pets

Links ahoy!

• HuffPo reports on Rachel Maddow's statement that "[g]ay people—generally speaking—have a responsibility to our own community and to future generations of gay people to come out, if and when we feel that we can." Do you agree?
• ColorLines talks about the attack on a trans woman at McDonald's and the questions it raises about hate crime laws. Questioning Transphobia also speaks out about the shameful incident. (Trigger warning for transphobic violence.)
• Bitch Flicks recalls bell hooks' still-pertinent words about race and gender in films.
• On Trans/plant/portation, Bitch contributor EvMaroon humorously dissects a bizarre religious invitation.
• Feministe discusses the myriad frustrations with clothes' inconsistent sizes.
• Also at Feministe: Will you be near Madison on May 26-30? Check out WisCon, the feminist sci-fi and fantasy convention! Past panelists include Emily Horner.
• Feministing gives a run-down of a Times article about colleges' failure to comply with Title IX.
• Gender Focus explores the societal notion that cats are for girls and dogs are for boys.
• Twisty unpacks the slut-shaming and victim-blaming in recent news stories at I Blame the Patriarchy. (Trigger warning for domestic violence and sexual abuse of a minor.)
• TransGriot updates us on Caster Semenya's athletic plans.
• The Arizona Republic talks about the many negative repercussions of the hateful SB 1070. (via Racialicious)
• Bitch contributor Sady Doyle hilariously snarks on reality TV mogul Aaron Sorkin's abysmal-sounding next show at Tiger Beatdown.
• AfterEllen interviews Malindo Lo, author of Bitch YA Reading Club's selection Ash, which we'll be discussing in July!
• Bitch contributor s.e. smith gives guidelines on "How to Evaluate Disabled Characters in Pop Culture, for Nondisabled Viewers."
• Have you seen the Budweiser commercial with the soldier implied to be queer? If not, Mother Jones has you covered.
• Our Turn: Feminism for Newbies remembers Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes.
• RH Reality Check tells us more about the infuriating "Don't Say Gay" bill. (reposted at AlterNet) In happier news, Queerty explains Sir Ian McKellen's homophobia-busting school tour.
• Speaking of... Queerty's coming back!

Thoughts? What have you been reading?

Another week, another bunch of thought-provoking articles. Here's some of what we've been reading:

• ColorLines celebrates the U.S.' first integrated all-female band.
• Also at ColorLines, Kai Wright reflects movingly on the still-far-off mountaintop MLK described.
• Jessica Valenti talks about the glorification of basic fathering in The Daily.
• Ms. and NPR each report and discuss Joe Biden's address of sexual assault in schools; what did YOU think?
• Bitch contributor Sady Doyle manages to write smartly (while being, as she puts it, "not-just-totally-mean") about Phyllis Schlafly's influence at Global Comment.
• Bitch Flicks lends their feminist snark to an analysis of Total Film's so-called "40 Greatest Movie Posters" list.
• Futrelle unpacks comic artist Scott Adams' recent douchery—and his bizarre attempts to fix the situation—at Feministe and man boobz.
• Bitch contributor s.e. smith blogs at this ain't livin' about the ageist implications of a younger Miss Marple.
• Vulture goes over the vitriol around Spider Man: Turn Off the Dark and actor Harry Lennix's piece asking why only Julie Taymor is trashed for a show many hands put together.
• In the same vein, 90s Woman looks at the pop phenomenon "Friday" and wonders "WTF is so scary about an ambitious thirteen-year-old girl?" (via feministified)
• Chloe at Feministing speaks out about last week's Slutwalk and the victim-blaming such events protest.
• Greenier at RH Reality Check talks about "Why Insurance Coverage for Abortion Matters;" the piece was then picked up for AlterNet.
• Bad news: Canadian blog Gender Focus is shutting down. At least we'll have Jarrah's upcoming board game projects to follow!
• Liz at Our Turn comments on documentaries about masculinity.
• At Racialicious and Muslimah Media Watch, Diana shares her feelings on the CNN special Unwelcome: The Muslims Next Door.
• On HuffPo, Payne explores how derogatory language feeds classism.
• Miss the queer teen drama South of Nowhere? Heaven knows I do! AfterEllen interviews star Mandy Musgrave about playing lesbians and her new webseries, Cowgirl Up.
• In the <3 files: "Family Dog Keeps Missing Baby Alive Overnight," from Jezebel.

Your turn to share!

Before I launch into talking more about sterilization and permanent birth control next week, I want to quickly touch on (and probably later come back to) something that's been on my radar the last week or so. You no doubt realize I read tabloid gossip if I'm able to come up with a photo montage like this one. So imagine my surprise when I read what Italian model-actress—known lately as George Clooney's girlfriend—said to Italian Cosmopolitan magazine.