Tag: Gender

Hysterical men illustrate the profound imbalance in gender dynamics
News

Hysterical men illustrate the profound imbalance in gender dynamics

Thursday presented us with a tale of two Senate hearings, and what a harrowing tale it was: A parable that laid bare the ways in which gender cleaves our conception of acceptable behavior. Watching Hon. Brett Kavanaugh scream for long hours, many women will have fumed over the double standard. If a woman fell into a full-scale meltdown in front of Congress, if she shrieked and spit the way multiple men did yesterday, we would not be having even a hypothetical conversation about her confirmation. She would be done for. Women in politics have classically been bound by an emotive paradox: If, like Hillary Clinton, a woman raises her voice on the national stage, she often finds herself dismissed—typically, by men—as shrill. If, like Hillary Clinton, she attempts to adopt a more measured and...
India moves to ban practice that allows men to divorce women by texting a word 3 times
News

India moves to ban practice that allows men to divorce women by texting a word 3 times

The era of divorcing women in India with a “triple talaq” is over, after the Indian government voted to ban the Muslim instantaneous divorce practice on Wednesday. According to the Associated Press, the government moved to outlaw the Muslim Personal Law policy allowing men to divorce their wives by saying the Arabic word for divorce, talaq, three times. The communication didn’t need to be in person, or consecutively, allowing any man to deliver the “triple talaq” over telephone, text, or social media. India’s government has another six months for Parliament to approve the new ordinance. A law criminalizing the practice, giving offenders three years in prison, attempted to pass last year but was opposed at the upper house, where critics disagreed with the sentences and sought a le...
Women with traditional careers, men with style are getting the most swipes on Tinder
Life

Women with traditional careers, men with style are getting the most swipes on Tinder

Feeling like your dating app DMs are coming up short? Perhaps it’s time for a change of pace—no, not a new profile photo, but a pivot in your career. According to Tinder‘s list of the “most right-swiped jobs” of 2018, aka the professions that have received the most interest on the app this year, traditional roles for women seem to be beating out movers and shakers. Among the highest right-swiped jobs for women are registered nurse, dentist, pharmacist, and yes, college student. Meanwhile, creative men are getting more recognition with professions in interior design, public relations or communications, visual design, and producing. Unfortunately, there isn’t a breakdown on who exactly is doing the swiping on which profession for men and women—so, there’s no telling if women looki...
Twitter is a hellscape for female scholars
Life, People

Twitter is a hellscape for female scholars

Last November, BuzzFeed News writer and media studies scholar Anne Helen Petersen did what she’s known for and what she’s paid to do: She profiled a celebrity, taking a critical deep dive into their fame. This one was about Armie Hammer, who was in the spotlight for his turn in Call Me by Your Name. However, Hammer’s fans saw it as a “hit piece,” and the actor himself reacted defensively, calling Petersen’s perspective “bitter AF.” Following his lead, fans assailed Petersen, calling her profile “hot garbage” and suggesting she was jealous of Hammer’s success; they were apparently ignorant of the fact that Petersen herself is a renowned, admired writer. They questioned why she would “go after” a “good guy” like Hammer instead of an actor who enjoys the same white male privilege but has b...
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez congratulates ‘sister in service’ Ayanna Pressley on historic win
News

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez congratulates ‘sister in service’ Ayanna Pressley on historic win

With no Republicans running in Massachusetts’ 7th District and after beating out incumbent Rep. Michael E. Capuano in last night’s primary, Democratic candidate Ayanna Pressley is set to head to Congress—and be the first Black woman in the state to do so. Which can explain the overwhelming tears of joy she experienced after finding out she had won. In a video shared Tuesday evening, Pressley, 44, is seen fanning her hand over her heart, then taking a stand and asking “We won? We won?” before breaking into tears, crying, “Oh, my God,” and hugging people around the room. The video has been viewed more than 600,000 times and has received more than 35,000 likes, accruing comments from viewers such as, “Why am I cryin’ like I won too?!!” The moment when @AyannaPressley learned she won. No...
Goop must pay $145K for misleading vagina egg
Health, Products

Goop must pay $145K for misleading vagina egg

On Tuesday, Gwyneth Paltrow’s infamous wellness site, Goop, settled a consumer protection lawsuit, agreeing to pay $145,000 and stop making unsubstantiated medical claims about its products. The lawsuit focused on the most well-known product from Goop, Jade and Rose Quartz Eggs, which are still available for purchase. A year ago, the internet exploded over these eggs sold on the site, which the purchaser is supposed to insert into their vagina for various medical/spiritual reasons. Previously, the product description for the Rose Quartz Egg said regular use “increases chi, orgasms, vaginal muscle tone, hormonal balance, and feminine energy in general.” Experts denounced the claims and also advised that using these eggs could even be unhealthy. “I would like to point out that jade is ...
Guy looking for a woman he met at a bar inadvertently creates an all-Nicole gang
Life

Guy looking for a woman he met at a bar inadvertently creates an all-Nicole gang

Every Nicole at the University Of Calgary was united last week when a guy decided to email every student with the same name in an attempt to find a woman he met at a bar. Carols Zenita said that he and the mystery Nicole seemed to hit it off at the bar, and at the end of the night, he drove her and a friend home and got her number. But when he went to text her, it wasn’t the right number. Most people would stop there, and file it away as a memory of what could have been. But Zenita was determined, and he had a strategy. He knew the Nicole he met also went to the University of Calgary, so he painstakingly went through the school email directory to find every single Nicole, and he emailed them all. Just to be safe, he also included Nickies, Nicolettes, and other variations on Nicole. ...