Today, for the second year in a row, I’ve walked through West Mall and found a small group of men carrying signs that say things like, “End Women’s Suffrage!” and “If the women are voting, who’s in the kitchen making us sandwiches?!” Fucked up things like that. While it’s only a few people with the signs, the surrounding group of people - students, faculty, visitors, potential students - is not as small. They’re laughing, taking photographs, filming parts of it with their phones.
Perhaps I’m just being silly, but I fail to see the humor. Any of it.
The popular opinion is that it’s a fraternity stunt, that those involved lost a bet of some sort and must spend their afternoon infuriating people, but…why is this their penalty? In a society where patriarchy permeates, maybe these assholes could be given a different type of consequence. Like, one that doesn’t affirm what millions of privileged people already believe?
And does everyone around them know it’s a joke? One thing that really infuriates me is when people trivialize things like sexism, racism, homophobia, transphobia, classism, etc.
And then I get even more angry when people tell me to not take things so seriously. Oooops! I guess I shouldn’t take the way you represent yourself to hundreds of people seriously… If that’s not something to get upset over, then what types of things should I allow to upset me? Things like this ridiculous “rally,” facebook statuses, tweets, jokes made in classrooms or other campus spaces - these are the things that make room for more oppression.
Earlier this week, my entire Human Sexuality class received an e-mail from one student asking if anyone was interested in a study group. There are over one hundred people in the class. The e-mail began with: Hey Guys, Girls, and everyone unfortunately in-between! Well, my initial reaction was a WHAT THE FUCK response. The e-mail began an enormous discussion in which the majority of those involved said we shouldn’t get upset because it was just a joke. A terrible joke that should have never happened.
Many said don’t take it seriously. Don’t…take seriously…an e-mail…sent to over…one hundred…people? Oh, okay, sure thing! Let’s just laugh away the transphobia, homophobia, gendered comment. Not a big deal or whatever…
Sorry - that’s a much bigger discussion to be had. In relation to the event today, I worry a lot of people, especially younger men, will see it and misunderstand, and then take the sides of those involved. That’s just what we need, isn’t it?
This is on the front page of my college’s newspaper, The Daily Texan. That is the first problem. Why was this chosen for the cover? So people could be so furious and triggered that a riot erupts? While the riot is mainly on my facebook newsfeed, it’s still there. So we’re aware of it? Things like this confuse me - to me, the newspaper is taking sides.
The person interviewed, Ryan Haecker, is a sexist, homophobic, transphobic bigot. Excuse my rage. *He’s a grad student at UT Austin. Aside from protesting nearly every event put on by The Gender and Sexuality Center here, he also has created a new organization because he and his members are “concerned about is the sexual promiscuity that proliferates on college campuses and especially the way in which universities seem to have [ignored] this sort of lifestyle.” REALLY? OK COOL. What he really means is that he wants to eliminate the presence of queer people, feminists, and sex-positivity. Also, he confides in us: “I don’t really go to parties where people drink a lot of alcohol so I don’t know specifically what they do there but I hear stories.” How helpful.
Haecker began a few years ago with an opinion piece entitled, “Who Wears the Pants?” Its first line is, “Dresses epitomize womanhood in the Western world.” ………………It’s not a joke.
Click here for a little more information to help gauge the level of ridiculousness this student reaches.
Brief Bibbel to Being a Feminist Boy
HORRIBLE new Got Milk? campaign. Sexist and disgusting, this new campaign features husbands apologizing for all the mistakes they’ve made while trying to convince their wives to drink more milk - because it will ease the severity of their PMS.
What the fuck is going on?
