Category Archives: Feminism

Frida Kahlo, Fashion Icon — The Cut

 

Fifty years after Frida Kahlo died in her home in Mexico City, her most private rooms were finally opened to the public, revealing a trove of diaries, letters, and hundreds of clothes still perfumed by paint and cigarettes. When the items became available to the Frida Kahlo Museum in 2004, the brocade corsets and hand-embroidered silk skirts were rumored to grow heavy at night, as if her spirit had returned to wear them.Fashion was as much a part of Kahlo’s paintings as her daily life: She spent hours in front of the mirror getting dressed and loved shopping at department stores as much as the shops in San Francisco’s Chinatown. The book Frida Kahlo: Fashion As the Art of Being, out March 22 from Assouline, juxtaposes Kahlo’s clothing with the fashion and designers she has continued to influence for decades.While artists and magazine editors have reproduced her bold style countless times (some featuring linen skirts, thick eyebrows, and hair adorned in flowers), she has more recently influenced designers like Riccardo Tisci for Givenchy, Dolce & Gabbana, and Carolina Herrera. Her corsets inspired Madonna’s famed “cone” bustier, designed by Jean Paul Gaultier for her 1990 Blond Ambition tour. Click ahead for a glimpse at her influence over the years.

Source: Frida Kahlo, Fashion Icon — The Cut

For These Syrian Women, Their 20s Have Been Defined by War · Global Voices

Now, Syrians account for a quarter of Lebanon’s population, and providing them all with aid has become impossible; food vouchers have been reduced and rent assistance slashed. As a result, many are seeking to move abroad. “I cannot imagine a future here in Lebanon,” Hassan says. “Five years ago, I was in Syria. Now I’m in Lebanon, even my siblings, two of them … travelled to foreign countries. No, I don’t imagine that in two years I will be here in Lebanon.” She pauses before adding, “I don’t intend to go back to Syria, either, even if things get better. That hatred of the people who killed someone, it will always be around you.” For Marwa, a 24-year-old stay-at-home mom from Damascus, adjusting to her new reality took years. “You see this view?” she asks, pointing at the scenic landscape outside her window. “It took me three years to realize how pretty it was. As refugees, we had other concerns.” Marwa came to Lebanon along with tens of thousands of others in late 2012, when the war in Syria was spiralling out of control and swaths of the major cities were becoming no-go zones. As new refugees, she moved with her family from village to village, desperately looking for work for her husband and a school that would accept their two young children. When they eventually settled in a small village in Mount Lebanon, they also had to deal with widespread suspicion and mistrust from a population growing increasingly weary of playing host. These days, locals have become accustomed to the extra residents, but while time has improved community relations, it has not been kind to the guests’ finances. “My neighbor is going back to Syria,” Marwa explains. “Even though there’s a lot of suffering there, she’s in too much debt here. My husband is thinking the same because he’s paid so little at work and can’t take it anymore.” She throws her hands in the air and says, “I tell him ‘You can go back, but I’m not going with you. What did our children do to deserve living in the middle of a war?’ “

Source: For These Syrian Women, Their 20s Have Been Defined by War · Global Voices

Chile lawmakers move towards authorizing abortion in limited cases | News | DW.COM | 18.03.2016

Abortion had been legal in Chile before 1989 in cases of risk to the mother or an unviable fetus before the practice became outlawed. Ever since, Chile has remained one of the few countries in the world not to allow abortion under any circumstances – a measure introduced by ex-dictator General Augusto Pinochet shortly before his departure from power in 1990. The prohibition remained unchanged for more than twenty-five years because of pressure from the Roman Catholic Church and other conservative groups. A touchy subject on many levels An estimated 160,000 clandestine abortions are nevertheless carried out each year in Chile – sometimes under risky circumstances. Polls indicate that 70 percent of Chileans say they support the new bill. Illegal abortions remained accessible mainly to wealthy Chileans only; making the issue both a moral question and an economic one.

Source: Chile lawmakers move towards authorizing abortion in limited cases | News | DW.COM | 18.03.2016

Obama Privately Tells Donors That Time Is Coming to Unite Behind Hillary Clinton – The New York Times

Mr. Obama acknowledged that Mrs. Clinton was perceived to have weaknesses as a candidate, and that some Democrats did not view her as authentic. But he played down the importance of authenticity, noting that President George W. Bush — whose record he ran aggressively against in 2008 — was once praised for his authenticity.

Source: Obama Privately Tells Donors That Time Is Coming to Unite Behind Hillary Clinton – The New York Times

This is not American Idol or First Date. This is reality and not a reality show where someone like Trump shines on stage-managed spin to appear authentic.

Merkel to stick to refugee policy despite election defeat

German Chancellor Angela Merkel stood firm Monday on her liberal refugee policy, despite a drubbing in regional elections described as a “debacle” in which disgruntled voters turned to the anti-migrant AfD.Original enclosures:

Source: Merkel to stick to refugee policy despite election defeat

Woman arrested in France for T-shirt critical of Israel | The Electronic Intifada

The feminist collective 8 Mars Pour TouTEs denounced the arrest and pledged support for the activist and for the BDS movement. The arrest was evidence of the “criminalization of political struggles,” the group said, vowing to mount strong solidarity in response to “the police state and political and racist repression.” The left-wing grouping Ensemble has condemned the arrest, describing it as a consequence of the “security climate” in France. The Palestine solidarity group BDS France noted that the day after the arrest, Prime Minister Manuel Valls told a dinner hosted by the Israel lobby group CRIF that “anti-Zionism is nothing more than a synonym for anti-Semitism and the hatred of Israel.” “Today, politicians who support the Israeli apartheid regime are out of arguments,” BDS France said in a statement. “They conflate anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism and terrorism, and take all the Jews of the world hostage, stubbornly insisting that they become accomplices of the war crimes and apartheid of a state which is foreign to them,” BDS France added. The campaign group said that with the growing global success of BDS, “a nonviolent, anti-racist citizen movement for the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people,” Israel and its allies in the French government had no recourse but to try to smear it as anti-Semitic. Court rulings and government decrees have outlawed calls to boycott Israeli goods, prompting defiance from French civil society. Undeterred BDS France is also vowing not to fold under government repression.

Source: Woman arrested in France for T-shirt critical of Israel | The Electronic Intifada

Jagrutha Mahila Sanghatan « a dalit women’s collective

Hejjegalu (The Footsteps) – The Journey of JMS, Raichur JANUARY 27, 2016 2:51 PM / LEAVE A COMMENT Hejjegalu  (The Footsteps) Duration: 26 minutes Language; Kannada with English Subtitles. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDeoA7GJDhQ This short documentary film captures the story of a Dalit Madiga Women’s Collective, Jagrutha Mahila Sanghatane, Potnal. It traces the footsteps of a social experiment aimed at catalysing the birth of a grassroots Dalit women’s voice to resist,the hegemonies of caste, class and gender. The Dalit madiga women agricultural laborers used the twin principles of sangharsh (struggle) and navnirman (reconstruction) to harness their collective strength to question caste and gender-based oppression and violence while also ushering in a new dawn of dignity and justice. The film is a tribute to the indomitable spirit, resolve and ingenuity of Dalit madiga women as they continue to confront gender, caste and class oppression and provide a shining illustration of meaningful human development work. Film concept and production:  Vijaya Kumar. S

Source: Jagrutha Mahila Sanghatan « a dalit women’s collective

On Women’s Day: IOF kidnap high profile activist, mother of six, Manal Tamimi – PNN

Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) on Tuesday overnight have kidnapped iconic activist against the Wall and settlements, and mother of six, Manal Tamimi (43) from her home in Al-Nabi Saleh village near Ramallah. On the International Women’s Day, 8th of March, at 1:30 AM, dozens of soldiers stormed Manal’s home, raided it and detained her family in one room, while female Israeli soldiers have taken Manal to another room in the house, thoroughly inspected her, then kidnapped her. Manal’s husband, Bilal Tamimi (50) said that a few hours after the arrest, the family knew that Manal was taken to Benyamin Israeli police center near Ramallah, calling it “the Israeli gift to the Palestinian women on women’s day.” Manal’s lawyer, Gabi Lasky, said that Tamimi went through investigation at the police center, and has asked for a hearing session to take place as soon as possible to know the charges held against her.

Source: On Women’s Day: IOF kidnap high profile activist, mother of six, Manal Tamimi – PNN

Afghan Court Confirms Reduced Sentences in Mob Killing of Woman – {Ten Years – they will probably appeal and win… Too many men still in dark in Afghanistan}

Men sentenced to death in the brutal killing of Farkhunda, a young woman who was an Islamic scholar, had their sentences cut to as little as 10 years.

Original enclosures:

Source: Afghan Court Confirms Reduced Sentences in Mob Killing of Woman