RESPECT WOMEN. STOP MISOGYNY.

Poem written by an 11 year old Afghan girl 

This poem was recorded in a NYT magazine article about female underground poetry groups in Afghanistan. An amazing article about the ways in which women are using a traditional two line poetry form to express their resistance to male oppression, their feelings about love (considered blasphemous), and their doubts about religion. 

One of the best articles I’ve read all year. Here’s the link

So, it seems that after we reblogged that picture of the Indian Snow White, some of y’all have been a little uneasy. Two things that I want to address are:

Why do we think portraying a white character as another race ok when we “go crazy” when a character of color is whitewashed?

Ok, so this picture is a racebent version of Snow White. Racebending is NOT the same thing as whitewashing. Why? Because PoC are VERY underrepresented in media so when you take a character that was actually intended to be a PoC and make them white as well, you’re robbing PoCs of a rare chance to see someone like them being represented in the media. Racebending, however, is kind of undoing (if you will) the mass-whitewashing that goes on in the entertainment industry. It’s not depriving white people of anything because they are in EVERYTHING! Also, most racebending is done by fandoms, not by the entertainment industry. As such, it doesn’t even have the potential to deprive anyone of anything; all it does is make people feel just a little better.

This would promote shadeism in India because she’s Snow White; should she be called something else?

I can’t even…

In 2008, African-American Muslim student Balayla Ahmad enrolled in Connecticut’s University of Bridgeport with hopes of becoming a chiropractor. Instead, she became of a victim of sexual harassment. Distressed by the repeated sexual advances and “graphic offensive comments” of a male student, Ahmad reported the harassment and “fears for her safety” to multiple teachers, who urged her to say nothing, and finally the university’s president and dean. The dean told Ahmad, “My hands are tied. What do you suggest I do?”

Sexual harassment is probably the most common type of gender or sex-based discrimination that happens in employment or in the workplace. However, no matter how rampant it is, many people are easily influenced by some rumors or make-believe stories about it without bothering to know the facts. Here are some of the myths and facts that concern sexual harassment.

Sexual harassment is rare.

Like what has been mentioned, sexual harassment is not rare and on the contrary, is actually widespread. Around 40 to 60 percent of working women had to hire Los Angeles Harassment Lawyer after experiencing such conduct.

Women who were sexually harassed brought it upon themselves because of the way they look, dress, or behave.

Yes it’s true that many women prefer to wear clothes that show their assets or a little skin, but that doesn’t mean that they do this for other people or just to get harassed. Harassment happens not because women dress provocatively or instigate sexual activity in order to get promoted, it happens because some supervisors or officials became fond of their power. According to studies, physical appearance, type of dress, age, and behavior do not affect the incidence of sexual harassment. One thing that’s true though is that 99 percent of cases involve women.

Most sexual harassment cases are trivial and are nothing more than flirtation.

Some say that the seriousness of most harassment cases was exaggerated. After all, it is still possible that maybe the alleged harasser is just really interested with the female employee.

However, studies indicate that it has nothing to do with flirtation, or sincere sexual or social interest. The victims just find the conduct offensive, insulting, and frightening that some of them are forced to leave their jobs to avoid harassment, or experience severe psychological or physical health problems as a result.

Many women make up stories of sexual harassment as a way to exact revenge at their employers or other people who have angered them.

A measly one percent, or even less, of sexual harassment complaints are found false, according to research. In fact, even if they are truly justified to do so, women rarely file harassment complaints.

Ignore it and it will go away.

Research has also proven that ignoring harassment is not effective in actually making it stop– it may even be seen as agreement or encouragement.

Victims of sexual harassment, especially women, are encouraged to get the help of an expert Los Angeles Employment Lawyer and file a harassment lawsuit against the alleged harasser as soon as possible in order to put a stop to such malicious conduct.

The Silent War is a social awareness campaign about rape in South Africa illustrated and designed by Greg Richards.

“As there are six colors in the South African flag I developed six different areas of rape to raise awareness towards. Each poster carries a different colour of the flag. The six areas are: child rape; why men rape; woman’s chance of being raped versus learning to read; South Africa being the rape and HIV capital of the world; women are primitively referred to as fair game by men; and the frequency of rape incidents per day. For each image the person is looking directly at the viewer to create a direct communication of the campaign’s message.” writes Richards.

Judge Orders Military To Release Sexual Assault Information

A federal district court judge ruled yesterday that the military has been too slow to respond to a Freedom of Information Act request for its sexual violence data. There are an estimated 19,000 reports (PDF) of sexual assault in the military each year — a number that is rapidly rising — and both the Service Women’s Action Network (SWAN) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) are seeking more information on the problem, arguing that the only way to begin to solve it is to know all the facts.

In a press release, the ACLU outlined one of the military’s reasons for not responding, and U.S. District Court Judge Mark R. Kravitz’s reaction:

In one example, the Army Crime Records Center claimed it couldn’t provide records about “sexual assault” because its records are organized by specific criminal offenses, not under the generic heading of “sexual assault.”

“’Sexual assault’ is easily read as encompassing rape and other non-consensual sexual crimes defined in the Army’s offense codes,” Kravitz wrote in his order.“The fact that the agency was unwilling to read the Plaintiffs’ request liberally to include such terms seems to be almost willful blindness.”

The military places sexual assault cases into a special category: MST, or Military Sexual Trauma, which puts the onus on the victims by citing their trauma and grouping together all incidents of rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment. But specific incidents have emerged in lawsuits,testimonials, documentaries, and the Veterans’ Administration has concluded that incidents are under-reported.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has vowed to reduce the number of sexual assaults, but the ACLU and SWAN argue only a full account of where and when the incidents occurred, as well as documentation of how they were handled, can lead to solving the problem. Those groups will get what they are hoping for: Judge Kravitz’s ruling mandates that the military turns over its records by May 15.

“Short army film on sexual harassment and sexual assault awareness”

A women’s rights protest in Tunis. Image via Tunisia Live

You cannot avoid it. Men are in the street with you, and you have to go to school, you have to go to work. Because it is in our daily life, because it is our every day experience, we end up accepting it. You leave your house mentally prepared. You just deal with it

-Meriem Manar, a student in Tunis

It has been speculated why people sexually harass. One opinion is that the harasser hopes to gain something. Often, the sexual harassment includes pressure by supervisors on their employees to reciprocate sexual advances in order to protect or advance in a job (“A Definition of Rape,” 2012). This is called Quid pro quo (in Latin, “something for something”) sexual harassment. It occurs when someone’s “submission or rejection of sexual advances is used for employment decisions”. For example, getting or keeping a job, or granting sexual favors to get a promotion.

It is important to note that employers/physicians are strictly liable for quid pro quo sexual harassment initiated by supervisory employees of a practice.

Another type of sexual harassment is hostile environment sexual harassment. This occurs when an unwelcome environment is created through unwanted sexual conduct. 

Another speculated reason is because it is an abuse of power. The harasser enjoys bothering the harassed because it makes them feel powerful (“Power and Sexual Harassment” 2007).

Sources:

A Definition of Rape, Sexual Assault and Related Terms, (2012). Retrieved from http://www.clarku.edu/offices/dos/survivorguide/definition.cfm

Baum, Neil H. (December 2006).  Sexual harassment: What you can do to avoid it. Urology       Times, Vol. 34 Issue 15, p37-37. http://web.ebscohost.com/chc/pdf?sid=76015f4d-49ba-4edd-aebd-d9f83b07edb7%40sessionmgr12&vid=2&hid=25

This is a good documentary:

New Dehli: the rape capital of India…how the rise of Indian women to the workforce has not seen an equal amount of protection for women from groping, sexual harassment, or even rape. An interview with activists, young college students, etc.

Kids On Race: The Hidden Picture [CNN 360]

Mary Ward, a divorced gay woman, lost custody of her pre-teen daughter, Cassey, in 1995 when a Pensacola judge declared the girl should “live in a nonlesbian world.”

Judge Joseph Q. Tarbuck ruled Cassey’s father would make a better parent — even though John Ward had pleaded guilty to murdering his first wife in a rage over custody of their daughter, who years later said he tried to sexually abuse her.

In 1996, a Florida appeals court upheld Tarbuck’s decision and an anguished Mary Ward, 47, died of a heart attack soon after…