Links; women on and offscreen

[meridian_rose]

Some links to articles dealing with female representation and sexism within the media and in real life.

What does science fiction tell us about the future of reproductive rights? (originally linked by ysabetwordsmith) One of the things it tells us is that in the non-mainstream world where women's voices are more likely to be heard, far different ideas about gender and reproduction can be heard than those that bombard us via mainstream, male-dominated, media.

Speaking of the more mainstream media - Where Have All The Good Women Gone ; this article posits that, even in a post-Buffy era, shows like Glee, Bones, and Once Upon a Time increasingly sideline women into romantic storylines or portray them as mostly evil and/or manipulative. It highlights The Good Wife which ironically, given its title, is a show that passes the Bechdel test constantly, and shows a woman rediscovering herself after a political scandal lands her husband in jail and forces her to find a job as a lawyer.
Comments left at the article also mention shows including Fringe and Lost Girl as having competent females in lead roles.

Interestingly this article compares Buffy and Lost Girl and explains that ‘Lost Girl’ Isn’t ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’—And That’s Okay

After the disgusting show of racism from supposed book fans who didn't realise that 'dark skinned' as written in the actual book meant a black female would be cast as Rue (Racist Hunger Games Fans Are Very Disappointed ; Why wasn't The Hunger Games cast as I imagined in my racist reading?!) one reviewer moved to attack another female, Jennifer Lawrence, for her weight ( Jennifer Lawrence Isn’t Thin Enough To Play Katniss?); commentators point out that in the book Katniss hunts for extra food for her family, that a malnourished girl would be a less likely competitor to survive the Games in the first place, and of course the fact that the reviewer singled the female hero out while ignoring the healthy looking male actors playing Gale and Peeta.

In the real world, women in the USA in particular, are seeing their rights eroded piece by piece in all areas of their lives (e.g. Topeka Repeals Law Against Domestic Violence ; New Bill Would Require Police to Witness Domestic Violence Firsthand Before Making Arrest ; Wisconsin Equal Pay Law Repealed Because “Money Is More Important For Men”)

This article looks at the worst offenders: Dispatches From The War On Women: The 5 Worst States - Mississippi fares worst:

Mississippi women earn the lowest average wages in the country and [the state] has never elected a woman to Congress or as governor. 22% of the women of the state live in poverty

The article draws the unsurprising conclusion that

Those states where women do not have access to affordable higher education, reproductive health care and representation in Congress pursue the most regressive, anti-women policies in the country. It’s an important reminder that the war on women is not simply a war on abortion. It’s a war on the ability of women to control their own destinies.

Comments

[pristineungift.livejournal.com]

I don't really have words for any of this that I haven't said before. But you know where I live. Every day when I leave my house, I wonder if today will be the day they take my humanity. I alternate between impassioned moments where I want to run for office, try to make a difference, and more realistic depression where all I want to do is get out and hope that the rest of them sinking into the sea.

[meridian_rose]

If I were American and you were running for office, I'd vote for you. I honestly don't know how the tide can be turned right now - it's not impossible but it seems such a gigantic task. I've seen people suggesting that they're willing to get into debt to get sterilised while that's still an option; that they're desperate to move to more liberal states or to Canada or Europe; and that if enough people did move out of and/or refused to move into states with restrictive and misogynistic laws that things would have to change.

[pristineungift.livejournal.com]

You'd be in the minority, I fear. I've talked about it off and on for the past few years, but every time I start to seriously consider it, I realize that I'm not really a winning candidate. I'm too bisexual, too atheist, too female, too liberal, and not willing to lie about who I am to win votes. In a state that has never elected a woman to a statewide office, I'd have a hard enough time being super religious, super straight, super conservative. As I am, and running on a Democratic ticket in a red state, well.... It would amount to wasted time and money.

I've seen people suggesting that they're willing to get into debt to get sterilised while that's still an option; that they're desperate to move to more liberal states or to Canada or Europe; and that if enough people did move out of and/or refused to move into states with restrictive and misogynistic laws that things would have to change.

I used to look forward to having a family with my husband, and now I'm afraid to be pregnant in my state. I've told him no children until we live somewhere that will save me if I'm laying there dying from pregnancy complications. (MS doesn't allow doctors to perform life saving procedures unless the fetal heartbeat has ceased. However doctors can often determine whether the child is viable or not and save the woman hours before the heartbeat ceases. The baby is more valuable than the woman.)

Our plan is to move to a more liberal state after we both graduate next year. I'm very firm on that point. And if all the states start falling, I'm going to Canada or England, with or without him. and I hate this. I hate they've done this - made me afraid of my own country. Made me sometimes hate my husband for being safe in ways that I'm not, purely for being born male. I feel guilty for it, but I can't stop the rage. Fortunately, my husband recognizes my 'dark moods' and considers them the price of living with an 'artist.' I mean. Creative types are supposed to brood, right?

I'd never be able to get all the women in the country on board, but oh how I wish we could pull a modern day Lysistrata - refuse to have intercourse with men until we are given reproductive equality and respect.

[meridian_rose]

too bisexual, too atheist, too female, too liberal, and not willing to lie about who I am to win votes It's so sad that what I'd see as positives are seen as negatives.
I haven't got anything to lose by pulling a Lysistrata; every day is Lysistrata day for me :D But I've seen women argue that it would punish them by denying themselves sexual outlets as well as the men they're trying to convince.
Creative types definitely brood more. We get passionate about things both the positive and negative. But that's better than not really caring about anything.

[brontefanatic.livejournal.com]

I just wanted you to know that I hadn't ignored your post. I just needed a few days, because I get so angry when I start discussing it. I keep hoping people will wake up to the crazy that's going on in the State, but right now, Moderate is a dirty word, not to mention Liberal.

Also, as a Christian, I deeply resent how these hypocrites have hijacked my faith - twisting everything the founder of Christianity stood for, or is believed to have said, into the very opposite.

I am just as furious about the war on the middle class, the poor, the uninsured, science, the environment(global warming is a liberal plot), and after-born children as I am about the war of women. It really is a type of mass insanity that affects everybody.

I live in a purple state - which means that in national elections it swings between voting Republican and Democrat. In 2008, the State went for Obama. Our State legislature is trying to pass some anti-woman stuff, too, but so far not as extreme as many other states, and it doesn't look like they are going to succeed.

We do have one Conservative representative in Congress that is a national embarrassment. He's also more stupid than a box of rocks.