The Transformation of Jake Sully into Braveheart Smurf

The good-white-guy/saviour trope reproduces the very racisim [sic] that it supposedly aims to ‘critique’ and in my view at least, it’s clumsy, painfully bad story-telling that attempts to keep an incredibly boring, repetitive trope alive.

- Westerly

I'm also tired of the old white-guy-going native-to-act-as-savior trope which I believe started with the telling of TE Lawrence's story by Hollywood. I don't care about how one of the "oppressors" feels about his and his people's actions. I want to see how the "natives" feel about having their land and way of life encroached upon by outsiders.

- RCHOUDH

Yes, I saw Avatar. No, I was not impressed. Although, I was not disappointed, since it was pretty much what I expected, especially from a director who had the following exchange with Playboy:

PLAYBOY: We seem to need fantasy icons like Lara Croft and Wonder Woman, despite knowing they mess with our heads.
CAMERON: Most of men's problems with women probably have to do with realizing women are real and most of them don't look or act like Vampirella. A big recalibration happens when we're forced to deal with real women, and there's a certain geek population that would much rather deal with fantasy women than real women. Let's face it: Real women are complicated. You can try your whole life and not understand them.

PLAYBOY: How much did you get into calibrating your movie heroine's hotness?
CAMERON: Right from the beginning I said, "She's got to have tits," even though that makes no sense because her race, the Na'vi, aren't placental mammals. I designed her costumes based on a taparrabo, a loincloth thing worn by Mayan Indians. We go to another planet in this movie, so it would be stupid if she ran around in a Brazilian thong or a fur bikini like Raquel Welch in One Million Years B.C.

PLAYBOY: Are her breasts on view?
CAMERON: I came up with this free-floating, lion's-mane-like array of feathers, and we strategically lit and angled shots to not draw attention to her breasts, but they're right there. The animation uses a physics-based sim that takes into consideration gravity, air movement and the momentum of her hair, her top. We had a shot in which Neytiri falls into a specific position, and because she is lit by orange firelight, it lights up the nipples. That was good, except we're going for a PG-13 rating, so we wound up having to fix it. We'll have to put it on the special edition DVD; it will be a collector's item. A Neytiri Playboy Centerfold would have been a good idea.

PLAYBOY: So you're okay with arousing PG-13 chubbies?
CAMERON: If such a thing should ­happen—and I'm not saying it will—that would be fine.

Keeping it klassy, Mr. Cameron. Also, I could clearly tell where most of Avatar's estimated $400 million budget went, and it was not to the writing of the script.

For further analysis, read these:

Avatar: Count the "isms", by Ariel, Feministing.

When Will White People Stop Making Movies Like "Avatar"?, by Annalee Newitz, i09 via Racialicious.

These are movies about white guilt. Our main white characters realize that they are complicit in a system which is destroying aliens, AKA people of color - their cultures, their habitats, and their populations. The whites realize this when they begin to assimilate into the "alien" cultures and see things from a new perspective. To purge their overwhelming sense of guilt, they switch sides, become "race traitors," and fight against their old comrades. But then they go beyond assimilation and become leaders of the people they once oppressed. This is the essence of the white guilt fantasy, laid bare. It's not just a wish to be absolved of the crimes whites have committed against people of color; it's not just a wish to join the side of moral justice in battle. It's a wish to lead people of color from the inside rather than from the (oppressive, white) outside.

Think of it this way. Avatar is a fantasy about ceasing to be white, giving up the old human meatsack to join the blue people, but never losing white privilege. Jake never really knows what it's like to be a Na'vi because he always has the option to switch back into human mode . . . When whites fantasize about becoming other races, it's only fun if they can blithely ignore the fundamental experience of being an oppressed racial group. Which is that you are oppressed, and nobody will let you be a leader of anything.


[ . . . ]


Whites need to stop remaking the white guilt story, which is a sneaky way of turning every story about people of color into a story about being white. Speaking as a white person, I don't need to hear more about my own racial experience. I'd like to watch some movies about people of color (ahem, aliens), from the perspective of that group, without injecting a random white (erm, human) character to explain everything to me. Science fiction is exciting because it promises to show the world and the universe from perspectives radically unlike what we've seen before. But until white people stop making movies like Avatar, I fear that I'm doomed to see the same old story again and again.

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I would be on Team Jacob,

but he is only marginally less controlling and manipulative than Edward.

I did see New Moon this weekend, and it left me with one major question: why can't Bella drive herself home? Half the guys in the movie were driving her truck, even though it was her truck. Is Bella incapable of driving her own vehicle if a male character has a scene with her?

The rest of my concerns, and other people's concerns, were covered in the following articles and in the comments underneath them:

New Moon: Old Story?, by Wendi Muse, Racialicious.

[ . . . ] If anything, the title itself adds an ironic twist to a tale that spirals into a stereotypical narrative to which we are all well-conditioned by now, both in films and other more readily-available media in our every day lives. Have you ever heard something along the lines of “dating someone who is [insert ethnic/racial group] ok, but you’d better not marry one!” or “Native Americans are so in touch with nature!”? Have you ever seen a film or tv show that relegated the person of color as the trusty sidekick, loyal friend, or temporary romantic plaything, only then to have the white hero enter in medias res and get all the praise and attention? Have you ever seen a piece from an ad campaign or historical policy discussions in which non-white people are portrayed as animalistic, in both their behavior, thought processes, and athletic ability? Have you, as a person of color, or if you are not, any of your POC friends, ever complained of feeling that their societal value was reduced to their physical appearance or a specific body part?

If you answered “yes” to any of the above, you have already seen New Moon.

[ . . . ]

But beyond all the drama, there is a story that we have seen played out countless times in every other movie, tv show, etc. that decides to employ a character of color, only to put them on time out when the fun really begins. Despite being abandoned by her (technically) dead boyfriend, Bella, in true masochistic form, continues to go after him, even though living and breathing Jacob is a better choice for a beau. Not only is he charismatic, attractive, and fun, he can protect Bella too, which seems to be at the crux of her very existence. Playing the damsel in distress is Bella’s forte, so Jacob could fit the bill as a boyfriend who would suit her most important need. Yet his big character flaw, beyond actually being interested in Bella, is the fact that he’s not white.

Yes, poor Jacob, as “beautiful” (Bella’s words) and awesome as he may be, is one of the Quileute, an indigenous group of the northern Pacific coast. While it’s not explicitly stated in the film that this is the reason Bella doesn’t continue the relationship with Jacob, any audience member who knows a little bit about American film already knows quite well that it’s a rare case when a main character of color, especially if surrounded by other main characters who are white, actually succeeds in the end and remains a romantic interest. [ . . . ]

It was particularly heartwarming when Bella's best vampire friend Alice calls Jacob's family "a pack of mutts" and refuses to continue her conversation with Bella until she "puts the dog out." Which Bella does.

Also, the one black guy in the movie has less than 10 minutes of screen time before he was killed. By the Native Americans/werewolves.

~

New Moon, Same Old Sexist Story, by Carmen D. Siering and Katherine Spillar, Ms. Magazine.

Bella doesn’t come across as an empowered young woman in New Moon, especially as she uses one man to get over another. And yet, as Ms. pointed out in our Spring 2009 article “Taking a Bite Out of Twilight,” Meyer has insisted that she sees Bella as a feminist character, writing on her website that in her opinion the foundation of feminism is being able to choose. But what Meyer fails to acknowledge is that all the choices Bella makes are the one’s Meyer would make—choices based perhaps on her background as a member of the highly patriarchal Mormon church.

This is a film full of gender stereotypes—testosterone-driven male aggression, females who pine away over lost loves, boys who fix motorcycles and the girls who watch them. The one role-reversal in New Moon, where Bella saves Edward for a change, is immediately negated when Bella’s low self-esteem takes center stage. Even as Edward declares his love to her, Bella deems herself “unworthy” of it, being simply human while he’s a vampire and all. Perpetuating the idea that this is true love—torturous, painful, and unrequited—is detrimental to all of us, women and men.

~

New Moon and domestic violence, by Ann, Feministing.

[ . . . ] I was not prepared for the way the movie portrays physical relationship violence, particularly in Native communities. For all the talk of Edward's abusiveness throughout feminist blogworld, I've seen much less written about domestic violence as it relates to the film's competing love interest, Jacob Black -- a 16-year-old Quileute boy who can turn into a werewolf.

At one point in the movie, Bella meets Emily, the fiance of one of Jacob's fellow werewolf-men. As she turns to put a plate of giant muffins on the table, we see that she has a massive scar on one half of her face.

After breakfast, once Jacob and Bella are alone in the car, Jacob explains that Emily's soon-to-be husband lost his temper "for a split second," became a werewolf, and mauled her. (Earlier in the film, he has told Bella that this whole turning-into-a-werewolf-when-you-get-angry thing is actually a genetic trait carried by many men in his community.) He explains that he's worried that he's bad for Bella because he doesn't know if he can control his own anger.

It's more than a little problematic for New Moon to portray violence as an endemic trait among Native men. Yes, domestic violence is a very real problem in American Indian communities. According to Sacred Circle, Native women are more likely to experience violence than any other U.S. population. A full 64 percent of American Indian women will be physically assaulted in their lifetime. They are also stalked at more than twice the rate of other women. But to imply that this is a result of Native people's genes rather than related to other issues such as drug and alcohol abuse, or centuries of racism and marginalization, is inexcusable. (See Latoya's post on Jacob Black for more on Twilight's treatment of Native communities.)

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It's 2009, Mattel,

and Disney, too. Way to include black characters in a movie with outdated animation, while keeping the rest of your current slate of movies as pale as ever. Including Prince of Persia, and the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean coming in 2011? Really? I've never been to Persia, but I have been to the Caribbean, and I've seen some colorful people there.

Back to Mattel. I read this post on Jezebel--"Dear Mattel: This Is How How You Make Barbie More Diverse"--after I read another post on Jezebel, and the following post on Feministing: Real Talk about Barbie: When experience and narrative don't match up, by Ann referencing Latoya. Emphases mine.

Did Barbie impact me personally? Not really - I wasn't inclined to play with dolls, and I was conditioned to recognize when I was being sold something. I learned from a very early age that white beauty isn't the only beauty and there was no reason to feel bad about some white doll thing when there were so many other cool things in the world.

But that was my experience.

My cousin, who had dozens of Barbies and their cars and their dreamhouses thinks Barbies are wonderful toys for her four year old daughter. My cousin jokingly describes herself as looking for a Ken (we are both moving into our late 20s) and keeps her hair long and relaxed.

Unlike my cousin, I never hid under a towel at the pool to keep my skin from turning darker.

And unlike some of my friends, I never felt that sting of being passed over to play with Barbies because there weren't enough black one's to go around. I didn't walk around with a towel on my head swinging it around as if it was long flowing hair, and I didn't (as described in a seventeen magazine article that was published when I was still in the age range to read it) pump out lotion and leave it on my skin pretending I looked white.

I never felt that pain that one of my friends felt when her classmates teased her about having dark skin and short hair, even though it was relaxed and she used a variety of products to try to make it grow.

And I never felt the kind of pain one of my other friends felt when she went up to her white crush and confessed her feelings, only to have him reply "But...you're black." All the parental affirmation in the world was not helping then.

When you have children, you are their primary example. For a while. And then they go to school, they socialize with others, they pick up words, ideas, actions that you never would have dreamed they would. Some of my friends had color struck parents. And some of my friends just got caught up in a glossy, aspirational, media saturated world that paints a very clear picture of who in our society is beautiful and wanted and who is not. Barbie is a part of that. Hollywood is a part of that. TV is a part of that. Advertising is a part of that. And it is relentless and endless.

It might not make sense to some of you who have not felt the sting of feeling entire pieces of your identity excluded from view and representation. Who take for granted that while you may not relate to Blake Lively or Lauren Conrad that you can always turn on the television and see someone of your race and your gender doing all kinds of activities and seen in all sorts of contexts.

If you felt like you could relate heavily to Daria and Jane but you were still thankful for the one time Jodie made a speech about being the only black kid at Lawndale, if you watched The Craft because it was awesome, but you always remember that it was Rochelle who got told that her "little nappy hairs" looked like "pubic hairs" or you just realized that the only "role"for black girls in society was as the silent/funny/pathetic side kick in a white girl's story then you understand.

I still identify with Daria more than Jodie, because although Jodie was black and ambitious (like me!), Daria was well-read and ostracized by her classmates due to her honest points-of-view (like me!). I liked that Jodie wasn't anyone's sassy black friend. Her character had development and a purpose, like most of the characters in Daria did, regardless of gender. Those people had distinct, meaningful personalities.

That's one of the things I don't like about The Office. I was happy about the "Scott's Tots" episode this week, because who doesn't like dancing children who are going to college? I liked that Erin was featured more in this episode, although she was functioning as a less cynical version of the old Pam, conscripted to assist Michael in another embarrassing endeavor.



I don't like how Pam has transformed from Fancy New Beesly--the aspiring artist who is taking charge of her life--to Pam Halpert--Jim's wife/baby mama who traded her art career for a position as a mediocre salesperson in a bankrupt paper company.

I don't like that you can count the colorful people at Dunder Mifflin on one hand, and if you blink, you'll miss them. I don't like that the women on the show haven't been humorous on their own in a while. I don't like that all of Michael's love interests have been carbon copies of Steve Carell's blond wife (who now goes by Nancy Carell), with no discernible personalities of their own aside from their inexplicable infatuation with Michael. Though I did like crazy Jan and her baby created from super sperm.

This is probably why both Sherri and Parks and Recreation have grown me, with their somewhat diverse casts and their funny female characters. Although, they could both use some more, or any, Asian and Latino people.

In conclusion, I need some black friends to talk with about the above issues. Or, if you're not black, but you would still like to talk with me, let me know. I'm a nice lady!

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Debatable

Sarah Haskins declares Twitter war on Jimmy Fallon, by Jessica at Feministing.

That video does look familiar. Even if Jimmy has never watched Current TV, I'm sure at least one of his writers has heard of Sarah Haskins and has seen her work.

The worst part of the situation is that the video is not funny. It only highlights the fact that there is only one woman with a late night talk show (and unfortunately one black guy). There are plenty of funny women--who have experience, as well as large audiences with potential for growth--who would be great late night talk show hosts. Yet the guy who couldn't get through an SNL sketch without laughing gets a 12:35 slot on NBC.

If you're reading this, Mr. Fallon, hello! Thanks for visiting my blog!

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As a potential member

of the one in six, or possibly one in three, I present you with a Public Service Announcement:

There is no such thing as gray rape.

It doesn't matter if you have known a person for six years or for six minutes. As I have stated before, if you have sexual intercourse with someone without that person's consent, it is rape. It doesn't matter if the two of you have had sexual relations for months, or if you have never met before. It doesn't matter if you think you're a good person. Sex without consent is rape. In the words of a prolific comedian who has taken the time to hone his craft quite effectively over the years,

Whatever you’re doing is what you are, everybody. If you’re boozing, you’re an alcoholic. If you’re raping, you’re a rapist. Who cares what your core is?

For further clarification on this topic, please consult the following articles:

Call it what it is., and "Gray rape," cont'd..., both by Ann at Feministing.


Also, rape jokes are not funny. Ever. Those attempts at humor--anecdotes usually shared by men to amuse other men--sound a lot different to the ears of 50% of the population. Especially when that 50% is more likely to be attacked, simply because we were born female.

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I'm a Vanessa

Not from Gossip Girl, but from The Cosby Show.

Readers, Which Huxtable Are You?

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In Women's News Today

Daria Takes Aim At Jane Magazine, by Slut Machine at Jezebel, via Feministing. Hooray for Daria! The comments led me here. Yippee!

WNBA rookies work on their game faces, by the linster at AfterEllen. Feministing also wrote about this story last month, but the linster points out the inherent homophobia along with the sexism involved.

The AfterEllen article led me to these poignant articles on how the American mainstream media dealt with Senator Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign:

Woman in Charge, Women Who Charge, by Judith Warner at The New York Times.

and

Hating Hillary, by Andrew Stephen at New Statesman.

I have a whole heap to say about the people who let out the hate in their hearts during the Democratic Primary Season. People who won't be satisfied until Senator Clinton grovels at Senator Obama's feet, then leaves the country--nay, the planet(!) and begins her life anew on Mars. People who actually repeated this image on the news, not to condemn its existence, but to lament the loss of Senator Clinton as a late-night talk show punching bag. For now, I leave you with this statement from Feministe's Jill:

I know many women (and men) today are mourning the fact that the female candidate didn’t get her historic moment. I am mourning that too. And again, Melissa says it better than I could. Women are hurting, and our confidence in our “allies” and in our fellow progressives has been thoroughly challenged.

See The Daily Kos for evidence of those so-called "progressives", who often consider 51% of the population a special interest group.

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I thought women weren't supposed to be funny?

Target Women: Wedding Shows, by Sarah Haskins at Current, via Feministing.

Here's the video that first brought the funny to me, also via Feministing:

Oh, Jamie Lee Curtis. You were so good in Freaky Friday: Chad and Lindsay edition. You and Baby Mama-love-interest/former-Oscar-nominee Greg Kinnear should get together, discuss the direction of your careers and figure out how to get back on track. However, I do adore Leisha Hailey and her friend hawking Yoplait. They are so quippy and fun! Although, how cheap are the bride and groom that the members of their wedding party had to bring their own snacks?

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On this Mother's Day,

I am thankful for my Mummy and Grammy.

With that out of the way, here's what I'm angry about. It started with this Feministing article which led me to the source: My Spring Weekend Nightmare, by Melissa Bruen at The Daily Campus. Most of the comments following the original article were supportive. However, some other people had the gall to write the following responses, emphases mine, sic implied. First the doubter:

This story seems like a graduating journalist's cry for fame. If I'm mistaken, then I am sorry, but I don't buy into any of it. Sweet picture on the front page, and nice "swimmer's build," but I feel sorry for anyone who is actually a victim of assault and doesn't have such a romanticized story to tell.

Then the critic:

Let me first start off by saying that I feel sorry for what happened . . .

Now, on to some journalistic criticism. This is on journalistic matters and how this story was handled, NOT about the situation itself. I felt that the article was poorly written and should not have been put on the front page above the fold. If anything, it should have started in the Commentary section and continued elsewhere. Normally, any story that is printed a week after the occurence rarely gets on the front page of any paper. Yes, I know it was traumatic, and if she couldn't bring herself to write it before, then perhaps a reporter should have done an interview, so she could get her story out there and more timely.

Maybe if she had been killed, then she would have been front-page material. But being assaulted by multiple men on a college campuse belong in the "Commentary section". Right. He continues:

Secondly, the picture is totally inappropriate for the article. The first thing I honestly saw when I picked up the paper was the three words "SOME GIRLS LUCKY". We all know that "lucky" is another word for having sex, and to wear that shirt and talk about being sexually harassed, well that was just in very poor taste. After looking closer, I saw that there were smaller words, but from afar, no one would honestly see them. Another photo should have been used, or a different shirt.

Thirdly the article being released when it was was poor timing. Yes, I know taht she might not have been able to talk about it right away, but I ask that you go back to where I said that she should have talked to a reporter. To have the Editor-In-Chief who is graduating next week tell this tale without another issue for anyone to comment about the article seems also in very poor taste. This article should have run sooner, or it should not have ran at all. From my perspective, it seems like she wanted to get her story out there (and I give her full credit for that and support it), so she used her power as Editor-In-Chief and put it on the front page above the fold for the last normal issue.

Finally, because accused rapists allegedly hurt more than the people actually being assaulted:

Oh wow, you're sooooo brave. Please. There's a story of a kid in Georgia who was imprisoned for several years for having consensual sex with a 15-year-old girl when he was 16. THAT'S injustice, not whatever minor shenanigans happened with you. There are COUNTLESS instances of false rape accustations that lead to arrests, convictions, or simply the staining of a guy's name. (Duke lacrosse is only the foremost example).

When it comes to "rape", the vast majority of the time the only injustices are felt by men, not girls. I'm sick of supposed to be feeling sorry for girls (and yes, I say girls just to annoy feminists). This editor will probably have here future paved with gold by newspapers who will hire her only because she's female, while far more qualifed male reporters/editors, etc. get the shaft. Happens every day, in companies, newspapers, etc. across the land. Who's getting raped there?

The anger hit me again when I read this comment under a related post on Feministe from kayline:

. . . Anyway, I wanted to contribute to the larger discussion evolving here about campus rape culture. In my second year of college I dated a a guy named Jake for about a month, before I decided that I was feeling emotionally manipulated and pressured to engage in sex even when I really wasn’t interested. (In one instance he came into my room at 2am while I was asleep, crawled into my bed, and started fondling me. Sounds romantic? Is actually really unpleasant.) After I broke it off I mostly avoided him, but one night about a month later I was at a small party in a mutual friend’s room. I had been having a really bad week, and drank too much too quickly. When I decided to go to bed I was a little unsteady on my feet. Jake offered to walk me back to my room, and I shrugged and said sure. When we got to my room (I had a single) he helped me into bed, then crawled into bed with me. I blacked out after that. When I woke up he was gone and I was completely naked. I know for a fact that I got into bed with all my clothes on.

When I woke up I didn’t quite know what to think. I was hung over, and confused by the gaps in my memory of the night’s events. But as the day went on and I started thinking more clearly, I realized that I was feeling OFF. I couldn’t stop thinking about, but I kept talking myself down. “You don’t know what happened, it was probably nothing, don’t be so dramatic, you’re just looking for attention.” This was happening inside my own head. Finally I called my mom, and though I love her dearly, she failed me that day. I told her what had happened and she basically said: You don’t really know what happened, you’re never going to know, there’s nothing you can do about it, so just don’t think about it . . .

If you read the rest of the comment, the situation ended Jake getting a six-semester suspension from the college and his classmates throwing him a going away party, while simultaneously shunning the multiple women that he raped.

. . . the worst part was what my classmates did.

I went to a REALLY small college. 75 students per class. I’d literally lived in the same building with these people for 4 years, and they abandoned me, and abandoned my roommate. They offered us none of the support that they offered Jake, because they couldn’t stomach coming to grips with what had happened to us. When I go to alumni events and visit with people from school, I look at their faces and think “The night I cried myself to sleep alone in my room, you were at a party for the man who raped me.”

I then thought to myself, I wouldn't just think that, I would say it to their faces. But that's me now. That wasn't me in college. That's not other people, nor does it need to be. I'm the one who screams about things, both here on the interwebs and also on the phone to my Mummy. I'm the one who won't shut up because there are stories that must be told. I'm the one who gets acutely annoyed when women who think they "haven't experienced much oppression" make posts like this:

. . . It's time to realize that you win nothing by exaggerating your own victimhood or claiming that all individual problems are systemic. Above all, it's time to stop saying "It sucks to be a woman," because really (I've been one for like a whole bunch of years now), it doesn't. Being a woman is not yet like being a man, but it does not suck...

I think it sucks for the 1 in 6 women (and 1 in 33 men) who will be sexually assaulted in her lifetime. I think it sucks for Senator Hillary Clinton who is being blamed for the entire downfall of the Democratic party, although Howard Dean has been the chairman of the Democratic National Committee since 2005.

As far as I know, Mike Gravel and Ron Paul are still running, too. Ron Paul is very popular among the passionate and growing Liberterian sect of the US. Yet why aren't we seeing any media coverage on them? And why no coverage on the effect that the $2 billion a week war is having on our failing economy? Think about that.

Why is there a picture of the latest Menudo group up there? I watched Dance on Sunset last night on Nickelodeon, and Menudo performed. How does this relate to rape or Mother's Day? It doesn't, but one of the earlier episodes of Dance on Sunset featured a performance by Akon. Yes, that Akon. That one, too. Note that the latter throwing was at a Radio Disney concert. Ooh the irony. This same video documented child attacker is now a-okay to appear on a Nickelodeon show.

But what about Menudo? To make my long brain process short, why are all five members of the by-definition Puerto Rican musical group some of the lightest people in the United States? Latino people come in every shade, despite what the commercials on Univision would have you believe. Also, why are both of the hosts on Dance on Sunset men? You know the show's audience has to skew female. Don't girls deserve at least one female role model . . . on a dance show?

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Racism, sexism and general bigotry don't exist.

Nor do they continue to affect the lives of everyday Americans:

Whoa., by The Law Fairy at Your Mom goes to Law School.

Two years and a lawsuit later, CA man gets his wife's last name, by Jessica at Feministing, whom I truly applaud for her appearance on The Colbert Report. Young, sassy feminists of all colors should be celebrated. And btw, I was a business minor.

College student sexually assaulted while crowd cheers, by Jessica at Feministing.

Womanhood: Getting dudes to buy you stuff, by Jessica at Feministing. Video featured above.

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Musings from a Black Woman: April Showers

This is some nonsense. This isn't "artistic" or "beautiful." This is not about whether teenagers are having sex, Defamer. This is a situation made of fail. Miley's parents failed her. Vanity Fair failed her. Annie Leibovitz failed her. Disney failed her.

Miley is 15. When I was 15, there is no way my Mummy and Grammy would have let someone take a picture of me wearing a bedsheet. That is nasty. All the perverts involved in creating this debacle deserve a visit from Dateline's Chris Hansen, complete with a pitcher of sweet tea.

Trai_Dep sums up my final thoughts on the matter:

When I see a picture of The Jonas Brothers tarted up, wearing smeared lipstick and posed so they look like they've just had the holy crap raped out of them, then I'll know that America has finally reached sexual equality.

Free at last. Free at last. Thank God Almighty, free at last!

Also, where were Taylor Momsen's parents during this photo shoot?

~

Next!

This appropriation situation got me thinking about Jessica Valenti's appearance on The Colbert Report last year. When it aired, I was proud that Stephen had a young feminist on his program. However I was also annoyed for reasons I couldn't identify. Now I know why.

In a May 20, 2007, post on Feministing, editor Samhita asked "why is Jessica the face of Feministing?"

Because she got to promote her first of three books on The Colbert Report, a program that prefers its guests to be older, white and/or male. The Report occasionally books female guests, but rarely are they of a nonwhite persuasion. (Yes, I do know Michelle Obama was on the show two weeks ago.)

Additionally, Jessica is listed as the "Executive Editor" of Feministing.

It's that simple. I haven't seen "Vanessa, Ann, Celina, Jen" or Samhita on any Comedy Central program. I haven't read any controversy stirred up about any of their books like the controversy fostered by the cover of Jessica's book. In fact, I haven't heard of any of their books. Do they have a three-book deal? And if so, why have I not heard about it?

Back to me. I was annoyed because I shared the feelings that MirandaJay expressed in the comment section of Jessica's latest mea culpa:

I'm glad you finally said outloud you realize part of the reason why the mainstream media picks up on your work is because you are cute, white and well dressed and not because you have anything edgy or new to add to feminism. I think you are right to be proud of being able to make a living off of writing, but it's good you understand why you REALLY got on to the colbert show.

And yes, Jessica finally acknowledged this sentiment in the post by stating

I have no illusions as to why my work has gotten the press that it has. The media likes nothing more than a young sassy white feminist who is mainstream-friendly. I know that there is work out there being done that is more nuanced and cutting edge - because I see it all around me. That’s not to say I’m not incredibly proud of the work I’ve done. I am proud. I know that Feministing and [her book Full Frontal Feminism] have made changes in people’s lives, and that warms my heart every day. I believe, whole-heartedly, in the work that we are doing and the women who I’m fortunate enough to blog with. But I also believe in our ability - and my own - to do better."

I agree with all of that. I just wish that more people, like Amanda and, er, other people, could understand that when colorful people like myself point out the racial disparities in our media.

It is indeed a huge personal accomplishment to write a book. It is quite another thing to get it 1) published, 2) well-marketed, and 3) supported by a late-night talk show targeted at an 18-34 white male demographic. Those latter three qualities are much easier to attain if the people in charge of the publishing house, the public relations department, and the television network all think the author is "marketable", i.e. young, pretty and white. And if you have a thin, naked white woman on the cover of your debut book, all the better.

These are the feelings that have fueled the anger behind Amandagate. This isn't about trying to "tear up someone’s career" or "setting out to destroy someone’s reputation as sport". It Was Never About One Thing. This is about acknowledging that (perceived) talent and hard work aren't the only things that make people successful, especially in the arena of mainstream media, and that with great privilege comes great responsibility.

For more on appropriation, inaccurate media representation, taking a stand, and misguided ally chutzpah, respectively, I direct you here:

About Erasing …, by Thomas at Feministe.

Trans-Racialization in "21″, by Jenn at reappropriate.

To BFP: Chickens, Princesses, Gypsies, and Slaves. by Rainbow Girl at Team Rainbow.

Intellectual Appropriation, Attribution Of Credit & Privilege (UPDATED), at PhysioProf.

My favorite part was this:

OK. One final point about male privilege and the role of men vis a vis feminism. This partial excerpt of a comment to Holly’s post was written by a dude named Hugo:

I write all this not to distract from the conversation at hand. The point is, the meta-conversation between white feminists and RWOC bloggers (acknowledging that those categories create a bit of a false dichotomy) has produced a lot of pain — and a lot of growth — for a lot of us this past year. That conversation works best, however, when we move away from the personal attacks of the sort that have been thrown, primarily in one direction, this week.

I am not a woman, so there is, of course, no way for me to know how women would react to this kind of comment by a dude. But this made my jaw almost hit the floor. I sort of imagine that if I were a woman, my reaction would be “Us!? What the fuck are you talking about, dude!?” And it kind of surprises me that in the comments to Holly’s post, no one said, “Yo, dude. This particular argument is about and between women; mind your own fucking business.”

I have always assumed that women would find it really fucking annoying if I were to ever tell them what is feminist or not, or to use the pronouns “us” and “we” in reference to feminists. And I certainly never refer to myself as a feminist, as I don’t think it is for me to say if I am a feminist or not; it is for women to judge.

What I do is try to treat women like human beings, and tell other men what I think they can do to try to treat women like human beings. You gotta be fucking nuts to wade the fuck in there as a man and start taking sides in an argument between a white female blogger and WOC bloggers over how to further their respective common and distinct goals. Seriously.

I get that I am viewing Hugo’s remark as a privileged male, so I could be missing something important. Am I getting this wrong?'

Nope, you're not getting it wrong at all. Also, all you anti-choice men in the House and the Senate and in state legislatures trying to restrict my reproductive rights, please take note: you don't have a uterus, so get your laws off my body.

Seacrest out!

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Someone's cruising for a bruising.

I started reading here: Allies Talking. Then I read this: An Open Letter to Jezebel, which included this--The True Story Of One Epic Day Nerds Groped Free--which was in response to this--The Open-Source Boob Project.

So I wondered what Feministing had to say, and I found this: Women's bodies: Just like open-source software!. I found a Nipsey Russell of responses here: Dear sir: I believe your patriarchy is showing.

In conclusion, my favorite reaction was this: A Modest Proposal, by misia.

As we all know, many women long to give a swift kick in the balls to some male person or other. Yet all too often women are prohibited from doing so.

Sometimes this is due to our culture's repressive attitudes toward female violence or because of societal pressure for women to behave in "ladylike" and feminine ways. At times women must censor themselves from administering a good solid boot to the greater masculine crotch due to historically justified fear of reprisal. At yet other times it is nothing more or less than men's self-serving, self-glorifying attitudes toward their precious little patriarchal testicles that lead them to cravenly avoid supporting women's emotional and political expression.

All in all, we live in a culture that routinely prohibits women this useful and healthy outlet for the outrage that almost every women eventually feels as a result of living in a sexist patriarchal society. Indeed, we live in a culture which punishes women for even thinking or talking about expressing their rage in this way.

This must change, and men, who after all have an obligation to help redress thousands of years of unearned patriarchal privilege, also have a moral obligation to help solve this problem.

To this end, we propose a community-based Open Source Swift Kick to the Balls Project.

Like other Open Source projects, the Open Source Swift Kick to the Balls Project (OSSKBP) relies on a wide pool of volunteers working together for the common good.

The Project has very simple parameters and it basically works like this:

Men who are open to being given a swift kick in the balls need do nothing. Women will simply assume that any man not clearly indicating his position vis-a-vis being kicked in the balls with an approved OSSKBP badge or pin is open to being kicked in the balls, as any progressive, free-thinking, feminist man ought to be, by any woman who wishes to do so . . .

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Picks and pans

Award-Winner Spike Lee Blazes New Trails in Acceptance-Speech Racial Tension, from Defamer.

I had given up on Mr. Lee after sitting through Bamboozled and avoiding She Hate Me on principle alone (note to Spike: lesbians don't line up to have sex with men). Now he's back to making some sense.

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Making girls skinnier, one Sweet Valley High book at a time, by Jessica at Feminisiting.

. . . it seems that Random House is re-releasing the series with a new modern twist: skinnier twins . . .

In a side-by-side column comapring the 1983 version of the book with the present one, publishers write that the previous characters were a "perfect size 6." Now, they're a "perfect size 4." Charming.

Yes, this is terrible. However, the article did lead me to the insightful comments following the original Gawker post. It also led me to these sites: The Dairi Burger, and Elizabeth and Jessica are better than you. by 1bruce1. Oh, the hilarity. Here is my favorite recap so far: SVT Super Edition #4: The Unicorns Go Hawaiian. Ellen is funny!

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Speaking of funny, two of today's three Steve Harvey Strawberry Letters:

Strawberry Letter #2 Subject: I Thought My Behind Wiping Days Were Over

Good morning Shirley, Steve, Tommy and welcome back Carla. I listen to your morning show faithfully and besides the prank phone calls the Strawberry letters are my next favorite thing about the show. I never thought in a million years that I would be writing to get help. Here's my problem. My husband and I have been married for almost two years, we've been together for seven. My husband and I have gone through good and bad times, but from where my husband has come from and where he is now I thank God. He is a loving husband and father (to children that aren't biologically his) and will do anything for his family to make sure that we have what we need. And I love him for that.

My problem is do I love him enough to continue to wipe his behind when he goes to the bathroom and does number 2? My husband has put on a few pounds since we've been together and he can't reach back there and anymore (his short arms don't help). I can't even tell you how it started or why it's continues. All I keep thinking about is in sickness and in health to death due us part. It's making me sick, affecting my health and I'm about to die. Even our daughters make fun of him now. Like if he's in the bathroom and he calls my name they say "mom, dad can't wipe himself again." And I thought we were being so discreet, but I guess they can hear me in there saying "Oh my God, this don't make no sense." I don't know, it's like automatic now. I don't think he even tries. I've asked him to try this way and that way and he always says he can't reach. I tell him that I'm a doggone good wife, because if anything were to ever happen to us you ain't going to find another woman to wipe your behind. Or is he?

Am I the only wife that does this for her husband? Is there a club I can join to help me to help him? Morning show as you can see in the beginning of my letter I have a great husband and I know good men are hard to come by. We're both working on losing weight. Mine seems to be coming off a little faster than his. But then I'll ask him what he had for lunch and he'll say somehting crazy. I mean his weight is coming off, but not fast enough where he can reach his own behind. PLEASE HELP. Signed BLANK AND TIRED

Strawberry Letter #3 Subject: Is My Husband In Love With His Cousin?

Dear Steve & Shirley I have a serious problem with my husband of 7yrs almost eight years he seems to be in love with his cousin. I can not get him to spend any time with me he's always on the phone with his cousin. They call each other in the morning in the afternoon and at night. If I say anything about her or the situation he gets upset. When we do go out together she calls and he sits and talk to her instead of focusing on us. Anytime I want to just sit and talk to him she calls and he leaves me and goes in our back room in the dark and lay in bed and talk to her. He recently told me that he has traded me for her. He talks about me to her and makes her feel I am this terrible person.

Last year they made plans with out me for her to come and visit he totally ignored me while she was here and everything was about her it was like he didnt even want me around. Then one night we were sitting together in our living room she gave him the eye and they got up went out side at 12:00 am to talk and left me sitting in the living room.

That was last year now this past week they planned another visit this time I didnt know anything about it until 3 days before she was to arrive he had the nerve to ask me to clean the room for her and he was taking days off from work to spend time with her. I orginally told him no I would not clean the room for her to stay in my home again after they disrespected me the first time that's when he told me they would stay in a hotel TOGETHER can you believe that. He later apologized for not telling me and his reason he claims is because I would ruin his time with her. So the cousin came they went out to eat the whole time she was here they even went on a cruise together and to the movies and wherever else each night. He would not come home until I had gone to bed because apparently she was uncomfortable being around me. They would also take a shower every night as soon as they come in something I thought was strange. She barely even spoke to me and he was ok with that he said it's my fault and I need to apologize to him and her for even thinking something is going on between them.

STEVE & SHIRLEY PLEASE HELP I AM CONFUSED AND HURT! AM I JUST OVER REACTING???? WHAT SHALL I DO?????

Sad sad people making my life look good. :)

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Wondering if sexism still exists in the entertainment industry?

Well, someone had to greenlight these movies:

No Country for Fat Chicks, by Amy Monaghan at Radar Online, via Feministing.

Calling pretty much any Hollywood movie "a little sexist" (as Katherine Heigl did when Vanity Fair asked her about her star-making turn in last summer's Knocked Up) is like saying you're a little bit pregnant. The difference is one of degree, not kind.

Now that the Oscars are over and our first viable female presidential is floundering toward failure, it seems like a good time to take stock of sexism in our culture. That's why Radar, using Knocked Up as a mildly chauvinistic baseline, and employing the highly scientific method of surveying our girlfriends, set out to uncover the most misogynistic movies of the 21st century. (Excluded were intentionally offensive movies and any grindhouse film where coeds ended up in a woodchipper, etc.)

It's a crowded field, and getting more so daily (we're looking at you, Teeth), but here's our year-by-year timeline of the most woman-bashing films of the Oughts. So far.

My favorite one is listed first. Enjoy!

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For my friend who thinks everyone is gay,

here is a pretty cool article for you:

Feminist of the Day: Ellen Page, by Jessica at Feministing. There's a 50/50 chance she'll actually read this post.

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For my dirty old (straight) lady readers, here is the cuteness:

Zac Attack (I know, right?), by Simon Dumenco, Details magazine.

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And for me, Mr. Tumnus in W Magazine. One of my friends had to burst my bubble on Saturday by telling me that James McAvoy is married. But we were supposed to have interspecial faun babies together! I probably should have returned his calls . . .

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Let me tell you.

If I had been up on that stage, I would have gone off on this muckraker masquerading as a "journalist":



If you can't access the video, here is what Ms. Such and Such from Politico, whose name and title I won't bother to write inside this post, said to Hillary Clinton at the Democratic debate in California last night:

"Senator Clinton, your husband has set off several firestorms in the last few weeks in early primary states with the way that he has criticized Senator Obama.

Greg Craig, who was one of your husband's top lawyers, and is now a senior adviser to Senator Obama, recently asked if your campaign can't control the former president now, what will it be like when you're in the White House?"

If you peruse the transcript of the debate, you'll notice that there was no follow up question to Senator Obama asking him how he keeps his wife in line. In fact, there haven't been any such nasty questions posed about any of the other candidates' spouses in either party.

Hmph. This is not cool.

And, to make me even more upset about the state of crazy women talking about other women today, I read this post last night on Catherine's blog and this post tonight on Feministing. You know I had to leave comments on both. You have to scroll down really far for the latter one.

That's all.

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Things I liked this week

Jokes that objectify women, by Matsu at media girl.

Let She Who Is Without Period Stains Throw The First Tampon, by Margaret Cho at The Huffington Post, via Feministing.

The Slut on Gossip Girl, by Jessica Wakeman at The Huffington Post, via Feministe.

Know Your Limit . . . For Rape?, by Cara at The Curvature, via Feministing.

Montana, nation's least-black state, confronts issues on MLK Day, by Rob Chaney at Billings Gazette, via Racialicious.

How would Chris Matthews sound if he talked to men like he talks to women?, by Hart Seely at Slate, via Feministing.

Also, I am now cross-posting my relevant musings at BlogHer.com, so tell your friends in China!

Happy reading!

Update 1/28/2008 - I forgot this one:

That fragile male ego, by media girl at media girl. including privilege, a poem for men who don't understand what we mean when we say they have it, by D. A. Clarke.

. . . privilege is being
smiled at all day by nice helpful women, it is
the way you pass judgment on their appearance with magisterial authority,
the way you face a judge of your own sex in court and
are over-represented in Congress and are not strip searched for a traffic ticket
or used as a dart board by your friendly mechanic, privilege
is seeing your bearded face reflected through the history texts
not only of your high school days but all your life, not being
relegated to a paragraph
every other chapter, the way you occupy
entire volumes of poetry and more than your share of the couch unchallenged,
it is your mouthing smug, atrocious insults at women
who blink and change the subject -- politely -- privilege
is how seldom the rapist's name appears in the papers
and the way you smirk over your PLAYBOY . . .

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Three related stories:

Abstinence Programs Face Rejection, by Rob Stein, The Washington Post, via Feministing.

Bush policies likely to blame for more teen births, by Cynthia Tucker, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, via Feministing.

Knocked-Up Jamie-Lynn Spears Carrying On Britney's Troubled Family Tradition, Defamer.

My first thought was, How old was Solange (yes, that Solange), when she had her scandalous baby?

My second thought was, TedSez is funny.

My third thought was, Vanessa and her fellow Mouseketeers must be cracking up right now.

Posts that have intrigued me today,

mostly via Feministe:

Hannah Montana, Part II, by Reb at Adventures in Lame.

The Mommy Fetish- short version, by The Red Queen, at Elizabitchez.

Why so angry? by zuzu at Feministe.

And The View on transgendered children, by Jessica at Feministing.

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Ten years later . . .

Katherine Heigl says Knocked Up was sexist, by Jessica at Feministing.

In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, actress Katherine Heigl says that Knocked Up, was "a little sexist."

"It paints the women as shrews, as humorless and uptight, and it paints the men as lovable, goofy, fun-loving guys," she says. "It was hard for me to love the movie."

Really Katherine? Here was my immediate response:

I've only been writing about this since this May when the movie came out. Katherine could have taken a looky-loo at my blog months ago. It was hard for me to simply tolerate the movie. Maybe she could have realized the overt sexism and misogyny saturated in the script when she first read it.

Other people had some strong words about this development as well. Feel free to share your reactions.
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