engaged enthusiast

"the first word I teach my daughter will be “no” she will sing it to me and scream it at me and I..."

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 18:56:37 -0700

“the first word I teach my daughter will be “no”
she will sing it to me and scream it at me
and I will never tell her to quiet down
she will say it when I tell her to go to bed
when I tell her she can’t have anymore candy
or watch anymore television
“no” will be my daughter’s favorite word
not only will I teach her how to say it
but I will teach her to repeat it over and over
again until every single atom in her tiny little body
hums with it
If it makes her less soft than the other girls
I will take her to museums and show her
what marble and stone can become
I will brush her hair and let her wear whatever
she wants
whatever that makes her
she will know
that the world has been built upon “no’s”
upon rejections and refusals and swords
if this makes her a warrior in a field of
flowers, then she will walk without fear
of being trampled on
the first word I teach my daughter will be
“no”
and when she grows up
in a world that tells her
she can’t walk down the street by herself
that “no” will be heard
it will roar and echo down the block
and she will never be told to keep
silent
she will not know the meaning of the word.”

- The First Word I Teach My Daughter (via albinwonderland)

Sarah Baartman--Remarkable [Some]Body--Reflections from Black History Month and a Cautionary Tale for Public Health

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 17:04:23 -0800

At the beginning of Black History Month, I went to The New Parkway Theater in Oakland, and watched “Black Venus,” a 2010 French film. It was the midnight showing for the Feelmore Fresh Fridays film series, a curated mix of “sexual and/or gender identities to erotic, nude, pornographic, and artsy” films.

I sat down expecting to be titillated by some fresh, feminist, sexy, artistic film. What I got was a visceral experience of bodies and sexuality, but served up in a grotesquely emotional life story, a befitting challenge in honor of Black History Month. The biopic depicts the life of Sarah” Saartije” Baartman: a Khoikhoi woman from southwestern Africa; an ex-slave who was brought to Europe in the early 19th century; a woman who earned a living as a performer for a circus; a woman whose body was interesting to Europeans because of its proportions.

We see the film depicting Saartije’s short life, as she negotiates her marginal freedom of choice in London and Paris. She has some celebrity status, but only in the most reviled way; she performs the ‘freakish’ contours of her body, a caged African savage in a circus show. Are we really of the same species? the circus audience is compelled to ask.

She later appears in front of a court. They want to know: Did she consent to being caged, to being exhibited? Was she really a free person? Could an intelligent human actually agree to that level of public degradation? The powder-wigged British officials are not equipped to address the intricacies of choice in the context of colonialism, coercion, commodification—on a subjugated African body.

In the moments that Saartije does assert authority over her own body, she experiences the repercussions. When she refuses to have her labia inspected at the French Museum of National History, the researchers are peeved. You’re refusing? But it’s for science! they say. Yet they do not protest when she finally walks out on them. We’ll get what we want later, they say to themselves. When she refuses certain types of humiliation in the French circus show, she gets fired. At this point Saartije resorts to sex work; she is a free person, but without resources, and so she continues to commodify her body for survival. She drinks booze to cope with the circumstances of her life, and dies in poverty, in obscurity, around the age of 25. In the final scenes of the film, we see the researchers again. This time they cut apart a cloaked body, and drop noteworthy sex parts into jars of preservative. Saartije is highly valued by the Europeans, but only for her disembodied features; the relative benefit of Saartije’s body for Europeans versus herself is gruesomely obvious.

Is it a surprise that her life became significant to Europeans both as a circus oddity and as a remarkable specimen for biomedical research? I do not think so. Biomedicine builds itself on a narrow conception of normal, of healthy. Thanks to biomedical research and its drive to pathologize, you’re more likely to have some diagnosis, to have some medication, to have some abnormality, than not.

Whose bodies have the luxury of being normal? Certainly not mine, with its cauldron of pan-continental ancestral blood, unapologetically straight black hair, button nose, curvy body—my body that incites that oh-so-familiar interrogative “What are you” on a monthly basis. [My fellow multi-racials and Asian Americans, knowwhaddimean?] Our narrow conceptions of normal exist culturally and not just within biomedicine. The life story of Saartije is a painful reminder that biomedicine is influenced by cultural norms including racism, sizeism, ageism, ableism and/or sexism.

My current public health work on polycystic ovary syndrome asks similar questions—how does our understanding of normal, healthy bodies [and conversely, of dangerous, unhealthy bodies] get entwined in cultural norms of femininity, heterosexuality, and thinness?

As a public health worker, it’s important that I interrogate—because my field is the one that served up Saartije’s body into pieces..

is the same field that ran the Tuskegee experiments

is the same field that criminalized pregnant women for their addictions

is the same field that lobotomized and electro-shocked to cure homosexuality…

is the same field that preaches cultural competence

is the same field that asks why people with certain bodies do not trust this field.

And it is the field where I choose to work, where I choose to earn a living, and where I make a difference.

advisory committee.: thenewinquiry: Go inside. Close All windows and doors. Turn off all...

Thu, 18 Oct 2012 01:29:46 -0700

advisory committee.: thenewinquiry: Go inside. Close All windows and doors. Turn off all...:

thenewinquiry:

Go inside. Close All windows and doors. Turn off all heaters. Air conditioners and fans. If not using the fireplace. Close fireplace dampers and vents. And cover cracks around doors and windows with tape or damped towels. Media news networks will continue to carry updated…

This on the eve of Artists for Hedwig 2012!...

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 09:25:34 -0700

This on the eve of Artists for Hedwig 2012! What?!

kevinsessums:

BREAKING CULTURAL NEWS: I’m not sure if this has been announced anywhere or not. I had coffee-and-conversation this morning here in Greenwich Village with my old friend John Cameron Mitchell, the creator of Hedwig and the Angry Inch. He is busy putting the finishing touches on his first draft of a Hedwig sequel and will be doing a reading and recreating the role of Hedwig on September 16th at a special performance at this year’s Afterglow Festival in Provincetown. “We spend so much of our early lives trying to figure out who we really are,” he said as a way to enigmatically sum up the new Hedwig plot line. “And we spend the rest of our lives preparing ourselves to let it go.”

He then went on to tell me in detail the narrative of the sequel for which Hedwig’s original composer Stephen Trask will write the music once more. There was such sweet excitement in his voice as he told me scene after scene, much like the sweetness and excitement he first had when so many years ago we sat in another coffee shop and he shyly admitted he was writing the role of a transgendered rock’n’roller so he could play it himself. I’ll never forget the night I first saw him perform Hedwig in one of those first performances of the show at the theatre at Westbeth. I had never seen that side of John. Hell, I’d never even seen him with a wig on. But he was able to combine his innate sweetness with Hedwig’s hellacious swagger to create one of the most original theatrical characters I had ever seen. He bowled me over and broke my heart all at the same time. His brilliance that night still burns in my memory.

As for the sequel? Let’s just say it’s something that could only happen to Hedwig - a phantasmagoria with dollops of brutal reality interwoven into its multi-media narrative.

Hedwig lives! Indeed, she’s fighting to Let’s leave it at that.

"It’s a sad irony that we promote self-defense classes as a way of combating violence against women,..."

Sun, 10 Jun 2012 08:14:49 -0700

“It’s a sad irony that we promote self-defense classes as a way of combating violence against women, yet many of the women of color, trans and cis alike, are currently imprisoned precisely because they fought back against violence in their homes and in the streets.
Too often trans and queer women of color survive violence in their homes and on the streets only to have the police, courts and prison-industrial complex come after them for having the audacity to survive in a world where, as Audre Lorde said in her poem “A Litany For Survival,” they “were never meant to survive.””

- The Trans Women’s Anti-Violence Project: Self-Defense and the Criminalization of Survival (via grrrlstudies)

Another moment where marginalized folks accept a plea bargain...

Mon, 04 Jun 2012 17:39:54 -0700

Another moment where marginalized folks accept a plea bargain because the system is so against them if they stand trial. Justice for Cece. No prisons.

freececemcdonald:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 4, 2012

Chrishaun “CeCe” McDonald Sentenced to 41 Months for

Reduced Charge of Manslaughter

Supporters Vow Ongoing Solidarity with McDonald for

Duration of Sentence

Contact: Katie Burgess, Executive Director, Trans Youth Support Network, transyouthsupportnetwork@gmail.com, (612) 363-757 and Billy Navarro Jr, MN Transgender Health Coalition, mntranspr@gmail.com, (612) 823-1152

Minneapolis—This afternoon, Chrishaun “CeCe” McDonald was sentenced to a 41 month prison sentence by Judge Daniel Moreno. Although McDonald initially faced two charges of second degree murder, earlier this month she accepted a plea agreement to a reduced charge of second degree manslaughter due to negligence. The sentencing proceedings included statements from community leaders, clergy, and McDonald’s family, testifying to McDonald’s loving character and expressing concern for her safety if she is sentenced to serve time in a men’s prison, given the high rates of physical and sexual violence against transgender women in men’s prisons. Around 80 Twin Cities residents arrived to show their support for McDonald, overflowing the courtroom where sentencing proceedings were held.

Although McDonald has been under state supervision for the past 366 days (in jail and under in-home monitoring) the judge determined that she will only receive credit for 275 days served, excluding the time she spent on in-home monitoring. Between this time served and time off for good behavior, McDonald will likely spend less than two more years in prison. Additionally, McDonald was ordered to pay $6410.00 in restitution.

The Department of Corrections has not determined where McDonald will spend the remainder of her sentence, but it is likely that she will go to one of Minnesota’s men’s prisons. In recently released federal standards on the elimination of sexual abuse in prisons, the Department of Justice notes that transgender people should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis to place them where they will be in the least danger (not solely based on genitals). Moreover, the DOJ guidelines seek to minimize the use of solitary confinement for the alleged protection of transgender prisoners. These standards apply to state prisons that receive federal funding. They may impact McDonald, who has been held in a men’s facility for the past year, and twice been sent to solitary confinement against her will.

For supporters, McDonald’s sentencing marks a turning point, but not an end to their efforts. “This is not a resolution to CeCe’s case: she should not be serving time simply for surviving a vicious attack. But the prosecution felt so much pressure in this high profile case that they knew they had to offer a less egregious charge than second-degree murder, ” said Josina Manu. “We’ll stand by CeCe throughout her sentence and after she’s released.”

Supporters have consistently rejected County Attorney Michael Freeman’s claims that the prosecution of McDonald is race and gender-neutral, emphasizing that McDonald’s attack and prosecution are part of a pervasive culture of violence against transgender women of color. They note that Freeman’s responses to CeCe’s broad support campaign only underscore the fact that the criminal legal system provides no real means of securing justice and community safety.

Roxanne Anderson, the Director of the MN Transgender Health Coalition and McDonald’s former employer, said, “Today was a shining example of how hate and fear result in racism and transphobia, and how those play out in the courts of our land. I hope people keep supporting CeCe in every way they can, including showing up to the Power to the People tent at Pride, which was created to squash this kind of racism and transphobia.”

Billy Navarro Jr of the CeCe McDonald Support Committee & MN Trans Health Coalition reflected on the fight to free McDonald: “Our victory today is the beautiful community of support that CeCe has brought together. We will keep fighting back against the incarceration of our loved ones and community members. This June marks the 43^rd anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion, which was led by trans women of color, and this year we’ll be celebrating CeCe’s courage and the struggles that women like her have led for decades.”

For more information on McDonald’s case, visit supportcece.wordpress.com.

###

"They’ll teach you to hate yourself for being silent Then punish you for fighting back"

Sun, 03 Jun 2012 16:13:50 -0700

“They’ll teach you to hate yourself for being silent
Then punish you for fighting back”

- Ed Bok Lee, The Secret to Life in America (via anthologyz)

All ladies bike race at Malcolm X Jazz Fest! #oakland (Taken...

Sat, 19 May 2012 21:41:00 -0700

All ladies bike race at Malcolm X Jazz Fest! #oakland (Taken with instagram)

babaylangles: “Ethnic Identity is twin skin to linguistic...

Sat, 19 May 2012 08:29:06 -0700

babaylangles:

“Ethnic Identity is twin skin to linguistic identity – I am my language. Until I can take pride in my language, I cannot take pride in myself” - Gloria Anzaldua

“A language which they can connect their identity to, one capable of communicating the realities and values true to themselves – a language, with terms that are neither espanol ni ingles, but both” - Gloria Anzaldua

“Who is to say that robbing a people of its language is less violent than war?”

- Ray Gwyn Smith

Reflections on “talking like a white girl”

So I’m trying to humanize myself and work on feeling more whole. Sometimes I hate the way I talk. I’m more accutely aware of it now when I hear how different I sound than my students. It makes me sad that all throughout high school I refused to speak black vernacular or working class english. Why? A mixture of power, privilege, violence, and protection.

My filipino parents taught their children english in the interests of trying to protect us in a society where fluency in academic and middle class english ensure some access to power. It was also because they began internalizing colonial oppression, and held pride that their children knew academic and middle class english and were thus “good” kids or “good” citizens.

So I gained some access to power through the fluency in these languages. How else did I end up in grad school now? But what did I lose? I was violently stripped of a large part of my identity and ties to my filipino ancestry. So I lost Tagalog, Chabacano, Spanish, Kapampangan, and working class english. I internalized a lotta self hate, hating my filipino roots and hating my working class roots living in Paradise Hills. I didn’t wanna speak tagalog and I didn’t wanna learn the language of my hood. In that, I lost connections to my community.

So knowing this, what do I do now?

1. I started speaking to my mom and pop in tagalog on the phone. I’m getting better. I’m not sure how I’m going to start speaking to my Filipino American friends in Taglish or Tagalog. Still workin on it.

2. Working class english/black vernacular: this one’s tough. I don’t want my students or other working class folks to see me as “trying to be down” or “faking the funk.” I know I escaped a lot of oppression in a lot of ways through “selling out” or “internalizing oppression and self-hate.” But in trying to heal, I want to be able to communicate and show respect for the languages that have survived and help our community resist to the cutting of our tongues and the forced learning of academic english and middle class english. I wanna build. I wanna go home. I dont care if it sounds weird. I’m down and I want to build with my working class/black and brown folks. One way is through language.

3. Spanish: My grand parents spoke spanish. It is a language of one of my colonizers, but I know I can build with many other brown folks who I share similar oppressions with. Therefore, I wanna learn and speak this.

Ultimately I’m trying to decolonize myself in one way through language. I want to learn the different languages of resistance. The languages that have survived, and that my people Pin@ys, woc, poc’s, queer, transgender, and nongender conforming folks, and any other marginalized groups have used to remain connected and communicate with each other. In that I hope I will be accepted and not looked at as “trying to be down” or inauthentic. In learning different codes to communicate, I hope I can decolonize myself and my community, through learning to speak and build with all marginalized folks. I hope i can come back home and my folks will accept me.

I had a shadow puppets book as a kid…

Wed, 16 May 2012 09:24:07 -0700

I had a shadow puppets book as a kid…

HIV Prevalence at 30% Among Transgender Women in Lima, Peru

Tue, 15 May 2012 10:25:17 -0700

HIV Prevalence at 30% Among Transgender Women in Lima, Peru:

HIV prevalence stands at 30% among transgender women in Lima, Peru, according to results of a 450-trans[ ]woman study. The investigators conclude that “transwomen are the group most vulnerable to HIV/AIDS in Peru.”

Peru has an estimated 75,000 people with HIV infection, according to UNAIDS, and an HIV prevalence of 0.4% among 15- to 49-year-olds, lower than the estimated 0.6% in the United States. Transgender women are often included in research on men who have sex with men, as in the iPrEx study of tenofovir/emtricitabine for pre-exposure prophylaxis. This is the first seroepidemiologic study designed specifically for transgender women in Peru.

By respondent-driven sampling, researchers recruited 450 transgender women between April and July 2009. Trans[ ]women completed a survey on sociodemographic characteristics, gender enhancement procedures, and sexual behavior. All study participants were tested for HIV, syphilis, and herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2).

Nearly one third of study participants, 30%, had HIV. HSV-2 prevalence stood at 79% and syphilis prevalence at 23%.

While 70% of trans[ ]women reported having gender-enhancement procedures, 64% reported sex work as their main economic activity.

Multivariable analysis found a higher risk of HIV infection in trans[ ]women older than 35, those with syphilis, and those with HSV-2.

Source: Alfonso Silva-Santisteban, H. Fisher Raymond, Ximena Salazar, Jana Villayzan, Segundo Leon, Willi McFarland, Carlos F. Caceres. Understanding the HIV/AIDS epidemic in transgender women of Lima, Peru: results from a sero-epidemiologic study using respondent driven sampling. AIDS and Behavior. 2012; 16: 872-881.
For the study abstract

tanglad: sinag: Japan Urges the U.S. to Remove Comfort Women Memorialfoodiewin:...

Sun, 13 May 2012 00:36:54 -0700

tanglad: sinag: Japan Urges the U.S. to Remove Comfort Women Memorialfoodiewin:...:

sinag:

Japan Urges the U.S. to Remove Comfort Women Memorial

foodiewin:

peaceshannon:

HT to reader gabriellelost

Okay, so this is the reason why I’m in law school and I really recommend that everyone looks into this issue.

The Japanese government is playing a game where they…

tripthelightfantastik: Drowning by Alejandro Giraldo

Sat, 12 May 2012 18:10:20 -0700

tripthelightfantastik:

Drowning

by Alejandro Giraldo

Oh really, me? Booking a date night two weeks in advance?

Wed, 09 May 2012 22:39:42 -0700

Oh really, me? Booking a date night two weeks in advance?

artivista: HIDING THE POOR, PHILIPPINE STYLE. IF YOU CAN’T BEAT...

Wed, 09 May 2012 16:30:34 -0700

artivista:

HIDING THE POOR, PHILIPPINE STYLE. IF YOU CAN’T BEAT POVERTY, JUST HIDE IT, SAYS THE PHILIPPINE GOVERNMENT. “Residents walk past a wall covered with a tarpaulin poster of the ongoing 45th Annual Board of Governors meeting of the Asian Development Bank at suburban Pasay city south of Manila, Philippines, Thursday May 3, 2012. Delegates attending the international conference of the ADB in the Philippines capital may not see what they came to discuss: abject poverty. The makeshift, temporary wall on both sides of the bridge from the airport to downtown Manila, hides a sprawling slum along a garbage-strewn creek in the background.” (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)

When Obama endorsed same-sex marriage...

Wed, 09 May 2012 14:52:09 -0700

whenobamaendorsed:

… I was all:

Oh look! Obama lives in the Land of Magical Realism too! And he...

Wed, 09 May 2012 13:45:48 -0700

Oh look! Obama lives in the Land of Magical Realism too! And he rides an Estellicorn!

Queen Kelp courts a pigeon. #alamere falls #ptreyes #yoga (Taken...

Sat, 05 May 2012 20:12:00 -0700

Queen Kelp courts a pigeon. #alamere falls #ptreyes #yoga (Taken with instagram)

Always leave home prepared to give shit away! #balikbayan #pinay...

Wed, 02 May 2012 22:07:00 -0700

Always leave home prepared to give shit away! #balikbayan #pinay (Taken with instagram)

Ricardo Flores conoce Chinese Dragon (Taken with instagram)

Wed, 02 May 2012 08:17:00 -0700

Ricardo Flores conoce Chinese Dragon (Taken with instagram)