25 May 12
3,306 notes
extantecstasy:
Because the media reacts like this when we’re less than perfect. Because our emotional range gets stunted and limited.
Because so many aspects of our culture normalize rape on a subconscious level.
Because Kansas and Arizona pass bills that allows the beliefs of a doctor or pharmacist to trump the health of a woman. And because fetuses are becoming increasingly more important than the woman carrying them.
Because a state representative can compare a woman giving birth to livestock.
Because legislature that criminalizes pregnancy and abortion are being forced into discussion again and again.
Because the rest of the world wants to know why American women aren’t angrier.
Because of bills that limit the time frame of my choices.
Because for some reason, religion is a legitimate reason to interfere in my uterus.
Because the Protect Life Act even exists.
Because women who miscarry or lose their babies are being charged with murder.
Because a woman who tried to commit suicide while pregnant was jailed and charged with feticide.
Because mandatory trans-vaginal ultrasound probes are legally defined as rape.
Because ectogenesis technology could further remove birthing rights from a mother.
Because programs like this even have to exist.
Because birth control is suddenly a religious issue. Because women can be fired for using birth control as a contraceptive. Because the benefits of no-cost or inexpensive birth control are overlooked. Because ignorance necessitates posts like this.
Because again and again, organizations like the Medicaid Woman’s Health Program are seen as unnecessary. Because even the Susan G. Komen Foundation tried to stop funding Planned Parenthood. And if you think we’re past that, think again.
Because America ranks among a very small number of countries that don’t have paid, mandatory pregnancy leave. In fact, women routinely get forced out of their jobs for being pregnant.
Because public discourse from men like Rush Limbaugh is insulting and misogynistic and goes mostly unpunished.
Because the U.S. Military has some of the highest rape rates and most reprehensible policies for dealing with them.
Because women are bitches for saying no and sluts for saying yes. Because we are valued by how many or few cocks have been in our vaginas.
Because this is normal.
Because I don’t know a single woman who has not been harassed, derided, assaulted. Because I know many women and girls who have been raped. Because I’ve seen the long term, life long repercussions of sexual abuse.
Don’t tell me there isn’t a war on women. And don’t tell me the economy is more important than this. This barely scratches the surface.
Repeat after Soraya Chemaly: I am a woman and I have these human rights. The right to life. The right to privacy. The right to freedom. The right to bodily integrity. The right to decide when and how I reproduce.
(via ladyhouston)
all of this
ladythings
feminism
Origin: extantecstasy
23 May 12
7,996 notes
I want to live in a world where little girls are not pinkified, but where little girls who like pink are not punished for it, either. We can certainly talk about the social pressures surrounding gender roles, and the concerns that people have when they see girls and young women who appear to be forced into performances of femininity by the society around them, but let’s stop acting like they have no agency and free will. Let’s stop acting like women who choose to be feminine are somehow colluders, betraying the movement, bamboozled into thinking that they want to be feminine. Let’s stop denying women their own autonomy by telling them that their expressions of femininity are bad and wrong.
Antifemininity is misogynist. What you are saying when you engage in this type of rhetoric is that you think things traditionally associated with women are wrong. Which is misogynist. By telling feminine women that they don’t belong in the feminist movement, you are reinforcing the idea that to be feminine and a woman is wrong, that women who want to be taken seriously need to be more masculine, because most people view gender presentation in binary ways. This rewards the ‘one of the boys’ type rhetoric I encounter all over the place from self-avowed feminists who seem to think that bashing on women is a good way to prove how serious they are when it comes to caring about women and bringing men into the feminist movement.
word
ladythings
feminism
queue
Origin: thechocolatebrigade
22 May 12
805 notes
dcwomenkickingass:
On Tuesday I shared with you some of the thoughts Greg Rucka had about Hollywood, comics and women. Today he’s has an essay on io9 where he talks about writing female characters.
Here’s a sample:
Gender isn’t simply a biological trait; it’s a societal one. The female experience is different from that of the male, and if, as a male writer, you cannot accept that basic premise, then you will never, ever, be able to write women well. A man walking alone through Midtown Manhattan at three in the morning may have concerns for his safety, but I promise you, it’s a very different experience for a woman taking the same walk, and it’s different again for a man wearing a dress. Think about it. That’s a societal factor, and it’s a gendered one, and this is not and can not be subject to debate. If you’re looking to argue that sexism is a thing of the past, that the world is gender-blind, you’re not only wrong, you’re lying to yourself.
I recommend you go read the rest.
(via racebending)
ooooooooh
greg rucka
take all of my money
ladythings
humanthings
Origin: dcwomenkickingass
08 May 12
2,697 notes
aimsme:
face-down-asgard-up:
moniquill:
thebaddominicana:
Earlier in this pregnancy, I filled out my “Initial Health History” form for prenatal and birth care. You know: check the box if you’ve experienced severe headaches, diabetes, all sorts of things. After the usual “Emotional abuse,” “Physical abuse,” “Sexual abuse,” I got to this very interesting item: ”ANY unwanted/undesired physical or sexual contact.”
read the link. so spot on.
[trigger warning LIKE WHOA at the link for rape culture, coercion, molestation, and general unwanted attention]
Because I can hardly stand the thought of these constant erosions of personhood seeming normal to our daughters and sons.
READ THIS
Everyone needs to read this.
I know that the concept of “rape culture” can be really hard to understand if you’re new to it or just not quite sure what it entails. It took me a painfully long time to recognize that a lot of my behaviors — jokes, apologia, defending perpetrators, victim-blaming, &c — were contributing in ways I didn’t have the ability to recognize but did have the ability to change. It’s a constant struggle, too, tbh, because the learned habits of a lifetime are still reinforced by society even as I try to unlearn them.
If you’ve ever rolled your eyes at someone being ~hysterical~ or ~humorless~ or ~uptight~ about feminism or rape culture or victim blaming or misogyny or safe spaces or bodily autonomy, or if you’re looking for a way to explain those things to someone else, this essay might help.
(Source: manifestfreedom, via rubyvroom)
Origin: manifestfreedom
08 May 12
7,851 notes
I know I’ve told this story before, but my abusive ex refused to let me take birth control. I was on the pill until he found them in my purse.
I went to the Student Health Center—they were completely unhelpful, choosing to lecture me about the importance of safe sex (recommending condoms) instead of actually listening to my problem.
Then I went to Planned Parenthood. The Nurse Practitioner took one look at my fading bruises and stopped the exam. She called in the doctor. The doctor came in and simply asked me: “Are you ready to leave him?” When I denied that I was being abused, she didn’t argue with me. She just asked me what I needed. I said I need a birth control method that my boyfriend couldn’t detect. She recommended a few options and we decided on Depo.
When I told her that my boyfriend read my emails and listened to my phone messages and was known to follow me, she suggested to do the Depo injections at off hours when the clinic was normally closed. She made a note in my chart and instructed the front desk never to leave messages for me—instead, she programmed her personal cell phone number into my phone under the name “Nora”. She told me she would call me to schedule my appointments; she wouldn’t leave a message, but I should call her back when I was able to.
And that was it. No judgment. No lecture. She walked me to the door and told me to call her day or night if I needed anything. That she lived 5 blocks from campus and would come get me. That I wasn’t alone. That she just wanted me to be safe.
I never called her to come to my rescue. But I have no doubt that she would have come if I had called. She kept me on Depo for a year, giving me those monthly injections in secret, helping me prevent a desperately unwanted pregnancy.
I cannot thank Planned Parenthood enough for the work they do.
ladythings
humanthings
planned parenthood
contraception
abuse
fuck you arizona
Origin: sexistmorons
06 May 12
2,661 notes
To me, what hurts me, is the fact that you are told all the times: “we are equal”, like “I don’t know what is your deal” like “what is your fucking issue with this or with that?” and then… but then you realize: no, actually we are not! You are getting paid more than I, you get to have more options in terms of what you want to watch for entertainment. (x)
(Source: maias, via betternovembers)
Origin: maias
03 May 12
2 notes
So there’s this argument about epic fantasy that keeps coming up, and it makes me uncomfortable every time I see it. Usually it goes something like this: a beloved novel or series set in a world with kings and knight and dragons – that is to say one set in an imaginary medieval Europe – is analyzed and found somehow wanting. Not enough strong women, too many white people, too much sexual violence. As the debate fires up, one of the defenders of book or series makes some variation of the argument that fantasy that has the set dressings of medieval Europe is better if it also has medieval social norms. Or, at a lower diction, “But the Middle Ages really were sexist/racist/filled with sexual violence.”
And there, my dear friends, I get my back up. With all respect, this is a bad argument.
asoiaf
game of thrones
medieval fallacy
history
authenticity
ladythings
isms
writing
01 May 12
5,158 notes
rubyvroom:
dank-potion:
split-the-coast:
When you discuss the wage gap, here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Only white women make $0.77 to a man’s dollar.
- Black women make about $0.68 to a man’s dollar.
- Latina women make about $0.58 to a man’s dollar.
Intersectionality matters.
And men of color make less than white women.
oh, but this messes up our rhetoric, so let’s just ignore that and let other people bring it up. < /radfem>
(Does anyone have stats on the 77% for white women number? The most recent I’ve seen is from a Census Bureau report in 2010, which puts it at 80%.)
Here’s how it breaks down:
If we set white men’s average annual earnings at 100%:
White women 80.5
Black men 74.5
Black women 69.6
Hispanic men 65.9
Hispanic women 59.8
Asian men 110.0
Asian women 90.9
All men $42,848
All women $34,788
Source: 2010 Median Annual Earnings by Race and Sex
feminism
facts
ladythings
peoplethings
intersectionality
wage gap
pay equality
omg the lack of tab spacing is killing me
the un-columns are ugly! i'm sorry!
Origin: split-the-coast
23 April 12
16 notes
towelsandtea:
It greatly upsets me, having read many fan reactions to last night’s episode and coming across the same thing over and over again.
Joffrey abuses and humiliates Sansa in front of the entire court? “Oh. Huh. Okay.”
Joffrey makes Ros beat her fellow prostitute in the next scene as a direct parallel to what went on with Sansa? (He even sits with the crossbow again!). “OH MY GOD. JOFFREY IS SO TERRIBLE.”
Not saying that what happened to Ros wasn’t awful, because it was awful and I don’t think many of us can imagine or want to imagine the trauma of being forced to beat and abuse someone. Ros is a character who, it seems, exists to reinforce just how powerless most women are in this society. She was confident and arguably independent as a prostitute in the north, but that’s completely changed since she moved south.
But here’s the thing. I think having a young fourteen-year-old girl beaten in front of the court and then having her clothes torn off while everyone stands quietly by and watches is monstrous and horrible and so much worse to watch.
And I think that the (at least TV) fandom’s complete unreaction to it and their reaction to the Ros scene says a lot more about who is watching the show than HBO’s writing decisions. Because after the throne room scene, you shouldn’t need an immediate scene to make sure you understand just how horrible Joffrey is. But apparently people do.
asoiaf
game of thrones
ladythings
spoilers
oh sansa my bb
queue
Origin: towelsandtea
22 April 12
5,365 notes
What we didn’t hear about was a how an African-American women who in the course of protecting herself from an abusive husband who beat her while she was pregnant, shot a gun that she legally owns into the air. No one was hurt, but she is now looking at 25 years. Yes indeed, you read that right, facing 25 years.. Her name is Marissa Alexander, she lives in Florida, is a mother of 3 and everyone should know her name and her case.The person who prosecuted her case is Angela Corey, the prosecutor in the George Zimmerman case.
Marissa Alexander
domestic violence
self-defense
criminal justice
racism
ladythings
signal boosting
queue
Origin: biyuti
