femininity

In May, Religion Dispatches published my first interview with former darling of the Christian contemporary music scene, lesbian singer-songwriter Jennifer Knapp. Then over the summer, I got to meet and interview Knapp in person while covering the Wild Goose Festival, an event that celebrated (predominantly Christian) spirituality, justice, and art. We talked a bit about the limitations of Christian music, feminism and sexuality on the same day she filmed the "It Gets Better" video below. I'll be critiquing some evangelical Christian music later in the series, so I'm very excited to share unpublished parts of our interview with you here today: 

Happy All Hallow's Eve Eve! Here is a video from The Onion to get you in the spirit. Warning: It paints a pretty stereotypical portrait of "effeminate" boys, but more than that it parodies parents' fear that their sons aren't (gasp!) manly enough:


How To Find A Masculine Halloween Costume For Your Effeminate Son

Today I'd like to introduce you to one of my favorite feminists in academia: (*drum roll*) Dr. Sandra Ruth Lipsitz Bem.

Bem's wisdom on  the subjects of masculinity, femininity, androgyny and feminist child rearing after the jump.