According to this story at CBC Arts, three high school students in Cross River, New York were suspended from school for saying the word vagina! Amazing. The students were doing a reading of — wait for it — THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES, and were ordered by their principal, Richard Leprine, to not use the word vagina! This is taking our hatred towards women’s bodies a little too far, don’t you think?
Plus: Does Sex Ed teach us what we really need to know? Also: Sook-Yin Lee gets direct, the scoop on sororities, and becoming a feminist man.
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four comments
This lovely tid-bit on the story via feministing:
The controversy in Cross River centers around the verse: "My short skirt is a liberation flag in the women's army. I declare these streets, any streets, my vagina's country."
The words were part of a longer selection, which the three girls had divided among themselves.
Leading up to the performance, the girls had debated whether to say the word that they knew would get them into trouble. One idea they discussed was to not actually say the word, but rather hold up a sign with the word written on it.
Ultimately, however, they decided to say "vagina" because they did not feel they had the liberty to change a work of art.
All three girls read the final line together, as a sign of unity.
Posted by Stacey May
March 7, 2007, 4:07 PM
A few people have commented on the censorship of art aspect of this story (including the piece posted on CBC, which interviewed Vagina Monologues author Eve Ensler about the issue of censorship over art), but I think the critical issue here is that vagina, which is a word for a part of a woman's body, is considered an offensive/bad/dirty word! It's astounding. We can't even talk about our own bodies?!
Posted by Nicole
March 7, 2007, 4:15 PM
I'm flabbergasted by this news.
As I've written in the mag before (see "The Last Word: Vagina," Fall 2004) how on earth are we supposed to have a healthy relationship with our bodies when we're not given the proper words to talk about them? This story kinda makes me want to wander into that high school and start screaming at the top of my lungs, "VAGINA, CUNT, PUSSY, SNATCH!"
I like that the three girls said the word together since they knew they'd get shit for it. That must've been a nice moment. Until they got suspended.
Posted by Melinda
March 8, 2007, 1:51 PM
[...] group of students can’t use the word “Vagina” to empower women via the “Vagina Monologues,” but a bagel company can use it to sell [...]
Posted by Shameless Magazine - for girls who get it » In “u
March 12, 2007, 11:12 AM
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