Office,…
Reclaim the Night, Friday night, East London
By Jess McCabe | 7 July 2009, 14:35
Via womensgrid: A number of women have been attacked in the Markhouse Road / St James’s area in recent months. Let Us Join Together On A Community Walk And Show We Will Not Live In Fear Reclaim The Night E17…
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Telegraph story twists research on men who (are prepared to) rape
By Jess McCabe | 6 July 2009, 15:49
Ben “Bad Science” Goldacre has comprehensively taken apart this horrifically victim-blaming story in the Telegraph, which ran with the entirely misleading headline: Women who dress provocatively more likely to be raped, claim scientists The story is a case study in…
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Daily Mail in knee-jerk homophobic, sexist shocker!
By Jess McCabe | 6 July 2009, 15:29
How to react this rant by Melanie Phillips in today’s Daily Mail? I mean, clearly it’s a reaction to Pride this weekend, right? It pushed her buttons, because although she makes the concession that G(LB?) people should be “tolerated” and…
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Far right threatens Anna Lo, racist attacks in Belfast
By Jess McCabe | 6 July 2009, 12:09
Anna Lo is the sole ethnic minority member of the Northern Ireland Assembly - and last week she was warned by police of threats to attack her by racist far-right groups in the region, reports the Belfast Telegraph. (Via Madam…
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Women of Bletchley Park
By Jess McCabe | 6 July 2009, 00:08
The folks behind Ada Lovelace Day have another interesting event up their sleeve later this month. Women of Bletchley Park on 26 July, will look at women’s contribution to the (second world) war effort at the famous site where Alan…
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Southall Black Sisters boycott London committee hearing on violence against women over BNP presence
By Jess McCabe | 3 July 2009, 17:23
Southall Black Sisters and Eaves have pulled out of an evidence session, meant to feed into London mayor Boris Johnson’s violence against women strategy, because the BNP member Richard Barnbrook is on the committee. In a statement posted on womensgrid,…
Round-up!
By Jess McCabe | 2 July 2009, 23:44
An Australian woman has had a criminal conviction for making a false police report of rape overturned, after the man accused of raping her was convicted of attacking another woman. Abyss2Hope has more, but I think this is the key…
Game competition about domestic violence
By Jess McCabe | 2 July 2009, 12:43
Regular readers will know I’m a disgruntled game-player. I love games. I just wish less of them sucked - both in the sense I wish more were playable and actually fun and in the sense that they didn’t FAIL quite…
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40% of ethnic minority women in UK live in poverty - Fawcett
By Jess McCabe | 30 June 2009, 16:46
40% of ethnic minority women in the UK live in poverty, according to a report out today by the Fawcett society (and more specifically written by zohra). The current recession poses a major risk that the numbers of ethnic minority…
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Most conventionally-attractive female players scheduled for centre court, admits Wimbledon
By Jess McCabe | 30 June 2009, 10:10
The All England Club has admitted that it schedules matches between “attractive” female players for Centre Court at Wimbledon, reports the Daily Mail. In the men’s tournament, five-times winner Roger Federer and British hope Andy Murray invariably play on Centre….
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Off the beaten path
By Jess McCabe | 28 June 2009, 11:47
The curators of Off The Beaten Path, an exhibition of global art about violence against women in Oslo, have put the show online. Obviously it’s not the same as actually being able to explore the show yourself, but still…
May’s comments up now
By Jess McCabe | 27 June 2009, 14:50
Comments on features and reviews sent in last month are up now….
Tips for Wired Magazine
By Jess McCabe | 27 June 2009, 02:07
Wired Magazine is being called out for populating the panel on its Wired Biz conference programme with white men. Wired’s response on Twitter? According to @WIREDBiz organizers, we tried hard to get women speakers, but it didn’t work out. We…
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Utera Maxima
By Jess McCabe | 26 June 2009, 13:04
It’s a while since I did an Etsy feminist post, but I couldn’t resist after coming across VulvaLovelyLove’s Etsy shop (note: some images in the shop are not safe for work). The name gets the job done, as the shop…
(Check out) Top Hot Butches, critiques and responses
By Jess McCabe | 25 June 2009, 02:59
[Post has been edited and reblogged] Sinclair’s latest project, Top Hot Butches, was originally a list of The 100 hottest butch, masculine, androgynous, genderqueer, transmasculine, studs, AGs, dykes, queers, and transguys Following criticism of the inclusion of trans men in…
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Riot grrrl Jessica Hopper’s ‘girls’ guide to rocking’
By Jess McCabe | 18 June 2009, 02:50
Feminist music journo and former(?) riot grrl Jessica Hopper has put out a book for girls on “how to start a band, book gigs and get rolling to rock stardom”. Via AfterEllen, which has more info, this is one of…
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Off to New York…
By Jess McCabe | 12 June 2009, 17:29
I’m off on my travels tomorrow, heading across the pond to New York for two weeks. Holly, Laura and zohra will be on hand as guest editors/your point of contact while I’m away, as I’m going to try and take…
London flashmob protest against violence against women
By Jess McCabe | 12 June 2009, 15:10
Flashmobs are usually strictly arranged for fun and laughs. But The FemaleArtCollective is planning one for tomorrow noon in London, which has a more serious purpose: You’ve seen the massed crowds dancing in adverts. You’ve seen the people freezing at…
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Birmingham Fems hold ‘veg out’ fundraiser for Reclaim the Night
By Jess McCabe | 11 June 2009, 23:16
Birmingham Fems invite you to a ‘veg out’ in July, to raise money for the city’s Reclaim the Night. On 23 July, at the Warehouse Cafe: Come to this special night at the Warehouse Cafe to help raise funds for…
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Another round-up
By Jess McCabe | 11 June 2009, 16:20
An anti-abortion group hopes to buy the Wichita, US, clinic of murdered abortion-provider Dr George Tiller, in a spectacularly crude move. Students at an Oxford University college have voted in “a ‘white heterosexual male officer’ to represent their interests on…
Latest round of comments on features and reviews
By Jess McCabe | 10 June 2009, 23:29
April’s comments on features and reviews are up and ready to read. Readers wrote in about Eirwen-Jane’s takedown of some bad science blogging, Wisrutta’s thoughts on being a female geek and sexist expectations and Sarah’s account of Smash Miss Contest’s…
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Le Tigre not broken up, working with Christina Aguilera
By Jess McCabe | 10 June 2009, 14:34
Le Tigre, it transpires, have not broken up! They are collaborating with Christina Aguilera: The pop-star/punk-rock team-up was first reported by blogger Perez Hilton. “Just ran into [Le Tigre member] JD Samson, my not-so-secret crush,” Hilton wrote on Twitter. “JD…
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New feature: Some body to love
By Jess McCabe | 9 June 2009, 12:13
Forget which body-shape is ‘fashionable’ - women are more than just their bodies, argues Lara Williams Beth Ditto’s appearance on the cover of the inaugural issue of Love Magazine’s - Condé Nast’s latest trendy publication - has prompted the inevitable…
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Story time with Sarah Haskins
By Jess McCabe | 9 June 2009, 11:57
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F-Word bookshop proceeds from last year donated to Women’s Aid
By Jess McCabe | 8 June 2009, 17:04
We have donated £200 of proceeds from our Amazon bookshop to Women’s Aid. We* decided to donate almost 100% of the money made from the bookshop in its first year. (You can read more about the bookshop here.) Women’s Aid…
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Far right gains
By Jess McCabe | 8 June 2009, 10:58
As you all probably know by now, the BNP won two seats in the European Parliament last night - including vile party leader Nick Griffin and Andrew Brons, formerly chairman of the National Front: He and another NF member were…
Doncaster’s newly elected mayor
By Jess McCabe | 7 June 2009, 13:59
In among the many elections held last week, Doncaster elected Peter Davies from the fringe, hard right ‘English Democrats’ party as mayor. The right-winger ran on an ‘English devolution’ and anti-political correctness platform, and the party wants to withdraw from…
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On Caroline Flint and “the stiletto in the heart of Gordon Brown”
By Jess McCabe | 7 June 2009, 13:16
“Revenge of the woman scorned” screamed the Daily Mail headline. “Caroline Flint launches ‘stiletto in the heart’ of Gordon Brown” was The Telegraph’s take. And that’s just the beginning - headline writers have lept on Flint’s resignation as an excuse…
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Happy World Environment Day!
By Jess McCabe | 5 June 2009, 20:34
Raquel Gutierrez Najera is set to receive an award today, to recognise her work on the campaign to protect Mexico’s Lake Chapala, the country’s largest natural lake. The Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide sent out this email today: We congratulate ELAW…
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Boris Keep Your Promise
By Jess McCabe | 5 June 2009, 16:57
Last night me and occasional F-Word guest blogger Charlotte Cooper headed to the launch of the Boris Keep Your Promise campaign, to keep the pressure on London mayor Boris Johnson to fulfill his campaign pledge to boost funding for…
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Samantha Orobator sentenced to life
By Jess McCabe | 3 June 2009, 17:16
Samantha Orobator will not face the death penalty - instead she will face life in prison after she was found guilty of drug trafficking, according to the Guardian. The Guardian confirms she was forced to sign a statement saying her…
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A story of misplaced paternalism and the wrong answer to a pressing problem
By Jess McCabe | 3 June 2009, 11:31
An HIV-positive pregnant woman has been jailed by a US judge, who believes that the health-care provided by the country’s immigration system is so poor, that prison is her best bet for ensuring she doesn’t pass on HIV to her…
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European elections, beyond just not voting for the BNP
By Jess McCabe | 2 June 2009, 11:17
The pressure is on to keep the BNP from gaining seats in the European elections on Thursday. Voting for other parties makes it harder for them to gain ground - and, especially if you’re in the North West, where the…
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George Tiller RIP
By Jess McCabe | 1 June 2009, 16:17
On Sunday morning, US gynaecologist George Tiller was murdered. He was one of the few providers of late-term abortions in the US. Christine at Our Bodies Ourselves gives some background - Tiller had faced many years of persecution: In March,…
Headlines, headlines, headlines
By Jess McCabe | 1 June 2009, 15:41
“Women less happy after 40 years of feminism,” says the Times Online headline. “Women are more unhappy despite 40 years of feminism, claims study,” screams the Mail. My first reaction when this popped into my inbox was, really? We’ve been…
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Il Corpo Delle Donne
By Jess McCabe | 31 May 2009, 21:30
Il Corpo Delle Donne is a documentary about the representation of women on Italian TV. It focuses on how women become decorative props on TV shows and the reluctance of the Italian media to show older women, unless they’ve had…
Hippodrome Yarmouth allows staff to wear ‘100% woman’ badges
By Jess McCabe | 31 May 2009, 17:37
Women working at the Hippodrome in Great Yarmouth have demanded permission to wear badges saying they are “100% woman”, to distinguish themselves from the performers in the ‘Lady Boys of Bangkok’ cabaret. As Monica at TransGriot reports: Hippodrome staffer Ruth…
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Filed under: depressing
By Jess McCabe | 29 May 2009, 17:51
Although we know homophobic bullying and bullying centring on gender conformity in schools is common, this story about primary school girls is still pretty shocking*. A study by researchers at Cardiff University at a girls school found many year five…
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Really?
By Jess McCabe | 29 May 2009, 11:10
Last night me, zohra and (occasional F-Word guest blogger) Charlotte Cooper went out for a meal near where I work… and walked passed a local restaurant with this ‘interesting’ sign on the street. This kind of thing reminds me…
‘No Girls Allowed’
By Jess McCabe | 28 May 2009, 15:10
This could be an interesting book to give to girls in your life aged 9-12: No Girls Allowed is a graphic novel telling the story of seven women* - six historic, one mythical - who “dressed as men for love,…
Justifying domestic violence
By Jess McCabe | 27 May 2009, 14:44
Consider this story in the Independent, is about a man who pushed his ex-wife down the stairs and stabbed her with hairdressing scissors. So, why did the Independent lede it: A mild-mannered grandfather was today jailed for attacking his wife…
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Another round-up!
By Jess McCabe | 27 May 2009, 11:23
California’s Supreme Court has upheld Prop 8, meaning that the ban on same-sex marriage stands. The only good news is that 18,000 same-sex couples who married before the referendum in November will not be forcibly divorced. Bilerico has a full…
‘So much more than an apple?’
By Jess McCabe | 26 May 2009, 14:48
Reader Lizzie wrote in with this photo: She says: I saw this in the centre of York last Friday and couldn’t believe my eyes. So pink lady apples are ‘so much more than just an apple’? Admittedly they’ve very nice,…
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New review: Raising boys? Help yourself to some gender stereotypes
By Jess McCabe | 26 May 2009, 10:57
Steve Biddulph’s bestseller on bringing up boys takes us on a trip back to 19th century, says Clare Gould It was as I stood waiting in a queue in the local department store that the book caught my eye. Jiggling…
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New feature: Breaking the circle
By Jess McCabe | 25 May 2009, 23:18
We know that sexual violence is all too common and everyday. Here ‘L’ talks through repeat experiences of being targetted with abuse and sexual assault by boys and men Warning: this article may be triggering for some readers I am…
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European election…
By Jess McCabe | 23 May 2009, 23:44
Polling day for the European Parliament elections is creeping up; I got my ballot in the post this morning. Vote Match has put together a tool to help see how the local candidates in your area match up against a…
Target Women: laundry
By Jess McCabe | 23 May 2009, 19:21
Dodgy research again
By Jess McCabe | 22 May 2009, 17:49
Just a quick one, before I rush off to help set up for this talk tonight (which, yes, if you’re wondering what to do with your Friday night in London, will be fantastic). F-Word reader Ellen sent in the link…
Another round-up
By Jess McCabe | 22 May 2009, 16:35
Lebanese activists Feminist Collective have launched a campaign against this election poster, which translates “be beautiful and vote”. Here’s the adbusted version: Nadz at Feminist Collective says: Give me a break! All of you parties are useless. I’m going up…
Quick reminder: Sabrina Chapadjiev talk in London TONIGHT
By Jess McCabe | 22 May 2009, 08:17
Sabrina Chapadjiev, editor of Live Through This, is talking in London TONIGHT at the Feminist Library. Live Through This is a collection of stories, essays and artwork by women artists about creativity and self-destruction, including bell hooks, Inga Muscio, Carolyn…
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The pink oujia board
By Jess McCabe | 20 May 2009, 16:15
To be honest, kids are probably already going down the wrong path buying an oujia board, rather than making one (can you really suspend your ‘contacting the dead’ disbelief with a talking board made by Hasbro?) But this is… ridiculous:…
Gude Cause
By Jess McCabe | 20 May 2009, 14:01
Gude Cause are planning to re-enact a key march for women’s suffrage. The 10 October march in Edinburgh will celebrate 100 years since Women’s Suffrage Movement Procession along Princes Street in 1909: Join us on this special day that will…
Live Through This editor Sabrina Chapadjiev THIS FRIDAY in London 22 May
By Jess McCabe | 19 May 2009, 10:40
London-based readers: I know this is really short notice, but if you can make it, it would be great to see you there! Sabrina Chapadjiev, editor of Live Through This, will be giving her only London talk at The Feminist…
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New Look mannequin
By Jess McCabe | 18 May 2009, 19:06
Daniella sent us in this photo she took of an er… interestingly proportioned mannequin in New Look: Daniella says: While shopping today in New Look (guilty pleasure) I came across this truly unbelievable mannequin in the underwear section. The bust…
NHS Leicester uses shock tactics
By Jess McCabe | 18 May 2009, 14:29
NHS Leicester posted a PSA on teen pregnancy to YouTube, which was banned under the site’s community guidelines. You can still see the video on the NHS’ oh-so-slightly patronising site. It shows a group of teenagers crowded around, shouting, and…
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First women win seats in Kuwait’s parliament
By Jess McCabe | 18 May 2009, 14:07
Congratulations to Rola Dashti, Salwa al-Jassar, Aseel al-Awadi and Massouma al-Mubarak, the first women to be elected to the Kuwaiti parliament since women won the vote in 2005. According to the New York Times: The election of women to…
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Feminism in the Observer
By Jess McCabe | 17 May 2009, 01:06
Update! Amelia from the Observer has promised that the worst misquote will be corrected tomorrow. ——————————- Probably I’ll write something a bit longer tomorrow, about this article in today’s Observer, about the launch of Double X and subsequent controversy, in…
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New feature: On kickboxing, women’s aggression and self-defence
By Jess McCabe | 16 May 2009, 21:27
Jessica Burton explains how kickboxing changed how she feels about her own body and her confidence in the face of harassment and potential violence Once a week for more than an hour I release tension, build fitness and luxuriate in…
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Issue 7 of Subtext on the shelves
By Jess McCabe | 15 May 2009, 13:50
The latest issue of Subtext magazine is out now - you can buy a copy or subscribe on their website. According to the press release: Subtext Magazine has returned after a year long hiatus with issue seven of the premier…
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Your Thursday round-up!
By Jess McCabe | 14 May 2009, 11:43
Samantha Orobator has been told to deny she was raped while in prison in Laos, or face the death penalty. Cara at Feministe says: But, let’s assume for one moment, for the sake of argument, that she told the truth…
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On comments
By Jess McCabe | 13 May 2009, 22:52
Hold onto your hats, I’m going to say something good about the Daily Mail (without disputing its general status as the Daily Male, Daily Fail, etc…) When I was writing this post about Flight Lieutenant Kirsty Moore joining the Red…
First woman pilot joins the Red Arrows
By Jess McCabe | 13 May 2009, 17:08
Kudos to Flight Lieutenant Kirsty Moore, who has become the first woman to join the Red Arrows (an RAF display team), reports the Mail. She had already distinguished herself as one of only ten women fast jet pilots in the…
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Rebecca Adlington, the pressure to be feminine
By Jess McCabe | 13 May 2009, 16:29
19-year-old Rebecca Adlington won two gold medals at the Olympics in Beijing. The Daily Mail ran an interview with her, including 14 photos of her posing, all glammed up, next to the pool. And, rather than talk about her accomplishments,…
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Double X
By Jess McCabe | 13 May 2009, 10:09
Slate has launched a new ‘women’s’ magazine, Double X. Feministe has already skewered one of their articles, but what about the site in general? Well, I like this interview with Tilda Swinton (although not so much the headline). But it’s…
Is European politics sexist?
By Jess McCabe | 11 May 2009, 17:15
The European Parliament elections are less than a month away. This interview with MEP Lívia Járóka touches on sexism in European politics and the situation faced by Roma people, particularly in Italy and some parts of eastern Europe. Asked if…
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Oh dear, Demos
By Jess McCabe | 11 May 2009, 10:49
Think-tank Demos last week launched their vision for how power should be “radically devolved”. But Jenni Russell at Comment is Free went to the launch, and “no one mentioned women’s existence once”: As I stood listening, I began to feel…
Liverpool to get new rape crisis centre
By Jess McCabe | 9 May 2009, 18:42
A rape crisis centre is opening in Liverpool, the first in more than a decade according to Liverpool Echo. Given that we mostly write about rape crisis centres closing or being cancelled, it’s good to write about services being expanded…
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Transnational feminist talk in London tomorrow
By Jess McCabe | 9 May 2009, 18:27
Sorry for the short notice, but I only just saw this: there’s an interesting panel discussion tomorrow as part of the ChangeUtopia! conference: For transnational feminism! Sunday 10th May 2009 from 11am - 1pm At Rich Mix, 35-47 Bethnal Green…
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Guerilla Girls
By Jess McCabe | 9 May 2009, 10:52
(Via Bitch Magazine)…
(We missed) International No Diet Day
By Jess McCabe | 8 May 2009, 15:41
We’ve missed International No Diet Day by two days (it’s 6 May), but I thought it was still worth a mention. According to the Bust Magazine blog: The day began in 1992 when Mary Evans Young, a British feminist, decided…
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A new radical childcare collective in London?
By Jess McCabe | 8 May 2009, 14:37
In response to the way that parents can be excluded from activism because of the lack of childcare, a meeting is taking place on Monday in London, as a first step in forming a radical childcare collective. Here are the…
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Round-up!
By Jess McCabe | 7 May 2009, 14:18
20-year-old Samantha Orobator will not be executed, the Laos government has said - she was facing the death penalty after she was arrested for carrying 500g of heroin. However, according to the Guardian the execution may be delayed rather than…
Minutes of leisure in the OECD
By Jess McCabe | 7 May 2009, 12:24
The OECD has done some interesting research, showing that there is a leisure time gender gap. Namely, in most industrialised countries, men have more leisure time than women. Here’s the graph, representing minutes of leisure time a day: I can’t…
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RIP Marilyn French
By Jess McCabe | 4 May 2009, 21:35
Feminist novelist Marilyn French died this weekend, aged 79. The New York Times’obituary says she died of a heart attack: Her first and best-known novel, The Women’s Room, released in 1977, traces a submissive housewife’s journey of self-discovery following her…
Carol Ann Duffy
By Jess McCabe | 3 May 2009, 20:57
Of course it’s not news anymore, but this post is just to recognise that Carol Ann Duffy is the new poet laureate. She’s the first woman and (erm, obviously) the first lesbian to hold the role. The Guardian put…
Women in tech: the GoGaRuCo incident
By Jess McCabe | 3 May 2009, 20:05
The issue of misogyny faced by women in tech has gone up the agenda recently, not least because of Ada Lovelace Day. Here’s another bit of evidence to add to the pile: at a conference on the programming language Ruby,…
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Ladyfest Oxford
By Jess McCabe | 2 May 2009, 17:55
Only a few weeks until Ladyfest Oxford - they sent us over the full line-up this morning: LADYFEST: 17th May to 23rd May 2009 Ladyfest is a non-profit festival which presents and supports the creative talents of professional and amateur…
March features up now!
By Jess McCabe | 2 May 2009, 17:42
All the comments fit to print* from March are up now. *And some that aren’t, but have been included for laughs and for educational purposes…
Sure, you can have a cookie…
By Jess McCabe | 30 April 2009, 15:21
One of those phrases that floats around the femosphere is talk about people “wanting a cookie”, in recognition of their great contribution to the fight against kyriarchy, through, for example, not raping anyone, or perhaps grasping some basic point of…
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Female journalists expected to humiliate themselves for column inches
By Jess McCabe | 29 April 2009, 12:30
UPDATE: As Steph points out, Jill Parkin has been responsible for articles like this one about schools being ‘feminised’. I also found this, erm, interesting Mail column headlined “Why does food drive so many women insane?” and this anti-fat column….
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Feminists in Israel arrested for ‘encouraging’ draft-dodging
By Jess McCabe | 29 April 2009, 11:03
Seven members of Israeli feminist group New Profile have been arrested, reports Haaretz, “for allegedly encouraging Israeli teens to refuse entry into the Israel Defense Forces”. A coalition of 20 Israeli feminist groups has writen to Public Security Minister Yitzhak…
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Equality Bill
By Jess McCabe | 28 April 2009, 16:51
The government has finally come out with its Equality Bill, bringing together (and hopefully improving on) nine seperate pieces of legislation and 100 other measures. Harriet Harman’s proposals on how to close the pay gap seem to be getting the…
New feature: Stink bombing the beauty pagaent
By Jess McCabe | 28 April 2009, 11:26
Protesters from Smash Miss Contest sneaked into the Miss London University beauty contest, releasing stinkbombs and distributing letters to the audience. Sarah Levack reports The final of the Miss University London Beauty Contest took place on Tuesday 10 March. We…
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A round-up
By Jess McCabe | 27 April 2009, 22:18
Italy’s Senate has passed legislation which toughens the sentencing for rape, and makes stalking a criminal offense. Unfortunately, it’s far from all good. The legislation was only passed by including a number of noxious anti-immigrant stipulations, including vigilante groups and…
Mary Wollstonecraft’s 250th birthday
By Jess McCabe | 27 April 2009, 19:23
Mary Wollstonecraft was born 250 years ago today. Celebrate by reading her famous tract, The Vindication of the Rights of Women. Or maybe one of her two novels, both, confusingly, titled Mary. According to Wikipedia: In her first novel, Mary:…
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New feature: A woman… and a geek?
By Jess McCabe | 25 April 2009, 22:03
Geeky women have a lot to put up with, from sexist portrays of women in their favourite media to friends, family and coworkers doubting their competence, says Wisrutta Atthakor. But why should female geeks give up on what they’re interested…
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Lilith’s Brood
By Jess McCabe | 25 April 2009, 16:20
I couldn’t resist doing a bit of a mini-review of Octavia Butler’s trilogy Lilith’s Brood (formerly published as Xenogenesis). I just finished it, and it’s surely one of the most complex and interesting books I’ve read in a good while….
Earth Day and feminism
By Jess McCabe | 23 April 2009, 15:24
Yesterday was Earth Day across the pond, a day established in 1970 to foster awareness of the Earth’s environment. (Global Earth Day was on the March equinox). No, this isn’t another moan about the general failure to consider the links…
It’s official, Boris will not fund the promised rape crisis centres for London
By Jess McCabe | 22 April 2009, 14:41
London Mayor Boris Johnson yesterday confirmed that he will not fund three new rape crisis centres for London, almost the only part of his election platform that had any merit. We had wind of this back in December last year,…
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Live Through This - Edinburgh
By Jess McCabe | 21 April 2009, 12:31
Live Through This is a collection of essays and stories which explore the link between creativity and self destruction, between being a survivor and creating art. It’s a fantastic, but incredibly difficult book to read, because of the subject matter…
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Times cartoon on Jacqui Smith
By Jess McCabe | 20 April 2009, 10:25
Via Cath Elliot and Caroline at Uncool As Cath says: Can someone please tell the nation’s esteemed political cartoonists/satirists to change the record and start coming up with something a bit more imaginative (and funny!) ‘cos this public school-boy crap’s…
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New review: Feminism and Peter Pan
By Jess McCabe | 19 April 2009, 22:35
JM Barrie’s creation Peter Pan has an enduring popularity. Allison McCarthy digs into the sexist and racist history of the play and novel, and how this has been addressed in modern adaptations In a world rife with contradictions, here’s one…
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Angie Zapata
By Jess McCabe | 19 April 2009, 11:28
Angie Zapata was brutally murdered in Colorado last summer: Allen Andrade is currently on trial in the US, accused of her murder. It is the first time that anyone has been prosecuted in the US under hate crime legislation which…
Sarah Haskins on euphemisms…
By Jess McCabe | 18 April 2009, 20:29
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Magdalene
By Jess McCabe | 18 April 2009, 16:15
Just a quick one: I have to recommend listening to the latest episode of Renee from Womanist Musings and Monica from TransGriot’s podcast. They talk to women from the Magdalene programme, a two-year residential programme for women who want to…
Friday roundup
By Jess McCabe | 17 April 2009, 14:32
Vivirlatino sketches out the history of forced sterilisations in Peru during Alberto Fujimori’s time in office. Fujimori has just been sentenced to 25 years in prison for human rights violations, but as Maegan notes, the sterilisation of hundreds of thousands…
Gender and sexual politics in India and beyond
By Jess McCabe | 16 April 2009, 13:54
On Sunday, the British Library is hosting a panel discussion on “gender and sexual politics in India and beyond”, which has a fantastic line-up: Panelists for this debate will include Salma, self-educated poet and novelist in Tamil; publisher, historian ……
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New feature: For the good of the species?
By Jess McCabe | 16 April 2009, 12:07
If you believe one story on a popular science news site, there’s proof that older men “chasing” younger women benefits humankind (or should that be mankind?) Eirwen-Jane Pierrot considers the impact of these sensationalist claims on women in the real…
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Can you help us redesign The F-Word?
By Jess McCabe | 15 April 2009, 22:57
Much as we love The F-Word, we’ve been thinking for a while now that the site (the whole of The F-Word, not just the blog) needs a bit of a revamp*. If there are any fantastic web designers out there,…
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Will targets drive up rape conviction rate?
By Jess McCabe | 15 April 2009, 17:43
The police has been… well… embarassed into doing something about their abysmal record on dealing with rape cases, in response to two high profile cases - John Worboys, who managed to attack an estimated 100 women, and Kirk Reid, who…
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French Elle puts French stars on cover, sans makeup, sans Photoshop
By Jess McCabe | 14 April 2009, 16:42
The French version of Elle magazine is putting various stars on the cover without makeup or Photoshop for its April issue. The one I’ve posted here is of the director, actor and novelist Sophie Marceau. But you can go check…
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Art project on women in prison wants clothes donations
By Jess McCabe | 13 April 2009, 19:39
Artist Eva Merz is working on a project called What Are They Doing In There? about “women in prison, criminal justice, politics, media and the public”. She’s looking for donations of women’s clothing, which will be made into a “human…
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Amazonfail
By Jess McCabe | 13 April 2009, 09:45
UPDATE 2: Well, we finally did receive a reply - the same statement admitting culpability that has been circulating around the blogs and media. In light of this, we’ve restored links to The F-Word shop. UPDATE: We’ve still received no…
Asian Women Carnival launches
By Jess McCabe | 7 April 2009, 14:21
The first Asian Women Carnival has been posted on the yennega community LiveJournal. It’s a massive collection of posts, mostly from LJ, and I haven’t had time yet to read through everything, but some of the great posts I have…
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Monday round-up…!
By Jess McCabe | 6 April 2009, 23:19
A report by prison inspectors has highlighted the situation for black and ethnic minority women behind bars: However, there is, as yet, no diversity strategy and no guidance on the commissioning of services for minority groups such as women and…
More Sarah Haskins!
By Jess McCabe | 5 April 2009, 23:14
Fast food: Homicide reality TV: Lifetime:…
‘Sizzling G20 Wives’ - the round-up
By Jess McCabe | 5 April 2009, 09:09
While the G20 met to discuss the global financial situation, Oxfam released a report on the impact of the recession on women in developing countries. The charity says the denial of basic working rights is increasing. It quoted Xiao Hong…
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Wetlands
By Jess McCabe | 4 April 2009, 22:24
So I just read Wetlands by Charlotte Roche, hailed (on the back cover at least) as evoking “the voice of JD Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, the perversion of JG Ballard’s Crash and the feminist agenda of Germaine Greer’s…
Programme for Race, Privilege & Identity gathering in Bristol up now
By Jess McCabe | 3 April 2009, 12:09
The folks behind the Race, Privilege & Identity gathering in Bristol on 24-26 April have published the whole programme on their blog. Sounds like there’s some interesting workshops during the three-day event, including one on how to do an anti-racist…
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‘Derailing for Dummies’
By Jess McCabe | 3 April 2009, 11:58
Someone has gifted to the internet Derailing for Dummies, a satirical (and yet, also serious) takedown of silencing tactics commonly used against marginalised groups. The tagline is “a simple, step-by-step guide to derailing awkward conversations by dismissing and trivialising your…
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Adapting Dickens… versus “vulgarising Dickens”
By Jess McCabe | 2 April 2009, 23:15
The Big Hollywood blog is up-in-arms about a BBC and PBS co-production of Oliver Twist*. More specifically, the blog is up-in-arms at the perceived “vulgarising” of the book, by: Casting Sophie Okonedo as Nancy Yep, they are arguing that casting…
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New guest blogger… Suzi!
By Jess McCabe | 1 April 2009, 16:43
It’s a new month and we’ve got a new guest blogger to welcome, Suzi from Femacadem.net and organiser of the Oxford Feminist Network: Suzi is currently a student doing a degree in social sciences at Ruskin College and has a…
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Henry VIII “subjugated” by female historians paying attention to wives
By Jess McCabe | 31 March 2009, 15:08
Historian David Starkey is upset that Henry VIII isn’t getting enough attention. Because I clearly didn’t concentrate all that much in history classes, and haven’t been watching the Tudors, I couldn’t actually tell you why Henry VIII is so signficiant….
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Cartoon in today’s Independent
By Jess McCabe | 30 March 2009, 21:44
The Independent ran this cartoon about the scandal over Jacqui Smith’s expenses. Politics.co.uk, meanwhile, runs a story quoting Vivianne Westwood’s son saying that Smith’s policies on lap-dancing, prostitution and extreme porn have been pursued because she’s a “puritan” who…
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Firefighters roll out new uniform
By Jess McCabe | 30 March 2009, 16:53
The Fire & Rescue Services are launching newly designed uniforms, including fire-fighting gear to better fit women, hijab and turban options, long-sleeved shirts, long skirts and maternity wear. From the press release: Fire Minister Sadiq Khan said: “We want the…
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Rounding up on Sunday
By Jess McCabe | 29 March 2009, 20:29
A US congressman is pushing legislation to restrict the role of first lady. Millenium Development Goal 5, to improve maternal healthcare and meet some specific targets: making access to reproductive healthcare universal by 2015 and slashing the maternal mortality rate…
‘Hot or not’ for female politicians
By Jess McCabe | 26 March 2009, 14:33
The reality is that the appearance of women in politics is under constant scrutiny. But it’s rarely so explicitly spelled out as by Spanish newspaper 20 Minutos, which carried out an internet survey asking readers to rank the world’s female…
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Ada Lovelace Day
By Jess McCabe | 24 March 2009, 20:35
Today is the “international day for drawing attention to women excelling in technology”. Ada Lovelace Day was started by Suw Charman-Anderson, who has been in tech for years, but only recently began to speak out about the issue of how…
Tuesday round-up
By Jess McCabe | 24 March 2009, 14:06
Feminist Peace Network posts about some of the unbelievably vile t-shirts which Israeli soldiers are adopting: The slogans accompanying the drawings are not exactly anemic either: A T-shirt for infantry snipers bears the inscription “Better use Durex,” next to a…
Class, childcare & housework in the recession
By Jess McCabe | 23 March 2009, 12:37
The New York Times ran an op-ed last week, which makes a couple of obvious but important points about how the gendered impact of the recession is covered in the media. First off, the media concentration on the impact of…
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New review: ‘The Trouble with Islam Today’
By Jess McCabe | 22 March 2009, 22:22
Sabre reviews Irshad Manji’s controversial book which challenges some of the ways Islam is practiced As soon as I saw The Trouble with Islam Today: A Wake-up Call for Honesty and Change by Irshad Manji in Waterstones, I knew I…
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What’s in a name? (Novel edition)
By Jess McCabe | 19 March 2009, 14:42
I’ve just finished the first novel by Stieg Larsson, a Swedish detective story which is largely about the prevalence and horror of violence against women. The title of the novel is Män som hatar kvinnor, which translates into English as…
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Thursday round-up!
By Jess McCabe | 19 March 2009, 10:45
Sociological Images thinks Dora the Explorer’s make-over is no surprise, given how the character has been increasingly used to market gendered toys. The US is to sign the UN gay rights declaration - see Lesbilicious for more. Arizona wants to…
Letter writing: keep Waltham Forest African Well Woman’s Service…
By Jess McCabe | 18 March 2009, 23:44
Forward UK is urging supporters to write to the Waltham Forest PCT, to protest plans to integrate its African Well Woman’s Service into generic sexual and reproductive health services in the area. The service was specifically set up to cater…
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Programme out for Images of Black Women Film Festival
By Jess McCabe | 17 March 2009, 19:01
The fifth annual Images of Black Women film festival is set to kick off at the end of March at London’s Tricycle Theatre. More info on the website, but here’s the festival trailer:…
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Getting gender on the table at international climate change negotiations
By Jess McCabe | 17 March 2009, 18:51
GenderCC has produced an excellent video on the activism they did at the international climate change negotiations* in Poland, last December. The uphill struggle in getting this done is phenomenal, trust me: GenderCC - Women for Climate Justice from Ulrike…
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New feature: Piercing the whitening silence
By Jess McCabe | 17 March 2009, 08:45
Terese Jonsson calls for all white feminists (herself included) to step up to the plate on racism and white privilege A couple of months ago, Annika Spalding challenged F-Word readers with the question ‘Whose feminism is it?’ Disappointed with her…
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FitnessFirst turns bus-stop into giant scales to violate privacy and humiliate passers by!
By Jess McCabe | 16 March 2009, 23:21
As you can see from the image on the right, the gym chain FitnessFirst has done some… erm… interesting advertising in a Dutch bus stop. The bus stop seat has been turned into scales, and the weight of the person…
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Womanist Musings comes to talk radio…
By Jess McCabe | 16 March 2009, 22:46
Renee from Womanist Musings and Monica from Transgriot have posted the first episode of their new podcast/talk radio session. The first topic was on the silencing of women of colour in feminist spaces. The guests were BFP from flip flopping…
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Women, wait your turn, says EHRC?
By Jess McCabe | 16 March 2009, 10:41
UPDATE: the EHRC has emailed in their response to the Guardian article, which they’ve sent as a letter to the newspaper. I’ve cut & paste it at the end of this post… The Equalities and Human Rights Commission is poised…
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No! The Rape Documentary - showing tomorrow in London
By Jess McCabe | 14 March 2009, 12:09
I know this is a bit last minute, but London readers if you’re free tomorrow, you may want to head to the ICA for a screening of No! The Rape Documentary. The documentary was 11 years in the making. Screening…
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‘Sex, Lies and Photoshop’
By Jess McCabe | 14 March 2009, 09:28
The New York Times has posted a video about the impact of Photoshopping on body image, and just how prevelant it is in the images we see all around us. Frustratingly, I can’t embed the video, but you can head…
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Horne & Corden
By Jess McCabe | 13 March 2009, 23:50
This is problematic in so many ways, but we could start with the anti-breast-feeding sentiment (how dare a woman openly breastfeed, almost as though there was nothing wrong with it!)… (H/T Nick)…
New review - Miss Naked Beauty UK: more degrading than Miss World?
By Jess McCabe | 13 March 2009, 23:41
Laura Doherty reviews a show that promised to fight impossible beauty standards, but fell into all the same traps as a beauty paegent I couldn’t tell you exactly how long it has been since the final episode of Miss Naked…
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New review - Hellions: Pop Culture’s Rebel Women
By Jess McCabe | 13 March 2009, 23:09
Why are white, young, male ‘rebels’ celebrated and revered in pop culture, while women who push against society’s sexist and racist norms are marginalised and dismissed? Michelle Wright reviews a book which brings to light stories of the female rebel…
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Rapists target lesbians in South Africa
By Jess McCabe | 13 March 2009, 17:36
Actionaid has published horrific evidence that rapists are targetting lesbians in South Africa with so-called “corrective rape”. Lesbilicious reports: Rape is fast becoming the most widespread hate crime targeted against gay women across South Africa. One lesbian and gay support…
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Museum of Women, Dolls and Memories…
By Jess McCabe | 12 March 2009, 14:19
So, if any readers are in the Aberdeenish area, you might want to come to this: JONGA - look at me! Museum of Women, Dolls and Memories “How do you do that? Make someone love you?” Pecola Breedlove in Toni…
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Women raise their voices against plantations…
By Jess McCabe | 12 March 2009, 00:41
The World Rainforest Movement, based in Uruguay, has produced a video which documents the damage being done to women in Nigeria, Brazil and Papua New Guinea through multinationals setting up plantations. I can’t embed the video, but you can go…
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A Wednesday round-up…
By Jess McCabe | 11 March 2009, 12:13
A 75-year-old Syrian woman has been sentenced to 40 lashes by a Saudi court, for “mingling” - ie having two men in her house who are not related to her. CNN reports: The case sparked anger in Saudi Arabia. “It’s…
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Million Women Rise
By Jess McCabe | 10 March 2009, 15:49
An estimated 5,000 women flooded the streets of London this Saturday 7 March, to protest violence against women in all its forms. On a mostly sunny day we stopped traffic, we sung, we shouted, we drummed, we chanted, we…
Domestic violence rising in London
By Jess McCabe | 9 March 2009, 12:59
Over the weekend Boris Johnson published the annual Women in London report, confirming what we’d already heard. The number of reported cases of domestic violence were up 6.1% in 2008, to 54,000, and: “The number of domestic violence murders has…
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One in five believe there is an excuse for domestic violence, and more…
By Jess McCabe | 9 March 2009, 12:13
An opinion poll commissioned by the Home Office should be a powerful wake-up call on attitudes to violence against women. Some of the headline findings have been reported in the press, but I would really suggest looking at the full…
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Happy International Women’s Day!
By Jess McCabe | 8 March 2009, 00:52
I’ve posted my photos of yesterday’s Million Women Rise on Flickr - full write-up to follow. In the meantime, please do add your photos to The F-Word Flickr pool… and leave links to your photos, blog posts, news coverage,…
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Gender stereotypes and mental illness
By Jess McCabe | 6 March 2009, 17:28
Researchers in the US have found people discriminate more against people with mental illnesses, if that illness matches gender stereotypes. According to the press release on EurekAlert, researchers presented groups of volunteers with case histories of ‘Brian’ and ‘Karen’ and…
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Michelle Obama chided for showing her arms
By Jess McCabe | 6 March 2009, 10:50
Michelle Obama has apparently been coming under fire for the sin of… going sleeveless. Natalie Hanman in the Guardian reports on this latest round in the relentless media focus on Michelle Obama’s clothes and body. For example, check out how…
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A Wednesday round-up!
By Jess McCabe | 4 March 2009, 07:16
Germaine Greer continues to disappoint! Apparently she said that women are not as funny as men on national TV - Kate takes her remarks apart, and talks about their impact on female comedians. Sociological Images deconstructs the phrase “sex…
New feature: Grassroots feminism 2.0?
By Jess McCabe | 3 March 2009, 23:30
Want to make connections with grassroots feminist activists across borders and languages? Melanie Maddison talks to Red Chidgey about an online project that aims to help us do just that Who are you and why are you interested in European…
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January comments up now!
By Jess McCabe | 2 March 2009, 23:44
January’s comments are up now and waiting for your perusal!…
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New feature: Olive would have told me to shut up and do something
By Jess McCabe | 2 March 2009, 23:27
Tara Atluri reflects on the Do You Remember Olive Morris? project and the Remember Olive Collective It began with a photograph. A picture without colour, of a lone Black girl, barefoot, holding a placard that read: “Black sufferer fight pig…
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‘No need to be ugly to save the planet’
By Jess McCabe | 2 March 2009, 20:20
This ad appeared in Belgium, and apparently advertises biodegradable cosmetics, with a ‘before’ and ‘after’ shot, and a tagline which translates “no need to be ugly to save the planet”. I have to warn you that I wasn’t able to…
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Visualising the pay gap
By Jess McCabe | 2 March 2009, 16:43
The New York Times has posted a handy graphic breaking down the pay gap by occupation. This is obviously charting the pay gap in the US, but it’s none-the-less extremely interesting. Hover over the dots for more information. Only four…
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Million Women Rise - this Saturday!
By Jess McCabe | 2 March 2009, 14:04
Just a quick reminder that the Million Women Rise march is this Saturday, starting at 12pm at Portman Square in London. Check out the MWR site for more info!…
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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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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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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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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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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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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:…
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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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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‘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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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…
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 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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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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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…
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…
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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‘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 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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December’s comments on features and reviews
By Jess McCabe | 31 January 2009, 18:44
Check out the comments on features and reviews sent in during December. We had a massive response to Samara’s article about the harassment she suffered growing up with big breasts. Other much-commented-on articles include: Molly’s feature about gender segregation in…
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Friday round-up!
By Jess McCabe | 30 January 2009, 16:47
Women over 45 in need of kidney transplants are less likely than men to get one, according to a new study. Cara considers why this might be, over at Feministe. Melissa at Shakesville does ‘girl math’. And enthuses about Matt…
Anti-semite in shock sexism!
By Jess McCabe | 28 January 2009, 16:40
You’ve probably heard by now that the Pope has un-excommunicated four bishops, despite them being Holocaust deniers. Needless to say, people rarely ascribe to just one particular type of bigotry, so it’s no surprise to see that ringleader of the…
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‘Birds on Bikes’ Night Ride
By Jess McCabe | 28 January 2009, 14:51
If cycling Londoners are not too exhausted after the Million Women Rise march and rally, or whatever other International Women’s Day events you might be attending, you might be interested in this night ride: There will be a Night Ride…
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Independent fails, twice
By Jess McCabe | 28 January 2009, 12:56
Jill at Feministe points out two annoying stories in the Independent, and I think taken together they say a lot about the Independent’s editorial stance on female sexual pleasure. First up, they report on a study suggesting masturbating is good…
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Iceland to get world’s first lesbian prime minister
By Jess McCabe | 28 January 2009, 10:48
Johanna Sigurðardottir looks set to become the first ever LGBT head of government, after Iceland’s coalition government collapsed. She’s currently minister for social affairs. The Huffington Post has an interesting piece about how utterly unbothered the people of Iceland are…
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An afternoon round-up
By Jess McCabe | 27 January 2009, 15:49
Nigeria’s House of Representatives has passed a bill outlawing same-sex marriage. Sokari has more. Meanwhile, 160 MEPs signed the declaration on making sure civil partnerships and same-sex marriages carried out in one member state of the EU are recognised in…
Women from the Global South speak out about Climate Change
By Jess McCabe | 27 January 2009, 11:42
Hear from activists on how climate change affects women. More info here: Floods, Drought, Pollution and Survival: Women from the Global South speak out about Climate Change Hear first hand from women in countries such as Bolivia, Guyana, India, Uganda…
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Cardiff women organise festival for IWD
By Jess McCabe | 27 January 2009, 11:06
The events to mark International Women’s Day in March are beginning to pile up. This festival in Cardiff sounds great: To celebrate International Women’s Day in Wales women’s political, cultural and support groups in Cardiff are working together to organise…
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The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
By Jess McCabe | 26 January 2009, 23:51
I’d so far managed to miss out on Gregory Maguire’s revisionist fiction, but I was given an audiobook of The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West this Christmas, and I’ve got to say I was impressed….
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New feature: Feminist progress - undermined by the media?
By Jess McCabe | 25 January 2009, 21:04
Anna-Kate considers how the porn and beauty industries impact the self esteem of girls and women “A whole industry ranging from heavy pornography and prostitution to soft-core advertising markets women’s bodies as objects of consumption by men.” – Robert Connell,…
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Feminist action at Zara in Madrid
By Jess McCabe | 25 January 2009, 20:56
Check out these great photos of an action by Spanish feminists. They hung these outside a Zara in Madrid, one saying “La belleza está en el exterior” (roughly translating as beauty’s on the outside - of the shop) and “La…
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New feature: Losing my hijab
By Jess McCabe | 25 January 2009, 11:57
Ala Abbas reflects on her decision to stop wearing the hijab The hijab has characterised my life from at least the age of nine and even before then. In the religious sect my parents belong to, hijab is incumbent on…
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New feature: Breastfeeding: radical, feminist and good for you
By Jess McCabe | 25 January 2009, 11:54
Kate Joester explains how breastfeeding helped her understand ‘the personal is political’ The first time a male hand touched my breast, I was 14. The breasts themselves were considerably newer, arriving in the sudden rush of puberty that turned me…
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Obama poised to reverse global gag rule
By Jess McCabe | 23 January 2009, 17:10
Barack Obama is preparing to overturn the global gag rule, which prevents organisations receiving US aid if they offer abortions, or even information about abortions. Various sources are reporting that Obama will sign an executive order later today, ending the…
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Casual sexism at LabourList
By Jess McCabe | 23 January 2009, 12:30
LabourList is a recently-launched blog for “Labour minded people”. London MEP Mary Honeyball points out on her own blog that LabourList has a startling male-bias: However, my biggest LabourList bugbear is its casual sexism. I expect it from ConservativeHome but…
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New feature: IT’s a man’s world?
By Jess McCabe | 22 January 2009, 08:09
What drove 37,000 women in the UK to abandon careers in IT between 2001 and 2007? Sue Schofield investigates Sniggering sexism in the IT industry is endemic, but that’s no reason it should be tolerated. In 2007, server manufacturers QSOL.Com…
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Birds Eye View festival has a blog
By Jess McCabe | 21 January 2009, 19:55
The fantastic Birds Eye View fim festival, which showcases the work of women filmmakers, has launched a new blog. I reviewed the film Finn’s Girl for them, as it’s just coming out on DVD. You can read my review here…
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Panel at Progressive London this Saturday
By Jess McCabe | 21 January 2009, 17:44
I’m speaking on a panel about Women in London this Saturday, at the Progressive London event organised by Ken Livingstone. The full programme is up here, but this is the lineup for the 3.30 panel: Women in London Finn Mackay,…
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Dirk Benedict pissed that Starbuck’s a woman
By Jess McCabe | 21 January 2009, 10:30
Dirk Benedict played Starbuck in the original Battlestar Galactica TV show, which aired in the ’70s. He doesn’t share my opinion that Katee Sackhoff’s performance as Kara ‘Starbuck’ Thrace is one of the best things about the remake. On the…
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New review: Sex and the Substitutes
By Jess McCabe | 21 January 2009, 06:05
Alice Lawlor reviews some of 2008’s Sex and the City copycats Was 2008 the year of the girl gang? Sex and the City made a come-back at the cinema, while a whole host of substitutes on the small screen queued…
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What’s going on in 2009?
By Jess McCabe | 20 January 2009, 18:34
Our events listings are looking a little sparse for 2009. Help us out by telling us what’s happening near you - it can be tough keeping track of what’s going on up and down the UK! To give you a…
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Suffragettes boycotted the 1911 census
By Jess McCabe | 19 January 2009, 13:47
Suffragettes boycotted the 1911 census, refusing to fill in the form and writing notes in the margins, reports the Times. One suffragette taking part in the boycott arranged by the Women’s Freedom League wrote: “If I am intelligent enough to…
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Introducing our latest guest blogger… Sunny Hundal
By Jess McCabe | 18 January 2009, 12:22
This is a brief announcement to welcome Sunny Hundal as our second guest blogger of 2009! Look out for Sunny’s posts in the coming weeks - he is a regular contributor to Comment is Free, and runs two blogs: Pickled…
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Are battles never won?
By Jess McCabe | 18 January 2009, 10:27
The law is about to be changed on provocation to murder, as Kit blogged about earlier this week. The current set up, as Kit points out, has meant that (overwhelmingly) men who murdered their wives and girlfriends after finding out…
Ladyfest Goldsmiths, coming up…
By Jess McCabe | 18 January 2009, 00:20
The first Ladyfest of 2009 is taking place at Goldsmiths College, on 5-6 February. More info is available on the Ladyfest Goldsmiths Facebook group (H/T - Charlotte at the Subtext Magazine Blog)…
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Nursery rhymes, continued
By Jess McCabe | 17 January 2009, 15:00
In this guest post, Ellie Levenson responds to my post about her column on fairytales in The Independent I was surprised to find my article on fairy tales being discussed on The F-Word, not least because the sentence that caused…
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Abortion doughnuts? Or is that ‘doughnuts on demand’?
By Jess McCabe | 16 January 2009, 20:28
The US doughnut establishment Krispy Kreme has been “accused” of giving away “pro-abortion doughnuts”. I kid you not. Krispy Kreme plans to offer a “free doughnut of choice to every customer” on Obama’s Inauguration Day, to mark “American’s sense of…
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This was photoshopped
By Jess McCabe | 15 January 2009, 22:39
Billboards in the Berlin metro have been plastered with mock-ups of the toolboxes in Photoshop. I think the effect is fantastic. I’m not sure who carried out this particular piece of subvertising, but you can see more photos on…
Recycle your phone and raise money for Refuge
By Jess McCabe | 13 January 2009, 13:41
If you’ve got an old mobile phone lying around, you may want to consider sending it freepost to Refuge - they recycle them, raising money for their work on domestic violence: The scale of domestic violence in this country is…
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Gender, Race & Class
By Jess McCabe | 13 January 2009, 13:37
Do something different this Valentine’s Day- make a date with feminists! GENDER/ RACE/ CLASS: AN ANTI-CAPITALIST FEMINIST EVENT Sat 14th Feb, 10.30am -6.30 pm, Tindle Manor, 52-4 Featherstone St EC1 (nearest tube Old St.) Fully accessible venue. This event is…
Another round-up
By Jess McCabe | 13 January 2009, 12:35
Anna Chen did a show about Anna May Wong for Radio 4. But she’s also posted extensively about the show on her blog, if you can’t get Listen Again to work. I like this story about how Emily Cummins burrowed…
Michelle Obama round-up
By Jess McCabe | 12 January 2009, 11:32
It’s not long until Barack Obama offically takes on the role of president. Just like during the election, the media has been focusing plenty on Michelle Obama - well, mostly on what she’s wearing and what she’s going to wear…
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Cerise
By Jess McCabe | 12 January 2009, 10:38
Any gamers out there, I’ve got to recommend checking out the latest issue of Cerise Magazine. The online magazine “by and for women gamers” concentrates on the “socially conscious gamer” for its first issue of 2009, and there’s plenty for…
Straightlaced - How Gender’s Got Us All Tied Up
By Jess McCabe | 11 January 2009, 21:23
This film - made up of 50 interviews with US teens - sounds like an interesting project: There is no disputing the fact that gender-based stereotypes and anti-gay attitudes affect the lives of all students today. The pressure to conform…
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Legacy
By Jess McCabe | 10 January 2009, 10:31
This is a clip from the short film Legacy, by Campbell Blackman: Legacy Clip from BlackmanVision on Vimeo. There’s a whole set of fantastic shorts and clips on the BlackmanVision site, including Paradise Lost, in which “the filmmaker domiciled in…
Target Women: Diets
By Jess McCabe | 9 January 2009, 20:24
Increasing ethnic minority women’s representation in Westminster and the board room
By Jess McCabe | 9 January 2009, 16:24
At Comment is Free today zohra has a great piece calling for government action on the lack of ethnic minority women in positions of power, both in government and big business. For ethnic minority women, the problem is far worse….
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Why the High Court is still so white and so male..?
By Jess McCabe | 9 January 2009, 16:13
An interesting piece by Afua Hirsch at Comment is Free considers one reason why the judiciary is still largely made up of a sea of white, male faces; and in particular why more women and ethnic minority men are not…
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On female friendship & marriage
By Jess McCabe | 9 January 2009, 15:01
Is marriage just for people who are sexually and romantically involved with each other? Over at the Shameless Blog, Zoe writes about her own experience getting married to her long-term platonic female best friend. And, well, why not? Is resistance…
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100 years of the bob
By Jess McCabe | 9 January 2009, 14:38
Once upon a time, husbands divorced their wives after they cut their hair into a bob. This year the style is 100 years old. According to the Metro: The eye-catching cut was invented in 1909 by Parisian hairdresser Antoine de…
Sarah Haskins reviews 2008!
By Jess McCabe | 8 January 2009, 22:28
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Latest Dove film…
By Jess McCabe | 8 January 2009, 22:23
It’s called ‘Intuition’….
Blog about a woman in tech for Ada Lovelace Day
By Jess McCabe | 8 January 2009, 12:18
Suw is calling for bloggers to post about a woman in tech that you admire on 24 March, to mark Ada Lovelace day. She’s set up a Pledge Bank page - and it looks like she’s just over half way…
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Edinburgh group collects stories of violence against women for magazine
By Jess McCabe | 8 January 2009, 11:55
The folks behind Edinburgh Reclaim the Night are putting together a magazine aimed at raising awareness of violence against women in the city. Rachel from RTN Edinburgh writes on Facebook: There are big statistics out there, saying things like one…
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It’s sexist, but it scans so well!
By Jess McCabe | 7 January 2009, 13:41
A throw away line in this Ellie Levenson column about exposing children to fairy tales and nursery rhymes really rubbed me up the wrong way. Writing in the Independent: And while political correctness is generally a good thing if it…
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Britain’s strongest girl
By Jess McCabe | 7 January 2009, 12:41
Zoe Smith is “Britain’s strongest girl” - she’s a 14-year-old weightlifter, and broke 98 British records last year. The Telegraph and the Mail have profiled her, because she’s been named athlete of the year in her sport by the British…
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“But was it rape?”
By Jess McCabe | 6 January 2009, 12:23
Sex-advice columnist Dan Savage has a hit podcast, in which listeners call in with their sex and relationship problems, and Dan portions out advice. What with Christmas and everything interrupting my commuting habits, I only just got around to listening…
Gender and ‘green-collar jobs’
By Jess McCabe | 5 January 2009, 15:50
(I started writing this back in mid-December, but Katherine’s post at Feminist Law Professors motivated me to go revive it!) It’s not just in the US that people are hoping more ‘green’ jobs will bolster the economy. Of the 7,000…
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First round-up of January!
By Jess McCabe | 5 January 2009, 12:21
What goes into time capsules? Old Feminist considers if the contents are skewed: And I’m wondering how blind the contents of time capsules created today are about sexism and racism and other -isms. What gets included, and what is ignored….
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“No-one is ever ‘asking for it’”
By Jess McCabe | 4 January 2009, 20:51
I think what speaks to me about these posters is that someone’s just printed them out from a word processor, on A4 paper, quite possibly at work or school. I feel like they were produced quickly, in a rage…
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New feature: Challenging sex object culture - definitely needed, definitely lively and definitely a key issue for 2009!
By Jess McCabe | 4 January 2009, 20:31
A recent feature in The Times labelled protests against the Miss University London beauty pagaents “old fashioned”. But, argues Sandrine Levêque, if anything campaigns against the objectification of women and girls are more relevant today than ever I should probably…
New review: The Woman Who Thought She Was a Planet
By Jess McCabe | 4 January 2009, 19:14
Vandana Singh argues that speculative fiction has revolutionary potential. Jess McCabe reviews her latest collection of short stories “I have said earlier that speculative fiction is about what cannot ever be, or what cannot be as yet. But it is…
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Introducing our latest guest blogger… Kit Roskelly!
By Jess McCabe | 4 January 2009, 00:04
We have a new guest blogger for the New Year! You may remember Kit’s name, because from F-Word features on women’s right to choose, BDSM and the HPV vaccine. Look out for zir guest posts throughout the next month! Kit…
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Protest against Israel’s attack on Gaza in London tomorrow
By Jess McCabe | 2 January 2009, 22:45
If you’re in London tomorrow, there’s a protest against the Israeli government’s attack on Gaza, which has so far led to at least 400 deaths - the UN believes at least 100 of the people killed were civilians, according to…
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The Sun: Better not copy those celebrities and stop shaving your armpits!
By Jess McCabe | 2 January 2009, 22:06
You couldn’t accuse The Sun of being subtle, could you? A number of high profile women, including Beyonce and Maggie Gyllenhaal have apparently appeared in public with a bit of armpit hair. Some of them even did so at fancy-pants…
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More Suffragettes
By Jess McCabe | 2 January 2009, 11:19
This sounds great: In association with Scary Little Girls Productions, The Orange Tree, Richmond, presents: SUFFRAGETTES: 100 YEARS A celebration of the work of the Actresses’ Franchise League Saturday 10th January 2009, 11am - 2pm Enjoy the unique chance to…
Helen Suzman RIP
By Jess McCabe | 1 January 2009, 22:14
Anti-apartheid campaigner and former South African MP Helen Suzman has died, aged 91. According to The Times’ obituary: Mrs Suzman, for years a lone dissenting voice in South Africa’s whites-only Parliament, used her position to visit Nelson Mandela during his…
Wendy Hall becomes a dame
By Jess McCabe | 1 January 2009, 19:34
Wendy Hall has been made a dame, one of an extremely long list of people recognised in the New Year’s Honours List. Not that I’m exactly keen on the whole concept of all these knighthoods and, um, damehoods (she has,…
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