I wanted to write an entirely different second post regarding the process of writing, but something more important came up. It's really, super important guys, and I'm sorry I had to do this to you, but bear with me.
Feminism. I'm going to give you a moment to calm down, maybe go look at some pictures of kittens with melons on their heads. Whatever you want.
Feeling better? Okay, here's the second bombshell. I'm a feminist. Here, I might as well provide you with the kitten pictures myself: Cookies and Kittens
Maybe it was being raised by a single mom who encouraged me to express myself in whatever way I needed to in order to deal with the divorce and surgeries and what-have-you, but I grew up with an appreciation for myself as a woman, and what my gender had accomplished over generations, and what we do accomplish on a daily basis. That doesn't mean our male counterparts haven't and don't do equally impressive things. They do. I just can't appreciate it in the same manner due to not being a man.
So, being a feminist, and being fortunate enough to have several professors who teach related courses, I tend to pay attention to feminist related issues around the internet. If you aren't a feminist, or have been living under a feminist-repelling rock, you might not have heard about Anita Sarkeesian, who runs the site Feminist Frequency (which, either due to the incompetence of my own internet or the intense scrutiny that is now being laid upon it, is currently unavailable). Sarkeesian makes videos regarding women in the media. You can like her standpoints, you can hate her standpoints, you can even be so utterly against what she says that you invest in your own website simply to make counter arguments to what she proposes. None of that matters right now. What matters is the astonishing backlash that Sarkeesian is facing from the promotion of her Kickstarter Project, Tropes vs. Women In Video Games.
Now, I am a huge gamer. I grew up on Final Fantasy, and made a fake bar in my basement when I was 11 so I could be just like Tifa Lockheart (might have also been my motivation for taking wing-chun from the aformentioned professor, but I will never tell her that). And I'll also be the first to admit that Tifa Lockheart will probably show up on that list for being the Buxeumous Sidekick or whatever sort of trope an excessively large-chested, ass-kicking, badass like Tifa might fill. Nonetheless, I'm curious as to what sort of comparisons and examples will be raised in Sarkeesians films, and I'm excited for it.
The whole process was simple. She was asking for $6000 to fund the project, a reasonable amount given the rate people tend to give up their money these days (See: The Oatmeal's Bearlove Good. Cancer Bad.) Needless to say it didn't take long for the asshats of the internet to come slithering out on their bellies to proclaim Sarkeesian a (and I am paraphrasing here) Jewess-whore-slut-deserving-to-be-raped-and-sent-back-to-the-kitchen-feminist-cunt. Ignoring the part where I don't understand why being a Jew is an insult (call me naive, but I thought the whole World War II thing might have cleared up the stupidity on that one), the darkside of the internet has once again come out of the woodwork to bang its fists upon its chest and proclaim Feminist Bad. Meninism Good. I don't care if' 'misogyny' is somehow a more appropriate term. "Meninism" just sounds right.
Everyone take a deep breath. Again, I'm not saying Sarkeesian is the Feminism Messiah and must be followed. I, personally, have really enjoyed her take on women in media, and I look forward to seeing the video game trope films, however this abuse, this senseless take on violence against women (or indeed against anyone) is proving what a vast wasteland of refuse the internet can still be at times. The violent rubbish that is being thrown at her, threats of murder, sexual assault, rape; childish name calling (oh, you used the c-word, aren't you all grown up?) is precisely what she, and feminists everywhere, are trying to bring to public attention.
It shouldn't (and doesn't) matter that 'Oh this is the internet and everyone loses a bit of their personal censor'. I see and hear about these sorts of situations where these tiny losers start throwing around violent threats and name calling (although 'name-calling' isn't appropriate here. Poo-head is name calling. Anything after that which makes my little sister uncomfortable is simply a crude, pitiful example of the use of the English language), and I think to myself What else are they capable of? Ignoring the segue-way into the idea of rape culture (because as women we somehow bring it on ourselves apparently?) If any socialized individual, who has somehow managed to make it to the point where they are capable of double clicking pop-ups for porn, is capable of referring to a woman, who simply wants to make some films that she feels will educate and/or inform individuals about a topic she is passionate about, with such heinous language and grotesque threats... What else are they capable of? Are we sitting at our computers, watching young Robert Pickton's in training? And where is the accountability for these individuals that are so free and verbose on the internet?
Mad props must be delivered to Sarkeesian who has not chosen to engage these monsters on their level, but instead chosen to use the numerous violent threats against her as an example of what women in our culture, women who enjoy video games, and most importantly, women with opinions, face on a daily basis. At this stage her Kickstarter project has 3 days to go, and she has raised 67k. There will be many films produced, many objections raised, but more importantly for Sarkeesian's supporters, and the feminists floating on the internet, there will be knowledge gained and information spread.
To donate to Sarkeesian's Kickstarter click here
To follow her on Twitter click here
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