Money: Smart Techniques To Get A Raise

With Pay Equity Day having just passed slightly over a month ago, I stumbled across this article in the New York Times, that highlights several successful ways that empower women when it comes to negotiating their salaries. I found this article to be a must read road map for women who are looking to receive the salary they truly deserve. I encourage you to read this article and empower yourself! Please pass this on to any women who you feel can truly benefit from these simple and successful steps, it is about time we are finally paid what we deserve!

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/15/your-money/15money.html?pagewanted=2&ref=general&src=me

Our May Activist of the Month!

Julie Morrison!

Photo credit: (BETTINA HANSEN / HARTFORD COURANT / May 11, 2010)

For her dedication and commitment to humanitarian causes. Julie, a 16 year old young woman from Glastonbury, was recently featured in a news story in the Hartford Courant. She has inspired many of us with her leadership in raising funds to support Haiti. She continues to organize a "Hope for Haiti" can drive and is using her musical talent to organize an upcoming benefit concert that will also support Haiti. We believe that one person can make a difference and Julie is a terrific example of how one individual can have a big impact not only on her local community but the world as well. Thank you for all you've done and continue to do! You are an inspiration to women (especially young women!) everywhere

Seriously?

Ok, so my husband works in the sports field and yesterday he came home from work and said to me, "You are not going to believe what's on the cover of Triathlete Magazine." Then, he showed it to me and I gasped. Why, oh why, is the woman on the cover posed with her hand on her bathing suit bottom and why is this sports magazine that claims to empower athletes over-sexualizing female athletes?? Truth be told, that's really a rhetorical question because I already know the answer. I went out to the world wide web to find some "expert" opinions to share with you.

According to an article by the National Women's Sports Foundation:

"In response to the athletes who choose to expose their bodies on magazine covers and centerfolds, Mary Jo Kane, director of Tucker Center for Research on Girls and Women in Sport, said that it's their decision to do so, but for those who choose to show off their bodies for the sake of gaining respect for women in sports, this action trivializes and marginalizes women in sports. One of the major questions in this central discourse becomes why do athletes pose in these magazines and why is Nike promoting this type of campaign? If consumers are buying products because it is marketed in this way, they are feeding off of sexualized images of female bodies. In the marketing strategy, consumers receive a false assumption that suggests certain products can make the consumer equivalent to the model shown in the ad. The ad exposes a sexuality that lures consumers into buying the products because it's a physicality to aspire to. Similarly, athletes pose to lure viewers, specifically male viewers, into what they are doing – to bring attention to their sport. But the notion doesn't reflect their sport or their athletic accomplishments. Instead, it eroticizes their bodies and undermines their efforts to publicize female athletic strength and prominence in their sport."

And, here is a quote from Pat Griffin who is part of the social justice education program at the University of Massachusetts. "When it once was enough to feminize women athletes, now it is necessary to sexualize them for men," putting them in their place and making them non-threatening, Griffin said. "Instead of hearing, 'I am woman, hear me roar,' we are hearing, 'I am hetero-sexy, watch me strip.'"

So what can we do about this? Write a letter to the editor of these types of magazines and let them know how you feel! Here is the contact info for Triathlete Magazine:

Online Editor Liz Hichens: Lhichens@competitorgroup.com
Triathlon Editorial Director: T.J. Murphy, Tjmurphy@competitorgroup.com

Make Your Vagina Green! (ok, well not literally)

One of the sponsors of the CT NOW Love Your Body 5K is the fantastic company Seventh Generation. They have a somewhat new line of organic tampons and we'll be giving them out to participants of the run/walk.

You might be wondering, why organic tampons? Deanna Neil says it best:
"The average maxi-pad or tampon is chlorine bleached, which releases toxins into the environment when made, and could also leaves residuals in your or your loved ones vagina. Gross. No one wants a toxic vagina. The dioxins used in chlorine bleaching get stored in the fat in our bodies and never, ever go away. They just accumulate with time. And yes, they are carcinogenic. Maxi-pads are increasingly being made with plastics ... enough said."

You might be surprised to find out that organic tampons are reasonably priced, equal to OB or Kotex. If you want to try something totally new, go for the Diva Cup. I think I'm giving it a try this month! Perhaps I will report back, unless it's too much information for you, our readers!
Watch a video about the Diva Cup here: http://vimeo.com/8091361

Excited to be on Blogspot!

Hi all! CT NOW just moved our blog over to blogspot (it was at word press) so all the posts below are old posts that we moved over from our other blog. We are looking forward to using blogspot which is very user friendly. Please follow our blog!

A Must Read!

This Hartford Courant letter to the editor speaks for itself and needs no introduction. Please pass this on to any college student, faculty member, or parent you know. My only request is that after reading this please ask yourself how can I make a difference and help women across college campus's so they may never endure a similiar experience?
"Umasking the Commen College- Age Rapist"
http://www.courant.com/news/opinion/hc-freidman-college-rapists.artapr25,0,87848.story

Pay Equity Day 2010- Get Angry?

If there is one day that women should be shouting from the roof tops about their insufficient pay, it is today. Today is a reminder that women are still paid far less than their male counterparts, yet year after year this day goes by without much change occurring. I stumbled upon this blog post on momsrising.org, which dares women to use this knowledge of inequality in a radical way. The crazy idea, "get angry" and demand that your Senators pass the Paycheck Fairness Act NOW! Please read this blog for a little inspiration, and take action to help all women receive the salaries they deserve!
http://www.momsrising.org/blog/this-paycheck-fairness-day-lets-all-be-peggy-olson/