Off The Shelf Redress

big fat feminist: On self-esteem and the struggle, or why I'm not into that Dove ad.

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 09:53:39 -0400

big fat feminist: On self-esteem and the struggle, or why I'm not into that Dove ad.:

By now it’s entirely likely you’ve seen it: Dove put out an ad where a bunch of women sit down and describe themselves to a forensic artist. Then, a stranger they just met describes them to a forensic artist. Surprise! They’re not as ugly as they think they are!

Look, here’s some real talk: I…

"A List of “Men’s Rights” Issues That Feminism Is Already Working On Feminists do not want you to..."

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 23:57:58 -0400

“

A List of “Men’s Rights” Issues That Feminism Is Already Working On

Feminists do not want you to lose custody of your children. The assumption that women are naturally better caregivers is part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not like commercials in which bumbling dads mess up the laundry and competent wives have to bustle in and fix it. The assumption that women are naturally better housekeepers is part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not want you to have to make alimony payments. Alimony is set up to combat the fact that women have been historically expected to prioritize domestic duties over professional goals, thus minimizing their earning potential if their “traditional” marriages end. The assumption that wives should make babies instead of money is part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not want anyone to get raped in prison. Permissiveness and jokes about prison rape are part of rape culture, which is part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not want anyone to be falsely accused of rape. False rape accusations discredit rape victims, which reinforces rape culture, which is part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not want you to be lonely and we do not hate “nice guys.” The idea that certain people are inherently more valuable than other people because of superficial physical attributes is part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not want you to have to pay for dinner. We want the opportunity to achieve financial success on par with men in any field we choose (and are qualified for), and the fact that we currently don’t is part of patriarchy. The idea that men should coddle and provide for women, and/or purchase their affections in romantic contexts, is condescending and damaging and part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not want you to be maimed or killed in industrial accidents, or toil in coal mines while we do cushy secretarial work and various yarn-themed activities. The fact that women have long been shut out of dangerous industrial jobs (by men, by the way) is part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not want you to commit suicide. Any pressures and expectations that lower the quality of life of either gender are part of patriarchy. The fact that depression is characterized as an effeminate weakness, making men less likely to seek treatment, is part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not want you to be viewed with suspicion when you take your child to the park (men frequently insist that this is a serious issue, so I will take them at their word). The assumption that men are insatiable sexual animals, combined with the idea that it’s unnatural for men to care for children, is part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not want you to be drafted and then die in a war while we stay home and iron stuff. The idea that women are too weak to fight or too delicate to function in a military setting is part of patriarchy.

Feminists do not want women to escape prosecution on legitimate domestic violence charges, nor do we want men to be ridiculed for being raped or abused. The idea that women are naturally gentle and compliant and that victimhood is inherently feminine is part of patriarchy.

Feminists hate patriarchy. We do not hate you.

If you really care about those issues as passionately as you say you do, you should be thanking feminists, because feminism is a social movement actively dedicated to dismantling every single one of them. The fact that you blame feminists—your allies—for problems against which they have been struggling for decades suggests that supporting men isn’t nearly as important to you as resenting women. We care about your problems a lot. Could you try caring about ours?

”

sarah-endepity: joncozart: NEW VIDEO! Have you ever wondered...

Wed, 20 Mar 2013 21:52:57 -0400

sarah-endepity:

joncozart:

NEW VIDEO! Have you ever wondered what happened to the DISNEY princesses after their happily-ever-afters? WELL HERE IT IS!

Disney and Social Justice issues… this is my favourite thing ever!

thegestianpoet: how ally culture currently works vs how ally...

Wed, 20 Mar 2013 21:48:11 -0400

thegestianpoet:

how ally culture currently works vs how ally culture should work

babylonfalling: Malcolm X addresses a street rally in Harlem

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 10:37:52 -0400

babylonfalling:

Malcolm X addresses a street rally in Harlem

More About Justice and Less About Revenge: On Reading the Steubenville Coverage Too Early in the Goddamn Day

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 10:35:14 -0400

More About Justice and Less About Revenge: On Reading the Steubenville Coverage Too Early in the Goddamn Day

Workshop Recap from Wednesday March 6th

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 22:19:00 -0400

When I came back from New York, I felt like I had been away for a month since I packed so much into my trip. When I came back to Toronto, I had to hit the ground running and it already feels like a month has passed. So much can happen in two weeks!

I went to this workshop over a week ago.

It was titled, “Innovative Practices to Combat Cultural Norms that encourage VAW”

This workshop was hosted by a group of Chechen women who all work in NGOs like shelters and community centers that focus on empowering women.

This group of Muslim women was lively and vivacious. While the civil wars may have taken a toll on their personal lives, it clearly had not broken their spirits.

They started by sharing what the reality is for women in their country:

1. Polygamy, early marriage and honor killings are some of the greatest issues affecting women

2. 13 women in one woman’s village (population 300) in the last 5 years have been murdered via an honour killing

3. The number of honor killings and gender selective abortion (femmecide, gendercide) has been on an increase

4. Old Islamic traditions are returning such as stoning, female genital mutilation (though- these are not practices that actually are condoned in the Quran)

5. Infertile/barren women are divorced or forced into childcare for their husband’s new wives’ children

6. The mother-in-law is one of the main perpetrators of violence against women. As the husband is at work during the day, the wife often becomes the personal servant of the mother-in-law who carries out old traditions and bars her daughter-in-law from going to school or work.

As in all countries, poverty or not having access to proper resources is the main obstacle for leaving domestically abusive relationships. As in many countries, the constitution protects the rights of women but it is not enforced. As in many countries, women are afraid to appeal to the law because they are either not believed, blamed for the violence committed against themselves or the perpetrator is given impunity.

There are terrible things that happen in Chechnya that aren’t so different from things that happen here in Canada.

There are some things that are quite different.

When asked “Do widows have rights?”

One of the women answered - “The best case scenario is that she gets to leave with the clothes on her back”.

Unless she has a son. Of course.

They also showed a clip of youths dancing together at a co-ed party. The clip is only 20 seconds long, but in the midst of the bodies coming together and moving apart, a group of men run in, snatch a woman up, throw her over their shoulders and run out. They were taking her to be married, that night, against her will.

Surprise!

-_-

It gave me chills. I could not believe my eyes. It’s one thing to hear people talk about, and another to see it actually happen.

These Chechen women have a number of ways that they reach out to others. However - the most remarkable is their use of “Forum Theatre”, which they played out for all of us attending the panel.

They use skits and role playing with the attendees of their workshops to build confidence and educate women about how they can change their situations. Of course, this isn’t meant to put the onus on the woman to be responsible for the crimes committed against her - but it is meant to empower her to at least be able to say “No” and to know what her rights are.

The example they used was a panelist who played the mother-in-law and another panelist who played a young woman.

The young woman was trying to leave home to go to work and what the woman said is loosely translated to

“Where do you think you are going? To work?! You can’t got to work. You will bring shame on the family. It is your duty to stay here and take care of me. You need to care for your children, cook food and do the laundry. And take that scarf off! You are a married woman! It is far too bright. What’re you trying to do, be a slut? And look at this jewelry…”

The young woman tried to resist, but the mother-in-law tore off her head scarf and jewelry. The young woman then submitted to her mother-in-law and went inside.

They then invited women from the audience to try and change the scene - but they were only allowed to take the place of the young woman.

The first woman tried, and got very flustered even though she had approached with a lot of confidence. She failed to change the mother’s mind.

The second woman said “Mother, you know I love you. And I will always be here to take care of you. Just because I go to work does not mean you will be forgotten. In fact, because I have an education and can work, it means we can both have a better life. By adding to your son’s income, we can have more than just bread on the table. I am a human being, and I have rights. I need to go to work not just for myself, but for you too.”

They hugged, and the mother let her go off.

Now - this is an ideal situation. Not the reality of most. But through education, we can see incremental changes that can end up being quite monumental. Changing cultural norms takes a long time, but things like this give women courage.

When the two women embraced - they cried. They stayed together for what seemed like a long time for two strangers.

The room was buzzing with energy and hope. They did not even speak the same language but shared something incredible. Hope.

Day Three: The Danish Government and Social Control as VAW

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 21:52:00 -0500

Danish Government Side Event: “Social Control as a means of violence against women”

I was so excited to attend this event because a) it was the one side event I got to this week* b) Scandinavian countries have some excellent best practices when it comes to carrying through their gender equality legislation and c) Michael Kaufman was speaking.

Social control and violence against women. Something frequently talked about in the context of developing countries, but not here (North America). I was very interested in this because it’s most relevant to my own lived experiences, but also because of technology and general cultural differences, violence manifests itself in different ways.

*This is Michael. He doesn’t always look so intense.*

The first to speak was Manu Sareen - the Danish Minister for Gender Equality and Ecclesiastical Affairs.

It was very clear that he was not just fulfilling the requirements of his job- but that he understood the reality of violence against women, and was passionate about his ministry’s work to end it.

Sareen presented statistical information about VAW in Denmark:

- Many women do not know that they can say no (to dating violence specifically)

i.e. “That even a soft slap is not okay”

- 97% of boys aged 12-14 in Denmark have watched porn. Not that watching porn specifically is the problem, but that they are too young to critically interpret what they are watching. When young boys think what they see in pornography is what their future partners should be comfortable doing, it can lead to violence when women do not give consent to those activities.

- Girls and boys used to feel comfortable enough to shower together after gym class in the boys and the girls locker rooms. Now they do not. What changed?

Enter Lynn Featherstone. Lynn is a UK Minister in the department of International Development and is a violence against women champion.

She has started huge movements in the UK to promote healthy body image.

She gave us these stats -

- More than 6/10 girls are not comfortable with their bodies

- Over half of girls compare their bodies to celebrities’

Featherstone said that girls are putting themselves through an “unrelenting regime of self-improvement” and that “we should be furious at the waste of time and talent”.

It is a delicate balance between trying to be be the best version of ourselves, whatever that means to us, and not what other people say it should be, or what it should look like.

They’ve started a campaign in the UK called “This is Abuse” because many women and men do not know what constitutes as violence, and what is criminal.

“We need to take action not just on the symptoms of violence but the deep cultural roots that promote violence against women”

Enter, Dr. Michael Kaufman.

Michael is the co-founder of the White Ribbon Campaign and published author. I had the opportunity to help him out by doing a bit of research about all of the organizations across Canada that engage men in ending violence against women or involve men in their practice. The map I made is here.

If you’re interested, you can type in your postal code and see what organizations are close by.

Michael started off his talk by explaining that 1) 90% of our brains are formed after birth 2) our brains are sponges that soak up EVERYTHING. The physical, emotional, social reality around us.

Small things, for our wee little baby minds can have a profound impact. We’re socialized from a young age what is appropriate for our gender, and what is not. It’s what creates the “gender box” and why gender policing is a big part of society and one of the main influences of VAW.

I don’t want to share all the stories he told because well, they’re great stories and you should really just hear him speak. Plus I will feel like I’m stealing. But… I’ll share this one:

A woman he knows had her baby out on a walk. A man asked if he could hold the babe, and he did. The babe was dressed in a little paid shirt and overalls, lumberjack style. He tossed the baby up in the air and made some comments about him being a little bruiser. The mom said, well actually, she’s a girl. The man immediately stopped throwing the baby around and started to cradle her, cooing.

So, baby learns: girls are taken care of, they are delicate.

Conversely: boys are independent and are prepared for anything that is thrown at them. Literally.

Michael isn’t afraid of the F-Word (feminism). Actually he co-wrote this book “The Guys Guide to Feminism”

So this is what Michael ended his bit with:

“The {feminist} movement has made the world a much better place for women, but also a much better place for men …Violence is a compensatory mechanism to prove you are the man you think you should be… We need to start putting the “Men’s” back into the phrase, violence against women because without talking about where it’s coming from, we can’t work towards a solution.”

Yeah it’s a bit fragmented but - whaddya want! I’m not a personal stenographer. :D

Randi Iverson (don’t have her title/job/organization) then shared about a great campaign that educates youth about violence perpetrated though technology. It’s called “I don’t forward violence”.

Victim blaming has seeped into the area of violence through technology.

“Well she shouldn’t have taken that picture in the first place”

“She should just change her number!”

“Why doesn’t she just ignore him?”

It is not the victim’s responsibility to end the violence being inflicted on her.

This campaign is educating people about the devastating effects of bullying, harassment and exploitation through our new tools of communication.

All of the speakers points flowed really well together - which I really appreciated since some of the workshops I’ve attended have been really disorganized.

It was so great to hear about what initiatives were going well in other countries similar to Canada. I strongly suggest checking out the links I spread throughout this post to learn more. Lots of people are doing things that we’re not doing in Canada - we could take some notes!

Like - maybe re-open the Status of Women offices Harper closed, and get some male MPs active in this issue! Especially what with this Senator Brazeau business so out in the open…

Tomorrow I go home! But I will be blogging more about what I’ve been learning. This even took place on Tuesday, so I’ll have workshops from Wednesday and Thursday to catch you all up on :)

* During the CSW there are two kinds of events, side events sponsored by governments and parallel events run by NGOs. Usually these are all held on the UN grounds, but because of asbestos removal the space is limited - so only two representatives per NGO are allowed at the side events at one time. You’d think the asbestos removal would have happened long ago, and much faster seeing as well - ALL WORLD LEADERS GATHER THERE. Now you know - not only is the UN slow to protect the world, but slow to protect themselves too!

2nd Workshop Notes from Monday March 4th

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 10:11:00 -0500

I’m still catching up with my writing, so this is a recap of another workshop I went to on Monday - even though it is now Wednesday!

By far, this is the workshop where I have been exposed to new information. It was about Female Genital Mutilation. I took lots of notes and I hope you can learn something too! I took pictures but most somehow got deleted off of my phone.

*Trigger warning for information about clitoral excision*

Female Genital Mutilation

In countries where female genital mutilation is practiced, it is not just men who defend it, but women too.

They argue that it is religion and a cultural practice, so it should not be stopped. And in fact, they accuse those trying to stop it as violating their right to freedom of religion.

My thoughts throughout this whole presentation was that this is the same argument that many Western activists use, the “cultural relativist” idea that we are just reifying colonial power by enforcing our eurocentric values on African women. There is also a perspective that anti-FGM activists are only White. Both the cultural relativist and idea that anti-FGM advocacy is only White could not be more wrong.

Many of those who are in favour of FGM do not have access to the education they need to free themselves from the mindset that it is okay. The right to exit is a fundamental right humanity has. However, it does not count if the women do not have any knowledge of any other experience.

FGM is a patriarchal practice that in it’s basic form was rooted in Ancient Egypt and Greece. Even though women are pro-FGM and act as clitoral excisers themselves - this doesn’t mean FGM is not a patriarchal practice. People can and do participate in their own oppression.

Before FGM was made illegal, it was practices out in the open, with the whole village gathered around, dancing in celebration. This is both in Christian and Muslim villages.

The Nyatura people of Tanzania - one tribe of many in the country - practice ritual tooth extraction, clitoraldectomy and forehead burning as a rite of passage for their women.

In 1967 the TANU government banned FGM.

As it happens in other countries when they ban culturally practiced things, FGM moved underground. FGM was no longer publicly celebrated and made it harder to convict those performing it on women and girls.

To continue the practice of FGM, male chiefs and elders created the “Lawalawa” myth. They told parents that when their children have vaginal itching and infection it is “Lawalawa”, a curse from the ancestors because they have not yet excised the clitoris. This myth has no historical root in the Nyatura tribe. In fact, “Lawalawa” is a urinary tract infection or Thrush. But the Nyatura do not have access to medicine so FGM continues. The reason “Lawalawa” goes away after FGM is because the children are washed thoroughly washed and treated with herbal remedies. Generally, children are not bathed regularly and clean themselves with sand and dirt after defacation as opposed to with leaves which is the norm when they get older.

Not going through the transition of Ihongo means you are not a woman or suitable for marriage in the communities that practice FGM. So FGM has started to be practiced at a younger and younger age to make sure women will be married.

FGM is practiced at as young an age as 7 days old.

So - FGM is complicated. And it is a cycle.

But there is hope!

One of the panelists (didn’t get her name!) was the founder of the first African Women’s round table on FGM which happened in 1984 in Dakar, Senegal (I think that’s where). African women who had experienced FGM and those who had not came together to pressure the government and the UN to act.

In African countries, campaigns are being started, primarily supported by youth. Young men engaged to women who have not been excised wear pins that say “I am proudly marrying a woman who has not been excised” and women who have not been mutilated and are engaged to men wear complementing pins that say “I have not been excised and I am engaged”.

This is because there is still a social stigma and shame if you are not excised.

In Scandinavian countries, The Women’s Front (a radical feminist group) and a Nyatura women - Chiku Ali - started the program “Agents of Change” within immigrant communities. Through empowerment and story telling, women form honest, trusting relationships - and through this holistic approach, many women open up about their history with FGM and their conflicting feelings about continuing to practice clitoral excision in their new countries on their daughters.

Through education and self-realization, these women are finding their way - by way of their own accord - and not because people are handing out pamphlets and just telling them “FGM is wrong”.

Chiku also explained that really, the root cause of this is the patriarchal ignorance to the practical functions of ALL parts of the vagina. An example of this at a macro level is that even to this day, research funding for health issues relating only to women is substantially less than for men’s. Except breast cancer, but I’m sure you can connect the dots on that one. Women’s bodies have been made invisible by the lack of education and knowledge around them. Women’s bodies have been denied pleasure for centuries because patriarchy has “inceptioned” the idea that men deserve sexual pleasure and women do not, in fact it makes them dirty into our social consciousness. FGM is a practice that follows from that.

Only through reaching out to women and men with holistic and transformational education can we create real positive social change.

FGM can end.

1st Workshop Notes from Monday, March 4th

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 23:23:00 -0500

I’m trying to write blogs about a couple of the workshops I attend each day. I can’t possible write about all. The ones I’ve written are all far too long already!

I’ve collected data, quotes and my general thoughts here.

So, anyways if you want live updates on what’s happening and some great truth-bombs I’m tweeting check this:

Miranda on Twitter

* Trigger Warning for written graphic depictions of VAW *

Monday Workshop: Women Standing Up to VAW through Hope

Organized by the Women’s Federation for World Peace International

Trafficking in the USA

- Every 15 seconds a woman in the USA is experiencing domestic violence

- Every 8 hours a woman in Mexico is murdered in the context of domestic violence

- 80% of Canadian people trafficked are women and girls

“These statistics are the stats you expect from a country at war. That is why I say, there is a war against women.”

“We must disrupt the narrative that allows this to happen”

“We must put the ACT back in ACTivist”

“We need {religious, state} institutions to form protocols for reporting that are followed through on”

- Lisa Williams

VAW in Ethiopia

“Hope is the backbone of life, backbone of humanity… Hope is an ingredient for healing, dignity and self worth.”

“We are all sad. But what can we do?”

“A woman ostracized from her village because of fistula will make a nice meal for a hyena”

“The law is not in order”

- 90% of fistula is curable

- Abaynesh Asrat

Silencing of Self and Depression: The Story in Nepal

- women are subjected to acid burnings, witch craft torture, on top of rape

- Depression is the cause of 65-90% of suicides

- Major Depressive Disorder is the #1 health burden for women

The organization Justice for All offers legal representation for female victims of rape in Nepal. They are such an uncommon voice in Nepal’s justice system, that they actually get quite a bit of media attention for their work. So far, 7/10 rape cases have established rights of the victim, the perpetrator has been sent to jail and the survivor has been compensated. This is HUGE. This is good news.

But more importantly, the most recent case was an upper class man, so when he was not saved by impunity, it made an example for the entire country. Impunity is one of the biggest issues I have heard women full of passion and anger talk about, from all around the world.

”We need to feed women and girls the magnificent possibilities of their minds”

- Dana Jack

VAW in India

“Our country is in mourning over the mortal rape and assassination of the student on the bus in New Delhi… but let’s not talk about just 1 woman.”

“Indira Gandhi could not change the destiny of all Indian women. That’s why we need more female representatives at a grassroots level”

When interviewing those in jail convicted and accused of rape, and their families, Sreerupa Chaudhury found that the main link between all of them, as to why they did it, is because they themselves experienced physical violence at the hands of their parents and/or caregivers.

This is why educating people in healthy domestic relationships and in parenting is essential to breaking the cycle of violence.

There is a new problem in India however. Mobs from western countries - mainly those in Europe - are sending gangsters into India to train men to drug and kidnap women for organ trading. This is rapidly expanding across the country and is taking the place of sex work, as organ trading is far more financially lucrative.

Chaudury explains that the government in India is trying very hard. But the sheer size of the population makes it very difficult.

- Sreerupa Chaudhury

Day Two - Commission on the Status of Women

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 22:33:00 -0500

Today has been both heart breaking and joyful. I have cried tears of sorrow and simultaneous joy because of the stories and courage of the women I have heard from today.

Many people think events like this are back-patting exercises for the UN and NGOs. And that it’s only a very privileged (read: White, upper class, Western) few that attend. And that it just focuses on formal-political, pro-state ways to problem solve. While it does take access to substantial resources to get here, and there ARE many barriers, women have managed to make a pilgrimage here. Women from around the world, cash rich and and cash poor - but ALL are courage, love and hope ABUNDANT.

And it is self-criticizing.

It is not blindly pro-state. These women are real. They are bold. They are not afraid to publicly speak out against their governments, and even criticize the UN itself.

There seem to be two common threads between the workshops I have attended so far:

1) Violence against women is evolving. It is changing. The old ways are still there, but there are more forms of violence emerging:

a) to subvert the efforts to end violence against women

b) through the globalized accessibility of new tech

c) by way of growing and net worked organized crime

AND -

2) There are lots of excellent policies that many governments are putting in place - such as those ratified statements and recommendations put forth by the UN - but they are not being implemented. All of the dynamic aspects of 1 need to be incorporated into existing policy and studied to create new policy. All grassroots organizations need to be partnered with, and policy needs to reflect their lived experiences, on the front lines.

We are creating a network of shared knowledge. That’s the unselfish reason why I’m blogging. All of this information needs to be made available, to everyone. This is a microcosm of the world, but it is not the world.

The selfish reason I am blogging is because I need to download everything from my brain so I can get to sleep tonight.

Blog Update #1 - The UN Commission on the Status of Women

Sun, 03 Mar 2013 22:21:00 -0500

Hi Friends!

I’m in New York City this week for the 57th CSW. I’m so excited to be here! It’s an incredible opportunity to meet women from around the world to learn about the work they are doing. I’m also excited to meet lots of male allies and hear about what initiatives they’re involved in. I’m going to be attending around 5 workshops/round tables/panels a day. It’s going to be a lot to process, so I’ll be chronicling everything I’m learning by posting updates in the evenings.

*These are the women I went with - top left: Brenda Mann; top right: Linda Irwin and sitting: Torie Hogan

Day One!

I arrived early afternoon - easy quick 1hr flight from Billy Bishop Airport - and got settled at the Hilton at 42nd and 2nd. If you don’t know Manhattan well, that’s the middle east side. We’re just a 3 minute walk from the UN. Which is quite a sight, especially after the (mostly) dull architecture in Toronto.

We got our grounds passes, photos and everything. Had a bit of an issue trying to convince the officer behind the desk that I wasn’t deceiving him with my height, and that I was just wearing heels. He wouldn’t look but found me to be trustworthy enough. Must’ve been because he had my Canadian passport ;) Just kidding! Canadians can be such filthy liars!

We had dinner and went to Timothy Keller’s church - but he wasn’t speaking. A tad bit disappointing but that’s okay! It was nice just to relax in the calm before the storm. And by storm I mean fury of women’s knowledge and AWESOME.

Only 1000 delegates have registered today, so that means 5000 are coming tomorrow.

I need to get my act together!

Marriage and Millennials

Thu, 14 Feb 2013 10:01:00 -0500

Marriage and Millennials:

My husband and I were featured in this HuffPo article about young and marrieds. It’s about the who, what, why, when and where!

*Click title for the link*

Photos courtesy of our incredible photographer, Angie Choi at EyekahFoto

I know this is small but you can click “Hi Res” at...

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 11:11:00 -0500

I know this is small but you can click “Hi Res” at the bottom of the post to open it in a new page and zoom in! This is a facebook thread with a number of reactions to this article:

University of Windsor extra friendly to “sugar daddies”

which is about the website - Seeking Arrangement .

It’s controversial, no doubt. Which is why this wonderful and meaningful dialogue about it took place.

Facebook is often a place where dialogue is impossible - people get offended more easily because tone cannot be communicated. People also are empowered by the anonymity Facebook offers.

However, sometimes there are these little gems.

Photo

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 09:14:24 -0500

from rock-it-ship.tumblr.com

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 09:06:38 -0500

from rock-it-ship.tumblr.com

“Man Prayer” - by Eve Ensler One Billion Rising.

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 08:57:00 -0500

“Man Prayer” - by Eve Ensler

One Billion Rising.

Photo

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 11:43:06 -0500

"Blowing Minds" via HigherUnlearning and White Ribbon

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 10:25:30 -0500

"Blowing Minds" via HigherUnlearning and White Ribbon:

This is a guest blog written by Tuval Dinner, a staff member of the White Ribbon Campaign on one of my favourite blogs, HigherUnlearning. This is a story he shares of how simple exercises can completely change the way people perceive others, and can create a new, transformative experience of anti-oppression consciousness.

Please share!

emma .m. woolley: What it's like being a teen girl

Tue, 23 Oct 2012 10:46:47 -0400

emma .m. woolley: What it's like being a teen girl:

sodisarmingdarling:

The violations started small. I was 12, fairly tall with brand new boobs. My mother wouldn’t let me buy “real bras” for a long time. It didn’t occur to me that was weird until boys in my class started advising me to “stop wearing sports bras” because I was looking a little “saggy.”

It was a…