Jezebel 
Enter your username and password.
New York, 6:51 PM
Sun Nov 22
23 posts in the last 24 hours
Tip your editors:
tips@jezebel.com
Editor-in-Chief:
Anna Holmes
Email | Twitter
Deputy Editor:
Dodai Stewart
Email | Twitter
Senior Contributing Editor:
Tracie Egan
Email | Twitter
Contributing Editors:
Anna North
Email | Twitter
Sadie Stein
Email | Twitter
Reporter:
Irin Carmon
Email
Editorial Assistant:
Margaret Hartmann
Email | Twitter
Contributors:
Jenna Sauers
Email
Rich Juzwiak
Email | Twitter
Lizzie Skurnick
Email
Interns:
Katy Kelleher
Twitter
Original material is licensed under a Creative Commons License permitting non-commercial sharing with attribution.
11/18/09
But then again, I haven't studied this and it was before coffee.
11/18/09
Coming home to dishes done and dinner made is nice but he blew my mind the other night when he told me he wanted to stay home with our future kids. I am a lawyer and I love my job though recently I've started worrying that I wouldn't be ready for kids until it was too late. The thought that he'd want to stay home with the kids never crossed my mind (even though he's MUCH better equiped to spend ten hours a day with children).
The rethinking of gender roles could be the silver lining of a crap economy.
11/18/09
@PetiteGal: Hm. It's a class issue, perhaps- are girls being encouraged to go into white collar fields, or are people who have the access and education to get white collar jobs more likely to support equality, or at least make a show of it? I really don't know.
In terms of the types of jobs I'm talking about, I'd say there definitely is a physical strength bias as well as a protect-the-little-women mentality that helps keep these jobs gender specific, as well as very limiting concepts about what is "manly" or appropriate work for men. The former biases ignore the fact that women are much more likely to experience violence in their lives already, as well as the fact that domestic work is often just as labor intensive, if not more so, than traditionally male labor-oriented jobs. Those are really based on nothing more than gender roles and they aren't challenged by making a woman the head of the County Works Department, because no matter how capable she is she will still be seen as a token or an exception. The only way to change them is by employing more women and more men in jobs that are currently seen as belonging almost completely, if not completely, to the other gender.
@winner: That's awesome. My bro stayed at home for a couple years with his kids and it really does help people reconsider their own notions of what is and isn't appropriate. I hope you're right about the silver lining.
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
She has just been very clear that we do not want - for example - separate divorce laws based on religious beliefs (muslim or other) in our country, nor do we condone, say, female circumcision.
If the law says that you are not allowed to spank children, you cannot ask for an exception based on your religious beliefs.
If you think that boys and girls should not go to school together, or that girls should not participate in e g swimming education (mandatory!), or be taught religion (the subject treats all religions as well as humanism/athesim equally in our schools) or find out about where babies come from (mandatory as well) - well, forget it.
Don't try to use religion as an argument - REGARDLESS of whether you're christian (any flavour), muslim, judaeic, mormon, scientologist, bahai... (And home schooling does not exist in our country.)
I might as well ask if you have a bias against women? Black women? Immigrants? Highly educated women? Liberals? Female ministers? People who consider religious beliefs (or lack thereof) to be something personal and private? Female muslims who do not believe in sharia? Any or all of the above?
Then you'd find good company in some of the crazy right-wing christians in our country - they don't like her type either.
But I'm willing to assume that you just forgot to look up the facts.
11/18/09
11/18/09
Separation of church and state is one thing. Protecting women against violence, I am absolutely for that. But saying that Muslims who pray 5 times a day or wear the veil are limiting their opportunities and preventing themselves from "assimilating" is promoting hegemony.
Also, the minster's mother is Muslim but she was raised as non-religious.
11/18/09
I agree with her that people misread what "freedom of religion" means, genital mutilation and other anti female practices are things to not be tolerated in any society. But Muslims who live the book of Koran are limiting their opportunities? Living the word of the Koran can manifest a belief ranging from conservative to progressive feminism. She's painting Islam with one brush.
She also subscribes to the 'complaining about discrimination is making one's self into a victim' school of thinking. She believes Muslims marginalize themselves. How can someone who believes that take the issues/complaints of immigrants and/or minorities seriously?
11/19/09
#tips
11/18/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
It should be now, of course. No one should have to wait for equality. It's disgusting and unfair that civil rights issues like this take as long as they do, have as many setbacks as they do, and require so much work and frustration and disillusion.
There's no way to change every mind, but it's heartbreaking to see something that should never, ever, be up to popular vote...be legitimized in some way and go counter to the basic tenants of our system. Which is that the rights of the minority should NEVER be subject to the whims of the majority. That is a fundamental issue in our system. The fact that many people seem to believe they have the right to decide what version of equality other people get to have saddens me. Something is broken in anyone who believes that.
I wish I could tell my LGBT friends that this will change soon. That this fight will not have to go on for years, or decades, and we'll see this in our lifetimes. I hope that we will. I think we move for change in the world faster than we used to. I can only hope we do. And continue to fight for it.
Bigotry will, I think, always exist. But we can't ever let it dictate our lives and access to equality. So we'll always have to fight. And though it's frustrating and discouraging...it's worth it.
Don't give up.
11/04/09
11/04/09
Maine has the 2nd highest divorce rate in the country (only beaten by Nevada).
Maine allows first cousins to marry.
Maine recognizes the Universal Life Church (that free site on the internet) for marriages. And lawyers. Virtually anyone can perform a marriage ceremony in Maine.
30% of Maine children are born out of wedlock.
Now, I'm not concerned by any of those except the cousins part, but what pristine institution of marriage are the Yes on 1 people referring to? #gaymarriagemaine
11/04/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
Nevertheless, I see you are right to point out that I am prejudiced against first cousins marrying and making babies. #gaymarriagemaine
11/06/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
Fight for the rights associated with marriage, go for civil unions, worry about semantics later.
And hopefully they go to SCOTUS for this. I'm tired having to read shit like this every year. Leaving the rights of the minority to the majority is just pointless. #gaymarriagemaine
11/04/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
11/04/09
11/06/09
11/06/09
11/04/09
As a liberal Jewish girl, I love it. LOVE. IT. #gaymarriagemaine
11/04/09
I'm a heterosexual woman and I don't see how gay marriage would send the US to hell in a handbasket. I have yet to hear a cogent argument against gay marriage that doesn't basically boil down to "traditional marriage would be destroyed" and/or "the bible says so!" #gaymarriagemaine
11/04/09