Monday, September 28, 2009

Tonight's Show - Female Filmmakers Ponder: To Have a Baby or Not?

Tonight we have the pleasure of interviewing two local filmmakers who are working on a project called The Baby Cliff. Dominique Keller and Smita Acharyya coined the term "the baby cliff" to describe the point in a woman’s life where she needs to decide whether or not to take the plunge into motherhood. The film they are creating is an interactive project: the general public gave input on characters, scripts and actors.

Join us tonight from 8:30 to 9:00 pm on CJSW 90.9 fm to hear this interview. You can also download it as a podcast if you miss the live show (it will be available on Wednesday).

Smita & Dominique on the edge of "the baby cliff"

Friday, September 25, 2009

Baking is a Feminist Thang!

When I bake, I feel like I’m connected to my grandmother and her mother and her mother… going back through all those generations of women.
When I bake, I feel empowered because I’ve made something from scratch.
When I bake, I’m proud that I’ve made something delicious and I know exactly what’s in it.
When I bake, I’m reminded of my mother who cooked home made meals every night, even though she worked full time.
When I bake, I feel creative.

Today many women are taking “traditional” women’s tasks such as crocheting, baking, knitting and sewing and reinventing them. No longer are they things we do because we’re women and we’re expected to do them. We do them because of all the reasons I listed above: they are creative, empowering, and it’s awesome to make something yourself!

Here are some pictures of some muffins I recently baked, and links to the recipes. Try it yourself and see how baking makes you feel!



Monday, September 21, 2009

Tonight's Show: Funny Ladies in Improv

Tonight we have the pleasure of interviewing two female improv actors that are participating in the upcoming "Women in Improv" show.

Urban Curves and the Improv Guild are presenting this evening of all-female improv, which is directed by Patti Stiles from Melbourne, Austrailia and features actors from the US and Calgary.

Date: Wednesday September 30th, 2009
Time: 7:30 PM
Location: The Engineered Air Theatre (205 – 8th Ave SE)
Tickets: Available online at Calgary Improv Festival

Two tickets to the show will be given away on-air tonight! Tune in from 8:30 to 9:00pm on CJSW 90.9 fm, or stream it online at cjsw.com. If you miss the live show, check out our podcast anytime.

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Recommended Reading: The Sexualization of Young Girls

The Guardian, a British newspaper, printed a fantastic article on September 18th. Lost youth: turning young girls into sex symbols is a fascinating look into our society's obsession with youthful looking women.
If you've got a spare five minutes, check it out.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Women in Improv!

Urban Curves and the Improv Guild present an evening of all-female improv! "Women in Improv" is directed by Patti Stiles from Melbourne, Austrailia and features actors from the US and Calgary.

This is a one-night-only exculsive event celebrating female improvisers.
Date: Wednesday September 30th, 2009
Time: 7:30 PM
Location: The Engineered Air Theatre (205 – 8th Ave SE)
Tickets: Available online at Calgary Improv Festival

We will be interviewing some of the female improvisers on our show next week!* Be sure to tune in or subscribe to our podcast - it's gonna be lots of fun!
*We will be giving away free tickets to Women in Improv on our show!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Tonight's Show : Take Back The Night Candle Light Vigil


Tonight, Geea and I will be joined by a couple of the organizing members behind this year's Take Back The Night event in Calgary. You may have heard or read that the usual Take Back The Night march is not going forward this year due to lack of funding and a few other reasons , most of which we will discuss on tonight's program. However, a candlelight vigil will take place on Tuesday Sept. 22 at 8:00pm; we will be talking with Juliet and Jennifer about it.

Take Back The Night is an annual march, vigil and rally that takes place in September of each year. Participation is worldwide and events are held in almost every country around the globe. It's purpose has grown to not only focus on the right for women to feel safe from harm wherever they are but also to eliminate acts of violence against women on all fronts while encouraging awareness that violence - no matter whom it is directed to - cannot be tolerated. The event is typically a very empowering one and we hope that many of you will come out and show your support despite any financial "road-blocks" (pun was sort of intended).


For information on how to become involved or to join the planning committee, please send an email to tbtncalgary@gmail.com.

Tune in tonight at 8:30 PM on CJSW 90.9 FM and stream it live from the CJSW website.


Thursday, September 10, 2009

More Women than Men in the Workplace, but We're Still Paid Less

The Toronto Star reports that "it has finally happened." More Canadian women than men were in paid employment during the first half of 2009, according to Statistics Canada.

But does this historic milestone hold any promise for women in their longstanding battle for economic equality?

Women still make up about 70 per cent of part-time workers and 60 per cent of minimum wage earners. Forty per cent are employed in precarious jobs that are generally poorly paid with little or no job security or benefits such as pensions. And the average full-time, full-year female worker still earns just 71.4 cents for every dollar earned by a man working similar hours, according to the latest Statistics Canada data from 2007.

Read the full article here.

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Rock 4 Choice Calgary 2009!

Rock 4 Choice is an annual event in Calgary that celebrates sexual freedom, choice and education. It's happening this weekend - September 12 and 13, 2009.

Everything is FREE or by donation!

Saturday
Workshops at the Arusha Centre (223 12 Ave SW). Descriptions of workshops can be found on the Rock 4 Choice Calgary blog.
  1. You Are Really Fat - 1:00 - 2:00 pm
  2. Baby, I'm A Manarchist - 2:00 - 3:00 pm
  3. An Introduction To Polyamoury: Making Informed Decisions About Our Relationship Styles - 3:00 - 4:00 pm
  4. What Is Pro Choice? - 4:00 - 5:00 pm
  5. Bike Maintenance 101 - 5:00 - 6:00 pm
Rock music / dance party from 6:00 pm to 11:00 pm at the Knox United Church (506 4 Street SW). Performing bands include This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb, The Martyr Index, Straight Edge Al,
The Throwaways, and more.
Vegan dinner served at 6:00 pm.

Sunday
Hangover brunch and more workshops, hoorah! All located at the Arusha Centre (223 12 Ave SW).
  1. Free vegan brunch - 11:30 am
  2. Self Defense - 1:00 pm
  3. Documentary: The Business of Being Born - 2:30 pm
  4. Acoustic Sets - 5:00 pm
Check out the Rock 4 Choice blog or facebook group (search "Rock 4 Choice Calgary") for details.


Monday, September 7, 2009

Tonight's Show - A Spin on "Labour" Day

Labour Day is an annual holiday that resulted from the labour union movement that celebrates the economic and social achievements of workers. However, we decided to take a feminist spin on the word "labour" and do a show about birthing, labour and delivery.

Tonight, we'll discuss the history of birthing in Canada, with a particular focus on the role of the midwife. Prior to the 1920's, Canadians were born at home with the assistance of family members and a midwife. But changes in technology and a shift toward hospital births made the midwife almost obsolete. Today, there is a major comeback in the desire for midwifes, but there aren't enough midwives to meet the demand.

We will also discuss some of the drugs administered to women in labour. From epidurals (for pain relief in labour) to oxytocin (a hormone that can initiate or speed up labour) we'll look at various drugs commonly used in hospital births and the affects they may have on mother and child.

Tune in tonight from 8:30 to 9:00 pm on CJSW 90.9 fm. Remember, our show is now available as a podcast, so visit this page to dowloand or subscribe to our podcasts.

Websites & articles of interest:
  1. History of midwifery in Canada - Histori.ca
  2. Lower risk of problems in midwife-assisted home births, study finds - The Globe & Mail, August 31, 2009.

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Show your PRIDE this weekend!

It's time for Calgary's annual pride parade! The event provides an opportunity for people of all genders, sexual orientations and walks of life to unite and march together.

Pride events on Sunday September 6th:

The parade begins at noon and leaves from 8th street and 8th avenue SW. Participants will march east along 8th avenue and end up at Olympic Plaza, where the street festival will begin.

The festival runs from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm and features street vendor tents, a beer garden, a stage with DJs and entertainment, and a Kid Zone.

At the end of the night there will be a dance held at Belgo (501 8th Avenue SW), and that kicks off at 8:00 pm. Pride dances typically feature special DJs, drag performances, prize draws and more!

All the details can be found at Pride Calgary.

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Surprise, Surprise. Pro Female Golfers Make 1/3 as Much as Men

The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour begins today at a golf course just outside of Calgary. The CN Canadian Women’s Open features 156 top-notch female athletes at this world-class event.

I think it’s cool that a prestigious women’s golf tournament is being held here, but when I heard what the purse (prize money) is for this event, I decided to see how much male professional golfers can win in similar tournaments.

The results are exactly what I expected: the purse for the LPGA is about one-third the amount of a typical purse for a men’s professional golf tour. At the current LPGA tour in Calgary, the purse is 2.75 million. In the men’s PGA Tour in Boston from September 4 – 7, the purse is 7.5 million.

Gender-based discrepancies in prize money occur in almost every professional sport. If anyone still tells you that we no longer need feminism because “women have their rights and are equal,” this is just one example you can throw at them to prove that we still get paid less for doing the same job.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Take Back the Night - Calgary 2009


Calgary's annual Take Back the Night (TBTN) march has been canceled this year due to a lack of funds and a recent increase in costs for police assistance while marching.

In replacement of TBTN, a candlelight vigil will be held on Tuesday September 22nd at 8:00pm at Tomkins Park (located at 17th avenue and 8th street SW).

For more information email juliet.burgess@gmail.com.

See you there!