Misogyny and Sexism in the News

Martina · 05-08-2011, 08:31 PM

they must not post many pictures of world events. i am thinking i'd find it more acceptable if they said in the caption that Hillary was there, but they photoshopped her out for religious reasons. What annoys me is not the religious prohibition against images of women, but erasing women from history -- and letting hasidic women believe that only men rule the world outside theirs. i am sure they know better. They live in cities, but . . .

Soon · 05-08-2011, 08:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martina

they must not post many pictures of world events. i am thinking i'd find it more acceptable if they said in the caption that Hillary was there, but they photoshopped her out for religious reasons. What annoys me is not the religious prohibition against images of women, but erasing women from history -- and letting hasidic women believe that only men rule the world outside theirs. i am sure they know better. They live in cities, but . . .

hmm...it really DOES annoy me that they photoshopped her (and, apparently, another woman...nods to Toughy) out b/c of religious prohibitions against images of women AND, thereby, erasing women from history.

I am not a cultural relativist, though. (not saying you are)

Soon · 05-09-2011, 03:24 PM

INVISIBLE

Hasidic Newspaper Explains Why It Airbrushed Out Hillary Clinton

Irin Carmon — Di Tzeitung, the Hasidic newspaper that Photoshopically removed Hillary Clinton and Audrey Tomason from the famous situation room photo, has explained its actions as follows:

Our photo editor realized the significance of this historic moment, and published the picture, but in his haste he did not read the "fine print" that accompanied the picture, forbidding any changes. We should not have published the altered picture, and we have conveyed our regrets and apologies to the White House and to the State Department.

The allegations that religious Jews denigrate women or do not respect women in public office, is a malicious slander and libel. The current Secretary of State, the Honorable Hillary R. Clinton, was a Senator representing New York State with great distinction 8 years. She won overwhelming majorities in the Orthodox Jewish communities in her initial campaign in '00, and when she was re-elected in '06, because the religious community appreciated her unique capabilities and compassion to all communities. The Jewish religion does not allow for discrimination based on gender, race, etc. We respect all government officials. We even have special prayers for the welfare of our Government and the government leaders, and there is no mention of gender in such prayers.

In accord with our religious beliefs, we do not publish photos of women, which in no way relegates them to a lower status. Publishing a newspaper is a big responsibility, and our policies are guided by a Rabbinical Board. Because of laws of modesty, we are not allowed to publish pictures of women, and we regret if this gives an impression of disparaging to women, which is certainly never our intention. We apologize if this was seen as offensive.

It's not only this paper that is consistent on this front; in Israel, ultra-Orthodox papers don't publish photos of Kadima party leader Tzipi Livi, nor use her first name. In one newspaper photo, the two out of 30 cabinet ministers that happened to be female were replaced with a black hole.

Martina · 05-09-2011, 03:30 PM

God, a black hole. If that's not symbolic. . .

But i think that's better than photoshopping. i mean, say the Secy of State was there, say that whatever her name was there, and you have just removed their images. That's at least better than what seems like a lie, like pretending they weren't there.

Quintease · 05-09-2011, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HowSoonIsNow

The allegations that religious Jews denigrate women or do not respect women in public office, is a malicious slander and libel.

Because of laws of modesty, we are not allowed to publish pictures of women, and we regret if this gives an impression of disparaging to women

WTF??

They respect women SO MUCH, they can't actually discuss their achievements in the local media! *Head spin*

Martina · 05-09-2011, 03:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quintease

WTF??

They respect women SO MUCH, they can't actually discuss their achievements in the local media! *Head spin*

i am not sure they can't. In fact i bet they do discuss Hillary's work and did particularly when she was the U.S. Senator for New York. Didn't something we read say they had done this once before to Hillary when she was meeting with some Hasidic rabbis?

The point is the article probably talked about the Senator meeting with Rabbi So and So, etc. They just didn't show her picture.

BullDog · 05-09-2011, 03:36 PM

The pic without Hilary Clinton in it has a big, gaping hole. I guess that laptop is just sitting there for a ghost.

WTF does modesty have to do with reporting news. If you can't report news accurately then don't report it at all.

Martina · 05-09-2011, 04:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BullDog

The pic without Hilary Clinton in it has a big, gaping hole. I guess that laptop is just sitting there for a ghost.

WTF does modesty have to do with reporting news. If you can't report news accurately then don't report it at all.

Small newspapers are ways that communities maintain themselves. They do not report all the same news or from the same perspective. i do think that photoshopping women out without making sure that their presence is noted is rewriting history without women, which is misrepresenting it. i don't defend their right to do that.

But i think that if they don't want images of women because of their religious beliefs, then they don't have to put them in. Perhaps they should just not include pictures that origninally had women. But they have to struggle with that and the criticism they receive.

i do think it's a freedom of religion issue. It's one of the things i am proudest of about the U.S. If we didn't protect freedom of religion, we would suffer because fundamentalist Christianity would overwhelm parts of our public culture, especially in some regions.

In any case, it's an important basic freedom. Way more important than the fact that you or i might be offended by what they do.

Soon · 05-10-2011, 02:30 PM

“Corrective Rape” in South Africa: Not Getting Better

I am sorry that I said this a little while ago, when South African LGBTQ activists met with government leaders to talk about corrective rape, a widespread practice in that region:

There’s no word yet on the outcome of the meeting; it may be too much to hope that all activists’ demands were met. But it’s not too much to hope that with the government finally meeting with LGBT activists, the road may be paved for further efforts to stop corrective rape and diminish its commonality.

I am sorry because things in South Africa have not improved since then. In fact,a recent update shows that the corrective rape problem there is growing, in both numbers and ferocity. This is all occurring in a nation where laws about gay people are a fantasy compared to ours – so it’s part of a heavy societal, and not legislative, backlash against the gay community – and the lesbian community in particular. And it’s an incredibly violent manifestation. The homophobia that’s being experienced is complex: other regions in Africa have had more widespread movements against the gay community, and they appear to be a big influence on this one.

South Africa has a complicated history with respect to homophobia, and colonial rule brought about institutionalized homophobia in the form of laws and gay sex bans. This might be ancient history for the progressive laws of South Africa now, but it sets a tone for anti-gay violence and it is where it originated for the region.

The stories are truly chilling. The contempt, and rage, felt toward the lesbian community in South Africa is pretty devastating:

In South Africa, more than 30 lesbians have been killed in “corrective rape” cases since 1998, yet only one case has resulted in a conviction. By some estimates, at least 10 lesbians are raped or assaulted every week in the Cape Town area alone. In one of the most notorious cases, a gang of men raped and murdered 31-year-old Eudy Simelane, a lesbian who played on South Africa’s national women’s soccer team. She was stabbed 25 times in the face, legs and chest.

According to survivors, the attackers often shout that they are “teaching a lesson” to their lesbian victims, or showing them “how to be a real woman.” Many victims never report the attacks to the police, fearing that they will be mocked or abused.

Even in schools, many young boys believe that lesbians need to be raped to “correct” their sexual orientation, according to the South African Human Rights Commission. “A culture of rape is being passed down to younger generations of South African men,” said a report by ActionAid, an international rights group. “Women are forced to conform to gender stereotypes or suffer the consequences.” [...]

The South African courts and police have been slow to respond to the attacks on lesbians. One court case, involving the murder of 19-year-old Zoliswa Nkonyana by a gang of about 20 men who wanted to “correct” her sexuality, has been postponed 33 times and has dragged on for five years without a resolution.

One case has finally sparked global attention. Millicent Gaika, a 30-year-old lesbian in a township near Cape Town, was raped and beaten for five hours by a man who tried to strangle her with barbed wire. “I know you are a lesbian,” the man told her. “You are not a man. You think you are, but I am going to show you. You are a woman.”

These stories are a reminder, and are proof, that identifying corrective rape as a hate crime would be no understatement. And that’s exactly what the

LGBTQ activists in South Africa are trying to do.
Ndumie Funda is leading the challenge against corrective rape, inspired to do so by the practice’s impact on her fiancee. She herself is in extreme danger, and has faced a brunt of verbal threats. When she formed a human rights organization, she was forced into hiding. But she has not stopped:

While the threat of violence and prison is forcing many African gays to go underground, the war is not over. In a few South African black townships, lesbian volunteers are going door-to-door to raise awareness of their issues. A growing coalition of rights groups is fighting against “corrective rape.” And after the global petition produced so many thousands of e-mails that the government pleaded for it to stop, Ms. Funda and other activists were granted a two-hour meeting with senior Justice Ministry officials on March 14.

The officials promised Ms. Funda that they would take action on the corrective-rape issue, including setting up a meeting with top police commanders. “The meeting was exciting,” she said. “It was great.”

I may have been too hopeful about that meeting, but I stand my ground that these activists are some of the most amazing women in the world. Corrective rape cannot continue, in any region of the world, and these activists have the fire to keep fighting. (All of my heart is with them.)

EnderD_503 · 05-11-2011, 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martina

Small newspapers are ways that communities maintain themselves. They do not report all the same news or from the same perspective. i do think that photoshopping women out without making sure that their presence is noted is rewriting history without women, which is misrepresenting it. i don't defend their right to do that.

But i think that if they don't want images of women because of their religious beliefs, then they don't have to put them in. Perhaps they should just not include pictures that origninally had women. But they have to struggle with that and the criticism they receive.

i do think it's a freedom of religion issue. It's one of the things i am proudest of about the U.S. If we didn't protect freedom of religion, we would suffer because fundamentalist Christianity would overwhelm parts of our public culture, especially in some regions.

In any case, it's an important basic freedom. Way more important than the fact that you or i might be offended by what they do.

And this is part of why I will never relent butting heads with religion.

Religious freedom is all fine and dandy, but I do not think religious beliefs should ever take precedence over the rights of individual human beings to be acknowledged for the achievements, their right to go about their lives just like everyone else etc.

Religion, whether or not the religious like to admit it, is a choice as well as a cultural issue (being raised a certain religion, f.ex.) Women, men, those in between, various races and ethnicities, sexual orientations, gender identities, disabilities and so on...these are things people have no choice in. They are born as they are born and does not determine their own opinions and perspectives. A religious choice should not take precedence over a woman's right to be acknowledged for her own achievements. Misogynist religious beliefs should not be permitted to simply write women out of the public sphere or politics out of convenience or in the name of "religious freedom" without legal repercussions. Personally, I think every nation should have media laws put in place to prevent this sort of thing from happening. The press should not be permitted to knowingly mislead the public.

05-09-2011, 03:24 PM	#3
Soon Infamous Member How Do You Identify?: femme Relationship Status: attached Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: . Posts: 6,896 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 29,046 Thanked 13,093 Times in 3,386 Posts Rep Power: 21474858	Um, Ok. INVISIBLE Hasidic Newspaper Explains Why It Airbrushed Out Hillary Clinton Irin Carmon — Di Tzeitung, the Hasidic newspaper that Photoshopically removed Hillary Clinton and Audrey Tomason from the famous situation room photo, has explained its actions as follows: Our photo editor realized the significance of this historic moment, and published the picture, but in his haste he did not read the "fine print" that accompanied the picture, forbidding any changes. We should not have published the altered picture, and we have conveyed our regrets and apologies to the White House and to the State Department. The allegations that religious Jews denigrate women or do not respect women in public office, is a malicious slander and libel. The current Secretary of State, the Honorable Hillary R. Clinton, was a Senator representing New York State with great distinction 8 years. She won overwhelming majorities in the Orthodox Jewish communities in her initial campaign in '00, and when she was re-elected in '06, because the religious community appreciated her unique capabilities and compassion to all communities. The Jewish religion does not allow for discrimination based on gender, race, etc. We respect all government officials. We even have special prayers for the welfare of our Government and the government leaders, and there is no mention of gender in such prayers. In accord with our religious beliefs, we do not publish photos of women, which in no way relegates them to a lower status. Publishing a newspaper is a big responsibility, and our policies are guided by a Rabbinical Board. Because of laws of modesty, we are not allowed to publish pictures of women, and we regret if this gives an impression of disparaging to women, which is certainly never our intention. We apologize if this was seen as offensive. It's not only this paper that is consistent on this front; in Israel, ultra-Orthodox papers don't publish photos of Kadima party leader Tzipi Livi, nor use her first name. In one newspaper photo, the two out of 30 cabinet ministers that happened to be female were replaced with a black hole.

05-09-2011, 03:36 PM	#7
BullDog Infamous Member How Do You Identify?: Dominant Stone Butch Daddy Preferred Pronoun?: She Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: In A Healing Place Posts: 5,371 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 18,160 Thanked 22,640 Times in 4,463 Posts Rep Power: 21474857	The pic without Hilary Clinton in it has a big, gaping hole. I guess that laptop is just sitting there for a ghost. WTF does modesty have to do with reporting news. If you can't report news accurately then don't report it at all. __________________ Love consists in this, that two solitudes protect and touch and greet each other. - Rainer Maria Rilke

05-08-2011, 08:31 PM	#1
Martina Senior Member How Do You Identify?: * Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: * Posts: 4,999 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 13,409 Thanked 18,284 Times in 4,166 Posts Rep Power: 21474854	they must not post many pictures of world events. i am thinking i'd find it more acceptable if they said in the caption that Hillary was there, but they photoshopped her out for religious reasons. What annoys me is not the religious prohibition against images of women, but erasing women from history -- and letting hasidic women believe that only men rule the world outside theirs. i am sure they know better. They live in cities, but . . .

05-09-2011, 03:30 PM	#4
Martina Senior Member How Do You Identify?: * Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: * Posts: 4,999 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 13,409 Thanked 18,284 Times in 4,166 Posts Rep Power: 21474854	God, a black hole. If that's not symbolic. . . But i think that's better than photoshopping. i mean, say the Secy of State was there, say that whatever her name was there, and you have just removed their images. That's at least better than what seems like a lie, like pretending they weren't there.

05-10-2011, 02:30 PM	#9
Soon Infamous Member How Do You Identify?: femme Relationship Status: attached Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: . Posts: 6,896 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 29,046 Thanked 13,093 Times in 3,386 Posts Rep Power: 21474858	“Corrective Rape” in South Africa: Not Getting Better I am sorry that I said this a little while ago, when South African LGBTQ activists met with government leaders to talk about corrective rape, a widespread practice in that region: There’s no word yet on the outcome of the meeting; it may be too much to hope that all activists’ demands were met. But it’s not too much to hope that with the government finally meeting with LGBT activists, the road may be paved for further efforts to stop corrective rape and diminish its commonality. I am sorry because things in South Africa have not improved since then. In fact,a recent update shows that the corrective rape problem there is growing, in both numbers and ferocity. This is all occurring in a nation where laws about gay people are a fantasy compared to ours – so it’s part of a heavy societal, and not legislative, backlash against the gay community – and the lesbian community in particular. And it’s an incredibly violent manifestation. The homophobia that’s being experienced is complex: other regions in Africa have had more widespread movements against the gay community, and they appear to be a big influence on this one. South Africa has a complicated history with respect to homophobia, and colonial rule brought about institutionalized homophobia in the form of laws and gay sex bans. This might be ancient history for the progressive laws of South Africa now, but it sets a tone for anti-gay violence and it is where it originated for the region. The stories are truly chilling. The contempt, and rage, felt toward the lesbian community in South Africa is pretty devastating: In South Africa, more than 30 lesbians have been killed in “corrective rape” cases since 1998, yet only one case has resulted in a conviction. By some estimates, at least 10 lesbians are raped or assaulted every week in the Cape Town area alone. In one of the most notorious cases, a gang of men raped and murdered 31-year-old Eudy Simelane, a lesbian who played on South Africa’s national women’s soccer team. She was stabbed 25 times in the face, legs and chest. According to survivors, the attackers often shout that they are “teaching a lesson” to their lesbian victims, or showing them “how to be a real woman.” Many victims never report the attacks to the police, fearing that they will be mocked or abused. Even in schools, many young boys believe that lesbians need to be raped to “correct” their sexual orientation, according to the South African Human Rights Commission. “A culture of rape is being passed down to younger generations of South African men,” said a report by ActionAid, an international rights group. “Women are forced to conform to gender stereotypes or suffer the consequences.” [...] The South African courts and police have been slow to respond to the attacks on lesbians. One court case, involving the murder of 19-year-old Zoliswa Nkonyana by a gang of about 20 men who wanted to “correct” her sexuality, has been postponed 33 times and has dragged on for five years without a resolution. One case has finally sparked global attention. Millicent Gaika, a 30-year-old lesbian in a township near Cape Town, was raped and beaten for five hours by a man who tried to strangle her with barbed wire. “I know you are a lesbian,” the man told her. “You are not a man. You think you are, but I am going to show you. You are a woman.” These stories are a reminder, and are proof, that identifying corrective rape as a hate crime would be no understatement. And that’s exactly what the LGBTQ activists in South Africa are trying to do. Ndumie Funda is leading the challenge against corrective rape, inspired to do so by the practice’s impact on her fiancee. She herself is in extreme danger, and has faced a brunt of verbal threats. When she formed a human rights organization, she was forced into hiding. But she has not stopped: While the threat of violence and prison is forcing many African gays to go underground, the war is not over. In a few South African black townships, lesbian volunteers are going door-to-door to raise awareness of their issues. A growing coalition of rights groups is fighting against “corrective rape.” And after the global petition produced so many thousands of e-mails that the government pleaded for it to stop, Ms. Funda and other activists were granted a two-hour meeting with senior Justice Ministry officials on March 14. The officials promised Ms. Funda that they would take action on the corrective-rape issue, including setting up a meeting with top police commanders. “The meeting was exciting,” she said. “It was great.” I may have been too hopeful about that meeting, but I stand my ground that these activists are some of the most amazing women in the world. Corrective rape cannot continue, in any region of the world, and these activists have the fire to keep fighting. (All of my heart is with them.)