Wednesday, August 4, 2010
What Makes A Whore.
Quick question:
What do you call a woman that enjoys sex with multiple partners?
A philanderer? Harlot? Floozy?
(shout outs to the Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, by the way)
Yesterday morning, the GirlSpeak 2010 editorial board had an in-depth discussion regarding the definition of a word that's been carelessly tossed about among many; without full comprehension of what it means exactly.
Whore.
What makes a whore?
Does she dress like one? Does she fool around with her friend's ex-boyfriends? With strangers? Is she a famous character among a group of guys?
Essentially, the decision has been up to you this whole time, Reader.
But as we all know, a whore (also known as a prostitute) is a woman paid to have sex.
Personally, I've never sold my body for a dollar bill in any of my 15 years of living, & yet I've been called a whore on more occasions than I'm willing to share.
Sure, I'm a fairly flirtatious individual. & yes, I've been known to sport more cleavage than neccessary, sometimes. But by what means does that make me a whore?
I think somewhere along the way, probably between the catty girltalks & excessive reruns of Mean Girls on TBS, society rewrote the definition & ran with it.
During yesterday morning's discussion, a "whore" in my eyes was a woman that would compromise herself for the sake of a man's pleasure; a more vague variation of the actual translation.
The other editors' descriptions of "whore" were things like,
someone that has sex with someone she doesn't know and someone that has sex with people that know eachother & eventually, we had to dig into what makes a "sex partner" a "sex partner you know".. and, quite frankly, I walked away fuzzy-headed & educated.
Readers, sex partners we know are sex partners that know us.
They know what we want because they care to know. & we, as women, are comfortable with asking them questions to ensure our comfort. Sex is sheer intimacy at its finest, & the sex partners we know treat it as such.
And so, apparently, this factor (alongside a few others) draws the line between a "whore" and a "sexually liberated woman".
SLWs enjoy sex with multiple partners, much like the whore, but not nearly with the same footnote.
The SLW is comfortable with her sexuality & carries her own best interest at heart.
She wants to please herself & her sexual partners, of which she is selective. She understands the strength in intimacy during sex.
She may not be seen as the classiest woman in the world, but she isn't spreading her legs for cash, mind you.
The moral of the story, Readers?
Be an SLW or be a virgin (:
& know a whore before you call her one.
-O.G. Kush
International Superstar
On August 3, 2010 we were visited by an inspirational woman name Ugochi Nwaogwugwu. She is an well-known national singer, songwriter, poet and traveler. During her visit, Ugochi talked about her traveling experiences and how she took risks in order to fulfill her dreams. Also explained, how stepping out on faith opened doors to the music world. Originally, she is Nigerian but she was born in Chicago Illinois, this is where she began singing. Ugochi’s music has allowed her to travel to many countries in Europe, including performing her extremely individualized form of sound power in Paris, Nigeria, Amsterdam and London. Currently, she has completed her debut album project appropriately titled “African Buttafly.” Ugochi’s hope is that she will see more of the planet through her music. She was an interesting person to hear from because she accomplished so much and experienced things I would like to experience like traveling to different countries. As Ugochi said"The world is so BIG"and like I will travel this world. In my eyes, she"s a International Superstar.
Dueces
Jewel
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Likes and Dislikes: We all have them
This morning, we had an discussion about the things we like and dislike about ourselves.First, we had to write fifteen dislikes and one of the girls noticed that there was no second thoughts about things they wanted to change. Secondly,we had to write fifteen likes and I observed the majority of everyone pens slowing down,eyes were roaming around room. Once the list was completed it was told to us to not dwell on the negative things and to be happy with what you have. Also,to think about other girls features and to reflect on rather or not we could handle what the other girl have. For example, bigger breast or long hair is something a girl might desire but on the other hand they may not know the problems that could follow. It was a great excerise to do because it opened my as well as the other girls to embrace the positive and appreciate ourselves.
Dueces!!!!
Jewel
Opression: GirlSpeak's Outlook
So lately, the GirlSpeak staff and I have been working on a visual art piece that incorporates each of the ways that we as young women have been opressed. One of our mentors decided that it would be interesting and unique for us to take long pieces of fabric and write text that expresses these forms of oppression onto these fabric strips.
Many of the GirlSpeak members wrote poems or journal entries that dealt with this concept. The process of creating these "fabric film strips" surprisingly involved a lot of time and, to our disappointment, usage of simple mathematics to calculate how the text would fit onto the strips. This involved counting each character that our text composed of and by dividing that number by the lengths of the strips that we were using.
Some of us will be wrapping this fabric around certain parts of our bodies that are related to our writing pieces. Kush, for instance, created a mask that was molded out of her own faces with paper mache. She also created a frame for this mask and, inside of it, she pasted random letters that she cut out to form her writing piece.
Sure, this project was very timely but in the end, we had the chance to powerfully address our emotions through text. We also planned how we each want to incorporate this text-covered fabric into pictures that a professional photographer will be taking of us (which is exciting 'cause few of us had the privelege to ever be photographed by a pro!).
These pics will be up on our blog most likely by Thursday or Friday of this week, since they will be taken on Thursday afternoon. So keep checking up on us to see those soon!
Peace,
Anita
Thursday, July 22, 2010
PRIVILEGE
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Social Networking
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Men: The Endangered Species.
This morning, GirlSpeak discussed a topic that rested heavier on my heart (if I can't speak for anyone else) than any of the previous.
After an audio presentation of highly acclaimed writer, Patricia Smith's "Undertaker", we picked at the subject of young men becoming the endangered species of America.
It has been 6 weeks & 3 days since my next-door-neighbor, Jeremy Baggett, lost his life to gang violence. I can still feel tears well up in my eyes when I pass his house on my way to work, so - like I said, the topic rested heavily.
On more levels than one, could I relate to being attracted to young men with a thug mentality & reckless lifestyle. With one of my exes cooped up in a cell in the Cook County Correctional Facility & another's speech reduced to a whisper as a result of a bullet to the throat, I couldn't help but feel like Krista Franklin was speaking to me.
Sometimes, there really is nothing sexier than a boy with a rough neck & dangerous eyes. However, there isn't anything more devastating than having them taken away. Lust and heartbreak tend to go hand-in-hand, don't they?
To make a long story short, the moral of the story (so to speak) was what part should we, as young women, play in protecting the lives of this endangered species.
My take?
After watching close friends fall to the streets like soldiers on a battlefield & watching others pull on the same uniform, I'm at the point now where I feel completely powerless.
What are we supposed to do? Jump in front of the bullets?
Or do we try to stop the soldier from fighting the war?
I had hoped that I'd have an answer by the time I neared the end of this post, but it hasn't come to me just yet.
Maybe that's why there are so many graves with patriotic flags planted beside them these days.
Maybe there's just an entire nation of women that haven't found the perfect solution to rescuing them.
-O.G. Kush
Saturday, July 17, 2010
The Deadline is Approaching Soon!!!
Submit Your Creative Work to GirlSpeak Webzine
“Our voice is power. Our art is activism”
GirlSpeak aspires to advocate empowerment for and understanding towards young women. We celebrate all forms of diversity and gender equality.
We encourage all artists/writers ages 13-23 to email work along with a short paragraph that explains the submission(s) to girlspeak2010@gmail.com.
Submitting is free and easy; please limit submissions to five pieces or less.
Types of work we are looking for:
* Essays
* Poems
* Short stories
* Paintings*
* Sculptures*
* Audio recordings
* Short films
* Journal entries
* Photography
…And any other forms of creative expressions.
The GirlSpeak Editorial Board will respectfully review all works. Feedback will be given as soon as possible.
Deadline: July 19, 2010
www.girlspeak.org
*Please send only jpegs of all visual art.
Friday, July 16, 2010
The Gaze Exercise
Thursday, July 15, 2010
All About The Body
So we were assign to do a poem about any part of the body or the whole body. Some poems express
insecurities some portrayed confidence, many were about how beautiful our bodies looked and that the world doesn't decide
how we choose to look. We all read them aloud and then had a discussion about what we thought or felt after hearing everyones poems. The feedback was mostly positive and we felt it was a great activity and wouldn't mind doing it again and again.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
2009's Reinvention of Sex.
Soooo.
Yesterday morning, the GirlSpeak editorial board and myself indulged in, yet another, one of our in-depth, round-the-table discussions.
The topic up for slaughter that morning was an article written in the Action issue #47 for Bitch Magazine, in which writer, Megan Carpentier, spoke - err - wrote out about hip hop & R&B's discretion for a female's pleasure during sex.
The article (which we all got a nice chuckle over) was nothing short of brilliant, as it tied together the pattern, intricately woven since the early 90's when gangsta rap was at it's peak, of male dominance in the bedroom & lack of compassion for a woman's satisfaction & enjoyment.
However, Carpentier also described a turnaround in the new millennium (cough - 2009 - cough) where sex was reinvented (all thanks to the beautiful Trey Songz) & a woman's part on the pleasure spectrum was recognized.
Even as the lyrics stayed raunchy, there appeared to be a hint of celebration & appreciation for the sex partners with vaginas.
Instead of making their women want to l-lick them like a lollipop, they now wanted their women to make the neighbors know their names.
The shift in focus is still oozing with cockyness (absolutely no pun intended) but at least our rappers & rhythm and blues crooners care about how they make their women feel, as opposed to the vice-versa.
Further into our discussion, we pondered how much responsibility these artists should take for the lyrics they perform. Surely, they all haven't been truly dispassionate for the women they sleep with, but does it take away from the fact that they promote music that suggests they are?
My answer to that question is, yes.
Why sing a song about something you don't fully agree with?
Sure, your record will go platinum, but is the hypocrisy behind it worth the fame?
Choosing to go forth with such a silly mode of operation leaves you with no other option but to take responsibility for it.
So, yes.
These artists are at fault, but so are the folks standing behind them encouraging them to continue.
-O.G. Kush
Progess Update
C.Rae-Lyn
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Guest Speaker
Monday, July 12, 2010
On Life Lines
After looking at the exhibit, we each were designated to write or draw something that pertained to the exhibit, and were later asked to share with each other. There were lots of great pictures and stories amongst the group, and overall it was a really great experience.
For more info on the works of Charles Steffen check out the exhibit
visit www.art.org, or check out the exhibit which will be running through August 28, 2010.
~Gabibi~
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Nate Marshall Book Opening!
This past Thursday, Whitney Young alumni Nathaniel Marshall introduced us all with his new book, Unconditional Like, a collection of poetry reflecting his growing up in Chicago and different life experiences. The release was held at the Silver Room in the Wicker Park area on Chicago's north-west side. The book release consisted of an assortment of eclectic Chicago performers, including another Whitney Young student, Victor Mensah, who is a young, up and coming, hip hop artist.
When Nate Marshall stepped up to the mic to read selections of his book, everyone paid attention, waiting in anticipation for his exceptional writing to illuminate the room. Nate's readings were comedic, heart warming, and most importantly RELATABLE. Every time he said something we all as Chicago youth have experienced, the room burst with excitement. We were elated to be hearing something that we actually enjoyed and could personalize. The readings by Nate Marshall were exceptional, and I don't know a single person (including myself) that did not walk out with his extraordinary book.
Also, Nate Marshall has compiled a mix tape entitled "The Langston Huge Project" where he goes by his stage name, Illuminate Mics. He performed a couple of his songs at his book release and it was a perfect fit. His songs include songs such as "The Show" where he also talks about growing up in Chicago while putting comedic flair into his lyrics. You can listen to his entire mix tape by going to this link; http://illuminatemics.bandcamp.com/
-bernie levv ♪✇♫
Friday, July 9, 2010
"Just Like A Women"
In this particular part of the book, Naylor is writing about a young women named Mattie Michael, who is a church going, God and father fearing individual. When she goes on a sugar cane planting trip with the neighborhood no-good, Butch, she questions herself, her father, and her sense of judgement. Mattie starts to look at Butch in a different way, and it scares her. When she expresses to Butch that she wants to go home, he of course says "Now, ain't that just like a women" he continues on saying, "Bring a man clear out of his way to cut three times as much cane as he needed for his self and then want to double-time him back home before he gets a minute's rest or them wild hers he REALLY came all this way fo' "
We as young women and young ladies can relate to how Mattie reacts to his declaration. She goes on to show him how independent she can be as a women and how she can handle just as much as she can by doing other work for him. It's funny how just by saying that sentence, women sometimes have to prove themselves to men and contradict the statement by doing the opposite of what he just said. Going against the grain, it seems like we always have to prove ourselves and I find that in many examples, including ones in books, movies, and real life.
We have become OBSESSED with proving ourselves more than the opposite sex could ever imagine.
- bernie levv ♪✇♬
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Female Emcees in The 'Rap Game'.
Alrighty, so.
Earlier this week, the GirlSpeak editorial board (& I.. teehee) breifly discussed females in hip-hop (particularly, rap).
From what I managed to pick up through my mid-afternoon daze (a terrible experience when you're in the workplace, might I add) there was a category at this year's BET Awards honoring female emcees worthy of recognition on that night.
Among the nominees were women of the current mainstream rap, such as Young Money's Nicki Minaj, & also women that are still praised for their music although they've been somewhat missing from the mainstream charts these days, such as Lil Kim.
We editors of GirlSpeak went on to discuss our opinions on the matter & also what we personally felt towards a certain female emcee's image & role in the media - Miss Nicki Minaj.
My personal opinion of the Harajuku Barbie & also every other female rapper sitting pretty in 'the game' is that they are the in the category of the very least credited artists in this industry & hardly have an image of their own as individuals the moment they spit a verse & hit it big.
Female rappers are most of the time shrugged off as mere sex symbols & are not usually given as much recognition as their male counterparts.
Also, with the number of female emcees at a humiliating low, each rapper that emerges is compared with the last; bringing me to the controversy of Nicki Minaj & Lil Kim.
Both of these rappers have very similar images & deliveries. Both are portrayed as extremely sexual & produce catchy, pop-ish music that, in a sense, mirror eachother quite well..
Nicki Minaj has to deal with a slew of negative feedback & controversial publicity, while years back, it was Lil Kim that carried the same burden.
Listeners & fans have no choice but to call to mind either when the other is mentioned. The fact that Nicki Minaj won't be seen by so many as a legit artist of her own craft is almost painful &, at times, makes me sympathize the woman.
It's so hard to find a quality female emcee that doesn't rub off as a simple duplicate of the ones before her, but it's an even tougher struggle when you can hardly credit the newer artist for setting herself apart from all the rest.
It sort of makes you wonder who is really at fault here.
The media, for projecting each up and coming female rapper in the same light.
The listeners, for being so quick to judge her & compare her to the last.
Or, the artist herself, for not forging a path entirely her own & producing a brand-spankin-new concept that we haven't heard too many times prior.
In my eyes, though, whether or not Lil Kim truly is the protoype of Nicki Minaj, as nominees in such a confined category such as female rap, both of these artists deserve praise & recognition.
Blowing up in an industry that is predominately male, is inspiring enough as it is.
I've chosen to peer past the comparisons & petty glamours, & to look at this situation for what it is;
the population of female emcees is growing & that is something definitely worth celebrating.
-O.G. Kush
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
GirlSpeak 2010: Already in Action!
This is Anita, one of the members of the GirlSpeak Editorial Board. I'm gonna tell you guys what we as a staff have discussed and accomplished so far, just to show you guys what we're all about and what we're interested in.
The GirlSpeak crew met on June 28th for the first time and, thankfully, because we clicked so well, we all dove into conversation about several issues. We discussed how we're upset with the way women are viewed within today's society, several books (such as the Twilight series) which depict characters that play stereotypical female roles, the Chris Brown incident/domestic violence in general, and other topics.
We also were visited by a guest speaker who defined feminism for us and educated us about several historical feminists. The GirlSpeak and BoyThink (another organization within YCA, focused on masculinity issues) staffs also learned about Romantic Objectification, which is a type of poetry that focuses on the romantic genre, while at the same time, metophorically comparing a person to an object. We wrote our own poems using this writing technique, as well as many others.
The BoyThink and GirlSpeak crews had discussions concerning the definitions of feminity and masculinity, issues that women face due to prejudice from men, issues that men face with being knowledgeable about masculinity, and several other issues.
A few exciting things that we're planning to accomplish/publish for the GirlSpeak webzine are a Q&A section based on random and interesting women that we interview on the streets; rants about topics that concern us; a News Feed section where we discuss what we've talked about during meetings; book, movie, music, artist, etc. reviews; a Fashion section, where we include photographs of fashionable women on the streets; what it's like to work amongst a staff that is composed of all women, people that we don't know, and people of different cultural backgrounds; and brief synopses of influential and famous (or non-famous) women that other girls should be aware of.
The girls and I also developed a call for submissions flyer, which is posted as the GirlSpeak's blog first blog entry, and it allows people (young women, in particular) to have the opportunity to send in their literary and visual artworks. We have recieved many submissions within such a short period of time already and we thank you for the contributions and the support. We have gotten many selections of prose and poetry but not much artwork. If you are an visual artist please feel free to contribute to the girlspeak webzine.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
GIRLSPEAK WANTS YOU!!!
Calling All Young Artists/Writers!!!
Submit Your Creative Work to GirlSpeak Webzine
“Our voice is power. Our art is activism”
GirlSpeak aspires to advocate empowerment for and understanding towards young women. We celebrate all forms of diversity and gender equality.
We encourage all artists/writers ages 13-23 to email work along with a short paragraph that explains the submission(s) to girlspeak2010@gmail.com.
Submitting is free and easy; please limit submissions to five pieces or less.
Types of work we are looking for:
o Essays
o Poems
o Short stories
o Paintings*
o Sculptures*
o Audio recordings
o Short films
o Journal entries
o Photography
…And any other forms of creative expressions.
The GirlSpeak Editorial Board will respectfully review all works. Feedback will be given as soon as possible.
For more information about GirlSpeak check out our website:
www.girlspeak.org by JULY 19th
*Please only send photographs of your paintings and sculpture.