Right now, I’m feeling full of the joys that only a golden glow (one that didn’t come out of a bottle, mind!) and a good friend’s beautiful wedding can bring… amazing, then, that I’ve found yet more things to top up the juices for my happy helmet over the past couple of days. Please allow me to spread the love!
1. A huge ‘Hooray’ is most definitely in order as today saw 5 contemporary feminists profiled in The Evening Standard newspaper for a piece entitled March of The New Feminists. With the impending SlutWalk event in London this Saturday, it’s fantastic to see Feminism receiving media attention once more. Those racking up the ES column inches include UK Feminista founder Kat Banyard, Vicky Simister of Anti-Street Harassment UK and male feminist activist (finally a journalist acknowledges they exist!) Ralph Allen. Take a read here and be inspired by these hard-working activists.
2. With the appointment of the first ever woman executive editor of The New York Times, many are commenting that the move comes not a moment too soon. I was thankful, then, to read Jill Abramson’s own personal take on her new prestigious position in this piece from yesterday’s Guardian. Especially interesting is Abramson’s simultaneous admission of her new role’s significance whilst feeling weary of the whole ‘First woman to…’ line of questioning. Read up here on the woman who is set to become a huge force in the US media, a woman with a passion for hard-edged investigative reporting… and a love of West Highland Terriers.
3. And last, but by no means least, a bit of fun in the form of JD Samson’s MEN. I had the fabulous fortune of going along to their gig in Shepherd’s Bush last night and shared the audience’s rapture as, for their final song, they pulled a classic Bikini Kill cover out of the bag. The crowd all left with huge grins on their faces! Take a look at the vid above of their rendition of the same song at New York’s rather lovely Knitting Factory and see if it can’t raise a smile for you too!
Another Mother’s Day, another batch of awful Mother’s Day cards! How on earth can we show the mother-figures in our lives how much we appreciate them with these kind of lame offerings? With such patronising inscriptions, these sentiments are bound to fall as flat as the cardboard they’re printed on.
If you’d rather not remind your lovely Mum that women tend to take on the bulk of domestic duties on this, her special day, then why not consider a different approach? In fact, you can use your mother’s day gift to show love to mothers across the globe! For just £15, Maternity Worldwide will send a Safe Birth Certificate to your Mum – promising to help save the lives of women and babies in developing countries.
Every minute of every day, a woman dies from complications related to pregnancy or childbirth. Ninety-nine percent of these deaths occur in developing countries, These deaths could be avoided if adequate resources and healthcare were available.
You can purchase a Safe Birth Certificate here, or read more about Maternity Worldwide in this blog post that Julia Kukiewicz wrote for us on behalf of the organisation.
Today sees us marking the first annual Anti Street-Harassment Day with a piece that is sure to invigorate and inspire! In our latest feature regular Uplifter Dearbhaile Kitt takes a look at the growing anti street-harassment movement. Speaking to some of the key figures working to put a stop to this most anti-social sexist practise, including Julia Gray of HollabackLDN and founder of LASH Vicky Simister, Dearbhaile gives us a clear picture of what we are dealing with on our streets and how we can work to combat it.
“Alright, darlin’!” shouts a builder across the road. Whilst wheeling my bike along, “I’d let you ride me” is the hushed comment from a man who passes me. And from a crawling car “Are you working?”
I’m not alone in experiencing encounters like this. Whenever I mention these instances of street harassment to my friends, they have just as many stories of whistles, cat calls and unwanted propositions to share. In the past women have had little opportunity to discuss these experiences with a wider circle outside of their friendship group, but this is changing. I spoke to the young women involved in a growing movement that is aiming to get not only women talking about their daily experiences of street harassment, but society.
International Women’s Day is just under a week away (it’s on March the 8th, people! Mark it in your calendars!) and this year’s celebrations are set to be bigger and better than ever! Why? Well, whilst last year saw women worldwide celebrate the passing of 100 years since Clara Zetkin (Leader of the ‘Women’s Office’ for the Social Democratic Party in Germany) introduced the idea (to unanimous approval!) for an International Women’s Day, the first International Women’s Day event wasn’t actually held until 1911. This means that 2011 is the Global Centenary Year for the event – as if we needed any more excuse for a big celebration?!
International Women’s Day calls for people worldwide to reflect on the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future. There are plenty of events to mark the day, all of which are handily searchable over on the official IWD website – so whether it’s getting involved in making bra-bunting in Manchester, clothes swapping in Birmingham or street samba in Glasgow you’ll be sure to find one to suit you!
Find out more on the International Women’s Day website or follow on Twitter here and make sure your Women’s Day goes with a bang!
This Saturday, London’s Feminist Library will celebrate a rather impressive 35 years of looking after and lending from their collection – no mean feat, since the library is entirely not-for-profit and run by volunteers! Taking on the vital role of collecting and safe-guarding women’s history, their archive brings together plenty of materials documenting the Women’s Liberation Movement, particularly second-wave stuff from the 60s and 70s.
I’m sure any gender studies student (or, indeed, anyone who has ever fancied flicking through an old copy of Spare Rib!) owes The Feminist Library a debt of gratitude – and long may it continue to feed feminist minds for years to come!
Lot’s of details can be found on The Feminist Library site, or you can get involved via the rather handy Facebook event page. Tickets can be bought here… but you best get a wiggle on, as they are selling fast!
Still wondering what to get your slogan-shouting, disco-dancing, fabulously-feminist sweetheart for Valentine’s day? Whilst you’ve left it a little late, I’m going to forgive you anyway and let you in on a not-very-well-kept secret; MEN’s debut album ‘Talk About Body’ is released in the UK today! So, if your better half enjoys cutting a rug to songs about making gay babies, call off the search – you’ve found the perfect present!
I’ve been rather excited about MEN, the electro-music/performance collective fronted by Le Tigre’s JD Samson, since their gig in Soho over a year ago (Read Thomas Leadbetter’s review for Uplift here) and their album couldn’t come soon enough! Talk About Body is utterly danceable and engaging, packing in plenty of politics – all dealt with with positive enthusiasm.
MEN are not only making exciting and vital music, their videos are also pretty damned special too. Current single Off Our Backs (above) showcases sharp choreography, surely testament to JD’s Dykes Can Dance ethos, whilst the recently revealed Who Am I To Feel So Free has the ultimate in happy endings!
One of my absolute favourite conversations (please note that, for the purposes of this blog-post, italics equals sarcasm) to partake in often starts with the question; “So, if women are equal to men, how come there are no good female guitarists/chefs/artists/comedians…?”
If you’re one of those people who’s quite open about being a bit on the feminist side, you will most likely feel my pain. There you are, down the pub with a relatively new aquaintance, and the conversation will veer towards what you got up to over the weekend; “I burned my bra to symbolise my rejection of patriarchal beauty standards*” you’ll say. “Aha!” They’ll counter, “A feminist, eh? So, if women are equal to men, how come…?”
It’s hard to educate someone who seems to have a Masters in Derailing For Dummies (not that it’s your job to educate them, naturally), but it’s even harder when you find yourself asking “Hang on, how come there aren’t any…? That doesn’t seem right.”
Which explains my excitement at the news that The ICA are staging a discussion next week around women novelists. Best-selling author and co-founder of the Orange Prize for Fiction, Kate Mosse will be amongst those debating why, in an industry dominated by women, it is still the men who often win accolades for their penmanship.
It looks set to be a lively debate, with such questions being bandied about as;
What gets reviewed and by whom? What gets read and by whom? What is regarded as significant and event-worthy – and by whom? And why are we still having these conversations in 2011?
Yes! Why indeed? Perhaps if all us feminist types buy a couple of tickets each and take along our feisty pub aquaintances, we can put at least one of these ever-so enjoyable conversations to bed this year! Wouldn’t that be a turn up for the books?
Novel Women takes place at 7pm in The ICA theatre on Wednesday the 16th February. Tickets range from £10-£12. Book your place and find all the details you’ll need here.
*I know, I know. This tale of 7os feminist fury is a myth and never actually happened. Still, didn’t stop me doing it on Sunday evening ;P
Death Drawing (the new incarnation of the Swallows and Amazons drawing salons we have bigged up so heartily in the past) is back after its January debut with an artistic alternative to all the Clintons cards cutesy-ness that’s going on at the moment. So, if you’re London based, love-lorn and of an artistic nature, then this is most likely your perfect way to spit in the face of Saint Valentine!
Death Drawing aims to bring ‘a lethal injection of theatricality, curiosity and the macabre’ to the traditional life-drawing salon, and this month’s anti-valentine’s themed session is no exception. Taking place on the 15th of February at East London’s Victoria pub, the event promises participants a very bloody Valentine’s with plenty of broken hearts to inspire their scribblings. Guests are even invited to exorcise their heartache by bringing along old love letters and unwanted Valentine’s cards to add to a shrine to romance.
The salon starts at 8pm and costs £8, with all art materials provided for you – Just make sure you reserve a place because it’s bound to be packed! All the details are handily laid out for your perusal on this here Facebook Event Page. Lovely.
Okay, okay… so December the 25th is still, technically, a while off yet. Even so, there’s no escaping the imminent approach of the festive season; Already you can’t set foot in a shop without being aurally accosted by Noddy Holder’s yule-tide yelping. So, here it is ‘Merry Christmas!’ Which begs the question; Have you bought your presents yet?
If you are still stressing about about your Secret Santa, or wondering what to get for the girl who has everything, then maybe this Sunday’s Bust Christmas Craftacular has the answer?! Taking place from 12 to 6pm at York Hall, East London, the Craftacular will host over 70 stalls boasting the hottest in handmade goodies. Not only will you be able to peruse the creations of others but there’s also a chance to get crafty yourself with workshops in DIY couture, pom-pom making and even moustache-crocheting!
Even if you aren’t able to tick off all the lucky present-recipients on your ‘nice’ list, there’s still plenty to entertain yourself with; There’s a tea room on all day, plus a raffle, goodie bags and DJs providing the tunes. At only £2 to get in, this is one seasonal spectacle not to be sniffed at - Be there with jingle-bells on!
Anti Sex-Slavery campaigner Anuradha Koirala (pictured above) was yesterday named as CNN’s ‘Hero of the Year’. Koirala – who, with her organisation Maiti Nepal, has helped rescue more than 12,000 women and girls from sex-slavery – was presented with the title (and the grand total of $125,000 to further her work) at a star-studded, filmed event.
Selecting from 10 finalists, the US public were asked to vote for the hero who most inspired them on the CNN website. The voter’s hearts were won over by the work of Koirala and Maiti Nepal – work which includes patrolling the India-Nepal border, raiding brothels and rescuing girls from being sold into the sex trade. Those girls and young women, who would have otherwise been enslaved by the trade and forced to endure rape and torture, are instead provided shelter and offered education.
Speaking out against sex-trafficking, Koirala said; ‘We have to end this heinous crime, please join hands with me to end this crime.’
Huge congratulations to the much deserving Koirala… and long may her work continue!
Learn more about Maiti Nepal’s vital work here, and watch the inspirational Anuradha Koirala accepting her award here.
To mark the first annual Anti Street-Harassment Day, Dearbhaile Kitt reports on a growing movement that is aiming to put a stop to this most anti-social sexist practise.
Stephanie Phillips, of Don’t Dance Her Down Boys blog, went along to the launch event for UK Feminista to see what prospects the site might hold for the advancement UK women’s movement.
