Yesterday the Obama Administration released it's National HIV/AIDS strategy.
The vision statement for the plan:
The United States will become a place where new HIV infections are rare and when they do occur, every person, regardless of age, gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity or socio-economic circumstance, will have unfettered access to high quality, life-extending care, free from stigma and discrimination.
Right on.
The plan sets some big goals, like a 25% decrease in new infections by 2015.
While LGBT groups are applauding the roll out of this, the first national strategy to address the AIDS epidemic, they're also saying it isn't enough. From the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force:
"This plan offers much-needed relief by focusing on high-risk communities, directing money to states with the highest need based on reported cases of HIV/AIDS, and by recognizing the unique needs of affected populations. The administration has taken a historic step today in the fight against HIV/AIDS. However, the plan doesn't yet go far enough in ending new infections and helping those already coping with the disease to manage it. The government must make available the necessary resources and life-saving medicines for those in need. Adequate attention to and funding for implementation as well as aggressive timetables are essential to the success of this plan. This ongoing national tragedy requires an immediate, potent and cohesive federal response that is appropriately funded."
You can read the whole plan here.
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I heard about the Mehserle verdict in the Oscar Grant case through Twitter.
I wasn't surprised by the verdict or the coverage...and since others have done a fantabulous job breaking all of this down, I don't feel the need to.
Not just yet...no, not quite yet.
I do feel the need to explore my feelings.
When I first heard about Oscar Grant's murder...and then watched the video...my heart ached. I felt for his family and friends...for his community and all the folks left behind to mourn.
And then I though about my own.
It's natural, I suppose, even though it feels selfish as hell.
I thought about my brother...a 40 year old black man who often rides the Metro train here in St. Louis Missouri. My brother is autistic and aphasic...he likes to make noises when he's excited...and he's often excited on about the Metro...and he sometimes doesn't respond to questions or requests.
I try not to worry about my brother interacting with police officers.
So far he hasn't had any problems, but I still worry about it...because.
Because.
What if he'd been there on that platform...my brother where Oscar Grant was...on his knees, vulnerable and unarmed, confused and frightened and at risk because.
Because.
I thought of my cousins...of young men who often go out and about on public transit.
I thought about how I've often heard my aunts caution them about interacting with the police...about how they should move slowly and not talk back and, if they feel they are being harassed, wait and address the incident later rather than in the moment because.
Because.
And my heart aches...it just fucking aches.
For the world we live in...for this anxiety so common that when it eases for a spell I miss it like a pain...for my cousins, who are taught the lessons of the white man's justice when they are too damned young because they may face that shit while still so damn young...
...and for my aunts, who fret and worry and will fret and worry because.
Because.
The list should be released today, and the Wall Street Journal says it won't include birth control. This list is part of the new health care overhaul, as bits and pieces go into effect starting now.
The Obama administration on Wednesday will unveil new rules specifying which preventive health services will be free to consumers under the new health law.Cancer screenings, including mammograms and colonoscopies, as well as obesity prevention services, immunizations, blood pressure screenings and tobacco cessation services are among those that will be available to consumers without a copayment or other direct costs for consumers on new health plans after Sept. 23.
Birth control will not qualify as preventive under these regulations. The Planned Parenthood Federation of America is pushing for it to be included in a separate set of regulations on women's health expected to come out in the coming months.
To ensure access to birth control for everyone who wants it, including it as a preventative service would be key. The fight on this is definitely not over, as reproductive rights and justice groups gear up to push the White House on this issue.
Check out Gloria Steinem and Women's Media Center President, Jehmu Greene talking to Katie Couric on her web show. I love how Jehmu talks about teen girls pushing back against objectification and who is actually producing objectifying media rather than joining Katie Couric in the "what's wrong with the girls these days?" woe-is-me-ing.
See the full interview here. See the transcript at Alternet.
On Wednesday night Paradigm Shift, New York City's feminist community, is hosting an event that promises to be really great. Dr. Michael Kimmel, the country's leading researcher and writer on men and masculinity, will be speaking about his most recent book, Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men.
The conversation will be moderated by Shelby Knox, a reproductive justice activist who you might know from the documentary The Education of Shelby Knox.
Don't miss what's sure to be a fascinating conversation about men, masculinity and the role feminism has played in reshaping American culture. There will be delicious vegan food from Tastee Vegan, and some of the Feministing ladies will be there. So if you're in NYC, come on down and say hi, meet Shelby and Michael, and it'll be a great night!
Tickets are still available for $20 at the door and $15 for students or if you buy them in advance online.
The important stuff:
July 14th, Wednesday
7:00-10:00 pm
Theatre 80 St. Marks
80 St. Marks Place
Just west of 1st Avenue
See you all there, I hope!
Image from BluntCard.
Because it's not fucked up at all to have lipstick colors "inspired" by maquiladoras: "Beginning on September 15, 2010, customers can purchase lipsticks called 'Ghost Town' and 'Sleepless'; lipglass called 'del Norte'; eyeshadow called 'Bordertown'; and nail polish called 'Factory' and 'Juarez'."
From Sociological Images: Gender, Race, and Top Billing at Paramount Pictures
Dana Goldstein on "The Coming Birth Control Battle"
What Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg really said about abortion rights.
Shocker: California Crisis Pregnancy Centers Mislead Women
First-time authors with a nonfiction project in the works? Not sure how to navigate the publishing business? Then you're a perfect candidate for She Writes Passion Project. From She Writes:
This contest enables a hand-picked A-team of writing and publishing experts to choose a book project by a first-time author and to donate their time to its advancement, giving it every possible chance to succeed. Submissions are due August 1.Deets here.
You just can't make this stuff up. The Ladies Against Feminism (for real) co-sponsored a "baby conference" where Michelle Duggar of TLC's 19 Kids and Counting received the "Mother of the Year Award."
As Amanda tweeted, "I fail to see how being physically capable of non-stop pregnancy is the same thing as being the world's best mother...That's like saying the guy who can eat 50 hot dogs in a minute is the world's greatest gourmand." Why is ultimate motherhood simply about having as many babies as possible? And when oh when is the Christian Right going to stop promoting the notion that women's ultimate purpose is incubating?
I also think it's worth noting that the founder of Ladies Against Feminism, Jennifer Chancey thinks women shouldn't vote or hold office. So apparently being a dope mother is also about teaching your children that women don't deserve or need equal rights.
