Women's Firsts

1. In Saudi Arabia in 2008, the first women only university was opened.

2. In the year 2000, Ingrid Daubechies is the first woman to win the National Academy of Sciences Medal in Mathematics.

3. 2010, Giorgia Boscolo is the first official woman gondolier in Venice.

4. Astronaut Dr. Peggy Whitson became the commander of the International Space Station in 2007.

5.Senator Hillary Clinton won the New Hampshire presidential primary and made history by becoming the first woman to do so.

6. Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin became the first female vice presidential candidate on the Republican ticket.

7. In 2007, Nancy Pelosi becomes the first woman Speaker of the House of Representatives.

8. Kathryn Bigelow wins the Best Director Oscar in March 2010 becoming the first woman ever to win the award.

9. 2006, Effa Manley becomes the first woman elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

10. November 1, 2010 Dilma Rousseff is elected Brazil's first woman leader.

As long as women are still accomplishing things for the "first" time then women are still not equal to men.

Feminism in the Kitchen

I love the Food Network just as much as the next girl and enjoy experimenting in the kitchen without all of that feminine fuss that is associated with being the perfect hostess and housewife. As much as I enjoy the women chefs on the Food Network I must admit that they seem to all be popped out of the same "Susie Homemaker" mold. But I recently came across a female chef with an in your face personality and just as much creativity with food as any other cook out there.
I accidentally found the show "Bitchin' Kitchen" on the Cooking Channel which airs on Wendesdays at 10:30pm and I can not tell you how refreshing it is to watch a cooking show with a woman chef who does not embrace the stereoptypical female house wife role.
Nadia G is the show's host and she is loud, opinionated,funny,and of course "bitchin.'" Her humour and sarcasm make the show more like a comedy sketch and you learn how to make a few awesome dishes as an added bonus.
You might find Nadia a bit intense or annoying but I think that is part of her charm.
The show is unconvential and features episodes that focus on themes like break up foods, and meals to make when you are angry. Her kitchen set is a sight in itself not to mention her rockin' fashion sense.
I can't help but love that she is a loud mouth italian woman like myself who likes to cook some tradition italian meals with a little twist,

Check out my new favorite chef, Nadia G on the Cooking Channel and let me know what you think!

Witchy Woman

Since Halloween in upon us I thought it would only be necessary to discuss witches, a powerful representation of women. The connotation of the word "witch" can divert into more categories, like an intricate spider's web.
Perhaps the reason I have always loved witches since I was a girl is due to The Wizard of OZ. I never had an affiliation with Glinda or Dorothy; they were both so quiet, and compliant and they never stood out to me. The Wicked Witch on the other hand, she had power; she worked alone (okay, she had the flying monkeys to help) but she went after what she wanted and she put her plans into motion. Granted, she didn't use her power for "good" but unlike Dorothy she was not looking for a man to come and save her i.e. the wizard. The Wicked Witch was never frightened to walk the streets alone, never worried she wouldn't find "prince charming," didn't need anyone to save her. She was completely unlike any of the female characters directed at young girls and I loved her!
Hence began my obsession with witches and perhaps why Halloween is my favorite time of the year. As I got older and began to learn about witches and how their power has marred history forever it is no wonder that these women were feared for the intellect and power they possessed. The fear of powerful women caused the deaths of hundreds of innocent people in Europe and the U.S.
Can you believe that the thought of women being able to cast spells and take control of their own lives scared the shit out of men to that extent??!! If that doesn't display the power women have then I don't know what does!
So if you are not normally a strong and confident woman perhaps you can tap into your inner witch this sunday and do something to exercise some power, even if it's teaching your dog a new trick. (And no, I wasn't referring to your boyfriend).

Happy Halloween!

Cool your JETS

The recent attack on Mexican sports reporter Ines Sainz has brought back to date a very age old idea: that women "ask" for certain negative attention from males based on how they dress.

For some reason, I was under the impression that that school of thought had been dying out; but apparently, I am wrong. Men, especially sports players, are exempt from being held accountable for their own behaviors and actions. Men are portrayed as uncontrollable sex crazed animals and we as women have to walk on egg shells in order not to risk provoking the sex hungry beasts. Instead of portraying men as human beings who have a conscience and a knowledge of acceptable and unacceptable behavior, we point fingers at the females victims.

Sainz has awoken the many terrible aspects that the whore/virgin dichotomy proposes. The "whore" is a "bad" woman and therefore, justifiably subjected to all types of lude male behavior such as harrassment, groping, rape, etc. Had Sainz entered that locker room in a long skirt and turtle neck sweater and possibly been less physically attractive we would know nothing about her. In all honesty, is she dressed any less provocative than the any of the JETS cheerleaders? What is the difference? The difference is sometimes men are intimidated by an attractive woman with power and use lude sexual behavior as a way to intimidate and patronize her in order to feel a sense of power within themselves. And when we as women say that women like Ines Sainz's code of dress gave men the right to condescend her, we are giving men like the Jets players right to treat us all this way.

But what is it about women who are comfortable with their sexuality that scares men and brings out the worst in their behavior? What is it about them that makes men AND women focus the blame entirely on women and not on men? Have we not advanced that much as a species that we still believe men suffer from some primate-like inclination to act like animals? I like to think that we know better and we know that, man or woman, we are human beings with the ability to rationalize better conduct towards the opposite sex.

With this consciousness we know that no one "asks" for negative attention in the same way no one conducts themselves to attract muggers or bullies. The rationalization of an idea like this can not exist; it's impossible. In 2010 I am sorry I even had to hear a phrase of that nature, coming out of the mouths of female news reporters no less!

If you still go around believing that certain girls and women "ask" to be harrassed or raped and somehow deserve to be treated brutally because of how they dress then I am sorry but I have to honestly question your mental capacity to rationalize.

Both women and men need to put an end to this type of mentality so we do not teach our sons that that type of behavior will be excused or teach our daughters that harrassment or rape is something they brought upon themselves.

Feminism at the Brooklyn Book Festival

Feminism was definately not dead in brooklyn today. The Brooklyn Book Festival was rampant with many feminist writers as well as publishers and feminist literature.
Despite the weather, the streets were full of publishers, agents, writers and fans and a good number of them feminist!

At a panel entitled "You've Come a Long Way Baby, Or Have You?" several feminist writers:Rebecca Traister, Leora Tanenbaum, and Jennifer Baumgardner discussed feminism and how it related to the 2008 election. They brought up and discussed many important topics but one that I really thought was amazing was the fact that no one brought up the historical achievements of the women involved in the election. For instance, Hillary Clinton made history as the first woman to win the New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary; yet no one made reference to it at all!

But what I enjoyed most about the panel was that feminism is still alive and kicking! It was so exciting to see all these women and men gathered to listen to and discuss how many more obstacles women have yet to face. It's a small reminder that maybe feminism is not completely dead afterall

Pop Starlet Vs. Rocker Chick

Rocker Chicks like Shirley Manson and Courtney Love have always been amazing to me as a girl and even now. The idea of a woman able to dress how she wants, rock the guitar, spew out "fuck you" lyrics and just not give a shit about the rules of being "a lady" has always impressed me.

Now when you compare them to the pop star who always worries about being in shape, wearing the sexy clothes and making the sugary love songs, it seems they are almost the epitome of the female societal role, the sex symbol. Don't get me wrong there are pop stars who teeter on the edge and break some rules but the rocker chick seems to exhude a more powerful woman.

However, the bad ass rocker chick seems to have died down, and in a world where the American woman can exert more power, the bimbo like pop star is what has become prevalent. I don't understand why bands like Halestorm are not more popular than they are and instead American girls choose to listen to Mandy Moores and Britney Spears'.

Not only do American girls listen to alot more female pop music but they also want to be just like them. The shallow, materialistic image who looks like a porn star but acts like a submissive doll. I am not saying all pop stars are like this but this is overall the image that they portray.

I don't think we give enough credit to guitar playing, song writing rockstars and i think it is because no matter how many liberites women enjoy for some reason the new generations of women are reverting back to gender roles and trying harder to be the submissive, image-obsessed automaton that American society and the media want them to be.

We need to stop promoting women to act and remain like little girls. We need to stop glamorizing the school girl image and encourage women to act like full growm adult women. The school girl image sells because it promotes this idea of innocence and passivity but also brings with it a load of sexual implications.

The image of an adult woman is a more powerful one, less virginal and let's face it america is obsessed with women being virgins even in a day and age where our hymen isn't being traded for cattle and a suitor!

Women, put down your Coach bags and Botox injections for a minute and look at the example you are setting for your daughter! It is enough that she is getting this idea from the music she is listening to so perhaps you can set a different example: That women are worth more than their virginity and their looks and that they have the opportunity to be powerful and make changes, something too many women outside of this country know nothing about.

Let's not waste our opportunities.

Happy 90th to the 19th!

Today is the 90th anniversary of the 19th ammendment. For those of you who do not know which one that is- it is the one that gave women the right to vote. It is true; women have unfortunately only been voting for 90 years in this country.

Sometimes I cannot believe how fresh an idea equality for women really is. But on the bright side, women have come a very long way in 90 years. And what is most remarkable about the women of the early 1900'sis how determined they were and how hard they fought to pave the way for women today.

Their determination and courage are admirable and I think that these qualities are what is missing from women today. For the most part,the feminist struggle has almost died out and has become replaced with virgin/whore pop icon. Girls today want to grow and be like Britney Spears all the while having no idea who Elizabeth Cady Stanton is and what she has accomplished. It seems we have almost forgotten that women have brains and because of the suffragettes we are able to use them. But some women prefer to play the role of the dumb blonde.

Today most women no longer feel the need to rectify the sexism in the workplace, on tv or at home in our own families, while the women responsible for the 19th ammendment marched in streets and conducted meetings at Seneca Falls and rewrote the Declaration of Independence. Today's women seem more preoccupied with clothing labels and Coach bags and less about making the world better for their daughters so that maybe one day there will be a female president.

For the most part, women have forgotten about the struggle and the hard work and sacrifices. Not one news broadcast has mentioned the fact that the 19th ammendment is celebrating its 90th birthday. It would be tragic to forget that women were not considered equals and for the most part are still not. We need to remind each other that women have worked hard to get to where they are now.

Keep the memory of the 19th ammendment alive!