Hosted by lilacs.
Question of the Day
What was your most prized possession as a child?
I'm split on mine. For toys, a biggie was the set of radio shack walkie-talkies that I got on my 11th birthday, but these are closely rivaled by my secret agent camera that turned into a gun (Christmas, 1968).
Quote of the Day
[Trigger warning.]
"Anything that can draw interest to our town and make people want to visit, we would like. ... If it peaks people's interest about our city, we would certainly welcome them here."—Mayor of Milledgeville, Georgia Richard Bentley, on the alleged sexual assault committed by thrice-accused NFL footballer Ben Roethlisberger in Milledgeville, and what a great tourist draw it is.
The hat tip goes to Shaker Maria, who emails: "As if it wasn't bad enough that the investigation of Pittsburgh Steeler Ben Roethlisberger's alleged rape of an incapacitated young woman wasn't hopelessly botched from day one (including the now resigned police officer who didn't want to take the complaint in the first place and referred to the accuser as a 'fucking bitch...This drunken bitch, drunk off her ass' and who had himself earlier in the night posed for a photo with Roethlisberger), we now have the mayor where the alleged assault took place proclaiming that the incident is good for tourism."
Three times Roethlisberger has been accused of sexual assault. And there are still people—cops—who think it's just "fucking bitches" out to get him. And mayors who think that shit's great for tourism.
Just another day in the Rape Culture.
Choi and Pietrangelo Arrested Again
Lt. Dan Choi and Capt. Jim Pietrangelo, and four others were arrested today after handcuffing themselves to the White House fence.
During the protest Choi said:
"We call on our commander in chief, the president of the United States to take bold action, to show firm resolve and real leadership on his promise to repeal 'don’t ask, don’t tell.' To make good on that promise, he has an opportunity to transmit to Congress for the defense authorization bill repeal language."
Seems pretty straight-forward to me. And still, Obama wonders why we're hollering.
Keep on hollering. Lt. Dan Choi, Capt. Jim Pietrangelo, Petty Officer Autumn Sandeen, Corporal Evelyn Thomas, Cadet Mara Boyd, Petty Officer Larry Whitt, keep hollering. It's the only way the White House will hear us.
Obama Takes On Hecklers
I know what you're thinking: It's about time the President told those tea-baggers to shut their mendacious pie-holes.
Not so fast there...
It turns out Obama chose to respond to hecklers who were shouting "Repeal don't ask, don't tell!"
He said "When you've got an ally like Barbara Boxer and you've got an ally like me who are standing for the same thing, then you don't know exactly why you've got to holler, because we already hear you, all right. I mean, it would have made more sense to holler that at the people who oppose it."
Except that those who oppose it aren't in charge, aren't in a position to change the discriminatory policy, aren't actively avoiding the issue.
Another heckler retorted "It's time for equality for all Americans" and Obama replied "I don't know why you're hollering."
Really? You don't? I find that hard to believe.
A Timely Reminder
The US' National Women's Law Center sent out a press release today calling us to action to support The Paycheck Fairness Act.
A bit of information to make the point clear:
American women who work full-time, year-round are paid only 77 cents for every dollar paid to their male counterparts. This gap in earnings translates into $10,622 less per year in female median earnings, leaving women and their families shortchanged. The wage gap is even more substantial when race and gender are considered together, with African-American women making only 61 cents, and Latinas only 52 cents, for every dollar earned by white, non-Hispanic men.I don't think it needs many words from me to point out how this is a feminist issue.
Have at it, Shakers. o.oP
Tip of the CaitieCap to (I believe) Shaker Anitanola, via Liss.
Edit: I'd like to add a link that was left in the comments here; Shaker flioba gave us this one, and I'll use her words to include it:
The American Association of University Women and the National Partnership for Women and Families also teamed up and created factsheets for each state and DC - detailing the wage gap for each state and how much food, rent, mortgage payments and gallons of gas could be purchased for that money. Check it out here.
Mexican Authorities Block Abortion For 10-Year-Old Rape Victim
[Trigger warning.]
Authorities in Mexico are restricting access to abortion for a pregnant 10-year-old who was raped by her step-father.
I don't have much to add, as it's all been said countless times before, but again, the fetus is alleged to be more important than the life and well-being of the mother, who in this case happens to be a child.
The girl's home state on the Yucatan peninsula allows abortion in cases of rape during the first 90 days of the pregnancy. But the 10-year-old girl is at 17½ weeks, nearly a month past that limit.
Advocacy groups are calling for federal officials and the United Nations to investigate the matter, claiming officials did not inform her of her abortion rights.
Discuss.
[Hat tip to Shaker koach.]
Blog Note Update
Per Photobucket, the issue has been resolved, and things now look back to normal for me. If you're still getting error message instead of images, clear your cache and refresh your page and that should resolve the problem.
Thanks for your patience and, again, my apologies for the inconvenience.
Two-Minute Nostalgia Sublime
KMFDM: "A Drug Against War"
(Trigger warning for cartoon violence and anyone that may experience photosensitive epilepsy.)
American Psychiatric Association Tolerates, Largely Ignores Feedback on Teh Trans
by Shaker EastSideKate, a feminist teacher/scholar/mother/partner/derbygirl from Upstate New York.
The American Psychiatric Association recently issued proposed revisions to be included in the upcoming fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). The bit that many transsexual* and gender non-conforming** people have been waiting for is the Gender Identity Disorder entry (the part of the book that says that we're mentally ill because of who we are). Callen-Lorde Community Health Center (New York City's LGBT medical center) and the LGBT Community of Center of New York City have written a response, which lots of other folks signed on to. Helen's posted the full letter at Trans Group Blog, and I highly recommend it.
Let me highlight two points (emphasis mine):
...We appreciate the APA's proposed "Gender Incongruence"(GI) diagnosis is an effort intended to de-stigmatize gender non-conformity and improve transgender-identified people's access to mental health care. We agree with the intention behind this effort; however, we endorse an alternative viewpoint, based on our years of collective practice knowledge. We believe GI will continue to inappropriately pathologize gender non-conformity, maintain barriers to medically necessary health care, and lend justification to gender based stigmatization and discrimination...Now, a couple of points relevant to the letter…
...The November 2008 Report of the DSM-V Sexual and Gender Identity Disorders Work Group indicates that the "sub-work group has addressed feedback from interested advocacy groups and other stakeholders. Surveys were sent to more than 60 organizations." While other agencies have provided feedback in this process, we are concerned that the institutions that provide the bulk of medical and mental health services to transgender people nationwide were not asked for input. We have reached out to LGBT community health centers and LGBT community centers; none of these key, high-volume, client-centered, community-driven stakeholders seem to have been included in the research or vetting process...
1) Stakeholders.
Stakeholder: n. 4. A person or organisation with a legitimate interest in a given situation, action or enterprise.
Stakeholder: n. 3. One who is involved in or affected by a course of action.
Okay, stakeholders. I can think of one hugely important group of stakeholders when it comes to pathologizing trans people. We're hardly a homogeneous group, but I'd wager that most trans people do not want to be classified as mentally ill on the basis of 'gender incongruence.' There have been vocal trans people who have said as much. I don't see how these proposed criteria address our feedback.
Who else is a stakeholder in the eyes of the APA? The earliest conventions (which are still influential) I'm aware of for transitioning from male-to-female*** sought to minimize the disturbance to stakeholders, as defined as cissexual people who would be disturbed if they were aware of the existence of people like me. The most desirable candidates were women who were: heterosexual, were beautiful (as defined by heterosexual male gatekeepers) yet non-remarkable, and were willing to cut all ties from friends and families. They couldn't have children or spouses (again, there are gatekeepers that still informally enforce these standards). The medical establishment viewed these conventions as a way of protecting stakeholders. I'm not so interested in addressing the concerns of such stakeholders.
Aside from trans people, let me take a look at who the working group didn't address. I'm honestly surprised (and incredibly indignant) that Callen-Lorde wasn't consulted. They're kinda a big deal. Without going into too much of the present and historical tensions within GLBT communities, and between health care providers and trans people, in my estimation LGBT health centers are the frequently some of the best (and only) hopes for many American trans people to get our medical needs met.
When I first tried getting hormones, I spent months trying to track down doctors willing to a)see me and b) treat me like a human being. I finally ended up making regular 3 hour (one way) drives to Howard Brown, the LGBT health center in Chicago, because there was one practitioner there that everyone I encountered within driving distance of Chicago recommended as the person to see. The Mazzoni Center in Philadelphia sponsors the only health conference in America run for and by trans people.
LGBT health groups would have been among the first organizations I would have contacted, were I looking to find out something about the well being of trans people.
2) Access to Care.
I'm not a big fan of how professional psychiatry manages mental illness. However, trans people find ourselves in a double bind. There are any number of medical interventions that trans people may require to happily live our lives. The APA continues to classify us as mentally ill. This does not encourage health insurers to cover the procedures we require, nor does it protect the needs of trans people from becoming political foosballs in places with ostensibly more rational health care systems.
I've had problems with my lungs, my joints. Each time, I, insured American, went to the doctor, providers took care of my health concerns (and insurers paid for some of the care). My experiences in the US haven't been as fabulous as my experiences living in Finland (where everyone, including foreign students got free health care), but they're not comparable to my struggles obtaining medical services related to transsexuality.
I remember the cold winter day I finally got up to call up a professional to tell him "I had GID." It's over five years later now. I'm really privileged to have had a job and health insurance for all of those five years, yet I'm still constantly battling to have essential medical needs me, and the double bind the APA created is partly responsible. I also remember the Spring day I found out that I had lost an acquaintance, in part due to the hopelessness she felt in her attempts to access health care. Our welfare is not a trivial issue. I wish the APA would try to see the issue of trans health care from the viewpoint of those of us with the most at stake.
3) The binary, it burns.
Okay, the working group does use the phrase "the other gender (or some alternative gender different from one's assigned gender)." This is an improvement over DSM-IV. Still, "A strong conviction that one has the typical feelings and reactions of the other gender"? WTF does this mean? You know, as a lesbian who loves football, I'm compelled to point out the obvious: I'm a woman. By the way, I was seriously tormented for years and years by the fact that I knew I wasn't a boy, yet was attracted to girls and liked football. There are girls like that. And thanks to previous work, the APA no longer classifies some of such women as mentally ill! The APA is sending a message that young me wasn't really who I thought I was. And that current me isn't who I say I am. It's also implying that lots and lots of people are deviating from the "typical", from the way they naturally should be. Seriously APA, you're hurting a ton of folks here, and not just the trans ones.
FWIW, today is the last day the APA is soliciting feedback on the draft.
-----------------------------
*I use the term to mean people who identify as the gender not assigned to them at birth.
**"Gender non-conforming" is the best term I've heard for referring to folks who either identify outside of the false male/female dichotomy, or who otherwise express themselves in a manner substantially inconsistent with societal expectations for a person of their assigned gender. The idea here is that you don't need to identify as "transsexual" to get caught up in transphobia.
***I'm not as familiar with the way the psychiatric establishment treats (and has treated) trans men. I suspect this stems from a parallel unfamiliarity on the part of the psychiatric establishment.
Today's Edition of "Conniving and Sinister"
See Deeky's archive of all previous Conniving & Sinister strips here.
[In which Liss reimagines the long-running comic "Frank & Ernest," about two old straight white guys "telling it like it is," as a fat feminist white woman and a biracial queerbait telling it like it actually is from their perspectives. Hilarity ensues.]
Bread and Teaspoons Twenty-Nine
Good morning (unless it isn't where you are, in which case I wish you Good $TIME_PERIOD), and welcome to this week's installment of Shakesville's networking post, Bread and Teaspoons*.
This is a (theoretically**) weekly post providing a spot for Shakers to network a little with one another, see if we can help each other out some.
NB: I have added a bit to the guidelines for what’s on-topic here, to allow the posting of useful job resources for progressives.
Also remember, if you’re running or part of a small business, you’re encouraged to drop links here for that. I’m happy to see Shakers makin’ their own way in whatever manner that is.
Here's how it works: There should be four sorts of comments here.
1) You comment here with any details of work you're seeking: where, what, that sort of thing. You give an e-mail address at which you can be reached - feel free to set up a special e-mail for it, if you don't want to post your regular one for the world to spam - and if another Shaker has a lead, they can contact you directly to pass it along.
A work-seeking comment should include:
Please do NOT include information such as your full name or telephone number, as this is and will remain a public post, and once posted, there's no taking it back (because it'll be spidered by a search engine, not because we don't want you to).
It is explicitly alright to comment to this each week with similar info.
For example, if I were to comment - rather than taking advantage of my position by posting it up here in the OP! - I'd leave one saying:
I'm a professional translator of French, German and Russian, with 17 years of experience. I'm looking for basically any translation job, academic, commercial, personal, genealogical, you name it, with one exception: I do not currently have certification, so if you need a certified translator (usually for legal docs: birth certificates, divorce decrees, wills), you need someone else.
I am also available as a writer or editor, for academic, journalistic, creative, marketing-oriented or any other type of written communication. Basically, if you'll pay me, I'll write or edit it. My company website is found here.
You can contact me for business purposes through my business address, cait@cogitantes.net.
2) The second type of comment would be task offering: if you've got a job you think might suit someone here, consider posting it as a comment. Use the same guidelines as above: give general information here, and specific information when you exchange e-mails. An offered task might look something like this:
I have a doctoral thesis which needs proofing and editing by Thursday, is anyone available? You can reach me at ABDShaker@shakesville.miskatonic.edu.
We also welcome appropriate job resource sites for progressives, e.g. Canada’s Charity Village, which specializes in jobs with non-profits and NGOs.
3) The third kind of comment I'd love to see is success stories! We’d love to know when this works out, and people actually find some employment through our efforts. If you feel like sharing, tell us how it worked out for you. :)
4) If you’re a progressive working for or running a small business and would like to include a pointer to your business, you may do so. If you’ve never otherwise posted before here (i.e., you’re a lurker), I may check in with you to be certain you’re a Shaker and not a spammer. If it turns into a spamfest, or we start getting businesses that are of dubious progressive credentials, we may need to revisit this one, but let’s give it a try.
So, that's what we'd like to see.
What we do NOT want to see:
So there. Have at it, Shakers, for Bread and Teaspoons!
Important disclaimers: Shakesville makes no endorsement or claim as to the capabilities of anyone commenting to this post, and anyone considering hiring someone should be prepared to treat it like any other business situation: DO YOUR DUE DILIGENCE. We're not doing any screening of this, so you'll want to make sure you check references, use safe-payment procedures (e.g., ask for a deposit), all the things you'd do when working with any stranger on the Internet. While this is intended for Shakers in general, remember that there is no real obstacle to being able to comment here, and do the things you need to do to keep yourself safe.
* As might be evident, this is an intentional reference to Bread and Roses, a longtime slogan of the left. In this case, though, my hope is that if we achieve steady bread, we will use it to power our teaspoon use.
** "Theoretically", because sometimes my life or my depression interfere. :)
The last several Bread and Teaspoons: Twenty-Three. Twenty-Four. Twenty-Five.
Twenty-Six. Twenty-Seven. Twenty-Eight.
RIP Dr. Dorothy Height
Dr. Dorothy Height, iconic civil rights champion, died today. She was 98 years old.
Dorothy I. Height, 98, a founding matriarch of the American civil rights movement whose crusade for racial justice and gender equality spanned more than six decades, died early Tuesday morning of natural causes, a spokesperson for the National Council of Negro Women said.And sexuality: She was also a vocal supporter of gay equality.
Ms. Height was president of the National Council of Negro Women for 40 years. … As a civil rights activist, Ms. Height participated in protests in Harlem during the 1930s. In the 1940s, she lobbied first lady Eleanor Roosevelt on behalf of civil rights causes. And in the 1950s, she prodded President Dwight D. Eisenhower to move more aggressively on school desegregation issues. In 1994, Bill Clinton awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor.
In a statement issued by the White House, President Obama called Height "the godmother of the Civil Rights Movement and a hero to so many Americans."
"Dr. Height devoted her life to those struggling for equality . . . witnessing every march and milestone along the way," Obama said. "And even in the final weeks of her life -- a time when anyone else would have enjoyed their well-earned rest -- Dr. Height continued her fight to make our nation a more open and inclusive place for people of every race, gender, background and faith."
There are fictional stories told about characters who bear witness to important historical events, characters like Forrest Gump or Harry Flashman. Dr. Height's real life was like one of those characters; she stood in attendance at nearly all of the important moments in 20th century Black American history, drove and bore witness to the greatest progressive victories for the nation. She was the only woman seated on the platform when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech.
In her acceptance speech at the 1997 Human Rights Campaign National Dinner, at which she was honored for her civil rights work, Dr. Height said: "Civil rights are civil rights. There are no persons who are not entitled to their civil rights. … We have to recognize that we have a long way to go, but we have to go that way together."
She was a woman who believed in teaspoons. And gorgeous hats.
Monica has more.
Blog Note
Apparently some people are getting error messages in place of images, because our photo host is under the misapprehension that I don't already pay for an unlimited bandwidth account, even though I do.
So...my apologies for the inconvenience. I've got a help ticket in to them and hopefully we'll be able to resolve the issue promptly.
Title IX Loophole to Be Closed
The Obama administration plans to change the so-called Title IX policy which governs gender equality in sports, eliminating what some women's rights supporters claim is a Bush-administration loophole in compliance, according to a senior White House official.Vice President Biden will announce the revision today.
...The 1972 Title IX education amendment required gender equity in sports programs at educational institutions receiving federal funds.
Universities initially faced three requirements to prove they were complying with the law: that the proportion of male and female students participating in sports at the university was proportional to the number of male and female students enrolled in the university; that the university was expanding opportunities for women students in athletics; and that the university was meeting the athletic abilities and interests of women students.
In 2005, the administration of former President George W. Bush changed the third requirement, allowing the university to prove it was meeting the athletic interests of women by carrying out surveys of students' interest in sports. The NCAA and women's sports advocates said a low response to such surveys could be interpreted as indicating a lack of interest in sports when actually it could indicate a lack of availability of sports activities.
Under the new policy, universities will no longer be able to claim that a low response to surveys means a low interest in sports, the official said. The new rules still will allow the use of surveys, but universities will have to go further to prove they are complying.
The offiicial told CNN the new rules "restore the system to what it was before" the 2005 change. That rule "made it easier for universities to avoid complying with Title IX," the official said.
Question of the Day
Could this [thing] be any fucking cuter?!
I figured we could use a thread of Very Cute Things. Please insert your own X into the question and provide photographic, video, and/or audio evidence as applicable!
Could this mama three-toed sloth with her behbee be any fucking cuter?!
Scenes from a Tea Party
There's a lot of whatthefuckery to behold here, but former Republican Representative (and presidential candidate!) Tom Tancredo suggesting that we "just send Obama back to Kenya" is really, truly breathtaking.
Quote of the Day
"Many women who do not dress modestly ... lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which (consequently) increases earthquakes."—Senior Iranian cleric Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi.
Sure.
P.S. Pat Robertson called. He wants his shtick back.
[H/T to Shaker Broce.]
