sundries

[rm]

First, Annie Le. I've spent a lot of time in New Haven in general and at Yale in particular. From fairly early on it seemed fairly clear that this was not one of those random New Haven crimes, and yet, even as recently as yesterday, articles about Le are telling us that she was street smart and "aware of crime in a college town" and "knew how to protect herself."

1. I hate reporting that explains to us why a woman is or is not to blame for her rape and/or murder. A WOMAN IS NOT TO BLAME FOR HER RAPE AND OR MURDER.

2. Annie Le was not the victim of random crime by a stranger. Walking with a group or any of the shit they tell women to do (because our risk is our fault, fuck you very much), would not have protected Annie Le. She was a researcher, doing her research, and she was most likely killed by one of her peers. When the facts come out, will anyone be surprised if she was killed by a male colleague who was angry that her impending marriage made her unavailable to him?

Second, Caster Semenya is now under close supervision lest she commit suicide. Fuck you world and fuck you Internets. In this whole debacle Semenya has been subject to, in no particular order: racism, misogyny, other people's tall-poppy hostility, the medicalization of gender and identity, society's acceptance of public ownership of private female bodies, and about twenty other things I'm too angry to list right now. Most importantly, she's been subjected to other people's cruelty, and all for really, one simple fucking reason: because she's really goddamn good at something, better, in fact, than most of us will ever be at anything. If you have ever cut someone down for talent or success, take a second and check yourself. Around here, I'm going to assume you all are not assholes on the gender front, but just in case, let me say it again: either gender, any gender, gender status, gendered pronouns: don't ever use them as an insult -- not for yourself, not for anyone else. It's hard; our society teaches us to do this; I struggle with it. But seriously, we can all work on that.

Third, Patrick Swayze died. He was talented as fuck, and gracious, fierce and ordinary in the face of illness. Instead of having an '80s kitsch celebration, learn from that.

Fourth, Crystal Lee Sutton died, and if you don't know who that is, you should follow the link.

Fifth, are we actually asking whether or not the Obama witch-doctor image is racist? CAN WE SOMEHOW NOT TELL? Yes, folks, it's fucking racist!

Now, moving along... I've just found out I have to go to Europe for three days in November. OMG WITH THE TRAVEL ALL THE TIME.

Patty and I are having dinner with some of her colleagues tonight. Yay.

More as it comes.

Comments

[weirdodragoncat.livejournal.com]

Good gods...I really wish I hadn't clicked on that Obama link...that was offensive as all fuck. Why is it even a question if it's racist???

I didn't recognize the name Crystal Lee Sutton but once I clicked the link....then it 'clicked' (so to speak). I've seen Norma Rae a number of times..it's a good movie. Despite what I think of what unions have become (this does not mean btw..that I think unions are a bad thing...just that some of them have lost sight of what their original purpose is), she did a good thing and I'm sad to see that she's passed.

I'm sad that Swayze is gone...but not surprised. He'd been fighting for a while now. I'm glad he's not suffering anymore. Now I really *do* need to buy a copy of Dirty Dancing.

Oh yeah...and the Semenaya stuff? Gods...why the fuck can't people leave the poor woman alone??? So she has some male characteristics? So what! She's a human being and deserves to be treated with respect. Period.

Unions forgetting what they're for.

[stardragonca.livejournal.com]

A lot of trade unions that didn't forget got clobbered during the Red Scare days. In Canada, not so much(but more because they rebuilt, rather than from not being clobbered.)
One of the main reasons that progressive movements have been more successful in Canada, has been because the Labour movement has been stronger and more militant here.

Re: Swayze

[gwyd.livejournal.com]

When they said he had pancreatic cancer, I figured that was it. It impressed the fuck out of me that he kept working for most of an extra year. The pain must have been terrible. One tough, stubborn, old bastard, he was. (In my family growing up that was one of the highest compliments. My beloved great Aunts had less than a whole lung between them and still stubbornly went on living and doing as they liked right up into the end. Seriously , I hope tough, stubborn, old bastard is my epitaph when I go., that or rough, tough, and relentless, which is a RLS pirate description we used to refute to great Aunt Ruth.)