Still struggling with my artwork and creative motivation. In the meantime, I've decided to write about something that has bothered me since I was just a wee childling. That is...gender, and how it's characterised!
As a child, I was what is commonly referred to as a "tomboy". I liked dinosaurs and dragons, hiking and getting muddy, running about and playing outside. I hated dresses, and as of 3rd grade began refusing to wear them entirely. I would not wear pink, make-up and purses held no fascination for me.
For a long time, people thought this meant that I did not want to be a girl. Hell, even I was convinced of that for a while. But what has come more and more apparent to me over time is that being a girl is never what bothered me. It was (and is) the false set of roles and restrictions that are handed to every child upon determination of their biological sex at birth. Restrictions that are, inarguably, a lot more restrictive to the development of individuality in girls than they are to boys.
Showing posts with label feminism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label feminism. Show all posts
9.14.2009
Duck, lest ye run afoul of the steam shooting out of my ears.
Sometimes, even well intentioned people can be very, very insenstive. It usually comes when someone questions or challenges their priviledge in a situation where they don't perceive that they have it. I've been guilty of this in the past myself. Today, though, I'm going to ran about somone else. Someone who's very near and dear to me, but who can still be a complete jerk at times.
Exactly one month ago today, Melissa McEwan over at Shakesville wrote this post, about how we, as women, often have to make the decision between protesting when someone makes a sexist (or downright misogynistic) statement and potentially ruining the evening for that person, or "swallowing shit" and only ruining it for ourselves. I had an evening like that not long ago, where I decided to just swallow the shit and deal with it.
Exactly one month ago today, Melissa McEwan over at Shakesville wrote this post, about how we, as women, often have to make the decision between protesting when someone makes a sexist (or downright misogynistic) statement and potentially ruining the evening for that person, or "swallowing shit" and only ruining it for ourselves. I had an evening like that not long ago, where I decided to just swallow the shit and deal with it.
8.31.2009
As if I didn't love her enough...
...for her incredible books (Palimpsest utterly blew me away), this is what Catherynne M. Valente had to say about the recent Mammoth book of Mindblowing Science Fiction Gender/Racefail:
"Stories are important. Stories, in fact, are life. They are what is left of our unique experience in this world. They speak--no. They scream. And when an author sits down and constructs a completely imaginary world in their heads, if people like me, people like us, do not exist in it, or exist only to be ridden like animals or raped or murdered or humilated or destroyed so that an audience can acheive catharsis via symbolic annihilation of our lives, bodies, and souls, well, certainly, we can sit down and look at the floor and say: yes, you're right, that is what we deserve. Or we can stand up. We can scream back. We can band together. We can demand our right to exist, to take part in humanity, to learn, to grow, to evolve, to self-examine. We can tell our stories, to anyone who will listen, to the campfire, to our lovers, to coffee shops, to strangers, to publishers' skyscrapers in New York, to the heavens, to the earth. Yes, you're fucking well right we can."
Besides being the very first one to call it out.
"Stories are important. Stories, in fact, are life. They are what is left of our unique experience in this world. They speak--no. They scream. And when an author sits down and constructs a completely imaginary world in their heads, if people like me, people like us, do not exist in it, or exist only to be ridden like animals or raped or murdered or humilated or destroyed so that an audience can acheive catharsis via symbolic annihilation of our lives, bodies, and souls, well, certainly, we can sit down and look at the floor and say: yes, you're right, that is what we deserve. Or we can stand up. We can scream back. We can band together. We can demand our right to exist, to take part in humanity, to learn, to grow, to evolve, to self-examine. We can tell our stories, to anyone who will listen, to the campfire, to our lovers, to coffee shops, to strangers, to publishers' skyscrapers in New York, to the heavens, to the earth. Yes, you're fucking well right we can."
Besides being the very first one to call it out.
6.09.2009
Some considerations.
I have been thinking a lot about this blog lately, and what I want to do with it. See, I have many venues for putting my artwork up online. There's deviantart, and carbonmade, and my future website-which-I-haven't-finished-yet. Yet I am a very opinionated person. I read a great number of science and political blogs, and would like to express my thoughts.
So here is what is going to happen.
I am still going to post my art here, and also bits of my writing. I like having a space that's entirely my own to do that in. Also, I'm going to stop being afraid of letting my opinions come out in a space where they will be connected with my art, person, and career. Mostly, I am no longer going to be afraid of vociferously expressing myself as a feminist.
I know! What could possibly make me afraid of letting possible future employers know that I am in fact an advocate of my own gender? Or, more importantly: I know that this will be a possible put-off to future employers, but I've made the decision to not care. Because I really do not think I would be happy or comfortable working for someone who would penalize me for voicing the opinion that I deserve equal rights to my male coworkers.
Also, I know that my views are going to remain visible in my art and writing anyway.
So there.
I have been posting on feminist blogs for a time, most under the pseudonyms 'L.G.' or 'Algae'. Now I'm using 'Magnetic Crow' as my one and only. We'll see how this goes.
So here is what is going to happen.
I am still going to post my art here, and also bits of my writing. I like having a space that's entirely my own to do that in. Also, I'm going to stop being afraid of letting my opinions come out in a space where they will be connected with my art, person, and career. Mostly, I am no longer going to be afraid of vociferously expressing myself as a feminist.
I know! What could possibly make me afraid of letting possible future employers know that I am in fact an advocate of my own gender? Or, more importantly: I know that this will be a possible put-off to future employers, but I've made the decision to not care. Because I really do not think I would be happy or comfortable working for someone who would penalize me for voicing the opinion that I deserve equal rights to my male coworkers.
Also, I know that my views are going to remain visible in my art and writing anyway.
So there.
I have been posting on feminist blogs for a time, most under the pseudonyms 'L.G.' or 'Algae'. Now I'm using 'Magnetic Crow' as my one and only. We'll see how this goes.
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