8/10/11

Grasping at Sexist Straws

Ok. I can't seem to let this go, though I think it's had enough airtime. I've become increasingly frustrated about all the Michele Bachmann sexist Newsweek cover talk.

Everyone is weighing in on this, so I'm going to as well. I don't think it's sexist.

I did some quick googling research on Newsweek, their covers and was there anything notable about their coverage of women.

In the discussion of Bachmann's deer-in-the-headlights expression, people continuously refer to the infamous Sarah Palin Newsweek cover. You know the one, she's sporting her super short running shorts. All the Republicans decried, "Oh my! This is sexist!" Really?

I'm tired of the sexism card being used when convenient. How about when it comes to voting on bills that affect women's health, welfare, financial empowerment? Is it not sexist when you push for legislation that de-funds clinics and programs that give specifically empower women to live day-to-day?

What's interesting is that no one seems to reference the "new" Newsweek. When the new layout was unveiled by Tina Brown, the new Editor-in-Chief, it was Hillary Clinton on the cover, looking confident and in charge. Check it out here.

I think it's great. And do you know what that edition of Newsweek was covering? The 150 women that shake the world.

Further, The Daily Beast, which is part of Newsweek's website, has a WHOLE section titled "Women in the World: Stories + Solutions." It profiles different women in the world, challenges they face, what is being done to solve them.

In addition, the website puts together an annual conference: "Women in the World Summit." It brings together women leaders from around the world to discuss solutions to the challenges all women face.

When putting together my first blog post discussing the media's treatment of women running for office, I remember reading that it's easy for one to see when candidates lose favorability with the media as their pictures become increasingly unflattering.

And I think that's what is happening with Michele Bachmann.

I felt somewhat vindicated yesterday when I read an article by Joan Walsh on Salon.com. She reached out to the Dalai Lama of feminism, Gloria Steinem, to get her take on the whole thing. Terry O'Neill, President of NOW, was recently quoted as using Steinem's test to figure out if this cover is sexist. The test is what would be the reaction if it happened to a man or would it ever be done to a man? O'Neill remarked that using this test results in it being sexist as it's never happened to a man (um, Howard "yyyeeee-hhhhaaa" Dean anyone?)

Steinem noted that O'Neill was right about her test, but felt the photo was borderline and the commotion may be "grasping at straws."

I have a feeling that as long as Bachmann and Palin are running, we have not heard the end of sexism accusations. I think it's good the conversation is going on, but I just hope that it's not used as part of either candidate's media strategy.

(The views expressed in this blog post is solely those of the author and not of CT NOW).

Posted by at No comments:
Labels: , , , , , , ,

Cameroon's Kah Walla Presses Her Presidential Bid | Womens eNews

Cameroon's Kah Walla Presses Her Presidential Bid Womens eNews
Posted by at No comments:

8/9/11

Sexist Newsweek Cover?

Is Newsweek's Michele Bachmann Cover Sexist?

By Jessica Grose: Slate.com






1312814230

The conservative blogosphere is out with guns blazing about the Michele Bachmann Newsweekcover photo. They're decrying Newsweek's anti-Republican bias, and they're also saying the photo is sexist. Tea Party queen Dana Loesch wrote of the wild-eyed Bachmann, "When your premise is an unflattering photo (and if you don’t have them you’re a liar or Miranda Kerr) to sell your bias, you just might be a chauvinist." (Loesch also invites readers to caption an unflattering photo of Newsweek editor Tina Brown). If you'll recall, two years ago, Newsweekfaced similar criticism for using this photo of Sarah Palin in her running shorts:

file

"The out-of-context Newsweek approach is sexist and oh-so-expected by now. If anyone can learn anything from it: it shows why you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, gender, or color of skin. The media will do anything to draw attention - even if out of context," Palin said at the time.

That the magazine has a liberal bias under Tina Brown is debatable (see this image of Mitt Romney as a character from the Book of Mormon for evidence that supports Loesch et. al.), but charges of ongoing sexism from the magazine have a lot more back up. Before that Romney cover, almost all of the male Republican candidates from previous years were portrayed in a serious light. It should be noted that these covers were before Brown's time--but so was the Palin cover. See the following images of John McCain and Mike Huckabee:

file
file

Even Rush Limbaugh--not a candidate, but a very prominent conservative--was not made out to be a joke:

file

I hate it when Michele Bachmann makes me defend her, but I'm with Loesch on this one: TheNewsweek cover was unnecessarily unflattering. I doubt Newsweek would portray a male candidate with such a lunatic expression on his face. As much as it pains me to admit it Bachmann is a legitimate candidate and major magazines should treat her like one.
Posted by at No comments:

8/8/11

How to Save the Planet? Scientist Says "EMPOWER WOMEN"

During an interview on WNPR’s “Where We Live” last week, prominent scientist Dr. Robert Ballard, who discovered the ruins of the Titanic in 1985, was asked how we should go about saving the planet.

His answer was simple: “Empower women.”

“That’s it,” he said. That’s number one.”

I wanted to stand up and cheer. He went on to say that he is a feminist, that he has a daughter (and a son), that he believes in women and he plans to hand over the reins of his latest expedition to his # 2, who is a woman. He then said that women will save the world because they are more nurturing, and less likely to lead us into war or blow up things. This made me pause a moment, because I would like to think that if women are going to save the world it’s because we are smart enough and capable enough to do it, not because we like to cuddle kittens and make nice meals. (Not to mention the fact that not all women conform to this stereotype of femininity.) But whatever. I liked his message enough to keep listening.

The show’s host asked Dr. Ballard about the prevailing wisdom that girls don’t excel in the sciences, and he again gave a succinct answer. “Bull.” Girls can excel in the sciences, and they do. What do readers think? Is the key to saving our planet this simple? If women do indeed end up coming up with important solutions to our most pressing environmental problems, will it be because we are nurturing, or is it more complicated than that?

http://www.yourpublicmedia.org/content/wnpr/where-we-live-robert-ballard-back-it
Posted by at 3 comments:

8/6/11

No Revolution for Egypt’s Women

July 30, 2011 (1 week ago)
By Joseph Mayton | DAWN.COM

Women protesters chant slogans as they gather in Tahrir Square, the focal point of the Egyptian uprising, Friday, July 15, 2011, in Cairo, Egypt. – AP Photo

CAIRO: Helping drive the January revolution in Egypt were women: young, old, married, single, mothers, daughters and sisters. Their contribution to the cause could not be overstated. They were in Cairo’s Tahrir Square in droves, creating the change that had eluded Egypt for decades. It was not just a man’s world on the streets.

Now, as Egypt looks to a new future, women are again being pushed aside in favor of the “politicians” (read here, men). There are no women on the constitutional committee; there were no women among the ten opposition leaders chosen to “negotiate” with the government during the revolution. It is a sad fact that Egypt must come to terms with in order to promote a new vision, and new society, that can be Egypt.

In March, Egyptian activists who had led the protest movement were apologising for the sexual assault on CBS correspondent Lara Logan in mid-February, as the country celebrated the end of the Hosni Mubarak era. Although saying sorry might seem appropriate, where are the apologies to the millions of Egyptian women: they have no voice, are pushed aside and society at large continues to live in denial of their worth.

There is the perception that non-Egyptian women, as evidenced by the Logan apology, are more important than the country’s citizens. Just ask Heba, a recent university graduate who was assaulted on the streets of Cairo’s upscale Zamalek neighborhood. When she went took the perpetrator to the police, they told her to forget the matter. “When I was about to leave after nothing was being done, the same captain turned to me and said ‘thank God it wasn’t a foreigner or a diplomat’s wife’. This is the problem, we Egyptians are not even treated with respect as citizens,” she believes.

Girls look back as they sit on a vehicle in Cairo, June 17, 2011. Earlier, on March 8, 2011, a protest by Egyptian women demanding an end to sexual harassment and equal rights turned violent when men verbally abused and shoved the demonstrators, telling them that they should go home where they belong. – Reuters Photo

According to the Egyptian Center for Women’s Rights (ECWR) nearly 70 per cent ofEgyptian women can relate a story of sexual violence. It is the hard truth facing Egypt in this transition period.

One of the new young leaders of the revolution, Google Executive Wael Ghonim, wrote on Twitter that “we need more girls” in reference to only one young woman being part of discussions with the military on the country’s future.

Ghonim is right: Egypt needs more women actively participating in politics. There were thousands of Egyptian women in Tahrir during the revolution, leading the push toward change. Unless we’re mindful of their involvement, though, they could very well be left out of their country’s future.

The fact remains that if Egyptian politicians and leaders wanted women to be more involved, they would be. There are a plethora of intelligent female leaders in the country, from opposition leader Gameela Ismail to the scores of young women who risked their lives for the betterment of the country in recent weeks.

Egypt has, for the past few weeks, talked about change. Women must be the number one priority for change for the country. The many women who took charge of the protests have been outspoken critics of the government, against sexual violence and have unified the country in ways that Egyptian men had been unable to do for decades.

Nehad Abu Komsan, the head of the ECWR, told me recently that until society’s mindset changes, stereotypes and misogyny will continue.

“Egyptians need to understand that this is a major problem that only in the past few weeks have we as a society been able to speak openly, but too many people are focused on the politics, while the social problems remain as concrete as ever,” she said.

Talking of the importance of women’s empowerment is all good and well, but the reality is that societies do not change through talk. Just ask Egyptians. What needs to happen is a concerted effort to locate those women who have invested their lives for the country, ask their opinions and put them on leadership councils and in direct discussion with the military.

Over the years, Abu Komsan and other leading women’s rights figures have repeatedly talked of the need for dialogue and a conversation to be sparked. This is the ideal time, she said, for such a debate to take place. The future of the revolution depends on the education and empowerment of Egyptian women. It can be done and doing so would, in Abu Komsan’s words “establish a new cultural understanding of how women are an important part of society.”

Egyptian women deserve better. It is their time to make a new country, for themselves and for their fellow citizens.

The writer is an American journalist based in Cairo and is the Editor-in-chief ofbikyamasr.com
Posted by at No comments:

8/5/11

Saudi Arabia's Ban on Women Drivers Challenged





As I was looking for a topic to blog on this week I came across an article that made me really upset. The article, "Women US Senators Press Saudi King on Driving Ban"discusses how US women senators in a letter pressed Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah to lift the countries ban on women drivers. This is a great act on the part of US women to improve the rights of women in Saudi Arabia. This act came out of the recent election of a Saudi Arabia women to the board of UN Women and the King's establishment of a university that allows women to study with men and allows them to drive on campus. This article reminded me of how unfair women are still treated and how few rights they have.



Hillary Clinton supported the recent protest of Saudi women who got behind wheels of cars on June 17th in an act to get the nation's ban lifted.


This ban forces women to depend on males to drive them everyone. It causes a lot of problems, especially for low income women and during emergencies. Women often can't get a ride to work, due to the cost of hiring a driver, which embarrasses them and makes it hard to keep a job.



When searching for other news on this subject I came across an article that discusses what happens when a Saudi women tries to change this law. She started a Facebook campaign to protest this ban and was arrested for it. She was released, but the terms of her release were not publicized. This campaign aimed to teach girls how to drive, at least in times of emergency. The traditional Saudi argument is that driving exposes women to sinful temptations like allowing them to mingle with police and mechanics, but if they drove they could avoid harassment from their male drivers and have their dignity, including keep a job.

Do you think the courageous act of these brave US senators and Saudi women will help lift this ban?
Posted by at 1 comment:

We need more women in STEM jobs!

Study: Women Aren't Taking Science And Tech Jobs

Jessica Kim | August 3, 2011, 5:46PM


A report released Wednesdsay by the U.S. Commerce Department highlights the continuing lack of women in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) jobs -- despite their equal numbers on college campuses and in the workforce.

Women currently hold fewer than a quarter of all STEM jobs, according to the commerce department. Their low numbers seem to start from college campuses, where women are less likely to study the sciences. In 2009, women graduated with only 27 percent of science, math, and engineering degrees awarded that year.

But getting the degree seems to be only part of the equation for women, who, even with a STEM degree, are nevertheless less likely to pursue an occupation in the sciences than are their male counterparts.

Commerce_ESA_Gender_STEM_Chart.jpg

While 40 percent of men with a STEM degree will use it, only 26 percent of women do.

Getting more of the populace, and more women, to go into the field is important to spurring innovation and economic growth, said Acting Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank in a conference call with reporters.

Some opt to enter into other fields, such as education or healthcare. The report speculates that reasons for this could be socio-cultural in nature: "a lack of female role models, gender stereotyping, and less family-friendly flexibility in the STEM fields."

The employment situation hasn't improved much since 2000. Female representation in engineering, the physical and life sciences, and STEM management has marginally improved, but dropped in the computer sciences. But overall, it remains the same.

The report also notes that the gender wage gap still exists in America, where women earn less than men on average, even after controlling for education and age. But holding a STEM job reduces the gender wage gap, though a gap still exists.

Compared to men holding STEM jobs, women with similar positions earn 14 percent less. In contrast, women generally earn 21 percent less than men in fields outside of science, according to the commerce department.

But where is the greatest disparity? Not between the sexes but within the ranks of women themselves, where women with STEM jobs earn 33 percent more than women who choose other industries.

Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)