Tonight's show - SlutWalk: Criticism and Controversy

SlutWalk began earlier this year in Toronto after a police officer told a York University law class that "Women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized." The comment prompted the creation of SlutWalk Toronto, and after that events sprouted up in cities across North America.

Since the very beginning, SlutWalk has been controversial among both feminists and non-feminists alike. One of the most controversial aspects of SlutWalk Calgary was the organizers decision to partner with CJAY92 and the Forbes and Friends Morning Show. CJAY92 has a long history of misogynistic advertisments and the DJ's regularly make sexist comments on-air. Some Calgarians who previously supported SlutWalk Calgary were so upset they started a protest group on Facebook - Individuals Against CJAY92's Participation in SlutWalk Calgary.

Incidentally, SlutWalk Calgary has been postponed due to a myriad of logistical difficulties, inability to secure insurance and liability concerns. FFWD Calgary recently published a good overview of the problems that plagued SlutWalk Calgary organizers - check out The rise, fall and rise of SlutWalk Calgary for details.

But there are other issues with SlutWalk. Many people are uncomfortable with the term "slut" - including most feminists I've spoke to. Some people feel the message or purpose of SlutWalk has become muddled and murky. Others say there has been no real discussion or analysis around the root cause of sexual violence; the only point being raised is "slutty outfits are not an invitation to rape," which is obviously an important message, but the majority of sexual assaults do not occur because of slutty outfits.

On tonight's show we have two special guests who are both feminists that have been watching and analyzing SlutWalk with a critical eye:

• Joanne Costello has a Masters degree in social work and identifies as a socialist feminist. Her work has focused on the oppression of women with particular attention to the role of capitalism and imperialism. You can check out her blog at marginalnotes.typepad.com.
• Meghan Murphy is an MA candidate at Simon Fraser University in the department of Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies. She is the co-host and producer of the F Word radio show in Vancouver, and her writing and radio work can be found at feminisms.org.

Please join us from 8:00 - 8:30 p.m. on CJSW, 90.9 fm in Calgary, or you can listen online at cjsw.com.

GQ's November issue turns Glee into porn

Is this Glee photo shoot too sexually explicit for the audience it courts? I think so. Glee is a hugely successful television program that's popular with tweens and teens. It's also wildly popular amongst adults too, but the producers of Glee have to remember that if youth are a big part of their audience, the actors shouln't be posing like porn stars.

The racy photo shoot features Dianna Agron (Quinn), Lea Michele (Rachel) and Cory Monteith (Finn). The Los Angeles Times has a really good article about this, and these two paragragraphs were stand-outs for me:

Monteith is, of course, fully clothed. Not so his female costars, who bare their midriffs and décolletage, bras and panties, in thighs-spread, derriere-hoisted poses made more than slightly unsettling by their school-girl ensembles. Michele, in particular, seems to be auditioning for a live-action version of Japanese anime porn.

The result is not so much saucy and in-your-face as it is predictable and depressing -- oh look, more young women being asked to assume the position, this time complete with pom poms and lollipop. No doubt Agron and Michele did it to be sexy and playful, and were not at all manipulated by forces that have put generations of young women in precisely the same poses for precisely the same reasons -- to feed the fantasy, promote the show and sell magazines. And that just makes it worse, doesn't it?

First, it upsets me that young girls look up to these actresses and here they are posing like porn stars... great. Second, I'm so fucking sick of the same old "sexy" poses: girl licking lollipop seductively, guy with two girls, girls sticking their butts and breasts out, etc. I mean really. Get some god damn originality. Third and finally, I know that all the people in this photo shoot are adults, but they play teenagers on a television show. GQ is a magazine for men, and considering that these photos are set in a school, the photographer has essentially served up over-sexualized images of school girls to grown men.

Any other Glee fans out there? What do you think of these pictures? Today, I am sad to report that I've lots a little bit of respect for Glee.

The Threesome. Super creative and original!

The crotch shot. Another classic.

Oh, the lollipop in the mouth! Another CLASSIC!
And by classic I mean completely unoriginal.

Chevy's "nostalgic" (i.e. sexist) advertisement

'Remember when your cup holder sat next to you and wore a poodle skirt?'

Remember ladies, women should always sit in the passenger seat... never the driver's seat. And women should wear skirts, cos they're feminine and pretty. And women should hold the man's drink - since she's not gonna be driving, she might as well make herself useful.

I get that Chevy is playing on the whole nostalgia thing with this ad... but seriously, did they have to serve up their nostalgia with a side of sexism?

Pattinson's Pretty Props

Robert Pattinson (a.k.a. Edward the vampire from Twilight) is on the cover of the March 2010 issue of Details magazine. And so is a woman's crotch.



Every photo used in this story includes random naked women. Their bodies are used as objects or props - perhaps they're meant to add "mystery" or "beauty" or "artistic merit" to these photographs - but using beautiful naked women as props in photography is the oldest, sleaziest trick in the book. The women's bodies are dehumanized - they look like mannequins, and their purpose is the same as a mannequin - look good and be silent.



Gwen from Sociological Images comments,

"What struck me was the way that the photo shoot uses naked women as props for Pattinson’s masculine display... It’s not just that there are naked women as props or backdrop; it’s that in some cases, he seems utterly disinterested in them... It’s a double form of objectification: women’s naked bodies are used as stage decorations in masculine displays, and yet their presence is not even necessarily interesting to the male protagonist."

Calgary Sun’s Sexist Olympic Coverage

Why do we admire our Olympic athletes? Perhaps because of their dedication to their sport, their unwavering desire to push themselves further and become the best. And according to the Calgary Sun, we also admire the female athletes for lookin’ so darn good.



On February 17th the Calgary Sun published an article by Rob Longley about Lindsey Vonn, the American gold medallist in women’s downhill alpine skiing. The article, titled “Sitting Pretty” is all about what a “babe” this athlete is.



The article’s subtitle reads, “With her good looks and incredible talent, U.S. skier Lindsey Vonn commands plenty of attention.” The opening sentence of the article states that, “When she arrived here injured, the American media breathlessly predicted all eyes will be on [her] right shin. Just guessing, but the rest of her anatomy might get a little attention too.” Longley then goes on to call her “the babe of the Games,” and when listing her talents “in no particular order,” guess which attribute is listed first? Her good looks and a recommendation to check her out in the current Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.



Furthermore, next to this article is a side-bar with the headline “Lookin’ good” which lists the other female Olympian hotties. The side-bar states that “Lindsey Vonn isn’t the only female Olympian lauded for her looks as much as her athleticism. Here’s a few of the others competing in Vancouver that are easy on the eyes.” The list includes Canada’s Mellisa Hollingsworth, who competed in the skeleton event.



The media focusing on the physical appearance these women is a serious problem for professional female athletes. So often our female athletes are judged not only on their athletic talent, but on their looks and home life too. In some extreme cases such as the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) in America, the team actually has a beauty consultant on staff to help the women dress and look sexy.



Yesterday while watching the women’s skeleton event, the announcers were continually discussing which of the athletes are mothers and how old their kids are. Why are the children of female athletes often discussed, while the children of male athletes are almost never mentioned? No one ever says “Well, here’s the father of two, Jarome Iginla! He’s got two little ones at home, aged four and six.” Nobody talks about the home life of male athletes - and they certainly don’t comment on their physical appearance!



This is just another example of the double standards in our society. Women can rarely be appreciated just for their talents – their appearance and family life are always scrutinized as well.

Australian Porn Censorship Going Too Far

Conservative Australian politicians are attempting to wage a war on smutty pornography through some very interesting (and anti-woman) censorship laws. These include proposed bans on small breasts and female ejaculation in pornography.

The “small breast ban” is supposedly an effort to fight child pornography. The argument is that women with small breasts may appear to be underage (even if they’re over 18). They propose a ban on female ejaculation because it depicts a form of urination, which is banned under the label of “golden showers” in the federal Classification Guidelines for pornography.

First of all – the small breast ban is ridiculous and insulting. It is an absurd reaction to a perfectly normal female body type. Not all adult women have large breasts! If this is their argument, then they should also ban shaved genitals, which I think looks far more “underage” than small breasts.

As for the ban on female ejaculation in porn – their arguments are once again based on fiction rather than fact. Female ejaculation is NOT urination – it is the female equivalent to male ejaculation. Maybe the REAL reason they want to ban female ejaculation is because (a) it’s a little too icky for them, and/or (b) they lack understanding about female sexuality.

Some of the Most Offensive Jokes I've Seen

A few weeks ago I received an email full of "jokes" from a female pal. I was appalled when I began looking through these so-called jokes, and found many of them to be overtly sexist and offensive. I was shocked that a female friend would send this to me. Regardless of the fact that she knows I'm a feminist, how could ANY woman not be offended by these jokes? When people make fun of serious issues like domestic violence, rape and kidnapping, it makes the issue seem less serious than it is, and can also result in victim-blaming and people not believing a woman when she tells someone she has been raped, abused, etc.

"Domestic Violence - Because sometimes you have to tell her more than once."

Well, isn't this a charming little "joke"? The fact that someone would even joke about this topic deeply upsets me. The message here is essentially this: If a woman doesn't do/say/act as a man wants her to, he has the right to beat her until she does. Yeah, real funny.

"Every male teacher that day contemplated the consequences."

Oh, of course! Men are such horny, dirty dogs that they can't keep their dick in their pants, especially not around hot 16 year old school girls [sarcasm intended]. If I were a man, I'd be offended. And another thing... what a woman or girl wears is not an indication of her sexual availability.

"Woman's Sports - A lot more interesting when hot Brazilian chicks play."
(PS - nice typo, assholes. It's "women's" not "woman's")

This is actually a serious issue in women's sports. The less they wear and more beautiful they are, the more media coverage they receive. Athletic women must appear both feminine and beautiful to be noticed at all, and anyone who doesn't is labeled a dyke. A female athlete's physical abilities are rarely applauded, she is usually only well-known and celebrated if she is also beautiful.

Just kidding, there's no candy.

Because luring and kidnapping young girls is so hilarious. The violent undertone in this "joke" is deeply disturbing.

Tonight's Show: The Exploitation of Women in Hip Hop Culture

Tune in tonight to hear a discussion about misogyny in rap music. In particular, we will look at how black women are sexually exploited in rap music videos.

A video that we will discuss in detail is Nelly's "Tip Drill" - one of the most perverse rap videos that has been produced. Some of the most offensive scenes involve Nelly swiping a credit card through a woman's ass, throwing money at women's asses, and explicit woman-on-woman sex scenes. I don't want to promote this video, but if you'd like to watch it, you can view it on You Tube. Viewer discretion is advised!

Here are some links to some interesting articles we found related to misogyny in hip hop culture:

• The Exploitation of Women in Hip Hop Culture
• Hip Hop's Betrayal of Black Women
• A Black Man's Perspective on Nelly's Tip Drill Video
• Misogyny in Music: Have Videos Gone Wild?
  

Please join us tonight from 8:30 to 9:00pm (MST) on CJSW 90.9 fm, or online at cjsw.com. Our show will also be available to download incase you miss it live!

Relationship Advice from Sexist Assholes

AskMen.com has an incredibly sexist and downright insulting article on their website. The article, Top 10 Subtle Ways to Tell Her She's Getting Fat, basically advises the partners of chubby women to humiliate them into losing weight.

Here's a sample of some of the stellar advice:

• Take her to places where she has to wear a swimsuit
• Leave "now" and "then" photos lying around
• Sabotage her chair
• Ask her to wear an old dress
• Buy her clothes that are too small
• Sign her up for yoga under the pretense of "stress relief"

Here's my own little bit of advice for men: Have an open and honest conversation with her about it, and provide her with positive support. Sure sounds a lot easier than sabotaging a chair or making her feel shitty about herself - which would likely have the opposite effect.

Playboy Magazine Promotes “Hate Fucking”

On June 1st Playboy Magazine published an article on its website entitled “10 Conservative Women we’d Love to Hate-Fuck.” For those who don’t know what “hate-fuck” means, here’s a quick translation: rape.

The article was written by Guy Cimbalo and contains repeated references to the authour’s desire to degrade and humiliate certain conservative women based solely on their political ideology. The article only remained on the website for a brief time before word got around via Twitter and the controversial article was removed.

Smart Girl Politics, a coalition of conservative women, has condemned the lewd and degrading article. “The language used in Mr. Cimbalo’s screed was misogyny, pure and simple,” stated Teri Christoph, Co-Founder of Smart Girl Politics. “The vile nature of the article indicates that the author, and apparently Playboy Magazine, advocates violence against women with whom they don’t agree. The true feminists of today will not tolerate this kind of hateful exploitation.”

As a “true feminist” I absolutely agree with Teri Christoph – we cannot tolerate hate towards any women, regardless of their religious or political beliefs, race, class, sexual orientation or anything else.

I’ve never been a fan of Playboy, but this one really seals the deal for me. Here’s a little tip for that jackass Guy Cimbalo: If you want to sleep with a beautiful woman, maybe try respecting her. Just a thought.

Jezebel has more info here.

A Thought Provoking Film about Misogyny and Pop Culture

A special thank-you to the almighty power(s) that inspired Dr. Thomas Keith to make this intriguing film. Dr. Keith, a California-based professor of philosophy, is the writer, director and producer behind "Generation M: Misogyny in Media & Culture". The film explores the roots of misogynistic attitudes in popular culture, ultimately unearthing the imposed expectations that societies have placed -and continue to place- on women. The film allows us to view these revelations from the unique perspective many of us rarely have the opportunity to experience : that of the informed and culturally aware male.

Keith breaks it down nice n' simple, looking first at the core of what misogyny is: hatred of women. He talks with writers, scholars, medical professionals and others about the many disturbing, synthetic and twisted ideals that misogyny breeds. Violence as power, sexual exploitation, and gender-based oppression caused by misogynistic behavior are just a few of the topics examined closely in Generation M.
One of the speakers in the film described the illusion of liberation through hyper-sexuality in women. Of the strange desire within women to nurture this illusion by obeying what mass media instructs, she says,

"It's a whole new opportunity for (us) to participate in (our) own exploitation".

I can't agree more, as sad and as devastatingly truthful as it may be.

I love that this film has the ability to speak comfortably to men about the social and psychological dangers of misogyny. The film isn't completely revolutionary as an examination of feminist values; much of the subject matter could be considered common knowledge. The approach, however, is gentle enough that almost anyone can relate to it whether the issues are new or not. So it is revolutionary in its ability to address both men and women... straight and queer... from the often undervalued male standpoint. Props to Dr. Thomas Keith for standing in the face of what so many others prefer to turn their backs to.

For information on how to obtain a hard copy of this film (and plenty of others) for public screening or personal use, visit Media Education Foundation's website; it features a plethora of engaging documentary films like this one.

The link to the Generation M page (which includes the trailer as well as a preview version of the film) can be accessed from above.