For Your (Weekend) Consideration

I've spent so much time this week thinking about the UCSB tragedy.  I thought that I would write about it once the shock had worn off, once I had calmed down.  However, I'm not calming down.  I'm only getting angrier and more upset.  I'm angry that despite mass shootings becoming a common occurrence, we do nothing legislatively to address gun control.  I'm upset that this type of misogyny is so ingrained in our culture that we just accept it as normal.  I'm appalled that there are now Facebook fan pages devoted to this man and sympathetic comments on his YouTube videos.  I'm frustrated that some men feel entitled to womens' bodies strictly because they are male.  The silver lining in all this darkness is that there are now important conversations being had.

Think gun violence is just a few isolated incidents or restricted to inner cities?  This tells otherwise.

If you want to make your voice heard by Congress, you can do so here.

As usual, The Onion hits the nail right on the head.  Is satire supposed to be so spot on?

This article from a self-described male nerd is not only smart, but right on the money on how and why this culture needs to change.

"Men who objectify and threaten women often strategically obscure their actions from other men, taking care to harass women when other men aren’t around."

A simple and scary truth - misogyny kills.

I've done it myself.  A guy in a bar is hitting on me and to make him stop, I'll tell him, "I have a boyfriend".  This post explains why we need to stop doing that.

The #YesAllWomen hashtag does not mean that all men are misogynists, rapists, murderers.  It does mean that women, yes, all women, have experienced some sort of sexism or unwanted sexual harassment, aggression, or advance.  And we need to talk about that.

 The personal stories I've read this week sit heavily with me.  This is one of many.

Felicia writes one of my favorite blogs and her post on late-in-life feminism is beautifully written and touches on something we are often afraid to admit - our sometimes complicit behavior in sexism.

What happens to women who reject unwanted sexual advances?  Too often, violence.