Input to Varsity Newspaper

This is an article I just sent to the Opinions Section for the Varsity Newspaper. Hope they publish it. The whole thing that is! Here goes:

In response to Gosia Podgorska's succint article about the subtle ways in which chauvinism comes into play within our daily interactions with one another, I would like to expand on a number of points she made. But firstly, and this is by far the most important piece of news you will ever receive with regards the feminist movement: it is not an ideology that seeks to point men out as egregious rapists, wife-beaters and murderers. Quite clearly, there are plenty of men, young and old that each one of us can point out as not coming even nearly close to fitting this profile. But the truth of the matter is, on a broad scale, our world's collective society has evolved in such a way as to place the male gender on a higher position on the heirarchy. We see this manifestation in the wage-gap phenomenon (which is not much of a phenomenon when one begins to closely inspect the dynamics between genders). The fact that historically, women have been economically-repressed for centuries, by not being given access in the workplace, held back from seeking tertiary education, not being allowed ownership of property and land, disallowed from partaking in the public vote, being given titles in accordance with maritial status (which still happens today mind you) and others are plenty of cause for such a movement as feminism to have struck its climax during the 1970's and though some argue we now live in a post-feminist society (the same claim they would make with respect to race), I disagree. Put simply, until we reach a state of absolute equality between women and men in every sphere of society, feminism will still have its place in attempting to galvanise the notion that yes "Women are people".
To describe this pattern of degrading, dominating, controlling and humiliating women, I use the word misogyny. It's important to note that this word does not relate to the ways in which men view women but often times the ways in which society as a whole treats people who belong to the female gender. Women too can be guilty of it; I can bravely say that because our society is built on sexist beliefs pertaining to the gender-binary and chiefly subscribes to a notion that there are specific and clear-cut roles that women and men must play, the very language we speak, is a language of male chauvinism (upholding the false notion that men are superior to women).
From the ways women's bodies are commodified for media consumption and sexualized for the purpose of male erotic stimulus, it is no surprise that general "guy-talk" or what I would personally call "douchebag-talk" comprises of the excitement found in dominating a women sexually and then calling her a "slut" which relates to a very intrinsic manner in which society as a whole likes to compartmentalize female behaviour - you are either a "good-girl" or a "ho" (the virgin/whore dichotomy). Sexism often shows up in the dismissal of female intelligence and creative agency. Often times women are treated as if we are dumb and are in need of male instruction. It goes further, our ideas are often discredited despite the richness they may carry. In worse cases a male may even steal the idea and take credit for it knowing full well that people will have a better time believing in his intelligence rather than that of a woman. In asserting a gender-binary with regard to stereotyping, we all do ourselves a great disservice. I know for sure, there are young women out there who you'll probably find one afternoon sitting in front of the TV with beer in hand and Arsenal jersey getting aggravated about Fabregas missing the goal. Gender stereotypes are a fallacy, they are socially-constructed. We have effeminate men and tough chicks and plenty other types of personalities that bear to relation to the individual involved's gender whatsoever! What Gosia described is misogyny (hatred of females) in three acts. This perpetual need to re-affirm patriarchal masculinity by observing women as sex-toys, virgins, whores, crazy, uncontrolled, docile etc and not as the individual PEOPLE that they are. It's an attitude that unfortunately does prevail and for this reason, feminism is absolutely necessary in combating misogyny and deconstructing patriarchal definitions of masculinity.

Thelma and Louise - Reeeeemix!

This is some severely twisted, hyperanimated, comic version of Thelma and Louise and yes, me and my twisted, eccentric, always-searching-for-something-different, Grace-Jones-obsessed nature LOVE IT!!!

Beyonce, I have one word of advice for you. Keep on hanging with Gaga, she's your career's only hope. Oh, and while Rihanna is steadily suffocating in the ditches of hypersexualized, young singing sensation, maybe just maybe you can re-invent yourself and stop boring the pants off of everybody with the same old material.
Yeah, and thank God you dropped the Sasha Fierce get-up. That was getting a little tired too.

Good yes, Queen Grace. You have plenty to be proud of! Look at the legacy you've left behind. Ah, it's just wonderful.



Yeah, that's Tyrese Gibson being killed. HAHAHA!!

Why I'm Such a Bookworm

My college campus is running a 10 Days of Academic Activism and part of their campaign is this:

This campaign serves as a reminder to all students that our academics are the means through which we can take ourselves to new heights and reach the goals that we have set out to achieve in our lives.

 I love it when people emphasise the importance of the academic life. For me, it's not a matter of toughing it out for a couple of years so that I can get a decent job. It's about taking myself to new heights and using this organ I have sitting in my skull to the absolute fullest. Stretch my mind as far as I can possibly stretch it and do my part in making a positive contribution to the world at large. And not for vanity's sake. Oh no! (Although, I am tempted to sometimes...that's a sincere admission which took plenty of courage to make.)

The Ankh is Back...yeess Ms Badu

Firstly, I'm sure none of us who have followed Erykah since the very first days when she was crooning about her man calling his homeboy Tyrone and telling him to get his isht and what not that Ms Badu is ummm...eccentric. Yes, we have all known that. But if you haven't given a toot about her until now then you may not be able to understand where she is coming from artistically. Such as the bottom three people who I couldn't imagine knowing a single thing about her until their news network made them aware of the story which they'd have to critically discuss and offer opinions too.

Offensive?? What could be so offensive about a nekkid female body. She's naked, yeah, so?? Not like you don't know what the female anatomy looks like is it?



They're comments were too superficial. They were only talking about surface stuff - her being nude, the kids around, disrespectful of the president. Looking deeper. See the symbolism behind her choosing to mimic the assasination of JFK - a president who at a time of great civil turmoil in the US, attempted to make strides in ending segregation and galvanising a creed of equality. He was a revolutionary somewhat, why else did the people's feel such intense loss when he was shot down. So, if anything - this is a good remark for the legacy of JFK, one of America's most loved presidents. But people, as usual, too simpleminded to understand metaphoric speak.

Another thing - as for them not understanding the correlation between the video's statement and her lyrics. PUH-LEASE! I've only heard a bit of the song and know very well that she is communicating her wish for liberation, for a sense of freedom from all the limiting standards that society sets up along lines of gender, race, sexual orientation, age etc etc. And how all this eventually evolves to mistrust of the other, ignorance, fear and eventually hatred of those whom are dissimilar to ourselves. DUH! But I guess when you have been privileged and a member of the dominant racial group, you'd never understand this quest to escape dominance and oppression because you simple haven't experienced this.

Catch the video at http://erykahbadu.com. But where oh where could that unedited cut be?? Hmmmm???

Whoah Adam...

He's even touring Asia now. This is deep stuff. Deeep!

Okay, they watch American Idol. We watch American Idol. Think it's safe to say that American Idol is the most watched Idol competition in the world. Mainly because anyone who makes it in America, usually makes it in the rest of the world. It is the hub of music industry success. As seen with my darling Glambert.

Where is the Literary (Black esp.) Female Voice?

Alice Walker
Maya Angelou
Toni Morrison
Terry McMillain
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Zora Neal Hurston
Tsisti Ndangaremba
bell hooks
Ntozake Shange

Straight from the top of my head, this is all I could think of. Yet, if you had asked me to name white authors (male especially) on the other hand, I would probably summon a list far greater than this. Despite the fact that I am a a black female myself. Why is there such a shortage of acclaimed female writers especially those who are of African descent. Is it an issue...yes? Because it does not, as a person who may try to deny racism would say, that Black women cannot write. NO! The work of the above women is not an exception. There exist talented authors in every race and of every gender. But in a world that insists on privileging the white human above all other people's, people of colour especially women of colour have their talents often ignored since we are not expected to have a knack for narrative, or even a brain for that matter. Yes, I took it there. It's no secret that women of colour are thought of as empty-headed. That's why my existence is not only fascinating enough to write about. It would be a shame to hold these experiences to myself. The lives of people of colour are rich with stories of pain, humiliation, oppression, and on the opposite end love, compassion, joy and beauty that it is ridiculous to me to see a lack of writers within this demographic.

Black women, Asian women, Biracial women need to find the bravery to write. It is only with finding the confidence not to give a fuck whether your book will go dusty on the store shelf that one begins the journey of conceiving the first sentence, paragraph and page of that novel or memoir.

All the More Reason to Keep Striving

Yeah, she's dope. Yeah, I love her. Yeah, she inspires me. What upsets me to the core is all of those patriarchal sexist buffoons who feel it necessary to make sniding remarks about the way she looks. There have been many and it will not end. We live in a world that defines a woman's worth based on her looks. Courtesy of a male relative, I was given the information that this notion also has deep roots in the Christian faith. He told me that Jesus was apparently a very unattractive man and that this meant simply nil. His ministry still had great power and anointing because of his charisma and other positive attributes. And that Esther's beauty was her "gift" and that she was the "most beautiful woman to ever live". So these obviously sexist ideas that emanate from the Bible seem to have my brother thinking that there is an obvious Biblical justification for the assertion of a rigidly defined gender-role system. Where it is the male's job to hold power and the woman's job just to sit around looking pretty. And in this, he probably sees no problem with objectifying and sizing a woman's value up based solely on her looks, ignoring other qualities that may not be aesthetically visible. 

The Bible is full of patriarchal messages no doubt about that. But the sadness in all of it is that those who believe in the absolute divinity of the Bible follow suit according to the ideas presented and refuse to accept any form of revolt because this kind of thing would yield one as a doubting Thomas. A person "possessed" enough to question the word of God. 

Coming back to the First Lady of the United States. Who is an exceptional academic, scholar, mother and human being. These men know that she is lightyears ahead of them intellectually, morally and characteristically. The closest they can get to attempting to satisfy their patriarchal egos is making weak "disses" which are, I imagine, but  mere dust beneath this powerful woman's feet. 

I Can't Heeear You?

Is my voice really soft or are you just so used to ignoring people that resemble me

In what we have to say

To offer and bring

The pain that your quest for dominance has caused us

And then in attempting to protect

A morsel of my dignity

Guard myself from usage

I become the loather

In your eyes

The one who hates

Yet if this were really the case

Just know

I would have learnt from the best...

Telephone by Gaga

 It's a nice song. I'll give it that.

Sometimes I Just So Get Sleepy, Dog

Yes, dozing off when I know I shouln't be. Those guilty feelings one gets for taking in too many hours. Someone once told me that when you feel tired, no matter what you feel needs to be done...just sleep! I'll take her advice. Once I'm up to date with everything. Until that time. I'm just so darn sleepy, dog!
**Afterthought: air-conditioned rooms are a great thing. Too much heat and comfort, a recipe for disaster when the midnight oil requires major burning.

You Won An Oscar, Really?

Who knew, who knew...that these flying undoubtedly beneath the radar actors once won oscars

Yes, Cuba...it's been a dismal series of movie roles since that winning "Show me the money" shot. Even found yourself doing Disney movies. Snowdogs! Enough said.

And then there's that man who plays the lead in that mediocre action programme, Leverage, Timothy Hutton. If you had told me, without prope pictorial evidence that he won an oscar, I really wouldn't believe it.

Finally, the man himself, Louis Gosset Jr. That I can understand but what a tragedy it's all turned out to be post the era of "Fight the Power" and afro hair-dos. And if it were not for these Heineken beer ads we seem to be getting over here...the "What are you doing Dave?" thing. I swear I wouldn't even remember who this man is.

Solitude Can Be Great Sometimes

But others may perceive you as slightly deranged or of the notion that others are less than relative to you. I don't like having to dismiss people when I have that urge to be alone. It comes across as a bit insulting but that is the intended motive. To diss someone. Sometimes, I just prefer my own company, some silence and the space to be unabashedly authentic.
I often find that in order to be truly myself around someone, I must trust them enough. This often takes time. This may be a result of my upbringing. I can't tell but if you and me aren't cool, there is no way you'll really get to see the real side of my personality.
Walking alone is also very convenient. You get where you need to in your own time and at your own pace without having to accomnodate the wishes of another. Writing alone is perhaps the only way I can write and that includes academic writing. When I want to grasp the concept of something, there must be enough silence for me to hear my thoughts otherwise, I become confused and fail to absorb anything.
Although I do balance alone-time with the presence of company, I do not find being alone unbearable, in fact, I've grown to like it not because I am timid and self-conscious. Simply because I have found myself most capable of stronger mental activity when I am by myself and surrounded by complete and utter silence.

Double Standard Disarray

Thank you Lady Gaga for pointing out what may sound cliche by now but should never cease to be spoken of. Double-standards when it comes to naming female and male sexuality differently. Why it becomes a conquest for the latter has plenty to do with once again, a very rigid definition of patriarchal masculinity.

This song is excellent for this topic by the way.

o-What am i not s'pposed to have an opinion?
Should i be quiet to speak because i'm a woman?
Call me a bitch (bitch) cause i speak what's on my mind
Guess it's easier for you to swallow if i sat and smiled

Point of Hilarity...or maybe not

The ads that are showing up on my page are interesting to say the least. "Ukrainian Wives" up for sale. Mail-order brides are a big deal especially when they come from Russia, Ukraine, the Phillipines and various other countries in the world. Aside from the obvious reasons I can identify that would place a demand on such a woman, the normalization of this trend is profoundly disturbing. Women, of course, being commodified is no big deal. I tried to google the phrase "Ukrainian Husbands" and hardly anything on that topic showed up. In fact, what did show up was a mass of ads for the opposite as well as articles on the topic of mail-order brides. Hmmm. Anyone who tries to argue that our world is no longer sexist needs to open their eyes to small examples such as this one.

The tragedy is that women are all to eager to have themselves objectified because they are trapped in a system that normalizes and condones the sexist treatment of women. As George Orwell portrayed in Nineteen Eighty-Four, when there are no standards of comparison in one's mind, social injustice cannot be seen for what it really is. A dehumanization, a rape of the soul. Unless young girls and boys are shown a better way, they will only perpetuate this rotten system of male domination and female submission in all its forms.

Aversion: Mills & Boon

I have always had a latent aversion to this book series. The covers just put me off to begin with. Then their titles. Another thing I may not have noticed, which jump-started my aversion in the first place was the propagation of traditional gender norms upon which every single story line is based.

The books are highly branded and are often in a separate section of bookshops and libraries from the other paperback fiction and romance novels. Common themes are rich, ennobled and initially unattainable males (often of Mediterranean--especially Greek--origin), the desire of a character to have a baby (with this being thwarted by infertility or an unsympathetic husband), and the breakup and mending of a relationship.

Exactly. Why all the brothers have to be of European descent (and moneyed by the way) not only attempts to reinforce a notion that women are mostly in it for the money but also the idea that the heterosexual Caucasian male is the ultimate symbol for status, money and power.

Phallic Imagery E.g. 1

The more I understand about patriarchy and its many functions and manifestations in society, ads like this no longer seem to be much of a surprise.
The fact that even boys are included in this imagery is even more surprising to me. Yes, I understand misogyny plays a role in the sexualization of women, especially younger women in public media. That's also nothing new. But boys too. Really.
Aside from the latent homosexual rape theme, the ad seems to try and make analogous sex-slavery with the hold that a smoking habit takes on a person. Which is in a way making light of a very serious issue that cannot be viewed in a comical way no matter what the weather.

Party Time...Excellent!!

Some movies just never go out of style. I always laugh. Always. The Garth-look i.e. jeans, T-shirt of any random design and tartan shirt. Oh, it's the look baby. I rock it regularly. It's so comfortable. I fit right in with the science geeks rocking this one.

 Ashamed as I am to admit this. I am strangely turned on by Dana Carvey when he plays Garth. I think he's kind of cute, you know? No, you probably don't...LOL!

I Need to Get Four Wheels of My Own

Is it or isn't it a gender thing. Any time I see a couple driving out together, the guy is always behind the wheel. As I started to focus my attention on gender roles that are conditioned into the mind's of boys and girls growing up, I immediately began to tie this pattern to the way in which upbringing plays a part in all this.

In my own family which likes to hold true to traditional gender roles, there always seemed to be an underlying belief that driving is more of a manly thing to do. That this fact shows in the notion that boys start to drive, on average before girls do and are usually apparently "better" drivers.
Some comments at Freakonomics spoke of how this pattern relates quite directly to how patriarchal ideas inform men that they should be in control as a means of properly asserting masculinity. So, in a sense, the car is quite clearly a strong phallic symbol. One which affords a boy or man a feeling of dominance and power. Seldom can you find a brother that is secure enough in his masculinity to let you take the driver's seat just because.

I Pity the Fool...

That ever tries to take me to school...I been to school fool!

Gratuitious Violence

After enlightening myself about the different forms in which patriarchal ideas of masculinity show themselves, the senseless killing of a yet another UCT student has taken place. The reason why I look toward this as an explanation is owed to the fact that none of the boys that were attacked were robbed or mugged of any of their possessions. In essence, the murder was gratuitous. Yet these are the ways in which our culture encourages men to exert their masculinity. This if course being a more extreme form but a violent one nevertheless. The key word here. Even in its most subtlest forms when boys are raised up identifying a violent nature with their masculinity, they only become more violent as a means of asserting this especially when insecurities about one's self occur. No, I am no psychologist. But it makes plenty of sense to me for one who feels, at their core inadequate or powerless to find external means of expressing power to overcompensate enough to temporarily remove feelings of weakness. Gang violence is a wonderful example of this model of behaviour. A socially-disadvantaged underclass inhabiting forgotten, poor and dilapidated parts of a city will turn to the use of guns and various other weapons to strike fear into the hearts of their community. As a means of elevating oneself from the pangs of powerlessness in a system that does not care and does not seek to care for you as an individual, as a human being.

Guns, a phallic symbol in a patriarchal world will continue to be the main form of communication that men utilize to enforce power over others until these false conceptions of manhood that have been drilled into all of us are removed.

My deepest condolences to the Giddy family.

R.I.P Dominic Joseph Giddy