gender Archives - Lori Day Author

This Woman’s Tragic Murder Catalyzed A Solution To National Epidemic Of Domestic Violence Homicide

If necessity is the mother of invention, this is the woman whose shocking death led to a new approach to ending domestic violence homicide. Her name was Dorothy.

In 2002, Dorothy became a client of the Jeanne Geiger Crisis Center after fleeing a shelter in Maine to one near her home in Massachusetts. Prior to seeking our services, she had endured almost two decades of severe abuse by her estranged husband that began very early in their relationship and continued during her two pregnancies and throughout her daughters’ childhoods. Read more…

Domestic Violence Homicide Is An Epidemic. Is A Hashtag Required To Capture The Media’s Attention And Our Nation’s Outrage?

American women are in the midst of an unprecedented societal “moment.” #MeToo and #TimesUp shine a light on what women have endured from men throughout history. So why is domestic violence still flying below the radar of our media and our national conscience when one in four women experiences severe physical violence by an intimate partner in her lifetime? When over half of American female homicide victims are murdered by intimate partners? Read more…

Hey Sam Rockwell… Sexual Harassment Is So Much More Than “Bullying”

In an opinion piece for NBC News, Sady Doyle writes, “Sam Rockwell, one of the few men pressed to talk about #MeToo on the red carpet who stars in a movie about the aftermath of a brutal rape in a small town, stammered out a vague answer about the movement that said nothing about sexism: ‘I don’t really know the answer to that. But I suppose the issue is bullying.’ The issue, as a matter of fact, is men — male power, male predators and the men who cover for the predators in their midst or turn a blind eye to the damage they cause.” Read more…

Stop glamourizing the pain of high heels

This is not a photo of my dead grandmother’s feet, but it matches the image I have of hers in my mind. She was a practicing podiatrist in Georgia in the 1940s — one of a handful of female physicians of any sort in that state, a feminist success story in her own way. At just under 4’11”, she wore heels every day of her adult life while treating the disfigured feet of her female patients who did the same. The irony did not escape her, as she self-castigated on this particular topic routinely within earshot. Read more…

Men Misbehaving, Go To Hell You Creepy Pervs: Thirteen Hate Haikus

Man on the subway
Masturbating at women,
What is wrong with you?

How much more could women achieve if they rejected expensive & time-consuming beauty routines?

Riding in the car with my mother the other day, she remarked that I am judgmental of women who care a lot about their appearance. She told me that she wears makeup every day not because she feels she has to, but because it is fun. She explained that Botox and plastic surgery are things that can help women feel good about themselves. “Your graying hair is making you look older,” she said. Yeah, I know… Read more…

Philanthropy Isn’t Always Sexy: Why Domestic Violence Organizations Deserve Your Support Anyway

By Lori Day – October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and we need to discuss some numbers.

From September 11, 2001 to June 6, 2012, more American women were killed by intimate partners than all of the victims of 9/11 plus all of the American military fatalities due to the ensuing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, combined. The numbers aren’t even close. According to the FBI, 11,766 women lost their lives to domestic violence during the years that 6,614 citizens and troops were killed in terror attacks and war. Read more…

I’m Tired Of The Sexism Of This Calendar. Happy Father’s Day!

For the twenty-plus years I have owned this decorative country-style wooden calendar, I have experienced a flashpoint of rage every June 1st when I flip the banner tile over from May to June, and move the date tiles around. I always check my paper calendar to see if there are any special holiday tiles to be displayed each month. My calendar has a painted Christmas tree on the back of the #25 tile, a red Valentine’s heart on the back of the #14 tile, and various other special tiles not associated with specific dates, like birthday cakes, a cornucopia of gourds for Thanksgiving, and oh, this tile with two little white flowers on it that says “Moms Day.” It’s not even grammatically correct. Apostrophes people! Read more…

Misogyny Is a Window That Goes Up and Down

Misogyny is a window that goes up and down. Sometimes when it’s down, I forget the window is even there. When it is abruptly thrown open, I remember that it was never actually gone. It is only closed now and then.

2016 is the year I have realized that the men on the other side of the window are not all religious or political conservatives. Many of them are liberal in their worldview and the champions of progressive causes. They talk about how black lives matter. They denounce Donald Trump for wanting to deport eleven million immigrants. They are on the right side of history when it comes to gay marriage and who can use which bathroom. They stand up for a woman’s right to choose! Read more…

Ten Reasons I Will Not Be Buying A Pink Fishing Rod

Dear Mr. Fishing Store Clerk,

I know you were just trying to be helpful. You saw me and my two X chromosomes walk into your shop on this beautiful day, you heard me say I was looking for a fishing rod and you dutifully ushered me to the new section in your 100-year-old family-run business where various models of pink fishing rods now live. I’m touched by your acknowledgment of my femininity and your concern that I might step out into the great outdoors without a sporting item that advertises and affirms my gender.

Here’s the thing, though: I am not interested in the pinkification of my sporting equipment. But thank you!

Oh, I see the perplexed look on your face. I did not realize this would be so confusing to you. Perhaps I should explain. Here are ten reasons why I do not plan to buy the product you suggested for me. Read more…

We need a Mandemic

There are not enough baby elephant videos in the world to soothe and distract me from all of the pain and suffering I see daily in the news. At the moment, I am obsessed with the Zika virus, which has just been declared a global emergency by the World Health Organization. As more and more babies are born with microcephaly, male politicians in Latin American countries are requesting that women not get pregnant for the next two years, while simultaneously denying them access to contraception and abortion. Read more…

Fifteen ways the world revolves around men’s penises

We all know that, in a patriarchy, the world revolves around men’s penises in a general sense, but here are 15 ways we can see this reality manifest itself, more specifically:

1) Male genitalia taking up space

Manspreading on public transportation and in other public seating situations is epidemic. The viral load in this miasma of douchiness has so far eluded all disease management techniques. If we’ve reached the point of needing to put up “Dude… Stop the Spread, Please” signs in subway cars — and we have — that tells me we see this phenomenon as an infection of sorts,hopefully addressed by PSAs… You know, like “Get Your Flu Shot Today” signs at CVS. Read more…

New Collection Aims To Disrupt Gendered Fashions With Bold Suit Options For Girls

There are lots of startups these days offering alternative clothing for children, but none that seek to bring to mainstream consumers the cool suit designs grabbing the media spotlight and making headlines today because they are being worn by female celebrities who are pushing the envelope. They push it because they can—because they have fame and money and influence, and because they are the ultimate trendsetters in our society. SUIT HER, a brand-new unique line of fun and diverse suits for girls aged 5 to 12, will kick open the door on gendered fashions and let in some fresh air so that girls who need bold options for expressing themselves can have them without paying celebrity prices or shopping in the boy’s department. Read more…

Harem-seeking Men Use Legalization of Gay Marriage to Pursue Legal Right to Hoard Women

I just can’t take it. You probably can’t either. You’ve heard this story: gay marriage becomes the law of the land in the U.S., we all rejoice, and of course we now have Montana jackass Nathan Collier storming the Yellowstone County Courthouse for a second marriage license so that he may become a legal bigamist, crediting Chief Justice John Roberts’ dissent in Obergefell v. Hodges as opening the door to the possibility of this marital windfall. Well, give the man some Golden Grizzly Ale and a dozen Rocky Mountain oysters! And he’s not alone–others are queued up behind him, sights set on the Supreme Court, excited to increase the number of sammiches and sexytimes coming their way. Read more…

Harem-seeking men use legalization of gay marriage to pursue legal right to hoard women

I just can’t take it. Gay marriage becomes the law of the land in the U.S., we all rejoice, and now we have Montana jackass, Nathan Collier, storming the Yellowstone County Courthouse for a second marriage license so that he may become a legal bigamist, crediting Chief Justice John Roberts’ dissent in Obergefell v. Hodges as opening the door to the possibility of this marital windfall. Well, give the man some Golden Grizzly Ale and a dozen Rocky Mountain oysters! And he’s not alone — others are queued up behind him, sights set on the Supreme Court, excited to increase the number of sammiches and sexytimes coming their way. Read more…

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