Amy's Final Paper Link

You can find my paper here!

More Cartoons!

I've previously posted some cartoons about gender-roles, and came across some really great ones on LGBT rights. I love the messages cartoons can covey and found an interesting article explaining the political power cartoons have.

   

[Cartoonist Pat Opilant, 73,] delights in controversy and told me that he draws only about what annoys him or "gets my blood boiling. That's the point in cartooning -- to draw attention to situations you don't agree with. It's kept me alive," he said from his home in Santa Fe, N.M. He's a political liberal, as are many, though not all, of the better-known political cartoonists. "Cartooning should challenge the status quo," Oliphant said. "Whoever is in power draws the antagonism of editorial cartoonists." 

 Another article states:

"Political cartoons have their own particular style of humor however, and this
style is based on a certain blending of serious topics and humor.  The origin of
political cartoons is believed to date back to the 16th century, and from that
time on, political satire has been used as an effective means of criticizing the
establishment. "


Check out the articles, and enjoy these cartoons!

Teacher Suspended for Reprimanding Student for Anti-Gay Slur

Earlier in October, Michigan high school teacher Jay McDowell was suspended. The reason? Telling a student cracking gay slurs and speaking of his anti-gay beliefs to leave the room.
The matter quickly became complicated at the school board meeting, due to conflicting stories of what actually took place. Students in the class who were questioned gave different versions of events, from the anti-gay student being sent to the hall to Mr. McDowell fuming and yelling.
But the real focal point of the board meeting was fourteen-year-old Graeme Taylor's defense of Mr. McDowell's actions. Taylor eloquently spoke of his tough experience as a gay student in school, and how McDowell's actions had inspired him. Check out his defense.

Jay McDowell was suspended, but Graeme Taylor's amazing defense has reached many nonetheless. Taylor was recently invited as a guest on Ellen DeGeneres's talk show Ellen to talk about his speech and gay rights.

As a Michigan resident, I happen to know that the city Jay McDowell teaches at, Howell, is rather conservative and not exactly gay-friendly. It is probably a nightmare for gay adolescents in school, and I think Graeme's steadfast reasoning and strength is to be commended!

Amy's final paper draft

And here it is... :)

LGBT Rights in Contemporary Opera

Right before Thanksgiving, I saw the last showing of USC Thorton Opera's fall production. One of the featured pieces was the 2006 opera "Three Decembers" by Jake Heggie. This contemporary piece set in 1986  has only three characters - a mother and her two grown children.

The story is about a dysfunctional family and a neglectful mother. The reason I found the opera to be advocating LGBT rights was the character of the son, Charlie. Set in 1986, Charlie is living with his partner stricken with AIDS. Ten years later, his partner dies, and many years later, Charlie finds a new partner. However, the plot of the opera manages to be about the character of the mother, with Charlie's plight as a sub-story.

The seamless integration of a gay man in the midst of the AIDS scare into an opera is pretty remarkable. Charlie is not "the gay character," he happens to be gay. The music emphasizes humanity  rather than difference.

The director of the opera said that he saw "Three Decembers" as the future of opera and where it was heading. I am excited that such controversial issues, like gay men and AIDS, can be seen as a story about people instead of making a political statement. Today, there are so many LGBT legal issues going on - DADT, same-sex marriage, bullying liability - that everything is a political statement.  Ke$sha and Katy Perry have even released billboard hits with underlying messages about gay rights. While all the political battling is necessary to fight for equal rights, it's nice to think about settings in which being gay doesn't have to be political or strategic or a statement but can just be.

The Gender-Bending World of Anime

So, in order to prepare for a Japanese placement exam this December, I've been "studying" by watching original Japanese anime cartoons. No I don't think this will really help me. But I can dream.

I've learned ... anime is weird. Really weird. The series I've been watching (Ranma 1/2 if anyone's actually curious) ran from the late eighties to mid-nineties, and the principal character is a guy who turns into a girl when cold water is splashed on him. Who also does kung-fu. The entire show is laced with cross-dressing, over exaggerated sexuality, and atypical relationships.

In Japanese society, homosexuality is not against the law, but is frowned upon. There has been little to no action in order to legalize same-sex marriages, and anyone not straight is called "hentai," which means twisted or backwards.

How can a society based on family values and honor come up with such ridiculous, non-traditional sexual themes? Such anime shows are very popular in Japan, but differ so starkly from societal values. I found an article which explains the "gender-panic situations" of the cartoon in detail. The author says gender-panic is used as a comedic tool. I also found an anime-news forum (the things you can find on the internet these days) with a blog about gender-bending. One blogger said that:

"Recently, anime has been focusing a LOT on ridiculous slapstick comedy and "man in a dress" has been good for kicks ever since M*A*S*H or Some Like it Hot.

It's not a case of gender-bending being any more or less acceptable from a cultural standpoint, it's just an example of an industry running on creative empty."

So is anime using gender-bending to promote LGBT issues or for comedic effect? Is the use of gender-bending hurtful or harmful to the LGBT community in Japan? What do you think?

Outrageous Discrimination

There are always haters here and there who say stupid things, but I still find myself baffled at some headlines.

For instance,  this story about two high school girls seems ridiculous to me. One has been kicked out of school, and the other, who had previously dropped out, was refused re-admittance. Why were these teens unacceptable students?

"18-year-old Melissa McKenzie said she was kicked out of Del City High School in Del City, Okla., at the beginning of the semester when the principal found out she was living with her girlfriend instead of her family. The principal then told her if she returned to her family's home, she would be welcomed back to school."

 So the girls cannot attend high school because they are a couple. First off, that should have nothing to do with being able to attend school. Second, the "anti-lesbian" excuse is completely invalid because the high school in question is a public school with an anti-discriminatory policy that includes sexual orientation.

Apparently, the high school is ignoring the fact that several school board officials have told the girls to stop being gay in order to be re-admitted. Instead, the school administrators issued a statement saying the safety of students would always be top priority and suggested the girls file a complaint to the school board if they felt they were wronged.

Ok, what kind of answer is that? It just makes me really frustrated that two girls my age are being denied basic, public education on such a biased, hateful basis.

Worthy of Attention?

This past weekend, an Emory student was kicked out of a frat party. He also happened to be gay. Since this was a late night party, no one seems very sure on the details; the student may have called some frat guy gay, and got kicked out. A lot of people didn't understand what was happening, saw a scuffle, and cheered. No one was hurt, police were not called, and if the gay student hadn't said anything, very few people would know this even happened.

Yet because this incident occurred on the wake of an anti-gay bullying frenzy, starting with Tyler Clementi's suicide, the story is now in newspapers and online, and Emory is investigating the incident as a hate crime.

Um, I don't think being gay should get anyone kicked out of a party, ever, but the fact that this is "news" is a little much for me. This was a frat party scuffle that did not involve any injury; people getting kicked out of parties happens every weekend at hundreds of colleges. Granted, the student was kicked out because he called a frat boy gay. Hopefully one day "that's so gay" and derogatory connotations of the word will be gone, but today they very much exist. But that is something LGBT activists recognize as a societal problem - it is not necessary to publish in the news every case of every small scale wrongdoing ever. If that were they case, the news would also have stories about girls being called hos, etc., etc. To me, this is a small example of a societal problem - the problem should be written about, but probably not something as minor as this. Then again, maybe I'm being terribly insensitive.

What do you think? Is there a reason why this story is news?

New York Govenor Election Will Say Much About LGBT Movement

The Republican candidate for governor in New York, Carl Paladino, opposes same-sex marriages and has said that children should not be "brainwashed" into thinking homosexuality is acceptable, and that gay pride parades are "disgusting." Paladino has received much attention due to the unacceptable nature of these comments, yet he is now standing by his opinions.
In light of the recent anti-gay issues, from Brox beatings to several suicides, this election is bound to say a lot of society's current viewpoint on LGBT issues. Either Paladino will resoundingly lose,  showing the public's pro-gay majority, or his comments will resonate with those anti-gay protesters who have used recent events to publicly state their nonsupport. This is an election to watch; it goes much further than politics.

National Coming Out Day

Despite all the anti-gay drama we've been hearing about recently, tomorrow (October 11th) is The Human Rights Campaign's National Coming Out Day. The formal title for the day is Coming Out for Equality, and the official site explains the history along with other neat things, like a new facebook app. I really encourage everyone to join the facebook group - especially in the light of recent events, it's a great time to show that gay rights are still being supported.

The Most Shocking Hate Crimes I've Heard About in a Long Time

Earlier this week, a 30-year-old gay man was lured to a house where he was beaten and gruesomely tortured for hours. The police have just released information on the case and the NYT now has an article with horrific details.
This man was sodomized, burned, and whipped because he is gay. There are also two 17-year-old victims.
This was done by nine other males ages 16-23 (our age group).
I really have a lot of trouble understanding this disturbing new trend. A string of suicides topped off with this. What is going on? Why now? I am used to hearing about isolated cases here and there, but I am genuinely caught off-guard by this situation. I guess I thought more progress had been made than it actually has.

Gender-role cartoons

Some cartoons I found that capture male-female gender roles relevant to today. I feel like these roles will be harder to break or deconstruct than any LGBT issue because while LGBT issues are currently  being questioned from every viewpoint, most male-female inequality issues get minor complaints and are left as they are. What will it take to change public opinion on pink for girls and blue for boys?

Michigan Assistant Attorney Gerenal is an Anti-Gay Cyber Bully

So I already posted a link to this story via Twitter, but as its happening in my hometown, I've been adamantly following what has turned into one bizare gay rights case.

This year, the University of Michigan's student body president is Chris Armstrong, who is the school's first openly gay president. For unknown reasons, the state of Michigan's Assistant Attorney General, Andrew Shirvell, has gone on an anti-Chris Armstrong campaign.

The Michigan residents have been following the unusual story on the news as Shirvell created a blog, Chris Armstrong Watch, where he labeled 21-year-old Armstrong, who he has never met, as a racist Nazi. Shirvell stalked Armstrong around U of M campus with protest signs, videotaped the outside of his house late at night, and was eventually banned from university campus even though he himself is an alumnus (Armstrong has filed for a restraining order). Why is this full grown man, and elected official, bullying a college kid?

And he's still Assistant Attorney General of the State of Michigan. Shirvell says he is exercising his 1st-amendment right to free speech as a private citizen.The Attorney General says he will not fire Shrivell on these grounds, even though he has caused a media uproar and is pretty universally viewed as unacceptable and crazy.

Part of me is really mad he is on voluntary paid sick leave and not fired. But I am really glad public opinion views his actions as so unacceptable, and that the university community is supporting Armstrong. I am confident that in the end, public opinion will make the difference here.

Besides the Point

As I've been reading more LGBT news, it's hard for me to ignore that most these issues should not even be about sexuality.
For instance, a student teacher was fired for telling a fourth grade student he wasn't married because he couldn't marry another guy. Shouldn't teachers be fired for failing as teachers? This guy wasn't "breaching moral standards," he was being honest with a student.
When Oak Reed was denied the Homecoming King crown, it was because of his registration with the school as a female. He won the competition. He got the most votes. His physical sex should not have even been an issue.
And of course, the ever debated Don't Ask Don't Tell military standard has absolutely nothing to do with the capabilities of a solider.
Being gay doesn't make you a bad teacher. Winning a vote means you won. Who you are attracted to says nothing of your competence as a soldier.
All these examples show just how far the social attitude towards sexuality makes little to no sense. Honestly it's embarrassing that 50 years after the modern civil rights movement, this crap is still making headlines.

Gender Bias leads to "Missing" Statitstics

For my DWA class, I recently read Amartya Sen's famous article More Than 100 Million Women Are Missing. Here, Sen publicly presents his thesis that due to gender-biased opportunities, like access to health care and jobs, men outnumber women when biologically there should an equal ratio. Basically, Sen notes that in some places of the world, the ratio of women to men is very low, and in those places, women are looked on by society as unequal or less desirable (like in China, where sons have long been preferred over daughters), which indirectly causes the population shift because it becomes harder for women to access the same opportunities. In relation to our class, Sen points the cause of statistically over 100 million unexplainable missing women to social construction. I found the article extremely relevant because it shows just how much an idea, a social notion, can impact the world. Sen estimates 6-11% of the expected population of females does not exist. Because of the way the world looks at the role of women, there are more men in the world than women because women are not given the same chances of simply living. Sen also proposes as a solution a strong emphasis on gender equality, aka social deconstruction. It is mind-blowing to me how ideas, good or bad, shape lives and opportunities.

"Fixing" Sexuality

In "The Five Sexes", Fausto-Sterling mentions that in our day, doctors surgically assign a sex to intersex babies so they fit one gender or the other. In her article "Sex, Intersex, and the Making of Normal," author Elizabeth Reis argues that this violates the bridge of medicine because the surgeries are performed for social reasons, not medical ones. I agree - "fixing" intersex babies simply avoids confusion for society, at the expense of the individuals.

It's interesting that today, while racial hybridization has become common, accepeted, and in some cases envied, intersex is looked upon uncomfortably with confusion. This is no an accident. While up to 4% of people are born somewhat intersex, doctors have eliminated this "problem" from adult society. Not many stories of intersex people are heard, and no one knows the scale of potential physical and psychological harm "fixed" intersex adults deal with. It is a silent violation of human rights on the most basic scale. I think intersex babies should be left intersex, and once they are 18 and presumably established gender identities, can then chose the option of surgery if that is what they want. Otherwise, there is no choice.

Social Constructs of Race

The article "White By Law" immediately reminded me of Ralph Ellison's ideas on the social confines of race. Lopez shows through documented court cases in American history that race is defined by society; not science, not ethnic origins, but society. Ellison wrote of how true personal identity is impossible because society will always identify you based on race. The two concepts are interrelated. History shows that people were denied citizenship, not because they were not ideologically American, but because of race. Ellison's famous novel Invisible Man tells of a man who feels no one can "see" who he is because people immediately judge him on race. The court cases are from the 19th century to mid 20th century. Invisible Man is mid 20th century. It makes me think about how today in the 21st century, society can still control who we are based on how we look. Will this stigma ever be truly gone? Probably not.