Posts filed as: glbtPrecious VS Push
In October, I sat in a darkened restaurant in downtown Toronto with a small group of women. We were eating soul food, sipping on soda, water, and wine, and talking in hurried voices. Every so often we would reach out to grasp one of the deep red books that peppered the surface of our table, flip to a page, and read a highlighted passage. The novel “Push” by Sapphire, was certainly a hit amongst my fellow book club members – eliciting responses from each of us that were both unexpected and impassioned. continue reading… Comment Unlearn
I recently read an article that a gender studies course will soon be offered as an elective at Ontario high schools. I’m pretty pumped about this idea and am a little jealous that I didn’t get to take my first course on gender, sex, and sexuality until my third year of university. It was probably one of the most influential courses I ever took, you know, next to Video Games and The Oprah Effect. As a child of the Catholic school system I know all too well how a narrow understanding of gender/sex/sexuality can have profound personal effects for adolescents. If a girl plays hockey – she’s a dyke, if a guy has a lisp he’s a fag – these words are viciously spat out in hallways, shaming their unfortunate victims. If you’re not strong enough, if you’re not pretty enough, if you don’t prescribe to set gender norms then you are the victim of taunts, ridicule, and violence. I’m not saying a course in gender studies is going to completely change this, I mean these values are even reinforced by the administration, but it can make a dent – maybe get these kids open their eyes a bit and start using their peripheral vision. The thing I found bothersome about this article, is the above illustration by the Torontist (one of Toronto’s most popular blogs). continue reading… 2 Comments Caster Semenya
I have been following the Caster Semenya case for a couple of weeks now. Each time I read new developments, my heart breaks a little and I get increasingly frustrated. When I first heard about the ‘gender probe’ I was upset about the incredibly ignorant justification the media gave behind the IAFF’s investigation*. Seriously, you’re going to investigate Semenya’s ‘gender’ because she’s strong, has short hair, has a husky voice, and you know, therefore kind of looks like a man? Looks like a man? To who? Based on who’s standards? She’s strong? Are you kidding me – she’s a fucking athlete. At first, I put aside the fact that the media and IAFF can’t seem to differentiate between gender and sex, and instead let my head swim in the multitude of sex and race issues obviously at play – for the first time in years the words white / hegemonic / heteronormative /oppressive / gender / identity all came rushing at once, and I silently wondered where the hell Dr. Ouellette was at a time like this. Comment |
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