NEWSWOMEN'S RIGHTS

After a month and more than 50,000 petition signatures, an open letter, numerous radio shows, TV segments, blog posts, articles, and even YouTube videos about the company, LEGO has decided to listen to girls! On Sunday, February 5, Michael McNally, Brand Relations Director, sent an email to SPARK Movement. SPARK, a girl-fueled movement to end the sexualization of girls, is a coalition of more than 70 organizations and reaches tens of thousands of girls and those who support their healthy development. LEGO has accepted SPARK’s request for a meeting to discuss how they can go back to offering all LEGO toys to both boys and girls and to respect girls’ hunger and desire to play with toys that challenge them creatively and intellectually.

In response to their new Friends line, which includes Barbie-like, skinny, mini-skirted girls in settings such as a beauty salon, a bakery, and a splash pool, SPARK demands that LEGO, the third largest toy company in the world, encourage girls to build, construct, imagine, dream and create a world that can include both hair stylists and rocket scientists, cupcake bakers and fire chiefs. In SPARK’s Change.org petition, they demanded that LEGO stop selling out girls. More than 52,000 people have signed on already, and the conversation about LEGO Friends has become global.

LEGO has defended the Friends line, saying that it’s the result of 4 years of research into how girls play and what they want, and that they have plenty of other offerings for girls. However, LEGO’s website features 86% male characters, and the majority of the female characters come from the new Friends line. LEGO’s marketing strategy consistently ignores girls who have interests beyond make-up and cupcakes. Putting the focus of LEGO on “beauty” as opposed to creativity places unnecessary limits on girls’ interests. While there is nothing wrong with an interest in pastel-colored LEGOs, making “looking pretty” as opposed to “building things” the focus of a multi-million dollar advertising campaign serves only to limit all kids in the long run.

In September, a horrifying video came to light at Abia State University in Nigeria, depicting five men gang-raping a young woman as she begged them to just kill her. Concerned citizens in Nigeria and around the world, activists, and bloggers called for the "ABSU5" to be brought to justice, denouncing the culture of impunity that led these criminals to believe they could get away with taping and distributing their assault. Yet University and Abia State officials refused to take action, denying the violent act occurred in their jurisdiction without investigating. The Assistant Commissioner of Police, J.G. Micloth, even claimed that the brutal attack looked consensual -- or was punishment for the girl somehow shaming her boyfriend -- to excuse their failure to act.

More than 90,000 Change.org members worldwide signed a petition by Adetomi Aladekomo, a Nigerian rape survivor now living in Canada, calling for these men to be arrested and prosecuted. Finally, last month Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Mohammad Adoke intervened in the case, demanding that the Inspector-General of Police investigate the assault. Carol Aije, a Nigerian lawyer who deals with sexual violence cases across the country and has collaborated with the Change.org campaign, directly petitioned the Attorney General's office urging this action, adding to the protests occurring online and on the ground.

This is significant progress. But the campaign isn't over. Though Attorney General Adoke ordered a full investigation, it hasn't happened yet. And Nigeria's law enforcement has been all stirred up, with former Inspector-General Hafiz Ringim removed from his position for incompetence dealing with terrorism. For the campaign to succeed, international attention must continue to make sure that the new Inspector-General, Mohammad Abubakar, follows through with the investigation, and the Attorney General keeps an eye on the proceedings.

Adetomi also hopes to see a law strengthening violence against women legislation, which would also help victims such as Franca Ogbu, a student deeply disfigured by an acid attack whose assailant remains at large. To add your voice to Adetomi's campaign and help bring the gang-rapists to justice, you can sign the petition here.

Every Super Bowl has those one or two ads that everyone is talking about around the watercooler the next day. Remember last year’s Chrysler commercial starring Detroit and Eminem? And that adorable (and notably genderless) kid in the Darth Vader costumewho magically started the family car?It’s no wonder companies spend big ad bucks on the big game. $3.5 million for a 30 second spot buys access to over 110 million viewers, many of whom tune in as much for the ads as for the game. In fact, 66 percent of female viewers say they watch as much or more for the ads, compared to 46 percent of male viewers.

Yet the same polls suggest that men are regularly more satisfied with the ads than women. Why? Because many Super Bowl advertisers turn to sexist, racist, and otherwise offensive stereotypes to market their wares. GoDaddy is a regular offender, showcasing racecar driver Danica Patrick as a sex object rather than a driving champion. And last year Pepsi Max went for a double whammy of racism and sexism with an ad that may or may not have been poking fun at First Lady Michelle Obama. And who could forget Groupon’s ad from last year, making light of the plight of the people of Tibet to promote their services?

Some folks choose to skip watching the bowl altogether rather than rage at the ads. But this year there’s a way to voice your displeasure and make a real change in the way Super Bowl ads are framed. Miss Representation, the movie turned movement to challenge the portrayal of women and girls in the media, is calling for Super Bowl viewers to tweet their displeasure with sexist Super Bowl ads by using the tag #NotBuyingIt. Viewers on this tag will be asking others tweeting about the #SuperBowl who the ad was directed at and what message was sent about gender.

Facebook recently launched a "Women Connect" app, calling it "an online platform for organizations and causes to connect and share information with supporters about issues of gender equality and women’s empowerment.” Apparently, it's a part of Facebook's "Diversity campaign."

Taking action to further gender justice is admirable, but some people see Facebook's internal actions as out of step with this stated mission. The top comment to greet me on the Women Connect page, ranked up through users hitting the "Like" button, reads: "I'm glad that FB is supporting this but they also need to get their own house in order - for example by taking down misogynist & pro-rape pages and dropping their stupid censorship against images of breastfeeding."

The almost 200,000 people who signed the Change.org petition demanding that Facebook remove pages promoting sexual violence and violence against women would most likely agree. As would the thousands of Change.org members telling Facebook to leave breastfeeding pictures alone.

In November, Facebook took some action after a #notfunnyfacebook Day of Action on Twitter denounced their excuse for pro-rape pages: "what one person finds offensive another can find entertaining – just as telling a rude joke won’t get you thrown out of your local pub, it won’t get you thrown off Facebook." A number of pro-violence pages were removed, but Facebook still missed the point, permitting the hate content to remain live if the tag [Humor] or [Satire] was simply added in front of the page title. Facebook users can report content as abusive internally, however when the policy is to protect rape apologism, that won't get rid of the pages.

In these modern times, athletes are considered heroes and icons to thousands, sometimes millions, of people. Even compared to the idols we make of celebrities and musicians, athletes remain our anointed heroes. They often come with backstories that are the stuff of movies (sometimes literally) with tales of overcoming poverty, racism, broken homes, and a variety of other hard knocks. And most of all, athletes remind us of the human potential. They show us the human form in perfection. They dazzle us with their almost superhuman abilities. And it’s thrilling drama.

These characteristics make athletes intoxicating heroes. And that’s why they must be held accountable when they stumble or fall. They must be made an example of, because they represent what we wish we could be on our best of days.

We’ve such failings play out in almost every major sport:

• Football star Michael Vick‘s animal abuse.
• Basketball star Kobe Bryant’s recent hate speech directed at a ref.
• Baseball’s Mel Hall is currently serving a sentence of 45 years for rape and sexual assault.
• In fact, see a list of crimes by pro athletes across multiple sports here.

In huge professional sports clubs like the National Football League and the National Basketball Association, of course there will be a few bad apples or bad scenarios from time to time. What matters is how those events are handled. And whether it’s because of a sense of right and wrong or merely a glance at the bottom line, major sports franchises, players, and organizations are looking at the issues of hate speech, sexual assault, and even bullying with a critical eye.

Victory! After 100 people signed the petition in just a few hours, the Department of Public Works quickly came to an agreement to allow the Walk for Choice to take place Friday and the banners to remain up until Saturday evening.

Anti-choicers rip down posters for a "Trust Women" event. Women's rights advocates complain about the vandalism. What does the city do?

Threaten to tear down the rest of the banners.

Somer Loen, an organizer for the Bay Area Coalition for Our Reproductive Rights (BACORR), has launched a petition on Change.org calling on the San Francisco Department of Public Works (DPW) to "protect free speech for pro-choice organization." In preparation for Trust Women Week (Jan. 20-27) the Silver Ribbon Campaign -- of which BACORR is a member organization -- put up banners to raise awareness, featuring slogans such as "Fix the Economy -- Support My Autonomy" and "Reproductive Rights Are Human Rights." Loen reports that they had a permit for the banners and an event on Jan. 20th, but the anti-choice Life Legal Defense Fund filed a "bogus" complaint with the city.

Loen and her fellow organizers were looking for a way to deal with vandals destroying their posters when the DPW shockingly invalidated their original permit for a Friday walk, refused to issue a new one requested for Sunday (so as to not overlap with a Friday Occupy event), and announced the remaining banners would be removed.

There is nothing pretty about boxing. It’s strenuous, fatiguing, and comes with its share of aches, pains, hits and unanticipated smacks. My body still refuses to forgive me for the aftermath of my first fight. The visceral pain in my joints made typing a four letter word on a keyboard so painful I cringed. As a grad student and self-proclaimed twitter addict, it was, to say the least, somewhat debilitating!

Nevertheless, there is a particular kind of beauty in roughness. Boxing invigorates and animates every muscle and fragment of flesh in my body. I still remember the astonishment of my coach in reaction to the amount of power I was able to harness in my first punch. What is it about the strength of women that still shocks us? What is so intolerable about a woman in control of her abilities that makes an organization like the International Amateur Boxing Association (AIBA) want to confine her to a mini-skirt? If there is something menacing about a woman in shorts it suggests that there is still something menacing about a woman in full ability to thrive. While men are taught to apologize for their weaknesses, women are taught to apologize for their strengths.

In a way, boxing encapsulates everything that is regularly socially discouraged of women. However, in my opinion, there is nothing more satisfying than doing something that isn’t expected. When someone expects you to be weak, have the courage to be strong. When someone expects you to be compliant, have the bravery to resist. If women are told they must be seen not heard, then they must stand up and speak louder. Given that we are often encouraged not to fight back, it’s about time we enter the metaphorical rink and kick some serious figurative butt.

More than 35,000 people have joined a popular campaign on Change.org calling on the North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association (NCISAA) to allow girls to play football.

Members of the U.S. National Women’s Tackle Football Team launched the online petition on Change.org after they heard that starting linebacker Mina Johnson, a student at Southampton Academy in Virginia, was forced to sit on the sidelines when an opposing team threatened to forfeit rather than play against a girl. The opposing school was a member of the NCISAA, which prohibits girls from playing on boys’ varsity teams.

"The members of the U.S. national women's team and I felt it extremely important to support Mina in her desire to play football,” said Adrienne Smith, who launched the campaign on Change.org on behalf of her teammates. “At one time or another, everyone on the U.S. national team has faced similar discrimination. We wanted to show unanimous support for Mina and her teammates, as well as her coach and community, by speaking as one voice through our petition."

Happy New Year -- out with the old, and in with the new!

More than 140,000 Change.org members signed a petition launched by Ms. Magazine demanding the FBI recognize that rape is rape -- and it worked. On Friday, the Obama administration approved a new nationwide definition of rape, the first change in 80 years. Goodbye and good riddance to the FBI's narrow Uniform Crime Report definition: "The carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.”

And a hearty welcome to the new definition: "The penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim." For the first time in decades, this federal definition of rape includes victims of all genders, forced oral and anal sex, and drugging or unconsciousness. "With a modern, broader definition, FBI Uniform Crime Report statistics will finally show the true breadth of this violence that affects so many women’s lives,"  said Ms. Executive Editor Katherine Spillar. As these statistics are utilized to understand crime rates and trends, which in turn influence decisions about funding and prioritization, this change can have a real impact in reducing sexual violence across the country.

The glaring discrepancy between the reality of rape and the FBI's definition spurred Ms. Magazine to launch the "Rape Is Rape" campaign, spotlighting the stories of and seeking justice for survivors who discovered their violation wasn't legally considered rape. Once the non-profit organization started a petition on Change.org and brought this travesty to the attention of members like you, nearly 150,000 people jumped up to tell the FBI that rape is rape,  making this one of the most popular Change.org Women's Rights petitions of all time.

When female boxers enter the ring, the Amateur International Boxing Association (AIBA) would like them to be wearing skirts, according to a recommendation by the sport's governing organization. After all, nothing says pugilistic prowess like a good miniskirt.

The AIBA came up with this brilliant idea as a way to help distinguish female boxers from their male counterparts. Apparently, this has been a problem for some folks in the past, though I can't imagine who.

Female boxers have already had to fight long and hard outside the ring to get the respect they deserve inside of it. The 2012 London Games will mark the sport's Olympic debut, after having been previously rejected by the International Olympic Committee  in 2005 for not meeting safety and universality standards. AIBA's sartorial suggestion undermines that progress.

After AIBA issued this suggestion, only two nations had their female boxers wear skirts: Romanian and Polish fighters wore them in the the European Championships late last year. Most athletes seem to share the opinion of  Ireland's three-time world champion, Katie Taylor. "I don't even wear miniskirts on a night out," Taylor said. "So I definitely won't be wearing miniskirts in the ring."

The AIBA, responding to criticism, has said that, as of now, the skirts are merely a suggestion. Final uniform dress codes will not be decided until they meet this month from January 18-22. Until that time, the organization is asking for input from the wider boxing community and from the general public.

Change.org member Rachel Walden seized the opportunity to have her voice heard and created a petition asking the AIBA to rescind its recommendation that female boxers wear skirts. "The ideal result of this petition is to send the message that this sort of misogyny is intolerable, " says Walden. Join her in asking the AIBA to play and not require female boxers wear skirts.

Photo credit: babastever