feminist

In my last post, I explained my love for the new anthology Presumed Incompetent: The Intersections of Race and Class for Women in Academia. Using personal narratives, empirical studies, and scholarly essays, over 40 different authors discuss the challenges faced by academic women of color in higher education. I emailed with Seattle University School of Law Professor Carmen G. Gonzalez about what it's like to put together such a meaty and long-overdue book. 

How did the idea for this book come about?

CARMEN G. GONZALEZ: As women of color who have managed to survive and thrive in academia despite formidable obstacles, we (the co-editors of Presumed Incompetent) felt a need and a responsibility to create a public dialogue about the subtle and not-so-subtle forms of workplace bias women of color experience.

Despite decades of struggle to achieve workplace equity in academia, both women of color and white women face daunting obstacles. For example, a recent study found that female faculty in the United States on average earn 6.9 percent less than men in similar academic positions.

 

I'm a feminist and a high school English teacher in the south suburbs of Chicago. Last year, one of the students in my class was inspired to start a group for girls at our school and approached me about sponsoring it. Of course I agreed! A few weeks ago, we tackled the topic of positive female role models in pop culture. The high school students came up with a list of eight current, mainstream "feminist idols" they and their friends look up to.

The list is a good insight into what interests teen girls these days, as well as hopefully a helpful resource. We talk a lot about degrading and regrettable portrayals of women in media, here are eight actresses and comedians my high schoolers are excited about supporting.

 

1. Emma Stone: My students loved the movie Easy A, a modern film inspired by Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. In it, Emma Stone plays a high school student who tries to bring the book into her real life. The movie definitely has feminist undertones, but Stone herself is a major feminist. In a recent interview she did with her boyfriend Andrew Garfield, she was asked who her style icon was. After Garfield said he never got asked questions like that, Stone piped up, "You get asked interesting, poignant questions because you're a boy... It is sexism." Way to call out sexist media, Emma Stone!

School Daze from BitchTapes on 8tracks Radio.

Summer's winding down and those of us who are students are gearing up for another tough year. Even if you've been in school for years, something about the first few days always makes ya nervous–like summer camp, but perhaps with more sex, booze, and drama. It still feels like summer, so maybe you're not so motivated to get back into an academic mindset, but never fear, your lazy brain will make the change once it realizes that you're nose deep in work. Here are some songs about being back in school, being reunited with your besties, finding new friends, basking in the last days of freedom, and of course, school spirit (but not really). Tracklist after the jump!

Summer's winding down, I'm reporting from the East Coast, and this has been another week. What's up?

• The latest episode of The Peculiar Kind features queers of color in media, plus, there's bonus part of the episode where we get to know the featured artists a little bit better! [The Peculiar Kind]
• In case you haven't heard, Todd Akin is the worst. Let this sink in, any kind of rape is "legitimate." Rape is rape. That's all. There are no questions or arguments against that. [BBC News/Penny Red]
• Whoa, have you seen this new car commercial that totally twists gender expectations? How queer of you, Toyota. [Salon]
• Amy Poehler filmed a PSA in support of the passage of the California Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, and it's predictably great! [Colorlines]
• If you're like us, you've been keeping up with True Blood, and you're maybe really excited about the season finale this Sunday. Need to prepare yourself further? Check out this hilarious and on-point round table discussion of last week's mess of an episode (and while you're at it, check out the discussions of earlier episodes too)! [Racialicious]
• Bitch contributor Michelle Dean on "Hillbilly culture" and what Here Comes Honey Boo Boo says about America. [Salon]
• After a visit with my grandparents today and refusing my grandmother's kindhearted, but midguided Nair offer, my body hair has been on my mind. This is something that is talked about all the time, but that's because it's always relevant–here are some thoughts about hairy legs, pits, and body image. [Feministe]
• Stop it with the sex panic. Hanna Rosin breaks it down–feminism and "hook-up culture"–these are things that go hand in hand. Glad we got that straight. Wait, speaking of straight, I think it's important to point out that NOT ALL HOOK-UPS ARE SO HETERO. [The Atlantic]
• New York update: AfroPunk Festival is happening in Brooklyn this weekend! It's free, amazing, sweaty, and it's probably the best way you can end your summer. And how can you possibly resist Erykah Badu AND Janelle Monáe?

What have you been reading, musing, raging, or raving about this week? Share your thoughts in the comments!

I'll admit, I kind of fudged when I said this would be a three-part series about zine artists I love. Honestly, I could probably do a fifty part series on zine artists I love, then publish it as a memoir called Can I Be You? But I'm not doing that, and instead, I'm going to take a few minutes to tell you about something really important. A couple of weeks ago, you might have stopped by the Portland Zine Symposium (or any zine fest anywhere) and thought to yourself "Wow, there are a lot of white people here, where are all the zinesters of color?" Or at least, that's what I was thinking. I scoured the entire space looking for people of color only to find one table all alone, in the back of the warehouse. One amazing table, to be sure,, but I still left wishing for something more. I'd imagine Daniela Capistrano had some similar thoughts when she founded the People of Color Zine Project in 2010 in order to make zines by folks of color accessible, available, and distributable for all, because really, these things can be incredibly hard to find in such white dominated DIY, activist, and artist communities.

Cristy C. Road, a Miami-raised, Brooklyn-based, Cuban-American illustrator, writer, and of course, total dreamboat, is no stranger to DIY, punk, queer, zine, and activist communities all over the place, and certainly no stranger to the pages of Bitch magazine. You might recognize her work from covers of books such as We Don’t Need Another Wave and The Revolution Starts at Home, or maybe you’ve caught her on tour with Sister Spit The Next Generation when they rolled through your town, or perhaps you’ve flipped through an issue or two of Green Zine, or you stole your ex's copy of Bad Habits, or you saw her band play in someone's basement, or maybe you've never heard of her at all, but basically, she’s a big deal, not to mention a badass. This is what happened when I sat down for a chat with her on a sunny Friday morning, pajamas on, and breakfast in hand. Cristy shared her feelings about everything from her art, to astrology, to racial dynamics in radical communities, to cats and brunch. It's all here for you to read, so let's get started!

Have you been keeping up with the Olympics? If you have, then this has surely been an exciting week. Other things have been exciting too though. Here's what we've been reading/watching.

• Smile, it makes you seem less threatening. Racially biased commentary in the Olympics is a thing, but if you just shrug it off and smile real big, it's okay, right? Ummm, no. But look, Gabby Douglas led the U.S. Gymnastics team to gold victory, so basically, skeptical (read: racist) commentators should back the heck up. [The Crunk Feminist Collective]
• Send Dear White People to the Tribeca Film Institute! They're well ahead of everyone, but just in case something happens, get your vote in by 5pm tonight! [IndieWire]
• Recession Art at CULTUREfix presents Still Figuring it Out: a feminist coming-of-age, an exhibition and event curated by Ana Cecelia Alvarez running from August 9th-12th in New York City! [Recession Art]
• Orientalism still runs rampant—check out this critique of Orientalist fantasies in contemporary travel narratives. [Racialicious]
• In case you need more reasons to despise Arizona's state legislation, their new abortion ban (with the earliest gestational age restriction in the nation) just went into effect. Great. [Ms. Blog]
• After some much merited cringing, Bitch contributor, Audra Schroeder shows you how NOT to write about female musicians. [Dallas Observer]
• Gore Vidal passed away this week. Here are some important thoughts about his life and his questionable values that you might not have been previously aware of. [Tiger Beatdown]
• Nicki Minaj is so close to being the perfect feminist–what's holding her back? [AlterNet]
• Check out this conversation with queer, feminist, Texas Rep. Mary Gonzalez–she's changing the face of politics, and she's also the sweetest! [Autostraddle]
• Kai Davis and Safi Niara of Philly Youth Poetry Movement absolutely KILLED it (as usual) at Brave New Voices, 2012 last week. I actually shouted "yes" at my screen multiple times while watching this. Perfection. Seriously, watch this immediately. The after you watch it once, watch it again. In fact, I will leave it here for you just to make it easier. [YouthSpeaks]

What have you been reading, musing, raging, or raving about this week? Share your thoughts in the comments!

I first saw Tilly and the Wall some years ago at the Knitting Factory in New York. I had never been so immediately entranced by any band, nor had I ever seen so many feathers and balloons on a stage. They quickly became one of my favorites, but then one day, shortly after their Summer 2008 release O, they dropped off the face of the Earth. Whew, has it seriously been four years since we last heard from Tilly and the Wall? Yes, yes it has. So, needless to say, I actually yelped when I heard that Omaha's own stomping, tapping, clapping babes have a new album called Heavy Mood, being released on Team Love on October 2nd. "But but but, that's so long from now!" Well, good thing we have a couple of sweet new tracks to hold us over.

New songs, album tracklist, and tour dates after the jump!

This has been a week, and now it's Friday, so turn on your television and let's get these Summer Games crackin'!

• Did you hear? The Olympics start today! Oh, and Caster Semenya gets to carry the South African flag in the opening ceremony! Who's excited? We are! [Colorlines]
• Yes! Sasheer Zamata's video about meeting her flasher is pure gold–super spot-on social commentary, plus, she's just hilarious. [Punch!]
• A model with Down Syndrome is being featured in a children's swim catalogue. Is this a "progressive" ploy or geniune want for and real step towards diversity in ability amongst models? [xoJane]
• This week in sexism and the Olypics: Leisel Jones is no stranger to the summer games—she has some world records, a bunch of medals, and basically, she's awesome, but all people can talk about is her weight. Seriously? Step off. [Feministing]
• Take a look at this super informative, and deeply saddening inforgraphic about women and HIV/AIDS. [Ms. Blog]
• Check out this fascinating interview with Keelin Godsey, the first out American trans person to to be a serious Olympic contender. Unfortunately, it did not work out this year, but maybe 2016? We can hope. [Feministe]
• The panelists for The Queerness of Hip-Hop/The Hip-Hop of Queerness symposium at Harvard University were just announced! [QOOH]
• Is it Girl Scout season yet? I could go for a box or five of some Thin Mints. Learn about the history of the cookies you love so much! [Collectors Weekly]
• The Miss Zee Coloring Book is being created to empower underrepresented girls of color, but it can't happen without your help! This is important! [Kickstarter]
• Viola Davis on what to expect from the Barbara Jordan biopic, plus, what critics of black actors don't understand. [IndieWire]
• Help Autostraddle build a better Autostraddle! Really, donate or buy some merch, any little bit counts! [Autostraddle]
• The Visibility Project, a national portrait and video project seeking to bring presence and representation to the queer Asian and Pacific Islander communities, who we've featured on the blog, are looking for more folks to participate in New York until August 7th! They'll also be in Portland on August 11th! [The Visibility Project]
• Portland update: The 12th annual Portland Zine Symposium is in two weeks! Come support local artists and all sorts of DIY awesomeness!

What have you been reading, musing, raging, or raving about this week? Share your thoughts in the comments!

Sexy Jamz from BitchTapes on 8tracks.

"Why do I have a playlist labeled 'Sexy Jamz' with nothing in it?" I exclaimed one day while looking through my computer's music library, "...your life," a friend said jokingly. I scoffed. But basically, the statement was true—when you're buried neck deep in papers, books, and homework, there's just no time to get down and dirty. But now it's summer, so you must just have all the time in the world to get nasty, right?

Okay, maybe it's not always quite that simple, but here are some songs that might make you feel like an awkward tween again.