A lot of people tell me they want to make their blog more accessible, but they aren't really sure how to do that. I'll own right up front that most of the accessibility issues relating to websites and blogs don't directly affect me – I'm not blind, d/Deaf, and I don't have mobility issues that could make web-surfing a pain. That means I may have lots of stuff at my fingertips that's "Best Practice", but people's lived experience pretty much trumps my "studies show that". Also, not all problems are ones you're going to be able to fix at your end anyway. But a few key things with your blog can make a big difference in who can read it.
Two twenty-something, upper class, educated, Jewish girls traipse around the United States looking for the feminism of a new generation, and once they find it, one of them kills herself. That's not exactly what the back cover of Girldrive: Criss-Crossing America, Redefining Feminism reads, but that's one version of what happened. Best friends since 1997, Nona Willis Aronowitz and Emma Bee Bernstein decided to take a road trip and talk to a cross section of young women about the F-word. They met 127 women—including a sex shop clerk, a Bible college student, a witch, a future nun, a former Air Force worker, and an anarchist—to find out why some woman love feminism with a fierceness and why others don’t relate to it at all.
Hey, women: is your goal in life to make men stare at you body and gain the resentment of other women in the process? Oh, and do you like the color pink? Good, Reebok has a shoe for you.
The ACLU is suing this week's Douchebag Decree recipient for being a gigantic douche. OK, so Austin Couch, principal of Churubusco High School in Indiana, is actually being sued for free speech violation, but that's just lawyer speak for douchiness, right? At any rate, Principal Couch suspended two CHS sophomores from all extracurricular activities last month because they posted photos of themselves on their MySpace pages looking too darned sexy. He calls it principal-ing, but we (and the ACLU) call it slut-shaming.
You girls are officially suspended for having bodies!
The much anticipated Very Special Disability Episode of Glee, "Wheels" aired last night. And already the rave reviews are flooding in. It's "edgy," it's "a game changer," it's "controversial," it's "moving," it's "thought provoking." Twitter is aflutter with praise.
Did everyone else watch the same episode I watched?
In just six days 26-year-old Era Al-Sufri, a Diplomatic Officer at Brunei’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs who loves math and is passionate about the environment, will embark on a dream vacation... of sorts. One of eight women from eight countries picked to participate in the Kaspersky Lab Commonwealth Antarctic Expedition, Era (aka Polar Girl) and her cohorts underwent an intensive training in order to complete a 40-day, 900km ski through blizzards and subzero temperatures (up to -40 degrees) with the goal of arriving at the South Pole on January 1, 2010.
Ableism is a central concept in disability rights. The term was originally popularized by Thomas Hehir, a special education scholar who defined it as "'the devaluation of disability' that 'results in societal attitudes that uncritically assert that it is better for a child to walk than roll, speak than sign, read print than read Braille, spell independently than use a spell-check, and hang out with nondisabled kids as opposed to other disabled kids.'" There are many varied manifestations of ingrained ableism in contemporary society and pop culture, but I see it most often in uncritical use of language based on ableist assumptions - even by speakers or authors who are progressive and who are against ableism as a concept.
You've got eight more days to bid in The 6th Annual Chevy Chase Green School Auction, a fundraiser for Jayni Chase's beloved MGR Foundation GREEN Community Schools initiative that aims to "transform school buildings into centers for green development" by "spread[ing] environmental literacy and awareness." While the proceeds from the auction definitely will support a good cause, this year's prizes fail to impress an overall valuing of social justice.
We're FWD (Feminists With Disabilities), and we're excited to be guest blogging at Bitch, bringing discussions about the intersection between disability and feminism to a larger audience. Over the next eight weeks, we'll be talking about the depiction of disability in pop culture, how society relates to people with disabilities, and, of course, why disability activism should matter to feminists.
Read more about disability and feminism...
Today, over twenty organizations in eleven countries will hold "simultaneous events and public demonstrations on topics like protesting customary practices such as honor killings and FGM/C, overturning discriminatory and life threatening laws like stoning or lashing of women, and calling for LGBT rights, the right to sexuality education and the right to bodily and sexual integrity of all people." On the eve of the One Day, One Struggle campaign, I spoke to WWHR campaign coordinators Pinar Ilkkaracan and Irazca Geray, as well as Vizla Kumaresan from Malaysia's Women's Aid Organization (WAO), about the goals of the premiere advocacy event.
Social Commentary
The Transcontinental Disability Choir: How to make your blog accessible in five not-very-complicated steps
On the Map: Feminist Road Trippin’
Two twenty-something, upper class, educated, Jewish girls traipse around the United States looking for the feminism of a new generation, and once they find it, one of them kills herself. That's not exactly what the back cover of Girldrive: Criss-Crossing America, Redefining Feminism reads, but that's one version of what happened. Best friends since 1997, Nona Willis Aronowitz and Emma Bee Bernstein decided to take a road trip and talk to a cross section of young women about the F-word. They met 127 women—including a sex shop clerk, a Bible college student, a witch, a future nun, a former Air Force worker, and an anarchist—to find out why some woman love feminism with a fierceness and why others don’t relate to it at all.
Don't Want to Put on My Booty Shoes
Hey, women: is your goal in life to make men stare at you body and gain the resentment of other women in the process? Oh, and do you like the color pink? Good, Reebok has a shoe for you.
Douchebag Decree: Austin Couch, Principal Slut-Shamer
The Transcontinental Disability Choir: Glee-ful Appropriation
On the Map: All Hail the Ice Queen
In just six days 26-year-old Era Al-Sufri, a Diplomatic Officer at Brunei’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs who loves math and is passionate about the environment, will embark on a dream vacation... of sorts. One of eight women from eight countries picked to participate in the Kaspersky Lab Commonwealth Antarctic Expedition, Era (aka Polar Girl) and her cohorts underwent an intensive training in order to complete a 40-day, 900km ski through blizzards and subzero temperatures (up to -40 degrees) with the goal of arriving at the South Pole on January 1, 2010.
The Transcontinental Disability Choir: What is Ableist Language and Why Should You Care?
Ableism is a central concept in disability rights. The term was originally popularized by Thomas Hehir, a special education scholar who defined it as "'the devaluation of disability' that 'results in societal attitudes that uncritically assert that it is better for a child to walk than roll, speak than sign, read print than read Braille, spell independently than use a spell-check, and hang out with nondisabled kids as opposed to other disabled kids.'" There are many varied manifestations of ingrained ableism in contemporary society and pop culture, but I see it most often in uncritical use of language based on ableist assumptions - even by speakers or authors who are progressive and who are against ableism as a concept.
On the Map: Meet a Bunch of White Guys... or Oprah
You've got eight more days to bid in The 6th Annual Chevy Chase Green School Auction, a fundraiser for Jayni Chase's beloved MGR Foundation GREEN Community Schools initiative that aims to "transform school buildings into centers for green development" by "spread[ing] environmental literacy and awareness." While the proceeds from the auction definitely will support a good cause, this year's prizes fail to impress an overall valuing of social justice.
The Transcontinental Disability Choir: Pleased To Meet You!
On the Map: One Day, One Struggle: A Campaign for Human Rights in Muslim Societies
Today, over twenty organizations in eleven countries will hold "simultaneous events and public demonstrations on topics like protesting customary practices such as honor killings and FGM/C, overturning discriminatory and life threatening laws like stoning or lashing of women, and calling for LGBT rights, the right to sexuality education and the right to bodily and sexual integrity of all people." On the eve of the One Day, One Struggle campaign, I spoke to WWHR campaign coordinators Pinar Ilkkaracan and Irazca Geray, as well as Vizla Kumaresan from Malaysia's Women's Aid Organization (WAO), about the goals of the premiere advocacy event.
Audio Smut