June 2001

FCC Tries to Silence Feminist Song
Hey, FCC, Tra La La, Fuck You
Thursday, June 28, 2001 The FCC has fined a small radio station for playing Sarah Jones' feminist anthem "Your Revolution", labeling it too obscene for airplay and saying that it "contains unmistakable patently offensive sexual references. . . designed to pander and shock." The song, which was actually designed to confront the misogyny inherent in some aspects of hip hop culture, was played on a Portland, OR non-commercial radio station, KBOO, causing the FCC to impose a fine of $7000 - the station will appeal in July. In "Your Revolution," Jones quotes explicitly messed-up lyrics from other hip-hop songs, yet the original male artists were not slapped with fines; rather, they were slapped with hundred-dollar bills. Sounds like it's time for a hootenanny, girls -- this summer at the music festivals, let's all do the Sarah Jones thang: get out the mics, and turn the tables. For more info, and to sign a petition, visit http://www.airbubble.com/your_revolution.html

Surgeon General: Talk to Kids About Sex
Just Don't Use Pictures or Demonstrations
Wednesday, June 27, 2001 Surgeon General David Satcher is urging parents, schools, and community leaders to do a better job of talking to kids about sex in order to reduce unwanted pregnancy and STDs, saying that programs that focus on abstinence until marriage, or programs that do not mention sexual orientation, are not as helpful as those that are based in “reality.” Satcher's report, two years in the making, assessed some of the negative consequences partially attributable to a lack of sexual education and sexual health resources: 12 million people in the US suffer from STDs every year, 100,000 children suffer sexual abuse, and nearly half of pregnancies are unwanted. The Surgeon General's statements were somewhat politically charged – he called on Americans to respect "the diversity of sexual values" in our communities, and said, "We have a responsibility to be more supportive and proactive than judgmental. He also suggested greater access to reproductive health care services for "all persons in all communities." In fact, the report seemed to indicate that the more we talk about sexual and reproductive issues, not just with kids but with each other, the better prepared we are to overcome the problems we face. As long as nobody mentions abortion.

New Zealand Woman Fired for Being Too Sexy
Yeah, That Happens To Me All The Time, Too
Tuesday, June 26, 2001 All of the top elected officials in New Zealand are women, but that doesn’t stop some of its male civil servants from acting like sexist jerks – a female government employee was harassed and let go by her male superiors because they felt her dress detracted from her professionalism. Christine Rankin, who may or may not have absorbed a little too much fashion influence from Erin Brockovich, was told to stop wearing her Hugo Boss glasses (though her boss wore them too), asked to lengthen her skirts, and informed that her long earrings were sending a primal signal of sexual readiness; when she did not change her style of dress, her contract was not renewed. The country's former prime minister, Jenny Shipley, has publicly expressed her outrage over this "Neanderthal" behavior, noting that the men were definitely sending a primal signal of readiness, too -- readiness to be fired from their jobs.

New Japanese Trend: Eating Disorders
Pukemon Not Quite As Cute As Pokemon
Thursday, June 21, 2001 There was a tenfold increase in the incidence of anorexia and bulimia in Japan in the eight years between 1990 and 1998, according to a government-sponsored study. One researcher expressed his fears that eating disorders among young Japanese women would rise to US levels, where an estimated 1 to 3.5 percent of the population suffers from a food-related disorder. The number and percentage of women on diets in Japan has also risen markedly, and more than 10 percent are now considered underweight. It seems easy to blame the Japanese women's magazines – they already receive a ton of mail on the subject, said one spokeswoman, who acknowledged that the fashions they show require women to be extra-thin. “Even some of the models complain about it,” said the magazine gal. “You know, when they’re not throwing up.”

Court Threatens Egyptian Feminist With Divorce
Because Not Being Married Is a Feminist Nightmare
Wednesday, June 20, 2001 Nawal Al-Saadawi, the outspoken Egyptian feminist who has criticized Islamic inheritance laws and dress restrictions, may be forced to divorce her husband of many years by a civil court seeking to punish her for “renouncing Islam.” This certainly isn’t the worst reaction she’s received to her opinions – some Egyptian journalists called for her death after she said that the Koran did not call for mandatory veils for women – but she continues to write and speak out, and recently spent some time in the US as a scholar at Duke University. Her husband, who has been jailed in the past for expressing similarly unpopular political opinions, has no plans to divorce his wife, and she has said the same. “We’re not separating, and we’re not leaving the country,” Al-Saadawi announced, adding, “But we have applied to be contestants on ‘Temptation Island II.’ That seems like a much bigger test of the relationship, somehow.”

Women Charge Wal-Mart With Sexism
Saved 10% by Charging It On Their Savings Club Card
Tuesday, June 19, 2001 Wal-Mart, the nation’s largest employer, is being sued by six female employees who claim that the retailer discriminates against women in its promotion and pay practices; if the suit becomes a class action suit, over 700,000 current and former employees could seek damages. Women make up 72 percent of the sales force at Wal-Mart, but only 33 percent of the managers are female – less than half the number of female managers than at Wal-Mart’s two major competitors, Sears and Target, according to ABC News. Though the company has been successfully sued before for sex discrimination and harassment, condition for female workers have not improved. Maybe when they’re 700,000 strong, the female employees will be able to bust through Wal-Mart’s cheap plastic imitation of a glass ceiling.

Floating Abortion Clinic Hits Choppy Seas
Arrggh, Matey, She’s In For A Rough One
Friday, June 15, 2001 The doctors and staff of the Women on Waves project, the floating abortion clinic and counseling center, had bulletproof vests at the ready and made loud public assurances that no abortions would be provided as they cruised into Dublin, Ireland today. Women on Waves plans to sail to countries where abortion is illegal, and dock in international waters, where patients who want a medical abortion, access to RU-486, or counseling about abortion can be ferried aboard. Ireland was a tough first stop – it’s a staunchly anti-abortion country, and a major bishop initially called for an “armada of ships” to prevent the boat’s docking. But with the international women’s health community facing restrictions on abortions and abortion counseling, and access to pregnancy planning and prevention tools greatly diminished, the ‘Bort Boat has a long sail ahead. And with more and more waiting periods and parental notification bills sneaking through here in the US, she may wind up bumping against our shores some day soon, if only to piss off President Bush – that guy is such a porthole.

Guinness Book Nixes World’s Biggest Cooch
Giant Pussy Causes Flap in Pride Parade
Wednesday, June 13, 2001 Despite a lack of sponsorships, the threat of censorship, and a curious lack of interest from the Guinness World Records organization, the World’s Biggest Pussy float (made possible, in part, by donations from BUST and its readers – how proud are we?) will launch its labial cruise to glory in this June’s San Francisco LGBT Pride Parade. The eight-foot pussy was conceived and created by Vulva University, which provides free online education in women’s health and sexuality, but they didn’t expect the resistance they got from sponsors and critics. The story does have a happy ending (or rather, a happy opening), in that volunteers and donors have stepped in to help make the vulva a (virtual) reality. And if you hear a noise like “Pffffffffttthhhhttttthhhhhhtttppft” as it floats on by, that’s just a big old pussyfart for the Largest Stiffs in the Universe, the Guinness Book of Everything Except Pussy.

Women Tear-Gassed for Stripping in Protest
Duh, You’re Supposed to Tip Them, Not Gas Them
Tuesday, June 12, 2001 More than 100 women in the African country of Chad were tear-gassed by police on Monday when they began to strip in political protest of the re-election of President Idriss Deby. Stripping is a pretty extreme form of women’s protest in Chad, though it’s one of the few forms of political expression open to them, since they can’t vote. Police apparently felt it necessary to stop these women from getting naked at all costs, so they fired tear gas grenades at the small crowd, injuring a few. The women were demonstrating outside the French embassy, as they accuse the French delegate of helping Deby fix the election. Hmm, stripping to protest a fraudulent vote? This could catch on in Florida …

Killer Nuns!
Twisted Sisters Await Genocide Verdict
Thursday, June 7, 2001 Hail Scary! Two Rwandan nuns accused of helping to massacre thousands of people are awaiting their vedict this week in a Belgian court. The nuns, both of the Roman Catholic order, allegedly helped to burn to death up to 7000 Tutsi refugees who had taken refuge at their convent during the genocidal wars of 1994. The trial is being held in Belgium, where the nuns currently reside, in a landmark case against fugitive war criminals. One of the nuns was a Mother Superior; both she and her henchnun were both considered to be married to Jesus. Jesus, however, called to reiterate that he filed for divorce, oh, somwhere around the time his ex-wives were pouring gasoline on a church full of men, women and kids.

Booby Trap!
Female Thieves Drugged Men With Their Tits
Wednesday, June 6, 2001 Raise the roofies! Three young women in Columbia were arrested for robbing men after drugging them with narcotics they'd rubbed on their breasts. The women dissolved powerful sedative pills in water, smeared the paste on their breasts, and stood by the road near fancy bars and restaurants in the wealthier section of Bogota luring men into taking a taste. The hapless titty-lickers would pass out -- when they came to, they found they were missing their wallets and cars. Many thieves use drugs to rob their victims, some of whom have died. Meanwhile, in the US, plenty of women use their tits to get money and cars; they're just not usually this efficient.

No, You Shut Up!
Pro-Choice Group Sues Bush Over Gag Rule
Tuesday, June 5, 2001 Go choke on your own rhetoric, says the Center for Reproductive Law and Policy to President Bush, slapping him with a First Amendment abridgement-of-speech lawsuit. In restricting international agencies who receive money from the US from discussing abortion with women, the suit claims, Bush (along with Colin Powell and and the administrator of International Development) is effectively asking these doctors and human rights workers not to express their personal and professional opinions. Anti-abortion opinions of the highly religious flavor are permitted, so why is medical abortion counseling barred? It's almost fun to watch this gag rule thing get ping-ponged back and forth in the courts, until you consider that an estimated 70,000 women die every year from botched illegal abortions. Then you realize how simple it is: the gag rule blows.