Strollerderby : feminist

School Game Ends 100-0, Who Won?

JeanneSager — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 15:23:00 GMT

Remember when you lost your high school game and your mother told you to stop crying, "it's only a game"?

Let the record show, Mom was right.

Because a Dallas, Texas coach who left the first string in to bring the score to 100 to 0 against a team made up of children with learning disabilities, is nothing but a big loser.

Administrators from the Covenant School of Dallas issued a formal apology last week after the Christian school's girls basketball team wiped the floor with their opponents' dignity. They're forefeiting the game, and school officials promised they "have acted to ensure that such an unfortunate incident can never happen again" (no word on whether that means a coach will be fired or disciplined?).

The Covenant girls were up 59 to 0 when the first half ended, against a team of girls who have never won a game. There was no danger of losing. Still, the first string was left in the game. The benched girls never got their chance for Covenant, and the Dallas Academy girls never got a chance - period.

Jezebel tried to play the whole thing off as anti-feminist, accusing the girls of "being afraid to kick ass."

Puh-lease. These kids are in high school. They aren't supposed to be kicking ass. They're supposed to be learning about sportsmanship, discipline, teamwork. . . and getting some exercise.

Growing up in a sports-oriented (mostly football) school district, I found that too often the line between sports as part education and sports for sports' sake became blurred. There is an expectation in many of these schools that sports are there so the kids can play, get recognition from scouts and scurry their butt off to a Division I school with a fat scholarship.

Wrong. Sports belong in schools only as part of the well-rounding of children's education. It's one of the reasons I'd like to see more emphasis on intramurals and less money spent on sending kids two hours on a bus to play another big school, costing taxpayers more and taking the kids out of more and more classtime. Because, in school, kids are supposed to learn about how to get ready for the real world, and sports can offer part of that to the children who enjoy athletics. The teamwork, the discipline, and, in light of the childhood obesity crisis, a lifelong love of movement can go a long way in the real world.

So too can the ability to forge relationships with those you oppose. Because somewhere along the way, we have lost the art of civil discourse in this country. The Rush Limbaughs of the world won't say, "well, President Barack Obama won, and I don't think he can do it, but I hope he will." Instead, it's "I hope he fails." There is no meeting in the middle, no getting ahead only to reach back and help someone else along.

And our kids are taking up that mantra. They are running their opponents into the ground - figuratively, and, in this case, literally.

This isn't about feminism (could it be when you're talking about two girls teams facing off). It isn't about being "too wussy."

It's about common decency. It's about allowing your opponents on the court and in life a little dignity. Because who wants our kids to get ahead if they have to climb over everyone else on their way up?

Image: ABC News

What's Wrong with "Women and Children First?"

JeanneSager — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 13:02:00 GMT

The crash of Flight 1549 came just when the nation needed it - a crisis averted, a hero in our midst, nearly two hundred people saved. Next to the inaguration, it's the brightest spot what's been an otherwise bleak American horizon of late.

But we're a country that thrives on some sort of scandal - so it's no surprise the heroism of Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger has quickly turned to criticism of the age-old (at least one hundred and fifty-some year-old) standard of evacuating people in case of tragedy: "women and children first."

To be fair, I'm biased. I am, after all, a woman. I'm also a mother. So women and children rank pretty high on my list. By all accounts, I should be rushing to the defense of the mandate Jezebel aptly dubbed "strangely quaint" and "old fashioned."

A lot of what Jezebel's Sadie said made sense - there has to be some organizational basis for getting people moved from here to there, and few would argue with a child's right to be cut the line in light of a tragedy. Children first, at least, is almost irrefutable. They still have a chance at a life. They still have time left to make a difference.

But Sadie makes one very salient point - kids need caregivers when they're rescued. And last I checked, caregivers come in all forms - daddies too. So what happens when we stick to "women and children first?" If a child is traveling with their Dad in tow, is the screaming tot ripped from his arms and thrust into those of a stranger, wriggling and crying? Add a toddler torquing his body in frustration to an already stressful situation, and you've just lost precious moments.The organizaton you're striving for can be dealt that fatal blow with the moments lost calming them down.

Yes, I would want to get off a sinking plane as quickly as possible - and with my daughter in my arms. But as important as I would hope someone thinks I am in my daughter's life, so too is my husband, my father, my brother . . . I am not a he-man hating feminist (yes, some of them still exist). If one of them were there with my child, I would hope that an able-bodied adult would be willing to let child and "male relative caregiver" take the place of "mother/woman."

Perhaps the more appropriate choice is children - with appropriate caregiver - first, to be followed by whomever the pilot and his crew thinks can be gotten to next in the most organized fashion?

Image: AP

Fire Starts While Toddler has Mom Locked in the Basement

Zimbabwe Releases Jailed Toddler

Mom Says Hospital Fouled Childbirth - Twice

Survey Time: How Will Becoming a Mother Change You?

Post-Election, Women Hate Sexism Almost as Much as Feminism

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 21:34:00 GMT

A recent survey on post-election attitudes to sexism reveals that a majority of Americans live in La La Land. For starters: While most men don’t believe there is gender bias in the media or at home, almost half (4 in 10) “freely admit to having sexist attitudes towards a female president.”

Espousing similarly mind-boggling contradictions, the vast majority of women believe that Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton were treated unfairly by the media—but would be mortified to call themselves “feminists.” Only 20 percent of women identify as feminist, and even fewer (17 percent) would be supportive of their daughters’ using the label.

Merriam Webster defines feminism as “the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes.” In other words, most women are embarrassed to label themselves as people who believe in gender equality, but are outraged over the media’s coverage of Palin’s hair. Only 48 percent of women believe that the media treated Clinton fairly, and far fewer female respondents (29 percent) believe that Palin got fair treatment. (Perhaps Palin seemed to get harsher gender-based media coverage because Clinton wasn’t, say, buying $150,000 worth of clothes on the GOP’s dime?)

Sure, some high-profile activists may have given the term “feminist” a more extremist connotation than many women would like it to have, but that doesn’t necessitate rejecting the whole theory. I don’t agree with many of PETA’s over-the-top tactics, but that doesn’t mean I stop calling myself a vegetarian.

Ready for more oblivious sexism? 39 percent of men feel that the role of president is more “naturally suited” to a man than to a woman. I guess that explains why so many more men than women (two-thirds to less than half) believe there is gender equality in the home—the wife just does all the housework because she is more “naturally suited” to it.

On the upside, the poll was relatively small, with 1,000 respondents.

Photo: Jezebel

Dudes for Palin: Vote for the Hot Chick!

Woman Auctioning Off Her Virginity Calls Herself a Feminist

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 21:15:00 GMT

And yet more proof that you can use feminism as an argument for anything. Today, 30 years after the women’s movement has achieved absolute victory (in much the same way we accomplished our mission in Iraq back in 2003), women are not only able to freely sell their bodies via the World Wide Web, but are able to intelligently discuss their prostitution goals with supermodels like Tyra Banks, who clearly insinuate that virgins shouldn’t dress so “sexy.”

Just like Palin, 22-year-old Natalie Dylan (pictured) is living proof that anyone with a uterus can brand herself a feminist, even as her actions risk setting the women’s movement back about 50 years. Speaking on the Tyra Banks Show, Dylan explained that her interest in making some big bucks at Nevada’s Moonlight Bunny Brothel by auctioning off her virginity (the highest bid so far is $3.8 million) is mainly academic, stemming from her commitment to feminist studies. Dylan is writing her college thesis on “the dichotomous relationship between virginity and prostitution.” That is indeed quite a dichotomy—just the kind of dichotomy that the friendly fellas over at the Moonlight Bunny Brothel will be very interested in, I’m sure.

Check out a clip of Dylan speaking to Tyra on Jezebel.

Photo: pandasunite.wordpress.com

Palin: Women Who Don't Support Other Women Go to Hell

Dudes for Palin: Vote for the Hot Chick!

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 19:30:00 GMT

It may not surprise you to learn that, according to the New York Times, “dudes” constitute Sarah Palin’s most vocal supporters. But it may disturb you to learn what these men have to say about her.

Although Palin was ostensibly chosen for her anticipated appeal to women, the former beauty contestant has (gasp!) won over far more men than women, with her initial approval ratings at 44 percent among men and 36 percent among women. (Those numbers have since dropped considerably, down to 31 percent among men.)

Even as many conservatives fault Palin for being, to put it nicely, not “serious” enough, Joe Sixpacks can’t get enough of her. One of Palin's female supporters acknowledged that Palin rallies are about “70-30, maybe 65-35, men to women.” Among the shout-outs that Palin routinely receives at her rallies are cries of, “You tell ‘em babe!” and “You rock me out, Sarah!” Some men sport “Proud to vote for a hot chick” buttons, while others carry “Dudes for Palin” signs.

Palin apparently loves the testosterone-charged rock concert atmosphere of her rallies. After entering a rally to the heading-banging tunes of AC/DC, she told the crowd, “That was kinda cool.” She has also introduced her husband as “Alaska’s First Dude.”

At least one Palin supporter interviewed by the Times admitted that he came to a Palin rally “just to look at her.” He wisely chose to remain anonymous. Let’s hope he realizes that, just as it’s embarrassing to admit to supporting a political candidate simply because of her appearance, actually voting an inexperienced, scandal-plagued woman into the White House simply because she’s “beautiful” at a time in which our country is engaged in two wars, is widely hated throughout the world, and is in the early stages of widespread economic collapse, would be an unforgivably inane decision.

Dudes, if you want to stare at hot chicks, watch Desperate Housewives.

Photo: New York Times

National Organization for Women President Endorses Palin

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 16:10:00 GMT

Remember that video of Sarah Palin misquoting Madeline Albright at a rally in California? Well, the faux feminism gets more and more outrageous. Guess who introduced Palin? Shelly Mandell, the president of L.A. National Organization for Women, who has endorsed the McCain/Palin ticket.

I attended the March for Women’s Lives in Washington, D.C. back in 2004, which Mandell organized. It was one of the most unifying, uplifting experiences of my life, to be surrounded by thousands of women peacefully demanding reproductive freedom. The fact that Mandell would go on to endorse a staunchly anti-choice presidential ticket is not the only reason her judgment should be seriously questioned. Jezebel has done some digging on Mandell and it turns out that she’s got some skeletons in her closet, including helping to get a fellow NOW rising star arrested.

In her introduction for Palin, Mandell pointed out that Palin will be a champion for Title IX because she plays sports. I'm all for Title IX, but will having an athletic woman in office help other women when her running mate opposes equal pay, as McCain has already done? Will the fact that Palin played basketball in college help women when she fights to make abortion illegal even in the case of incest or rape?

If it were up to Mandell, the National Organization for Women would need to change its name to the National Organization for Powerful People with Female Genitalia. Fortunately, it’s not up to Mandell. The California NOW president has issued a statement that says, in part, “I can assure you that there is no local or state affiliate of NOW, including LA NOW, which endorses or supports the McCain/Palin ticket.”

Photo: Jezebel

Palin: Women Who Don't Support Other Women Go to Hell

What's a Mommy Wars Foot Soldier to do?

Madeline Holler — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 22:03:00 GMT

There's a new Mommy Wars book on the market, this one issuing an order to cease and desist with all the trivial fighting between working and lounging mothers. Opting In: Having a Child Without Losing Yourself, has a "Calgon, take me away" title, but it's written by feminist author Amy Richards so, you know, it's surely not all about the power of the mani-pedi.

However! As a ground soldier in the Mommy Wars, having been stopped-lossed with my second kid just as things were easing up with the first, I have to say I was taken aback with this description of the book's aim, as summarized by an interviewer who spoke to the author on Salon:

If motherhood is going to be a less harried and more equal enterprise, she suggests, it has to be about more than changing diapers. It has to be about changing ourselves.

Well, see, I don't want to change myself so much.

Sure, I'm an imperfect mess. And I can accept that. But after seven years and two tours of duty -- with no end in sight -- I would submit that change starts -- or at least picks up -- outside the home, not within it.

I'm not asking "society" to fetishize my kids. No, I don't want you to fill in for me -- just one more time -- while I run out for a soccer game and ballet performance. But I would like this culture of personal responsiblity over societal obligations to change just enough that let's me and my husband (and you and your partner) work and have a family and afford a house and good -- no, we'll settle for decent -- schools for the kids and, for God's sake, some fucking affordable, flexible, quality (and, yes, I mean subsidized) childcare for the babies, all babies, and preschoolers, each and everyone that wants some!

I think that would go a long way in letting women decide for themselves -- as the author encourages -- what they want. Because there would be actual options available to the masses. I would submit that work/career issues are the catalyst for all the personal shit that can take over our new lives as parents.

Here's what Richards says:

When I titled the book "Opting In," I meant to say, opt in to your own life, make yourselves aware of the options that are available to you. Because I think women approach motherhood rather passively and just let it happen instead of seeing themselves as the active agents they are or could be. So I have chapters about our relationships with our friends and mothers, as well as our husbands or our same-sex partners. I'm trying to show how parenting affects all aspects. Assuming it only affects the workplace trivializes how much parenting takes over our whole lives.

I haven't read the book and maybe she's all over the idea that women with the biggie jobs have more options than those who don't. In which case, yay. And maybe her book really isn't coaching us on evenly splitting housework (the LEAST of my worries). I hope her take on the Mommy Wars conflict winds up being less about me, the mom, and more about us, all of us, the adults -- the ones who make stuff happen, the ones who are in charge.

What do you think? Does our culture keep us in the trenches, fighting battle after battle in an unwinnable war? Or am I being a big baby?

Photo: defenselink.mil

Babble Talk: 5 Minute Time Out with Katha Pollitt

aprilpeveteaux — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 19:07:00 GMT

You know how when you read something that you’ve been thinking about for a long time, and you thought perhaps you were the only one who was realizing this, and thinking obsessively about these things? Uh-huh, me too, and the Babble interview with Katha Pollitt just might have you nodding your head in agreement while having your own a-ha! moment. Pollitt sits down to discuss (among other things) embracing the word ‘feminist’, the complicated world of motherhood and her new collection of personal essays, Learning to Drive and Other Life Stories.

Favorite new phrase to throw around in conversation: "gender Republicans", Pollitt’s label for the reversal of progressive men and women after the arrival of the baby. Check out this 5-Minute Time Out for more witty remarks and dinner table fodder.

Strollerderby : feminist

School Game Ends 100-0, Who Won?

Kids Around the Globe Weigh in on Obama

Adopting Kids: Nothing Like Adopting Puppies

Teacher Wants to Drop Huck Finn, To Kill a Mockingbird "for Obama"

What's Wrong with "Women and Children First?"

What's Wrong with "Women and Children First?"

Having a Kid Alone? Don't Tell Me Why I Have it Better

Fire Starts While Toddler has Mom Locked in the Basement

Zimbabwe Releases Jailed Toddler

Mom Says Hospital Fouled Childbirth - Twice

Survey Time: How Will Becoming a Mother Change You?

Post-Election, Women Hate Sexism Almost as Much as Feminism

Woman Auctioning Off Her Virginity Calls Herself a Feminist

Dudes for Palin: Vote for the Hot Chick!

National Organization for Women President Endorses Palin

What's a Mommy Wars Foot Soldier to do?

Babble Talk: 5 Minute Time Out with Katha Pollitt