Posts Tagged ‘feminism’
Semen Facials Are Like Weddings
Last week, The Frisky writer Jessica Wakeman stood up in defense of the facial. Wakeman argued that the old porn standby—whereby a man ejaculates onto a woman’s face—isn’t inherently demeaning, as long the woman wants it. “In some porn films, the facial is played up to emphasize his humiliation of and domination of her, but in other porn flicks, the money shot is just something the actors do,” she wrote. “In real life, I suspect facials happen more for pleasure than for humiliation, seeing as women have a little thing called self-respect.”
But Wakeman errs in her either/or assumption about the sex act: that facials are either grounded in mutual respect, and elicit pleasure, or are grounded in degradation, and elicit humiliation. In fact, facials can imply all of these things, though we rarely analyze it all in the moment. Plenty of sex acts made popular in mainstream pornography, like facials, are based on achieving male pleasure. Under this model, the female’s pleasure is derived by successfully pleasing the male—and in the process, allowing herself to be degraded. As Amanda Marcotte writes, “our culture constructs sex as something women do for men, and men do for fun.” That model of sexuality is undoubtedly objectifying for women. But it nevertheless—voilà!—conjures up an idea of “pleasure” for both sex partners.
Sarah Palin’s Other Lessons For Feminists
In an American Prospect piece titled “Lessons For Feminists From Sarah Palin,” Courtney E. Martin lists the political lessons that feminists can take away from the case of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.
Martin, to her credit, stays pretty upbeat on Palin’s aftermath, striking three positive notes on Palin’s political ascension: she’s taught us that “women across the country are hungry for their strength to be acknowledged, without sacrificing their femininity”; that “defending women against sexism means defending all women against sexism”; and that “we’ve succeeded in so many ways!”
I, too, believe that feminists have learned a lot from the rise of Palin. But since I’m kind of a downer, I think it’s important to point out the less-than-positive flip-sides of Palin’s Feminist Primer:
Vintage Sexism Finds Modern Defenders
Behold a common argument deployed by modern sexists:
1. Establish your concern for the women’s movement by admitting that things used to be pretty bad for chicks, back in the olden days when institutionalized sexism dictated that women couldn’t vote or hold jobs out of the home.
2. Your feminist prowress now established, assert that since women are now legally freed to pursue activities beyond babymakin’, all sexism has miraculously disappeared in the workplace, in inter-personal relationships, and in entertainment.
3. Declare anyone who says otherwise a sexist.
This sexist argument—that sexism used to exist, but no more—tends to collapse whenever vintage sexism rears its ugly head. Modern sexists, like moths drawn dangerously close to the flame, can’t help but defend the olde-tyme sexism. You know, the kind that was par for the course back when women couldn’t vote or work or take birth control or avoid being legally raped by their husbands.
Don’t Blame Glenn Beck’s Hot Mormon Wife
“I’m so blessed to be able to have a wife who will tell me ‘you’re coming home now,’ and I want that from her.”
I don’t know what I did to deserve this, but I just received this little gift in my inbox courtesy of Ayn Rand philosophy emporium / Objectivist dating site “The Atlasphere.” It’s called “Who Is Glenn Beck?,” and it’s written by John Stossel.
Usually, the photograph of Stossel’s sensuous mustache would be enough to make me click through to an Atlasphere column. Here, we’ve got an even sweeter prize, however. Glenn Beck’s sexism: explained!
Celebrate National “Offend A Feminist” Week!
Ooh boy, it’s National Offend a Feminist Week!
You know, as a feminist blogger, I spend most weeks out of the year not getting offended by anything. Frankly, I’m sick of raking up obscure sexist bullshit to be offended by! That’s why I always look forward to National Offend a Feminist Week, when I finally get to sit back, relax, and let the anti-feminists shower me with free sexist bullshit. Thanks for helping me do my job, fuckers!
But wait—AUUUUUUGH! AUUUUUUUUUUGHHHHH!—I’m ALREADY OFFENDED by this! The very idea of Offend a Feminist Week is offensive enough for me to write a blog post about why it offends me! The anti-feminist bloggers have caught me in an Offended Feminist Mind Meld! I can’t stop using explanation points! Nor italics! NOR CAPS LOCK! AUGH!
OFFEND A FEMINIST WEEK MALE PRIVILEGE SHADES OF RAPE PHYLLIS SCHLAFLY ALEC BALDWIN SOMETHING SOMETHING ABORTION!!
Whew. That was a close one.
Photo by Rich Anderson.
An Open Letter to CVS “Sensitive Lady Products” Salespeople
Sensitive Man Products need not be locked behind glass doors
To the Employees of Several Washington-Area CVS Stores:
I understand that your CEO, Thomas Ryan, has stated that the CVS name stands for “Convenience, Value, and Service.” This letter takes issue with the third.
It has recently come to my attention, upon purchasing Sensitive Lady Products at several Washington-area CVS stores, that the employees tasked with accepting my payment for these products have not received proper training in How to Not Act Like A Jerk to the Ladies Who Purchase Sensitive Lady Products.
I understand it may be difficult to know how to handle the sale of a Sensitive Lady Product. Perhaps you’re afraid of offending a lady who may be sensitive about purchasing a Sensitive Lady Product; perhaps you have personal religious or political beliefs that require you to be sort of a jerk about doing your job. But you guys are Sensitive Lady Product sales professionals, and you should know how to properly conduct yourselves. Here are some tips.
How to Not Act Like A Jerk to Ladies Purchasing Sensitive Lady Products:
Read More “An Open Letter to CVS “Sensitive Lady Products” Salespeople” »
Sexist Beatdown: Sex Positive Negativity Edition!
To truly call myself “feminist,” must I partake of the dildo?
Earlier this week, I explained, ever-so-respectfully, why I thought sex-positive feminism was boring and dumb. In this edition of Sexist Beatdown, a chatty-thing, Tiger Beatdown’s Sady kindly explains how she came to personally identify as a “sex positive feminist” by being the only employee in a sex shop who didn’t know her anal nerve endings from the ones in her “cooter,” and I realize that a preponderance of rope restraints may be the only thing keeping me from the dark “sex-positive” side. Enjoy!
AMANDA: ok. so. sex sex sex sex feminism sex
Read More “Sexist Beatdown: Sex Positive Negativity Edition!” »
Why Sex Positivity is Bad for Feminism
The Visions in Feminism conference, an annual feminist symposium held at American University, has chosen its 2009 keynote speaker: Annie Sprinkle (right) a porn-star-cum-academic who claims to be “the first porn star to get a Ph.D.” She is also the creator of such titles as “Hardcore from the Heart: The Pleasures, Profits and Politics of Sex in Performance” (book) and “Annie Sprinkle’s Amazing World of Orgasm” (DVD).
The theme of the 2009 VIF conference is “Pushing Boundaries: Queering Feminism & Queer-ying our Communities”; its goal is to “explore ways of queering ourselves and our communities; that is, unfixing definitions of feminism while pushing our boundaries to re-examine our relationships to feminist praxis.”
While we’re “unfixing definitions of feminism,” may I humbly submit that we unfix this “sex-positivity” shit from the entire praxis? Because if I have to endure another essay on the mysteries of the female orgasm in the name of feminism, I may never have an orgasm again.
Camels In A Car Video Corner
Reporters are being pushed like it’s finals week over at the City Paper offices. Therefore, your feminist critiques are welcomed on this 18-second video of camels riding in an automobile.
What does it all mean, etc.
Sexist Beatdown: The Triumphant Return!
Feminist bloggers as colonizers: Surely, parallels can be drawn.
Welcome back to Sexist Beatdown, the weekly feature wherein Sady of Tiger Beatdown (white, heterosexual, cisgendered, American) and myself of The Sexist (white, heterosexual, cisgendered, American), chat. Except for last week, when we did not do it. My fault. BUT THIS WEEK WE ARE BACK, to discuss whether the feminist blogosphere is a form of digital colonialism, and if so, does that explain why feminist blogs are sometimes very boring? Ready, aim:
