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All posts published in November 2008
Page 3 of 10
Events of late remind me that I need to post this.
Watch this awesome video produced by Native Lens from the always amazing Longhouse Media. These are youth from the Swinomish Tribe who tell YOU loud and clear why they are proud to be Native.
I know I’m damn proud to be Native!
A few weeks ago I blogged about the horrific piece in the Globe and Mail by Margaret Wente. Squeezed in at the bottom was a quick reference and video link to what has been going on for the Algonquins of the northern Quebec community of Barriere Lake, following Jessica’s astute post on racism in that community. Please, I urge you to look at this video again.
After exhausting all political avenues, the Algonquins of Barriere Lake and many non-native supporters have blockaded Highway 117 twice. The video shows the first blockade, where the community, including Elders, youth and children, were met with a brutal police response. Riot cops used tear gas and pain compliance, instead of negotiators. The police response has drawn criticism from international human rights groups, the Chiefs of Ontario, and the Christian Peacemaker Team.
Algonquin children keeping watch over their community. This has been my desktop photo for a few weeks now to inspire me.
They will maintain the peaceful blockade until both the Canadian and Quebec governments honour their signed agreements that would allow co-management of their traditional territory and resource revenue sharing, and until Canada respects their leadership customs by appointing an observer to witness a leadership selection in accordance with their Customary Governance Code, and in good faith recognize the outcome.
But yet she can! Eri Yoshida, 16-year-old pitching wunderkind, has been drafted into an independent Japanese baseball team, the Kobe 9 Cruise. Her recruitment makes it the first of its kind in Japan’s recent history (there was a professional league over 50 years ago).
As you can see in the video, not only is she excited (“Sugoi! Bikurishimashita!” = “This is awesome! I’m so surprised!”), she’s very thankful. And while the normalcy of her being a baseball star in chugakusei (junior high school, hence the uniform) isn’t really discussed in the media attention, her positioning in a professional baseball league is a big deal not only for Japan, but for Western perceptions of Japanese women in sport and other non-traditional roles.
I’m excited to watch Eri-chan take on the world of Japanese pro baseball and am curious to see how our perceptions of women’s rights and opportunities across the Pacific pond play out in the media. Not only is she the first woman to play in this league, but this will be the first time she actually gets to play competitively with men. It’s also the first time she’ll have to deal with scrutiny she probably never expected, because it seems that some people think she was recruited for publicity, rather than her skill.
Staying in tonight? I know I am!
Maybe you’re even looking for some movie advice, too?
I’m a shameless fan of the Parkdale Street Writers, an awesome writing workshop full of cool, creative youth. We were thrilled to have some writing from the first workshop in the last issue. Well, a new set of workshops are slated to begin (info below). For more information, check out the website!
PARKDALE STREET WRITERS
(Coordinated by award-winning author Emily Pohl-Weary)
Calling all bloggers, poetry scribblers, epic e-mailers, and daydreamers thinking about writing an entire novel… The Parkdale Street Writers is for you! This series of free writing workshops for at-risk youth runs every Tuesday, from 4 to 6 pm, starting December 2, 2008. Learn about many different genres, including song lyrics and poetry, film scripts, short stories, interviews and reviews. Work directly with professional writers, comics creators, hip hop lyricists, novelists and illustrators to learn about the industry, get tips, and publish your work.PARKDALE BOOK ARTISTS
(Coordinated by graphic novelist and illustrator Willow Dawson)
A series of free book art and illustration workshops for youth at risk in the Parkdale area. The program runs every Thursday from 4 to 6 pm, starting November 27 and ending June 25. Youth will work directly with local authors, illustrators and designers to create drawings, paintings, collages, graffiti, comics and other book or magazine related artwork. The program will culminate in the summer, with a group gallery exhibition and a publication showcasing their work.
This gets me particularly enraged, that we have to even fight for our inherent right to nurse our children, no matter where we are.
From the Vancouver Sun:
“Mothers who give birth while incarcerated at a provincial jail have the constitutional right to keep their babies with them, says a legal action filed in B.C. Supreme Court.There was a “mother-baby program” in the past, but it was cancelled last April by Lisa Anderson, the new warden at the Alouette Correctional Centre for Women, according to a statement of claim filed this week.
The move also deprives the mothers to breastfeed their children and deprives the children of the health benefits of breast milk, it says.
Aboriginal mothers are disproportionately affected by the cancellation of the program because they are disproportionately represented at ACCW, the legal action says.”
Queen’s University is starting an “intergroup dialogue program” — with student facilitators who will intervene when they hear other students making homophobic, racist or sexist comments or using homophobic, racist or sexist words.
“The Kingston university has hired student facilitators to step in when they overhear homophobic slurs, remarks bashing women or racially tinged insults, along with an array of other language that could be deemed offensive.…
A sampling of some behaviour that could warrant attention from university-appointed student facilitators, tasked with policing students’ offensive language at Queen’s:
* If a student uses the phrase “That’s so gay” in conversation.
* If a student calls someone or something “retarded.”
* If a student writes a homophobic, racist or other derogatory remark in a public space, such as on a residence poster or classmate’s door.
* If a student avoids a classmate’s birthday party for faith-based reasons.”
Full article here. Thoughts?
Every Thursday I profile a new incredible woman, each from a different walk of life. Different professions, causes, backgrounds, ethnicities, orientations, and anything/everything else!
So without further delay, let me introduce femme phatale Ebonnie Rowe…
At this point I usually jump right into a little introductory bio about our current Shameless Woman, and not to worry, it’s just below. But first I wanted to quickly add something here…
Being an artist and musician as well as an activist, it seems like everywhere I turn there’s someone who wants to try to take advantage of you or hold you down for some reason or another — and often times that reason is merely because you are a woman.
On that same note, the topic of misogyny in hip hop is a familiar subject here at Shameless – so it’s amazing to be able to introduce you to someone I very, very, very much admire, Ebonnie Rowe. An incredible woman who doesn’t let being called a “bitch” stop her from giving young women a safe place to launch their careers in an industry that often takes advantage of naivety and dreams.
CEO of Phemphat and creator of Honey Jam (both which showcase and promote women in urban music), Ebonnie Rowe is the winner of multiple awards for her work in the industry as well as mentoring young women and supporting the community. It’s safe to say she is definitely a Shameless Woman to look up to!
I have to admit lately I feel *very* ambivalent when I see everyday activities turned into political statements. One minute you’re shopping for some new undies at Zellers, the next, reading the 3 pack of bamboo bikini cuts that says “Protecting your earth” and thinking, “Is this true - does covering my derriere with bamboo instead of cotton really make a difference?”
The trendier social politics becomes, the harder it is to discern genuine change from marketing rhetoric. The more we consume, the more we use consumption to define our politics, saying things like, “I stopped buying Nikes in 2000 because of their labor practice”. As social marketing evolves, it attempts to define consumer politics so we don’t have to make the effort. So when going out to buy diapers the consumer doesn’t just have to decide if absorbency and convenience trump ecological responsibility, they also have to read, “A dollar from every package of Huggies sold helps educate a child in India!”
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