feminist response

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!

Another week has gone by, and this one was my last (official) week at Bitch! Wanna be the (newest) new media intern? Check out the job description here!

• Seriously? I said it last week, and I'll say it again, racism is racism, whether casual or not. This matters. Stop it, Lena Dunham. [Feministing]
• Did you read that problematic piece on gender-fluid youth last week? I did, and I cringed the whole way through. Here's a spot on critique. [New York Times Magazine/Love Isn't Enough]
• Genderplay is also life play; it’s a chance to explore who you are and who you want to be. [This Ain't Livin']
• Check out this great piece on Asian students and the lack of visibility within the larger immigration movement. [Hyphen]
• Feminist Ryan Gosling has been released as a book a few days ago! Wait, can they release a feminist flashcard deck too? [Ms. Blog]
• The Pussy Riot story continues to unfold—the women were officially sentenced two two years in prison. [Slate]
• Femme Conference 2012 happened last weekend in Baltimore! Did you go? Did you watch the livestream?
• Speaking of conferences (and Baltimore), registration for Facing Race 2012 is open! Author and badass Junot Diaz is the keynote, and trust me, you don't want to miss him.
• In case you didn't catch this in our interview with Cristy C. Road, POC Zine Project is going on tour in the fall! Catch them when they roll through a city near you!

This has been another week! Here's what we've been reading.

• s.e. smith weighs in on the tragic shooting in Colorado this morning, asking why we blame "crazy" people for acts of violence. [xoJane]
• Check out this awesome and super insightful dialogue on the intersections of race and feminism and more! [Tiger Beatdown]
• Oh, I'm cringing right now. Longtime Google executive, and new CEO of Yahoo, Marissa Mayer, believes in equal rights, and that women are just as capable, if not more capable than men in many dimensions, but doesn't identify as a feminist because she doesn't have "militant drive" and a chip on her shoulder??? Get with it, Marissa! Where the heck would you even be right now without feminism? These "opportunities" for women you speak of weren't just handed to us. [Feministing]
• Mike Le discusses frustrations with the lack of Asian and Asian American characters in Joss Whedon's shows. [Racebending]
• This week in Olympic athlete discrimination: Highest ranked Olympic weightlifter Sarah Robles can't get sponsored because she doesn't fit the model athlete image? Well, she's got one sponsor, but still, come on! [Slate]
• Megan Dietz tackles issues around weight obsession, diet culture, and all sorts of things that plague societal standards of beauty and body image. And BBC's global weight calculator is certainly not helping the matter. [The Hairpin/BBC]
• Uh oh, Slate's advice columnist, Emily Yoffe (Dear Prudence) isn't giving very sound advice, and frankly, just comes off as totally rude and condescending. "Stop acting like a parody of a gender-studies course catalog and start acting like a loving wife." Seriously? Drunk sex is not always consensual sex, and nonconsensual sex is rape. Point blank. [In These Times]
• Hooray! VIDA – Women in Literary Arts recently launched their blog! [HER KIND]
• Healthy San Francisco, the city's health insurance program for uninsured residents, to remove its trans exclusions. One step closer to trans inclusive healthcare everywhere! [Bay Area Reporter]
• And just because I'm a little obsessed, you should look at this side by side comparison of this young fan's shot-by-shot recreation of Beyoncé's "Countdown." It is actually perfect. [Videogum]
• Portland update: The Portland Queer Music Festival is this weekend! Come for the music, stay for the queers!

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

Riled up yet? Here are more things that might make you angry, but also some things that should make you excited! Take this as your cue to go out and get some sun this weekend. I think we all need it.

• Daniel Tosh may have taken the cake for being the scum of the week, but Domino's Pizza is riding in the same douchebaggy boat with their new "no is the new yes" campaign. Really, Domino's? Must we shout it from the top of our lungs? "NO" MEANS "NO." [Feministing]
• Janet Mock explores why "trapped in the wrong body" is a convenient and lazy explanation that victimizes trans individuals. [Fish Food For Thought]
• An exploration of the fetishization of race, and how your assumptions based on ethnic background aren't gonna get you any dates with people of color. [Feministe]
• LPAC–the first ever Lesbian Political Action Committee–launched this Wednesday! Jane Lynch approves. [Autostraddle]
• As if we weren't already psyched by the new Smart Girls at the Party show Meow Meow Music, the channel launched a new web series this week, Ask Amy, where Amy Poehler gives advice to girls. Can someone ask Amy if she'll be our BFF?
• The racial dynamics of street harrassment, and how catcalling has reached an all-time high. [Oshun Returns]
• As a follow up to Julia Bluhm's petition against using photoshop to alter bodies in Seventeen magazine, a group of young women petitioned for Teen Vogue to feature more diverse and relatable bodies, but had their concerns dismissed by the the editor-in-chief. Put down your Teen Vogue, there are quality magazines out there–with friendly staff who will actually listen to you! We promise. [Ms. Blog/Jezebel]
• A town in Germany has designated certain tricky parking spaces "Men Only." Um, what? [AP]
• Mitt Romney responded to being booed at the NAACP conference. Not such a people pleaser, but he's still under the assumption that he'll get the black vote. Dude, seriously? [Colorlines]
• Are you in the New York Metropolitan area? Have you been under a box for the last few weeks and need some excitement, i.e., a weekend full of queer and feminist bands and workshops? Well, here's a reminder that C.L.I.T. Fest is tonight, tomorrow, and the next day. Seriously though. Get your butt on NJ Transit. I know you hate it, but it'll be worth it. Go. For me.
• Portland update: In Other Words is hosting its last Dirty Queer X-rated open mic event of the summer TONIGHT at 6:30pm. Come down and celebrate Friday the 13th with some dirty Portland queer cuties. After that, head up to The Know to see Forever, Swearin', and Waxahatchee. Yeah, that's right, Katie Crutchfield from P.S. Eliot has some new heartbreaking tunes for you.