I just heard on the radio about a new magazine called Muslim Girl that’s throwing its hat into the teen girl publishing ring, busting stereotypes about Muslims and Muslim femininity especially, as well as providing support and visiblity for gals in the Muslim community. I haven’t had an in-depth look at it yet, but it seems like a pretty rad endeavour. Any readers out there who’d care to comment?

As those of you in Toronto may have noticed, three members of Team Shameless were pictured on the cover of Eye Weekly recently, as part of an article on the state of indie magazines in Toronto. While we liked the story and got a kick out of the uber-dramatic cover photo, the article left some readers confused about our future.

See, the article mentions that the Spring 2007 issue will be the last that Nicole and I edit. (We made this announcement in the Fall/Winter 2006 Letter From The Editors.) Some readers took this to mean that the magazine is going out of business. Rest assured, it’s not! As the Eye Weekly article says, Shameless is being passed along to an energetic new team of editors. And you haven’t seen the last of me or Nicole we’ll be sticking around as executive board members, advising the new team members and planning big-picture stuff for the magazine.

Thanks for worrying, though! We love you, too.

For the past three years I worked for a non-profit company that was dominated by women. A majority on the VP’s and the CEO were of the female persuasion, as were all of my immediate colleagues. Anti-discrimination policies were firmly in place, and my manager, my immediate supervisor and the union were all more than supportive. I had full benefits, annual cost of living raises, and I felt the door was always open if I had a complaint or wanted to negotiate a raise. I was respected and as a result I loved my job and worked hard at it. The reality of this utopian situation is that as a result I got real complacent about workplace feminism. Now that I’m out in the wide workplace world again, I’m starting to notice that I keep hitting my head on the glass ceiling and that the former respect I received doesn’t come so easily. I used to scoff at that common wage discrepancy statistic- you know the one, “women do two thirds of the world’s work, earn one tenth of the income, and own less than one hundredth of the world’s property,” but now, as a freelancer surrounded by people who don’t have the same (cough) “boundaries” I’ve been accustomed to, I more than get it. And I am more than enraged by it.

So, as I am wont to do, I read a book.(more inside…)

Nicole’s post below just reminded me of something I’ve been meaning to post about. A small British press called godhaven ink has reissued Hot Pantz, the DIY gynecology zine that’s been on the bookshelf of every savvy riot wiccan and herbal grrrl since it was first published in 1994. If there was one object I’d like to place lovingly in the hands of every woman I meet, it’s this guide to, as the authors put it, “knowing more about your cunt than your doctor does”. With herbal recipes for everything from treating STIs to brewing aphrodesiacs, it’s a well-researched, clearly-written, non-condescending booklet that has helped me, at least, feel like my “area” isn’t a foreign country that I have to learn a whole new language to visit.

I know it seems a bit funny to have to order it from overseas, but if you know a better way to get it please let me know. Ever since my local women’s resource centre got turned into a bougie clothing boutique (they have a few Keepers and Luna pads crammed in the back, just to twist the knife a bit), I’m at a bit of a loss. In conclusion, if there is a space near you where you can buy this kind of stuff, for heaven’s sake support it. And spread the word.

The Sense Project team is looking for volunteers and submissions for its sex ed zine project:

“Everybody has a story of wooden penises, condom jokes, STI villains and awkward silences. Some might even have vivid memories filled with clinical details of genital anatomy, or a really hot sex ed teacher. Since sexual education mysteriously vanished with the 2005 educational reform, how will it be remembered? How will it be re-imagined? We want to know.”

“This zine is meant to share stories and dialogues about sexuality and identity funneled through the education system. We want to see what happened during sex ed classes now that they arent happening anymore. Our mission is to create a space to re-imagine a curriculum that can handle the ambiguity of sex, identity and power. Your contribution will further Head & Hands/À deux mains Sense Project which aims to provide high school students with youth-friendly, comprehensive and peer-based sexual education. Help it grow by submitting your art & stories, making a donation or becoming a volunteer!”

They’re looking for:
* Editorials (750 words)
* Short Stories & Prose Poems (750-500 words)
* Poems (1-2 pages)
* Comixs
* Photos (1-2)
* Illustrations (1-2)

Deadline: March 1. Send submissions to sexedstories at yahoo dot ca or by snail mail (for photos and comix) to Sex Ed Zine Project, Head & Hands/À deux mains, 5833 Sherbrooke O CP 446, Succ. NDG, Montreal, Quebec, H4A 3P8.

A friend of mine directed me to this website, where a couple of women called The Spew post clips of their public-access television show based out of NYC. It’s not exactly sketch comedy, though it is comedy, and pretty sketchy too. This is real downhome DIY good times, people. While it’s not always funny per se, I love watching these two gals totally crack each other up while dressing like a sexy Shreddies box or pretending to be British rappers. Is this what the democratization of the media looks like? I could live with that.

Hip-hop crew El Vuh has posted a track called Apocalypto, named for Mel Gibsons most recent epic. The track addresses the racism in the film, which portrays Maya people as brutally savage, and depicts them killing each other before the Europeans arrived, essentially justifying colonialism’s “saving” of the Mayans from themselves.

The track is a good challenge to the overwhelmingly apolitical reviews of the film. As Juan Santos writes in an excellent piece that exposes the film’s racism, politics and historical inaccuracies, [Gibsons] portrayal is a conscious lie, one he uses to justify the premise that the Mayan city states collapsed because they deserved to collapse, and that they deserved to be replaced by a superior culture in the genocide known as the Conquest.

My limited TV-watching schedule means I haven’t seen much of Ugly Betty, still, I was pretty moved when its lead actor America Ferrera won a Golden Globe for Best Actress.

Her teary speech about being a role model for young women was inspiring, especially since it is so rare to see a working-class, Mexican-American character in such a prominent role on TV, particularly a normal-looking, smart young woman whose father is an illegal immigrant! This open letter to Ferrera from Olivia Ortiz expresses admiration for the actor much more eloquently, so I’ll point you to it.

Dub poet and Shameless profile-ee d’bi young has just added an extra class to her writing workshop. I’m repasting the info here if you’re in the Toronto area. Wish I was!

(more inside…)