Pissing on sexual assualt

Finally, a urinal drain guard with a message: Stop Sexual Assault. Yes, that's right, the folks at University of Indiana have begun placing urinal drain guards imprinted with a stop sexual assault message in men's restrooms across campus. Members of Raising Awareness of Interactions in Sexual Encounters, or RAISE, have placed 600 red drain guards in urinals in Indiana dorm rooms with a message urging students to stop sexual assault. Hmm....while it may not be a wholly effective method to stop sexual assault on college campuses, it is inarguably a very interesting tactic. And who knows, maybe the message will leak into a few heads?!? (That was too easy. Sorry.)

It's a liberal witchhunt

Proponents of the Academic Bill of Rights--what you've never heard of this? It's very humorous, check it out here--are in full force again as they aim their guns at women's studies departments across the U.S. Proponents of the bill often charge women's studies programs with being liberal indoctrination that violates intellectual diversity. Opponents say the bill is a right-wing attempt to gain control of universities by co-opting minority status. Using the politically correct language of "diversity" and "equality," typically coded as liberal, the movement is said to undermine these very concepts in the process. I didn't know I'd run into this monster again, as I had to do some pretty extensive research on the bill after Professor Joan Scott talked about it as part of a lecture series last September. Who knew that this kind of shit actually gets off the ground, especially when the writer/creator of the bill--David Horowitz--is obviously nutso? Well, let me take that back: we're not dealing with the brightest population on the planet (save you, my wondrous reader). Thanks to Sarah for the story.

NARAL tries again

NARAL just released their new and improved television ad against Supreme Court justice nominee, John G. Roberts. The ad--revamped due to an overwhelming outcry contesting the fairness of the last one--takes a decidedly different approach, highlight[ing] a memo written by Roberts for the U.S. Attorney General in 1981, in which he calls an established liberty a “so-called ‘right to privacy’” and a brief he co-authored a decade later calling for the overturn of Roe v. Wade. Watch the ad (Windows Media player) and see what you think.

The war no one wants to see

Salon.com is featuring a photo gallery of images from Iraq not shown by most media. They're disturbing and graphic, portraying a reality of which many of us are only distantly aware.

More "real women" advertising

Just when you thought it was safe to stop wondering whether or not the new Dove ad campaign is empowering or objectifying, Nike is swooping in to cash in on the idea that "real women have curves." Nike's new ad campaign, complete with videos of women talking about specific body parts, adds a little more complexity to the whole empower v. objectify debate given Nike is not trying to hawk cellulite cream (ahem, Dove). On one hand, it's great because these chicks are unapologetically toned and muscular (read: unfeminine), presumably working out because they enjoy it, but it can't go without saying that this is Nike and advertising, neither of which have upstanding reputations. Damn! Why's everything gotta be so complicated?!

Gender-equity in India

A new law passed in India will grant daughters and sons equal property rights to ancestral land. Unfortunately, the bill--overwhelmingly supported by women's rights activists and citizens fed up with unfair laws--cannot be strictly enforced within certain communities. "We have changed the laws for the Hindus but the Muslims have to desire the change," Bharadwaj said and added, "Nobody can make a Uniform Civil Code unless all communities agree." Yet, the government seems to be taking relatively progressive steps in the right direction. . . . the Minister said UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi was keen on reviewing all bills, wherever there was gender bias. "Wherever we find there is gender bias, it will be done away with," he said. Next up: the domestic violence legislation known as the Women's Reservation Bill.

Women are taking over the world

David Buerk, a UK newscaster, is concerned with women's inevitable world domination. "Life is lived in accordance with women's rules" and men are now merely "sperm donors". Buerk added that the "shift in the balance of power between the sexes" had gone too far. "The result is men are becoming more like women," he said. Yes, clearly, this is a major problem plauging the planet that must be stopped now.

Girl power means never having to admit you read

Former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham (aka: Posh Spice) recently admitted that reading isn't really her thing. "I haven't read a book in my life," she said. "I haven't got enough time. I prefer to listen to music, although I do love fashion magazines." Ahhh, thanks Posh. This world really needed one more woman preaching the wonders of ignorance to young ladies everywhere! Reese Witherspoon waxed poetic about this whole problem in a recent interview: . . . creating a cultural icon out of someone who goes, 'I'm stupid, isn't it cute?' makes me want to throw daggers at them! I want to say to them, 'My grandma did not fight for what she fought for, and my mother did not fight for what she fought for, so you can start telling women it's fun to be stupid.' I don't know if she was trying to be ironic, but she makes a good point.

Disposable domestics

The New York Times is featuring a really interesting article on the surge of immigrant women entering the day labor force. Their growth reflects a larger overlooked reality: Women make up 44 percent of the nation's low-wage immigrant work force, and worldwide, studies show, more and more women are migrating for work. Go here to read the full article.

More complicated than "choice"

A friend and women's rights activist, Gretchen Dyer--who, along with another close friend, runs an abortion fund in North Texas--recently wrote an opinion piece on abortion rights for the Dallas Morning News. The article highlights the complexities behind the idea of abortion as a "choice" and argues that for many women--at least for the hundreds of women that contact the fund--abortion is not merely a choice, but a necessity. I find "choice" a term too casual to represent the critical decision each of them must make. Raising children demands time, money, energy and health. Under the best of circumstances, it's challenging for one person to provide all of this; under difficult circumstances, it can be impossible. Read the full article in the Dallas Morning News. It's subscription only, so if you don't have one, use mine: Email: knickfunk@hotmail.com; Password: thecookup.

Women's rights alive in Iraq

According to a survey distributed by a subcommittee of Iraq'’s constitutional committee, a majority of Iraq's citizens support women's rights, with only one hitch. A survey conducted by Iraq's constitution drafting committee showed that 69 percent of respondents support full rights for women - as long as the freedoms don'’t contradict Islam. Islam isn't necessarily the problem; it's those pesky conservative clerics that could ruin it for everyone. Some secular-minded women fear a loss of rights if conservative clerics heavily influence the new constitution. Let's hope this new government starts listening to it's citizens and making equitable, fair laws. And on a side note, I wonder what the results of such a survey would be if it were distributed in the U.S.?

Pretty f*ing cool

Hundreds of Tanzanian women are determined and empowered to create political change, and they're all running for parliament. Hundreds of women in Tanzania are running for seats in parliament as well as local authorities, and one of them has her eyes on the presidency in the 30 October general elections. Last week Anna Claudia Senkoro, 43, became the first Tanzanian woman to collect presidential nomination forms from the National Electoral Commission (NEC). Perhaps we could learn some valuable lessons from these fierce ladies?

Locked up

Sudanese women can't get a divorce. Well, unless they commit adultery. But then they're sentenced to jail. In patriarchal southern Sudan, as in much of Africa, only men have the right to file for divorce. The one legal loophole for Sudanese women is to commit adultery, a crime that is instant grounds for divorce. But even then, most husbands refuse to agree to one because they don't want to ask their relatives to return the dowry . . . . So best case scenario reads like some seriously flawed logic: enter violent/bad marriage, commit adultery, go to jail, hope that you've shamed your husband enough that he'll request a divorce, and wait. Trouble is, some women have been waiting for a long time. Like many women in jail for infidelity in Sudan, [Ding Maker] did it because she wanted a divorce. For three months, she has been sitting in a cell with 12 other women, hoping to shame her husband into repaying her dowry and leaving her. "He abused and beat me, never paying for my food or taking care of our sick children," Maker said, adjusting her shiny green shirt over her swelling belly. She is pregnant from the affair, but not worried about it. Luckily, the two decades of civil war that have ravaged the country are coming to a close and a new government is crafting a new constitution that could promote women's human rights and foster peace and equity in a country riddled with conflict and oppressive tradition. But many women have started defying the rules on their own, in part because they became more independent from men during the civil war, and in part because the political liberation of the region has brought new ideas and influences into a tightly controlled tribal society. Virtually all 24 women in Rumbek prison's female ward are there because they defied customary family laws. More than half have been charged with adultery; the rest have been jailed for eloping or failing to follow traditional marriage rules. "With peace and talk of change, adultery and requests for divorce are more frequent than they were ever before," said Chief Justice Ambrose Riny Thiik of South Sudan's Superior Court. "In fact, we're all surprised it's happening already." Thankfully, I'm not that surprised: women have had enough.

Starving for Peace

When Cindy Sheehan made her way to Crawford, Texas to try and meet with President Bush and ask him why her son had to die for his misguided war, she and other CODEPINK members were allegedly met with resistance and some violence. . . . as Cindy marched towards the ranch where Bush is vacationing for 33 days, she and her supporters, including CODEPINK cofounder Diane Wilson, were stopped by local sheriffs, who pushed them into a ditch with fire ants in 100 degree heat. (www.codepink.org) Cindy and CODEPINK have now launched a hunger strike and mass media campaign--Cindy's been interviewed by CNN's Wolf Blitzer and the AP wire story is quickly making the rounds--to protest the war and the current administration's deceitful political warpath. Join Cindy in Crawford, donate time or money to CODEPINK, or be a part of the political actions taking place in Washington, D.C. in September. Whatever you do, make sure you're actively letting the nation and our government know that you are against the complete insanity that is currently taking place. TAKE ACTION www.codepink4peace.org www.leavemychildalone.org www.onemillionreasons.org http://feminist.org/action

Hiatus

My apologies for the lack of posting. I'll begin posting on a more regular schedule beginning Monday, August 8. Thank you for your patience.