UK Prime Minister, David Cameron has recently been interviewed by British publication Red magazine about his children, his family life, and whether or not he considers himself to be a feminist. Cameron happily opened up about his role in family life, about being there at the birth of his four children, even admitting that it…
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Saudi Cleric says driving cars damages women’s ovaries. An Ultra-conservative Saudi Sheikh, Saleh bin Saad al-Lohaidan, has argued that women should not be allowed to drive cars because (apparently) ‘studies show’ that driving damages women’s ovaries and pelvises, causing them to give birth to babies with clinical problems. Although there is no official law…
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Name: Jess Jacobson Age: 25 Occupation: Program Coordinator, International Women’s Development Agency Hometown: Ulverstone, Tasmania Describe yourself in one word: Optimist. What is your feminist philosophy? To me, feminism is about complex power dynamics that impact us all in ways that we can’t see. We cannot separate sex, ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexuality, class, religion,…
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Women only spaces on the rise in India. After the 2012 New Delhi bus rape, a woman-only culture has blossomed in India, with women seeking out woman-only hotel floors, cabs and busses. In November the Indian government is launching a bank just for women, to empower them financially. The report rate of sexual violence in…
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I hate to say it, but I only started wearing lipstick last year. I was, up until that point a staunch lip-gloss person. And before that, I had what I’d call my wilderness years, where the occasional slick of Vaseline would suffice. Moving from using lip-gloss to embracing lipstick felt like a jump: an initiation…
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This ‘300 Sandwiches’ project will make your feminist blood boil. Another sarcastic feminist hashtag trend has emerged on Twitter in response to this blog and the corresponding article in the New York Post, wherein lady journalist and blogger Stephanie Smith’s boyfriend asked her to make him a sandwich and so she did. She’s now on…
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Newly elected Liberal Democratic Party senator says that if Jill Meagher had a gun she’d be alive today. Liberal Democratic Party senator, David Leyonhjelm, is calling for a change to self defence laws, claiming that Australia should have similar gun laws to the US. In order to support his argument, Leyonhjelm argued that if Jill…
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In case you missed it: Tony Abbott is now the minister for women. Newly sworn in Prime Minister, Tony Abbott announced his cabinet earlier in the week and we all know how that went down. While Abbott removed numerous ministerial posts such as science, aged care and early childhood, it has been announced that there…
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In case you missed it: Ita Buttrose claims glass ceiling is very much alive in Australia. Australian of the year and all-round-class-act, Ita Buttrose, has openly criticized the lack of women in Tony Abbott’s new cabinet, claiming that it is ‘unacceptable’ in 2013. A trailblazer and longtime women’s advocate, since her days as the founding…
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We often think of feminism as purely a women’s movement, based on the inclusion of women and the exclusion of men. The phenomena of ‘Sisterhood’ itself, advocating for the solidarity of all women, implies the existence of a movement of women, standing up for women and challenging social institutions that support men. While I have…
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Prime Minister-elect Tony Abbott announces cabinet and, as expected, it’s a sausage-fest. Today Tony Abbott announced his new Prime Ministerial cabinet, and as expected, it is explicitly lacking in ladies. Due to the Coalition agreement with the National Party, although Julie Bishop is the deputy leader of the Liberal Party, it is National Party leader,…
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Name: Anne Summers Age: 68 Occupation: Writer and publisher Hometown: Sydney Describe yourself in one word: Adventurous What is your feminist philosophy? I believe that women should be free to play an equal part in all aspects of our society, and should be given the same opportunities and rewards (pay, honours, etc) as men. Simple,…
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In case you missed it: Julia Gillard waxes lyrical about power, legacy and the future of Labor. Former Prime Minister, Julia Gillard has broken her silence today, penning a column for The Guardian focusing on notions of power. Gillard reflected on the shortcomings of the new Abbott government as well as her own, being…
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Now, I’ll be honest. I was always a FEMEN-naysayer. I found their protest methods bizarre from the beginning, and couldn’t shake the feeling that just ‘raising awareness’ of issues through the use of bare breasts and sensationalist news stories isn’t entirely effective when it comes to the broader feminist movement. I have had many an…
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