Feminist Newsletter - Glen Ridge Public Schools

Feminist Newsletter
GR Serve Day - May 28, 2015
GR Feminist Club:
Women in Nerd
Culture
By Maddy Broderick and Clara Levy
As future Feminist Club
presidents, this club has meant a lot to
us over the past 3 years. Feminist Club
is dedicated not only to the discussion
and education of Feminist ideas,
intersectionality, and sexism around
the world, but has also become a safe
space for anyone to come and express
themselves and their ideas, regardless
of gender identity or sexuality.
We do important work.
Feminist Club works hard to reach out
to all students in the school, because
Feminism is for everyone. The door
is open every Thursday beginning at
3 in Room 225, and all students are
welcome to come and talk with us.
We share movie clips, poems, songs,
and pictures of Joe Biden on occasion.
We talk about not only sexism, but its
intersections with race, class, sexuality,
gender identity, and how it affects us
and the world we live in.
Outside of discussions, we also
work to help women affected by sexism
By Maddy Broderick
¨Nerd Culture” has never
been more mainstream than today.
When comic books, video games,
and movies with ¨nerdy” themes first
came out, they never had the reach that
they do now. Between ComicCons in
San Diego, New York, and Toronto,
Star Trek conventions, and the rise in
popularity of cosplay, nerd culture has
never been less, well, nerdy. The stigma
around nerd culture has almost entirely
alleviated. Nerd culture and pop culture
have become virtually intertwined.
This has lead to more people becoming
interested in this culture. However, it
has also lead to the shutting out of a
group of people: women.
Women
are
constantly
questioned when it comes to their
love of all things nerdy, they accused
of being ¨fake geek girls¨ who are just
into nerd culture for the attention. Girls
in comic book stores are constantly
questioned, asking if they just came for
their boyfriend, brother, or other male
figure, and constantly being quizzed
on their knowledge. How many times
have you heard someone ask a girl
¨You like this thing? Ok, name all
these facts about this thing”
t
o
prove that they are ¨real fans¨. Why do
we as society insist on girls proving
themselves constantly and have to turn
to men for validation to say ¨Ok, you
can be part of this¨. Girls and women
should not have to be subjected to
constant judgement and testing when
they walk into a store or a convention.
With the popularization of
cosplay (that is, dressing up like a
character from a movie/book/comic/
Who We Are & What We Do
around the world. This past year, we
raised money for several organization,
one being the Survivors of Acid Trust
International, which raises money for
women who are victims of acid attacks.
We also had a toiletries drive to benefit
the Safe House Shelter in Bloomfield
for victims of domestic abuse, and last
year we ran a clothing drive for Oasis
Women’s Shelter in Paterson. We hope
to extend our outreach over the next
few years, finding more charities and
causes, and hopefully getting more
students involved.
Feminist club is all about
creation, education, and change. We
create projects (and sometimes crafts!),
we educate others and ourselves on
issues going on in the world, and we
try to make change happen in and out
of our community. I strongly encourage
anyone interested to stop in on a
meeting next year and see what it’s all
about, because Feminism really is for
everyone.
“I need Feminism because I want to live in a world where “like a girl” is a compliment”
Photo by Olivia Broderick
(Continued on Page 3)
Feminism and Music
By Julia Sterling
Many people think that
feminism is a niche culture, but this is
untrue. Many famous people, including
many musicians, have declared
themselves as feminists, including
Taylor Swift, Wanda Sykes, Laverne
Cox, Tina Fey, Nicki Minaj, Amy
Poehler, Kurt Cobain, Emma Watson,
Beyonce, Joan Jett, and Courtney
Love. Now, here’s some music to help
you with your moral law.
One example of a mainstream
feminist song is one called “None of
Your Business” by the rap duo SaltN-Pepa. “None of Your Business”
discusses double-standards, shaming
women for their sexuality, and judging
people. Salt-N-Pepa ask, “Who are
you to judge?” and say, “If I wanna
take a guy home with me tonight/it’s
none of your business.” (AZ Lyrics).
Women are constantly shamed for
being comfortable with their sexuality,
but Salt-N-Pepa say that a woman’s
sexuality is her own business and
no one else’s, which is absolutely a
feminist attitude. In more recent years,
Beyonce has become a poster child for
popular feminist music. In her song
“Flawless” (featuring Chimamanda
Ngozi Adichie), she defines a feminist
as “the person who believes in the
social, political, and economic equality
of the sexes”, which is undoubtedly a
feminist attitude (AZ Lyrics). Her song
“Run the World (Girls)” is a femaleempowering anthem which “goes out
to all the women getting it in”, and is a
steadfast example of feminist music.
Hole is an alternative rock
band from the ‘90s that explicitly talked
about feminist ideas and issues like
body image and sexual exploitation,
and is often considered as part of the
Riot Grrrl movement (MTV.com).
The Riot Grrrl movement is a feminist
movement that emerged from the
American alternative and punk music
scenes in the ‘90s and the third-wave
feminist movement. It started with the
formation of female-fronted punk rock
bands such as Bikini Kill, Heavens
to Betsy, L7, Babes in Toyland, and
Bratmobile. These bands confronted
sexism head-on and addressed other
issues such as sexuality, racism, and
patriarchy (British Library). Though it
was mostly an underground movement,
Riot Grrrl is widespread, with branches
of Riot Grrrls still in existence all over
the world.
The Riot Grrrl movement
claim Joan Jett as an inspiration. Joan
Jett, a rock star, is a female pioneer
in the male-dominated world of rock
music, and was the first female artist
to own and control a record company.
In the 1970s, Joan Jett was playing
guitar in an all-female band called the
Runaways. The Runaways were ahead
of their time, but unfortunately were
dismissed by audiences because of
their youth and because of their gender.
The Runaways sang about rebelling,
sex, and partying (Biography.com),
which was completely unheard of at the
time for girls, and was unfortunately
considered too unsettling by many
Americans. Though the Runaways
“I need Feminism because all women are cool”
Photo By Maddy Broderick
dissolved later on, they paved the way
for women in rock (Allmusic.com).
Joan Jett, who became a solo artist
after the breakup of the Runaways,
is a self-declared feminist. She has
discussed the lack of women in rock
and bias against women in the rock
world, and in her Rock and Roll Hall
of Fame acceptance speech stated that
“[rock and roll] is a meaningful way to
express dissent, upset the status quo,
stir up revolution, and fight for human
rights”. Jett’s music throughout her
career has contained feminist themes in
the lyrics.
Music,
especially
rock,
continues to play a role in the feminist
movement. Feminist music encourages
good attitudes towards women, and is
very important to the movement.
Our Feminist
Club Playlist
By Julia Sterling and Nina Singer
• Run the World (Girls) - Beyonce
• Bad Reputation - Joan Jett
• None of Your Business - Salt N
Pepa
• Run Fast - The Julie Ruin
• You Don’t Own Me - Lesley Gore
• Secrets - Mary Lambert
• Celebrity Skin- Hole
• Cherry Bomb - the Runaways
• Handsome and Gretel - Babes in
Toyland
• Freak Like Me- Halestorm
• Keep Your Head Up - Tupac
• Husbands - Savages
• Modern Girl - Sleater-Kinney
• 9 to 5 - Dolly Parton
• Asking for It – Hole
• Bo$$- Fifth Harmony
• Gloria - Patti Smith
• Glory - John Legend
• Shake It Off - Taylor Swift
• Flawless - Beyonce
• Criminal - Fiona Apple
• Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me
Around - Joan Baez
• Unpretty - TLC
• U.N.I.T.Y - Queen Latifah
Feminism in the Classroom
By Ms. Balaschak
Classrooms are an important
part of a democratic society, one that
fosters empowerment of a diverse set
of voices and ideas. The classroom
should be a place that provides a safe
place to honor those ideas. Feminists
have long looked at education as a
means of preparing all students to
participate equally in society. Feminists
look at several factors to ensure that all
genders are supported and encouraged
in a classroom environment.
Teachers need to make sure all
students’ voices are honored, and that
any behavior that works to exclude an
equal exchange of participation of ideas
is addressed by the teacher. More and
more women have begun to participate
in traditionally male professions, like
science and engineering. However,
research shows that, even though girls
have come a long way, the are still
not as active in class discussion as
their male counterparts. The article
“Gender Gaps in Achievement and
Participation in Multiple Introductory
Biology Classrooms” published in
the Fall 2014 edition of Life Sciences
Education states that, “...although
females on average represent 60%
of the students in these courses, their
voices make up less than 40% of those
heard responding to instructor-posed
questions to the class, one of the most
common ways of engaging students in
large lectures” (Eddy). This research
highlights the need for instructors to
encourage everyone to speak up in a
classroom setting.
Teachers can also empower
students by including a variety of
experiences in the content they
teach. When discussing literature, for
example, English teachers can not only
choose to include content by writers
from diverse backgrounds, but they
can also address the perspective of
traditionally marginalized characters in
stories. Though the English curriculum
is comprised of mostly male authors,
English teachers can still choose to
honor the perspectives of female
characters like Viola in Twelfth Night,
Curley’s Wife in Of Mice and Men, and
Elizabeth Proctor in The Crucible.
For educators and students,
feminism is not a thing of the past, and
it’s not just about the needs of women.
The goal of feminism in education is
to eliminate bias in the classroom and
foster greater democracy and equality
for all.
Women in Nerd
Culture
(Continued from p. 1)
TV show, usually for a convention),
a specific breed of person, known as
¨cosplay creep¨ have crawled into the
mainstream. These ¨cosplay creeps¨
are known to go up to women at
conventions who are in costume,touch
them, ask them sexual questions, and
take pictures of them (and usually post
them on the internet for the purpose of
commenting on their looks) without
the women’s consent. Some of these
people have youtube channels, where
they post videos featuring them
touching the women and commenting
on their bodies. These videos are met
with some criticism, but if you read
the comments section, most people
talk about how funny these guys are
and how girls wearing more revealing
costumes deserve any unsolicited
attention that they get.
45% of video game players
identify as women, so why is it that
there are more non-human protagonists
“I need Feminism because I have a daughter and a son!”
Photo By Maddy Broderick
in video games than women? A lot of
video games also have misogynistic
undertones, where raping, beating,
and killing women is part of the ¨fun¨.
Women’s portrayal in video games is
generally degrading, and the problem
is, when women (like Anita Sarkeesian)
speak out against this, they are met with
violent threats and constant harassment.
Nerd culture has been a safe
space and was invented for the people
who didn’t fit in anywhere else, so why
are we shutting out half the population?
Nerd culture is a valuable part of pop
culture, and instead of trying to keep it
an exclusive boys club, we should be
extending a welcoming hand, because,
nerd culture (and Feminism!) is for
everyone.
Feminist Games:
Dragonage
Beyond Good and Evil
Gone Home
Metroid
Left Behind
Portal Transitor
The Funnies
Collected by Wynne Zalewski and
Maddy Broderick
What do you call a Blonde who
flies a plane? A pilot
Three women walk into a bar and
say “Hooray, we’ve colonized a
male dominated joke format!”
A feminist woman walks into a
bar...only to realize that it’s been
set arbitrarily high.
“I need Feminism because women are strong!”
Photo by Olivia Broderick
Women in Film
By Clara Levy
Seeing the outrageous amount of coverage female film stars get from the
press, you could assume that women are high up in the ranks of the film industry.
This, however, isn’t the case. Out of the hundreds of Academy Award director
nominations that have been given out during the past 87 years, only four women
have ever been chosen. And of those, only Kathryn Bigelow actually took home
an Oscar, which was for her 2008 film The Hurt Locker. This is not because men
happen to always make better movies than women, but because by default female
directors are overlooked by their peers in the film industry. While women have
had great success acting in movies, and have done incredible work in areas like
set design, editing, and cinematography—none of which are easy tasks—only
a number of them have been able to obtain leadership roles as directors, and of
those only one was rewarded with the industry’s top prize.
Even the fictional female characters on screen are marginalized by this
industry. From 2007 to 2012, only 30.8% of speaking characters in the top 500
films were women. At the same time, 26.2% of the women were partially naked,
as opposed to the 9.4% of the men. More often than not, female characters are
shown as two-dimensional stereotypes—they’re shown as ditzy, damsels in
distress, manic pixie dream girls*, or overly promiscuous. Even when they do
take on the tough, typically male roles, they do so in skimpy, sexualized outfits.
This inequality even exists in children’s films. Film studies show that from 1990
to 2005, fewer than 28% of speaking roles in G-rated films (both live-action and
animated) were held by women.
None of this is because women aren’t interested enough in movies to
speak out about this. Half of the movie tickets sold each year in the US are sold to
women. Even so, their opinions and voices are still not heard.
The Bechdel Test*
1. Are there at least two women?
2. Do they talk to eachother?
3. About something other than a man?
*Not every movie needs to pass the Bechdel test! However, especially in childrens’
media, representation is important.
Yo Mama is so poor, she makes
only 78% of what a man makes!
What do you call people who
make “women in the kitchen”
jokes? Single
Notable Women in the Film
Industry:
Female Directors to Watch:
-Ava Duvernay (Selma)
-Sofia Coppola(Lost in Translation)
-Angelina Jolie (Unbroken)
-Jodi Foster (House of Cards,
Orange is the New Black)
Female Film Editors:
-Thelma Schoonmaker- editor for
Martin Scorsese (Goodfellas, The
Departed)
-Sally Menke-editor for Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs)
Female Cinematographers:
-Ellen Kuras (Eternal Sunshine of the
Spotless Mind*)
*A female character whose only role is
to “save” the wayward male protagonist
LGBTQA+ Alphabet Soup
By Nina Singer
As feminists, it’s important to understand people’s
gender identities and sexual/romantic orientations because
in order to support people for who they are, we need to
understand them. Here are just some of the gender identities
and sexual/romantic orientations that exist. It may be
hard to understand some of these terms at first, so if you
have any questions, do some online research or kindly ask
someone in LGBTQA+ community or GSA to explain.
Gender identities
To understand gender, it is important to understand that
gender is a spectrum, NOT a binary. There are an infinite
number of genders, including boy, girl, and everything
outside or in-between.
Agender: Someone who identifies as genderless
Bigender: Someone who identifies as two genders
Cisgender: Someone who identifies as the gender they
were assigned at birth.
Demigender: Someone who identifies mostly as a certain
gender, but not entirely (Demi-boy/Demi-girl)
Genderfluid: Someone whose identity changes, or is fluid
Genderqueer: An umbrella term for people who identify
as something other than male or female
Transgender: Someone who identifies as a different gender
than the one the were assigned at birth.
Sexual/Romantic Orientations
Every person has a sexual and romantic orientation, and
they do NOT have to match. A sexual orientation describes
who a person is sexually attracted to, a romantic orientation
describes who a person is romantically attracted to-Asexual/Aromantic: Someone who is not sexually/
romantically attracted to anyone
Bisexual/Biromantic: Someone sexually/romantically
attracted to two genders
Demisexual/Demiromantic: Someone who does not
experience sexual/romantic attraction unless they have
a strong emotional connection (Anyone of any sexual/
romantic orientations can also identify as this)
Heterosexual/heteroromantic: Someone sexually/
romantically attracted to the opposite gender
Homosexual/homoromantic: Someone sexually/
romantically attracted to the same gender
Pansexual/Panromantic: Someone sexually/romantically
attracted to people without gender being a limiting factor.
Questioning: Someone who is unsure of their sexual/
romantic orientation
Ask Me About My Pronouns
the idea that gender is determined by physical appearance.
By Mia Holtz
As more people are becoming educated about Making your own pronouns clear helps create a positive and
genders outside of the binary, it is important to recognize safe environment, and gives less assertive people a chance to
that some people may want to be referred to with pronouns speak up too.
other than “she/her” and “he/him”. Asking someone which
pronouns they prefer is very important because not only does
it show respect for their identity, but misgendering someone
can induce dysphoria or discomfort.
If you aren’t sure of someone’s
pronouns, you can always use the gender
neutral term, “they/them”. (Don’t worry,
it is grammatically correct to use this
to refer to one person). Besides gender
specific pronouns that are normally
assigned to males and females, there are
also alternative pronouns that are more
ambiguous to gender, such as “ze” and
“xe”. Cisgender people who appear
traditionally masculine or feminine
should also makmale a point of letting
people know what their pronouns
are, even if they assume that people
already know their gender. Although
this assumption isn’t made with harmful
intent, assuming that your gender is
“ I need Feminism because the gender binary needs to be destroyed! Photo By Maddy
obvious is harmful because it supports
Broderick
HERstory of Feminism
By Maddy Broderick
Considering that GRHS requires all of its students to
take 2 years of United States history, a lot of us know little
bits and snippets of the history of the Feminist movement,
but after the final exam, sometimes we forget the rich,
wonderful history that leads us to modern feminism.
Conflicts between genders have existed since we
have, and date back to the 1700s. One of the earliest examples
of American feminism was when Abigail Adams (wife of
John Adams) wrote letters advocating for the equality of
women, because back then, women could not even own
property. The Feminist movement really took off in 1848,
when the first feminist convention took place in Seneca
Falls, New York. The women that had gathered there wrote
the ¨Declaration of Sentiments¨, advocating for equal rights
for women. Leaders such as Alice Paul, Susan B Anthony,
and Elizabeth Cady Stanton emerged from this convention,
and began actively fighting for women’s equality.
Alice Paul (one of the more radical of the feminist
leaders, well at least for the 19th century), advocated for an
Equal Rights Amendment to be added to the Constitution.
It would read ¨congress can pass no law that discriminates
based on one gender¨, just like we have one that says
¨congress can pass no law that discriminates based on race¨.
(The ERA has never been passed, however, it was shot down
in Congress in the 1980’s, and it has not been proposed
since.) Feminism was not very popular in this era among
non-Feminists. People feared that women voting would lead
to widespread chaos and a generation of wayward youth
with no mothers to lead the poor children.
With the passage of the 19th amendment in 1919,
(white) women then had the right to vote, (Black women
and other Women of color were barred from
voting by de facto segregation until the
Voting Rights Act of 1965) but the struggle
for equality was far from over. The depression
was a low point for the Feminist movement,
considering that equal rights took a backseat
to fixing the massive economic problems
that infected the country. During WWII, the
Feminist movement made a sort-of comeback,
as women began taking the jobs of the men
who had left to go fight in the war, but this
was temporary, and as the 50’s approached
and the men returned, women went back to
the home.
This lead to a generation of women
who felt discontented with their lives in
the home, and after working and being
independent, knew there was more to life
than being dependent on their husbands. This
belief is reflected in Betty Friedan’s book
¨The Feminine Mystique¨, and this 2nd wave Feminism
(lead by Gloria Steinem) kicked off the sexual revolution
of the 1960’s and 70’s, beginning with the invention of the
birth control pill in 1960 and encouraged women to become
independent, and to have their own finances and job outside
the home. Feminism was not very popular in this era, either.
These women were called whiny and needy by those who
opposed them, and they were discouraged from fighting for
their rights, and instead told to get back into their roles in the
home. Nevertheless, this Second Wave Feminism made a lot
of really important strides.
So where does that leave us? Well, some say that
we are in the ¨Gender Revolution¨ and the 3rd wave of
Feminism, and I agree. Feminism has taken on a new form,
taking the focus off fighting unfair legislation, and focusing
on changing the culture that sets unrealistic expectations for
gender and keeps women down. Among some, this brand of
Feminism is just a bunch a “man haters,” but hey, it looks
like change isn’t always popular.
The fight for equal rights has to continue. More than
half of Yemeni girls will become child brides (Human Rights
Watch), and women in Saudi Arabia are not allowed to drive
or to vote; 1 in 6 women will be raped or sexually assaulted
in their lifetime (RAINN), 85% of human trafficking
victims are women (Polaris Project), women (on average)
make about $.23 less than men (Institution of Women’s
Policy Research), and girls around the world are subject to
the brutal practice of Female Genital Mutilation. Feminism
has a long, storied past, and a bright future, because although
we have come so far, we have so far left to go.
“I need Feminism because too many awesome women in history didn’t have their
stories told!” Photo By Clara Levy
How To Get Involved: Ideas & Resources
By Olivia Broderick
Feminism is more than a
discussion or a list of terms; it’s a
commitment to helping women and
girls worldwide achieve equality. For
those who are interested and wish to
help with the cause, there is no shortage
of ways to get involved.
1. Join a club or organization
at your school. Many schools will have
some sort of organization dedicated to
helping women or marginalized groups,
whether it’s a feminist club, a chapter
of GLI, or a GSA. These clubs can be a
great way to not only discuss feminist
issues and broaden your perspective,
but can also provide the opportunity
to fundraise for various organizations
or causes. If nothing like this exists at
your school or in your neighborhood,
start one!
2. Volunteer at a women’s
shelter. There are lots of shelters that
cater specifically to women, LGBTQ+
youth, or victims of domestic violence.
Oftentimes these shelters will have
programs for high school students to
work as volunteers. If there is no way
for you to volunteer, then most shelters
will have a wishlist of most-needed
items that can be donated.
3. Educate your friends. With
all this newfound knowledge, it can
be easy to forget that not everyone
knows as much about feminism as you
do. Sometimes people may need help
understanding a certain concept, so
don’t be shy about explaining things
to them. Along the same vein, don’t be
afraid to call out your friends if they
say something problematic. You don’t
have to preach to them or get angry, but
gently (or humorously) remind them
that what they’re saying isn’t cool.
4. Fundraise for a cause. There
are tons of organizations dedicated
to helping women: The Malala
Foundation, SATI, He For She, etc.
Organize a fundraiser to provide these
causes with much-needed money.
5. Work to empower girls (and
boys!) in your area. Teach young girls
to love and value themselves, and that
they can do anything that boys can do.
Why Celebrities are Afraid to Publically
Identify as Feminists
By Jess DeCelie
Many young, impressionable fans of celebs see what their idol says about
feminism and see that as the correct view, but celebrities are often whisked into
stardom at an age where they have not had the chance to realize their views or form
an opinion. While there is still a widespread misunderstanding
of what Feminism means, which is quickly gaining traction
among mainstream artists. There are still women saying, “I’m
not a Feminist because I love men, and I think the idea of ‘raise
women to power, take the men away from the power’ is never
going to work out because you need balance.”
The current feminist movement has worked hard to
make the movement more approachable, because in previous
generations people have seen the movement as alienating.
And while we have been rebranding the word to become the
overarching term for social, political and economic equality of
the sexe, there are still people who think that the word is meant
to attack men or housewifes. On the contrary, feminism is for
everyone.
Many celebrities are still afraid that they will offend
men or people who continue to believe that feminism is a strong or bad word.
They see it as a group of angry, complaining women blaming men for the world’s
problems. We need celebrities to step up and learn about what they believe in, and
to remove the stigma around the word “feminism” and the fight for equality.
In the same way, teach boys that they
don’t have to be violent and aggressive
to be real men. There’s a ton of feminist
media out there for children, from
television shows with strong female
protagonists to books. It’s just a matter
of exposing kids to these values from
a young age.
Get Involved
SafeHouse Shelter (Bloomfield):
(973) 337-8742
Oasis Shelter (Paterson):
(973) 881-8307
Feminist Majority Foundation:
Feminist.org
Unleashed! (New York City):
unleashed.org
New York Asian Women’s Center:
nyawc.org
Sadaqa House (East Orange):
973 280 9109
http://womeninblack.org/
http://www.codepink.org/
“I need Feminism because violence against
women is all too real”
Photo By Maddy Broderick
The Dress Code: A Feminist Stance
By Makiya Murphy
By definition, what is dress code? Dress code is a set of rules that specify
the required manner of dress at school, work, resturants, etc. But lately, the limits
to where something is considered “not allowed” or “inappropriate”, especially in
regard to the female population, has become hazy and in some cases, crossing the
line. Dress code is a detrimental factor to the progression in the female community.
Today in many schools, the dress code had been tightened and strictly
enforced, but these clothing bans seem to specifically target women. 13-yearold Sophie Hasty makes the sophisticated argument that, “not being able to wear
leggings because it’s ‘too distracting for boys’ is giving us the impression we
should be guilty for what guys do.” Yoga pants and leggings are banned because
they distract their male peers from concentrating on learning, which sparked the
movement #iammorethanadistraction, arguing that women are more than just a
distraction within the school environment.
Another huge con that dress codes brings is the constant bringing down
of people for having a body. Dress codes have been known to punish girls for
wearing tank tops or “suggestive” clothing. Dress codes around the country also
ban female students from wearing tuxes or suits to formal events like prom.
The Dress Code is a restriction, but it is more than that. The Dress Code
teaches body shame and body policing, and teaches girls that their bodies are not
just theirs, they are a distraction. The Dress Code also restricts people’s expression
by not allowing them to wear clothes not made for “their gender”, because clothing
doesn’t have a gender--it’s just clothes! Overall, it is understandable why we need
dress codes, but the way that society has been enforcing and putting them in place
is just unacceptable.
The Staff:
Celia Buckley
Maddy Broderick
Olivia Broderick
Clara Levy
Nina Singer
Julia Sterling
Mia Holtz
Ms. Balaschak
Makiya Murphy
Wynne Zalewski
Jess DeCelie
Special Thanks to:
Maddy Granovetter
Ms. Pollak
Ms. Caulfield
Ms. Gist
Ms. Balaschak
Ms. Zalewski
Ms. Gallo
And our presidents Kathryn Prouse
and Olivia Broderick
Art by Celia Buckley
Wondering what
these photos are?
“I need Feminism because the body is not an apology”
Photo by Olivia Broderick
These photos are part of the
#WhoNeedsFeminism
campaign, showing people all over
the world telling why they need
Feminism.
Tweet us your pictures telling us
why you need Feminism!
@GRFeministClub
Feminism: Not Just For Women
By Maddy Broderick
When we say ¨Feminism is
for everybody¨, we’re not kidding!
Feminism is dedicated to achieving
equality of the genders, and the way
that we can do that is by dismantling
the harmful societal structures and
expectations that make gender equality
impossible, namely, the Patriarchy,
which sets gendered expectations that
oppress women, and standards that
people must comply to, or risk being
disrespected.
The social construct that
dictates what a certain gender should
be are called gender roles, and they
hurt both men and women. Women
are expected to be small, soft-spoken,
pretty, and submissive, while men are
expected to be tough, aggressive, and
athletic. Because of this, women are
pushed into being subservient and
men are pushed into being aggressive
and ¨macho¨ in order to prove how
masculine they are, when really, ¨being
a man¨ is being who you want to be.
Men are told not to cry or
express their feelings because it’s not
¨manly¨ to be vulnerable, because we
see being weak as being feminine and
¨like a woman¨, which men (according
to society) cannot be. We attach so much
shame to things deemed “feminine,”
that when a man acts in a way that we
see as feminine, we don’t see him as a
man, we see him as weak, as cowardly,
as a ¨wuss¨. Because of this backlash
against the feminine, our culture is one
of ¨toxic masculinity¨, where men feel
like they need to be hyper-aggressive,
violent, and out of touch with their
emotions in order to be thought of as ¨a
real man¨.
As a culture, we need to
recognize that being ¨a real man¨, is
just being who you want to be, being
a whole person, and being who you
are. There is no shame in crying or
having feelings, there is no shame in
wearing what you want (yes, boys can
wear dresses, why not? Dresses and
awesome and comfortable), there is no
shame in the ¨feminine.¨
These societal structures that
we have put in place hurt both men
and women. Feminism’s mission to
dismantle the patriarchy in order to
help women worldwide would also
have benefits for men and people of
all genders! These rigid structures that
dictate gender roles are harmful, and in
order to abolish them, we have to team
up and work together to make a society
where everyone is equal.
“I need Feminism because if I don’t hear and listen to all voices, I am deaf.”
Photo by Olivia Broderick
Art by Nina Singer
Works Cited
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4152209/.
https://feministbodies.wordpress.
com/2015/03/16/rebranding-feminismcelebrities-coming-out-as-feminists-andwhy-its-important/
http://jezebel.com/the-many-misguidedreasons-famous-ladies-say-im-nota-1456405014
Dockterman, Eliana. “When Enforcing
School Dress Codes Turns Into Slut Shaming.” Time. Time, 25 Mar. 2014. Web. 28
May 2015. http://time.com/36997/whenenforcing-school-dress-codes-turns-intoslut-shaming/
Duffy, Nick. “Lesbian Student Banned
from Wearing Tuxedo to Prom.”PinkNews.
N.p., 6 Apr. 2015. Web. 28 May 2015.
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2015/04/06/
lesbian-student-banned-from-wearingtuxedo-to-prom/
https://www.nyfa.edu/film-school-blog/
gender-inequality-in-film/
http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/04/22/
female-stereotypes-persist-in-americanfilms/13047.html
http://seejane.org/wp-content/uploads/
GDIGM_Gender_Stereotypes.pdf
https://www.hrw.org/news/2011/12/08/
yemen-child-marriage-spurs-abuse-girlsand-women
https://www.rainn.org/get-information/
statistics/sexual-assault-victims
https://www.polarisproject.org/
media-center/news-and-press/pressreleases/915-report-spotlights-humantrafficking-trends-in-the-us
http://www.iwpr.org/initiatives/payequity-and-discrimination
Feminist Glossary: Understanding the Conversation
By Olivia Broderick
Body Shaming - The act of making
someone feel ashamed for their body.
This can include shaming someone for
their body’s size, shape, or features.
Cisgender - A term for someone who
identifies as the gender they were
assigned at birth
Consent - The verbal and nonverbal
agreement to engage in a sexual act.
Erasure - The erasing of someone’s
identity. This may be experienced by
a person of color who is told that they
are “basically white,” a bisexual person
who is in a relationship with someone of
the same gender being called a lesbian,
or a woman being told it’s “almost not
like she’s a girl”
Feminism - The belief in the social,
political, and economic equality of the
sexes
Gender Dysphoria - A feeling of
discomfort experienced when one feels
that their body does not match their
gender
Gender Identity - The gender that
someone identifies as
Gender Roles - The tasks, mentalities
and identities that someone of a certain
gender is expected to conform to. For
example, men are often expected to be
the provider for a family while women
are expected to be the nurturer.
Infantilization - To treat someone
as much younger than they are. In
many circles, grown men will be
referred to as “men” but women will
be called “girls.” This is not only a
disrespectful action but can also lead to
the sexualization of young girls, which
is completely inappropriate.
LGBTQ+ - An acronym that stands for
“Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Questioning/
Queer” and is used as an umbrella
term for people who do not identify
as heterosexual/cisgender. Sometimes
may be written as “LGBTQIA” which
stands for “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,
Questioning/Queer, Intersex, Asexual.”
**NOTE: The word “queer” is
sometimes used as a slur and though
it may be used by people within the
LGBTQ+ community to describe
themselves, it is not an appropriate
term to use to describe other people
without their consent.
Non-binary - A term for someone
whose gender identity does not fit into
boy/girl
Objectification - To view a person as
a sexual object, without any agency of
their own. This makes it much easier
to condone sexual violence against the
person.
Patriarchy - A social system in which
men are given the most power- they
may run the household, hold the
majority of government positions, and
dominate the entertainment industry.
Privilege
As
defined
by
everydayfeminism.com, privilege is “a
set of unearned benefits given to people
who fit into a specific social group.”
For example, men are often considered
attractive or successful regardless of
whether they fit conventional beauty
standards, whereas women are forced
to conform to a very rigid standard of
beauty. Men are also more likely to
be hired in higher-level positions than
women. These examples of privilege
are often unnoticeable to most people,
as they are so ingrained in our society
as “the norm.”
Rape Culture - A culture in which
sexual assault is normalized or
condoned. This is perpetuated through
things such as telling rape jokes (which
trivialize the struggles of rape victims
and desensitize people to the topic),
the romanticization of non-consensual
sexual contact in media, teaching men
that their sexual urges are uncontrollable
and therefore must be acted upon, and
blaming victims for the actions of their
attackers. This is a very dangerous
mentality and is unfortunately very
pervasive throughout many countries
and cultures.
Romantic Orientation - Defines who
a person is romantically attracted to
Sexual Assault - A sexual act which
one party has not consented to
Sexualization - To make or view
something as sexual when it is not
inherently so. For example, breasts
are organs intended to feed babies, but
they have been sexualized to the point
where it is considered inappropriate for
a mother to breastfeed in public.
Sexual Orientation - Defines who a
person is sexually attracted to
Toxic Masculinity - A set of
expectations for the “ideal man”
that the patriarchy expects men to
comply with. For example, men are
socialized to be tough and aggressive,
to believe that showing any sort of
emotion is weakness, and that any
sign of femininity makes them “less
of a man.” This mentality holds realworld consequences, such as devaluing
male rape victims and degrading single
fathers or men who are more nurturing.
Transgender - A term for someone
who does not identify as the gender
they were assigned at birth
Victim Blaming - The act of blaming
a victim for their own sexual assault.
Often times when a victim comes
forward, they will be blamed for
“tempting” their assailant with
revealing or inappropriate clothing,
or told they should have been more
responsible than to get drunk. This
contributes to a rape culture by averting
blame from the rapist and silencing the
victim.
“I need Feminism because the United States still doesn’t have an Equal Rights Ammendment” Photo By Maddy Broderick