Before there was 50 Shades of Grey, there was Lace. Not that I’ve read 50 Shades (an admission which ironically undermines my status as a reviewer), but you think BDSM is shocking? Shirley Conran, author of Lace, describes it as ‘baby porn’. She shocked everyone with Lace, it’s frank discussions and depictions of sex (from…
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Assume the rules do not apply to you and they don’t – Phryne Fisher in Unnatural Habits Phryne Fisher is an art-deco nymph, a lady detective and a rich socialite who gallivants around late 1920s Melbourne in illustrious dresses. She keeps a pearl-handled pistol tucked in her garter, can fly a Tiger Moth, drove an…
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Here we have Vivienne Westwood causing one of her classic kerfuffles by claiming that she ‘doesn’t see why women in the privileged world need to be’ feminists. It’s an interesting point to raise as it brings to mind how often those in positions of privilege seem to either forget or willfully ignore the thronging mass…
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Earlier this year, I wrote a short piece on my blog about protesters and the argument of freedom of speech. I think it’s worth a re-cap: ‘Every day on my way to work I walk past a women’s medical centre. Not really a notable observation except that this usually includes dodging a group of religious…
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Uganda to pass bill to harshly punish homosexuality In Uganda, homosexual sex is already considered a crime. In 2009, lawmakers with the ruling party said a stronger law was needed to protect Uganda’s children from homosexuals. People in the party said that Western homosexuals in particular ‘recruited’ young Ugandans to the ‘gay lifestyle’. The bill…
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RMIT lecturer Steve Kates wrote an opinion piece for the Quadrant blog last week called ‘The 47% majority’. Kates blamed Obama’s re-election on the ‘cohort of damaged women’ and ‘social sciences know-nothings’. ‘Re-electing Obama has endangered our way of life and may even make it unsustainable,’ he wrote. ‘We are in dangerous times.’ What is…
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There’s no denying that abortion is a tricky topic to talk about. Whether you’re ‘pro-life’* or ‘pro-choice’, abortion is an emotionally charged issue, and there’s a massive amount of stigma surrounding it. Have you ever thought, though, that maybe it would be easier to bring into the light if we could all just…dance about it?…
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This article originally appeared in Lip Issue 22 – you can buy a copy of the mag here. We promise it’s packed full of other goodies! Here’s a term that makes me want to rip my own face off every time I hear it – feminazi. It’s a term that people use when describing a…
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Oh, I don’t tell you what to say I don’t tell you what to do So just let me be myself That’s all I ask of you A PSA is going around the internet at the moment, aimed at women voters in America. A bunch of female identified people are lip synching to Lesley Gore’s…
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‘Are you still interested in the job?’ ‘No.’ ‘Do you still want to come out?’ ‘No.’ ‘Are you going to buy that?’ ‘No.’ Later on: WHY DID I SAY NO? If self-sabotage were a job, I’d be the CEO of the company. I can’t remember when I first became aware that I have a tendency…
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The most recent strangest sensation I have felt lately is the wind wafting through the hairs on my legs. The second strangest would be getting my underarm hairs caught in tops and bras. I’m growing my body hair out in preparation for a wax. I generally shave, but I’m going overseas soon and I didn’t…
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There’s nothing wrong with being an angry feminist. As we’ve seen in recent weeks, there is still a lot to be angry about. The anger of feminists has for a long time been a force of good for us all. Birth control, the equality of men and women at home as well as at work,…
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Welcome to the 52nd edition of the Down Under Feminists Carnival – check out our selections for the month of August below! Motherhood & Other “Women’s Work” Motherhood: the Ultimate Writing Accessory? by Tansy Rayner-Roberts Being Someone Who Cares, Seeking Care by Transcendancing Oh these kids clothes are just so cute! by Sarah Trans* Issues…
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Last week, I bought my husband a copy of Kurt Cobain’s Journals. I have always been a fan of Nirvana, but I would be lying if I said that I automatically connected with all of Cobain’s lyrics. What initially began as a quick browse through the pages resulted in my reading the journals cover to…
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