Tag Archives: gender

Sarah Silverman Makes Skit To Highlight The Gender Wage Gap

[tweet_dis]According to statistics, the average woman makes just 78 cents for every dollar that a man makes[/tweet_dis]. In fact, if you’re a woman of colour the disparity is so much worse. The statistics also show that African American women in full-time employment make just 64 cents to a man’s dollar, while Hispanic women earn a much lower 56 cents.

And why should women earn less because they’re women? In a woman’s lifetime she will lose almost half a million dollars to the wage gap, for no other reason that she identifies as a woman. That figure varies across all professions but the fact is that there’s no valid reason for it.

Attempting to highlight the ridiculousness of it all, comedian Sarah Silverman has taken to YouTube to make a skit about the wage gap. Or, more specifically, she’s going to ‘get a sex change’ (well she will for the duration of the video) in order to get the pay that she’s deserved.

Having teamed up with the National Women’s Law Centre, the aim of the video isn’t just to raise awareness, it’s to try and get people to chip in and donate money to their cause. Silverman and the NWLC say that women are owed $30 trillion and so they’d like to raise that much money, or, failing that, they’ll take what they manage to raise and use it to fund the NWLC’s effort at getting rid of the gender pay gap. 

The video, while admirable and important, is somewhat concerning. A person’s genitalia doesn’t dictate their gender! Women with penises are still women if that’s how they identify and vice versa. Furthermore, trans* employees are some of the most discriminated people in the workplace. It’s still legal in many places across the globe for employers to fire people based on this and so to make a video that highlights gender-based discrimination but also manages to be transphobic in the process seems rather ironic if not downright offensive. 

Alas you can visit the project’s website to find out more or donate to the cause.

Watch The Debate: Gender Privileges Between Butch and Femmes

Take a look at HuffPost Live debate on Butches and Femmes, with guests Aja Aguirre (Fit for a Femme), Anita Dolce Vita (dapperQ), Mary Going (Saint Harridan) and Morgan Willis (Bklyn BoiHood) all participating. The reason for the discussion was to explore different challenges lesbians face because of their gender identities and why is there infighting over who has less privileges between the butch and femmes.

Interesting viewing, so watch the video

 

Confused About Your Pronouns? Watch this Video by Minus18 to Understand the Importance of Getting Pronouns Right

Pronouns are the words used to refer to a person other than their name, like they, she and he. However, genderqueer people may instead prefer they, xe, or other gender neutral pronouns.

When a trans person comes out, they may have new pronouns they want to use, and it shows respect for someone when you make an effort to use the pronouns they’d like you to use.

A new campaign written and produced by members of Victoria’s (Australia) sexually and gender diverse organisation Minus18, has been created to get people up to speed on the awkward topic of pronouns.

“When you come out as trans, people sometimes take a while to adjust to your new pronouns, or don’t quite understand. So we launched a new campaign to help! An article that introduces the topic, a video with a rundown from trans young people, and a web app where you can learn and practice pronouns!

It can take a bit of getting used to. but it’s important to get it right. There are lots of reasons it’s important to use the correct pronouns a person prefers, but the simple answer is it can make a person feel pretty shit when you use the wrong ones.

The Minus18 crew

Minus18 is Australia’s largest youth-led organisation for same-sex attracted and gender diverse young people.

Challenging Gender Perceptions – Did Ruby Rose ‘Break Free’ Video Get this Right?

As a masculine-of-centre woman (and a lesbian at that) things are likely far from a walk in the park. Society already has harsh expectations embedded in it that suggest that it’s only ok for men to be masculine and for women to be feminine – any blurring of the lines is simply unacceptable.

So when a woman not only abandons a feminine dress sense, her perceived female identity and is open and proud about her sexuality too, there are always going to be calls against her from the groups of ignorant people.

Bring on DJ Ruby Rose then, who identifies as gay and is known for her more masculine fashion sense and her roster of impressive tattoos as much as she is for her music. In her new music video for ‘Break Free’ she challenged these perceptions by depicting her transformation from feminine to masculine over the course of the song.

The video didn’t just catch flack from ignorant people though, as it actually caused offense to those who it was meant to honour. According to Rose, the video is “about gender roles, Trans, and what it is like to have an identity that deviates from the status quo”.

However, in the video she seemed to depict a gender fluid character who let go of their femininity to become more masculine – something Rose depicted by using a binder and a fake penis. Some have called Rose out on the fact that she did not publicly identify as trans* nor gender fluid (at the time the video was posted).

Therefore she had no right to depict such an identity, which is perhaps valid given how many actual trans-men, women and those who are gender fluid already have trans* and gender fluid characters’ roles in the media given to cis-gendered people. However, after posting the video online, Ruby Rose did come out as gender fluid saying that she identifies as neither a man nor a woman.

Meanwhile, one YouTube commenter says that “I don’t like this [sic] videos idea of a male image.” failing to realise that these attributes are often accepted and even celebrated when displayed on cis-gendered men. Another plainly said “You’re going too far, it’s confusing.”

But what does Rose say to these haters? In a statement to Cosmopolitan Australia she said this,

“You know what needs to stop just as much as homophobia, bullying within the LGBT Community… A ‘bisexual’ isn’t just greedy… ‘Pansexual’ exists and isnt a cop out.. ‘Straight’ people can be huge gay advocates and blessings to the community…

You can identify as trans without surgery, you can be gender fluid… In fact guess what… you can be whoever you are and like whoever you like and WE should spread the love and acceptance we constantly say we don’t receive.”

Ruby Rose

Mexico’s International Film Festival on Gender – @MICGénero

Mexico’s The International Film on Gender (MICGénero – Muestra Internacional de Cine con Perspectiva de Género) is inviting filmmakers and producers to participate in the third edition of their festival – themed “Sexual and reproductive rights”.

The Festival will take place in September in Mexico City, and the aim is to take the exploration of gender studies out of the universities and bring them to the general public by screening and analysing films through gender perspective.

The event organisers are now looking filmmakers to submit short and feature length films, whether fiction or documentary. The materials submitted must be in the rough cut/post-production stage.

We accept films from all countries, and they must deal with the subject of “Sexual and Reproductive Rights” or address issues related to gender studies or gender perspective. A maximum of 5 works will be selected for each category, and then presented before a jury and an audience consisting of audiovisual industry professionals and experts on gender studies. A maximum of 5 works will be selected for each category, and then presented before a jury and an audience consisting of audiovisual industry professionals and experts on gender studies.

GenderLab/Work in Progress will take place on September 17th and 18th, during the 3rd edition of the International Film Festival with Gender Perspective, “Sexual and Reproductive Rights”, which will take place September 9 through 28 in Mexico City and until Novembrer 9 in other cities in Mexico.

For more information, please visit MICGénero web site and Facebook page.

CONVOCATORIA MICGÉNERO 2014 cartel INGLÉS GenderLab Inglés

Powerful Campaign Addressing Gender Based Street Harassment of Women

In 2012, Tatyana Fazlalizadeh started her campaign Stop Telling Women to Smile in hopes of addressing gender based street harassment, and to create a safe street environment for women through social impact.

For many women, just walking down the street can mean being subject to harassment by men; from subtle comments to overtly hostile remarks. Fed up with such treatment, Tatyana decided to speak out. Her response was an illustrated of her self with a caption “Stop Telling Women To Smile” and plastered copies all around her Brooklyn neighbourhood.

Since then, Fshe has created more posters with each piece featuring a different woman, and a caption that reflects their own experiences with public harassment.

With $35,000 raised on Kickstarter, Tatyana Fazlalizadeh has now taken her project on the road to Chicago, Boston and the West Coast.

The project consists of a series of portraits of women – women who I have sat talked with about their experiences with harassment. The portraits are designed into posters, including text that is inspired by the subject’s experiences.

Tatyana Fazlalizadeh


Synopsis

Stop Telling Women to Smile is an art series by Tatyana Fazlalizadeh. The work attempts to address gender based street harassment by placing drawn portraits of women, composed with captions that speak directly to offenders, outside in public spaces.

Tatyan Falalizadeh is an illustrator/painter based in Brooklyn, mostly known for her oil paintings. Having recently branched out into public art as a muralist, STWTS was born out of the idea that street art can be an impactful tool for tackling street harassment.

STWTS started in Brooklyn in the fall of 2012. It is an on-going, travelling series and will gradually include many cities and many women participants.

Street harassment is a serious issue that affects women world wide. This project takes women’s voices, and faces, and puts them in the street – creating a bold presence for women in an environment where they are so often made to feel uncomfortable and unsafe.

Collier Schorr’s 8 Women – Exploring Gender and Sexuality

Born in 1963, Collier Schorr grew up in Queens, New York and studied at the School of Visual Arts. Schorr’s photographs examine the way nationality, gender and sexuality influence an individual’s identity. Known for her portraits of adolescents, Schorr’s pictures often blend photographic realism with elements of fiction. 

8 Women is Schorr’s third photo book, following Jens F. and Blumen and it spans her work from the mid-nineties and includes her appropriated adverts from fashion magazines. Described as “a new 8-track photograph”, this series of photos features a variety of subjects, all of whom are involved in performance, be it as artists, models or musicians.

 

Collier Schorr About Her Photography