Tag: Feminism

Jessica Valenti: Fighting For YOUR Right To Party

Posted on by Kelly Welles

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“Real equality is when women have the right to be as drunk and stupid as men.”

Jessica Valenti, 24th October, guardianonline.

It’s no wonder young women don’t identify with feminism when it’s dressed in this kind of unattractive, clumsy costume.

Forcing equality, kicking and screaming, into the same ballpark as date rape, is the intellectual equivalent of making me wear one of those meringue wedding dresses for a joke.

Shocking at first. Screamingly funny for the next ten seconds, until everyone realises I’m not laughing. Then, downright uncomfortable for the remainder of the evening, until everyone with a modicum of empathy leaves, feeling truly ashamed of themselves.

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Miley Cyrus: Haven’t I Seen You Somewhere Before?

Posted on by Kelly Welles

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“I feel like I’m one of the biggest feminists in the world because I tell women to not be scared of anything.”

Miley Cyrus, BBC Newsbeat.

Let’s not be under any illusion here. Miley Cyrus is a hardworking, savvy businesswoman who knows precisely what she needs to do to maximise her earning potential.

But she is also young, and while her desire to make the world a less frightening place for women is admirable, what she needs to realise is that her weapon of choice cuts most out of her sphere of influence before she even opens her mouth.

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Julie Bindel: Rift & Separate

Posted on by Kelly Welles

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According to feminist writer Julie Bindel, if women aren’t prepared to toe the party line and consciously define themselves by a set of rules imposed by other people, they should be treated as second class citizens.

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Feminist Critiques Or Bound By Our Own Conceits?

Posted on by Kelly Welles

There are few news outlets at the moment who aren’t filling countless column inches with opinions, reviews and essays on the cinematic and literary phenomenons that are Twilight & 50 Shades Of Grey. Hell, it’s hard not to.

Interestingly though, alongside claims that female stars front and centre equal a positive shift towards a more gender balanced entertainment industry, one or two voices have cited these role models as reductive, in part due to their stringent adherence to gender stereotypes.

This may or may not be valid, but if fictional storylines of women being elevated, protected and cherished are so broadly embraced by the audience, is it more useful to criticise the messenger or examine why they might be so appealing in the first place? I’m going to have a crack at the latter.

I’m feeling a bit awkward this morning.

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Pussy Riot: Let Us In. We’ll Be Good, Promise ;)

Posted on by Kelly Welles

Two months after Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years in prison for performing a punk prayer in a Moscow cathedral, the music community has issued it’s first riposte.

Whether NY art collective MEN, featuring Le Tigre’s JD Samson, will be invited to perform ‘Let Them Out Or Let Me In’ in the same cathedral remains to be seen, but an invite would be a lovely gesture given the Russian Orthodox Church’s recent PR rethink.

Don’t hold your breath, team.

Chelsea O’Reilly: All Feminism & Fingernails

Posted on by Kelly Welles

Image: REUTERS/Andy Clark.

Chelsea O’Reilly. Taking part in her first stock car race at the age of fourteen.

Because feminism is about women expressing themselves in a way that is truly natural to them, and not being confined to narrow stereotypes of femininity imposed upon them by others.

Or alternatively… YOU GO GIRL!

FEMEN: Thwarted By Adrian Chiles In A Liverpool Suit

Posted on by Kelly Welles

Images: femen.livejournal.com.

If you’re a European leader with a misogynistic agenda, the chances are you’re going to be receiving a surprise visit from FEMEN at some point in the future.

You know that being photographed fighting with a naked woman is not going to be the best publicity for your cause. But how do you plan for it? How can you fight the reality that most paparazzi have a Pavlovian response to nipples and will follow them wherever they may roam?

Well, you don’t become Patriarch Kirill I of Moscow if you’re some sort of slouch, y’know. The big bearded head of the Russian Orthodox Church, having effectively stepped in front of the FEMEN bus by condemning Russian band Pussy Riot for performing in a church, took evasive action – appointing Adrian Chiles in a Liverpool FA Cup 1996 suit as his head of security.

And it bloody worked! Look! There’s a photo above of a half naked woman wrestling with a bunch of priests on the tarmac at Borispol airport near Kiev, and all I can look at is that damn guy and his outfit.

Keep up the good work, FEMEN. If you continue creating photo opps like this,the world will listen and we should have misogyny kicked within a year. Then we can move on to crimes against fashion together.

Louise Mensch vs. Laurie Penny: Clash Of The Feminist Titans

Posted on by Kelly Welles

 
I think Louise may have just sneaked this Question Time debate on feminism. Sadly, points must be deducted from Laurie Penny’s scorecard for excessive hair flicking and pouting.

And she didn’t piss off Paxman nearly as much as her blue corner opposition.

So What’s The Point Of Sex Again? I’m Confused.

Posted on by Kelly Welles

Rachel Zoe, her six-inch-heels and a conveniently positioned grate. Image: PacificCoastNews.com.

If procreation and furthering one’s own special gene puddle is the purpose of existence, how the hell did we end up in a position where the culturally accepted definition of ‘feminine’ involves denying you’re pregnant for as long as possible by wearing ridiculous heels, having an elective Caeserean to avoid sagging and then losing your babyweight in 4.6 minutes so you can get into even more ridiculous heels and size zero dresses?

Or is it just excessive surfing of the Daily Mail sidebar-of-shame which has led me to this upsetting and hopefully (because the Daily Mail are involved) erroneous opinion of my ‘sisters’?