New Officers for 2010-2011 School Year

Thanks again for an amazing year, girls! Congratulations to our new officers.

Co-President - Nikita Shah - nks249@nyu.edu
Co-President - Shahida Arabi - sa1523@nyu.edu
Treasurer - Katie Somerville - kbs285@nyu.edu
Webmaster/Secretary - Emily Mattsson - eem314@nyu.edu

NOW-NYU is happy to go into another school year to celebrate, advocate and promote empowering feminism through events that raise awareness, initiatives that provide direct aid, and discussions that challenge contemporary media and evaluate crucial social justice issues for women.

MOTHERS OR WHORES Recap

Hey gals,

Yesterday we had our aptly-named by yours truly "Mothers or Whores: Women in the Media" presentation, one of the kick-off events of Women's Herstory Month. Here are some thoughts/notes that were raised from the commercials which we viewed. You can find the links below:

• DODGE COMMERCIAL - Man's Last Stand

1. Man as the "underdog" in contrast to woman as the victim in society image
2. Lack of reciprocity in relationship -- why is it a "duty" to do things for a wife, or listen to a wife? Why does all responsibility fall on the man? Who says?
3. All this for a CAR? Not even a "masculinized" one, either. What's the deal?
4. Who says guys want only cars anyway?
5. What about women - labor, childbirth, periods? Oh, that stuff's easy in comparison.

• Megan Fox Motorola Commercial

1. Woman as an object in the male gaze
2. Women as dangerous, sexual and alluring creatures
3. Gay man - or bisexual - looking at Megan Fox as a sexual object? Denies their sexual reality
4. Men come off looking as idiots, easily distracted by feminine charms
5. Phone was not being sold, but Megan Fox sure was -- she even had a model to replace her thumbs, which were sexualized

• DOVE - Comfortable In Your Own Skin Commercial

1. Stereotypes about men - Challenged or Reinforced? Satire or Serious?
2. Heteronormative expectations for marriage
3. Physical strength - climbing the rope in gym, opening the jar for women, going out in the dark without being afraid
4. Performative nature of Masculinity - a failure to perform masculine duties
5. Dove --> a way to be yourself when you're not under the burden of gender expectations? or a way to be gendered and still feel secure?

• Bud Lite Book Club Commercial

1. Female and Male spaces
2. Male invasion and domination of female space, handing out the beers, hitting on the women
3. Double-edged sword: sexualizing the women in an academic space, while also making the guy look like an idiot who only cares about "the game" or beer, very typical
4. Racial Hypersexualization of the "Latina" woman who strikes up a conversation with this dumb man. What's up with that?
5. Females = boring, nagging people who ruin men's fun
6. Beer = social lubricant to hit on women that are not your wife.

• GoDaddy Danica Patrick Commercial

1. Should be about her as a powerful female in a male-dominated sport, right?
2. Not.
3. Two women, homoerotic scene. Lesbianism in the male erotic gaze
4. Encourages the "I can be sexy too" mentality in young women
5. GoDaddy - even the domain is suspicious

• CONCLUSION

A gendered reality is perpetuated in the media and is unfair for both genders and reinforces stereotypes that discourage healthy relationships and communication and instead begins a war of the sexes, in which women are sexually powerful, sexual objects, or simultaneously both, while men are the "slaves" of women, while at the same time able to control and dominate through their performance of masculinity.

A reminder that our TAKE BACK THE NIGHT PLANNING meeting is open to all clubs and will be held next week 7 pm Wednesday, Kimmel 909. We hope to see you all there as this is a very important event!

Shahida

NOW Meeting Recap: 02/14/2010

Hey ladies,

This Wednesday's meeting, we made posters for our Educational Campaign about Rape, the definition of rape and shocking statistics surrounding rape. We also discussed the upcoming panel discussion we're hosting as part of Women's Herstory Month.

Next Wednesday we'll be hosting an exciting event called:

Mothers or Whores: a Discussion about Media Portrayals of Women. From the controversial Tim Tebow Super Bowl ad endorsed by an anti-abortion group to rap videos, we will be discussing how women are seen as either demeaning sexual objects or in the context of maternity. Is there a middle ground, and if so, what is it? If there isn't, how can we create it? What constitutes a "healthy" and positive media portrayal of a woman in contemporary society? Bring your thoughts on Wednesday, room 909 at 7 pm usual for this important event!

The week after the panel discussion all clubs on campus are invited to join us in a discussion about the upcoming event: Take Back the Night in April. So as to not get anyone confused, there is also a separate TBTN on campus which is not related to NOW-NYU. Our event is separate. NOW-NYU's Take Back the Night planning discussion will be taking place March 3rd, 2010.

Relay for Life - The NOW-NYU Relay for Life team is now up. PLEASE JOIN AND DONATE TO HELP THE STRUGGLE AGAINST CANCER!!!!

main.acsevents.org/goto/NOW-NYU JOIN NOW!

See you next week!
-Shahida

First NOW meeting of the semester RECAP

Hey ladies,

We had our first NOW meeting of the Spring Semester last Wednesday. Here are the events/activites we've brainstormed for the rest of the semester:

• RELAY FOR LIFE - April 24th, 2010 - Join NOW and the American Cancer Society for a walk that promotes awareness and campaigning against one of the leading causes of death in America.
• WOMEN'S HERSTORY MONTH is coming up and NOW-NYU is planning to have a sex-toy workshop in honor of it! More info coming up.
• VAGINA MONOLOGUES might be hosting their show during March instead of February. More info on whether or not NOW can participate in the show TBA.
• YOUNG FEMINIST LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE - MARCH 20-22nd in WASHINGTON D.C. Some amazing workshops for our feminist leaders - men and women both welcome! The deadline is Feb 1st before the price ($15 not including hotel expenses) raises, so hurry and sign up today!
• TAKE BACK THE NIGHT in April (full date TBA) - NOW has decided to do the speech part of this celebration of sexual abuse survivors INDOORS, followed with a MARCH (perhaps by candlelight) OUTDOORS. This prevents any obstacles we may face with obtaining sound permits. NOW is also seeking any people who wish (or can reccommend) a keynote speaker to talk about sexual abuse, as well as people who are survivors of it. If interested, please e-mail the officers to either participate or recommend someone who would be a good keynote speaker. We will be reaching out to many other clubs on campus to make this an inclusive event! SO, DON'T FORGET TO PROMOTE THIS TO THE OTHER CLUBS YOU'RE IN!
• MARCH IS WOMEN'S SAFETY MONTH - Self-defense lessons anyone? NOW may be having them in honor of protecting women's safety. More info TBA.
• SEXUAL EDUCATION CAMPAIGN - NOW has pledged to dedicate some of its time to making some slamming flyers and posters about contraceptives and other reproductive issues regarding women. We will also raise awareness of rape and our definition of rape through such flyers.
• FEMALE BODYBUILDING - a special interest topic for this semester. Will definitely plan some fun things regarding this! Main question: is female bodybuilding an empowering act for women or another form of objectification disguised as empowerment?

See you all next week and bring some friends!

--Shahida