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There is a certain intensity to the posts when I look back over BlogHer.com from 2007 . We tackled some heavy topics that year, including hate speech, broken friendships and the Virginia Tech killings. We remembered a much beloved author, thought about simpler ways of doing things and pondered the politics of sleeping over. One woman wrote about society's obsessions with women's bodies and perfection while another reported about women's bodies being banned from television. Yes, intense is a good word for 2007, but intensity is not a bad thing as demonstrated in these posts.
Do you have journals from your younger self? Would you recognize her now? Grandmamaryjoan went back to August 1976 and looked at how her younger self handled feminism and motherhood.
Reading my 1970's journals is both fascinating and disquieting. Do I still know this woman? Would I make friends with her? Would I read her blog? My present husband admits he would have been terrified to talk to her. Part of my confusion is rooted in the times I grew up, in the 1950s and early 1960s, long before feminism. If my oldest daughter Anne had 5 brothers, she wouldn't have received such contradictory messages on achievement and motherhood.
Denise's post about the book Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters haunted me. It's a must read post and must read book for anyone who spends time with young women.
Those first few chapters had me pointing out "Perfect Girls" as we drove through campus and wandered around the mall. Those first few chapters left me wondering about mothers who teach their daughters to put their finger down their throat and vomit up their food. I was amazed by mothers who feed their sons "seconds" but restrict portions for their daughters, not because they believe sons are more important but because they believe daughters should be trained to eat less so they will find it easier to keep their weight down when they are older. Those first few chapters left me wondering if there's any way to keep our daughters from struggling with body image, eating disorders and the overwhelming need to be perfect.
While we are on the topic of women's bodies, do you remember Dove's Pro-Age line and the fabulously beautiful women they featured in the commercials? Of course, you'd have had to actually see the commercials, which as Elana Cantor told were banned in areas across the USA because the women weren't fully covered. Gasp!
U.S.TV censors have banned Dove's TV Spots promoting their new Pro-Age Product line. The reason: the over-50 women appear nude...not full frontal nudity mind you, more like Helen Mirren nude in the movie Calendar Girls.
We were collectively horrified at the hate speech that was hurled at Kathy Sierra. It rocked us that anyone could think that threatening anyone was ok. Lisa Stone spoke out against it in her post "Hating Hate Speech: Safety for Kathy Sierra and all women online".
The hate speech aimed at Kathy makes me sick. I am appalled by her experience and moved by her post. And I am sorry to confirm what many women online already know: Kathy Sierra is, literally, one among countless women assaulted like this online. I have no idea how many women have emailed and telephoned me about attacks via IM, IRC chat, message boards, email and blog comments. These attacks use language that describes detailed rape, dismemberment, profanity and indescribably sick images. The goal? Abuse and humiliation of women.
In the wake of the Virginia Tech killings, we were left trying to learn something--anything--from a senseless tragedy. In her post, "Covering Tragedy: Emerging Lessons from the Virginia Tech Killings," Kim Pearson recounts the lessons that we as bloggers and journalists can take away on how to cover such events.
In my day job, I'm a journalism educator. When a horrific event such as Monday's massacre at Virginia Tech occurs, I'm looking for the
