Archive for the ‘Kyriarchy’ Category
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Patriarchy and The Reproducers of Labour
18 Jun 2013
The literal definition of patriarchy is "rule of the father" and families in which literal fathers dominate literal mothers and literal children are pointed to as exemplifications of patriarchy, but pedantry is the enemy of politics. The patriarchy as a global system of domination is the rule of the father in …
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Gender, Sex and its Intersections
09 Jun 2013
Today marks the end of Radfem 2013. After the stooshie caused by Radfem 2012 and their statement that the conference was only open to "women born women, living as women", a coded and cissexist method of telling trans women to stay away, This year, they have ditched that terminology in …
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Can the Sub-Alterns of the Sex Industry Speak?
08 Jun 2013
The sex industry is a highly conflicted site within modern feminism. A global industry tainted with extensive forced labour and trafficking, it is situated at the crossroads of labour and abuse. Those who argue for "sex worker rights" position it within a service industry narrative; those who argue for an …
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…and then they came for the trans* people.
05 Jun 2013
Operation Zeus in August last year marked the start of an ugly reminder of a European past that we thought we had long buried. Nearly 60 years after the end of the Second European War, migrants were round up from the streets of Greece and shoved unceremoniously into internment camps. …
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Racism and the British State
01 Jun 2013
Looking back to the start of the Month, UKIP had just taken third place in the local elections in England with an estimated 26% share of the vote, and Farange was being lauded as the champion of the little guy, with the ear of the government and considerable sympathy on …
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Trans Exclusion, Essentialism and the Lavender Menace
27 May 2013
The kick-off of the second wave of feminism is often attributed to Betty Friedman's "The Feminine Mystique ", which described "the problem which had no name" - a generation of well educated financially stable miserable women trapped in domesticity in suburban America. Reading that book nearly fifty years on, it …
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Chickens coming home to Roost?
24 May 2013
Today, over ten years on from when we marched against the Iraq War, we must face the tens of thousands of murders and millions of deaths that have been caused at the hands of the British Army and those which it supports. The atrocities, the chemical warfare, the mass killings, …
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Lets go Beyond UK-OK
17 May 2013
Guest Post from Kirsty McAlpine Reproduced with thanks from Women for Independence, via Bella Caledonia. The mission statement for Women for Independence states: "“We will ensure that there will be a space for women’s voices and interests in the campaign. Independence will create opportunities for women to engage in developing …
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For A Balanced and Inclusive Independence Debate
09 May 2013
In case you hadn't noticed, the BBC's coverage of the Scottish Independence debate is dire. When they are not comparing our democratically elected First Minister to genocidal dictators, they are warning us about about all the risks and dangers we face in such uncharted territory. "Here be monsters!", they shout, …
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Reflections on the Cis/Trans Binary
01 May 2013
This is the third in a series which started by looking at gender, then followed up by looking at sex. This post looks at the assumptions of a cis/trans binary and its implications, an issue which has had a particular focus in the third wave, as transfeminism brings new challenges …
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Yet Another Fascist Murder in Greece
30 Apr 2013
On the 6th April, a 23 year old woman was brutally beaten in Νέα Μάκρη. She was found collapsed on the road just outside her home with severe head injuries and rushed to the nearby Red Cross Hospital, but such is the condition of healthcare in Greece that there were no …
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What happened to the Drug Users of Lower Exarchia?
23 Apr 2013
When I first visited Athens, almost exactly a year ago, the area between the Polytechnic and the Museum of Archeology in lower Exarchia was a no-go area. Through the day, the area was littered with used needles other debris of drug paraphenalia, while at night between 50-100 would gather there. …
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BD/SM and the Sexual Reification of Patriarchy (Part 2/2)
14 Apr 2013
Part two of a two part series (part 1), this post explores patriarchy, power, violence and female sexuality, arguing that a BD/SM is not unproblematic, but as a reification of patriarchial sexuality it may be beneficial in making explicit the power dynamics and violence which exist in a less extreme …
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On Headscarfs and Hijabs
10 Apr 2013
A child of the 70s, the idea of women covering their heads, now heavily associated with Islam, doesn't seem that alien to me. When I was a child, most older women wore headscarfs. Little girls didn't - except in dressup - and young women would usually have their hair flowing …
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A Feminist Awakes
05 Apr 2013
Guest Post from Katherine Smith Dear Andrea Dworkin, I can’t believe I’ve missed you all these years! I’ve just read In Our Blood and it’s transformed my feeling about the world. Very few books can do that. The penny’s dropped; a few jigsaw pieces just fell into place. I’m most …
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Reflections on Sex
29 Mar 2013
The role of sex is a preoccupation of both the second and third waves of feminism. In the second wave, the discrimination that women faced on the basis of their biological sex, was starting to come to the fore of public consciousness with increased access to legal abortion, reliable free …
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UK Tories trying to out-fascist the Golden Dawn
28 Mar 2013
The Golden Dawn, a fascist party with parliamentary representation and jackboots on the streets are a major problem within Greek society. With a substantial presence in the police which covers up their racist violence, they are now turning their attention to other structures of civil society, particularly health and education …
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Reflections on Gender
26 Mar 2013
The issue of gender is a preoccupation of both the second and third waves of feminism. In the second wave, the distinction between biological sex (male/female) and socially constructed gender (man/woman) was unpicked, with the basic conclusion that gender - as a social construction - was damaging bullshit. The third …
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Objects & Subjects of Sexual Desire
23 Mar 2013
Guest Post from Davy Marzella One biological purpose of sex is the fertilisation of an egg by sperm to produce offspring and propagate the species. Presumably this is a main evolutionary reason for the impulse to be sexual. Though very few people have sex exclusively and solely for this purpose. …
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Subjects, Objects and the Sex Industry
20 Mar 2013
One of the areas which causes most consternation in feminist circles is the sex industry. Many, particularly women in the industry consider some of the narratives that surround abolitionist discourse insulting, demeaning and ultimately harmful. It is critical to appreciatie that within a situation of pre-existing power relations, the choice - …
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Rape and the American Right
14 Mar 2013
Abortion, welfare and gun control are major preoccupations of the American Right. The right to potentially kill people is sacrosanct, and allowing children to starve is fine, but attempt to end the development of a zygote, embryo or foetus and you are an evil murderess, which must be compelled …
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UCL: Racism and Women’s Rights
12 Mar 2013
On Saturday, the Islamic Education and Research Academy booked space at UCL for a debate entitled "Islam or Atheism: Which Makes More Sense?" between Professor Lawrence Krauss, a prominent atheist, and Hamza Andreas Tzortzis, a lecturer in Islamic Studies. The seating arrangements had three sections: women only, men only and mixed. This seating …
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Redefining Rape: A dangerous development
06 Mar 2013
This blogpost comes with a trigger warning as I understand that there are a group of people who are upset by this discussion continuing and would not wish to read anything more about it. Consequently, I would suggest that anyone who personally affected and is likely to be upset by reading further stops reading …
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Independence: Media and Masculinity
04 Mar 2013
Living in exile in Greece at the moment, I watch the struggle for Scottish Independence from afar. Mainstream sources are almost universally crap - giving the British propaganda a bit of seasoning then vomiting it out through their mass channels. It is new technology that will win Independence. Because …
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On the EUSA Scandal
02 Mar 2013
Now Athens is a long way from Edinburgh, and I am a long way from being a student, but I inadventantly stumbled across a scandal going down at Edinburgh University Students Association. What got me interested initially was a valiant attempt by the Equal Rights and Liberation Officer trying to point out to misogynistic …