Sheryl Underwood: Crass, raunchy, confident and hilarious

While doing research about female comedians for an interview I recently did, I discovered the bawdy and hilarious Sheryl Underwood. I wouldn't classify her comedy as feminist, but her confidence and balls-out attitude are definitely inspirational to me. She even serves up some decent relationship advice along with a healthy dose of profanities and laughs.

If you love funny, crass ladies with attitude and smarts I seriously recommend you clear your calendar for 10 minutes and watch this video.

A funny, kinda feminist commercial involving mom jeans

I can't believe I just saw a commercial that manages to authentically promote body acceptance and the concept that regular women can be smokin' hot sexy mammas. It's also decently funny too.

Kudos to Real California Milk for making a commercial that celebrates a woman's "bunt cake"!

Seriously funny ladies make "Shit Guys Say" videos

By now most people have heard about Shit Girls Say - a couple of dudes who tweet and make videos about about... erm, shit girls say. The videos have gone viral for a reason - they're funny. The creators do a good job of poking fun at women without offending them.

Well, hot on the tails of Shit Girls Say is a whole slew of other Shit People Say videos. I watched a few made by women about the shit guys say, and I laughed my ass off. These ladies are seriously funny - check 'em out.  

Shit Guys Say
Canadian ladies Tori Lord and Chanelle Ramsubick mock dudes pretty accurately in this video. Keep your eyes out for the Edmonton Oilers jersey - a nice little Canadian touch.




Shit Black Guys Say
Comedians Robin Thede and Inda Craig-Galván amused me greatly with their popular sayings of black guys.

Ever Wonder Where Movie Titles Come From?

Well ... most derive straight from the movie itself. The below video proves this theory by speedily glimpsing at scenes from 80 different flicks as the characters reveal them.

The Photoshop Effect

Do you know the extent to which photos in magazines are retouched? This video demonstrates how images are retouched and asks if our obsession with Photoshopped images is creating unattainable beauty standards for women.

"Talk American" with HP7 Stars

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

Okay, so maybe we're on a bit of a Harry Potter kick after checking out the film last night, but this was too funny and adorable to not share (especially the always charming Tom Felton, a.k.a. Draco Malfoy).

Check out the stars of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows have a go at talking "American" with MTV's Josh Horowitz. High-larious!

Hot Jam: The Big Bang

Hotties Miley Cyrus and Kevin Zegers star in this steamy new music video from Rock Mafia. While the vid is pretty stinkin' awesome, the song is better! Check it out above.

Download the track through iTunes HERE

Bow Down, Big Sister

The above-referenced YouTube video was created by MSU student Brianna Gardner in response to a U-M fan's "Bow Down Little Brother" (which had been created before the Spartans, for the third year in a row, beat the Wolverines). Since its posting, Gardner's vid has already received tons of views on the viral video network, and we can definitely see why. Check it out below.

Tonight's Show: Tribute to Jasmine Valentina and interview with feminist film maker

Tonight we pay tribute to feminist, artist, and all-around awesome lady, Jasmine Valentina. Jasmine was tragically killed in Brooklyn, NY a few weeks ago, and Calgary's arts and feminist communities have been mourning ever since. Tonight we look back on an interview we did with Jasmine last year, play some music from her fave bands, and remember how rad she was.

We will also interview local feminist film maker, Cara Mumford, about a screening of her film, December 6. Cara's film is described on her website:

December 6 is a short poetry dance film set to a spoken word
commentary by Evalyn Parry about societal and media responses to violence against women, with the 20th anniversary of the Montreal Massacre as the central focus. The film includes performances from 14 female dancers, showcasing a variety of world dance traditions, symbolizing that violence against women can happen to any woman, anywhere.

Film screening in Calgary
Sunday, October 3
Temple B'Nai Tikvah
900 47th Avenue SW
1:00 p.m.

Gloria Steinem on The Colbert Report

Check out this 5 min video of Gloria Steinem on The Colbert Report.



Gloria schools Colbert on the actual goal of the feminist movement (FYI, it's simple ... "equality." As Gloria jokes, "I know it sounds radical, but that was it!"). She also discusses how women are paid 25% less then men, and that men who take on household and child-rearing responsibilities have better marriages, live longer and have better sex. Hell yeah!

Films About Black Women: "A Girl Like Me" and "Say My Name"

"Stop that, you're starting to look African"... A young black woman in Kiri Davis' short documentary A Girl Like Me shares the statement her mother made when she began wearing her hair au naturale instead of perming it, relaxing it or adding extensions. In the film, Kiri speaks with young black women and girls about the dilemmas presented to them through notions of beauty and acceptance in black America. Having kinkier hair or a darker skin tone than others has been the basis of self deprecation among black women for ages; the subjects in A Girl Like Me share their first hand experiences with these things. Many black girls are taught from a young age that being light-skinned and having long, fine hair equates with being pretty. This myth has advocated the use of things like skin bleaching creams and relaxing kits (both tend to contain extremely harmful ingredients) while amplifying self-esteem issues among those with dark skin tones or kinky hair.

At one point in the film, an experiment is conducted asking young black children to choose the better between a white doll and a black doll. The results are alarming and by the end of it, had me caught in a moment of deep questioning. The film confronts stereotypes about black women and asks why it has become acceptable to be shameful or over-critical of something as simple as appearance. A Girl Like Me has been featured on television network, HBO and was recipient of the Diversity Award at the 6th annual Media That Matters Film Festival. Check out the film's profile on their site, watch it (below), and be sure to pass it along!

Another noteworthy film to watch out for is Say My Name by Nirit Peled. The film is a showcase on female hip hop artists and it delves deep into the female presence within hip hop culture. While featuring commentary from veterans like MC Lyte, Rah Digga , Jean Grae and Erykah Badu, the film is in no way shy of also spotlighting a number of up-and-comers. These women share their thoughts on both collective and individual responsibilities of female rap artists and lyricists to change the status quo by defying expectations and challenging the extremely male-dominated rap music industry with nothing but sheer talent and enviable street smarts. Watch the trailer and check out the film's profile on Women Make Movies' website for information on screenings and on how to obtain a copy.

A Girl Like Me - Kiri Davis (full)




Say My Name - Nirit Peled (trailer)

Monday's Show - Interviewing Métis Filmmaker Cara Mumford

Please join me on Monday night for a an interview that I am very excited about! I'll be chatting with Métis filmmaker Cara Mumford about her new "short poetry dance film" entitled Echoes.

Echoes was inspired by Cara's response to the events of September 11, 2001. The film incorporates dance, music, Super 8 film, still photography, manipulated found video and animation. It's screening at the imagineNATIVE Film & MEdia Arts Festival in Toronto on October 15, 2009. You can read more about Echoes here: http://echoes-film.blogspot.com/

Cara is now working on a new film, December 6, which commemorates the 20th anniversary of the Montreal Massacre.

To hear this interview, tune in to CJSW 90.9 fm from 8:30 to 9:00 pm on Monday Oct 5. If you miss the live show, download the podcast, which will be available on Wednesday Oct 7.

A Very Powerful, Short Doc: Carissa

I don't even know where to begin with this. I'm often curious to see how far these kinds of documentaries will go in terms of getting to the deep and unpleasantly dark core of reality, but this one has done it. This is the story of Carissa, a former youth sex-trade worker who eventually went on to graduate from UCLA and become a spokesperson for Virgin Mobile's Regeneration Campaign for the awareness of youth homelessness.

I won't speak too much about the video; my summary of it would quite simply do nothing but tarnish its beauty. So, please just take a moment to watch it and share it with any and every one whom you think may need to see it.

(Another great vid courtesy of Current)

"Daddy Boom" in Germany

Fathers Day is coming up very shortly and in honor of all the fantastic Dads out there, I thought I'd post this short video documentary I discovered over at Current last year. It's about the apparent Daddy Boom in Germany where more men than ever before are taking on the stay-at-home parent role while women become the primary breadwinners in what are otherwise traditional families. In the video (posted below), two men are asked to talk about their experiences as stay-at-home dads and how this phenomenon of at-home daddies will shape the future of Germans.

I think the Daddy Boom in Germany says a lot about culture and all of its variables; many of us are used to women almost automatically being assigned the role of primary caregivers. Seeing men in this role is always a nice reminder to all of us - whether we're already comfortable with the idea or not - that men are capable of taking on this role and are likely to do it well with the right kind of social support.

Lila Rose vs. Planned Parenthood

Now, here's some tricky shit:

Lila Rose (UCLA student and president of pro-life action group Live Action) , has been receiving tons of media clamor following her series of undercover investigations into the apparent corruption within the Planned Parenthood organization. For those who don't know, PP is a publically funded American reproductive health and abortion services provider.

Last year, Lila Rose posed as a 14 year old trying to obtain a waiver from a judge which would give the 'girl' permission to carry out an abortion. Claiming that she had a 31 year old boyfriend, Rose (posing as the 14 year old) was advised by a Planned Parenthood employee to tell the court that her boyfriend was, "17 years old, whatever..." so as not to get the alleged boyfriend into any trouble. Her debate is that Planned Parenthood is operating under poor ethics and defying compliance with the law, therefore, endangering young girls in search of abortion services. The hidden-camera footage we see is out of context and, thus, likely missing some important content. We, the viewers, do not know what is said by either party before or after the clip. The employee could have retracted her suggestion some time after the camera stopped rolling. She may also have known facts about the girls said situation before making the suggestion to obscure the boyfriend's age.


I have not yet been able to figure out exactly what Lila's beef is. Her Live Action organization's project called the Mona Lisa Project accuses Planned Parenthood of contributing to the abuse of young girls by rushing them into abortions under any circumstances and often thrusting them back into the volatile and abusive environments from which they came seeking help. Not once does Lila or Live Action use its investigation to prove that being pro-choice is dangerous in itself. Are Lila Rose's motives political? Self-interested? The stories don't cut to the chase in terms of convincing me that abortion itself is criminal. The videos on the Live Action website tell very little of pro-life values and spend more time attacking corruption within this particular organization, making it difficult to determine where the catch is.

I may be playing the devil's advocate by pointing out that, in the video of Lila's encounter with the Planned Parenthood employee in Memphis, the employee does retract to say that [she] doesn't know whether the girl's boyfriend would get in trouble if the girl were or were not to tell the courts his "true" age. After all, I doubt that she is legally bound to tell the young girl what may possibly happen if the boyfriend's age were concealed. Although unsettling, it's possible the employee [her]self did not know what repercussions would ensue if the girl chose to take her advice. I would imagine that if it were eventually uncovered that the advice given to the "young girl" was to lie about her boyfriend's age, it would be somewhat difficult to criminally prosecute and subsequently charge Planned Parenthood for any illegal activity.

Who knows, maybe the employee did alert authorities once the girl left. Maybe the employee was poorly trained or not properly equipped with information on how to handle such a report. On the other hand, I imagine that without detailed information about this boyfriend, it would be a complex case to report anyway.

As discussed on the most recent episode of Yeah, What She Said, it's worrisome to think that people can be so devoted to bringing down organizations that deal with social issues most others prefer to avoid.

I must admit, I don't understand why the PP employee would encourage the girl to lie unless she was personally determined to see the girl wind up back in a relationship that was potentially unsafe; I won't deny that the video is disturbing in that sense. Live Action's reports on the Mona Lisa Project leave me questioning whether these reports are factual and if any crucial details have been omitted and, if these reports are legit, is PP as an organization behaving this way strictly out of carelessness? Seriously? The fact that Live Action will pursue their efforts to 'expose' corruptness in abortion service centers like Planned Parenthood bothers me. Is it abortion they are fighting against or is it crime? And is The Mona Lisa Project merely attempting to affect the generalized notion that abortion is crime? If so, it's a cheap tactic and it's unfortunate that Lila Rose and Live Action don't think the majority of us will be able see through it.

Among other notoriously right wing networks, Lila appears on Fox TV's Glenn Beck program (where Glenn ends up referring to her as "Twila"), for crying out loud...

Thoughts, please.

Watch more Glenn Beck videos on AOL Video

*Be sure to check out the Association for Women's Rights In Development's article for more on this.

This is What A Feminist Looks Like

Here is a great little video produced by the Feminist Majority Foundation. I love that there are men in this video proudly saying they are feminists!



However, one really sad thing is that the comments on YouTube for this video are extremely discouraging. Scanning through them I've seen all kinds of stereotypes and hateful words about feminism, including "Feminism = total bitch that wants to walk over men," "They're all lonely dykes," and "They're not about equality. They're a supremacist group no different from the KKK."

Sometimes I feel like I live in a bubble because the people around me are intelligent, thoughtful and caring. Then I read comments like that on YouTube and lose complete faith in humanity. Does this happen to anyone else?

Tonight's Show - V-Day

Tonight's show is a bit of a mixed bag. We're discussing both Valentine's day and V-day - both of which are celebrated on February 14th.

Here are some links and information about the things we're discussing tonight:

Valentine's Day
The history of valentines day is pretty interesting - it kind of makes me respect the holiday a little bit more. To watch a brief video about the history, check out History.com.

V-Day
V-day is a global movement to end violence against women and girls. This year V-day organizers are focusing on the issue of rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Another great international initiative for ending violence against women is Amnesty's International's Stop Violence Against Women campaign.

Violence Against Women
In light of V-day, we're talking about some recent incidents of violence against women that have been in the media.

• Obviously, the incident between Chris Brown and Rihanna has been all over the blog-o-sphere, and we'll be discussing that tonight.
• We'll also be talking about a very cool movement in India - A Consortium of Pub-going, Loose and Forward Women. Check out the Facebook group and Fan Page.

Domestic Violence in Nunavut
Finally, we will be discussing the very serious issue of violence against women in northern Canada. Nunavut territory has a violent crime rate 8x greater than the rest of Canada, and 90% of the victims are women.

Iqaluit singer Lucie Idlout wrote a song called "Lovely Irene" in honour of her friend who suffered domestic abuse. When the acoustic version of the song (which is titled Angel Street) was discovered by the mayor of Iqaluit, Elisapee Sheutiapik, she started a campaign to have each capital city in Canada use the name "Angel" in a street name as a way of paying tribute to victims of domestic violence.

Below is a video about the only women's shelter in Iqaluit. The video features the acoustic version of Lucie Idlout's song Angel Street.

Remember to tune in tonight at 8:30 pm on CJSW 90.9 fm or stream it live from CJSW.com.

Black Woman Walking

This video appears to be gaining Viral status as it proudly makes its way from page to page all over the internet. Posted on HollaBack TALK, the companion blog for HollaBackNYC a few months ago, it's still making its rounds quite effectively!

Credits to filmmaker Tracey Rose.

Ladies: Check Yo Thang!!!

Check out the video below from Current.com and then CHECK YO JUNK! This vid is full of some totally alarming stats about sexual health for both women and men. It also talks about a number of alarming realities regarding STI's for women in particular.

You may or may not know a few things about what's being discussed here; if you do already, it's extremely important to remember. If you don't, it's equally important for you to get familiar with! It always amazes me to hear what people do and --frighteningly-- do NOT know about their sexual health. Do you know what HPV stands for???

Some great ways to obtain information on sexual and reproductive health here in Calgary can be found via the Calgary Sexual Health Centre or Alberta Health Services' Sexual & Reproductive Health Program to name but a few.

Stay educated and remember to keep it all in check!