Grasping after certainty about gender roles has fostered some bad science and stereotyping that harms both sexes.
Type "men" and "hardwired" into Google and you tap into a wonderfully absurd catalogue of assertions about male behaviour. Men are "hardwired" to cheat, ignore their wives, suspect infidelity, overspend, fail, love money, pursue women and achieve supremacy in the workplace. Meanwhile, women are "hardwired" to worry about their weight and dump cheaters. All include the magic phrase "scientific studies show". It's a snapshot of how science is being used and abused to legitimise gender stereotypes. It would be laughable if it didn't signify how a form of biological determinism -- the claim that differences between men and women have a basis in innate biological characteristics -- has re-emerged and acquired an astonishing popular currency.
[...]
A tiny number of tests show sex differences. One of these (famously used to argue that men are better at engineering and other sciences) is a test comparing two shapes. Men are slightly more likely to use a method known as mental rotation, despite it being rather less efficient. Overall, in 45 items in the test, only three show sex difference, two of them favour girls and only this aspect of mental rotation favours boys. Spelke is astonished as to why this slight difference favouring boys has attracted such disproportionate attention.
FULL ARTICLE
Friday, June 10, 2011
Our Spirits Don't Speak English: Indian Boarding School [indigenous revelations]
via indigenous revelations
"For the government, it was a possible solution to the so-called Indian problem. For the tens of thousands of Indians who went to boarding schools, it’s largely remembered as a time of abuse and desecration of culture.
This clip and anecdote always brings tears to my eyes. The boarding school experience still haunts Native peoples to this day and contributes to the many social ills plaguing Native populations. I encourage all Native peoples to learn your Native tongue and culture. Do it for your elders that were robbed of their spirit. You have the opportunity to embrace your Native identity. It can only make you stronger!
The entire documentary is powerful. Click here for further info."
"For the government, it was a possible solution to the so-called Indian problem. For the tens of thousands of Indians who went to boarding schools, it’s largely remembered as a time of abuse and desecration of culture.
This clip and anecdote always brings tears to my eyes. The boarding school experience still haunts Native peoples to this day and contributes to the many social ills plaguing Native populations. I encourage all Native peoples to learn your Native tongue and culture. Do it for your elders that were robbed of their spirit. You have the opportunity to embrace your Native identity. It can only make you stronger!
The entire documentary is powerful. Click here for further info."
When China Met Africa
Must see. This looks quite interesting.
“When China Met Africa”
Starting on the 13th of June in Cape Town and Johannesburg, South Africa, The Encounters Documentary Film Festival will feature a series of African and other international documentaries including the likes of this one.
On the front line of China’s foray into Africa, the lives of a farmer, a road builder, and a trade minister reveal the expanding footprint of a rising global power.
‘When China Met Africa’ is a film produced by Marc Francis & Nick Francis and Miriana Bojic Walter.
www.whenchinametafrica.com
“When China Met Africa”
Starting on the 13th of June in Cape Town and Johannesburg, South Africa, The Encounters Documentary Film Festival will feature a series of African and other international documentaries including the likes of this one.
On the front line of China’s foray into Africa, the lives of a farmer, a road builder, and a trade minister reveal the expanding footprint of a rising global power.
‘When China Met Africa’ is a film produced by Marc Francis & Nick Francis and Miriana Bojic Walter.
www.whenchinametafrica.com
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Online Exhibition of Women Who Have Run for President [NPR]
With all the commotion about Michele Bachmann and Sarah Palin potentially running for president, perhaps it's time to take a look at some female presidential candidates of the past. The National History Museum and the Shana Alexander Charitable Foundation are featuring a dozen subjects in an online exhibit titled: "First But Not The Last: Women Who Ran For President." -NPR
NPR posted a few of these women on their site. There are a noticeable number of women of color. Visibility is a beautiful thing... even if it's years later. Here are a few:
Patsy Takemoto Mink, 1972
"In 1972, a group of liberal Democrats in Oregon asked Mink to be their presidential candidate, and she was on the ballot in Oregon's May primary. She received 2 percent of the vote, coming in eighth out of nine candidates. Nevertheless, Mink achieved her objective of getting Americans to find a female president thinkable."
Lenora Branch Fulani, 1988 and 1992
"Lenora Branch Fulani has spent almost three decades fighting to end the two-party system and create a 'viable, national, pro-socialist' party for those who feel ignored by the Democratic and Republican parties."
Shirley Chisholm, 1972
"Overall, people in 14 states voted for Chisholm for president. After six months of campaigning, she had 28 delegates committed to vote for her at the Democratic Convention. The 1972 Democratic Convention was in July in Miami, and it was the first major convention in which an African American woman was considered for the presidential nomination. Although she did not win the nomination, she received 151 of the delegates' votes."
 |
| Courtesy of U.S. Government Patsy Takemoto Mink |
"In 1972, a group of liberal Democrats in Oregon asked Mink to be their presidential candidate, and she was on the ballot in Oregon's May primary. She received 2 percent of the vote, coming in eighth out of nine candidates. Nevertheless, Mink achieved her objective of getting Americans to find a female president thinkable."
 |
| AP Lenora Branch Fulani |
"Lenora Branch Fulani has spent almost three decades fighting to end the two-party system and create a 'viable, national, pro-socialist' party for those who feel ignored by the Democratic and Republican parties."
 |
| John Duricka/AP Shirley Chisholm |
Shirley Chisholm, 1972
"Overall, people in 14 states voted for Chisholm for president. After six months of campaigning, she had 28 delegates committed to vote for her at the Democratic Convention. The 1972 Democratic Convention was in July in Miami, and it was the first major convention in which an African American woman was considered for the presidential nomination. Although she did not win the nomination, she received 151 of the delegates' votes."
"Gay Girl in Damascus": Is She who She Says She Is?
 |
via Facebook A digital poster that was distributed across the Web after the Amina was allegedly arrested in Syria. |
via NPR
Sandra Bagaria forged an online relationship with the Syrian-American blogger who goes by "Gay Girl In Damascus." She never thought to ask if her name was really Amina Abdallah Araf al Omari or if like a lot of bloggers in countries with authoritarian regimes, it was an alias.
Her blog was so autobiographical, so genuine that it never occurred to her that Amina could be anyone but Amina. But the last few days have left her shellshocked.
First, because on Monday, a person claiming to be Amina's cousin posted a piece on Amina's blog that said she had been detained by the security forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Rep. Barney Frank Putting the T in LGBT Rights [Pam's House Blend]
Congressman Barney Frank today released his testimony in favor of a Massachusetts bill which would extend legal protections which now cover gay, lesbian and bisexual individuals to also include transgender people. The testimony was presented in writing to the Massachusetts Joint Committee on the Judiciary, which is holding a hearing on the legislation today.
In his testimony, Frank draws parallels between struggles to achieve equal rights for transgender individuals and earlier battles for gay rights. In 1973, when Frank was closeted gay man and a state representative in the Massachusetts legislature, he introduced the first gay rights bill in Massachusetts history. The bill was defeated that year but Frank introduced it every session until he left the legislature. It was defeated every time. The first gay rights bill was finally passed in Massachusetts in 1989, when Frank was already a Member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
In his testimony, Frank writes that early critics of gay rights, who predicted widespread social disruption, were proven by history to have been wrong - and that those who currently argue against similar rights for transgender people also be likely to be proven wrong. Furthermore, he states, transgender people "seek no special privilege; they have no wish to disrupt anybody else's lives; they only want to be able to live their own with a degree of freedom from unfair restrictions or hurtful actions by others."
In the US Congress, Frank has not only been the leading advocate of equal rights for gay, lesbian and bisexual individuals, but has also worked to win those rights for transgender people. In 2009, he was a major force behind the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act (S.909). Also in 2009, he introduced a "fully-inclusive" Employment Non-Discrimination which would extend employment protections to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals. After the bill failed to garner enough support to guarantee passage in 2010, Frank introduced the same legislation in 2011. The bill already has 142 cosponsors.
Frank concludes his written testimony stating that:
"I very much hope that the Commonwealth will once again show its aversion to prejudice and its compassion for people who have been its victims, and extend to people who are transgender the same legal rights that the rest of us now enjoy."
By the numbers: Gay marriage around the world [GA Voice]
By the Numbers is a series done by the GA Voice.
26
Countries — not including the United States — that recognize same-sex unions (through marriage, civil unions or other status).
53
Countries — again not including the United States — with anti-discrimination laws that include sexual orientation.
76
Countries that prosecute people based on sexual orientation.
7
Countries where being gay is punishable by death.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Music Moment: What I'm Listening To
If you haven't heard of Local Natives, I sincerely apologize. Let's remedy this. Local Natives (formerly cavil at rest) is an indie rock band based in Silver Lake, Los Angeles, California. After the three founding members originally met in high school, a bassist and a drummer were found, and they all moved to a house in Silver Lake in 2008 to record their album. Their debut album as Local Natives, “Gorilla Manor”, was released in the UK on Nov 2nd, 2009, and saw a US release date of Feb. 16th, 2010. The band’s sound has been described as “afropop-influenced guitars with hyperactive drumming and hooky three-part harmonies”. They started to attract the attention of the music press after playing nine shows at the 2009 SXSW festival in Austin, Texas.
What I'm listening to:
I would put the music video up, but it's got that carefree white girl thing going on that makes me uncomfortable.
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