Work

How To Respect Sex Workers

by Monica Shores · September 2, 2010 · no comments

Most women have strong feelings about the sex industry, be they for, against, or undecided. When dealing with such an emotionally volatile topic, it’s easy to inadvertently silence or even insult sex workers themselves. (As a participant in sex worker activism for the past four years, I’ve seen that in action and on the page.) There’s a way to debate commercial sex while respecting the industry’s laborers. Here are some suggestions: 1) Don’t diminish or mock sex workers’ agency. When discussing ...Read More

Identities

Do Men Make Better Women Than Women Do?

by Stephanie Hallett · September 2, 2010 · no comments

I choreograph a stage show for a drag queen. In his day-to-day life, this queen is a soft-spoken, 6’7 man who rides a road bike and enjoys fresh salads. In his drag life, he’s Barbie Banjée, the bitchiest (and tallest) of East Vancouver queens, boasting the longest legs and sharpest cheek bones in the biz. As choreographer for Ms. Banjée (and backup dancer!), I have taught many lessons in the art of hip-swinging, body rolling and boob shaking. But could my queenly protege soon replace me as an “instructor ...Read More

Books

Women We’ll Be Reading 200 Years From Now

by Donna Decker · September 1, 2010 · 1 comment

“Women I admire have gone through hell to get their work out there,” Erica Jong told us this past weekend. “I’d like to change that for you.” Despite its sale of 20 million copies worldwide, Jong’s 1973 feminist novel Fear of Flying provoked a backlash, the vestiges of which still own a sliver of Jong’s soul. She quotes verbatim the vitriol of critic Paul Theroux, who called Jong’s heroine, Isadora Wing, “a mammoth pudenda.” Yet here is Jong nearly 40 years later, having gone through ...Read More

Family

Selling Old-School Motherhood With the Groceries

by Jessica Holden Sherwood · August 31, 2010 · 3 comments

Today my mail included a supermarket coupon booklet which made me mad. I am a Mom seeking ideas for easy dinners and healthy snacks as I send my kids back to school. But before I could appreciate the helpful tips from Stop & Shop, the feminist sociologist in me was listing the things wrong with this booklet. 1) It is saying that children’s lives are the domain of Moms–not parents, not caring adults, just Moms. Moms are mentioned three times before I even open the booklet. No, Stop & Shop, you will ...Read More

Internet + Tech

Welcome to the Blogosphere, European Pro-Choice Network

by Alexandra Tweten · August 31, 2010 · no comments

The European Pro-Choice Network, a new blog connecting pro-choice allies in Europe, has launched. Creator Sarah Diehl, director of the documentary Abortion Democracy, says it will help activists in EU countries support each other and make the topic of abortion access more visible. Isn’t most of Europe already secure with legal abortion? Actually, no. Diehl says many people take abortion access in Europe for granted. In her experience, abortion is not discussed in political terms–as a matter of self-determination ...Read More

Global

Do Women Win or Lose with India’s New Birth Rate Initiative?

by Laura Gottesdiener · August 30, 2010 · 3 comments

According to the The New York Times this week, India has introduced a new method of birth control: $106 dollars in the hands of a young bride. It’s up to the newlyweds to choose and implement a method of family planning, but one condition of this “honeymoon package” is non-negotiable: no pregnancies for at least two years. There’s no question that India has a population growth issue: Some economists project a population of 1.9 billion people in the coming decades. Yet efforts to slow growth often ...Read More

Ms.cellany

We Heart: Temple Grandin

by Laura Gottesdiener · September 1, 2010 · no comments

For an autistic woman who “thinks like a cow,” Temple Grandin has certainly affected millions of humans. Last Sunday at the 62nd Emmy Awards, Temple Grandin, the made-for-HBO movie about the bestselling author and livestock expert, won five Emmys, including ...Read More

The Weekly Pulse: Egg Recalls, DIY Abortion, Sex Education

by Lindsay Beyerstein · September 1, 2010 · no comments

This week, it’s not just eggs that are doing the salmonella infecting, women are having DIY abortions along the U.S.-Mexico border, and in Minnesota, Tim Pawlenty would rather shell out major cash than have comprehensive sex education. Read about it in Lindsay Beyerstein’s ...Read More

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