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Let Them Eat Cake: US Politics

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The latest cover of the Mexican edition of Vanity Fair is particularly telling. While the photo of the First Lady is recycled, it’s a telling photo given the recent budget from the President’s administration. Some of the responses of the photo essentially say that the photo is in poor taste. I saw the photos and thought of Marie Antoinette saying, “Let them eat cake.” Although we do not have proof that Antoinette said this–the phrase fits. Let them eat nothing, while I twirl  my diamond necklace like pasta. One would think that the timing of recycling the photos could not be worse.

I was watching The Purge: Anarchy with my daughter and once the movie ended she asked if this situation could actually happen. Then, we had a conversation about US politics and the current administration’s treatment of the poor and aged. We talked about the probable dismantling of the Meals on Wheels program if the proposed federal budget is realized. I’m no Pollyanna and know that throughout the history of the United States there is no love for the poor. Somehow we are supposed to be industrious and be magically successful and not have to rely on the government. Note sarcasm. This current administration appears to hate women, the poor, most people of color, immigrants, queer people, and more. Gone are the days of compassionate conservatism or Ronald Reagan Republicans.

It is no wonder that George Orwell’s 1984 and other novels set in a dystopic future are selling well. We watch, stream, or listen to the news and we wonder if it is an episode of Saturday Night Live since it cannot be real. We have a Twittler in Chief who seems to angry tweet and has no problem libeling and slandering people. We are a witness a Bully in Chief and a change in US politics. The Southern Poverty Law Center’s site detailing the increase in hate crimes makes me sick. I wish I could not take this seriously and count the days until the next election. However, that is not my way. How are you coping with the current events?

 

Book Recommendation– Stalled: The Representation of Women in Canadian Governments

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I am going to use this book for my Gender and Politics class this Summer. This post is worth sharing again. This last month I had the pleasure of reading a book that was well-written, researched, and presented an important argument for and about women in Canadian politics. This book is a must-read for people interested in Canadian Politics, Canadian History, and Gender and Politics in Canada. I cannot say enough about this book, Stalled: The Representation of Women in Canadian Governments, edited by Linda Trimble, Jane Arscott, and Manon Tremblay. The book is a 2013 publication via UBC Press and includes chapters written by some well-known names and a strong cross-section of scholars within Canadian Political Science. Yes, you can see that I am enthusiastic about this book.

The book covers virtually each province and territories, and includes the different constituent groups within a Canadian context. Each chapter tackles where we have been and where we can possibly go within the Canadian context. The informational boxes at the start of the chapters offers a sketch of the history and perhaps at times lack of progress for women in Canadian politics. This might explain the telling name of the book: Stalled. The book is well-written and appropriate for the lay or academic audience. This book is the perfect addition to a Gender and Politics class, Canadian upper division course or a Comparative Politics course focused on the status of women and politics. The chapters convey the difference and similarities between the provinces and territories, but also offers a great argument for why the Senate should not be abolished. Why? Many gains for women in Canadian politics have been made through Senate appointments. And, this only scratches the surface about the book’s contents.

There are dedicated chapters to the House of Commons, Senate, and Indigenous Women and their status within formal Canadian Politics. The foreword by Sylvia Bashevkin does a fine job of setting up the book and the “Canadian political landscape.” The meta-backdrop of the book: we have made gains, but not enough. The various chapters offers the reader glimpses about what is needed, but ultimately we need to understand that the candidates, parties, electoral system, and socialization all are at play with the status of women in Canadian politics. We have lots of work left to do. I will offer a more scholarly review of the book later in a regional Political Science journal. This is a must-read book for Canadianists, Historians, and anyone interested in Gender and Politics!

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Election Hangover

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Here we are a few days post BC Election and I am suffering from an election hangover. This is pretty normal for a political junkie or in my case, a political scientist, who enjoys following elections. Now, I have no issue sharing that the election results were not surprising. I suspected that we’d see the economy and business as usual providing the impetus for votes.  I anticipated strategic, economic voting and suspected we’d see another BC Liberals majority government. This is not endorsing the results.

Let me be clear: I am not happy with the results. Nope. And, for the love of my friend’s dog, please don’t make that giant leap of logic that this is hate speech. (Oh, yes, my person under the bridge loves to give me so much attention–er–get a life). What can we do during these next four years? Wake up. Wake the hell up. This is also making me think about that I might actually need to work on the GOTV campaign, too. I talk about the importance of voting and I do vote federally in the US, but maybe I need to seriously entertain doing more on the island.

trin-045.jpgDon’t be a robot (a cyclon)–get involved!

 

 

Revisiting Being a Feminist

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This was the first post in a series where I ruminated on what it means to me to be a feminist. And, for re-reading the post not much has changed in the past two years or so. First things first, I have no problem self-identifying as a feminist. Just as some of my colleagues live by their Marxist or Socialist tendencies, I live by my feminist beliefs. I advocate feminism and I am an advocate of feminism, but I do not shirk the label.

I do get frustrated though when assumptions are made about feminisms–as if there is this  monster of sorts. There is so much variety among feminist theories and feminists themselves. I am a strong believer of the fact that there are different types of feminisms. There is not a monolithic feminism or feminist club that I have to earn a card to be a member of and act and speak a certain way in order to keep my membership. Feminism is not Costco. Feminisms provides a philosophy of life, love, education, politics and so much more. My feminist politics includes an understanding of the importance of intersectionaliy. My feminism includes an understanding that politics and life are influenced by race, class, education, sexuality and many other indicators.

To be honest, I find it quite amusing when a student or other person outside of academe accuses me of having feminist politics. The student might as well accuse me of breathing and thinking. We are all guided by a philosophy of sorts–mine just happens to be feminism. And, some many decades later this term seems to scare, enrage or confuse people. I recall being in grad school and a professor asking me if I was a Chicana or Feminist first. I felt the question was a ridiculous question. Shall you take my right arm off or my left? My identification of my ethnic background is inextricably connected to my feminism.

Feminism informs the way I read pop culture, articles, people’s actions and I will not apologize for thinking. If my feminism intimidates you–you need to think about why is this the case? Do you understand feminism? Do you want to? Years ago I recall telling a friend that I was going to be a cultural critic when I grew up. I don’t think either of us understood this, but when she later told me that her mother thought that was a terrible idea, I knew I was on to something. I tell my students that my vocation is thinking, reading, writing, and more thinking. This thinking is informed by feminism.

The typology of feminism that best explains my own would be Women of Color feminisms circa This Bridge Called My Back  added with Third Wave feminisms. I was lucky enough to earn a BA in Women’s Studies (Go Aztecs! ) at SDSU, so most of my mentors were of the Second Wave persuasion. I feel well versed in different types of feminisms.

How does this feminism inform my daily life? Well, that is for a different post or two. One about my teaching, and another about relationships (parenting and love). Femnisms informs my life.

The above screen shot is from the Feminist Ryan Gosling Tumblr. What a great gift and I add here to make make you smile.

Moms Clean Air Force: Air Quality Concerns

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The Moms Clean Air Force (MCAF) is a great example of a community-project that is fighting for the environment. The group is composed of mostly moms and some dads and they work in concert with the Environmental Defense Fund and other organizations to ensure that we don’t experience roll-backs in public policies that will harm people and the environment. Their mission is simple: Fight for clean air for our kids. After being in Southern California for a few weeks, I can attest to the fact that they have their work cut out. You can see the brown layer of smog driving into the Los Angeles Basin. Sure, it’s not as bad as it used to be, but there will still work to do.

The website provides a wealth of information about laws and efforts to protect the environment. For more information check it out here: http://www.momscleanairforce.org/. My favorite part of the website is the call to action–What You Can do. It is so common to feel powerless, but want to get involved and MCAF is a great example of a group who are taking it to the web, writing letters, and attending events in hope of making a difference. What this means is that the organization is part of a long history of parents taking charge in order to make a difference. We can look to other organizations like the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) and even the The Woman’s Christian Union (WCTU) as sister organizations that attempted to instill change. MCAF is more akin to Women Strike for Peace, though, via their different efforts. I would argue that MCAF is a proto-feminist, environmentalist organization based on their mission–they are concerned with Human Security and Human Rights via ensuring clean air. I don’t think that this is too much of a stretch.

Funny enough–I wonder how many of the participants would even think of themselves as activists. What might happen is that the activism is so fluid, you want clean air and all the benefits that come with it. And, you might not think of yourself as an activist, but it just happens. MCAF is an activist organization that is fighting the fight at the grassroots level. Who said that social movements are dead?! As a feminist parent, I enjoy finding out about organizations like MCAF, so that I can connect with the organizations and also share the information with others. We can use social media for more than monetization.

Being a Feminist

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This is the first post in a series where I will ruminate on what it means to me to be a feminist. First things first, I have no problem self-identifying as a feminist. Just as some of my colleagues live by their Marxist or Socialist tendencies, I live by my feminist beliefs. I advocate feminism and I am an advocate of feminism, but I do not shirk the label.

Secondly, I am a strong believer of the fact that there are different types of feminisms. There is not a monolithic feminism or feminist club that I have to earn a card to be a member of and act and speak a certain way in order to keep my membership. Feminism is not Costco. Feminisms provides a philosophy of life, love, education, politics and so much more. My feminist politics includes an understanding of the importance of intersectionaliy. My feminism includes an understanding that politics and life are influenced by race, class, education, sexuality and many other indicators.

To be honest, I find it quite amusing when a student or other person outside of academe accuses me of having feminist politics. The student might as well accuse me of breathing and thinking. We are all guided by a philosophy of sorts–mine just happens to be feminism. And, some many decades later this term seems to scare, enrage or confuse people. I recall being in grad school and a professor asking me if I was a Chicana or Feminist first. I felt the question was a ridiculous question. Shall you take my right arm off or my left? My identification of my ethnic background is inextricably connected to my feminism.

Feminism informs the way I read pop culture, articles, people’s actions and I will not apologize for thinking. If my feminism intimidates you–you need to think about why is this the case? Do you understand feminism? Do you want to? Years ago I recall telling a friend that I was going to be a cultural critic when I grew up. I don’t think either of us understood this, but when she later told me that her mother thought that was a terrible idea, I knew I was on to something. I tell my students that my vocation is thinking, reading, writing, and more thinking. This thinking is informed by feminism.

The typology of feminism that best explains my own would be Women of Color feminisms circa This Bridge Called My Back  added with Third Wave feminisms. I was lucky enough to earn a BA in Women’s Studies (Go Aztecs! ) at SDSU, so most of my mentors were of the Second Wave persuasion. I feel well versed in different types of feminisms.

How does this feminism inform my daily life? Well, that is for a different post or two. One about my teaching, and another about relationships (parenting and love).