Pam’s Comments (group member since Dec 29, 2016)

Pam’s comments from the Our Shared Shelf group.

Some interesting resources:

https://youtu.be/siMal6QVblE
A conversation on race with Native Americans

https://native-land.ca
community-powered resource that helps identify what Native land you are on

(Stealing this from the podcast On Being) I invite you to consider the land on which you live and the confluence of legacies that bring you to stand where you are — particularly through critical reflection and conversation with your own community. 

For me:

- At work, I have really started making a push into working with schools that have a larger POC candidate pool than some of our traditional schools in the past. This has led us into bringing in more diverse candidates for interviews than in the past.

- Otherwise, I have been paying particular attention to the books I read. I have tried to make sure to read more POC work. (Though, looking over the numbers it's heavily in favor of WOC than MOC...)

- And specifically paying attention to the characters within. In film, there is something called the DuVernay test. The test looks at African-American characters and other minorities to see if they have fully realized lives rather than serve as scenery in white stories. It's really helped point out when authors have relied on tropes like the The Magical Negro or Primitivism to justify their characters.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magical...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primiti...

What about you? Any successes? Concerns? Areas where you don't know how to go forward?

Individually, (I know and I'm sure others), we can admit that we are no experts on this sort of discourse. But together we can help all of to see more clearly and act intersectionally.

Hey all,

It's been a year since OSS has recommended Reni Eddo-Lodge's book Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race . Reni Eddo-Lodge

And I wanted to check in to see how everyone was doing with their goals posted above or any that you were committed to after finishing the book.

How have things gone?
What have you noticed in general?
What have you noticed about yourself?
Have conversations changed between you and others in your communities? (Family, friends, work, etc)

Welcome!
Thank you so much for your help as Moderators on OSS!

Bill and Melinda Gates released their annual newsletter of things that they are involved with around the globe. https://www.gatesnotes.com/2019-Annua...

The Gates Foundation does a lot of good focusing on the least among us. And specifically this year they have found a few ideas to help the women in the world:
- Raising Africa's Human capital "If sub-Saharan Africa commits to investing in its young people, the region could double its share of the global labor force by 2050, unlocking a better life for hundreds of millions of people. Girls’ education, especially, is among the most powerful forces on the planet. Educated girls are healthier. They are wealthier. And their families benefit, too. The more education a woman has, the better equipped she is to raise healthy children. In fact, UNESCO estimates that if all women in low- and middle-income countries finished secondary school, child mortality in those countries would fall by about half.

- Preventing Premature births: "Understanding what causes prematurity is hugely important. Fifteen million babies are born premature every year, making it the leading cause of death in children under age five. Preterm birth affects mothers in every part of the world—although some groups experience it at a higher rate (which Melinda will talk about), and premature babies in low-income countries are much more likely to die than ones in richer countries."

- Data is sexist or rather asking the right questions to get the full, complete answer: "We like to think of data as being objective, but the answers we get are often shaped by the questions we ask. When those questions are biased, the data is too.

For example, what little data we do have about women in developing countries is mostly about their reproductive health—because in places where women’s primary role in society is being a wife and mother, that’s what researchers tend to focus on. But we have no idea how much most of these women earn or what they own, because, in many countries, income and assets are counted by household. Since the husband is considered the head of the household, everything a married woman brings in is credited to him."

- Innovating Toilets: "Life without a toilet is hard for anyone, but it tends to be women and girls who suffer most. Bill and I have both met women who have suffered kidney damage from holding in urine all night to avoid a risky trip to dangerous public facilities. We’ve met others whose only place to defecate is in an open field, so they restrict their food intake all day and wait for cover of darkness to relieve themselves in relative privacy. (When you learn just how entrenched stigma around periods still is in many places, you can start to understand why someone would rather fall behind on her studies or miss wages than risk humiliation.)

- Cell phones are helping women out: "...women are not only using their mobile phones to access services and opportunities. They’re using them to change social norms and challenge the power structures that perpetuate gender inequality."

I think in the developed nations we often get hit with a lot of "feminism = so what?" because we often have the vote, we have opportunities to work, etc.

But feminism means a lot more than just these few things. Feminism helps us all to review how poverty can be greatly entrenched where even if women had access to voting doesn't mean that her children are safe, her community is clean, or her nation is productive. There are many ways that feminism can improve the world around us; even if it is as simple as noticing that the data isn't complete; or that toilets prove a safety risk.

I highly recommend you reading the full annual letter and think about ways on how feminism can help the bigger picture. Be it in your community or the greater world wide one.

Awesome addition Dorothy, thank you.

Found this one too!


Of Hockey and Hijab: Reflections of a Canadian Muslim Woman

These are fellow anthologies from Muslim women


Love, InshAllah: The Secret Love Lives of American Muslim Women
A collection of 25 American Muslim women stories and memories that focuses on their search for love

I Speak for Myself: American Women on Being Muslim
40 American women under the age of 40, share their experiences of their lives as Muslim women in America. While their commonality is faith and citizenship, their voices and their messages are very different

Hello everyone!

Let's fill this thread with additional resources or books that follow the same themes as "The Things I would Tell You"

That way if anyone is interested in further reading they have a pile of books, podcasts, organizations, websites, etc that they can check out!

We have that, Florian

Girl Scouts
Boy Scouts
4H

Wahoo! Congratulations ladies!

Celebratory book wave!

Ok... In more recent news... In the States we had the Indigenous People’s March the same day as the March for Life over the week. Many people from all over jammed together in cold and mucky winter conditions with a few different ideas on whose life matters.

I'm bringing it up as a viral video is makng its way through the blogspheres. In it, a teenager, bouyed by a couple dozen of their friends and high off the fact that there was limited adult supervision, demonstrated just how easy and simple it is to be racist.

All the kid had to do was stand and smile at a tribal elder. The trouble comes from the fact that the kid got into the elder's face.

This is privledge. Feeling so utterly protected even when you are rejecting the tenants of your faith (compassion to all) or the ideals associated with the cause you are there to support (the right to life) or even the nationalism proclaimed on your head (that supposedly honor military members for their service). Feeling so utterly in control and safe while staring down an old man singing a song and beating a drum in his own government sanctioned right to protest.

And while many, including myself, are applauding this veteran's control and patience, we have to acknowledge that he had no choice. To do anything BUT take this kid's smug grin or the taunts from the circling pack of urchins would have invited who knows what. I am afraid to say that (given other videos that showed the kids group surrounding the old man and his few fellow protestors) that this could have turned ugly. If not in the moments then later when parents got wind of it.

This is what racism looks like. It's built on this feeling of superiority so thick that it's fearless. It's built on a power imbalance so clear that nothing has to be said.

I made me sick. It made me angry.

But.... I hope we can use this as a teaching moment. I hope we can use this to show exactly what we mean by privledge that hurts. Hurts not just those who are being pushed around by it, but how it weakens the person who feels the need to wield it.

I hope that before we immediately reach out in anger demanding the principal's job or the kid's expulsion or anything violent that we look for ways in making this right.

If the wrong answer only took a kid smiling and standing, what does the right answer look like?

More items from today's headlines:

1) The Next Standing Rock? Wet'suwet'en First Nation is fighting to protect their land from a oil pipeline. A number of Indigenous groups held what they described as a "solidarity slowdown" this morning.
https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/convoys...

2) Violence against Native Americans

US Senators Jon Tester and Steve Daines are reintroduce Savanna's Act that would require the Department of Justice to overhaul law enforcement protocols and improve data collection regarding slain or missing Native Americans.
https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/07/us/nat...
https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-c...

"Native Americans in Montana and across this country are dealing with violence at a much higher rate than the rest of the population ... you cannot set foot in Indian country without hearing a heartbreaking story about this growing problem."

including: https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/11/opinio...

Spread the word!
(Credit to Meerder for bringing it up on the OSS Chat)

Jo wrote: "P.S. For our OSS members in North America, due to high demand, this book is currently being reprinted in the U.S. and may take a week or so to be restocked, in case you experience issues with availability. Thank you for your patience.."

This is a great subject. Thank you very much for choosing it.

In regards to the publications: that's awesome that the publisher will be sending another print through. Do you know if the publishing house has plans to print the book in languages besides English, too?

Full disclosure: I am pro-choice.

I am pro-choice for the following reasons: (And please feel free to ask questions about any of these terms or concepts.)
- my life isn't your life. My thoughts, feelings, background, emotional connotations, are not yours. I can comment on your haircut, but I cannot dictate to you something that is going to affect your life.

- Self-autonomy. People have agency to determine their own life. Furthermore, people have a right to determine what happens with their body. We take great interest in things like Power of Attorney or DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) that specifically says no one can do anything to your body without your say so. It's your body. Even if someone was about to die and the only way to save their life was for you to donate your blood, no one could just stick a needle into your arm to take your blood away without your consent. So if you want to have a child in your body for 7+ months that is your personal choice.

- We have historical evidence on what it was like when abortion was not legalized. And it wasn't pretty. Legalizing abortions keeps things clean, sanitary, and under specific regulations.

- Timing: Late term abortions; i.e. the ones that happen in week 20+ in a pregnancy are when the medical community confirms that the fetus will never be a self-surviving realized child. I.e. they have some sort of birth defect that has already stopped development or that will negatively effect their chances of survival outside of the mother's womb. These are normally pregnancies that families want to keep. But because of genetics, nature, or just rotten luck they will never come to term safely for mother or baby, then we shouldn't dictate to the mother to wait until full term. Waiting can cause sepsis to set it (if the fetus dies) or puts the family through undue emotional and financial harm while they wait it out.

- Pro-Choice doesn't mean pro death. It means that you have the right to make up your own mind. Are you against abortion personally but you know your world is different than say a mother of 3 who is knows she doesn't have the time. energy, or financial stability to care for another one? Then you are pro-choice. If the situation happens to you would you take the child to term and put it up for adoption? That's cool! That's your choice! Are you infertile and think every baby is a gift that should be cherished, but understand that late term abortions aren't easy for anyone involved and you would hate to dictate to a person what they should or shouldn't do in an emotionally heavy personal time? Cool, you're pro-choice! Do you think that the government, that for the longest time was made up of rich old men, don't get a say in your lady bits? Then you might also be pro-choice!

Ok... now for some reasons why people are pro-life / anti-abortion (And pro-lifers, please feel free to correct me or add in as to what you personally believe)

- Murder of any kind is wrong
- Life begins at conception, so any fetus that has a heartbeat, is living. Abortion is murder and therefore it is wrong
- A child has no voice to speak for itself. Babies should not have to suffer the death penalty because of faulty man-made creations or mistakes.
- Abortion is selfish. If you are old enough to have sex, then you are old enough to deal with the consequences of your actions.
- If you do not want the child, you can always put the child up for adoption instead. Nine months is worth it.

Again, please feel free to add in your own thoughts and/or ask questions. Let's keep to OSS guidelines on being respectful and we can go forward with this conversation in the spirit of inquiry.

This is a difficult topic given all of the implications involved on from all sides. Including but not limited to:

Religious morality / stances on when life begins / the right to death / ideas on sex / ideas on government oversight / etc etc etc,

I think the biggest issue, no matter which side of the debate people fall on is the concern of safe sex.

To your friend's point: nothing is 100% safe. Walking down the street, driving a car, going to work, etc, not 100% safe.

Specifically when it comes to safety in sex: there are a few measures that can help prevent pregnancy as well as sexually transmitted diseases including:
- Abstinence
- Hormonal methods (pills, patches, nuvaring, progestrin, etc)
- Barrier protection (condoms, diaphragms, cervical caps)
- Intra Uterine Devices
- Semi Permanent solutions (vasectomy, tubal ligation (i.e. getting your tubes tied))
(https://www.optionsforsexualhealth.or...)

Lots of methods. And all of them, save for abstinence, require money. Some of them require doctor visits or even doctor permission.

Before we go any further let's just note this: any facet of the abortion conversation; the pro-lifers, the anti-abortion side, the pro-choice, the guys tricked into fatherhood, the rape victims, the family, etc. We can all benefit from education and prevention.

Too often though the conversation arises that if we say anything more than "sex is bad" or "abstinence only", then it's immediately assumed that we are sexual fiends.

My reaction to that is that knowing what to do in a fire drill, understanding how smoke decorators work, or how to use a fire extinguisher is not going to turn me into an arsonist. So why does knowing about how to prevent pregnancy make me into someone who is going to run off and have sex? Ridiculous logical fallacy.

So no matter which side you or your friend is on in the abortion debate, see if you can at least all agree that education and supporting health care that covers preventative methods is good for everyone.

SsAaRrAa wrote: "Hello everyone! I love this book club and it´s so interesting to read what all have to say about different things. This is the first time I comment anything in this group.

This is of topic but I ..."

Hey, this is a BIG topic so I made a separate thread here if you/ others would like to comment. https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

That way this thread can stay on topic regarding feminism and movies like Florian mentioned.

Redirecting conversation here from another thread

SsAaRrAa wrote: " Hello everyone! I love this book club and it´s so interesting to read what all have to say about different things. This is the first time I comment anything in this group.

This is of topic but I have a question that I really struggle with..

My best friend is against abortion. She hate the word feminist. I think much of this comes from her husband that is... a little weird, a racist/nationalist.
One of her arguments are "If you get pregnant it´s your own fault. If you don´t want to get pregnant, don´t have sex. Everybody knows that having sex can lead to pregnancy, even if you use protection, because no 100% protection exist".

What would you answer to this? I´m really bad at argumenting..

I hope someone can help me.

I'm not well versed in the numbers. How bad is it?

-female editors in female publications out of total editors
- female editors in non gendered publications ( national geographic, consumer report, etc) out of total editors
- female editors in male publications out of the total editors