Friday is the (Inspirational) Movie Night: Wadjda (2012)

#inspirationalmovies

Wadjda (2012, Haifaa Al-Mansour) is exactly what you expect when watching a well made movie telling you tales about cultures very different from the one you live in: gives you a general picture of a society while stating very clearly that it's by no means completely homogeneous. Very well. And when such a movie come from the first ever Saudi-Arabian female movie director, your feminist obligation is to go and watch!

The premise is very simple and compelling: What happens when a girl that's already struggling with quite restrictive cultural norms of her society gets a strong urge to trespass even more? Or, in other words, what happens when Wadjda, a young Saudi-Arabian girl, wants a bicycle?

So get the movie, gather all the children (and not so children) you care about and watch Wadjda with them. And if you live in a context different of that of Wadjda be prepared to answer many questions. Why is everybody against her having a bicycle? Why are all the women covering themselves in black when leaving their own spaces? Why are girls not to be friends with boys? Why can men have several wives (and abandon their wives if they are unable to give them male children)? Why are girls followed very closely by their teachers to make sure they behave in a certain way? Why girls suspected of a lesbian relationship publicly shamed? And so on... Most importantly, what is likely to happen with Wadjda when she gets older? What kind of life is she likely to lead?

It may also help to ask those questions to yourself too. Just to realize what are the things that you most likely take for granted in life.

Friday is the (Inspirational) Movie Night: Babette's Feast (1987)

#inspirationalmovies

This is a special treat. Continuing with work of Karen Blixen, this is motion picture is based on her novella with the same name. So here you have a very severe Danish countryside, autonomous decisions to be made and both independence and solidarity to be had. Austerity as life style choice and cooking as a creative, artistic expression. Embraced via informed decision.

While the story touches several rather triggering points when it comes to religious piety vs. bodily and emotional pleasures, it does convey the life lesson regarding the pleasure. Le plaisir c'est bon por la santé. It's good for you! When it's a conscious decision to indulge and you do accept the consequences, of course. Enjoy!

Friday is the (Inspirational) Movie Night: Ghost World (2001) vs. The Help (2011)

#InspirationalMovies

Compensating for last week, here we are with a double feature and an almost contradictory message. It is Ghost World (2001, Terry Zwigoff) vs. The Help (2011, Tate Taylor).

Both might result triggering and problematic (nerdiness, cruelty, whiteness, self-righteousness are all featured) but this is not why we are bringing them up. We are bringing these two together because there you have the forever dilemma - especially felt by women in certain situations but universal still - between fitting in and daring to be different.

And those two movies are antithesis to each other: while The Help is exploring the impulses that makes one to step out and stand her ground about one's core beliefs, although it may imply social sanctions, Ghost World introduces you to Enid and Rebecca who, having spent years curating their weirdness and marginalization in the realms of formal education, are negotiating a re-entering into the world of normal.

The morals is the following: trying to find strength to be as authentic as you wish and courage to change if you feel that the previous you is somehow outdated and needs an update. Transformation is human. It's really OK. As is questioning, searching, and not really knowing.

Friday is the (Inspirational) Movie Night: Como agua para chocolate (1992)

#InspirationalMovie

While Como agua para chocolate (1992, Alfonso Arau) might seem just another period piece about love and customs, it is not so. Based on a  novel of Laura Esquivel, Like Water for Chocolate: A novel in monthly installments with recipes, romances and home remedies (1992), it mixes the traditional Western love story with a healthy dose of magical realism.

It analyzes - as good period pieces should - the pressures that social customs place(d) on people. And seeing in detail how women were coping with the fact that submission and passivity were expected from them and the very reality of being a person. With feelings, emotions, desires, and dreams.

As legions of women have done throughout the history, the heroine here finds solace in cooking and breaking free time-by-time (baby steps, you know). Her cooking, though, goes beyond that of your and our grandmothers... because Tita's cooking is magic: the food she prepares transmits her feelings, therefore she can make the whole wedding-crowd cry and people twirl of pleasure at the dinner table.

Sunday is for horizons: Caitlin Moran

This week we suggest you get your hands on How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran. And you might want to read exactly because of what it's not.

This book is not a "how to become a [perfect] woman [like I am]" type of shit that will drown you in tips how to wash red wine stains and get along with your mother-in-law. No. No-no-no.

This is not one of those glossy and fake "auto biographies" that's not much more than celebrity gossip and "gosh, I've been lucky and hard-working". No-no.

How to Be a Women is very honest. And touching. And funny. And smart. And very normal. That kind of normal that resonates. The dramas of growing up and becoming a woman person. Dealing with the everyday bullshit, including the everyday sexist bullshit.

Take this book for a trip. Pick it up in those wacky (normally) airport bookstores. It may turn an 8 hour flight into a life-changing experience. Or at least make it a fun and bearable experience.

Below you can find a taste of Caitlin in a 5-part interview. We warn it that this is not as profound as the book. Same as her Times columns, that's the work of a nonchalant broadcaster, TV critic and columnist and Twitter fan (@caitlinmoran). You get a much more thoughtful and closer Caitlin in the How to Be a Woman. Just sayin'.

Friday is the (Inspirational) Movie Night: Fur (2006)

#inspirationalmovie

 

Let's talk about artistic potential. Let's talk autonomy. Let's talk expression. Let's talk about Diane Arbus (1923-1971).

This weeks #inspirationalmovie is a speculation, a poem about how it might take just few steps to go from being an obedient and apparently perfect homemaker to becoming a world renowned artist (not that there's anything wrong with being a homemaker but it just might not be the optimal full-time work choice if you happen to have the vocation of an artist).

Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus (2006, Steven Shainberg) is exactly that, an imaginary portrait, a fantasy, a meditation about the impulses that may help release one's creative potential. And challenges that one may face while opening the box of creativity.
Beautifully shot (oh, the colors of this feature!) and with a healthy dose of suspense (yes, threading the unknown but promising grounds of the new can get scary), a very inspirational movie indeed.

Also, take a look at her ground-breaking work here.

Bodies: Coming Out!

#bodypositive

If you would treat your friends as you treat your body,

you wouldn't have any left. 

The radical idea to come out about your body, letting everybody know that you know it's there, that you acknowledge it and that you will live with it. Just let that idea explode in your mind!

And, although both videos featured are about fatness, this coming out can be about any feature that you might have felt like keeping in closet, hoping nobody sees it. Let it out, love and embrace it!

Yes, that is hard. Yes, we have been brainwashed since forever. But try babysteps: 1, 2.

Both videos were found via It Gets Fatter!

I ♥ Being a Girl: Make your day brighter while feministing around

...and an 8 year old wills how you how!

Via A Girl's Guide to Taking Over the World and Guerrilla Feminism comes the inspirational moment of the day:

 "This is how Stella Ehrhart, age 8, decides what to wear for school.

She opens her closet. She opens her book, “100 Most Important Women of the 20th Century.” And she opens her mind.

The Dundee Elementary School third-grader comes to school dressed as a different historical figure or character — Every. Single. Day. And she's done that since the second day of second grade, when this all started.

The budding actress with a social conscience came to school on the first day last year dressed like any other 7-year-old girl, in the outfit her grandpa had bought her: a Love T-shirt and leggings. The following day she was dressed as author Laura Ingalls Wilder.

From that point on, Stella decided that what she would wear to school would represent who she was trying to be. With no repeats, at least through second grade." (More here!)

So, while the geopolitical or whatever else importance of some of these women might be disputable, they are still powerful symbols, it's still so awesome + thrilling is the fact that she does that in a very DIY way, no posh pre-made costumes. And the fact that the school and her classmates are completely OK with it. You go, Stella!

That's her as:

 Grace Kelly

 Billie Holiday

 Elvis Costello (well, she does an "Old Turtle from a children's book by the same name" and her school principal, too)

 Helen Keller

 Joan Baez

 Aung Sang Suu Kyi

International Day of the Girl Child

On the 11 October 2012 the United Nations and the world celebrate the International Day of the Girl Child to recognize girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world. This year´s activities focus on ending child marriag.

¨Child marriage denies a girl of her childhood, disrupts her education, limits her opportunities, increases her risk to be a victim of violence and abuse, jeopardizes her health and therefore constitutes an obstacle to the achievement of nearly every Millennium Development Goal (MDG) and the development of healthy communities.¨

Child Marriage is an ultimate robbery in a girl´s life.

The IHBG project aims to see generations of young girls filled with dreams and hopes, able to learn and chose their path, able to make decisions, take changes and fully enjoy life.Girls who aspire!

That is why today we asked girls about their childhood dreams.

And what did you want to become when you were a child?

 

Speciall thanks for our lovely participants: Priyanka, Chen, Kaitlin, Silvia, Paola, Mirela, Pilar, Julia, Anna, Laura, Eva, Judith, Christina, Anna, Georgina, Carol and Christina 

Sonya Renee Taylor: The Body is Not An Apology

Sonya Renee Taylor @ Seattle Poetry Slam Feb 2011

launching the revolutionary idea that the body is not an apology, that radical self love and body empowerment is as needed as it is a radical notion

"In this picture I am 230lbs.  In this picture, i have stretch marks and an unfortunate decision in the shape of a melting Hershey's kiss on my left thigh.  I am smiling, like a woman who knows your watching and likes it.  For this one camera flash, I am unashamed, unapologetic."

You can find the story and the movement here
+ check out the tumblr

TEDxTeen: Tavi Gevinson on Still Figuring it Out

The most awesome rule-breaker Tavi Gevinson talking about being a teenage girl,

You can find her fashion blog The Style Rookie here, the Rookie Magazine she's talking about here, and the pop culture role models she's mentioning are Lindsay Weir, Angela Chase and Stevie Nicks.

Oh, IAC...

Hey, we are drooling over our IAC'2010 photos and preparing our Global Village activities for IAC'2012! 

We'll have the pleasure to have two Global Village sessions on July 26, one on Society, Sexuality and Pleasure and an I ♥ Being a Girl Tea Party.

We are saving the date already!

Much love,

your YSAFE  

Tea Party Stories

In September the Bulgarian MA had their first tea party. Here are our impressions:

Tea Party Bulgaria on Prezi

Courtney Martin on reinventing feminism

Courtney Martin on actual, the generation(s) after ways of feministing
+ a lecture on how to succeed in activism in general

...you can get more of her at feministing.com

SRHR: activism and Academia (Daryo)

"Oh wow, had one of my courses on gender today and was wearing the I ♥ being a girl t-shirt, of which a student at the end asked me what was written on it, resulting in me explaining what it meant to me... both YSAFE/SRHR-wise as well as, whilst being consiered 'male', wearing a shirt like that, focusing on the whole gender and biological essentialism thing.

Anyway, point I want to make here: learned that the teacher, who was participating in the dialogue as well, turned out not to know anything about SRHR [sexual and reproductive health and rights] at all! Felt pretty strange to discover that this teacher, whilst she knows a lot about many scientific relations to gender from a lot of different angles, had never heard of these concepts, not even when fully pronouncing the names.

In other words: she knows a lot about gender history, epistemology, discourses (!), biological essentialism, social constructivism, different forms of sexualitites and identities, paradigms and you name it, but seems to be stuck in this 'scientific field'. Conclusion for today: there is more need for SRHR in universities, or it should at least be mentioned!

Not that any of you can do anything with this kind of information, but did seem like a thing to share; after all, it started with the I ♥ being a girl t-shirt."

Daryo

What it feels like for a girl...(Maya)

Girls can wear jeans
And cut their hair short
Wear shirts and boots
'Cause it's OK to be a boy
But for a boy to look like a girl is degrading
'Cause you think that being a girl is degrading
But secretly you'd love to know what it's like
Wouldn't you
What it feels like for a girl

(The Cement Garden)

Waking up in the morning, making a coffee and dressing up is the part of my daily ritual that helps me brighten up, gather my thoughts and think of what the day would bring. Between sleep craving and plans, I rarely think of what everyday life would be without the comfy jeans I am slipping on. Do you?

Women wearing trousers is often considered the greatest fashion revolution in the 20^th century. Despite the fact that women had been wearing trousers long before that due to numerous reasons such as work and weather, it wasn’t till the middle of the century that they actually became a fashionable item. After years of struggle, today a woman wearing trousers or any other men’s accessory such as a tie is rarely considered scandalous in most parts of the world. However, I was surprised to discover it was as late as 2010 that the trouser ban for women was considered for de-legislation, after a number of unsuccessful attempts to overthrow it:Article. And this is happening in Paris- one of the major fashion centers???

The controversies of modern society sometimes show us we are not as liberated and free-minded as we consider ourselves. The quoted text from the book by Ian McEwan and the similarly titled movie also featured in the song What it feels like for a girl by Madonna and made me reflect upon equality and style in the 21^st century. Though trousers are worn by women due to comfort and ease of movement they have also been viewed as a sign of power and equality, especially in the early days. However, as much as we consider ourselves equal, girls can wear “men’s” clothes but how often do you see a man wearing a skirt? (And I can surely say there is nothing better that a good free skirt in a hot summer day!) While trousers are usually described just as a garment skirts are exclusively clothes for girls. And this prompts the question: who does actually have more freedom of choice and expression?

No matter whether coming from struggle for equality, desire for comport or power, changes in fashion brought up a change in the image of women. Thanks to that, girls can experiment and find their style and identity while having fun. So express you self, be casual, formal, sporty or sexy depending on the day and your mood or why not try and mix them up a bit. Show what if feels like for a girl!

Girls & Fashion (Luīze)

"I’ve made a decision.

I’m getting rid of my heels*.

Not that I wouldn’t like them or wouldn’t want to wear them anymore.
Actually, I’ve never been wearing them for real. I am just not able to move the way I am used to, move as fast as I’m used to.

Nevertheless, both too long and too short dresses stay, as well as all the pompous headbands, flowers and heavy earrings.

Here’s the trick - think it works the same way for boys and for girls just that girls tend to need reminders on this – if something you add to your body makes you feel better, great; if it restricts you, it has to go!"

Luīze

* Read: giving them away to a second hand / vintage shop in Riga.

Girls & Bodies: Amanda Palmer & The Young Punx "Map of Tasmania"

The lyrics are to be found here.