Wednesday, April 27, 2011
lead post for 4/28
Saturday, April 23, 2011
follow up post for 4/26
Friday, April 22, 2011
newsflash 3
Jason Kleinman
Professor Simonson
Introduction to Women’s Studies
April 22, 2011
Women in the Military
For a long time, the military was an institution made up almost entirely of male soldiers. As such, men in the military could exhibit their naturally aggressive, sometimes violent behavior amongst themselves. Recently, however, women have changed the face of the military. About eleven percent of the United States forces serving in Iraq and Afghanistan are women. Women’s induction into the military has been quite successful and effective, but has also come with some disturbing and unacceptable problems. The aggressive behavior by some male soldiers has manifested itself in many sexual assaults against their female counterparts. Since women in the military are generally treated as second-class citizens, rape allegations get swept under the rug and military women live in constant fear of sexual assault. War is hard enough without having to fear those who are supposed to be fighting by your side. All of the progress that women have made in society over the last century, including the right to be in the military, is ignored.
Wars are extremely difficult and trying to those who fight in them. In addition to combat, soldiers have to deal with tough situations such as seeing dead bodies, handling remains, and losing close friends who have been killed in the line of duty. On top of all of this, women must cope with the arduous task of being a woman in the armed forces. One of the major issues that military women encounter is experiencing sexual trauma. This includes harassment, assault, rape, and other violent acts. While civilian women must deal with these issues as well, women in the military experience them much more frequently. National surveys suggest that thirteen to thirty percent of women veterans have experienced rape during their time in the force. It’s bad enough that rapes are committed, but the most absurd aspect of this widespread sexual assault issue in the military is that male soldiers are getting away with it.
In the military, males are considered the alpha and women are seen as second-class citizens. Therefore, when it comes to rape charges against male soldiers, “victims are blamed. Assailants are promoted. Unit commanders - whose promotions are dependent on the conduct and performance of the soldiers they supervise - have an incentive to see that allegations are few and convictions are fewer. As a result, the overwhelming majority of cases get swept under the rug” (Speier). This outrageous reality in the military has made it nearly impossible for women to feel safe in their barracks. In 2009 Technical Sgt. Mary Gallagher was allegedly sexually assaulted by one of her fellow sergeants. He forcefully pulled down her pants and massaged her private region while rubbing his penis against her vagina. When she reported the assault, command simply reassigned the perpetrator and lectured Sergeant Gallagher about how 96 percent of rape occurs when drinking is involved. Drinking, however, was not involved in this case. This is just one example of countless reported assaults that go unpunished every year in the military. While these ignored allegations are egregious, this problem has another negative effect on women in the military, the fear of coming forward and being further ostracized.
Steven Lee Myers, in his article “A Peril in War Zones: Sexual Abuse by Fellow G.I.’s” recounts the story of Captain Margaret H. White. She was sexually assaulted and then stalked by a fellow G.I. This stalking went on for months to the point where she, “felt safer outside the wire”. Nevertheless, she was reluctant to come forward. She is not alone in this fear as the Pentagon estimates that as few as ten percent of sexual assaults in the military are reported. This fear of coming forward is not unjustified. There is such a poor percentage of male soldiers who are successfully prosecuted for their acts of sexual assault that women have the right to be nervous about reporting their incidents. Another reason that women may not come forward is that they do not want to feel as though they are disrupting the larger mission at hand. Finally, women do not want to further alienate themselves within a profession that is already so heavily dominated and controlled by men.
The military has recognized that sexual assault is an issue that has gotten out of hand. The military says they have radically changed the way that sexual assault is handled. Apparently, access to treatment has increased and the rules on prosecution have tightened. While this remains to be seen, it does not appear to matter as women refuse to come forward about their cases of sexual assault. How can the military be the well-oiled machine that people expect, when eleven percent of its members live in constant fear of sexual assault?
It is hard from an outsider’s perspective to pinpoint a resolution to this widespread problem. However, it seems that, like many other women’s issues that have been exposed and improved in the past, women need to band together and publicize this matter and make it a ‘women’s issue’ as opposed to countless isolated incidents.
http://www.samhsa.gov/samhsanewsletter/volume_16_number_6/womeninmilitary.aspx
http://www.samhsa.gov/samhsanewsletter/volume_16_number_6/womeninmilitary.aspx
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/28/us/28women.html?ref=womenatarms
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
follow up post for 4/21
Charlotte Bunch's "Who's Security?" and Arwa Ibrahim's "Living while Muslim..." both share themes of cosmopolitanism. They argue against nationalistic tendencies and instead support the idea of a common humanity. They assert that feelings of national identity should not trump human rights of all. Ibrahim's story about being personally detained for 6 hours with out food, water, or access to cell phones made the issue real for me. Though in some ways we have moved beyond immediately post-9/11 policies and fears anti-Muslim propaganda still permeates our society. This can be seen by the recent laws in France that prohibits people from wearing full face veils in public. Though this law does not directly mention Muslims it is clearly intended to target them. In America there is currently a movement to make Sharia law illegal to practice. This is preposterous. Elements of Sharia law that could possibly be an issue would already be outlawed. Any others simply do not harm others - and are therefore not an issue - or help others - even less of an issue. It can be nothing more than blatant discrimination against a people/religious group.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Bailey News Flash # 3
This is the ad in question. [http://www.alllacqueredup.com/wp-content/ uploads/2011/04/jcrew-pink-nail-poilsh- controversial-ad-essie-neon-pink.jpg] |
A disturbing example of a past role thought to be inherentof a particular race. [http://www.crestock.com/uploads /blog/2009/controversial/02-1947-genuwine.jpg] |
A depiction of ancient Greek gender roles for wealthy men. [http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Bxu2kHSW6aw/THU6a4m7zYI/ AAAAAAAAFRc/OSkgvzrGL2E/ s1600/Alexander+and+His+Beloved.jpg] |
An example of Ablow's suggested role for young boys. [http://www.featurepics.com/ FI/Thumb/20100508/ Boy-Playing-Sheriff-1532344.jpg] |
Sunday, April 17, 2011
lead post for 4/19
Enloe’s chapter “Men in Militias, Women as Victims” examines the role of politicized masculinity in compelling men to commit atrocities in war. She uses the example of Borislav Herak who took part in the systematic and widespread rape of Muslim Bosnian women. Enloe argues that a feminist examination is necessary when looking at such crimes. Gender constructions make war possible. When the type of war is so heinous it is necessary to look at the type of masculinity and femininity that makes that possible. One possible problem with this article is Enloe’s focus on Herak’s pornography use. If this truly was a pathological addiction there may be more cause for it to be included. Otherwise, it implies that porn use itself is unhealthy; though I’m not a fan of porn many people do use it without some kind of pathos. This also connects Herak’s rape crimes to some kind of sexual frustration, which based on the interview she provides does not seem to be the case.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
follow up post for 4/14
Enloe's argument also relates to my last newsflash where I discussed a Libyan women who had been raped. Her rape became a rallying point for other rebels. Though for her this constitutes support, Enloe brought up some important problems with this use of a rape as a symbol of a political movement. Here, her rape is protested because it coincides with the agenda of the rebels to do so. If she had been raped by a fellow rebel and not members of the oppressive regime, her countrymen might have responded differently.
Gloria Steinem's article is interesting. I enjoyed her addressing masculinity. I know this is a Women's Studies class so I get why we study women, but I enjoy thinking about masculine gender construction as well. It was interesting to note that white, upperclass males commit most of "senseless" violent crimes. Her argument, however, ignored a key aspect of this issue. The fact that we refer to these criminals simply as non-gendered "young teens" shows our lexicon's use of the neutral to signify white men and white men to signify the neutral. Pictures of a human typically are of a male, or a male and a female but rarely of just a female. This goes back to our discussion of body and how the male body is normal while the female is aberrant. I do not think that male aggression is society's blind spot. As Steinem notes, testosterone has always been linked with males and violence. The problem is that we structure masculinity to encourage and support this violent, dominating image. I am not trying to say that Halo makes murderers, but it does encourage a violent masculinity. That being said, as Steinem also hints at. There are other serious issues going on in the cases she mentioned. The Son of Sam thought his dog was telling him to murder people. I think its safe to say he did not had a normal, functioning cognitive system at that point, issues of masculinity aside.
Monday, April 11, 2011
follow up post for 4/12
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Lead post for 4/7
Later, she became involved with health care concerns particularly those having to do with needle exchange programs. She advocated for the legalization and implementation of such programs and worked at one for years. This is a women’s issue because for years only gay men were thought to contract HIV/AIDS. Heterosexual women particularly were not considered to be at risk.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Follow up post for 4/5
Friday, April 1, 2011
Breaking Through Stereotypes
Jason Kleinman
Professor Simonson
Introduction to Women’s Studies
April 1, 2011
Breaking Through Stereotypes
This person is smart, funny, powerful, married, classy, well-spoken, career oriented, successful, and driven. This person has broken through countless stereotypes that have been cast in modern society. This person could be a part of innumerable societal norms associated with this person’s race and gender but has risen above all of them. This person is Michelle Obama. The aforementioned adjectives that can be used to describe Michelle Obama normally would not be used to describe a black woman in modern society. Black women are discriminated against for two reasons; because they are women and because they are black. This duel set of vulnerabilities has made it very difficult for black women to break through stereotypes. Statistics show that black women are inferior to black men, white women, and white men in many walks of life. Additionally, they are considered suitable for certain jobs that imply that they are second-rate citizens. A woman who completely breaks through this duel discrimination is rare. These stereotypes, amongst others, contribute to modern media’s portrayal of black women. They are seen not only as sex objects, but animalistic sex objects. Slavery has been over for over a hundred years and yet black women are still portrayed as though they are animalistic commodities. Michelle Obama is a refreshing exception to the generally accepted stereotypes about African American women. She is also someone who is very visible in the media, and has therefore broken media consistencies as well. Michelle Obama’s story and sophisticated image seen through the media, is revolutionary for African American women.
Forty percent of black women do not get married before they are fifty-four. Black women, for the same hours worked, earn eighty-five cents for every dollar earned by white women, eighty-seven cents for every dollar earned by black men, and sixty-three cents for every dollar earned by white men. Over thirteen percent of black female workers are poor as opposed to five percent of white female workers, 7.7 percent of black male workers, and 4.4 percent of white male workers. All of these statistics solidify the idea that black women have gender and racial inequalities to overcome. Additionally, black women are considered suitable for certain jobs that imply their inferiority to men and to white people. A prime example of said profession is paid household work. Barbara Ehrenreich in “Maid to Order” talks about how after second wave feminism, women wanted men to contribute to household work. Men were not particularly happy with this request, which caused tension in many marriages. Instead of working through these problems, people began to hire maids. These maids were and still are predominantly female and are mostly African American (or of other minority decent). White middle class men are often responsible for hiring these African American women to work in their homes. This further perpetuates the sexual and racial divide that has become common in modern society. This is one of many examples where black women are stereotyped as inferior in contemporary culture.
Michelle Obama is a clear exception to all of these stereotypes. She is the First Lady of the United States, she graduated Princeton University as an undergraduate and Harvard Law School. She also had a flourishing career as a corporate lawyer and was an executive at the University of Chicago Medical Center. Michelle Obama trumps any stereotypes or societal norms associated with black women. The feats that she has achieved are predominantly thought of, in society, as only attainable by white males. Nevertheless, she has not only broken through the sexist barriers that plague modern society, but she has broken through racist barriers as well. While Mrs. Obama’s accomplishments are impressive, the most intriguing part of her achievements is her sophisticated and tasteful presence in the media and the fact that her success story is so widely publicized.
Generally, black women have been portrayed in the media as animalistic and uncivilized. This is a tactic that is used across many mediums and although it has come to be widely accepted, it is extremely demeaning to African American women. The way that Destiny’s Child is represented in the media is a great example of this belittling media tactic. They have been pictured on album covers, promotional advertisements, etc, in animalistic clothing. They have even been depicted in cages in some cases. Black women have overcome many obstacles since the time of slavery. However, modern media tactics have sent African American women back hundreds of years and perpetuated stereotypes that black women experience every day. Michelle Obama represents an exception in this media ploy. Michelle Obama’s success and elegant character is highly publicized because of her status as the First Lady of the United States. She does commercials, gives televised speeches, and goes on televised talk shows. Throughout all of her public appearances she upholds a classy, well spoken, and sophisticated character
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2bq_H5vJnI). She is arguably the most visible black woman in the United States and has revolutionized the way that black women are represented in the media.
Michelle Obama is a rare but phenomenal success story. As an African American woman she had both racial and gender biases to get passed. She had to overcome statistical evidence showing that African American women aren’t meant to make as much money as men as well as professional stereotypes that place African American women as maids for middle class white families. She not only succeeded in overcoming these obstacles, but anyone with a television or radio knows about her story. She constantly trumps all of the media sources that portray African American women in a demeaning way, as she is elegant and professional in all of her public endeavors. Michelle Obama revolutionized the way that African American women are seen in the media and she did so intentionally. From the very beginning of Barack Obama’s campaign, Michelle said, “If all I do is show that we’re not all from welfare families or [all] athletes, but we’re ordinary professionals in functional families, that will be enough” (Conrad). Although Michelle Obama has not changed the way that the media depicts African American women, she is well publicized proof that African American women can and do succeed in modern society. Her story represents a step in the right direction for African American women.
http://www.america.gov/st/business-english/2009/July/20090126163119BErehelleK0.5277063.html
http://prospect.org/cs/articles?article=black_women_the_unfinished_agenda