Human Rights & Civil Liberties

My Enemy Hugh Hefner's Contradictory Feminist Legacy

Sun, 10/01/2017 - 14:28 — Dave Culver

Part 1: Hugh Hefner Was My Enemy
- Are we really O.K. with the reality that our girls are being raised in a world that Mr. Hefner made? I’m not.
Part 2:The Contradictory Feminist Legacy Of Playboy’s Hugh Hefner
- The “revolution” he sparked was primarily in service of men’s desires — and specifically his own.
Related: Around The World, Girls Are Taught The Same Limiting Lesson

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Part 1: Hugh Hefner Was My Enemy

Are we really O.K. with the reality that our girls are being raised in a world that Mr. Hefner made? I’m not.

Susan Brownmiller, New York (NY) Times

Sept. 29, 2017 | On March 26, 1970, I accepted an invitation to appear on “The Dick Cavett Show” to talk about a new movement I was involved with called Women’s Liberation. I knew that our young movement was suspicious of activists who sought media attention, so I roped my friend Sally Kempton, a talented writer, into coming with me. I don’t recall if we knew ahead of time who the principal guest that evening would be. He turned out to be Hugh Hefner.

We were slotted for 15 minutes near the end of show, after the psychologist Rollo May and before the final number by Grace Slick and Jefferson Airplane. With Mr. Hefner still sitting on stage, Mr. Cavett began by asking us to define Women’s Liberation. “Hugh Hefner is my enemy,” I replied. “Women aren’t bunnies, they’re not rabbits, they’re human beings,” I added. Then, addressing Hugh Hefner directly, I said, “The day you come out here with a cottontail attached to your rear end …”

Susan Brownmiller is the author of “Against Our Will: Men, Women and Rape” and six other books.

Full story …

Part 2:The Contradictory Feminist Legacy Of Playboy’s Hugh Hefner

Hugh Hefner surrounded by 50 of his Playboy Bunnies on June 27, 1966, in London. Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images

The “revolution” he sparked was primarily in service of men’s desires — and specifically his own.

Emma Gray, HuffPost

09/28/2017 | Hugh Hefner’s life and legacy are rife with contradictions.

The founder of the Playboy empire, who died Wednesday at age 91, is hailed as a sexual revolutionary, a supporter of LGBTQ and abortion rights, a mogul and an icon who paved the way for modern ideas about sex-positivity. He’s also a man who built his extensive empire by capitalizing on idealized images of women’s bodies; a man who had a rotating cast of live-in young “girlfriends” who, by at least one account, were kept under his control.

As The New York Times’ Brooks Barnes put it in 2009: “To his supporters, [Hefner] is the great sexual liberator who helped free Americans from Puritanism and neurosis. To his detractors, including many feminists and social conservatives, he helped set in motion a revolution in sexual attitudes that have objectified and victimized countless women and promoted an immoral, whatever-feels-good approach to life.”

Emma Gray is the Executive Women's Editor at HuffPost. She is also the co-host of the "Bachelor"-themed podcast, "Here To Make Friends," which was named a "must-listen" by The Daily Dot, and has appeared as an expert on the Today Show, Good Morning America, The Insider and Entertainment Tonight.

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Annie Otzen via Getty Images

A groundbreaking new study reveals that harmful gender stereotypes are drilled into kids, from the U.S. to India to Egypt, at a heartbreakingly young age.
Related: This Twitter Thread Satirizing How Men Talk About Women Is Too Good

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Arcadio Esquivel | Eclipses / politicalcartoons.com

Mon, 08/21/2017 - 12:27 — Dave Culver

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Human Rights & Civil Liberties

Take Action | Charlottsville and the First Amendment

Mon, 08/21/2017 - 11:51 — Dave Culver

(Photo Credit: dane_mark via iStockphoto)

Part 1: Does the First Amendment Protect Charlottesville Protesters?
- In the wake of the fatal Charlottesville, VA rally questions have arisen about what kinds of speech should be protected.
Part 2: Should Congress Censure Trump Over Charlottesville Statements?
- Congressional censure would only formally rebuke the president, but supporters feel it would hold the president publicly accountable for fanning the "fires of violence."
Related: Special Project | Hatewatch: Charlottesville and Beyond, Week Ending August 19, 2017

Compiled by David Culver, Ed., Evergreene Digest

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August 18, 2017

Part 1: Does the First Amendment Protect Charlottesville Protesters?

In the wake of the fatal Charlottesville, VA rally questions have arisen about what kinds of speech should be protected.

Josh Herman, Countable
The First Amendment already includes certains limitations to free speech. Should the U.S. adopt similar "dangerous speech" doctrines? When does free speech become “fighting words”? Could putting limitations on free speech prevent another Charlottesville? Hit the Take Action button and use your First Amendment rights to comment below. Take Action→

Full story ...

Part 2: Should Congress Censure Trump Over Charlottesville Statements?

Congressional censure would only formally rebuke the president, but supporters feel it would hold the president publicly accountable for fanning the "fires of violence."

Asha Sanaker, Countable

Should the House of Representatives censure the president for his remarks on Charlottesville? Does a formal rebuke, unaccompanied by any other actions by Congress, really matter? If the House were to censure the president, do you think it would change anything moving forward? Take Action→

Full story ...

Related:

Special Project | Hatewatch: Charlottesville and Beyond, Week Ending August 19, 2017

Compiled by David Culver, Ed., Evergreene Digest

Keeping an Eye on the Radical Right
8 New items including:

1) SPLC releases new edition of Ten Ways to Fight Hate guide after Charlottesville attack.
2) Charlottesville violence: As American as apple pie
3) It’s a dark moment for America — and our president personally made this possible.
4) Trump's America, Month Eight: Blood on the Pavement in Charlottesville
5) Welcoming the Fascists to Charlottesville
6) Charlottesville Survivor: There's No Question, This Was Terrorism.
7) Down With Confederate Monuments: An Interview With a Charlottesville Black Lives Matter Activist.
8) From “All Lives Matter” to the terror in Charlottesville: How the media’s phony fairness got us here
Related: No, Mr. Trump, It’s Not About Bigotry On All Sides: The Violent White Supremacist Rally In Charlottesville, Explained

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Special Project | Hatewatch: Charlottesville and Beyond, Week Ending August 19, 2017

Thu, 08/17/2017 - 17:38 — Dave Culver

Keeping an Eye on the Radical Right
8 New items including:

Related: No, Mr. Trump, It’s Not About Bigotry On All Sides: The Violent White Supremacist Rally In Charlottesville, Explained

Compiled by David Culver, Ed., Evergreene Digest

1) SPLC releases new edition of Ten Ways to Fight Hate guide after Charlottesville attack, Southern Poverty Leadership Conference (SPLC)
August 14, 2017 In response to recent events, including the deadly white nationalist violence in Charlottesville this weekend, the SPLC today released a new edition of Ten Ways to Fight Hate, its longstanding guide for effectively – and peacefully – taking a stand against bigotry.

2) Charlottesville violence: As American as apple pie, D. Watkins, Salon
Monday, Aug 14, 2017 | Trump, Breitbart, Fox News and many others should own this outrage — but what happened has deep American roots.

3) It’s a dark moment for America — and our president personally made this possible, Bob Cesca, Salon
Monday, Aug 14, 2017 | Donald Trump hasn't just tolerated this upsurge of fascist violence — he enabled and encouraged it. Now he must go.

4) Trump's America, Month Eight: Blood on the Pavement in Charlottesville
Greg Palast, Truthout
Monday, August 14, 2017 | It took just eight months for some of our worst fears about the Trump presidency to come true, as demonstrated by these photos of brutal racist violence in Charlottesville. Coupled with Virginia's purging of voter rolls, Saturday's attacks and Trump's lukewarm response show that white supremacy is alive and well in Charlottesville and beyond.
Read the Article and View the Photos

5) Welcoming the Fascists to Charlottesville, David Swanson, davidswanson.org 

August 10, 2017 | I have mixed emotions about the fact that I’ll be missing the latest big fascism rally here in Charlottesville, because I’ll be elsewhere participating in kayak trainings for an upcoming Flotilla to the Pentagon for Peace and the Environment.
I’m delighted to miss the fascism and the racism and the hatred and the gun-toting lunacy. I’m sorry to miss being here to speak against it.
I’m hopeful that there might be something resembling a disciplined nonviolent and nonhateful opposition presence, but strongly suspect that a small number of violent and hateful opponents of racism will ruin that.

An injured counter-protester is wheeled into an ambulance during a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, August 12, 2017. (Image: Democracy Now!)

6) Charlottesville Survivor: There's No Question, This Was Terrorism
Amy Goodman, Democracy Now!

August 14, 2017 | Brandy Gonzalez survived the car rampage in Charlottesville on Saturday that killed one protester and injured many more. While Trump went days without condemning white supremacists for the violence, Gonzalez says the incident was an act of terrorism. Such incidents will not intimidate her or prevent her from standing against white supremacy, she says.
Watch the Video and Read the Transcript

7) Down With Confederate Monuments: An Interview With a Charlottesville Black Lives Matter Activist, Sarah Jaffe, Truthout

Lisa Woolfork is a member of the Black Lives Matter chapter in Charlottesville, Virginia, who worked with a broad coalition to oppose the massive gathering of white nationalists that rocked the city with violence over the weekend. The tragedies in Charlottesville make it clear that Confederate monuments are not just "symbols" of white supremacy, Woolfork says. Allowing them to stand for decades was a racist action leading to many more.
Read the Interview and Listen to the Audio

8) From “All Lives Matter” to the terror in Charlottesville: How the media’s phony fairness got us here, Chauncey DeVega, Salon

August 14, 2017 | Too much of the media was complicit in the rise of Trump, and refuses to call white supremacy by its true name.

Related:

No, Mr. Trump, It’s Not About Bigotry On All Sides: The Violent White Supremacist Rally In Charlottesville, Explained, Compiled by David Culver, Ed., Evergreene Digest
Part 1: Unite The Right, The Violent White Supremacist Rally In Charlottesville, Explained
The alt-right rally was a coming-out party for resurgent white racist movement in America.
Part 2: No, Mr. Trump, It’s Not About Bigotry On All Sides: It’s About White Supremacists
What we are witnessing are … movements that are interested in provoking violence and are, in many cases, well-armed.

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No, Mr. Trump, It’s Not About Bigotry On All Sides: The Violent White Supremacist Rally In Charlottesville, Explained

Sun, 08/13/2017 - 13:33 — Dave Culver

Part 1: Unite The Right, The Violent White Supremacist Rally In Charlottesville, Explained
- The alt-right rally was a coming-out party for resurgent white racist movement in America.
Part 2:No, Mr. Trump, It’s Not About Bigotry On All Sides: It’s About White Supremacists
- What we are witnessing are … movements that are interested in provoking violence and are, in many cases, well-armed.

Compiled by David Culver, Ed., Evergreene Digest

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Part 1: Unite The Right, The Violent White Supremacist Rally In Charlottesville, Explained

The alt-right rally was a coming-out party for resurgent white racist movement in America.

Dara Lind, Vox / Portside

August 12, 2017 Hundreds of protesters descended upon Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday for a “Unite the Right” rally: a belated coming-out party for an emboldened white nationalist movement in the United States.

The rally was dispersed by police minutes after its scheduled start at noon, after clashes between rally goers and counter-protesters, and after a torchlit pre-rally march Friday night descended into violence. But activity is ongoing, with some rally goers engaging in a march instead.

Dara Lind: My favorite thing about explainer journalism is that you get to acknowledge the easy questions are easy, but you don't have to pretend there are answers to the hard ones.

Full story …

Part 2:No, Mr. Trump, It’s Not About Bigotry On All Sides: It’s About White Supremacists

One dead after car plows into anti-racist demo in Charlottesville, Ryan M. Kelly/The Daily Progress

Progressives should stop using the term “alt-Right” and recognize that what we are witnessing are neofascist movements, movements that are interested in provoking violence and are, in many cases well-armed.

Bill Fletcher, Jr., billfletcherJr.com / Portside

August 12, 2017 | I sat here listening to Trump’s remarks in connection with the violence carried out by neofascists in Charlottesville this afternoon, violence which has resulted in the death of at least one anti-fascist. He condemned bigotry on what he called all sides.

Once again Trump obscures reality. He either ignores the violence and terrorism carried out against traditionally oppressed groups, e.g., attacks on mosques, or he uses evasive language in order to avoid pointing the finger at the real perpetrators of racist violence.

Bill Fletcher, Jr. has been an activist since his teen years. Upon graduating from college he went to work as a welder in a shipyard, thereby entering the labor movement. Over the years he has been active in workplace and community struggles as well as electoral campaigns. He has worked for several labor unions in addition to serving as a senior staffperson in the national AFL-CIO.

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