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Monday, July 23, 2007

Picking a Feminist Battle

Dear Kathy,

I am not sure if you remember me, but I used to be a campus organizer for FMF.  I just read Ms. Givhan's piece and I think that you may be mistaken in seeing it as outrageous.  I enjoy Ms. Givhan's weekly fashion pieces and think it reflects a tension that most young women face in defining their feminism today. 


I would like to call your attention to the final paragraph of Ms. Givhan's piece. She salutes and celebrates Ms. Clinton's confidence and assertiveness, in both her politics and her fashion.  Why is this outrageous? Sure, maybe the Post will never publish an article on how big Edwards' muscles are or how Obama's butt looks in tight jeans - but Ms. Givhan is making a statement about Ms. Clinton's femininity and her feminism.  In a time when we want to support more press about women, this isn't the type of outrageous press we should be condemning.

Again, I think Ms. Givhan speaks to me.  She speaks about Ms. Clinton in complimentary ways and honestly, she is drawing attention to the history of oppression women have faced when they weren't allowed to express themselves through fashion or alternatively, when they were judged for fashion in a negative way.   Her article wasn't about turning Ms. Clinton into a sex symbol or sexualizing her  image, but about noticing and affirming Ms. Clinton's bold statements and framing the debate in a POSITIVE way before the antis can claim it in the most literal, unintelligent, backwards sense. 

Please, let's choose our battles carefully and make a conscious effort to support all women together.

With respect,
Stacita

 

 

The Post's recent article analyzing Clinton's cleavage is a new low!

Read Post article

Dear Stacey,

Mainstream media coverage of women politicians has hit a new, unbelievable low. On Friday, the Washington Post ran a prominent article analyzing Senator Hillary Clinton's cleavage.

Let the Post know that this kind of demeaning coverage will not be tolerated. Senator Clinton is a distinguished member of the Senate and quite possibly the next president of the United States. Instead of writing about her strategy to end the war in Iraq or her plans to reform the health care system in this country, the Post devoted a feature story to analyzing her breasts.

Let's stop this ridiculous coverage now, in the early stages of the campaign, and demand that Senator Clinton is treated with the same dignity and respect as her male competitors.

In her article in the Style section of the Post, staff writer Robin Givhan calls Clinton's décolletage "a provocation" and declares that "showing cleavage is a request to be engaged in a particular way." Never does she consider that Clinton's minimally revealing neckline might have been the result of the 90 degree Washington, D.C. heat.

Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. The media has rabidly attacked Sen. Clinton for years for her appearance. For example, in his April 26 coverage of the first Democratic presidential debate, MSNBC host Chris Matthews commented repeatedly on Clinton's jewelry and outfit, saying he believed viewers "like the fact that Hillary was demure, lady-like in appearance." In early June, speculation on whether or not Hillary had gotten botox injections rippled through prominent newspapers and television programs.

Women politicians' clothes, hairdos, weight, and other physical characteristics have been the obsessive focus of journalists ever since women first began holding public office in this country. We've had it!

Let the Washington Post know that sexist coverage of Hillary Clinton or any women politician is unacceptable.

For Equality,

Kathy Spillar
Katherine Spillar
Executive Editor

 



 

Friday, July 20, 2007

Jesus. One Year Ago

What a year will do.  Today, a year ago, I was on the verge of puking, crying, and running four miles a day. The bar was in the coming week and I was sort of ready but petrified.  I passed, and it's all good.

I also just saw a PJ show and Fucker for the first time. Weird. 

This weekend, I'm about to go to a wedding with my suitor.  I will look fabulous and have a great time, dance, drink and be merry.  Don't worry - I don't have marriage on the brain yet. But my wedding will be fucking fantastic.

It's amazing where a year will lead you. Or take you.

Good luck Class of 2007.  Work that shit.

Sunday, July 01, 2007

Organizing Extraordinare

I saw my friend Seems for a 90-minute catch-up this weekend. We met over a keg the first semester of 1L talking about how cool Jersey and organizing was.  She rocks my world.

Anyway, she is helping to organize the HELL out of the South Asian community for her friend Vinay who was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia and is in need of a bone marrow transplant.  His odds are not good because a South Asian diagnosed with leukemia has a 1 in 20,000 chance of finding a bone marrow donor match.  So Seems does what she does best and is organizing nationwide drives to help him find a match.

Organizers help people move when they feel a connection. Those moments are few and far in between because it's not often that we care or care enough to think that we can cause change. Change can be so small... merely registering 20,000 to swab their mouth and try to build a greater database of donor matches. Five seconds of their life to change another's.

If you can help, move it. 

Hey There

So much has happened this past week:

  • Cheney insists he's above the law
  • We're still at war
  • Gavin Newsome is unopposed for mayor of SF and my street has major potholes and human feces
  • South Lake Tahoe experienced awful fires
  • Ann Coulter and Elizabeth Edwards had a throw-down and Coulter ate shit
  • And yes, Paris Hilton is free.

And yet, all I could motivate to link to was THIS AWESOMENESS. Because it's really funny and random and makes me want to learn guitar to make my own versions. 

I promise to go deeper. 

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