"Abandon the scripts you hear and ask yourself, “What kind of life do I want to live?” That is what constitutes liberation — defining your life for yourself".
- Beverly Guy-Sheftall (in her interview at TheRoot ).
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Thursday, November 11, 2010
pure. hilarity
So I just peed my pants.
No, I don't have bladder issues! I just read this piece written by a woman named Wendy Molyneux in response to an article on a website that asked for women to write more comedy pieces.
Actually...the best thing I have ever read.
Why IS it that people think women are not funny?! It boggles my mind because A) I think I am fricken hilarious, B) I know many MANY hilarious ladies, C) Every time any group of ladies gets together they spend most of the time laughing and D) WHAT THE FUCK
Yes there are indeed female comedians but...now that I think about it...most of them are labelled as lesbians, feminists, butch dykes, or unattractive. And most of their material revolves around giving birth, tampons and periods, finding a husband, and the like. I was watching the comedy network a couple of months ago and they were having some sort of contest or whatever and there was only one female comedian to take the stage. I was excited to watch her schtick and was secretly chanting in my head: "Don't do it. Don't talk about your period or the last blind date you had." She started out great! She wasn't talking about womanly issues or anything. But slowly, veeeery slowly....that is where her routine headed. I don't know why but I was so disappointed. While I get that you have a vagina and that you can very much relate to female issues because you have a vagina...why does that always have to be at the centre of a female comedians' stand-up routine? Why can't she talk about sports without mentioning that guys think she's a lesbian because she loves football or about working in a male-dominated workplace but not having to flirt her way to the top? WHY? These issues aren't funny...they are just giving men more reasons to not take us seriously and to laugh us off.
.....just like how a lot of ethnic or "non white" comedians focus on race and make fun of themselves or their culture. Or "fat" comedians only make fun of their weight - which in turn makes these issues into a light-hearted joke.
I totally get that whole "If you can't laugh at yourself..." shit but I mean....is it doing more bad than good?
And for fuck's sake - WOMEN CAN BE FUNNY. Wendy does an amazing job at blatantly pointing out all of the female stereotypes that we face all the freakin time. She is using what she knows from her experience of being a woman but not in a way that will make men turn around and laugh in our faces. She makes them feel like the joke.
P.S my favourite parts included:
"My cats love to be symbols of my loneliness. Sometimes, I have to be like, “Stop signifying so loudly guys, I’m watching Grey’s Anatomy!”"
"But I guess my humor deficiency is one of those womanly crosses I have to bear, along with P.M.S., making seventy cents on the dollar, and paying for my own rape kit. You know what they say though, you can’t make the willing pay for their own rape kits! I think they say that. Probably somebody said that. God knows I didn’t say it myself! I only say things like: “What are numbers?”"
and
Hi.Lar.Ious.
No, I don't have bladder issues! I just read this piece written by a woman named Wendy Molyneux in response to an article on a website that asked for women to write more comedy pieces.
Actually...the best thing I have ever read.
Why IS it that people think women are not funny?! It boggles my mind because A) I think I am fricken hilarious, B) I know many MANY hilarious ladies, C) Every time any group of ladies gets together they spend most of the time laughing and D) WHAT THE FUCK
Yes there are indeed female comedians but...now that I think about it...most of them are labelled as lesbians, feminists, butch dykes, or unattractive. And most of their material revolves around giving birth, tampons and periods, finding a husband, and the like. I was watching the comedy network a couple of months ago and they were having some sort of contest or whatever and there was only one female comedian to take the stage. I was excited to watch her schtick and was secretly chanting in my head: "Don't do it. Don't talk about your period or the last blind date you had." She started out great! She wasn't talking about womanly issues or anything. But slowly, veeeery slowly....that is where her routine headed. I don't know why but I was so disappointed. While I get that you have a vagina and that you can very much relate to female issues because you have a vagina...why does that always have to be at the centre of a female comedians' stand-up routine? Why can't she talk about sports without mentioning that guys think she's a lesbian because she loves football or about working in a male-dominated workplace but not having to flirt her way to the top? WHY? These issues aren't funny...they are just giving men more reasons to not take us seriously and to laugh us off.
.....just like how a lot of ethnic or "non white" comedians focus on race and make fun of themselves or their culture. Or "fat" comedians only make fun of their weight - which in turn makes these issues into a light-hearted joke.
I totally get that whole "If you can't laugh at yourself..." shit but I mean....is it doing more bad than good?
And for fuck's sake - WOMEN CAN BE FUNNY. Wendy does an amazing job at blatantly pointing out all of the female stereotypes that we face all the freakin time. She is using what she knows from her experience of being a woman but not in a way that will make men turn around and laugh in our faces. She makes them feel like the joke.
P.S my favourite parts included:
"My cats love to be symbols of my loneliness. Sometimes, I have to be like, “Stop signifying so loudly guys, I’m watching Grey’s Anatomy!”"
"But I guess my humor deficiency is one of those womanly crosses I have to bear, along with P.M.S., making seventy cents on the dollar, and paying for my own rape kit. You know what they say though, you can’t make the willing pay for their own rape kits! I think they say that. Probably somebody said that. God knows I didn’t say it myself! I only say things like: “What are numbers?”"
and
"I’ve totally run out of time, and now instead of writing a comedy piece, I have to go report to my regular day job knitting tampon cozies and being best friends with everybody."
Hi.Lar.Ious.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
I'm a Feminist BLANK
I just read a really cool/interesting post on Feministing.
I've heard of a lot of people who are afraid of the term "feminist" and who hesitate to label themselves as such because, in a non-feminist society, it has such negative connotations and stereotypes. These literally scare people out of being able to identify with the term.
While I am not one of those individuals (yeah, I call myself a feminist - what the fuck is it to you?!), I do think that corroborating it with another word that you use to describe yourself definitely could take some of the pressure off and makes it a little easier to tell the world who you are. I think this will allow people to see that just because one chooses to call themselves feminist, or relate to feminist views, doesn't mean they are extremists or that they have a singular identity. We are still people who have hobbies, jobs, and lifestyles just like everyone else.
So, I will take a page out of Lori's book and describe myself as such:
I am a feminist thinker.
I am a feminist theatre artist.
I am a feminist security guard! (Ha ha)
I am a feminist blogger.
I am a feminist movie-goer.
I am a feminist reader.
I am a feminist daughter, sister, and friend.
I am a feminist dater. (It's difficult!)
I must say that, in my personal opinion, someone who identifies with feminism or feminist opinions really should be bringing that into everything they do. It doesn't really make sense to pick and choose different situations or encounters to bust it out. You should be looking at the world through that lens all the time, where ever you are or whatever you are doing.
...Right?
I've heard of a lot of people who are afraid of the term "feminist" and who hesitate to label themselves as such because, in a non-feminist society, it has such negative connotations and stereotypes. These literally scare people out of being able to identify with the term.
While I am not one of those individuals (yeah, I call myself a feminist - what the fuck is it to you?!), I do think that corroborating it with another word that you use to describe yourself definitely could take some of the pressure off and makes it a little easier to tell the world who you are. I think this will allow people to see that just because one chooses to call themselves feminist, or relate to feminist views, doesn't mean they are extremists or that they have a singular identity. We are still people who have hobbies, jobs, and lifestyles just like everyone else.
So, I will take a page out of Lori's book and describe myself as such:
I am a feminist thinker.
I am a feminist theatre artist.
I am a feminist security guard! (Ha ha)
I am a feminist blogger.
I am a feminist movie-goer.
I am a feminist reader.
I am a feminist daughter, sister, and friend.
I am a feminist dater. (It's difficult!)
I must say that, in my personal opinion, someone who identifies with feminism or feminist opinions really should be bringing that into everything they do. It doesn't really make sense to pick and choose different situations or encounters to bust it out. You should be looking at the world through that lens all the time, where ever you are or whatever you are doing.
...Right?
I just finished reading Gail Dines' Pornland and it is truly one of the best books I have ever read.
There were times when her vivid details would force me to put it down for a moment or two but it was still awesome and informative. She says things that I have always felt but could never put into words.
Read it, dammit!
Especially all the guys out there. Guys who watch porn and have no idea of its effects, not only on women, but on themselves.
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