yclepta

end FGM

2010-12-11T00:16:00.002Z

2010-12-10T13:01:00.003Z

The number of women killed by violent partners has risen dramatically in a year, figures showed today.

Home Office statistics show that at least 101 women died in 2009 at the hands of a husband, boyfriend or ex-partner, up from at least 72 the year before.

The proportion of the total number of female homicide victims who were killed in domestic violence incidents also rose, from 35% to 53%.

Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2010/dec/09/sharp-rise-women-killed-violent-partners?&

Refuge are calling on Government to remove the postcode lottery that means 1/3 local authorities have no services for women experiencing domestic violence.

http://www.fourwaystospeakout.co.uk/

women, rape and the criminal justice system

2010-11-28T20:04:00.006Z

Only 6% of reported rapes result in a conviction and a significant number of those accused are never charged at all. And reported rapes are themselves in a minority. Figures from the Department of Health suggest that a woman is raped every 10 minutes. The vast majority – an estimated 95% of the rapes that actually take place in the UK – are never reported in the first place. Afua Hirsch, legal affairs correspondent, tells us in the guardian online on Friday 26 November 2010

Why is this in the news again?

Because a woman who accused her husband of rape was locked up and he was set free, when she was intimidated by him into dropping her charges. Helen Pidd's guardian.co.uk article on Friday 26 November 2010 is based on an interview with the woman called "Sarah", who says

"It was horrible because I knew the police officers and the solicitors believed that the rapes did happen but the CPS wanted to prosecute me for perverting the course of justice. It was unbelievable. I remember going in and seeing my solicitor and finding out what course of action they were going to take and I was in tears coming out of the police station. I still can't get my head around the fact that the police officers and my solicitor knew damn well I had been raped and even when I rang the main CID person and said the rapes did happen as I had originally said, he said: 'I just thought it was only a matter of time before you came to me and said yes, they did happen.' Still to this day I can't get my head around it."

"Sarah" was let out of prison following a decision from Britain's most senior judge, Lord Judge. who said there should be: “a broad measure of compassion for a woman who had already been victimised”. However, Sarah is still stuck with a criminal record - and a suspended sentence. The case against her husband has been dropped.

In 2007 I wrote about Cameron's committment to improving conviction rates and in 2005 about the way rates have got lower over the last few decades. Afua Hirsch's articles suggests that the issue of jurors attitudes contributing to this.

False complaints of rape necessarily impact upon the minds of jurors trying rape cases," a crown court judge said last year, sentencing a rape complainant to two years in jail. Jury prejudice is often cited as one of the reasons that the UK lags so far behind the rest of Europe in its rape conviction rates. In 2009, 59% of people formally charged with rape were convicted. But the majority of those pleaded guilty, with far fewer found guilty by a jury.

So, what is the Government going to do about the unfairness and low conviction rates? Well it seems likely that cuts in public services are only likely to make matters worse.

The Crown Prosecution Service says it is committed to ensuring specialist rape prosecutors continue to be available, but cuts are certain in all areas of criminal justice,

Defence barristers, whose conduct in court is for many rape victims one of the most frightening aspects of reporting the crime, are more likely to be male and less diverse as a result of the continuing cuts to legal aid. The government frequently states that protecting the diversity of the legal profession is simply not its problem.

Apart from those criminalised because their rape allegations are not believed,women otherwise involved in crime are often there in part because of experiences of rape and violence. one third of all women offenders are the victims of rape.

In this context, it is ludicrous for the courts to think that they need to provide a strong deterrent for women who are contemplating making false allegations.

1:10

2009-03-06T20:56:00.001Z

Each year, around 1 in 10 women in Britain experience rape or other violence. One in four local authorities leave female victims of violence without the specialised support they need.
Act now. http://www.oneten.org.uk

Diseased Culture

2008-11-29T16:52:00.001Z

I found this poem on the Irked magazine site, which really resonates with my feelings. I get very frustrated when people compliment me on looking like I've lost weight. I don't remember people ever complimenting me when I had put weight on. I am not trying to lose weight, I don't weigh myself anymore, as I used to be obsessed with it and I'm much happier now, despite being bigger.

Diseased Culture

Looking back
on all the encouragement
and respect
and compliments
I received from others
when I was
killing myself
through starvation
It is clear
that I was not
the only
sick
one

Poetry by LA Crompton

Irked magazine - Peabody cartoon....

2008-11-29T16:42:00.004Z

My friend Jane is the creator of a weekly cartoon strip Peabody, now published in Irked magazine online. It's about depression and is witty, sharp, moving and beautifully drawn. Take a look.

The magazine itself is a space for people to "explore matters of the heart".

"Irked Magazine is committed to the concept that people improve when they know someone is paying attention. We believe that people everywhere can become less sad, or worried, or angry, or violent, or self-destructive simply by being given a forum to publish their work, and the dignity that comes with that sort of thing."

There is lots of fantastic stuff on Irked - it's well worth a good root around.

Women's No Pay Day campaign success...

2008-11-29T16:33:00.003Z

On the 30th October I campaigned for an hour with colleagues from the Students Union, at the University where I work, for Women's No Pay Day. They continued for a further hour, and during that time we collected a total of 121 signatures to add to the letter to the Secretary of State demanding important inclusions in the forthcoming Equalities Bill.

I was very happy with the signatures we gained, but even more thrilled at two other things -
1 that 3 women from the SU committed time to campaign - after much persuasion -
2 that people we spoke to didn't know the reality of the pay gap and were horrified - many saying that they thought we had equality already

I was particularly thrilled because the initial responses when trying to encourage people to campaign with me, was very dispiriting. I started the day thinking it was probably going to be a disappointing and futile exercise. People had led me to believe that no-one cares.

I firmly believe that if people know the facts, they do care and will take action. Many people came back to the stall we had bringing a friend who they had talked to, who also signed the petition. At least a third of the people we spoke to, who then signed, were men.

You can see a report of our event and others on the day here, at the Fawcett website - I took the photo.

If you still haven't signed up it's not too late - click here to sign.

women's no pay day 30th Oct

2008-10-13T20:49:00.000+01:00

October 30th is Women's No Pay Day.

It’s nearly 40 years since equal pay legislation came into force in the UK.

Women working full-time in the UK get paid 17% (or roughly one sixth) less than men...
That’s the equivalent of women working the last two months of the year for free, while men get paid year-round. Last year, the Fawcett Society labelled October 30th ‘Women’s No Pay Day’ to tell the world that on this day, women across the UK will receive their last payslip. This year, the pay gap remains unchanged at 17%. But we have a great opportunity for change with the forthcoming Equalities Bill.

The Fawcett Society are asking supporters across the UK to hold an event on or around Women’s No Pay Day to raise awareness of the pay gap and to tell the world: we demand equal pay! I am campaigning at the University where I lecture, in partnership with the Students Union events and volunteering coordinators and hopefully some volunteers. I have signed the open letter to John Hutton MP.

What can you do?

1 minute action: sign the Fawcett Society's open letter to the Secretary of State

10 minute action: write to your local paper. Tell them about the pay gap, and about Women's No Pay Day.

1 day action: take to the streets on No Pay Day
Visit the Fawcett Society's website to find out more about No Pay Day and how to get involved, or to download the campaigners' info pack which has loads of information on putting on and publicising an event for No Pay Day.

here again......

2008-10-12T21:48:00.003+01:00

suprised to find it's a year since I last posted.
Last time I wrote here I said this....

To update:
1 - I still feel comfortable at work - the job is interesting, varied, stimulating, challenging and I'm in a good team.
2 - T's Rheumatoid Arthritis treatment is still not working fully yet, so things are still quite unpredictable and it's hard to plan ahead. The challenges of disablism are constant and our relationship has changed to adjust but life is fairly stable.
3 - I work 3 days a week but have been doing extra days for other organisations to earn a bit more - on average have worked 4 days most weeks. This has been a bit too much. My colleagues are keen for me to work full time, but I'm sticking to my plans.
3 - When I am not working, T and I still get out and about in the campervan a lot - we spent 2 and a half weeks in the Outer Hebrides in May 2008 - a fantastic trip!
4 - My youngest step-son has just started at a new Uni - he went to Uni last year but it didn't suit him - wrong course, wrong Uni. He's done some voluntary work and paid work this year and changed quite a lot. So far he's loving his course. My oldest step-son has been working for a homeless charity and had his own house with his partner. They've just moved back to her parent's house as they are going to travel interationally for 6 months next year. The house is now officially empty of "children" again, but they'll be staying over regularly.

All this means that I am STILL sometimes stressed, always busy, but overall content with my lot.

In Dec 2006 I said this.....

I am pleased to say:

I have done some paid work and some joint projects with the local self-advocacy project that I first worked with in my last job.
I have taken a lot of photos with T- being paid for some of it - and we had our first exhibition recently which was a fantastically positive experience.
I took a life drawing class last year at Uni, but it doesn't run anymore.
I sing with a women's natural voice choir and sometimes take the sessions as the deputy leader which has given me loads of confidence. I bought a new piano accordion recently which is beautiful,
but -
I still need to get good at that.
I don't walk enough.
froom is still on hold
and blogging has been ignored but here I am again!

bleeding....

2008-10-12T21:20:00.002+01:00

every day for the last 2 months.
I had shockingly unbearable pain when I had a period in August. It was the worst ever. I've had bad and severe but nothing like that.
My doctor has put me on the pill to stop me having another period until I get to the consultant.
I've had an abdominal scan and internal vaginal scan (both ultrasound) in September which showed nothing serious. The vaginal scan was very uncomfortable towards the end. I have a small fibroid apparently.
I stopped taking the pill a few years ago, as I don't think it's good for me to be on it more than 12-13 years. I'm only taking it as a temporary measure, and my doctor is also clear about that.
It's giving me very painful breasts in the morning and this bleeding is very annoying. I get some mild background cramp some days too like period pain. Weird! When I was on it before (a different make) I had nothing like that. This one must be a lot less powerful hormonally.
A friend of my Mum's yesterday thought maybe I'll have a D&C.
Have to wait and see.....

What does a feminist look like?

2008-10-11T21:01:00.001+01:00

The Feminist Majority Foundation have created this video to help answer this question......
click here to see the video

why women only? Cameron speaks out

2007-11-12T23:16:00.001Z

David Cameron has spoken out today about the disgracefully low percentage of convictions for rape in a speech at the Conservative Women's Organisation conference. Follow the link for the BBC story.

There was a discussion on Woman's Hour (radio 4) about his proposals which you can listen to here if you missed it. The F-word blog has a post on this topic too. The main points they both make seems to relate to the need to reform the legal system to address the issue of low conviction rates, which Cameron has not directly addressed.

Cameron pledged longer-term funding for rape crisis centres, to change attitudes towards rape through sex education and announced a Tory review of sentencing.

He said "Studies have shown that as many as one in two young men believe there are some circumstances when it's okay to force a woman to have sex" and called for "widespread cultural change" as treating women as sex objects has become viewed as "cool".

He called for compulsory sex education in schools to drive home the message that sex without consent is a criminal offence.

Cameron referred to statistics suggesting one in 20 women had been raped, yet three-quarters of them never report the crime. And of those that are reported, just 5.7% result in a conviction.

He also said the number of rape crisis support centres had fallen from 68 in 1984 to 45, and funding decisions on those that remained were short-term and being made mid-way through the financial year. "As a result, these centres are forced to survive hand-to-mouth and often face the threat of imminent closure," he said. "All this has led to an appalling and tragic lack of support for the victims of rape."

As a socialist I feel concern that it is a Tory that has had to raise this issue. Despite this, I find myself saying "good on him for getting us talking about it in the mainstream". I have not yet heard the Government's response but I am very disappointed that they did not lead the debate.

why women only?

2007-11-03T16:59:00.001Z

The latest report from the Women's Resource Centre sets out the arguments and evidence of the benefits of a ‘women-only’ approach in a climate where women’s organisations are increasingly being asked to justify their ‘women-only’ status.

The research was featured in the Guardian here. The research, based on a survey of 101 women's voluntary groups and a random sample of 1,000 women, found that 97% of women wanted choice of a women-only service after sexual assault and 78% preferred access to a female counsellor.

"The public thinks women have got equality and we don't need women's services any longer. But our research has shown that women want the choice to access women-only services as diverse as gyms, training, and drug and alcohol counselling, not just rape and domestic violence."

The report can be downloaded from the WRC website here.

The WRC urge you to write a letter to the Minister for the Third Sector Minister and the Minister for Women to ask them to support women’s organisations.

The original Why Women? report and a free DVD called "Why Women?" to help you campaign, are available from the WRC on the Why Women website.

The WRC have 2 events coming up -

On Wednesday 14 November WRC and Women Acting in Today’s Society are holding an important meeting in Birmingham to plan for a national women’s sector forum. This strategy day is open to all organisations that want to help develop a stronger women’s voluntary and community sector.
Making Rights Real is a conference on 15th November in Birmingham for voluntary and community organisations working to tackle inequality and promote human rights.

the value of women

2007-11-03T16:41:00.002Z

Why are women, generally, globally, believed to be of less value than men?

This question arose in my house after watching "India's Missing Girls" on BBC TV a couple of weeks ago. This was a moving programme. UN figures state that 750,000 girls are aborted every year in India and others are killed when very young. There are now only 840 girls for every 1,000 boys according to Indian government information.

The main rationale for this is the high cost of dowries that families have to find in order to pay a man's family for him to marry their daughter. But this is not just an economic issue, as abortion of female foetus's is common in wealthier families.

So, this led me and my partner, T to wonder and discuss how this ridiculous and terrifying position came to be. It is not the case in every culture, but it's almost globally the case that women are not seen as valuable compared to men. The UK situation regarding unequal pay is a good local example of the same issue.

Could it be that it's because it is almost impossible to tell who the father of a child is, but it's certain who the mother is, when she gives birth, and so men have to control women if they are going to be certain of their heir? It cannot be that men are more necessary in order to pro-create, as the opposite is true, one man can father children with many women.

Could it be that on average men are physically stronger than women, despite women tending to do much of the physical domestic work worldwide. This means that in a capitalist world, where labour is needed to generate profit for those in power, brawn is prized? Women ensure the next generation of labourers grow up strong, but one woman can bring up many boys to be labourers, but it helps if she has the support of others to do so.

Do we need to understand why, in order for there to be a new world order? India is the world's biggest democracy yet it is still a highly unequal society. The power to make changes through political decision making is not an answer in itself. Changing the culture is much more complex. The whole of global society is predicated upon the lesser value of women.

Women's No Pay Day - take action!

2007-10-26T14:02:00.001+01:00

Fawcett and UNISON have joined forces to declare October 30th Women's No Pay Day because the 17% hourly pay gap is equivalent to men getting paid all year but women working for nothing from October 30th until the year end.

If you do just one thing for Women's No Pay Day, do this:
Sign the online petition to Gordon Brown demanding stronger action on the pay gap that rips women off. It takes less than a couple of minutes.

Click here to sign the petition

Free Burma

2007-10-04T17:43:00.001+01:00

didn't think I'd been gone that long!

2007-09-30T17:41:00.001+01:00

I'm amazed to find that I haven't posted here since February!
I started my new job in Feb and have obviously been having such an interesting/ busy time since then that blogging didn't fit in anymore.
Should I carry on?
Well, I don't know, but I'm not ready to close it down yet.

4 important changes have taken place recently
1 - I feel comfortable with myself at work - I feel like I fit in - I'm a lecture at a University locally, based in the arts/ sociology department
2 - my partner T has Rheumatoid Arthritis and is having treatment that is not really working yet, so things are quite unpredicatable and it's hard to plan ahead. It also means that there are lots of challenges brought about by the oppression of disabled people that we face and I support T to get through as best I can.
3 - I work 3 days a week but have been doing extra days for other organisations to earn a bit more. When I am not working, T and I get out and about as much as we can in the campervan.
4 - My youngest step-son has just started at Uni, the older one having left home last year to do that, but it didn't suit him and now he is working and studying new subjects planning to go away to Uni next year. So, the house is now empty of "children".

All this means that I am sometimes stressed, always busy, but overall content with my lot. This doesn't mean I no longer care about "issues", but I have other things that take priority over blogging.

I am sure there will be times in the winter months ahead when this blog will be useful to me.
I will probably shifting the focus from women's oppression to disablism somewhat - but my feminism is always a thread that runs through everything I do.

SNAP!

2007-02-17T18:07:00.002Z

Last year I posted about the Mencap SNAP photography competition. Since then as part of my old job I have been working with a group of people to organise activities to raise awareness and promote the equal rights of people with learning disabilities in Stoke-on-Trent.

We have arranged to borrow the exhibition of the 2006 SNAP winners photographs. They are currently on show at Keele University. On Monday I will go and collect them and take them to 3 venues in the city - Burslem School of Art, Staffordshire University and The Observatory clubhouse. They will be there until mid April.

The press release is accompanied by a feedback form, designed by other group members, to encourage viewers to think about the impact of the images. I can tell you what I think of them.....

The photos place people with learning disabilities in the public eye - as people with value and dignity.

I have some reservations about some of the photos - well not so much the photos as the words that go with some of them. It is obvious that some of the words although written as though they are the words of the person with a learning disability, are actually the words of a carer/ supporter. I find this very patronising and disempowering. I wonder if someone does not speak, it is not better to have no words with the photo?

There is also a wider point about the photographs - if I cannot take my own photo and cannot tell you what I want a photograph taking of, or do not like my photo begin taken, then I cannot not take part in the competition. Not everyone can/ wants to take photos. I don’t think it is "equality" to pretend that everyone can do that - we are all different. I wonder if there is a debate here?

I am going to link the exhibition in with diversity month at Staffs Uni and set up a discussion event sometime in the next few weeks, to pick up some of these issues.

I've started....

2007-02-17T17:59:00.002Z

my new job at Staffordshire University.

I was shockingly overwhelmed on my first and 3rd days. I had a headache all day on Tuesday ( my first day) and choked back tears 3 or 4 times on Thursday afternoon/ evening after my 3rd day.

But I still think it was a good move.

Wednesday was the best - I felt at home there all morning and had lunch with my job share co-worker, who is great - funny, intelligent, kind - we should get on like a house on fire.

It was very peculiar doing 3 days and knowing I'd done my first week's work. It's also odd knowing I don't go back in until Tuesday. I hope I don't get used to it, so that it always feels like a treat.

I will be busy on Monday anyway as I have volunteered (but then had it agreed that I can do it as part of my new job) to organise an exhibition of the Mencap SNAP photographs.

body hair.....

2007-02-17T13:03:00.000Z

is in up for debate again - Shazia Mirza is a convert to hairy bodies. Take a look at her website - it's worth a visit.

There is an article in the guardian about her fashion show - she got women to agree to stop removing hair and model for her. They were then asked to model clothes made from body hair.

The article picks up on some of the negative attitudes Shazia faced - although it features a discussion she had with Loaded magazine, and I wouldn't have expected anything other than the reaction she got from them - after all they clearly see women as sex objects only and the less that is "real" and sexual about the women they like the better - women in that magazine are either treated as "girls", pre-pubescent, and doll-like, or as whores or dogs (animals).

I would have liked to know more about what other women thought but it's a start. She's going to present an hour-long comedy debate programme called F*** off, I'm a Hairy Woman on BBC3 in March - not quite, but nearly mainstream media.

reading...

2007-01-21T16:41:00.000Z

is really exciting me at the moment.

I read Donna Tartt's "The Little Friend" over Christmas and I was bereft when I finished it - I eked out the last few pages as I did not want it to end. The atmosphere totally captivated me - it is one of the best books I have ever read. I seem to have a thing for books written from a young girl's viewpoint - "A Crime In The Neighbourhood" by Suzanne Berne, "Cat's Eye" my favourite Margaret Atwood, L P Hartley's "The Go-Between" and "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee all spring to mind as books I have loved.
22-1-07 Thanks to Alec for reminding me about "Lovely Bones" - a fantastically moving novel in the same category - Alice Sebold.

I am now reading "Alias Grace", one of the last un-read Atwood's in my collection. It's reminiscent of Sarah Waters' "Fingersmith", so far - and that was a brilliant read late last year too. I've yet to read her new book "Nightwatch" set in the second world war, but have heard great reviews.

Issue 2 of Subtext is out, and I read that from cover to cover - better than issue 1 (although quite hard to read sometimes due to the layout/ font) - it stimulated me to think a lot more about trafficking, and I have renewed my membership of Amnesty International on the back of it. It's only £3.50 with no ads - all produced by volunteers. Well worth it.

As far as work goes, I am reading the report of the investigation by the Healthcare Commission into abuse of people with learning disabilities in hospitals and care homes in London (Sutton and Merton) and Hastings - it's distressing and depressing but essential reading. The clear summary here is a quick outline of what went on. I am continually amazed by what humans can do to each other - particularly in the name of "care" - the abuse includes what amounts to imprisonment, torture and violence and would be a total scandal if the report was about children. Because the people affected are adults and find it hard to speak up for themselves, they are ignored by most of us and we allow this appalling treatment to continue. This is the second investigation into abuse of people with learning disabilities in NHS care in the last year - the Cornwall report came out in July 2006 with similar but more serious findings. The clear summary here is a quick outline of what went on in Cornwall - read it - please.

missing......

2007-01-10T22:11:00.001Z

women in senior positions.

According to the Equal Opportunities Commission publication "Sex and power: who runs Britain? 2007" - at the current rate of progess it will take…

Another 20 years to achieve equality in Civil Service top management.
Another 40 years to achieve an equal number of senior women in the judiciary.
Another 60 years to achieve an equal number of female directors of FTSE 100 companies.
Up to 200 years – another 40 elections – to achieve an equal number of women in Parliament.

"Where are the women missing from our boardrooms and public life?
If we hope to shatter the glass ceiling across the public and private sectors, the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) has calculated that we would need to find the nearly 6,000 women ‘missing’ from more than 33,000 top spots. The pace of change is painfully slow and in some cases is even going into reverse, so that is quite a challenge. This year, as the EOC publishes the final Sex and Power index before moving into the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights (CEHR) in October 2007, the EOC asks: Where are the women missing from our boardrooms and public life? What’s holding them back? And what price are
we – as a society and as employers – paying for their absence?"

The price is - the continuation of the patriarchy is confirmed.

Gill

2006-12-31T14:23:00.000Z

I just heard that Gill Gill died on Friday night.
Gill was so full of energy - where has that gone now?
She was Director of B Arts from the start in 1985 when they were a co-operative, and what a wonderful organisation they are now.
She was a Loud Mouth Woman and that is how I will remember her - the last time I saw her we were singing the bass line together.
Thanks for your voice, your laughter and your energy Gill.

3 days a week....

2006-12-29T18:51:00.001Z

I'm going to be doing a job share - it's been agreed!
I am still waiting for my written job offer, but the 2nd choice candidate has agreed to take the job share..... I should be able to start in February. I never got a new contract from the NHS when I started this new job despite chasing them for it twice, so I'm still on one month's notice!

I'm not sure about research yet, but I do know the holiday entitlement is more than I get now and the pay is slightly more pro rata.

All in all it's a fantastic deal and opportunity - I intend to make the most of it.
Amongst my plans for what to do with my other 2 days a week are:

get away a lot in the campervan that we have recently acquired...
volunteer at the local self-advocacy project that I have been working with a lot
act as broker for a young person and their family to take control of Self Directed Services
take a lot of photos - hopefully getting paid for some of it - with Cultural Sisters and other local community arts organisations
take up drawing again
make lots of music and sing
walk and swim
re-launch froom
support Pan the local group that I am a member of to develop and seek funding
blog....

Think I might struggle to fit it all in but I'll give it a try!

working hours.....

2006-12-03T17:45:00.001Z

how many is too many?

I have been offered a new job as a lecturer at the local Uni and I am taking part but I am in the process of negotiating hours.

I work 4 days at the moment. I do not want to go back to full-time -

I got so worn out last year I have got used to needing a 3 day weekend to keep my batteries fully charged.
T has a condition that means I am his carer some of the time and I like being around at home - it stops him getting too isolated.
I want to do other things with my time than be employed in one job.
I do some voluntary work and some paid self-employed work e.g. photography. I'd like to do more of both if poss. I'm keen to get froom going properly too.

So I have asked to do 4 days or a job share of 3 days. The Uni are looking into both. They have asked the 2nd choice candidate if she wants to do 2 days a week so that I can do 3. That would be ideal. If she can't sort that out with her current employer and doesn't feel confident she will get other work to make up her hours, then the Uni will have to think again. They don't think they can offer me 4 days as the funding for the job is for a full time post and they don't usually recruit to jobs that are only 1 day a week which I can understand. So it might mean I have to seriously consider working full -time at least in the short term until they can recruit another person to job share with me.

So I have been worrying about this. Can I cope with a full time job? I believe that I would be able to work from home sometimes and the hours would be flexible.....

I will not get too anxious about it until I know if the other candidate can job share........ should know by mid week.

Subtext

2006-12-03T17:10:00.000Z

issue 2 of Subtext magazine is out - it's only £3.50 with no advertising - get one!!

interviews with inspiring women.....

2006-11-17T18:52:00.000Z

on the Guardian website -

I posted about the Fawcett society a couple of weeks ago and now the Guardian have put sound clips on their site of interviews with the four women who are going to be speaking at the Fawcett society event on the 22nd November.

There is also a very interesting article in the same paper with 5 women - all writers - Jenni Murray (who will be chairing the Fawcett event), Ariel Levy, Lionel Shriver, Maggie O'Farrell and Michele Hanson, writing about the women who have inspired them.

check up on your boyfriend.....

2006-11-17T18:40:00.000Z

if you're worried he might be a paedophile..........

the British Government is considering allowing single mothers to ask for information about the criminal record of new boyfriends to find out whether he is a sex offender if they are worried.

The Guardian make it clear that "Mothers would have to have grounds for suspicion and would face tough penalties if they abused the information, including by making it public. Establishing a relationship with a single mother is a common strategy used by predatory paedophiles to gain access to children. Such men represent about a fifth of child sex offenders; the rest are relatives or otherwise known to the victim."

This seems to me like such a terrible indictment of the state of our community - we cannot trust men with our children. Why is this? Why are men attracted to children as sexual playthings? Is the only way to deal with this issue to give responsiblity to women check up on men we have doubts about? There must be another way of reducing the chances of child sex abuse.

Along with violence against women, abuse of children is a symptom of the patriarchy - men need to feel powerful and to express their feelings as agression or sex. If they need to feel close to a person sexually some of them seem to need that person to be non-threatening - e.g. a child. 80% of child sex offenders are relatives or otherwise known to the child.

What leads to men needing to express themselves like this? The expectations on men to be "masculine" seem to damage men as much and in different ways to the expectations on women to be "feminine". And the impact of the damage is felt by all of us......we have got to the point where we need laws so that people feel they can keep their children safe.

We have to address the issue by educating men about their responsibilities towards the rest of society and supporting them to have non-sexual close relationships with children.

workplaces need to change.....

2006-11-13T21:40:00.000Z

now that's a surprise! (not)
According to a Guardian article today Jill Treanor says "Senior executives from 150 leading companies will be asked to help draw up a new set of industry standards to promote more women and to create working environments which break away from the traditional male-dominated, aggressive workplaces"
The number of women in the boardrooms of Britain's biggest companies has fallen sharply. While 50% of the graduate recruits are female, the proportion reaching senior levels falls to 30% and to just 15% in executive roles. There are only 12 female executive directors at FTSE-100 companies last year - down from 20 last year. The 12 women work for 10 companies. Only three FTSE 100 firms have women chief executives. 90 women serve as non-executives, but more than a quarter of FTSE 100 firms have no female director.
Yup - there's a lot of work to do!
Professor Lynda Gratton, leading the research says "It ís not simply that companies [are choosing] not to promote women but that women decide to leave". One of the first things the centre will do is to bring together all relevant research on its website, london.edu/womeninbusiness Then it has plans for studies into topics such as what draws women to entrepreneurialism and the reason women seem to be good at innovation.
In an interview in the Guardian last week Gratton said "We need to show organisations, through research, what benefits women can bring, what they can do.....
Research published this Wednesday also found that women were both task- and relationship-oriented, meaning, in lay terms, that they get things done as well as get on with people. Gratton describes this as a "huge finding". I think it's totally patronising - women have to be doers and networkers to survive with a family to support, it's not news!
This week's research suggests that more than 30% of any workforce needs to be female to change an organisation. Women are surrounded by fewer and fewer women as they move up the greasy pole. Gratton also points out "Being a minority is an unpleasant place to be. The surprise I sometimes think is not that there are so few senior women but - given how hard it is and how extraordinarily good they have to be - how many." This point that echoes the earlier posts I have written about how women, despite having to spend hours on "beauty-work" can still achieve as much, if not more than our male counterparts, if we choose to.......

inspiring women update....

2006-11-04T15:35:00.000Z

according the entertaining quiz on Fawcett

I am

Mary Wollstonecraft (1759 – 1797)

She was a British philosopher, often hailed as the first feminist. She wrote several novels, essays, and children's books, but is best known for A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792) in which she argued that women were degraded through the lack of education imposed on them by the restrictions of femininity. In line with the ideals of the Enlightenment, she fought for a society based on reason and the new concept of human rights.
As well as writing, Mary Wollstonecraft worked as a teacher, founded a school and travelled all over Europe, staying in France during the revolution. After a stormy relationship with Gilbert Imlay, with whom she had her first daughter Fanny, Wollstonecraft married the philosopher William Godwin. They had a daughter together: Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein. Mary Wollstonecraft died of puerperal fever shortly after the birth, but left a legacy of feminism that has changed the world.

I wish!!!!!

Seriously though - the quiz promotes the work that Fawcett is doing to highlight inspiring women. Inspiring Women celebrates women and their contribution to politics, the arts, entertainment, sports, science, and public life.

Jenni Murray from BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour will be in conversation with this year's Inspiring Women in London on 22nd November. The women are: comic actress and writer Jocelyn Jee Esien, double Paralympic champion Tanni Grey - Thompson, Shadow Leader of the House of Commons Theresa May MP, and Liberty Director Shami Chakrabarti.

In August Lucy Clouting of the Guardian profiled inspiring women nominated by readers. They were inundated with responses and chose 15 to profile. "Whether through art, charity, or political protest, all are working ardently to make the world that much better for all of us."
The list includes Katherine Zappone and Ann Louise Gilligan a lesbian couple fighting for their marriage to be recognised in Ireland, and Finn Mackay Founder of the London Feminist Network and domestic violence prevention officer who has rejuvenated women-only Reclaim the Night marches.

Last year the web-based women's network that I set up with some friends locally - Froom , took this topic as our theme and published a few articles here. I'd like to see more contributions but everyone seems too busy. Shame really as reading things like this help me feel the power of women and encourage me to be myself and not succumb to the limitations that I feel our patriarchal society place on me.

women at the top? ...

2006-11-04T14:41:00.000Z

in your dreams!

The R£wards survey from the Institute of Directors (IoD) shows that female executives are still getting paid less than their male colleagues - suprise, suprise - and also work longer hours......

“Although there has been an overall decrease from 24% last year, to 19% this year, this is hardly grounds for celebration. Even those who break through the glass ceiling and reach board level will find there is another roof over their heads. The pay gap has often been justified on the basis that women work shorter hours. Our survey refutes that suggestion. Not only are women directors being paid less, they are also working longer hours.”

Female directors now earns an average of £60, 000 compared with the average male director’s basic pay of £74, 028 and the biggest gaps are in the private services and voluntary sectors where female pay was 25% below that of their male counterparts.

To make matters worse, the research shows that female managing directors in medium and large companies are actually working longer hours than their male counterparts – 51.25 hours per week, (compared with 50 hours for men in small to medium sized companies) and 57 hours a week compared to 55 in larger companies.

Meg Munn MP made a speech in October saying -
"In parliament there have only ever been 291 women MPs. There are more than 500 men there today. That’s nearly 90 years after the time when women could first stand for parliament. Today still less than 1 in 5 MPs are women. Less than 30 per cent of local councillors are women. In business less than 11 per cent of directors of the FTSE companies are women. Only 1 per cent of those in construction trades are women and in 2004 just 22 young women took up plumbing apprenticeships in England compared to more than 3000 young men."

She goes on to say "For public appointments it’s a bit better - 35 per cent are held by women but only just over 6 per cent by ethnic minority women. " However, I read a special supplement in Health Service Journal in September, that I meant to post about a while ago. It listed "the 50 people with the greatest influential on today's NHS policy and practice." Of the 50 - only 9 are women. I found this truly shocking. That is considerably less than the 35 percent (just over one third) that Munn suggests. The list had Patricia Hewitt at number 2 - Secretary of State for Health. Dame Carol Black who is at number 8 - National Director of Health and Work and Gill Morgan at number 15 Chief Executive of the NHS confederation. The other 6 women all come in the bottom half of the list.

The Women and Work Commission was set up to examine the persistent problem of the pay and opportunities gap. Their final report, which came out earlier this year, contained a number of recommendations about the barriers to informed choice at school, combining work and family life, lifelong learning and training, and improving workplace practice. It found that the pay gap between part-time women workers and full-time male workers is 41%.

Meg Munn was promoting the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights. (CEHR) The new Commission for Equality and Human Rights will inherit the powers of the three existing Commissions who focus on equality relating to gender and race and rights for disabled people and will deliver the new Equality Act (2006). It will open it's doors in October 2007. In the meantime the Equal Opportunities Commission continues.

There is certainly a long way to go and the CEHR needs to have a lot of power and support to have any effect on what is clearly an entrenched problem. The new commission says "we want to talk to as many groups, organisations and companies as possible to establish the relationships and engagement that will be essential for the Commission's success. Please contact us if you have any questions on the CEHR during this transition phase, or if you are holding an event and would like a member of the transition team to speak; or you are would like the latest update on the CEHR, please use the form below to get in touch."

Will it challenge the patriarchy I wonder? What do you think?

Stop the Traffik....

2006-11-04T14:37:00.000Z

Stop the Traffik is a global organisation aiming to prevent human trafficking and the ensuring slavery of all kinds - particularly of women and children who form the greater part of the 'cargo'. If you have time please at least sign the declaration.

WOT NEXT?
1. Get an organisation that you are a part of to become a STOP THE TRAFFIK MEMBER

2. Help with a donation towards the costs of the campaign. And if you are a UK tax payer, your donation can be gift aided as well.

3. BUY FREEDOM KEYS from the STOP THE TRAFFIK website and sell them within your organisation and your community, to your neighbours and friends so the symbol of STOP THE TRAFFIK is carried everywhere.

4. VISIT THE GLOBAL PROJECTS PAGE on the web site and see over the coming months what organisations are doing around the world to STOP THE TRAFFIK.
You could adopt and raise funds for one project.

5. GO TO THE 'HOW TO GET INVOLVED' SECTION on the website and search through the ever growing list of ideas of other ways to get involved in STOP THE TRAFFIK.

6. TAKE TIME TO VISIT THE WEBSITE REGULARLY and see what else is going on and let us know what you are doing onto the feedback page.

STOP THE TRAFFIK. UNLOCK FREEDOM.

articles wanted ....

2006-11-04T14:30:00.000Z

for new feminist e-magazine - Feminist Forum, which will be launched for the 16th anniversary of 16 days of activism, on December 10th 2006.

The theme of the first FF is future of feminism - a lessons learned and now to proceed further.

Mirjana Tejic is a new member of the uk feminist action group on yahoo and she is inviting women to send short articles (2000 - 2500 words) by the 25th November.

Mirjana is a feminist legal researcher from Serbia, Belgrade and is legal representative of Center for prevention of domestic violence. E-mail her on tejic AT eunet DOT yu if you are interested.

bathing beauties.....

2006-09-16T17:42:00.000+01:00

....are believed to be the first women shown on the big screen with armpits on show - shaved. That was in the Mack Sennett silent films. Thanks to partykillgirl for the information.

She says "The first moviemaker to show the feminine armpit extensively in non-pornographic films was Mack Sennett, in his Bathing Beauty shorts… ..early movie stars like Theda Bara and Mack Sennett's Bathing Beauties shaved their legs and armpits, supposedly because Sennett preferred that look."

This is the best image of this "beauties" I can find on the web.

At least they are not starved skinny models!

Partykillgirl's excellent blog parodies lad's mags using images of naked men instead of women to re-create front pages to great effect. This is with the intent of pointing out how lad's mags should be on the top shelf along with similar material aimed at gay men - clearly porn.

why women?

2006-09-03T13:26:00.000+01:00

that's a good question and it's also the title of a new campaign that the Women's Resource Centre is leading..... to ask Parliament to improve funding to women's organisations. The campaign was launched in March this year, but I've only just heard about it, through ukfeministaction yahoo group.

The why women? website is stuffed full of fantastic resources -
why women? campaign – our calls to government
why women? report - the full and summary version with evidence of funding crises for women's organisations
why women? film - soon to be released
Timeline - a brilliant resource for any women's group or school ,also available in Word
Poster - a beautiful pdf poster with amazing images and facts and figures.
Postcards - 6 great images
Statistics about women - another brilliant set of information, also in Word
Research on women’s organisations - WRC's research

You can find out if your MP is signed up to the Early Day Motion and if not, email them a letter based on a template provided on the why women? website.

Write a letter to the media or feature the campaign in your newsletter or magazine...

What have women's organisations ever done for you? ......Plenty sister!

feminist theatre......

2006-08-30T19:38:00.000+01:00

in North Staffordshire.

The Vagina Monologues and Oleanna are coming to town.

The Vagina Monologues is for one night only, the Oleanna is on for 2 weeks.

I have posted about both on froomblog.

The Vagina Monologues is very populist theatre and can fairly easily be seen as light entertainment, rather than feminist theatre. I saw it last year at the Regent Theatre in Stoke-on-Trent - the acting was rather poor on the whole. Although there are serious moments when the women on stage are telling stories of other women's experiences of rape, sexual violence and oppression, it's the comedy that stands out, and turns it into a "show". I think that's where the message is lost along the way. We need light relief, of course, but, for example, the section of the show where one woman talks about her cunt, was played just for laughs and missed the point.

Oleanna is totally serious playwriting and is challenging for the audience. When I saw it a few years ago it really made me think about gender roles, power, politics, education and other things too. It's being put on at the New Victoria Theatre, a repertory theatre-in-the-round, which is great as they hardly ever stage straight political drama. This season marks the change over from one director to another at the theatre - both women, so I hope this is the start of a new, more political era for them, more like it was when the theatre was the Old Vic in it's old venue.

where did it all start?

2006-08-30T19:31:00.000+01:00

Anonymous thinks it was with an advert for razor blades.

"It began with the May,1915 edition of Harper’s Bazaar magazine that featured a model sporting the latest fashion. She wore a sleeveless evening gown that exposed, for the first time in fashion, her bare shoulders, and her (shaved) armpits. Shocking at first, this soon caught on. At the same time a marketing executive with the Wilkinson Sword Company, which made razor blades for men, designed a campaign to convince women that underarm hair was unfeminine. By 1917 the sales of razor blades doubled as women conformed to this feminine stereotype of shaving under their arms."

This certianly is an interesting advert that must have come shortly afterwards, for depilatory powder......

Thanks to anon for this research. Can anyone tell us any more?

they're like buses....

2006-08-29T20:57:00.000+01:00

they all come at once!

Since the sad demise of Everywoman (I loved that magazine) there have been no feminist alternative women's magazines except Diva (which is great) which is specifically written by and for lesbians.

So I was really pleased when I read in Travelling Punk's blog that she was keen to start a magazine and wanted others to join her. I got involved a bit, in the early stages, and the result was published a few weeks ago - Subtext.

I was then really suprised to read alongside the review of Subtext on the F-word blog, a review for Uplift! Magazine and another for Vagina Magazine.

Three in one go - that's fantastic as it shows the strength of feeling about the need for something other than the usual "women's lifestyle" mags as they are labelled in supermarkets.

However, I can't help feeling concerned that they may not be sustainable - is there a big enough market for 3? Will they all have enough support to actually produce them?
I hope so, but I am not confident.

I have ordered and now received my copies of all 3. They look very different at first glance. On first impressions Vagina Mag appeals to me the most. I will read them well and get back to you. It'd be great if you would buy them too, and then we can compare opinions...........

bodytalk.....

2006-08-20T20:27:00.000+01:00

I have been thinking about my body and that of others quite a lot recently, hence my post about "how to look good naked" and an earlier one about whether to de-hair my armpits for my sister's wedding.

I also found this site recently about the real bodies of women after childbirth - the shape of a mother.

It prompted me to take a picture of my own body, complete with it's hair. I thought for a long time before posting one, but I dared, so here is one of my armpits.

I find it quite ugly, yet if this was a man's body, I wouldn't give it a second thought and that is a real challenge. I also struggle to see it the same way I do facial hair, I react postively to moustaches on women in general.

I have done a web search to find blogs or articles about women's body hair. Many that come up are links to advice about removing "unwanted excess" hair. The majority are porn sites for hairy women. That is unsuprising but depressing - if so many people find hairy women attractive and sexy, why is it so taboo?

Polly Vernon in the Observer in January this year stated that "depilatory demands have risen in step with women's position in society. This reminds me of a post I wrote about the link between "beauty" work and women's empowerment.

She reminisces about her own experiences of hair removal as a child. My experience is similar. I started with my eyebrows y mother plucked them for me at first, and progressed to my full leg including toes!

Polly also comments that the "UK hair-removal market is worth £280 million a year, and is growing staggeringly fast" - which will partly explain why we are expected to do it, and it will increase as hair will always grow back!

petition - brothel sitcom

2006-08-19T18:50:00.000+01:00

Eaves housing have put together this petition against Channel 5's screening of their new sit com set in a brothel. Sign the petition: http://www.PetitionOnline.com/Eaves/petition.html

According to a national press article the show, 'Respectable', features women who sell sex to pay for shoe collections and 'beautiful things'. Click here for more information about the sitcom
Eaves Housing have already written a letter (attached) of complaint and Women's Aid intend to write to Channel 5 too. They are collecting signatures to show that this is not the kind of viewing audiences want.

how to look good naked......

2006-08-19T16:39:00.000+01:00

two weeks ago I watched this show for the first time (Channel 4).
It started off quite well - there are some really good ideas about helping women have a more positive self image. However it soon descended into the usual stereotyping about what is "right" about "beauty".
The presenter did a voice over whilst the woman featured had an almost full body wax and he said "you have to do this if you are going to look good naked".
She went for an underwear fitting and the woman who measured her up said she "had to have a good bra". She was also given figure-shaping support tights/ pants to give her "the waist she had not got".
The other big problem I had with the show is that whilst the presenter was talking about the sort of clothes she should be wearing to "give her a waist" the screen showed images of hyper-skinny models on a catwalk with totally unrealistic body shapes.
Then the photo shoot at the end featured the woman in extremely high heels.
I watched it again to see if that was an abberation but it wasn't. It's the standard for the series.
What a disappointment.

I don't deny it's a significant improvement on the usual plastic surgery filled "look good" shows, but there's still a way to go before bodies like mine are reflected on TV. I have difficulty seeing myself as beautiful and I know it's partly because there are no role models for me in the mainstream media.

There's an interesting discussion about the series here.

clothes - do you look all right in them?

2006-08-06T13:07:00.000+01:00

"'Being skinny doesn't mean you've automatically got a good body, not at all,' confides one wafer-thin friend. 'Thin definitely doesn't give you good legs, just thinner legs. But it does, by and large, mean you'll look all right in clothes." Mimi Spencer writing about super-thin celebrity women in the Observer makes a direct link with the fashion industry.

I find this statement ridiculous. We are legally obliged to wear clothes in public in our society. So how come there is an unwritten rule about "looking all right in clothes"? Surely we should not have to worry about looking all right, we should just cover up....

This makes me think about whether it matters if we look all right without clothes.... I know I think heavier, fatter people look better naked than super-thin people, and of course when I say people we are actually talking about women here.

So that's the other question - it's not about whether people look all right in clothes - it's about whether women look all right in clothes. Why is that?

Women buy a lot of clothes, compared to men. That is obvious when you look at what men tend to wear at work in office/ professional jobs - a suit, shirt and tie - the same suit every day, with a few shirts and a couple of ties. When they go out what do they wear - a pair of trousers and a shirt or t-shirt. They are excused from the pressure to dress to show off the clothes.

So women are made to believe they don't look all right in anything, so they have to keep buying to find the right clothes for their shape. They will never find the right clothes for their shape, as clothes are not made to look all right on their shape unless they are super-thin.

I was in a small clothes shop yesterday, my friend wanted to look in there. He buys from them regularly. I looked at the women's clothes. There was only one of each item on the rail, and they were all labelled either S or XS - small or extra-small. There was one top labelled large but it was no bigger than the rest. The tiny t-shirts were around £40 each. I left the shop - I cannot support a retailer who so clearly only wants to sell to thin women. I detest the way that women are supposed to be tiny and men to be large.

Of course we are under pressure to conform to certain stated norms and how we look is one of those. How did it happen that we now believe that we only look all right in clothes if we are thin?
One of the ideas for an answer Mimi proposes is "perverse, but a reverse snobbery now informs our relationship with weight; being thin in an overeating society is a sign of control. It takes enormous will to stay so thin. Nationally, we're getting fatter by a percentage point each year - so people who are trying to lose weight, which means most of us, are in awe of the high achievers in the field." So it's about feeling like we have some control in a society that still does not value women. I can relate to that.

I could use some of my time to challenge the fashion industry but overall it's not about fashion, celebrity or food alone - it's the patriarchy-peddled belief that women are second class citizens and the impact that has on us - we interalise the oppression and it perpetuates the myth. We have to find a way to empower ourselves.

Mad dogs

2006-06-30T16:20:00.000+01:00

I was at a "fun-day" last week at a local High School - my partner was paid to take some photos.
The event was a valiant effort on behalf of the parents support group at the school to being the community together and tackle some of the racism. I am sure it was done on a very small budget.

The fun-day was far from fun as far as I was concerned, however. The place itself is so depressing - a tall grey building dominated the site and the fence all around made it feel like a prison. We were on the field round the back. The "entertainment" ranged from a bucking bronco machine, to a very poor karoake style act called Alien effects - 2 men who dressed in various costumes (ET - who very few people at the event were old enough to recognise, Men In Black and so on) and sing along to a soundtrack.

There was also a full half hour demonstration to very loud rap music (the PA was crap) by the girls and boys from the Mad dogs kick-boxing team - which I really don't relate to at all - stylised, dancelike poses with fists raised and kicks to music. There were lots of splits, high jumps and back flips too. There were more boys than girls and they were not all white. But.....it felt like packaging an explosive in a shiny box with a pink bow - however you dress it up it's still about fighting. I watched the adults who run the team - they stood around with arms folded across the chests, looking, as I thought, rather smugly self-satisfied. I have to say the young people were highly skilled, very well co-ordinated and super athletic. It is obviously great exercise, they clearly enjoy it, they have won awards for their displays and it "keeps them off the streets", but I just don't like it. So that must be one of my prejudices shining through.

Anyway - regardless of the actual activity - I really hate the name. They are the "British" Mad Dogs and it just makes me think of the British Bull-dog stereotype mentality - all white male aggression. It also equates madness with violence and animals - that really offends me - it is so unhelpful - it just serves to confirm the belief that people who live with mental distress are violent and out of control, which is the opposite in truth - people with mental illness are more likely to be victims of abuse and violence than the average citizen and not perpetrators.

By the way - they are sponsored by a local sausage manufacturer - the connection with offal is a great irony!

hairless...

2006-05-31T20:51:00.000+01:00

pits.

I had a dilemma about it but in the end decided to remove my armpit hair (I have long dark thick hair there). I used hair-removing cream first - I left it on a lot longer than it said to and it still left quite a bit behind. I then shaved the next morning and realised I probably should have just done that in the first place. Interestingly, what with buying the cream and then faffing about with the skin test and then using it and then having to shave to get a full removal - I must have spent about 2 hours on it. It really does take up your leisure time.

I had one reason - I was the bridesmaid for my sister last weekend and the dress was strapless.

I did not think I looked bad - I was worried that all the traditional/ conservative folk at the event might be more interested/ disgusted/ talkative about my pit hair than the beautiful bride. It did mean I was not worried about what people thought, so I was relaxed.

I also wore a tiny bit of make-up - mascara. That was odd - I looked so different when I see photos. I forgot how much it changes you. Basically I felt under pressure to conform, and when I did, it helped me fit in which reduced my anxiety. Complicated eh?

My hair's all growing back now, and I felt weird for a day or so, but then got used to it. I might de-hair them again when (if) it gets hot. I don't think there's likely to be another occasion ever when I would do so for appearance sake.

It was a fantastic day. T and I are fairly anti-weddings. We have not really ever been to a good one - except this one - it was particularly personal and relaxed.

It was as weddings go - quite moving and I understood why they were doing it, I think. I was very flattered to be asked to be a witness/ bridesmaid for my sister and her lovely partner, and as I quite like dressing up, I enjoyed the frock!

So - no matter how strong my principles are sometimes it's just too hard. That does not feel very good - in many circumstances oppression is based on prejudice about something that can't be chosen. I was very lucky to be able to choose to change myself temporarily.

Nicola Smith....

2006-05-31T20:40:00.000+01:00

is the new national Co-Director for Learning Disability in the Department of Health. Read an interview with her in the Guardian.

She is working with Rob Greig to challenge the social exlusion of people with learning disabilities.

This is the first time that anyone with a learning disability has ever held a senior government post!

One of the main reasons she feels qualified for the post is her experience of living in a hospital for some time. In her words "it was very grim". She is concerned to hasten the closure of all the last hospitals and "campus" NHS homes. Another aim of hers is to address the removal of children from learning disabled parents.

I am looking forward to finding out how she gets on - I also am interested in how the Co-Directors will work together - another first I think.

how much time do you spend at leisure?

2006-05-07T18:38:00.000+01:00

I mentioned yesterday that some of my favourite photographs in the Masquerade exhibition are of women with moustaches. I have talked about hair a bit before here in this post on the Beauty Myth.

I have just read an article from the Guardian on the 4th May based on a speech given by Germaine Greer about leisure time. There is a big difference between the way men and women use their leisure time. Basically women don't have "leisure" pursuits - we work when we are not doing paid work - either doing housework or volunteering or doing beauty work....some of that is to do with hair.

"The time they don't spend working for the employer and the taxman they spend doing something called "housework", to which, for most women between the ages of 25 and 50, may be added "childcare". There is also the onerous task of body maintenance, keeping the otherwise disgusting female body clean, tidy, deodorised, made up, not to mention toned and becomingly clad, plus the exhausting, sometimes painful and expensive business of hair and hairiness management. Work, all of it.....

Older women, whether they play bingo or break out the camp stove, are heavily involved in leisure, but theirs is cut-price leisure. They are not in the market for recreational vehicles, or powerboats, or even motel accommodation. They are the people who make possible literary festivals and antique fairs, who support local art galleries and museums, who volunteer for every community chore, and happily raise money for what they believe to be good causes, giving, giving, giving of their time free. If we had a way of quantifying the output of the leisure industry of older women, we would probably see that it contributes vastly more to the GDP than the corporate leisure industry."

I spent such a large part of my life dealing with hair from puberty until my mid 20's that I feel certain one of the reasons I now have time for real leisure, such as singing in the LoudMouth Women singing group I am part of, is because I don't remove hair anymore. Neither do I wear any make-up. How many hours do you think you spend "working" on your body image?

IRIS

2006-05-06T18:09:00.000+01:00

Iris is the Research centre within the Faculty of Arts, Media and Design at Staffordshire University with a focus on:

the initiation of conferencing, publishing, exhibiting and educational projects within the field of contemporary women’s’ photographic practice, and
broadening access to the medium through books, exhibitions and educational activities.

Today was the launch of an exhibition curated by IRIS called Masquerade, at the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery. Masquerade brings together the work of 7 women photographers from Britain and the USA, and features all kinds of contemporary portraits. The show also compares photographs in Masquerade with paintings from the Museum's collections.

The show has already been in London and Birmingham. It is heartening to see an exhibition of national significance led by Staffordshire/ Stoke-on-Trent women and organisations.

There are some challenging pieces - one artist photographed her mother in her last months with Alzheimer's. The 6 portraits of women with moustaches are truly beautiful. Apparently when the exhibition was in the MAC in Brimingham there were complaints about these portraits including "disgusting". Why do openly hairy women offend people so much?

Masquerade is on until the 9th July. Get there if you can.

top shelf voluntary code

2006-03-25T20:07:00.000Z

Thanks to MP Diane Abbott there will be a new voluntary code for newsagents published next week. The code is about the display of goods for sale that contain porngarphic images.

The "new code of practice relates also to so-called 'lads mags' as well as tabloids and other news publications. It stipulates that these types of publications should be displayed out of sight and reach of children and be separate from children's titles."

Diane says "these new guidelines are a victory for parent power and for gender equality. It also shows that public attitudes are changing and that era of normalising sexual or exploitative images of women is no longer considered acceptable."

I think she is over-egging the pudding here a little - too many people find this more than acceptable - that's why people like us have to press for limits and rulings if we are to see real change.

Diane concluded: "I am very pleased that new codes of practice are to be published, but a voluntary code is only sufficient if it is adhered to". I will keep a close eye on developments to make sure that this good practice is in fact implemented. If the code proves ineffective I will push for a statutory instrument requiring newsagents to sell titles containing pornographic materials from the top shelf."

We too will keep an eye on developments and will contact you should the code prove ineffective, Diane! This is a good start.......

timeline of LGBT history

2006-03-22T20:03:00.000Z

I found a really interesting link to a timeline of Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transexual history yesterday.
It shows how far things have changed and helps point out how far there still to go.

Anita sold out....

2006-03-22T19:59:00.000Z

... but she says she had no choice to sell to L'oreal as being on the stock market meant she had to go with sharedholders decisions and that is based on profit. She is planning on giving most of her income from the sale away. Listen to her first interview after the sale on the BBC website. She was on Woman's Hour.
Just a shame that L'oreal are the owners and they are part of the Nestle group!!!

Anita Roddick "because she's worth it?"

2006-02-24T17:29:00.000Z

Body Shop are being offered loads of money to sell out to L'oreal.
The Guardian wonder if Anita will sell out so she can spend the dosh on her campaigns and wildlife projects and they also pose interesting comparisons between the 2 organisations.
One of the Body Shop's trading standards is honesty about what the products can do for you.
"Anything which says it can magically take away your wrinkles is a scandalous lie" Anita Roddick says. Too bloody right!

IWD 06

2006-02-21T20:10:00.000Z

International Women's Day 2006 is looming. In Staffordshire there are a few things going on - Froomblog lists the main things that I am aware of in Staffordshire. One that really interests me is the launch of the Women's mental health standards for Staffordshire. I cannot get to the event, but I will try to find out more and hope to post about it sometime.

What do you know of that's going on in your area? Are you involved in anything? I hope that by 2007 I am in a job or have time unpaid to take part in organising something in Stoke-on-Trent.

"Angels" at the top

2006-02-21T19:08:00.000Z

The Observer has an interesting take on the idea of the "Angel in the House" - the stay at home "lady" of leisure whose reason for being is to look beautiful and serve her man. These women - The Guardian Angels have made it in the man's world of being leaders of large organisations.... of course the organisations are independent not-for-profit companies and forces for social change, the glass ceiling has risen up a notch......

The article is interesting for it's focus on their values and skills and simply for showing that it can be done - I see them as role models but I question the stereotype of feminity....

"women are more used to showing emotion and not seeing it as a weakness 'they don't find it difficult to combine passion and professionalism, and passion is absolutely essential in the voluntary sector'" says Jackie Ballard, director of the RSPCA.

Their pay is much higher than the average wage, but considering the large budgets and numbers of staff they are responsible for, unbelievably low compared to the men who manage organisations of equivalent size in the private sector, and compared to Chief Executive's of Local Authorities and the NHS. This interests me as those feminine traits are clearly less valued still - even if men hold the senior positions, voluntary organisations are unable to pay at similar levels to the public and private sector. I do not believe the huge salaries in some companies are justified either, but the inequalities speak volumes.

Maybe they are Angels in the Boardroom - but why Angels? I bet they are not perfect, heavenly beings.......

another 4 things...

2006-01-22T23:10:00.000Z

for the new year.
It's still just about January and I told myself I would do this one.....thanks to Make Tea Not War for it.

Four things I want to do before 2006 is over:
1. Go back to Morocco.
2. Have set up a successful feminist network in my area
3. Be able to say I play piano accordion and be happy to demonstrate, confident that people will be fairly impressed at my skill.
4. Know what work I want to do, where and for whom.

Four things I say a lot:
1. "I'm tired"
2. “bollocks”
3. "I love you"
4. "let’s do lunch"

Four things I don't trust:
1. politicians
2. religion
3. my body
4. my ability to relax

Four things I do trust:
1. my partner
2. my friends
3. music to move me
4. a good book to help me switch off

Four people from history I'd like to meet:
I am not good at talking to people I look up to when they are strangers, but…..
1. Carol Shields
2. George Gershwin
3. Virginia Woolf
4. Charles Darwin

Four best movies of 2005:
1. Kinsey
2. Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
3. Corpse Bride
4. A Very Long Engagement

Four best books I've read in 2005:
1. Margaret Atwood – Cat’s Eye
2. Lionel Shriver – We Need to Talk About Kevin
3. Sarah Waters - Fingersmith
4. Shamim Sharif – The World Unseen

Four best gigs or albums of 2005:
1. Spiers and Boden at Northwich
2. Bellowhead at Bridgnorth Folk Festival
3. Spiers and Boden “Songs”
4. Eddi Reader at Middlewich Folk Festival

I'm following in Make Tea Not War's footsteps - I'm not tagging anyone but, by all means, consider yourself tagged if you feel you have nothing more important to do....let me know if you do and I'll link to you!

4 people who should consider themselves tagged...

2006-01-12T18:23:00.000Z

Birdy Chirp at Doing the Right Thing
Clare Sudbery
Simon at under the green hill
Alec at The Valley of Lost Things

if you fancy it...I didn't realise that that should be the last of the "4 things" on my post - oops!

oh, and while I'm here - this is a "positive quote of the day" that I like -
" You can stand tall without standing on someone. You can be a victor without having victims."
-- Harriet Woods (1927-) American Politician

I found this site when I browsing for positive news sites one day late last year. Most of the quotes are by men and are often a bit stuffy.

4 things you never knew you needed to know about meme…..

2006-01-08T17:10:00.000Z

Thanks to Winter Woods for the tag, I am about to lose some of my mystery!!!

4 jobs I've had:
And I’ve had lots….
1. Avon “Lady” - When I was about 16 I did a bit of selling – I was such a girly young thing – I looked about 30 and was totally signed up to the need for make-up and perfume. I mostly sold it to my school friends.
2. Sales assistant at Morrison’s – T loves to hear about how my nylon uniform with nylon tights underneath that I had to wear even in scorching hot summer vacation, would percolate my bottom. I used to “hide” in the staff dining room behing my copy of “Great expectations” that I struggled to read for my degree course – but it was better than having to make polite conversation.
3. Team manager for my local Alcohol Advisory Service – a really varied job recruiting, training, supervising and managing volunteer and paid staff most of whom were counsellors.
4. Community development worker. My main role in my last job was to bring together local residents’ groups reps, local Councillors and local public service managers to identify and try to improve things in specific neighbourhoods in the city, such as litter problems, lack of health services or children’s play areas. The Council kept the team of 10 of us for nearly 3 years but as we started to really enable local people to get their voices heard and to change things they pulled the plug and I was made redundant.

4 movies I can watch over and over
as a rule I don’t much like watching films again, I don’t tend to read books more than once either....
1. Topsy Turvy – the story of the relationship issues surrounding the writing and performing of the Mikado – based on the lives of Gilbert and Sullivan – a Mike Leigh film – brilliant (and I love the music, it reminds me of being in the school production when I was about 11, so that’s a bonus).
2. Guys and Dolls – another musical – This is a classic – funny, lively and cheesy – it also reminds me of my youth when I performed some of the numbers with my local amateur operatic society.

The next two are a bit of cheat - I used to watch them a lot, but have not done for years.
3. Clockwise – a bit sad I know, but it makes me laugh every time - stars the wonderful John Cleese.
4. Educating Rita – this is quite dated now, but I used to watch it a lot and always cried. It was one of the first films I saw that I understood to be amount “women’s lib”, that and “The Colour Purple” which I also watched many times.

4 places I've lived:
1. Staffordshire Moorlands where I was born and bred in a boring large village near Stoke-on-Trent
2. Hanley – boring, run-down, city centre of Stoke on Trent
3. Liverpool, at St Katharine’s College – part of the University.
4. Newcastle-under-Lyme – a fairly boring market town in North Staffordshire (well in the suburbs of the town really)

4 TV shows I love to watch:
1. QI – hilarious and very informative
2. BBC/ Channel 4 documentaries like “Coast”, “Life in the Undergrowth”
3. Made for TV dramas - Stephen Poliakoff plays in particular – new series of his stuff coming up on Sunday nights starting next week
4. Music programmes – Jools Holland, BBC4 sessions.

4 places I've been on vacation:
1. Morocco
2. Amsterdam
3. Cornwall
4. Lake District

4 blogs I visit every day:
well most days....
1. Desperate Kingdoms
2. Valley of Lost Things
3. Travelling Punk
4. Chozma photoblog

4 of my favourite foods:
1. pasta with tomato based sauce
2. chocolate with a high cocoa content
3. fruit smoothie drinks
4. fresh soup – anything vege

4 places I'd rather be:
1. Morocco
2. Lake District
3. anywhere peaceful with lots of trees and water and great food
4. just not at work…..

4 albums I can't live without:
1. Spiers and Boden - Bellow
2. Spiers and Boden - Songs
3. Eddi Reader – Eddi Reader
4. Billy Joel – Cold Spring Harbor

4 vehicles I've owned:
1. a bike
2. a Datsun Cherry
3. a Nissan Sunny
4. a Nissan Micra

reappropriate's carnival number 6

2006-01-05T23:59:00.000Z

reappropriate has done a fantastic job referencing loads of fascinating blog entries about issues of concern or interest to us all - the one that caught my eye from my first visit was this... fugusashi

so being the season to be jolly.....

2005-12-21T19:41:00.000Z

I'm going to have a little rant about it.

I have been party to at least 2 debates in the last couple of weeks about the "PC gone mad attitude that leads to Christmas being called winterfest".

One was a heated argument with some of our best friends. The other one I remember clearly was at an "Equality and Diversity" training in my employing NHS trust. I was on one side of the argument and many others were against.

Who decided that Christmas starts in October? I firmly believe that capitalism has stretched it out, simply for sales purposes.

This though means that culturally many people think that any event that takes place during this period must be a Christmas event. Therefore calling a Local Authority organised programme of event held during November and December a "Winterfest" rather than Christmas is offensive and implies that using the term "Christmas" is banned. Some people say they think Christmas itself is banned as they understand some politically correct community leaders think it upsets non-Christians.

Our friend's point was that he knows a Hindi woman who thinks like this and he agrees. He said she is happy to see people celebrate Christmas, especially as it's the British cultural standard and she is an "incomer". He said that "everyone" celebrates Christmas and it's not just a Christian thing.

My position is this -

I am happy for those who want to celebrate Christmas - be they Christian or not - to do so. I do.

I am also happy for us to have the opportunity to take part in organised events that are specifically Christmas events - like Carol Concerts and Christmas markets.

I never questioned that our majority culture in Britain is still based on the Christian tradition and our main festivals are too. I am however sure there is clear pagan relevance to Easter and Christmas-time though. And it's no coincidence that most religions and cultures have some sort of festival that makes use of light at the darkest time of the year is it?

Many people I know who practice religions other than Christianity join in with celebrating Christmas. I also know people who would definitely not celebrate Christmas, and would be upset if they were pressured into doing so.

I find it notable that some of the Christmas symbols and practices are nothing to do with Christianity- trees, snowmen, and others. It's relatively easy to appropriate them if Christmas, as it is to me, does not carry Christian meaning to you. By the way - Homer Simpson as an inflatable Santa decoration in people's gardens. What's that all about? All the other icons are without copyright - Homer is owned by Rupert Murdoch!!!

I am not happy that every other event and important festival that takes place during the months of November and December to have to take on the Christmas label by default.

I believe it is essential that we demonstrate to our fellow community members that we recognise there are alternatives and that other celebrations are equally valid and supported. When events are organised or promoted by the Local Authority - whose role it is to represent and support ALL citizens in their area - they must support all communities equally as long as the events are not breaking the law.

Diwali, Chunakah and depending on the moon phase Eid-ul-Fitr some years, amongst many others are religious festivals that happen at this time of year and need to be recognised and included. Calling a programme of events "Winterfest" makes sure that everyone is included.

I would never agree that a specific Christmas event had to change it's name. I have no evidence that anyone has ever been asked to change an Christmas events' name. Let me know if you do.

So - where do you sit on this issue?

In the meantime - season's greeting to you all!!!! Have a good Christmas, if it's your thing. I intend to.......

murder at your partners hands

2005-12-11T22:15:00.000Z

happens to about 2 women a week.

The Guardian magazine (which I don't like very much) occassionally has decent articles. This week it lists all the people (mostly women) killed by ex or current partners with photos of the majority. It's a moving record of a desperately common crime. It poses lots of (fairly obvious) questions, and overall manages to raise the profile of a silent, largely unreported issue in the mainstream media.

Katherine Viner writes -

"men's power over women is at the heart of this depressing story. Very often women are killed when they challenge that power, by trying to separate from their partners, or seeing someone else, or doing something that their partner doesn't want them to do. Perhaps we should not be surprised by the fact that two men a week kill their partners, when courts say that women can consent to sex while almost unconscious, when rape itself has a conviction rate of 5.3%, when twice as many men now visit prostitutes than a decade ago. Britain is not getting any safer for women, however many get to be CEOs.

Violence against women is mainstream - the British Crime Survey from 2004 shows that an astonishing 50% of all adult women have experienced domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking. (It was only in 1981 that it was made illegal for a man to rape his wife.) And we use euphemisms about domestic violence against women such as "a row that got out of hand" and "a volatile relationship", which make abusive relationships sound equal, just a bit of sparring. Press reports say, "Police are treating it as a domestic incident", as if that makes it a lesser crime....

And the late George Best, lamented as a flawed hero in reams of tear-stained articles last month, said in support of fellow woman-beating footballer Paul Gascoigne, "I think we all give the wife a smack once in a while." He certainly did so himself.

So how much is our society colluding with this? When we lionise abusers, feel sorry for those who kill women who nag, and sentence men who've killed their lovers to paltry terms in jail, you have to ask: are so many women killed by their partners because society lets men get away with it?"

I was unaware of George Best's violent history - I had no interest in his life. It only came to my notice hearing Polly Toynbee amongst others talking about why people like George become sanctified in death. She commented that she is uncomfortable about the celebration of him as a genius and role model when he was a wife-beater. I welcome this article as a reminder that we are colluding with violence by treating people like Best as heroes, and generally forgetting to report crimes like these with the respect they deserve.

a conservative royal?

2005-12-11T22:10:00.000Z

According to the online "What kind of princess are you? " quiz I am :

The Traditional Princess

You are generous, graceful, and practical with both
feet planted firmly on the ground. You tend to
be a little on the old-fashioned side. You
value home, hearth, and family life and love to
be of service to others.

Role Models: Snow White, Maid Marian

You are most likely to: Discover a hidden talent
for spinning straw into gold.

This suprises me a bit as I don't consider myself traditional. Having said that I hate the idea of being any sort of "Princess" - I have never pretended to be one - my childhood games were playing teacher or lover, or just acting/ singing/ dancing about. So bearing that in mind and considering the answers I gave - like my choice to dig the garden if the King and Queen left me alone for the day - I guess it's the best I could do to bring some realism to the role!!!

What Kind of Princess are You? - Beautiful Artwork (Original Music is BACK!!!)
brought to you by Quizilla

go on then, have a guess.....

2005-11-22T20:18:00.000Z

who's house is who's.... on Clare Sudbery's Through the Keyhole challenge.

There are 13 bloggers taking part including me.

Mike from Troubled Diva. He has TWO houses, and a Princess Diana Memorial Garden.

Gordon from Gordon McLean. He lives in Scotland, and is good at computers and stuff.

Pen from A Typical Pen. She's into flowers.

Ruth from Meanwhile Here In France. She's a musician who lives in the French countryside, with her painter husband.

Zinnia from Real E Fun, who directs funerals at a mystery location.

Rob from Eine Kleine Nichtmusik, who also lives in Scotland, and is a musician in his spare time.

Vitriolica from Unkempt Women, who lives, and indeed draws/paints, in Portugal with two small children and a professor.

Zoe from My Boyfriend is a Twat. She lives in Belgium. With newts. And a twat.

Clair from Merialc.com: Life in Reverse, who takes lots of great photos and does things backward.

Clare from Boob Pencil, who has a thing about breasts.

Lisa from Rullsenberg Rules, who gobbles up all aspects of culture and lives with a cloud.

Joe from Joe in and around Las Vegas, who lives in Las Vegas. Oh no, was that a secret? Sorry.

We have each provided some pictures and all you have to do is say which pics belong to which blogger. Please submit your answers in the comments box for the post on Clare's site.

I am trying and I haven't got much of clue!

what's on when?

2005-11-22T20:16:00.000Z

To find out about important dates linked to human rights, campaigns and international political meetings see the Oxfam calendar.

rape crisis....

2005-11-21T17:42:00.000Z

Fuckin 'ell, I can hardly believe it - "1 in 3 people believes that women who behave flirtatiously are at least partially responsible" according to the Amnesty International report published today.

This cannot be true as Rape is not sex - it is violence and it's about power, not attraction.

I have been reading a lot about rape and people's attitudes on various blogs over the last couple of days. I did think that I would leave other people to shout about this one, as there are so many issues I can't cover them all. But this is not something I can ignore and not post about.

David Fickling in the Guardian says -
"Police recorded nearly 13,000 rapes last year, a figure thought to amount to only 15% of the true total since most rapes are never reported. The conviction rate for rape is 5.6% - the lowest ever recorded, with 741 cases resulting in conviction last year.
A study in 2002 found that one in 20 reports of rape led to conviction, compared to one in three in 1977. "There's pretty much a rape crisis in this country," said Amnesty spokesman Neil Durkin."

What is going on - why was it SO much easier to get a conviction nearly 30 years ago!!!!

The campaign to Stop Violence Against Women has to be worth signing up to. Make sure you challenge any myths.

For a full discussion on some of these issues see a great post and comments on this site - Feministe and if you follow the links one of them leads here - Alley which sadly backs up the report referred to earlier.

nearly naked women

2005-11-18T19:37:00.000Z

Last weekend I was sitting in the car waiting for T to pay for petrol and I noticed the newspaper stand outside the petrol station shop.

All the papers were covered except one - I think it was the Daily Sport, which was the one nearest the shop door.

That paper had a full page photo on the front cover of a woman in very skimpy underwear taken from below so that it was mainly of her nearly naked arse.

As I had noticed it from the car it was obvious that anyone walking past it to the shop would have to see it. Three men walked into the shop and they stared at the picture on their way in so their heads were turned towards the paperstand whilst they walked.

I found myself feeling angry. I have become immune to the domination of these sorts of images of women in the mass media of late. I was shocked by how blatant, what was clearly a porn shot, was.

I am not anti-porn.
I am not happy about a society which makes women's bodies objects used to make people spend money. I am not happy that it is only pictures of women that we see like this. I am not happy that the message that women are to look at and be titilated by is peddled everywhere with no limits. What does it teach boys and girls as they a growing up to walk past pictures like that wherever they go?

I thought about the use of images of "beautiful" women to advertise to men and to women alike. The same day as I noticed the newspaper, I also noticed a huge billboard in Manchester with a glamourous young (clothed) blonde woman dominating it - to advertise the newly refurbished and renamed store House of Fraser. The ad was definitely aimed at women. But change the words and add a car in the background and it could have been aimed at men.

So - men are told - buy this and you could have a woman like this. Women are told - buy this/ shop here and you could look like this. The message is the same - women need to be young (or look young) and beautiful to be attractive to men. Both men and women need to spend lots of money to get what they aspire to - women aspire to looks, men to having a woman with looks on their arm.

T found this Kira Cochrane article which really relates well to how I feel.

What a weird frightening world we live in...........

through the bloghole

2005-11-18T19:33:00.000Z

Clare Sudbery is doing a fun thing next Tuesday - she is going to publish lots of photos that bloggers have sent in of the inside of their homes and you have to guess who's house is who's.
I have sent her 2, so take a look next week. She came up with idea a couple of weeks ago and asked me to take part..... what a privilege!!!!!!

froomin'... at last

2005-11-18T19:00:00.000Z

Well thanks to the wonderful Tim, I now have a password that works and allowed my to publish froom again......just need to get people interested in sending in contributions!

women who inspire us....

2005-11-12T00:33:00.000Z

this is the first topic that froom have chosen. we have started a discussion on froom talk about it.....

I want to add to the site but find that I can't publish it yet.

I want to add that Fawcett are asking us to vote for the UK's most inspiring woman until 21st November.

So - what do you think?

I would go for Germaine Greer, but although she lives and works in the UK, she is Australian.

I am inclined to choose Alison Lapper, for reasons which my earlier posts will make clear.

I am also thinking about the late Mo Mowlam.

But I am not sure about the whole idea of choosing one woman at all.... it smacks of competition and I am inspired by many women, not least my friends and family, blogger-friends included.

subtext

2005-11-07T23:12:00.000Z

I am very aware of not posting for a while.

I hope I will be able to do more from now on - I am now officially a part-timer - I now work 4 days a week. I plan to use my non-work day to do some blogging and also to get froom going properly. I have done some updates to froom today but can't publish as I have lost my password!!! It's so long since I touched it......

I also hope to put some time into helping to set up subtext - a new feminist magazine due to launch in January with a full publication in Spring 06. Find out more at the website.

20 random facts about me...

2005-10-19T22:37:00.000+01:00

thanks to tp for tagging me....

20 random facts about me

1. This is the first time I have been tagged and I am so excited. I was hoping someone would tag me soon.

2. I started to play the piano accordion earlier this year.

3. I love Yes Minister!

4. I have an obsession/ compulsion about the order in which mugs are stacked in the cupboard.

5. My favourite flower used to be the iris. Now I’m not sure. Maybe Japanese anemone. Maybe aquilegia (columbine). Maybe neither.

6. I was a HUGE fan of Michael Crawford as a teenager as part of my all consuming love of musical theatre. (blush)

7. I have two cats.

8. My first cat was named Oliver and I used to call him “you silly old scallywag pussycat”.

9. I have a dilemma about my hair. I have it being bleached and it costs £50 a time to have it bleached again. It’s a lot of money. It seems excessive to spend that on my looks.

10. I am an atheist.

11. I failed my O level maths twice and finally passed CSE when I was doing my A levels.

12. I love singing but I don’t think anyone will want to hear me sing.

13. I trained as a primary school teacher.

14. My favourite colour is purple.

15. I have 4 step siblings.

16. Two of them are named Judith.

17. I was brought up as a Methodist.

18. My other blog is atypicalpen

19. I hate knowing that the world is unfair and there is very little I can do about it. It's one of the main things that makes me depressed.

20. I am a quarter Welsh.

I now tag Winter Woods, BirdyChirp, Twisty Faster, Anna and Simon.

towel and tampon tax

2005-10-15T18:14:00.000+01:00

Did you know that the tax on blood catchers was reduced from 17.5 to 5% from Jan 2001?

I missed that one, and I wonder if it was because Gordon Brown wimped out on something that is a significant shift in economic policy for over half the population of the country he holds the purse strings for. And that means it's our fucking money!!!!

Lucy Ward and Dave Hill in the Guardian had two very different persectives on this one - wonder why? Dave Hill makes some great excuses for Gordon - check them out!!!!!
Apparently Gordon's excuse was he wanted to let the female MPs claim credit - well if they did I did not hear them loud enough.........

What made me look this up, after thinking about it for a few months now - was reading My Vag latest post - Sarah says " Oh, I go through such phases with this blog. Even after publishing 500+ pages on the finer details of my vagina, I have trouble figuring out what kind of vaginal news is worth reading every day. Who needs to read about vaginas every day? I myself, devoted disciple of vaginal scholarship, have no desire to keep up with the day to day developments in tampon politics or whatever." So I thought - well I'm sure there must be some news that is worth writing about.

I know this is old news, but it's new to me.....

UN leader speaks out for women's rights.....

2005-10-13T17:54:00.000+01:00

Ms Obaid director of the UN annual population fund says -
"It is time to call for action to free women of the discrimination, violence and poor health that they face in their daily lives.
"And I can assure you that women all over the world are tired of promises, promises, promises. The time has come; we have the means, we have the commitment. Now we need action."

Only an end to gender inequality will end poverty according to the UN in the Guardian today.

How bloody refreshing!

One of the Millennium Development Goals is to promote gender equality and empower women. It is central to the achievement of all 8 goals.

I picked up a book of wonderful photos illustrating the MDGs at an exhibition by PANOS at Oxo wharf in London when I went to see the Frida Kahlo exhibition - they are on the web here.

My wonderful friend Claire lent me her copy of the Rough Guide to making the world a better place. I am going to use it to create a list of things I can do when I feel the urge to take action on an issue that has really got my goat.....and I will also pick up some ideas from the Millennim Campaign.
When I've created my list it will appear on this blog......

Sorry for the lull in posting - was away last week and been back to work this work and very busy.... but got lots of stuff to say and hope to catch up this weekend!

work life balance on way to being restored....

2005-09-30T17:07:00.000+01:00

I am feeling the benefit of -
a) being off work again for a week
b) going to T'ai Chi once a week (been twice so far)
c) doing some Molly dancing (a style of Morris dancing) and accordion playing once a week (been three times now) with Black Dog Molly
d) eating dark chocolate covered ricecakes (what I am addicted to and had run out of and now have 2 wholesale boxes of )
e) having some long lie-ins
f) knowing that we are off to Cornwall soon...
g) knowing that my manager is ok about me putting in an application to go down to 4 days a week - she thinks we can make it happen and is willing to discuss how....

I think my ideal would be working a 3 day week with time to do more unpaid work getting froom up and running and helping support the development of Write-on. I could also use the time to perhaps do some sessional University teaching on regeneration/ community development/ social studies/ advice work/ counselling eventually, if I could get some hours.

I am a late bird, not an early one - and as a result am seen as lazy and a misfit. Why is the standard working day 9-5? Most people seem to prefer either 8-4 or maybe even 7-3, or a minority of us who prefer 10-6, 11-7 or even 12-8. I really need a job that is based around a working day that runs from 11am to 7pm - those are my natural peak hours.

But going down to 4 days will be a good start and should help me build up my energy levels and resilience.

My doctor told me that the dizziness I've been getting is probably not a balance/ inner ear problem. It could have been a virus thingy. It also could be a side effect of the St John's Wort. So, as I am no longer depressed I have stopped taking it and will wait and see how I feel.
I am not going to know if the dizziness was related to it if I am not dizzy again. But if I am dizzy again I will know it was not due to the medication. A bit of detective work will be needed to see what the cause is. I will probably assume it's fatigue/ stress.

The 4 day a week thing is an interesting one......
it feels like such a luxury. I am so lucky that I can afford it.

I also have struggled to get my head sorted about being a part-time worker - I had always imagined myself working full-time and climbing up the career ladder. I have now realised that I have a choice and life isn't all about career. I need to feel like I am influencing decisions that affect the bigger picture - the way services are delivered, the priorities that are set in public service, the tackling of the causes of inequalities and prevention/ reduction of them. I assumed this meant I had to be managing big budgets or lots of people or writing high level strategies.
I actually don't like do those things and have started to feel like my contribution to those things will not effect the sort of changes I want to see. I have come full circle back to the belief that is it grassroots social action that can make the biggest impact.

T and I were talking about this yesterday (again - it's a common topic in our home) and we are of the view that due to the lack of clear political principles all that government departments can do is "manage" - and that means create change to structures and systems and move people around a bit. The work that gets done is always the same. The effect on the people who are served by the services (local govt and nhs) is at best no change, at worst severe disruption to services during the upheaval and changes in personnel with reduction in trust.

For example - the cycle that the library service has gone through in the last 10 years is 5 changes of deparment each costing thousands in public money to re-brand, re-structure re-organise internally, with less to spend on changing the outfacing service.

The nhs has gone from a Family Health Service Authority monitoring the work of independent GPs, to a Health Authority, then with fund holding powers passed to GPs as individuals and groups. After that GPs formed Primary Care Groups, and then became Trusts if they were big enough. Those Trusts were told they were too small and some had to merge and the Health Authorities role shrank and so they also merged to cover larger regions. Now there is a another round of mergers and GPs will have to engage in practice based commissioning of care and services from next September. What goes around comes around.

The amount of time and money that is spent on this could be spent on managing stasis instead of managing change - and that would allow organisations to put efforts into building long-term meaningful relationships with their communities and "customers". But then the election campaigns would have nothing to put in their manifestos about changes to public services..... or is that just too cynical????

Also - back to the part-time working thing...... I have doubts about justifying it when again I am lucky enough to have a job that is not putting life and limb at risk every day. Nor is it illegal - unlike the work that some people are forced to do - having read this Guardian article about women trafficked into the sex trade, I almost cannot imagine a worse way to be made to earn money. Women and girls as young as 10 are encouraged to come to Western Europe to make money and once here are raped until they become submissive and then forced to work as prostitutes and pay their "debt" - the "cost" of bringing them to the country - back to their "owner".

As Bianca Jagger writes -
"On one level, the UK government recognises the problem. A few years ago, Home Office research estimated that 1,420 women were trafficked into the UK in 1998 in order to be forcibly prostituted. The expert consensus is that the scale has significantly increased since then. There are now certainly thousands of women and girls trapped in a horror-filled existence. Desperately poor women and girls are typically stripped of their passports and other documents by their new "employers", and taken to secure flats and beaten and raped by their "owners" to "break them in". After that, it's a soul-destroying treadmill of dehumanising servitude, providing sex for 20 to 30 men a day, according to the Metropolitan police.

Scared and abused... many lacking a good command of the language, and told by their traffickers that what they are doing is illegal and could lead to imprisonment, they are truly caught in a web. Even if they escape the imprisonment of their owners, the route home is often barred anyway, as traffickers will threaten to expose them to shame there or even threaten their lives or the lives of their families. Britain needs to stop treating women forced into prostitution as criminals. They are automatically criminalised.
In May, a new European treaty established fresh guidelines for this. The European Convention Against Trafficking, the world's first international law specifically for protecting trafficked people's rights, puts victims first. Organisations such as Amnesty International are backing the convention and calling on the UK to sign up to it, but the government is stalling. Why, when Home Office minister Paul Goggins has said that the government "fully supports" the aims of the convention? Could it be that the government is afraid of criticism from anti-immigration lobbyists that the convention extends rights to women and girls who could fabricate a story of sexual slavery to gain access to the country? You could be forgiven for thinking that protecting some of the world's most terrorised and vulnerable people ought to cancel out these peripheral concerns."

suits you sir!

2005-09-29T16:35:00.000+01:00

but it doesn't though - does it?

I went on a shopping outing with T the other day, T fancied getting a suit (which would be his second one). He looks quite good in the one he's got, which he wears about one day a month on average. He only ever wears collarless shirts - which are very hard to find - and it's a fairly casual style.

We went to M&S and the choice (and this is totally serious) was grey, dark grey, dark blue and grey, dark blue, black, grey and black. There was nothing brown, green or light coloured. And the one he tried on made him look like an unhappy accountant/ wedding photographer. The patent leather pointy shoes that the man at the changing room gave him to wear to test the length of the trousers did not help.

It well and truly put him off the idea. Me too.

I had a little internet search after and found that Next do linen and gaberdine suits and Boden to "moleskin" (which sounds cruel to me!). They are a bit more casual.

Anyway - the point is - why wear one at all - it's so macho. He feels like it is essential on the odd occasion. One thing that is clear is it is a uniform. It is notable that women do not have the same restrictions in most workplaces. Some women wear I work wear a suit (usually bright colours or at least with a bright blouse). Others wear all sorts of tops and they have a choice of skirts and trousers. There obviously are subtleties that men can "read" from the suit-wearing, but it's so limited.

I wondered if this is because men are not meant to be attractive at work, but women are. That is Naomi Klein's view - see the Beauty Myth post. It also seems to be that men are not taken seriously unless they conform utterly. (Women are never taken seriously no matter what we wear).

We talked about how some men wear suits to go out at night - T used to have a suit as a youngster that he bought so he could get into nightclubs. Again the same issue arises - men are the ones who have to follow the "shirt and tie, no trainers, no jeans" rules - for women it's literally anything goes! We think that is because women are on display and the more women nightclubs attract in, the more men will also pay to go in.

All this reminded me of what I thought when I saw the press call on the first day of the UN general assembly when all 60 members were photographed together. Obviously there were very few women, but noticeably there was a lot less "traditional/ ethnic/ national" dress than there used to be - almost all the people were wearing western tailored suits in dark greys.

President of the Phillipines Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's red suit is noted on the Phillipines government website. She is the first President of the Phillipines, the first Asian head of state, and the first woman leader to preside over the UN Security Council Summit - the webpage says this about 10 ten times. I guess it's good. Shame about the suit though even if it is red. I'm not sure what I think about women getting into positions of power - it means we are taking part - but it does not change the fact that what we are taking part in is the patriarchy....

Anyway - back to the suits. The suits we know and love are culturally specific and seem much more dowdy than the formal wear of other countries - although I don't know enough about it to know whether for example an Ghanian lawyer or an Bangladeshi hyper-capitalist company director would be expected to wear grey rather than, say red....

exciting plans

2005-09-28T17:37:00.000+01:00

The wonderful Travelling Punk is starting a new women's magazine as an alternative to all the mass media pulp glossy's out there....

I am going to see what I can do to help.... it's too good to miss. Anything has got to be better than the oppressive trash that's currently peddled! But I hope this will be more than just better.... it has the potential to be essential reading for any feminist in the UK.

Does anyone remember "Everywoman"? I used to read it and it was so refreshing. It stopped in the early/ mid 90's I think.

Anyway, why don't you take a read of what TP has to say and if you are interested - join us!

free association 4

2005-09-28T17:34:00.000+01:00

Crave:: dark choc rice cakes
Whole package:: dark choc rice cakes
Roommates:: smell
5:30:: Newsround
Lesbian:: love
Poignant:: robin song
Hurtful:: words
You and I:: together
Grateful:: hug
Giggle:: friends

a hairshirt

2005-09-26T17:55:00.000+01:00

It's a bit worrying.... perhaps I should take note..... even though it's meant to be lighthearted.....and it's exaggerated......

apparently I am a -

Hairshirt

Excuse us, could you just put down that hammer for a minute and listen. You’re so busy getting things done you rarely take any time out just to relax. In fact, you’ve probably forgotten how to relax. That’s because you’re so anxious to prove that it’s possible to lead a good and moral life without religion that you have built a strict and forbidding creed all of your own.

You keep a compost heap, cycle to the bottle bank, invest in ethical schemes only and the list of countries you won’t buy from is longer than the washing line for your baby’s towelling nappies. You admire uncompromising self–sacrificers like Aung San Suu Kyi and Che Guevara, and would have liked the chance to be incarcerated for your principles like Diderot or Nelson Mandela.

You would never cheat on your partner, drink and drive, accept bribes or touch drugs. You never waste money though you give lots to charity. Living a good life? You’re a model to us all. But it wouldn’t hurt you to try a little happiness once in a while. Loosen up.

What kind of humanist are you? Click here to find out.

memes

2005-09-22T17:34:00.000+01:00

I like memes

free association seems pointless

and so does this one - Oneword

but I like them both....

...find more memes here

free association 3

2005-09-22T17:25:00.000+01:00

Less filling:: pie
Glue:: sticky
Surprise me:: flowers
Model:: anorexia
Fee:: waive
Microphone:: testing
Choices:: voices
To the bone:: cut
Run!:: home
Appeal:: TV

cultural creative

2005-09-22T15:01:00.000+01:00

is apparently what I am - according to the quiz asking "What is your world view?"
I actually did not understand some of the statements I had to respond to... but here is my score anyway.

You scored as Cultural Creative. Cultural Creatives are probably the newest group to enter this realm. You are a modern thinker who tends to shy away from organized religion but still feels as if there is something greater than ourselves. You are very spiritual, even if you are not religious. Life has a meaning outside of the rational.

Cultural Creative

88%

Postmodernist

88%

Materialist

63%

Existentialist

50%

Idealist

38%

Modernist

31%

Romanticist

31%

Fundamentalist

25%

What is Your World View? (updated)
created with QuizFarm.com

I answered yes too all the questions on the US website Cultural Creatives questionnaire.

That worried me as I don't like to think I completely conform to something I've never heard of before! I serached for a UK link and found Ethical Matters description......and when I found it - I read this -

"right now you are quite likely sighing 'oh, no not another bloody stereotype' this may be because cultural creatives hate to be put in to boxes. While wanting to refrain from doing this there are some fascinating facts that we feel duty bound to tell you about."

We disagree with some of what Mr. Ray is saying as we find people with the interests proported to be of cultural creatives are often politically active - this political with the small p - concerned with their community, with environmental destruction, with globalisation - what cultural creatives are not are new age hippies. Although they cannot be discerned from any particular demographic group - Cultural Creatives come from all walks of life from accountants to acupuncturists, supermarket buyers to computer consultants and lawyers and doctors to midwives and gardeners - the overriding factor is that they tend to be involved in, or care intensely, about environmentalism, globalisation, peace, social justice, holistic health, civil rights and new spirituality. Many cultural creatives have dabbled in or are committed to self-development and growth; many would like nothing else but to leave the rat race to lead a more sustainable life. While they may not be lucky enough to do this they want to make difference in what they do right now.

Cultural Creatives are:
Interested in Ecological Sustainability Concerned with global ecology
Concerned with Women's Issues
Interested in or use alternative health care
Have a social conscience Are interested in a spiritual dimension
Are often information junkies - prefer print and radio to television
Ethical and careful consumers making value based purchases.

Obviously these are sweeping generalisations, however what distinguishes us nice Cultural Creative types are the following values and tendencies. Cultural Creatives want to invest ethically, they work hard to make their lives less dependent on unsustainable and unethical systems - to simplify their lives. They are often unhappy with the party political systems seeing flaws in both the left and the right while being politically active. Surprisingly, given their informed worldview they are often optimistic about the future while distrustful of the media. They often have finances and spending under control and are not concerned about overspending, disdaining advertising and can be fanatical recyclers. They tend to eat organic foods and use alternative medicine. Ultimately Cultural Creatives want to be involved in creating a new and better way of life for themselves, their dear ones and the world and at the same time work on self knowledge and increasing wisdom. "

So that's me labelled well and truly.....

I like the sound of it anyway so that's a good start!

I wonder how I got the 25% fundamentalist score - scary!!

identity and conformism

2005-09-21T17:23:00.000+01:00

I have read in the grauniad that a government advisor thinks that mental distress is more of a social problem than poverty or unemployment - seems odd he doesn't link them together! And of course it's a problem when the inequalities are so great. And when the prejudice against mental illness is so dramatic. We are taught to fear it and that means we behave in ways that inhibit our self-expression. We conform. And that makes us ill. We are all mad, it's when we keep our personality constrained and our distress withheld that we get ill. Seems so obvious to me.

My identity is something I have been thinking about a lot in recent days - especially since seeing Frida Kahlo's work and the sculpture of Alison Lapper. It seems necessary to keep myself safe, that I have at least 2 main identities. One at work and one at home/ with friends. There are many things I would like to say and do at work that I believe would alienate me from the organisation and most (not all) of my colleagues. Not least I feel compelled to pretend I am well when I am not.

I realised yesterday that I need to find a job that matches my values more closely. I feel very constrained in the workplace currently. Mostly that is due to organisational culture. So - I'm looking for work in the voluntary sector again I think - to do with rights, inclusion, anti-poverty, anti-discrimination....... let me know if you see anything......

little compulsions

2005-09-21T14:57:00.000+01:00

Following on from the wonderful little.red.boat telling us all about her cute weird behaviour and worrying about people thinking she is scary - here are my little compulsions....

toilet rolls must be hung so the loose end is at the front - I sometimes change other people's round...

MUGS - interested that so many other people worry about mugs and glasses and plates and bowls and cutlery too - as soon as I open the cupboard door and discover someone else has put the clean crocks away WRONG I have to sort them out so they are RIGHT (i.e. put away my way).

Dishwasher or sink - wherever the dirty things are they have to be stacked properly - in the dishwasher this is about fitting the maximum number of items in. And yes they have to be washed in the right order if washed by hand - cleanest things (i.e. glasses) first, dirtiest things (i.e. pans) last.

I always leave my desk at work very neat and tidy at the end of the day/ if I go out. This means things in neat piles according to what day is needs to be done on - filed in trays, nothing on the main desk apart from PC, keyboard, mouse mat, drinks mat, phone message book, phone, pen tidy, notepaper and stapler.

I had my own room at home - a condition of moving in together - but it is now a shared room - but still when I go in there things have to be just so.....

CDs/DVDs must be in the case they came with!!! Preferably in genre order all those by the same artist together. CDs were filed in genre and then alpabetically within genre but most are now just A-Z as the genres are blurry. Folk is still all in it's own little corner - British A-Z and US A-Z.

Books - A-Z of course if fiction. Or by genre....

Chairs must be tucked under the dining table when not in use.

Table mats must be stacked - in the right order - when not in use.

Coathangers must all face the same way when the clothes are hung up. Spare coathangers should sorted into separate bags according to category (and metal hangers- the horrible bendy wiry smelly ones should be in hell where they belong!).

Window key has to be in the front right hand corner of the windowsill so I know where it is when I want it.

I have to have a dessert spoon to eat my yoghurt/ pudding with. T has to have a teaspoon...weird.

Keys are kept in the drawer not on the side - how many times do I have to tell you!

and finally for now - I am always very disturbed by having unpaired socks - I have been known to search the house over and over to find the missing sock and some socks are still missing and I miss them a lot and will celebrate should they ever return........

Just to note - as a child my mother used to say I had St Vita's dance as I used to have to take an even number of steps if I walked anywhere which led to me doing a little extra step on the spot a lot. Don't do that anymore.

I am certain that we all have things we do. We just pretend we don't.

stunning art

2005-09-18T20:33:00.000+01:00

Frida Kahlo was mind-boggling - there were so many pictures and so much information about them - almost too much to take in and I am knackered. I had no trouble relating to the pictures - they were so vibrant. Some were very small and it was very busy so getting close enough was difficult sometimes.

She painted a lot of still lives and portraits of other people - one in particular that interested me was of a horticulturalist like a tree growing out of a decaying corpse. The many themes expressing duality were expressed in most of her paintings - life and death, dark and light, sun and moon. Fertility was significant for her too and paintings explicity depicting her miscarriage are moving in their honesty.

There were many books and postcards on offer in the Tate Modern shop - some were of incredibly beautiful photographic portraits of Frida brilliantly executed. Self-portraits in paint and photos by others were very important to Frida. I talked a lot with the friend I went with about identity and how we present ourselves to the world compared to how we wish to be seen and how others see us.
After visting the Kahlo exhibition we went to see the wonderful sculpture of Alison Lapper pregnant, on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square. It was stunning and contrasted wonderfully well with the phallic Nelson's Column. The three "great men" would be nothing without their mothers after all.

Alison has written an autobiography part of which was in the Observer a few weeks ago - it is very disturbing. I also find it distrubing that Alison struggles to sell her own work as an artist - she was interviewed on TV in relation to the fourth plinth statue. Marc Quinn who designed the sculpture is famous and earning large amounts from his art - which includes Alison as one of his subjects. Alison's work was described as disgusting /ugly, as was her sculpture of her by Brian Sewell amongst others.

Yesterday I read an Independent article by Deborah Orr on the train on my way back from London. She challenges us to celebrate giving birth to children with impairments as we celebrate the sculpture's beauty.

So how do we judge beauty then? Does it have to be classical (as the statue clearly is - it's like the Venus de Milo)? How do we get ourselves to see difference as beautiful? Self-portraits were used by Frida and are also used by Alison to explore their own ideas of beauty and identity - and these can be shared by us - they certainly made me thing about my own views of myself and how I see others.

so many things to post about.....

2005-09-16T23:24:00.000+01:00

and so little time...

the first thing I will tell you about is a tree.

I was driving to work and heard a radio interview with a forensic archaeologist. She worked in, amongst other places, Iraq and Rwanda - studying sites of atrocities, mass burials etc.

In Rwanda, she went into a Church. She was shown a huge long coffin set into the ground.

She asked why it was so long.

There was a woman, raped using a tree. The perpetrators forced the tree so far into her, went right through her. She was buried with the tree inside her.

I could not get the image this telling created from my mind.

How big was the tree? How long did she live for? How could other human beings do this to her? And why do we not have more information about this horrendous war in the mainstream media?

I am determined to make time to find out more about the Rwanda genocide and the civil war. If anyone can suggest a good source please advise me..........

This made me think also about the power of the spoken word over the visual image. I realise I have become somewhat insensitive to colour TV news/ programmes - not entirely - I often get choked up at some of the things I see. But this personal direct telling of this story was much more powerful. Rather than an immediate shock, the image built up slowly and engaged me, before I could avoid it. Talking about this with a good friend, we though maybe this was because as human animals, the human voice is one of the first things we hear/ sense. So perhaps it is a more effective communication tool than 2D moving images.

I am going to see the Frida Kahlo exhibition at the Tate Modern tomorrow and am very aware of these ideas now. I wonder how it will affect my response to the paintings?

unequal pay...

2005-09-09T21:25:00.000+01:00

in a big way...

if there was only one way to demonstrate that the oppression of women is still alive and well this is it...

According to the Guardian - thirty years after equal pay legislation was introduced, women still earn almost a fifth (18%) less than their male counterparts. This gap widens to 40% for part-time workers. Even recent women graduates, after five years in employment, earn 15% less than men who have the same qualifications.

Lady Prosser, the chair of the Work and Women Commission, set up last summer, will outline the progress made to date next week.

Unions are hoping for a "gender equality duty" imposed on employers, mandatory pay audits to identify disparities and time off for union equality officers in the workplace.

Prosser blames three factors sustaining the gender pay gap: "part-time working, occupational segregation and women's labour market issues, such as childcare, which act as barriers to women's chances of entering and progressing in the workplace."

This makes great sense in the wider context of the inequalities (outlined this week's in the government's follow up to the Black Report of 1980). As Alex Scott-Samuel says - "There has been a lot of rhetoric [on health inequalities], especially since Labour first came in, but we now see that these are not working. Material factors still underlie inequality ... income inequalities are still at the same level as in the 1980s."

Prosser believes "the solutions lay in longer-term changes, such as ending the job segregation that sees women tied to traditionally low paid jobs".

I agree with Lady Prossers view of the three main causes, and that the solution needs to be wider than legal changes. The social divide is as great as ever. There has to be a total culture shift and that includes our own attitudes as women to our value. Many of us have internalised the oppression so that we believe that men should earn more as the "breadwinners" and we don't speak up enough.

I know that voluntary agreements to equalise pay don't work. I will be disappointed if none of the unions expectations are met.

a day of peace

2005-09-02T20:52:00.000+01:00

The 21st September is United Nations International Day of Peace - a day of global ceasefire and non-violence, now fixed in the calendar as 21 September annually.

"All sectors of society are being asked to honour and celebrate the Day on the 21 September. The vision of the Day extends far beyond the cessation of violent conflict and represents an opportunity for individuals to join in a moment of global unity."

There is a huge list of suggestions as to what you can do yourself as action for peace on the day - you can make a badge and wear it, make up with someone you've fallen out with, hold a vigil.........

seems like a great idea to me - not sure what I'll do, but I'll do something.

standing? gadgets? revolution?

2005-08-30T23:25:00.000+01:00

I'm back!
I'm busy tonight.
Just read Urban Chick's post on women's toilets.
Reminded me that it's a favourite rant of mine.
But what's to be done about the endless queuing?

1 - We could lobby for more toilets for women in public places e.g. theatres, towns, festivals etc. -especially the places where we pay - e.g taxes pay for public toilets, ticket sales pay for theatre toilets.

BUT - more toilets = more space needed for building, more water etc. - bad for the environment unless the toilets use grey water.

2 - We could learn to pee standing - lots of advice here on Restrooms and MyVag. There are some people advocating provision of female urinals .... not a bad idea - except could be a problem if you're wearing trousers...the She-inal looks possible though not sure about the hose - doesn't sound clean.

3 - Problems with technique can be reduced by using gadgets. All of this assumes that it's reasonable to expect us females to learn a new way of peeing. Many men in the world sit to pee so why shouldn't we?

What a dilemma.. in the meantime I'll just stamp and shout when I'm out and about and have to QUEUE!!!

revolution?

2005-08-30T21:27:00.000+01:00

You are having an experience that involves being ignored or hearing the same excuses over again - and it's related to issues of equality, rights, oppression etc.

What do you do?

Carry on as usual?
"Hijack" the situation by dominating the conversation with some statements about oppression, making your point and stating that it is unacceptable?
Withdraw your labour, saying that you will not engage until you see evidence of committment to positive action?

Working to make changes on a large scale in the world - what works? Gradual slow change? High impact revolutionary change?

If we gently challenge, over time people suffer anyway - e.g. poverty/ mental illness/ discrimination can entail a long slow painful death/ low quality of life.

If we revolt - this can involve high numbers of victims in the short term.

Which is best?

I tend to vote for revolution.

But then - I also think that staying internally personally committed to values and beliefs and acting accordingly day-in, day-out - whilst it's absolutely draining - if we act together in solidarity, despite not seeing evidence of the impact we have, we know that we are winning. If we stop, we have lost and those in power have won.

Take the anti-Iraq-war protests in the UK. Tony Blair appeared to ignore them, despite the huge numbers of people who took part. So what do we do - stop using our vote in the belief that it's pointless giving our views? Then oppression really has won. Whoever then gets into power is there through apathy. Democracy may be flawed - what isn't. If we don't sign up to the democratic process - we have to identify an alternative that is better.

I can see major faults in what I am saying even as I type - it's such a circular debate..... I know that if we vote against the current power, then the opposition that we don't want to have in power may get in by default.

Any suggestions?

water and song

2005-08-30T21:23:00.000+01:00

"If I were to construct a religion, I should make use of water".
That's what Philip Larkin said.
Me and a close friend were talking last week and we also thought that water would be important in devising a new religion - we don't want a deity, an icon, a guru - we would worship water with, amongst other things our voices.

Maybe I'll write a song.....

free association 3

2005-08-28T20:15:00.000+01:00

I find this more difficult each time. The TV is on and that is a distraction, but here it is anyway...

Girlfriends:: love
Here to stay:: earth
Call me:: shortly
Frustrated:: sex
Public school:: yuppie
Glitch:: computer
Cheese:: chives
Director:: theatre
Pivotal:: image
Exclusive:: design

parents with learning disabilities

2005-08-25T12:00:00.000+01:00

Last week there was a lot in the news about the high numbers of parents with learning disabilities that have their children taken away from them. The guardian covered a particular story where a couple had their 2 children taken away by Essex social services.

There is a good article on Woman's Hour that you can listen to. It is an attempt to balance the views. There are those who think that we are too liberal if we say that it is everyone's right to be able to choose to parent and to have the support we need in that parenting. They are compared to those who think we do not treat people with learning disabilities fairly and that children and removed from their parents too readily.

It seems obvious to me that we are an intolerant society and even if we only consider the economics of the issue - it is far better to keep a child with it's parents and support the family as much as needed, than to split families up just because of the parents intellectual capacity. There is a big difference between parents who intentionally abuse or neglect their children and those who lack informationk, guidance and support to care safely. It is easy to provide people with support and appropriate guidance.....

best of the best...

2005-08-25T11:29:00.000+01:00

I put some comments on the BBC woman's hour site about the Best of the Best Orange Prize winning novels over the last ten years that I have read. You can listen to the debate about having a prize for women only on the woman's hour site.

I have read 5 of the 10 -
Larry's Party - Carol Shields
A Crime in the Neighbourhood - Suzanne Berne
The Idea of Perfection - Kate Grenville
Property - Valerie Martin
Small Island - Andrea Levy
and found it hard to decide which one was my favourite.

I got an email asking me if I would be willing to be recorded talking about the novel I like best.
I chose one and have just been recorded by a really friendly helpful woman named Corinna who put me at ease. My ramblings will be used on woman's hour next week to trail the vote that is coming up in late September - so go onto the website to read about the 10 novels and vote for your favourite! The winner will be announced on the 3rd October.

And listen out for the trails - you might hear me......

free association 2

2005-08-21T16:55:00.000+01:00

This week's offering from Luna Nina with my responses.....

Fan:: belt
Scum:: of the earth
Lily:: of the valley
Humid:: greenhouse
Ghetto:: blaster (that shows my age!)
Remember me?:: who?
Polished:: surface
Compose:: music
Squish:: berry
Future:: perfect

If you want a go - you can copy the code from Luna Nina

I am quite dozy with sleepiness as I do this - so I am confident that these are my immediate responses.

Not sure what they say about me.......

free association 1

2005-08-19T17:18:00.000+01:00

Thanks to Luna Nina for this one.

Each week she posts ten words to which you can respond to with the first thing that comes to mind. "Rules are, there are no rules." There are no right or wrong answers. Don't limit yourself to one word responses; just say everything that pops into your head.

This is my first go -

Idiot:: guide
Rocket:: power
Liability:: judgement
Harmless:: creatures
Stringy:: beans
Theater:: tickets
Gwyneth:: Paltrow
Use it or lose it:: brain
Sonic:: boom
Pucker:: lips

what is it?

2005-08-19T15:25:00.000+01:00

Wikipedia says
"Feminism is a diverse collection of social theories, political movements, and moral philosophies, largely motivated by or concerning the experiences of women, especially in terms of their social, political, and economic situation. As a social movement, feminism largely focuses on limiting or eradicating gender inequality and promoting women's rights, interests, and issues in society.
Within academia, some feminists focus on documenting gender inequality and changes in the social position and representation of women. Others argue that gender, and even sex, are social constructs, and research the construction of gender and sexuality, and develop alternate models for studying social relations."

Germaine Greer believes that women fighting for equality is a poor aim - why want to be equal to men - their position in society is not so desirable in a world full of war, poverty and abuse. Greer's aim is for a new world order - freedom for all regardless of gender. She says "Women's liberation, if it abolishes the patriarchal family, will abolish a necessary substructure of the authoritarian state, and once that withers away Marx will have come true willy-nilly, so let's get on with it."

So - feminism could be the big challenge to capitalism - thinking back to the post I did on the Beauty Myth on the 8th August - it seems obvious that if we spend less time investing energy in making our appearance conform to the stereotypes, add to that time saved by not conforming in other ways - we have more time to get together with other women - solidarity is essential.

froom is a way for us to get together online if not in person. I intend to blog on froomblog about this same topic.

Revolution can only be achieved by working together.

BUD

2005-08-15T20:21:00.000+01:00

I have decided that from now on I will have BUDs - Bleeding Uterus Days - whenever I have a period. I got the idea from this amazing website MUM - the Museum of Menstruation. There is a brilliant and funny long list of words and expressions used to describe periods...and that's where I got BUD from - well I found BUS (bleeding uterus syndrome).

I found MUM through visiting Mooncups website. Both Urban Chick and Your Emotional Neuroses Only Serve To Amuse use cups/ keepers to catch their uterus blood. I am going to look into mooncups for myself - I have recently managed to buy Natracare pads - hard to get hold of in the town I live in. Anyway, reading their posts reminded me of conversations I have had with friends about the term "sanitary protection" to mean products for catching blood - as if women's uterus blood is unsanitary and people have to be protected from it? So what do you call pads/ tampons?

froomin'

2005-08-10T12:44:00.000+01:00

I have been invited to contribute to froom - feminist women on the web. It is a new on-line women's network.

I am also a member of the shared blog - froomblog - which I have put my first post on already. I am not sure what to write about next.

The current topic on froom is women who inspire us.... there are so many - writers such as Germaine Greer, Naomi Wolf, Virginia Woolf, Marge Piercy, Marilyn French, Margaret Atwood.....and friends who are strong and supportive as well as open, vulnerable and whom I can support in my turn....there names are many.

I have got some ideas about other issues to write about - I think I will post something about female gender specific titles - e.g. Ms v Mr, Lady v Lord....

This is a great page to read about good practice in use of personal pro-nouns and other forms of language that are gender specific. Found it from a google search.

The Beauty Myth

2005-08-08T20:10:00.000+01:00

I am reading the Beauty Myth.

naomi wolf
It is hard going. This is the second time I have tried to read it. I keep getting stuck in the 2nd chapter - it's so dense and full of facts that are very depressing. I find it fairly overwhelming, but really need to read it.

The first chapter has some significant figures and Naomi Wolf's turn of phrase is so clear in explaining how the goalposts keep moving for women.

"The closer women come to power, the more physical self-consciousness and sacrifice are asked of them. "Beauty" becomes the condition for a woman to take the next step."

"Beauty" is a characteristic that despite being very subjective, women are measured against. In the workplace, the law says that some jobs require a person employed to be attractive- this used only to apply to jobs like glamour model, but now Wolf demonstrates by quoting actual employment law cases, is applied to all jobs.

"Since 1971, the law has recognized that a standard of perfection against which a woman's body is to be judged may exist in the workplace, and if she falls short of it she can be fired. A "standard of perfection" for the male body has never been legally determined. While defined as materially existing, the female standard itself has never been defined. A woman can be fired for not looking right, but looking right remains open to interpretatation." Moreover - "working women do not have access to legal advice when they get dressed in the morning...confronting constantly the dualistic experience of being "feminine" and "businesslike" at the same time, while they do not perceive men experiencing the same contradiction."

So - do we dress to look smart and plain, or attractive and feminine?
"dressing for business success and dressing to be sexually appealing are practically mutually exclusive because a woman's perceived sexuality can "blot out" all other characteristics...Since women's working clothes - high heels, stocking, make-up, jewellery, not to mention hair, breasts, leg and hips - have already been appropriated as pornographic accessories, a judge can look at any younger woman and believe he is seeing a harrassable trollop, just as he can look at any older woman and believe he is seeing a dismissable hag." It doesn't matter which we do - it will be wrong.

Would wearing a uniform sort the problem out? Wolf thinks not - "Women dare not yet relinquish the "advantage" this inequality in dress bestows. People put on uniforms voluntarily only when they have faith in the fair ewards of the system. They will understandably be unwilling to give up the protection of their "beauty" until they can be sure the reward system is in good working order."

I heard today on Radio 4 "Woman's Hour" that the average make-up wearing woman consumes four and half kilos of lipstick in her lifetime, and exposes herself to 200 synthetic chemicals before breakfast. It asked the question - why do women continue to do this and other things (like wearing high heels) which may harm their health? Do women control, or are we controlled by, our beauty practices?

We carry on making ourselves conform to the beauty norms, the demands of which cost us a larger and larger percentage of our income, and hope that we are rewarded accordingly.

Can you imagine what we would achieve if we did not spend hours each week buying clothes and cosmetics, applying cosmetics, removing body hair, styling our head hair, and more to the point thinking about all of this? We would be high-flyers indeed! Society has to put all these hurdles in our way, as despite them, we still achieve great things.... If we were paid according to our actual worth rather than according to what we are led to believe we are worth, the economic system would collapse. The status quo has to be upheld for this reason alone.

pffa

2005-07-28T19:14:00.000+01:00

Anyone into poetry - the Poetry Free For All is a great place to read and publish your own writings - either in a Forum for criticism, or in the Pink Palace of Poetitude if you just want to publish and not get comments.

You have to comment to at least three other people's poetry before you can publish and you can only publish one poem per day - fair enough.

Thanks to mattdalby for the link to pffa. Matt's blog is well worth a look.

lad's mags

2005-07-28T13:08:00.000+01:00

I am not strictly anti-porn - we humans have always pictorally represented sex and made pictures that titillate and arouse.

I am not into censorship either.

But I do think that we need to be responsible and recognise what is suitable for adults and not children. We should also represent things that are overtly sexual, as such - honestly. Especially when they are strongly reinforcing gender stereotypes in a way that degrades women.

Object have a campaign to encourage retailers to either remove lad's mags from sale or place them on the top shelf only. Having read their research the average lad's mag has more images of naked women in sexual poses with comments about "large tits!" and sex ads than Playboy which is still considered to be soft porn.

The Sport has more breasts and sex ads than any of the mags is on sale as a newspaper! 92
% of the content is sexual - including adverts about pictures of teenagers.

They are asking people to write to their local shop - the Co-op despite it's ethical policy is still not putting the mags on the top shelf. Their website has a standard letter you can use.

Alison Lapper

2005-07-28T11:06:00.000+01:00

I watched a programme on TV a couple of weeks ago about an amazing woman - Alison Lapper. She is an artist and campaigner for civil rights for disabled people. She is a single parent. And she is the model for the fourth plinth - the empty plinth in Trafalgar Square - the statue has been designed by Marc Quinn.

This statue is so beautiful - I am so impressed that it was the chosen design for such a prominent site in London - maybe things are changing ........

Alison Lapper - fourth plinth