Posts tagged sexism
“ And this at a time when, I’d argue, we need the levelling power of the dancefloor more than ever. The fact is, we currently live in a society which is far more divided along lines of gender, sexuality, race, wealth and class than most people are willing to admit. We have the whitest, richest, most male-dominated cabinet we’ve had in years. And some large-scale sleight of hand gives comedians license to openly mock weaker members of society from behind a peeling veneer of irony. Somehow, the assumption that prejudice no longer exists, that we live in a near-mythically egalitarian society, has let that very prejudice sneak in through the back door - aided by the comfortable anonymity of online debate.”
Absolutely worth reading (and not just for fans of dance music).
“ Gavin de Becker is an author who has written several books about the nature of fear. In his book The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us From Violence, he noted that the outcome a woman feared most from any romantic encounter was rape and death. I know it must be really hard on you, kiddo. You’re going to go through life fearing that, in a worst-case scenario, you could be sexually assaulted and murdered by a member of the opposite sex. Sure, it’s likely that something that terrible will never come to pass (god forbid! I feel sick even talking about it!), but there are no guarantees. In fact, some men (and presumably some women writing for Gizmodo Australia) will tell you to avoid drinking too much or wearing sexy clothes in order to spare yourself such a dark outcome. Imagine that! Hinting that it’d be your fault. It’s tough being a girl, huh? Now, pumpkin, pretend you’re a man. What’s your greatest fear in a romantic situation? Give up? More than anything, we fear being laughed at and made to feel humiliated by the opposite sex.”
To My Someday Daughter, by Geordie Tait - a Magic: the Gathering Miscellaneous Article
Every single word of this long article is worth reading. And when you’re done with that, take a look at this shorter article for confirmation.
“ From Madalyn Murray O’Hair, the founder of American Atheists, whose 1963 Supreme Court lawsuit brought an end to prayer in public schools, to Sergeant Kathleen Johnson, who started an organization for atheists in the United States military, to Debbie Goddard, founder of African Americans for Humanism, countless women have worked as successful atheist activists. They’ve penned books, run organizations, and advocated on behalf of religiously repressed citizens. But you might not guess that from the popular portrayal and perception of atheism in America, which overwhelmingly treats the contemporary class of non-God-fearing freethinkers (also known as secularists, skeptics, and nonbelievers) as a contentious, showboating boys’ club.”
Essential reading, especially for male atheists.
tegan and sara: A call for change
When will misogynistic and homophobic ranting and raving result in meaningful repercussions in the entertainment industry? When will they be treated with the same seriousness as racist and anti-Semitic offenses? While an artist who can barely get a sentence fragment out without using homophobic…
I’d never even heard of this Tyler dude before this, but amen to Tegan and Sara for calling him out.
“ People in the skeptical and atheist movements often ask, “Where are all the women?” We’re here, but we’re still a minority. The next question someone will ask is, “How can we get more women to feel welcome?” Greta Christina hit the nail on the head during her talk at the Secular Student Alliance conference: Defend us.”
Blag Hag: Want more skeptical atheist women? Defend us
Worth reading in its entirety.
Equality Myth: Washington Post Ombudsman on Gender Bias: 'We're Losing a Critically Important Readership Group--Women'
In Sunday’s Washington Post, ombudsman Andrew Alexander takes on the ongoing criticism of his newspaper for sexism—most recently, for its cutting review of the new PBS public affairs program, “Need to Know,” in which author Tom Shales declares that cohost Alison Stewart, an…
Good article on sexism in the news media.
“ Sexist pet peeve: the persistent myth that women are all privately obsessed with producing tiny widdle babies. Working to debunk that assumption is a recent National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy study [PDF] which surveyed thousands of young Americans, aged 18 to 29, about their thoughts and perceptions about pregnancy. Guess which group is more likely to be “pleased” at an unplanned pregnancy? It’s not the one with the silently weeping ovaries.”
