!

http://jezebel.com/5871175/awesome-boys-club-works-to-stop-violence-against-women

Gendercide

Star BU Hockey Player Assaults a Woman

And for once, it's actually handled properly! He immediately lost all affiliation with the team even though he was their most vital player, he is being prosecuted to the full extent of the law, and his behavior is being assessed by the university and it is expected he will receive either academic suspension or expulsion. Go BU!

UCF Professor and Masculinity

UCF Creative Writing professor David Poissant is featured today on the Good Men Project!

Research on Men and Masculinity

I came across this journal while doing research for another class and I thought I'd share it for fellow psychology students or anyone interested in research :) The Journal is called the Journal of Psychology of Men and Masculinity. Some of the abstracts look really interesting and I'm sure you could get the full versions by logging onto UCF's library website.

Songs

I was driving around town for work when I really paid attention to Bruno Mars' latest hit song, "It will rain." It goes something like this "I'm making alot of sacrifices for you; don't you ever leave me baby or I may develop a substance abuse problem " It was alarming to me because I know I've heard my little sister and cousins singing along to this and commenting on how adorable it is. Songs with lyrics like this take away from the gravity of situations in which people do say these things and mean it. It makes it okay for young boys to tell their girlfriends to be ready to feel awfully guilty if they ever try to leave. After researching the song a little bit, it seems that it was produced for the new Twilight movie. A song like this goes along perfectly with a saga that romanticizes a boy staring at you while you sleep from your window.

Becoming a Gendered Body: Practices of Preschools

Came across this and thought it was interesting. I have a couple of friends that are education majors, and they talk about how many educators enforce gender stereotypes within classrooms. Looking back on my preschool education, there were definitely a couple of instances where I was discouraged from doing certain activities because of my gender.

Military’s newly aggressive rape prosecution has pitfalls

In general it seems like there are more cases on rape and sexual assault being brought to trial than originally thought, but the actual charges being brought down are not as severe.  Only 27 percent of those brought up on charges were actually convicted which is a problem.  This was a very interesting read which gave some incite into how the military might be dealing with cases like this.  There are definitely still problems, but it seems that the rate of the cases being brought up and convicted has improved.  It is not being pushed under the rug quite as much as before.

Mobilising Men to End Violence Against Women

 The UN have funded and are still funding money to get men to help end violence against women.  The money is going to around 339 projects going on around the world which are trying to help in this goal.  The only way to end violence is to try to educate others and keep fighting for what is right even when hard.  

Counting the social cost of masculinity

This article really looked at how the biggest thing that was not brought up about the riots in England was how drastically the rioters were men.  Why was this key information not really talked about and what does it say about the views of masculinity?  The article also goes into other moments when men were violent which still goes to the question about are views on masculinity.  It seems like a trend to either not mention the range of men being violent or just not really making it seem important.  It is much harder for everyday people to recognize what some of the issues are in their country if the information is not given or skewed.

Sylvania SilverStar Ultra Headlights Video - Advance

The first thing I notice about this commercial was the fact that the description of what a red blooded American is which I found fit very well with the ideas of masculinity that seem to be pushed on society.  It was pushed as if there is not reason that a red blooded American would leave watching a football game unless it is for a good reason.  It also makes it seem like the commercial is saying that someone is not a red blooded American if they are not watching football.  This also takes away that women could install the lights and that women like football.

A Better Life

Watched this film a couple of weeks ago… a definite “MUST SEE”. It’s a film about a single father and son, whose bond grows stronger while in search of the "American Dream".

Link to their FB Page and Trailer …
http://www.facebook.com/ABetterLifeMovie#!/video/video.php?v=947584605930

Church bans interracial marriage..."It sure ain't Christian. It ain't nothing but the old devil working."

Not a new article but it was posted on my friend's FB page and it left me shocked. Ive never realized how lucky I am to belong to groups and communities are are so open-minded and accepting of EVERYONE!!!

here is the video of this article from CNN.com
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2011/12/02/erin-gulnare-stella-harviille.cnn

A Message To Women From A Man: You Are Not “Crazy”

I thought this article was very interesting and brought up a definite problem.  It was more like a message to everyone instead of just women.  The article was definitely not perfect, but it brought up an issue that is a problem.

Snuff Films

Click the title for a link to a Jezebel (I know, I know) article about snuff films. I wish the author held delved further into how those how consume snuff porn live. We've talked about (particularly with Wresting with Manhood) how media and real life are interrelated. Snuff films are particularly disturbing.
Nothing is ever "just entertainment" and nothing is ever "just porn." This is an extreme case of the mix between sex and violence.

Any more thoughts on the consumption of snuff films and how it relates to a violently sexual masculinity?

The VOX Blog

If you have a tumblr, make sure to follow the VOX blog (and my service learning project) at prochoiceinflorida.tumblr.com

How to be a fan of problematic things

I thought this was an interesting read and actually very true.  It is hard to find something that is not problematic is some way, which is why avoiding everything is not really a great option.  The main thing is to not try to justify what is problematic, but to acknowledge it and move on if still a fan of it.  This could become a good teaching moment for others when explaining why it is problematic.  I watched Disney movies all my life, but I never took any of the bad messages, but only the good ones away from the movies.  A big part of that was how my parents talked to me and my sister about the movies.  I still love Disney movies, but I have know problem acknowledging that there are some problematic messages in their movies.

http://www.socialjusticeleague.net/2011/09/how-to-be-a-fan-of-problematic-things/

I've been transcribing some of the stories my dad use to tell me as a child. As a kid, I didn't realize the kinds of messages I was receiving and devouring to straighten me into some kind of Athia.

Before I had feminism, I learned resistance from narratives of decolonization. Feminism has given me language, yes. But it has only ever been one part of the picture.

So, I hope ya'll enjoy. Good luck in finals week!

...

Back in my country, a long time ago when your Dada was a little boy, there was a town where you could find the most beautiful saris in the whole world. It wasn't any ordinary sari. The silk cloth was seven feet long and could fit inside a tiny, tiny matchbox.

It all started with the master weaver. Even before he made the most beautiful sari, he was very famous. He moved his thumbs across the silk like water. People came from all across the country to watch his fingers work. But he was not very happy. He knew that the more and more silk he used, the more and more tired the silk worms became and that when he died, he would have to answer to Allah why he worked the silk worms so hard. So, he would pray every morning during Fajr that Allah show him guidance--how could he still feed his family and all the people dependent on him in the town without torturing the silk worms?

He finally got his answer. One day, while he was collecting silk from a family of silk worms, the littlest of the worms crawled onto his thumb. She said: "My parents are very tired. Please, let them rest." And then she was gone. So, the master weaver decided that he would use only one kind of silk and as little of it as possible. It took him two years to weave the sari and when he returned to the same family of silk worms to show them his work, they were very happy. The material was so strong and so well crafted, it would last an entire lifetime. Now, the silk worms were rested and said that they wanted to share their silk with him.

For a little while, everyone was very happy. The master weaver was able to share his good fortune with the whole town. Everyone had enough food to eat and work to do. But this happiness didn't last long. News traveled very far about the master weaver's extraordinary saris--all the way to the Queen of England. The Queen was a very proud woman and wanted to gloat about the riches of her colonies. She demanded that she have a sari for herself. So, she sent her army to the little town with the message that the master weaver was to make a sari especially for her.

The master weaver became very nervous. He knew that if he made a sari for the Queen, then she would demand he make one for all her family and all her royal subjects. He would have to work the silk worms until they died and would have to answer to Allah. The army took him to England were they kept him in a small cottage outside of the palace. For many days he refused to work until the army threatened to destroy his town. He sent a message to the Queen that he would only make the sari for her if she promised that he had to make just one. She agreed and he began work.

After three years of working on the sari, he finally presented it to the Queen. She was very pleased at the wonderful material. She then became very jealous that she could not show off how magnificent her riches from her colonies were to the rest of the world. She demanded that he make her more and more saris. He refused. She knew she could not force him any more, but she wanted to make sure that no one else could ever ask him to make them a sari. So, she had her guards cut off his thumbs and blind him and had her army burn all the other saris he ever made. She kept her sari in the matchbox and it's now in the museum in London.

When the master weaver returned to his home, he was ashamed of himself. He thought he let down all the people of the town and they would now all starve. As he walked around his garden, he felt something crawl up his hand. It was the same little silk worm come to comfort him. She said: "You did the right thing. If you had agreed to make her more saris, she would have worked all of us to death, from my family to yours." The master weaver knew that the little worm was right. They would find another way. They always had.

We Complain About Treatment of Rape Victims, but it Doesn't Compare to This...

It is true that even here in America there are a lot of issues with how victims of rape are treated, but I don't think it can really compare to the kind of story in this article about Afghanistan. It is well know that women hold little to know power even over their own bodies in Afghanistan and in many cases a woman can be imprisoned for being raped because it is seen as having sex out of wedlock. In this case, the article title seems to be a positive and unexpected one, a rape victim having been imprisoned is being pardoned. In reality, upon reading the article it is apparent that it is actually a tragic story. The woman is only being released because she has agreed to marry her attacker. Not only was she raped, impregnated as a result, gave birth to the child behind bars, but now her only option for getting out is to marry the one who put her in the situation and exerted power and control over her. The worst part? The attacker was a member of her family, though it is not disclosed who he was. There was a film made about the events, but the European Union blocked the documentary from being released to protect the women it featured. We are fortunate to not have to deal with these extremes in victim treatment, but there is room for improvement all around.

This is the stuff I appreciate from Yahoo!

I posted this to my Facebook wall in October and decided that since I bad mouthed Yahoo! for their crap on dating advice, etc. I should share a redeeming post of an photo found in Yahoo! News which links to the original article at ABCNews.com that I would not have otherwise known about. I am pretty impressed because the school realized that a "female identifying person" who happens to have a gay orientation can be a "king." At least the structures of king and queen have been questioned, but I think they should get rid of the whole tradition all together.

P.S. She also just happens to be badass too:

Arellano posted a statement to those who opposed her on her Facebook wall that read: "For all the girls who think tradition should be continued, go back to the kitchen, stop having sex before you're married, get out of school and job system, don't have an opinion, don't own any property, give up the right to marry who you love, don't vote, and allow your husband to do whatever he pleases to you. Think about the meaning of tradition when you use it in your argument against us."

Yahoo! Does it Again

Why does Yahoo! insist on putting this gendered crap on their site? I would hate to assume mainstream society feeds into this bullshit so much that they need to be fed it every other day. I appreciate much of the information Yahoo! puts out there, aside from the celebrity gossip and whatnot, but this is kind of ridiculous... Enough already.

Rise Up UCF

I attended the Rise Up UCF rally today to support the cause and not only had a blast, but was impressed by the turnout and movement of my fellow students. It was refreshing to see such passion for a cause and to hear so many eloquent speakers trying to make a difference. And I think we did make a difference, we were heard, and I was happy to see that many of the legislators took flyers containing the information about our protest. I think we raised awareness through the march and entire rally. Not only were we a sight to be seen, but many people joined the cause as we made our way around campus spreading the word. I can only hope that this opened the eyes and ears of the people in office making such devastating decisions such as cutting Bright Futures and financial aid, raising tutition, and dividing the voting districts to suppress the voices of us students. I have attached a link to UCF's Knight News which contains an article and video of the event.

On state violence, white male privilege, and 'Occupy'

This article states a lot of my issues with the Occupy movement.

What do y'all think?

Anti-Choicers on Our Campus.

Yesterday, suprisingly a group of anti-choice protesters came to campus and set up shop right in front of the library and the Math & Physics building handing out "literature" about abortions with doctored photos, misinformation and flat out lies about embryology and fetal growth and disturbing messages for passers by. A member of Student Labor Action Project at UCF (SLAP) and supporter of VOX and Planned Parenthood saw the protestors and called me. We sent out a call to action as quick as we could and 20 UCF campus activists came to support choice and women. We were forced (by 'free speech zone' regulations to set up right in the middle of their protest, while they were on the outskirts of the grass and the side walk, our table (NOW/VOX) decorated with condoms, literature about prevention, abortion, and reproductive environmental justice, sat in the middle and we spread out in between their signs and photos to support the pro choice UCF community. Here are a few photos from the day.

Here are some pictures from the rally this morning at the Fairwinds Alumni Center where close to 100 UCF students and community members protested the CFLD. These people raise our tuition, continue to cut scholarships and Bright Futures, and are content with us not having affordable access to healthcare while also suppressing our votes. They know that students have immense strength especially in Orlando, and this morning our voices were heard (literally from inside the building). They know why we were there and what our grievances are.

Its World AIDS Day

Although scientific research and prevention has come a long way since the first reported cases of AIDS , today it continues to take hold on the lives of women, children, people of color, and other disenfranchised groups. Student leaders, activists, government representatives and community leaders need to continue to make sure that money is going towards reducing violence against women and promoting comprehensive sex education programs.

(Click the title for an excellent article by Feminist Campus)

Gender Benders

This was kind of a fun slideshow of various actors and actresses who have crossed gender lines for certain movie roles.

Thought ya'll might enjoy it.

Beautiful Ad For Ending Marriage Discrimination

Its definitely time...

I'm Christian... Unless Your Gay

A fantastic must-read. While not directly related to Masculinity, I think we all could all use a little more of this sort of thinking and being. We are all guilty of judging someone at one point or another and judgement breeds prejudice and hate. How can we be more accepting, more understanding and less judgmental in our every day lives?