Adrienne Rich book covers

RIP Adrienne Rich, who passed away last week.
‘Adrienne Cecile Rich (May 16, 1929 – March 27, 2012) was an American poet, essayist and feminist. She has been called "one of the most widely read and influential poets of the second half of the 20th century", and was credited with bringing "the oppression of women and lesbians to the forefront of poetic discourse".’ (from Wikipedia, more here)

   

The Girl Effect

The Girl Effect is an awareness campaign focused on the importance of girls’ education in solving global poverty. Visit their website for more information and inspiration. The film is both a moving call to action, and an explanation of a very interesting idea.

Naomi Wolf

There was a chat session with Naomi Wolf on feminism on the Guardian website earlier today, read the full transcript here or her column 'How we can connect with feminism's global future' here.

Wanted: More Women in ICT!

Neelie Kroes

Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for the Digital Agenda

Brussels, 7th March 2012

"It's my dream to get every European digital. But what a challenge! Today, one in four European adults has never used the Internet. We need to do something about that. This in an age where the Internet is the tool to do everything – buy, socialise, read the news, get public services, apply for jobs. Those one in four adults have never benefited from any of those online opportunities. Yet they also have the most to gain: because, all too often, it's the same people who are also at risk of other kinds of exclusion: the poor, the elderly, the less educated. 

And remember that today, unemployment, especially among young people, is a cancer in our society. But in the not so distant future, 90% of jobs could require digital skills. We'd better get ready and "skill up". So I welcome today's event. It's a practical demonstration of how we can help get everyone online: in a direct and pragmatic way. It's a smart move to have this event on International Women's Day. Because there's a real problem here. Not enough girls are going into ICT careers. That's such a shame given they are both fascinating, and central to our economy and society. How do we get more girls involved? Three ways.

First, we must show the many ways in which ICT empowers women. Whether it's helping people with family commitments work or train from home. Or a tool for self-expression: ICT can help women. Already we're seeing more and more sites delivering for women – sites like Mumsnet or Pinterest. But I'm convinced we can go further. Because there's a virtuous circle here: the more women see that ICT delivers for them, the more they will want to get involved; the more they get involved the better it can adapt to their needs.

Second, start young. At school, as many as 90% of girls are interested in ICT. But they don't convert that into university study – and that's where the boys overtake.

And third, role models are important. If all girls hear is that ICT is for boys who like sitting alone in their rooms – well, that's what they'll believe. But if girls meet people who are positive about ICT, if they realise that ICT careers are exciting and exuberant, with the chance to travel, to help others and to work independently — then they will be turned on to it.

So I'm glad we have so many great role models right here in the room: businesswomen and activists, politicians and policymakers. You can help us spread the word and show that ICT is for everyone.

I want to play my part too. Today I and others have made a powerful and clear statement. That technology isn't a boy's world. That we need to bring together the ICT revolution and the gender equality revolution. That the exponential growth in ICT shouldn't just be governed by Moore's Law: but by a "more women" law. If you believe in those ideas: sign up too, and join the movement of digital women."

Read the full press release at here

What's on the Vagenda?

An article in yesterday’s Evening Standard recommended the Vagenda blog, worth checking out.

‘The Vagenda blog is the embodiment of a new, young feminist voice: satirical, sharp and very, very funny. “The humour is vital because a strident tone can be alienating,” a contributor tells me. “We thought there was a proliferation of feminist analysis on the internet already. But, often, feminist blogs and websites are preaching to the converted – whereas we are trying to reach people who are not necessarily that interested as well. They’ll be more open to it if it's funny.”

 

Jill Abramson

Jill Abramson, the first woman to be Executive Editor of The New York Times in its 160-year history. Predictably, Abramson's appointment kicked off a broader conversation about the representation of women and people of colour in media. Read more on The New Yorker and The Guardian

Behind Every Great Woman

A little bit of change since 1970 but by far not enough!

Illustration from Business Week

US Women

In October 2010, The White House published its paper on ‘Jobs and Economic Security for America's Women’, you can download the complete pdf here.

‘When America first put the Equal Pay Act on the books in 1963 women earned 59 cents for every dollar paid to men. Today, almost 50 years after the Equal Pay Act became law, women are paid an average of 77 cents for every dollar paid to men. The gender wage gap has narrowed, but it has not disappeared and has been virtually flat over the past decade.’

Is the Arab Spring Bad for Women?

‘Overthrowing male dominance could be harder than overthrowing a dictator’ writes Isobel Coleman at Foreign Policy. Another FP article gives the following percentage of college students who are female:

71%    Bermuda

57%    United States

56%    Brazil

53%    Iran

38%    South Korea

LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP/Getty Images

The Female Factor

‘Why do so few women reach the top of design? The short answer is the same lack of self-belief and entitlement that dogs them in every other profession, combined with opposition from those who commission the majority of design projects, most of whom are men. The graphic designer Paula Scher once described this as the “Why did I get the woman?” syndrome. Read entire article by Alice Rawstorn on the website of The New York Times

Women giving feminism a bad name

Spare me from the whining women who are giving feminism a bad name article
"Sadly, a lot of what passes for feminism these days is just moaning about men, congratulating ourselves on nothing in particular, and mocking them for being big kids while doing everything we can to keep them that way." Read Julie Burchill's full article on The Guardian