Where are you from? Part 1
I want to begin a project about, for lack of a term, what I’m calling “fromness”. That is, the sense that you belong somewhere, there is a beacon calling out to you, a sense of home. Perhaps you don’t have that sense, perhaps you crave it, perhaps you miss it, perhaps it doesn’t really figure [...]
...read moreReconsider Columbus Day
In the U.S., today is the National Observance of Columbus Day. While perhaps the least celebrated of all U.S. public holidays, its continued existence and observance is incredibly disturbing, as the video above by Reconsider Columbus Day notes. Transcript: The black and white video features a number of alternating unidentified individuals facing the camera and [...]
...read moreRaising the dead
originally published at What Tami Said I’ve been trying to raise the dead. With faded photographs, copied records, old death certificates, family hearsay and e-mails from long-lost cousins. I am an amateur family historian. And this is what I do. Here is one rule of resurrection. It is easier to bring a dead man to [...]
...read more
Tuesday True Blood Roundtable, “Everything is Broken”
Greetings, fangbangers. As per usual, Sally, Thomas, and I weigh in on Sunday’s episode below the cut, where there are spoilers, recriminations, and much discussion of eye candy. And now for the weather. Tiffany? TRIGGER WARNING: This recap includes discussion of rape and violence against women.
...read moreWe’ve come a long way, baby?
The other day, I woke up and threw on running shorts and a sports bra and went for a jog. I’m in Boston for the summer, so I headed towards the Common which takes me by Copley Square. There’s a big marble circle in the ground with all the names of the Boston Marathon winners [...]
...read moreSupporting Abortion from the Shadows
Over at The New York Times’ Magazine, Emily Bazelon has a must-read article on the future of abortion providers in America. There’s a lot to digest and think about in the piece, but for those of those familiar with the dismal statistics on abortion providers (a 1992 survey of OB/GYNs found that 59% of those [...]
...read moreGoogle Says the World Was Made, Made Pretty By Men
Like Frau Sally Benz, I was excited to see Frida Kahlo in all her beautiful, feminist glory on the Google homepage today – I love her! Then I had to ask the question I always ask: “How many women versus men has Google honored this way?” As often happens, the answer made me want to [...]
...read moreOscar Grant, Audre Lorde, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche and the question of loving our enemies.
[Trigger Warning: discussions of sexual assault and deadly State force.] Love your enemies. For feminists, is there any phrase more terrifyingly reactionary? Love your enemies. Even the one who assaults you in private and reaps accolades as a brilliant community organizer in public. (One of my mom’s former boyfriends.) Love your enemies. Even the ones [...]
...read moreHelen Keller Mythbusting Day 2010
Today, 19 June, is ‘Helen Keller Day’ on Second Life, an event that is designed to get Second Life participants thinking about disability and accommodations, something I wholly support. A group of disability rights activists decided to take advantage of this opportunity to challenge the popular mythology that surrounds Helen Keller and to educate people [...]
...read more
Happy Birthday, Malcolm X
I’m getting to it late in the day, but it remains worthy of notice that today would have been Malcolm X’s 84th birthday. Renee has written a wonderful tribute to the great revolutionary, activist, and leader. Be sure to go check it out.
...read moreRIP Dorothy Height, Civil Rights Leader
Dorothy Heights, a civil rights and women’s rights activist, died this morning. I first learned about her in college because of her role as president of the National Council of Negro Women, but after hearing of her death this morning, I’ve learned even more awesome things about her: She was the only woman on the [...]
...read more
RIP Juanita W. Goggins
Last month, civil rights trailblazer Juanita W. Goggins passed away in her home (h/t). Goggins was the first African-American woman to be elected to the South Carolina state legislature, in 1974. She served three terms before retiring. Among her many other accomplishments, she was also the first black woman from South Carolina to be represented [...]
...read more
Recent Comments