Jezebel
complicated conversations
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complicated conversations
complicated conversations
Is Feminism Doomed?
Today's Guardian has an interesting, epic piece penned by Kira Cochrane, detailing the "all-out assault" on feminism. Claims Cochrane, "The rights we thought were settled are suddenly under threat." She points out that a UK businessman named Alan Sugar recently discussed the law — passed in the '70s — which prevents employers from asking women whether they plan to have children. "You're not allowed to ask, so it's easy," said Sugar, "just don't employ them." Meaning: Don't hire women. And guess what? A survey shows that 68% of employers agree with Sugar. And it's not just on the job front that feminist issues are in jeopardy: Cochrane notes that the rape conviction rate in Britain has plummeted from 33% in the '70s to just 5.7% today. Plus, according to a 2005 Amnesty International poll, 26% of respondents thought that a woman was totally or partially responsible for being raped if she was wearing revealing clothing. Thirty percent thought she was totally or partially responsible if she was drunk. And then, of course there's the celebrity culture. More »
complicated conversations
Do White Families Need "Special Training" Before Adopting Black Children?
In 1994, a federal law was passed to help increase the number of black children being adopted — by making it easier for them to be placed with white parents. But a new report, released today found that despite the Multiethnic Placement Act (MEPA), black children still disproportionately end up in temporary foster homes. Child welfare groups are arguing that the "colorblind" approach in the 1994 law has not helped black children in foster care. "Color consciousness — not 'color blindness' — should help to shape policy development," the report states. The problem is that the law prevents race from being taken into consideration during adoption decisions. For instance: White parents who would like to adopt a black child cannot be required to undergo race-oriented training because it would be "special" treatment, different from training that all prospective adoptive parents receive. More »
skin deep
In India, Fair Is Handsome & Dark Is Doomed
Loathing your dark skin isn't just for women. A new product in India, Fair and Handsome, is just one of the many skin-lightening creams that are, according to the Washington Post, "exploding in popularity." In fact, though these products are nothing new for the ladies, the mens' market has grown 150%. India has a long history of colonialism and caste-systems, and darker skin is often openly reviled. Nikki Duggal, a New Delhi-based graphic artist says, "It's something we have internalized, and it's propagated by everyone since we still have this colonial hang-up that white is better, white is wealth, white is someone rich enough to never toil in the sun. It's so prevalent in India that fair equates to more success in life. There is a very sad message that if you are dark, you are doomed." Oh, and by the by: The lightening creams which will save you from certain doom? They cost about $1. Which is half a day's wages for many Indians.More »
complicated conversations
Allegations Of Theft, Racism Rock The Feminist Blogosphere
There's a furor going on in the feminist blogsphere. The issue is complicated, but what follows is an attempt to give a general gist of what's gone down: On March 29 in Cambridge, the blogger known as Brownfemipower (BFP) spoke at WAM (Women, Action & the Media conference). Apparently, Brownfemipower (who has been called "one of the most important feminist bloggers in the history of the web") spoke about the racism and sexism faced by immigrant women in the US in our current "build a wall" climate. On April 2, writer Amanda Marcotte published an article on RH Reality Check called "Can A Person Be Illegal?" (It was republished a few days later on Alternet.) The jumping off point was a New York Times article about a 22-year-old immigrant from Colombia whose immigration agent used the threat of deportation to rape her. (The woman recorded the assault on her cell phone and the guy was busted.) Marcotte's article made many of the same points BFP made in her speech (the text of which she posted on her blog immediately after the conference.) BFP was not credited or linked to; Amanda Marcotte maintains that though she reads BFP's blog, she did not "steal" her ideas from BFP. In fact, Marcotte replied to a post on Feministe thusly: More »
complicated conversations
Telling Mom You're A Hooker Isn't Always So Horrible
Yesterday, one of Jezebel's brother sites, Gawker, wrote about "Debauchette," one of the several prostitutes who appeared on the Diane Sawyer 20/20 special about working girls. Even though Debauchette's voice was altered and her appearance masked, her mother recognized her because of the idiosyncratic cadence of her voice and her gestures. "I listened to what you had to say in the interview and I expect you feel you have thought all of this through," Debauchette's mom said. (All things considered, a reasonably calm response.) Karly Kirchner of sex-worker site Bound, Not Gagged recounts a similarly accepting response from her mom, but adds that she wants her mother to start reading her posts on the blog. More »
complicated conversations
Where The Hell Are The Strong Women?
In The Independent today, Johann Hari writes, "Where have all the strong women gone?" Hari gets all nostalgic for Bette Davis: "She was not only a woman; she was an electrical storm with skin. She never pretended to be dumb, or a little girl. She didn't do soft, or simpering. She had a voice like sour cream, and eyes like a raven." But, Hari argues, women on film — and on TV — have weakened. "If the symbol of 1930s Hollywood was Bette Davis in Jezebel, defiantly wearing red to her virgin-white ball, today it is Cameron Diaz in There's Something About Mary, rubbing semen into her hair because she is too dumb to realize it's not hair gel." More »
complicated conversations
Women On Silda Wall: "I'd Have Paraded In Front Of A Microphone With A Knife"
After two days of relentless focus and attention on the now-resigned New York Governor Eliot Spitzer, the news agencies have set their sights on the problem of prostitution, and, of course, on his now-suffering wife, Silda. Her "charmed life slips away," reads an AP headline. "Brainy, beautiful, betrayed," reports CBS News. "Many wonder, 'why does she stay with him?'" writes a reporter for the L.A. Times. (The NY Post's Cindy Adams is all "so what?"). By all accounts, Silda Wall Spitzer was one of those smart, over-achieving women who awe and inspire. She had a strong maternal figure (her mom insisted she list her profession as "home administrator" rather than "housewife", on her college applications), a successful and lucrative law career (she out-earned her husband as a mergers and acquisitions specialist at a top New York firm) and, in addition to raising three daughters, she founded a philanthropic community service organization. And then the news broke about her husband. More »
complicated conversations
Being A Black Woman In America Is Tough Stuff
The National Urban League has released its State Of Black America report, and as you may expect, there's good news and bad news. Bad news first: Black women hold more jobs nationwide than black men, but, even though they're often referred to as the "backbone of the black family," black women earn less: $566 a week compared to $629 for black men, on average. More subprime loans were given to black women than white men, so black women have suffered disproportionately in the mortgage crisis. This is especially devastating since black women are more likely than white or Hispanic women to be running a household and raising children on their own. Also: Black women have above-average rates of cancer, diabetes and heart disease. On TV, white men dominate news programs while black women are "gyrating, undulating" images in rap videos. (Black females are also much less likely than white women to receive media attention when they have gone missing.) More »
complicated conversations
Modeling Matriarch Continues To Demand Diversity On The Runways
Last night, five months following her first event about the lack of diversity in fashion, model-agency owner Bethann Hardison held a similar gathering with the stated goal of examining why models of color are in such short supply on the fashion industry's runways and magazine editorials. (The attention to the issue seems to be growing: At a September event called "The Lack Of The Black Image In Fashion Today", 70 people, including Naomi Campbell, showed up; Hardison's second symposium, held in October at the New York Public Library, drew 275, and last night, a group of around 200 were on hand.) Ms. Hardison (seen above left between Campbell and Iman) began yesterday's proceedings by addressing the crowd — a motley crew of models, journalists, designers, stylists and industry insiders — saying when it comes to a lack of diversity on the high fashion runways, "All of us are responsible."More »
complicated conversations
