Posts by Beth Lyons
-
In the Blog
On Calling Things By Name: Rape, Exploitation and Victim-Blaming Aren’t Bullying
Trigger warning for discussion of sexual violence. – Another young Canadian woman is dead as a result of sexual abuse, exploitation, and subsequent victim-blaming, and, yet again, public discussion and media coverage is reducing this story from one of gender-based violence and oppression to one of bullying. Rehtaeh Parsons, 17, died in Nova Scotia on Sunday night after having hanged herself 3 days priors. Her family is attributing her actions to the fact that in November 2011, when … READ MORE
-
In the Blog
On White Ribbon’s Be-a-Man.ca Launch
Put her in her place Tears are weak Feelings are for chicks Stop acting gay Grow some balls Say it with fists Toward the end of November, a series of posters featuring these statements went up in Toronto. The posters also had be-a-man.ca printed along the bottom. The be-a-man.ca site featured video of people walking past the posters, followed by text asking if the posters reflected what it means to be a man, then answering “we don’t think so” and announcing … READ MORE
-
In the Blog
On Julyna (or: How I’d Like to be Cancer AND Patriarchy Free)
July is apparently now “Julyna.” I found this out a week ago, when the word popped up on my Twitter feed. Initially, I ignored it (I ignore a lot of stuff on Twitter). Then it kept appearing. When I finally muttered “What the fuck is Julyna?” out loud, I realized the word rhymed with vagina and figured I was going to have to read up on it. And read up I did! Julyna actually owes its … READ MORE
-
In the Blog
On the Abolition of the New Brunswick Advisory Council on the Status of Women: Government Spin
As promised, I’m going to discuss how the NB government is spinning its decision to abolish the N.B. Advisory Council on the Status of Women. Warning: The content of this post may make you want to pull your hair out. Dizzying Spin #1: We’re not abolishing the Advisory Council! From the start, the government has said many times that it isn’t abolishing the Advisory Council, just defunding it. The government is actually actively taking issue … READ MORE
