tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-183159252011-11-26T03:42:20.845-05:00feminist responses to sexism at YalePrescanoreply@blogger.comBlogger1471100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-53178718145478950972009-04-23T18:38:00.002-05:002009-04-23T18:43:46.059-05:00

The new Broad Recognition is up on its feet. Look! We plan to publish monthly. Enjoy.

Prescanoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-16140212261580267312009-03-28T11:27:00.004-05:002009-03-28T11:32:03.720-05:00

Announcement! In April, Broad Recognition will be expanding into a monthly online magazine for observation, commentary, and analysis by feminists at Yale and elsewhere. We'll announce the launch here, so stay tuned.

Prescanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-35277181479952433722009-03-12T15:31:00.007-05:002009-03-12T17:01:39.850-05:00

<!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>

Sochiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05085655902677488453noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-88666686211159678912009-03-02T23:41:00.010-05:002009-03-03T00:07:11.994-05:00

Something's up. Gender-neutral housing (oh, that phrase!) is at least on the grown-ups' table; a relatively sensible article about contraception didn't ruin the effect by confusing CLAY's values with a viable student health policy; and one Yale male blushingly affirmed that women are, indeed, "people" (!).Like a kid approaching puberty. Awkward, but cute.

Prescanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-26635208291560933562009-02-27T16:01:00.005-05:002009-02-27T17:37:32.007-05:00

Do you like Broads, or would you help us spread the word? Jump onto our Facebook Page and become a Fan!Tell us what's up, what's good, and what sucks on the Discussion Board; we'll respond (in one way or another). And feel free to send relevant links or campus events so we can share them on here and on the Page.

Prescanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-59946044490734692462009-02-20T11:00:00.006-05:002009-02-26T19:39:31.197-05:00

For a lucid account of the actions taken by two Yale Law School women against the website AutoAdmit, see David Margolick's "Slimed Online" in the March issue of Condé Nast Portfolio. I always see Portfolio as a lean, elegant liberal finance mag fighting a losing battle against its stodgier counterparts. I hope it doesn't fold, as sites like Gawker have been saying it will since before its first

Prescanoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-74896260374869105132009-02-20T09:52:00.008-05:002009-02-26T19:39:00.827-05:00

I am reprinting here my op-ed of this morning. It's a sort of director's cut, since some of my final edits didn't make it into the published version. To read it on the YDN website, go here.ONE YEAR LATER, FORTY YEARS BACKPresca AhnI write 40 years after Yale welcomed its first female applicants, and one year after a group of fraternity brothers blocked the entrance to the Yale Women’s Center,

Prescanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-23265149468838413482009-02-15T14:16:00.004-05:002009-02-15T22:21:07.981-05:00

I've been living in New York this year, but on a rare trip back to Yale I saw parts of Jessica Svendsen's meticulous, beautiful project Graphic Feminism. Jessica's talent isn't news; for a while now she's been a powerful architect of what feminism looks like on campus, and there's a subset of gender students and the Yale Women's Center collective who murmur reverently about Jessica's designs. But

Prescanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-88238895603924751342008-04-27T21:40:00.003-05:002008-04-27T22:06:25.792-05:00

Click here to obtain the Yale Women's Center's report to the administration on February 8. 2008.

Prescanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-80110616497845277752008-03-14T16:02:00.009-05:002009-02-15T22:08:53.064-05:00

To continue in a self-referential vein, I wanted to thank Rachel Achs for her article on the most recent Yale production of The Vagina Monologues, which I directed last month. The article was remarkably uncritical, however, and I don't think it had to be. The play is problematic, both artistically and politically, and I wish there was a forum in which to discuss it with nuance. Check out Basha's

Prescanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-44556669343740516882008-03-14T14:54:00.010-05:002008-03-14T17:18:15.763-05:00

I'm a little distressed that my critique of Sex Week at Yale, and of its manner of presenting pornography, has been appropriated by conservative "journalism" with dubious (if any) feminist sympathies. Transparency, I think, will bring some relief. Below is the full text of my recent letter to a gentleman named Brent Bozell, who in a recent article seems to be laboring under some false impressions

Prescanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-36142290603699041552008-02-22T16:01:00.004-05:002008-03-14T15:18:37.844-05:00

Of all the media attention the Women's Center's been getting recently, the story of the Fox interview with Gio Christodoulou (who held the "We Love Yale Sluts" sign) is still my favorite. Read about it on Jezebel.

Prescanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-26855062461702118562007-11-17T12:52:00.001-05:002008-03-14T15:55:28.807-05:00

In a YDN article on The Owl Shop, Dave Thier '09 writes:"The Owl Shop, the smoking bar on College Street... feels as if it is from a time before women came to Yale, before Hitler, before Stiles and before lung cancer."Thanks, Dave. As the 40th anniversary of co-education here rolls around, we've been looking for a catchy slogan for the Women's Center. And you've just handed us one on a plate: "

Prescanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-80704923806948088102007-10-06T08:38:00.000-05:002007-10-06T18:52:04.591-05:00

I am reposting here Chase Olivarius-McAllister's recent op-ed on choice, which, incidentally, is one of the only morally responsible opinion pieces I have ever read in the Yale Daily News. To read it on the YDN website, go to http://yaledailynews.com/articles/view/21650.RIGHT-WING FOOLISH; ABORTION IS NECESSARYChase Olivarius-McAllisterAnn Marie Beckley was born, and not aborted, in 1932. In that

Prescanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-11070214212812584772007-04-18T23:49:00.000-05:002007-04-18T23:54:45.288-05:00

I just wanted to link to this New York Times article that details the shocking decision that was handed down today by the relatively young Robert's court. In short, the 5-4 decision upheld a federal ban on late term abortions (derisively called 'partial birth abortions' by pro-life campaigners, and known medically as 'intact dilation and extraction' abortions). Unsurprisingly, the one woman

Addanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-84799516865069855142007-04-18T23:03:00.000-05:002007-04-18T23:16:43.916-05:00

I wrote my last 'Broadly Speaking' editorial in the Yale Daily News on Tuesday, so I thought to re-publish the article here since it was, after all, about feminism and Yale (sort of). Feminism blurs line between art, politics Adda Birnir Broadly Speaking The art world at large has been abuzz over the past few months about the seeming re-emergence of feminist art. Three weeks ago,

Addanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-10234579667566257822007-04-17T05:54:00.002-05:002008-05-02T09:46:42.237-05:00

this probably should've been a post but here i am.... maybe i will make it one...excellent comments andom; most especially because they highlight the role our-ever friendly media plays in devaluing racism.but in truth, what's a woman who thinks, well i do remember hearingSmack that, give me some moreSmack that, 'till you get soreSmack that.and akon's "smack that" doesn't even include "ho".there's

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1175827206218558152007-04-05T20:39:00.000-05:002007-04-05T21:41:10.016-05:00

By now I'm sure many of you have heard about the scandal at the Yale Law School. As the Yale Daily News and the Washington Post have reported, three female students at Yale Law School have claimed to be the victims of slanderous comments on an online discussion, AutoAdmit, which allows posts by undergraduate students about schools, job offerings, etc. One of the three students believes that the

Maggienoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1175455229659169882007-04-01T14:15:00.000-05:002007-04-01T14:36:48.136-05:00

On an incredibly positive women-note, the Yale Women's Crew team made a ridiculously funny, ridiculously critical video about their relationship to food ("This has 3,000 calories, this has 3,000 calories, let's eat it!") where they spoof the now famous internet video "Shoes." Amazing. Thank god for women being funny and making light of the ridiculously stringent eating habits athletes have to

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1175454448686628002007-04-01T11:00:00.000-05:002007-04-01T14:07:28.703-05:00

I have been meaning to complain about the above poster since I first saw it heralding me from outside of the Yale Rep. My vigor was re-fueled last night when walking by the poster and my friend asked me if I wasn't surprised that The New York Times refused to run the image as an ad for Yale's production of Lulu.No, I am not surprised, in fact I totally agree with The New York Times' discomfort,

Addanoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1175201108611694552007-03-29T16:41:00.000-05:002007-03-29T16:59:36.946-05:00

Apparently the only way to get a header graphic is to first host it. Apologies for this useless post.

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1174910967318745762007-03-26T08:05:00.000-05:002007-03-26T08:09:27.330-05:00

If you have a moment, you should check out the brand new Black Justice Blog, which focuses on issues of black justice at Yale.That's all.

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1174262353742819082007-03-18T19:58:00.000-05:002007-03-18T19:59:13.760-05:00

Sadly, Basha, Maggie and I are all graduating this year and though we would love to keep writing for Broad Recognition forever, we think it better to pass it on to the next generation of Yale feminists. And that is where you come in! Are you a Yale feminist who is interested in blogging for Broad Recognition? If so, please email us at Basha.Rubin@Yale.edu, Hallfridur.Birnir@yale.edu or

Addanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1174250980683045442007-03-18T16:40:00.000-05:002007-03-18T16:56:51.030-05:00

I was recently invited to speak for a symposium for a group called RESPECT, which is part of the Annie E. Casey Foundation in Baltimore. The topic of the event was "Economics of the Gender Divide." My talk was called "Staying critical of the Feminist conversation about work and family," and here it is (know that this was written to be spoken, hence all the use of the first person):Before I start,

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1173934141121960162007-03-15T00:48:00.000-05:002007-03-15T00:49:01.133-05:00

I want one?

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1173407323685246612007-03-08T21:27:00.000-05:002007-03-08T21:28:43.696-05:00

John Jay High School seems to think so .

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1173044875523378212007-03-04T16:45:00.000-05:002007-03-04T16:49:13.893-05:00

Two women who run the Women's Leadership Initiative here at Yale felt compelled to respond to the editorial that Basha and I wrote ("Society, not choice, encumbers women" Feb. 19) by expressing the aim of the WLI. I think their words are interesting and thoughtful and I want to link to their editorial in an effort to continue this as a dialogue.Basha and I will both be posting further comments

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1172983460693471402007-03-03T22:59:00.000-05:002007-03-04T16:53:58.636-05:00

Yesterday, in an attempt to procrastinate, I read the New York Times' review of Session Stepp's new book, Unhooked: How Young Women Pursue Sex, Delay Love and Lose at Both. Ms. Stepp reports that "hooking up" has largely replaced dating among high school and college aged women. The phenonmenon of "hooking up" has harmful emotional and physical effects on young women, perhaps even leaving them

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1172786503411745422007-03-01T16:53:00.000-05:002007-03-01T17:01:43.426-05:00

Paddy Johnson, feminist art critic, wrote a great blog post today on her blog Art Fag City nailing The New Yorker for the gross under representation of women in the New Ideas conference. Of 24 speakers, 3 are women. Apparently, women just have nothing of value to contribute, right?I wanted to link to this post because it looks at a very specific example of the sexism that goes on in these elite

Addanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1172704810399232752007-02-28T18:07:00.000-05:002007-02-28T18:20:10.416-05:00

I would like to apologize for the dearth of posting going on here at Broad Recognition. Unfortunately, all three of us are in the throes of senior year, and I can say that I at least spend all my time in the library thinking about black masculinity and sculpture. But these are no excuses to put down the feminist banner!So, while you wait for us to get our act together I would like to encourage

Addanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1171988135951332992007-02-20T10:59:00.000-05:002007-02-20T11:15:35.976-05:00

This post comes to you via the ivy-league blog, IvyGate, which means that I am re-blogging this information, which is about a blog, which is to say that I am on the verge of exploding the meta levels of the blogosphere. Watch out.The Belle Jar is a new sex column published on The BWOG, a blog run by The Blue and White, an undergraduate magazine at Columbia. In a word, this sex column is being

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1171986008754375942007-02-20T10:35:00.000-05:002007-02-20T10:43:40.986-05:00

Please visit this website, to sign a petition to ask University Health Services to subsidize the cost of the HPV vaccine, Gardasil for students. This vaccine is really expensive, but HPVcauses 70% of all cervical cancers in women.The petition is apparently being organized by an organization called Colleges Against Cancer, which is an subsidiary organization of the American Cancer Society. I have

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1171985538466604032007-02-20T10:22:00.000-05:002007-02-20T10:32:18.486-05:00

Today in The Yale Daily News is running an editorial that Basha and I co-wrote. Originally, all three Broad Recognition bloggers had planned on writing this editorial (on instituational responsibility) last semester, but we never got around to finishing it until yesterday when Basha and I hastily smoothed out our rough brainstorm and submitted it for my bi-monthly column. Feel free to give the

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1171831691533591492007-02-18T15:48:00.000-05:002007-02-19T20:29:59.416-05:00

As a woman who loves music, especially music of the indie-rock persuasion, I find my feminist self often frustrated by the deplorable lack of women working in the field. Sure, there are the alt-folk/indie rock love children, including notable female stars such as Regina Spektor, Cat Power, Vashti Bunyan, Beth Orton and Nellie McKay, but sometimes, after seeing four all-male bands play in row, you

Addanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1171827215427865952007-02-18T14:33:00.000-05:002007-02-18T14:36:56.080-05:00

I find myself quite surprised to be setting about to write a post lauding Tyra Banks for her women friendly activities, but yet here I am doing just that. Usually, I would consider Tyra Banks to be marginally better then the average, terribly image conscious, shallow, misogynist fashion industry person. Although her involvement in the totally sick (albeit entertaining) 'America's Next Top Model'

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1171292599456046772007-02-12T09:55:00.000-05:002007-02-12T10:03:19.476-05:00

Last Friday, a group of students from Yale College, Yale School of Medicine, and Yale School of Nursing protested in front of St. Raphael's Hospital in order to call attention to the need for compassionate care for rape victims. You can read the Yale Daily News report on the protest here. They targeted St. Raphael's because the hospital will not provide emergency contraception to all rape victims

Maggienoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1170784062041608492007-02-06T12:42:00.000-05:002007-02-06T12:47:42.066-05:00

Chase Olivarius-McAllister recently wrote an incredibly well written, well thought out article in the Yale Daily News all about virginity and how our culture (writ-large, as well as at Yale specifically) struggles to deal with virginity and female sexuality. With her permission, I would like to reprint the editorial in its entirety, in an effort to use this blog as somewhat of an archive for all

Addanoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1170696338930178022007-02-05T11:56:00.000-05:002007-02-05T12:25:38.946-05:00

For the first time since I arrived at Yale in 2003, no group of students will perform the Vagina Monologues during V-Week. It is an unfortunate oversight, to be sure. When Even Ensler first presented the Monologues in 1996, they were truly revolutionary, and as such, deserve our respect. The Vagina Monologues gave us a vocabulary to discuss our vaginas, and a forum to recognize our shared

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1170447136163052432007-02-02T15:08:00.000-05:002007-02-02T15:23:10.330-05:00

I am unsure of how to respond to Roger Low's column in the YDN yesterday. Low strongly supports a woman's right to choose based on the right to self-determination that I talked about in my recent post on the abortion speak-out; however, he also decries Roe v. Wade as a poor example of judicial decision-making and suggests that it be overturned and, furthermore, that pro-choice advocates should be

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1170123220237549872007-01-29T21:09:00.000-05:002007-01-29T21:13:40.260-05:00

Come to the Women's Center at 9pm tomorrow to discuss virginity--how we experience it, why we value it, if we should value it, cultural representations of it, religious and pop-culture depictions of it, and anything else that seems relevant... There will also be Indian food.

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1169679129255538782007-01-24T17:38:00.000-05:002007-01-24T17:52:09.286-05:00

Art Schools are stereotypically female heavy, and Yale is no exception. This is particularly true of the photography department, where of 18 photographers, 12 are women. There are a lot of issues that arise, because most of the faculty and critics who visit the department are male, creating an odd dynamic where most of the time a group of men is critiquing a female students.What I realized today

Addanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1169655308764401582007-01-24T10:56:00.000-05:002007-01-24T18:28:37.060-05:00

Last night I sat on the floor in a packed room in HGS and listened to Yale women recount their abortion experiences. While I had heard similar stories in different settings, I had never been part of an event like this. The "rules" of the speak-out were that only women who had personally had an abortion could speak to the group and that we would wait up to ten minutes after each speaker in order

Maggienoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1169579257696625192007-01-23T14:01:00.000-05:002007-01-23T14:07:37.733-05:00

You should all check out Adda's column in the YDN -- Sexism's Power Struggle Mirrors Historical Racism.That's all.

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1169436180319288732007-01-21T22:17:00.000-05:002007-01-21T22:23:00.336-05:00

Happy New Year!Look out this week, Broad Recognition will be starting up again with brand new posts on new and old topics. Also look for us in the Yale Daily News, where Basha and Adda will be co-writing a bi-monthly editorial, running on Tuesdays.In the meantime, check out the many events planned for RALY's Roe v. Wade Week at Yale, to celebrate the 34th anniversary of the landmark supreme court

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1165511926853796542006-12-07T11:55:00.000-05:002006-12-07T12:41:27.186-05:00

The opening sentence of the Hippolytic's post "Yale Prof: I bet it would be fun f*** you" crystallizes one of my fundamental problems with the way we speak and think about sexual harassment."Sexual harassment is de rigueur for New Haven's seedier establishments, but now it has reared its head in the university's hallowed halls." While the Hippolytic continues on to make a searing and

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1165504015075726442006-12-07T10:02:00.000-05:002006-12-07T10:28:30.186-05:00

On November 22, a former Yale employee filed a civil suit against Yale. The woman, Mary Beth Garceau, worked as a secretary for the Chair of the Yale Pharmacology Department, Dr. Joseph Schlessinger. In her suit, she claimed that she suffered from innumerable incidents of sexual harassment during her three years as his secretary, and that when Yale refused to act on her complaints, she was forced

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1165342119562825142006-12-05T12:52:00.000-05:002006-12-05T13:11:03.260-05:00

I struggle a lot with how to approach criticizing the feminist work being undertaken by other women. Often, I fear, there is so much criticism coming from outside the movement that its counterproductive and damaging to partake. Yet, sometimes I think its necessary that women working in the feminist activist sphere be called out on certain behavior that is counterproductive to their stated

Addanoreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1165266266523834222006-12-04T15:52:00.000-05:002006-12-05T12:35:33.243-05:00

So I went to Toad's on Saturday night, dressed up in my best '70's-gym-bunny-meets-90's-fake-gold-jewelry' style to dance. I am not sure exactly what that means, but I can tell you it involved striped pants, a sweatband, and big hoop earrings. But thats not really the point, right? While I was standing talking to my friends, two guys apparently took such a liking to my pants that one of them felt

Addanoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1164782484795991902006-11-29T01:37:00.000-05:002006-11-29T01:42:21.196-05:00

I just wrote a lengthy post about my concerns regarding Ariel Levy's new book Female Chauvanist Pigs: The Rise of Raunch Culture, recently published by Simon and Schuster, for The Hippolytic. It details my concern that the feminist movement spends too much time picking out whats wrong with our culture and not enough time producing ways to change it. In essence, I want a positive sex role model.

Addanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1164340228045940882006-11-23T22:29:00.000-05:002006-11-23T22:50:28.060-05:00

Today, in the spirit of this holiday, I want to register my thanks for wonderful feministy people who have been important in my life. I want to include those who do small things (like the woman at Thanksgiving today who gave her mother a hard time for only asking the men if they could carve the turkey) or the large (such as Emma Goldman for being a female anarchistic rockstart).Also, everyone

Addanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1163428862114943862006-11-13T09:20:00.000-05:002006-11-13T09:41:02.246-05:00

Is anyone else troubled, or irked, or maybe just puzzled by the YSAC's Mr. Yale competition? YSAC describes the contest in the following words:"YSAC seeks the best, craziest and funniest representatives from each college to compete in the first ever Mr. Yale. This exciting showcase will feature modeling and talent competitions, interviews, special judges (including Dean Peter Salovey) and much

Maggienoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1163389036570294182006-11-12T22:36:00.000-05:002006-11-12T22:37:16.606-05:00

The title says it all.

Addanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1163269912463522262006-11-11T13:26:00.000-05:002006-11-11T15:49:02.903-05:00

I am thrilled with the results of this week's election, and that we will have the first woman speaker of the House--Nancy Pelosi. However, I'm feeling a little annoyed about a couple of comments. First of all, Pelosi said (and I quote) that maybe we "need a woman to clean house." And secondly, the first thing Bush said in his press conference was that he would contact the decorator to help

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1163169224661894602006-11-10T09:31:00.000-05:002006-11-10T09:49:20.663-05:00

Next Tuesday night at 9pm at the Women's Center, we will be having a discussion/study break about... Who's on Top? After our last event about the Hook-Up Culture at Yale, we realized that there had been very little discussion about the act of penetrative sex itself. It's sort of a hard topic to broach, and as such, I think that it's often hard for us to think of how sex and misogyny may be

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1163135042978903982006-11-09T23:48:00.000-05:002006-11-10T00:04:02.996-05:00

as soon as they leave mothers alone. At least the Times reporters don't discriminate; they critique the habits stay-at-home moms as well as the lifestyle of working mothers. Last week, the Times revealed the frivolous behavior of business women, and this week's style section contains an article on "Cosmopolitan Moms," mothers who gather together to share a cocktail while their children

Maggienoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1162864364675369092006-11-06T20:26:00.000-05:002006-11-07T16:00:51.133-05:00

Last week sophomore columnist Alexandra Schwartz wrote a truly insightful editorial for the Yale Daily News titled "Dearth of woman columnists is puzzling."In the editorial Schwartz addresses the gender disparity found in the YDN's editorial page by considering what sorts of campus activities women tend to gravitate towards, in order to understand why so few women seem to be interested in opining

Addanoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1162480635120645372006-11-02T10:11:00.000-05:002006-11-02T10:38:22.146-05:00

What is it with the New York Times and working mothers? In 2003, a New York Times magazine piece about eight female Princeton graduates announced the "Opt-Out Revolution": highly educated women choosing to stay home with their children instead of working outside the home. Last fall, an article about the professional ambitions (or lack thereof) of Yale female undergraduates caused a stir both on

Maggienoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1162318578238341262006-10-31T13:12:00.000-05:002006-10-31T13:16:18.273-05:00

...why this makes me so angry?Out of the sorority house and into the boardroomWith new networking group, Yale women are cooking up more than just dinner.BY VIVIAN NEREIMprinted in THE YALE HERALD, OCTOBER 20, 2006 VOL. XLII, NO. 7I think Tina Wu (Calhoun, '08) said it best:"We would NEVER see a headline like this for any other demographic. Could you imagine: "Asians, cooking up more

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1162248764023442482006-10-30T17:31:00.000-05:002006-10-30T17:52:44.300-05:00

In English seminar, for instance. This afternoon I listened as people critiqued a work by a female writer, and it wasn't until halfway through the class that I realized the degree to which our comprehension of gender roles inform our understanding of art as well as other intellectual disciplines. For today's class, we had read a novel by a British lesbian author that interwove her own personal

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1162183485323632722006-10-29T23:15:00.000-05:002006-10-29T23:44:45.496-05:00

It seems that at least once a year, the YDN publishes an article about gendered inequities in academia. This year's installment appeared in Friday's paper. The headline read "Female profs still paid less," and the body of the article detailed the ways in which female professors at Yale earn less money than male professors at every level from junior faculty up through tenured professor. Even more

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1161889555011302752006-10-26T14:03:00.000-05:002006-10-26T14:05:55.013-05:00

I just want to let you all know about an (awesome) event happening at the Women's Center next Wednesday at 9pm in (loose) reaction to the Brett Sokolow event that Adda and I discussed. It will be a discussion about hooking-up at Yale with Indian food from Zaroka. I'm not sure exactly what I expect/want out of this event--but it will be a safe space to mull over issues we all struggled to deal

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1161882443313749802006-10-26T11:59:00.000-05:002006-10-26T23:30:34.786-05:00

Basha weighs in:When Brett Sokolow, JD, came to speak last Thursday night about drunken sex and date rape, I must admit I attended more out of a sense of obligation than genuine curiosity.Sokolow proceeded to relate the facts of a case, and then ask the students and faculty present to vote guilty or not guilty. While I had rightly expected discord amongst those present, I did not anticipate my

Addanoreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1161875435619953012006-10-26T08:43:00.000-05:002006-10-26T10:13:11.890-05:00

On Tuesday all of Yale College received the following email from YSAC:YSAC Presents: S’Wings Wing Fling Ever wanted to put your eating skills to the test? Join YOUR residential college team! This year at the Yale-Princeton Tailgate on Nov. 11th the colleges will compete. 5-person teams of 4 guys and 1 girl, going at it for 10 minutes to determine eternal glory. Can you bring your college the

Addanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1161451920459142162006-10-21T12:25:00.000-05:002006-10-21T12:35:42.276-05:00

This summer I listened to a really interesting interview Brian Lehrer did for WNYC, New York Public Radio with the two founders of the website Holla Back NYC.In short, a year or so ago a group of four women and three men got together and started a website called Holla Back Nyc, with the mission that "Holla Back NYC empowers New Yorkers to Holla Back at street harassers. Whether you're commuting,

Addanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1161374091129638892006-10-20T14:09:00.001-05:002006-10-20T16:04:33.816-05:00

I just got back from a very thought-provoking lunch with a student who is writing a nonfiction piece on the forthcoming HPV vaccine and general sexual health at Yale.I'm sure many of you have heard that Yale ranked first in a Trojan-sponsored study (yes, that would be the condom company) of sexual health policies at undergraduate institutions. The study praised YUHS for providing contraception,

Maggienoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1161365611220461952006-10-20T12:28:00.000-05:002006-10-20T12:33:31.303-05:00

Applications for the Yale Women's Center Rossborrough Fellowship are due today, via email to Tina Wu at Tina.wu@yale.edu.This blog was started as a Rossborough Fellowship last year. The fellowship is a great opportunity to get funding to do feminist work, please read on for more information about the fellowship and how to apply:The purpose of the Amy Rossborough Fellowship is to capture the

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1161285336880113962006-10-19T14:14:00.000-05:002006-10-19T14:16:08.513-05:00

The Women's Center's RSVP group is hosting an event with an awesome speaker tonight:DRUNK SEX OR DATE RAPE?Thursday, October 19, 20069 pmLC 102Everyone should come. This is an incredibly urgent issue.

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1161279244377680472006-10-19T12:12:00.000-05:002006-10-19T12:39:20.510-05:00

Sometimes I wonder if people at Yale think the Women's Center is irrelevant--a relic from a time when women didn't feel physically safe in the other spaces, the common rooms, the dining halls, and the dorms, at Yale. They needed a place where they could talk with their peers without fearing sexual harassment (though I'm not sure it would have been identified as such), and where they felt like

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1161237998443498572006-10-19T00:42:00.000-05:002006-10-19T11:08:31.576-05:00

8. VH1's Women to Women, a Bicurious Journey. While flipping throug channels I came upon this treasure which followed married couples to a resort in Jamaica where the wives could explore their homosexual fantasies with other women. The inspiration for the show came from statistics that show that a much higher percentage of women than ever before are engaging in homosexual activities. Look, here's

Addanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1160629410656975222006-10-12T00:02:00.000-05:002006-10-12T00:04:57.936-05:00

by guest blogger Nadja SpiegelmanOctober 11th is National Coming Out Day, a day for people to proclaim loudly and proudly who they are and how it is that they identify. This year, on Yale’s campus, this has been extended beyond gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender identities for whom the day was designed. Some on this campus wish to let their homophobia out of the closet. Along with the

Addanoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1160629356266415062006-10-11T23:55:00.000-05:002006-10-12T00:02:36.283-05:00

Well, if I ever had a flicker of doubt that this blog was still needed on this campus, that doubt has been erased by the incredibly crude, homophobic poster campaign that went up today all over campus, accompanied by emails, mocking National Coming Out Day. This poster campaign was cryptic, attempting to be funny, and overall TOTALLY lame. In addition to just being gross, tasteless, and hate

Addanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1160099047214487752006-10-05T20:34:00.000-05:002006-10-10T10:54:17.016-05:00

Last year two enterprising Yale women, Della and Sabrina, started a blog as a Rossbourough Fellowship with the Yale Women's Center. Their blog was called Broad Recognition and their aim was to create a forum for addressing gender bias and discrimination at Yale. The blog was widely read, frequently reported on, and highly controversial. In other words, a huge success!Now that Della and Sabrina

Bashahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06540001502067165796noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1149048596216996442006-05-30T23:04:00.000-05:002006-05-30T23:09:56.230-05:00

In case you haven't noticed, dear readers, broadrecognition is on hiatus for the summer months. Della and Sabrina have graduated and will not return to Yale in the fall, but we will keep you posted on where Yale's feminist voices will continue - both on campus and in the "real world." Best wishes...

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1146366837744626462006-04-29T22:07:00.000-05:002006-04-29T22:17:03.166-05:00

This post may be a little outdated now, but I've heard responses (unprompted, I may add) from many progressive/feminist friends about the comments made by Ludacris at Monday's concert. I asked Nazneen (JE '06) to guest-blog for us about the issues... welcome, Naz, and thank you.After a few lackluster years of forgettable Spring Fling performances, the Yale College Council finally succeeded in

Maggienoreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1145899052584272632006-04-24T12:11:00.000-05:002006-04-24T12:17:32.606-05:00

Is anyone else just not that excited about watching hundreds of Yalies sing along with Ludacris about wanting a lady in the street but a freak in the bed (etc.)?

Maggienoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1145469662508745492006-04-19T12:56:00.000-05:002006-04-19T13:04:01.606-05:00

The Women's Center's annual speaker series begins today. The schedule is below; make some time to attend! Tonight's event addresses the lack of women leaders on campus addressed by last week's Herald.Twenty-First Century Woman: Who is She? Past Changes and Future Challenges -April 19 - Where have all the women gone? A study break on the lack of visible women leaders on campus.

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1145381120683069032006-04-18T12:20:00.000-05:002006-04-18T12:28:41.236-05:00

Let's hope this community responds similarly next time Yale publications publish rape jokes and other sexist "humor" pieces. "The stereotypes of Asian Americans appearing in certain student publications recently are neither humorous nor inoffensive; they are, in fact, disgusting. Although Yale College's commitment to free expression protects vulgarities such as these, we all must be mindful of an

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1145286237563677232006-04-17T09:36:00.000-05:002006-04-17T10:04:40.320-05:00

The Asian American Students Association and other groups are protesting racist content in the Bulldog Days editions of the Herald and Rumpus. There's a facebook group that makes the arguments and has a lively discussion board.We've found it hard to laugh at the Rumpus' tasteless and irresponsible articles in the past, and we've had the same debates on this blog about rape jokes and the promotion

Maggienoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1145018322158456302006-04-14T07:37:00.000-05:002006-04-14T07:43:20.246-05:00

Take Back the Night is this evening (Friday) at 6:00pm on Cross Campus.TBTN is a national event that gives voice to survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence. The event will feature a performance by Tangled Up In Blue, survivor testimonials, and an address by Kristen Leslie, a professor at the Divinity School and a former consultant on sexual assault to the US Air Force Academy. It will

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1144937320757155482006-04-13T09:03:00.000-05:002006-04-13T09:08:40.760-05:00

I'm pasting the Women's Center endorsement below. Please vote in the run-off election today here.The Women's Center endorses Larry Wise, MC '08 for YCC President as he has demonstrated a strong commitment to gender and sexual equality most notably in his work regarding the drafting of a new sexual harassment policy on campus.We would appreciate if you could take the time to vote for Larry Wise

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1144935225289647562006-04-13T08:30:00.000-05:002006-04-13T09:00:39.766-05:00

For anyone who has ever been ostracized for having progressive or gosh dare we say it "liberal" views check out the Dixie Chick's new video. The song's called "Not Ready To Make Nice". Sure, it's not entirely Yale related, but sometimes we all need a little upper.

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1144934993013820692006-04-13T08:28:00.000-05:002006-04-13T09:02:12.146-05:00

I don't know what it is about this week, but the rape jokes have been incessant. Just in the last twenty-four hours I've had two men come up to me to tell me a) that my outfit is asking for assault and b) the t-shirt displayed on cross campus that reads "my short skirt + my drinking = my fault?" is a true statement . . . no need for the question mark. When I didn't laugh, but gave them the "angry

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1144555852257559212006-04-08T23:10:00.000-05:002006-04-08T23:14:58.376-05:00

For those keeping abreast of the Duke rape scandal, there's a scathing piece on Slate on the culture of lacrosse with good links throughout. The commentary on the sport's demographics is perhaps not surprising, but elicits a sigh of despair from this blogger.More than any other sport, lacrosse represents the marriage of athletic aggression and upper-class entitlement...how could college lacrosse

Maggienoreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1144435031976278242006-04-07T13:31:00.000-05:002006-04-07T13:37:12.010-05:00

Della and I will join this year's other Rossborough Fellows in speaking about our projects at 5pm at the Women's Center today. We'll talk about the blog and about Aurora; come cheer us on, or to throw rotten fruit.

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1144264218983820002006-04-05T14:07:00.000-05:002006-04-05T14:16:49.480-05:00

Please come participate in this important preparation for Take Back the Night, which is next Friday on Cross Campus. We'll write more about TBTN next week.There is also a rally for the gender non-discrimination clause on Beinecke Plaza at 5pm today. CLOTHESLINE PROJECTPART OF TAKE BACK THE NIGHT AT YALEWednesday, April 5th10-11 pm Yale Women’s Centercome design and paint a

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1144088589356960812006-04-03T13:12:00.000-05:002006-04-03T13:23:47.470-05:00

Jacob First has an editorial today explaining the motivations and reasons for adding a "gender expression" clause to Yale's non-discrimation policy.Also, feminist legal scholar Catharine MacKinnon is speaking today at 4:30 at Labyrinth Books on York St. It should be awesome.

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1143838881233674192006-03-31T15:46:00.000-05:002006-03-31T16:12:08.620-05:00

Hey, frat boys! How many times can you use the word "gentleman" in an article on improving your sw8 frat's image on campus?"Our pledge process tries to teach some of these values through the True Gentlemen, as well as many old-fashioned principles of etiquette [such as] proper table settings [and] walking on the street side with a girl," [Sam] Beutler [07] said. "It's also about presenting

Maggienoreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1143678178135050302006-03-29T19:16:00.000-05:002006-03-29T19:23:44.000-05:00

QPAC (Yale's Queer Political Action Committee) has been campaigning to expand Yale's Non-Discrimination Policy to include protection of "gender identity and gender expression."Its members are currently gathering petition signatures to present to the administration, demonstrating support from across the Yale community for this action. The petition is now available online here.Sign up and spread

Maggienoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1143644104512804952006-03-29T09:37:00.001-05:002006-03-29T10:05:50.450-05:00

Loren's editorial today discusses the sexualization of women in the sports world. There seemed to be several different arguments at work here, and I want to try and separate them from each other.Men's sports get a ton of coverage, and their (mostly male) coaches are therefore in the spotlight. The wives of these men are often depicted as physical accessories to their husbands in a way that

Maggienoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1143572634657623002006-03-28T13:53:00.000-05:002006-03-28T14:11:18.496-05:00

A YDN correction today to yesterday's article on the YLS "Disempowered Voices in Legal Academia" panel, which was organized mostly by women students and well-attended by women, ignores the problematic racial and gendered nature of the error.A broad recognition reader (thanks SM) noted that the article itself "does not quote a single woman student. The YDN even takes the words of one black woman

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1143556447600719762006-03-28T09:27:00.001-05:002006-03-28T09:41:20.250-05:00

The results are in from Yale Herald's student opinion poll on whether Hashemi should be admitted to Yale in various programs. 1900 students took the poll. President Levin denies John Fund's claim that he will determine Hashemi's admission status. All this confirms the desire of Fund and others to turn this debate into a political firestorm - when some of the questions they want all of us at Yale

Maggienoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1143095612097143042006-03-23T01:17:00.000-05:002006-03-23T01:43:57.126-05:00

broad recognition seeks to uncover the insidious forms of sexism on this campus which are masked by a veneer of privilege and liberal politics, and ignored. To analyze this misogyny is not simple - not as easy, for example, as singling out a former spokesman of the Taliban, the latest cultural icon of misogyny. Asking why we left out Hashemi inevitably moves the discussion away from the

Maggienoreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1141152658224527702006-02-28T13:39:00.000-05:002006-02-28T13:52:48.873-05:00

In the news today:The YDN reports on how the recent School of Architecture scandal brings to light gender inequalities in the school, and why students are voicing complaints. There's a lot of familiar rhetoric there (think back to our discussion of gender statistics on Yale's faculty).Loren argues for the value of an extra-institutional form of activism:However, activism contained within the

Maggienoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1141052838152431422006-02-27T09:51:00.000-05:002006-02-27T10:07:19.260-05:00

(plus the word on the street about porn week)If you didn't see it, check out Della's opinion piece in the Herald on why feminism is still relevant, at Yale and in the "real world." She is responding to these two pieces from last week's edition, which defend Sex Week for its "universality" and accuse feminism of being too "radical" to address real problems. Della sounds off on the shaky

Maggienoreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1140881422423334892006-02-25T10:23:00.000-05:002006-02-25T10:30:22.423-05:00

We never linked to last week's YDN editorial, which argues the case (long made by RSVP) that Yale needs a more centralized system to respond to sexual assaults on campus. The editorial discusses the current situation and the recent YCC resolution. It's informative and clear - check it out.RSVP's website, by the way, has a new "What to Do" section with a ton of information about sexual assault

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1140799271657234292006-02-24T11:25:00.000-05:002006-02-25T10:23:22.280-05:00

This past Monday, the President of Harvard University, Dr. Larry Summers, after receiving a vote of no confidence by the Harvard faculty, finally resigned. For most individuals concerned with minority rights, Monday was a fine day. During his presidency, Summers succeeded in losing the once famous African American department by insulting Cornel West and a few others, most of whom defected to

Maggienoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1140373296161255722006-02-19T13:09:00.000-05:002006-02-19T14:56:18.780-05:00

For most of last week, I couldn't really put my finger on why I hated Sex Week - it claims to be an exploration of all kinds of sexuality and all aspects of sex, which seems like a good conversation-starter for the issues of gender and sexuality which concern feminists.But then a) I got an email containing the words "hottest Porn Star" and b) it wasn't spam, but an advertisement for an event that

Maggienoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1139871978209721382006-02-13T18:02:00.000-05:002006-02-13T20:02:03.083-05:00

Last Wednesday the YCC passed a resolution in favor of centralizing Yale's sexual assault resources and this morning the YDN finally did the story some serious justice. For more details please read the article. While Betty T doesn't seem too thrilled with the idea, Dean Salovey doesn't seem to be saying no just yet. Finally, we're making some progress! Kudos to Larry Wise and the rest of the YCC

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1139687173360297692006-02-11T14:24:00.000-05:002006-02-11T15:04:40.436-05:00

I'll always been a bit hesitant to embrace Eve Ensler's Vagina Monologues. Sure, the play is funny and witty and sadly applicable to the current state of affairs. Yet there was always something a little too essentialist about celebrating the cunt and something a little too potentially imperialistic about claiming to speak for oppression of women in Afghanistan and Africa. My penchant for cultural

Maggienoreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18315925.post-1139449929548704782006-02-08T20:51:00.000-05:002006-02-08T20:52:09.550-05:00

What is this??

Maggienoreply@blogger.com0