Mind the Gap

How do you get lots of feminists to come to your meeting?

Book a small room.

Why didn’t we think of that before?

13 people turned up for ‘Feminism and Organised Religion.’

Via Slant Truth.

The first Carnival of African Women will be held on Monday 9th October.

Kate Moss not involved.

Via The FWord.

Gosh, look at that hot, pouting African chick on the cover of The Independent! She looks pretty good doesn’t she? You know, considering all the AIDs and there not being enough food out there, she looks almost as good as a wester….. wait …. hang on a minute, that’s no hot African chick, that’s Kate Moss all blacked up with her face digitially altered.

What the Hell did The Independent think it was doing with this image? Is it supposed to be shocking, ironic, subversive? How unbelievably, racist, patronising and appropriative, not to mention objectifying. Kate doesn’t even look like a real live woman in this shot; she looks like a statue. Did they really think this pciture would make people engage with the issue seriously? Are they trying to “sex” up the plight of African women by using a model who’s image is so highly sexualised?

And this isn’t an isolated incident. Blacking up has been creeping back for a while. See Hannah Pool’s piece in the Guardian and Stroppyblog for a longer discussion.

Stop press: Via Bitch Lab here some more from Helen Kolawade.

I’m not going to write my own post on the Jessica at Feministing /Ann Althouse incident because I’m sure you’ve all read numerous posts on the subject by now. But, if you have been on Mars for the last week, Jessica from Feministing.com attended a blogger lunch with Bill Clinton, a female blogger took high offense at her appearance in the photograph and laid into her with stunning viciousness. Read Bitch PhD’s post for more.

While this attack needed to be addressed, it unfortunately occluded a much more serious issue, namely, the fact that Clinton met with exlcusively white bloggers, so I want to highlight a few responses here which I think are must reads, especially for white bloggers.

First Brownfemipower’s post on the “passionate racism” evident in one “liberal” bloggers response to a woc blogger’s anger:

the tone of this post (and other posts that it mimics) reflects a passionate racism within the blogosphere that is quite disturbing. the internet is the driving tool of communication these days, all of us know that. who gets listened to and who doesn’t is not only reflective of the racism in the real world, but is also instrumental in continuing the silencing of “problematic” communities (i.e. communities that don’t buy/challenge structural propaganda). does it really mean absolutly nothing that clinton had an all-white luncheon? no, let’s unpack that ambigous language. does it really mean absolutly nothing that a former head of a racist imperialist nation/state had a luncheon with a an all-white group of people who control the “new frontier” of media?

In the wake of the incident, a lot of people started talking about the need for “inclusivity” and “diversity” and Brownfemipower’s follow up post taking apart this language makes for more essential reading:

The fight for “inclusivity” and “diversity” also helps to position discussions of race/gender as something that can be addressed without any significant change in the hearts of those in power or the structure of oppression itself. In other words, POC, queers, females, trans, disabled folks can become soldiers who rape and set girls on fire JUST LIKE WHITE DUDES! White dudes don’t have to actually STOP raping and setting girls on fire.

And see also Spotted Elephant’s post choking on whiteness.

But where is the outrage from white bloggers over the fact that Clinton didn’t meet with a diverse group of bloggers? Where is the outrage that this meeting was swimming in white privilege? Why is the vast majority of outrage coming from people of color?Hey, white bloggers, I’m talking to YOU!

Please don’t discuss these posts here. If you want to join in the conversation, go to the blogs cited and talk to the bloggers themselves.

From Hu blog.

In the wake of sensationalized issues like the Pope’s speech or Brangelina, concerns about something as important as the Women’s Protection Bill has receive little media coverage, and sadly, scattered blog interest.

Let’s work to make this a cause célèbre amongst expat Pakistanis, Muslims and people everywhere.

Please write to President Musharraf in support of the Women’s Protection Bill in Pakistan. Letters from Muslim women could be especially effective. See the blog for more information.

Wow, the 23rd Carnival of Feminists is up at Lingual Tremors and it’s a brilliant as it is big.

And, via Sour Duck’s link blog, the 5th Erase Racism Carnival is up at Black Looks.

So you’ve got plenty to read, but I’d just like to add this post from Vegan Kid on why we shouldn’t take a hierarchical approach to the issue of oppression. Important stuff.

What a surprise, let’s all wring our hands because girls as young as 7 are being treated for “eating disorders.”

I mean, it’s not as if there’s anything dissonant about a society in which I can walk down the street, as I did this morning, to be threatened by a bus stop poster telling me to get a diabetes check up if my waist is bigger than 32cm only to be followed immediately by one exhorting me to eat the biggest Burger King burger yet.

Here in the UK, the media and government are currently screaming at us about THE OBESITY EPIDEMIC. It’s on its way people and it’s going to be an EPIDEMIC. No one will be safe from the OBESITY. Of course this is all a distraction to avoid talking about POVERTY, but little wonder some kids are increasingly scared of eating.

edit: not that I think that’s the primary cause, I just think the general social construction of food and eating as a site of intense anxiety can’t be helping.

The 7th Carnival Against Sexual Violence is up at Abyss2Hope.

You have until midnight tomorrow to submit posts for the next Carnival of Feminists at Lingual Tremors. The optional theme is feminism and healthcare.

This came via the ukfeministaction list. I edited it to remove the author’s personal contact details.

The Organisation for Women’s Freedom in Iraq is a feminist anti-fundamentalist Iraqi NGO which seeks to empower women and protect them from state-sanctioned, sectarian and domestic violence. We are currently working on raising awareness in the UK and getting more people involved in our activism.

If you care about the situation of women in Iraq and would like to help in any way, we would love to hear from you. Involvement is open to people of any ethnic background, gender or religion. If you want to volunteer, write articles, donate, campaign,brainstorm, attend a fundraising event or just receive email updates we would love to hear from you. If you work for a charity or NGO and would like to work together, that would be wonderful. We would also be happy to talk to you if you are a journalist and you’re interested in writing about us or about the reality of life in Iraq.

Current OWFI projects include setting up women’s shelters in Iraq (we have two at the moment but many more are needed), organising speak-out events for victims of rape and torture, raising awareness worldwide and lobbying for women-friendly government. Many of our members have close links with other feminist Mid-Eastern groups such as RAWA, gay and lesbian Mid-Eastern groups, and anti-war anti-fundamentalistgroups world-wide.

For more information please visit Equality in Iraq and Houzan Mahmoud.