19 May, 2007 | 2 Comments

“The political climate in Iraq is such that anyone can carry out crimes against women. You can come upon women’s bodies anywhere.”

This is a quote from Houzan Mahmoud, Kurdish feminist and activist based in London. The quote appeared in today’s Guardian in an article by noted US feminist author Katha Pollitt, who wrote about Dua Khalil Aswad and the upsurge of brutal and unspeakable acts of violence against women in Iraq since the US-led war began. It is truly horrifying but necessary reading. Women in Iraq were already subjected to horrible violence under Saddam, but now, with the complete and total breakdown of social order, it’s open season on women. Literally.

I corresponded with Ms. Mahmoud briefly this week regarding a meeting tonight at Amnesty International concerning the situation regarding Dua Khalil Aswad and the larger issue of violence against women in Iraq. I trekked over to the Amnesty Int’l Human Rights Centre in Shoreditch this evening for the meeting, but there was a power outage in most of Shoreditch, which affected the Tube and shut down Amnesty’s office. Sigh. I got there very late and found out the meeting was moved to Amnesty’s office in Clerkenwell, which is apparently not easily accessible by public transport (or so said their security guard). And it was raining and there were no cabs. So to make a long story short, I didn’t make it. But I did meet other people who had also planned to attend the meeting, one who had come all the way from Germany. I will try to find out what action is being taken as a result of the meeting and let you know.

Nearly 4,000 people hit my blog on Friday alone while searching for information about Dua Khalil Aswad. I am truly astounded. I hope that we can all turn our collective disgust and rage into something productive to help the women in Iraq. Those of us who are American and British really have an obligation to help, even if we were against the war. Ms. Mahmoud is a representative of the Organisation of Women’s Freedom in Iraq, described in today’s Guardian as an “underground railroad” for Iraqi women at risk of being murdered. Supporting their campaigns is one way to help. I will keep posting updates as well on everything I find out. I think it’s worth pointing out that bloggers have brought this story to the world’s attention and now the media is catching up.

Link: CNN reports that four have been arrested so far in Dua’s murder.

18 May, 2007 | Enter your password to view comments

17 May, 2007 | Comments

For you.  xx

16 May, 2007 | 12 Comments

Today after my weather rant I went to Notting Hill Gate in search of cupcakes, but I didn’t find them. It wasn’t a fruitless endeavor, however, because I chatted briefly with a cute Irish guy wearing an Iron Maiden t-shirt.

*swoon*

When I was in high school I lusted after guys in Iron Maiden t-shirts. I used to love rocker boys. This guy today had long hair and was a bit scruffy, but in a cute way. One of his ears was pierced. And he was very polite.

He was just lovely.

16 May, 2007 | 4 Comments

Means having hayfever and getting to wear a coat every day. It’s like a dream come true…in a world where dream actually means nightmare.

I was looking through my blog archives just now and I discovered quite a few weather-related posts from last May that were slightly hysterical in tone (like this one). People actually wrote to me, begging me to stop writing about it.

Well, don’t worry my little ducklings. I’m not feeling despondent about the weather this year. I like that it looks like dusk all day long. People in parts of Alaska and Canada and Scandinavia go for literally months without seeing a ray of sunshine and you don’t hear them complaining. [Though I wonder how many of them enter into murder-suicide pacts.] Still, it’s important to remember that around-the-clock darkness and cold never killed anyone. I come from hearty stock — I am descended from pioneers and warriors and refugees. I’m actually descended from quite a few English and Scottish and Irish who at one point set sail for America…probably during the month of May. But never the mind, I can handle this! I got through last spring without GlaxoSmithKline (though just barely) and I can do it again. There are other ways to boost your serotonin besides sun and drugs. I quite enjoy chocolate.

P.S. To my friends Stateside who like to casually mention they have their a/c running and that they are working outside in their gardens, I have one message for you: Bite me.

P.P.S. I know you British types get tetchy when we Yankee types dis y’ weatha, yo, but you know what: Sod off, you lot. You’re just cranky because you haven’t seen the sun since you were a toddler.

P.P.P.S. Sometimes I get nasty when the weather isn’t nice. Sorry.

15 May, 2007 | 3 Comments

A blast from the past! I currently have 22, 090 messages in my personal inbox. These are all messages I’ve read but haven’t deleted. I delete my messages sometimes, but sometimes I forget. Ahem. Luckily, I still have 62 percent of my storage space available on Yahoo.

I just went back to look at the oldest message. It’s from February 2003. The subject line is: “People are talking about you.” It was from one of my grad school classmates — I was studying for my MFA in creative writing at that time. People were quite scandalized by me and my political views for some reason. I went to school with a group of the most politically unaware writers you could ever imagine. Some dolt in my class even wrote a mean-spirited editorial about me and my fiery and feminist graduate lecture for her local NPR station. As a result of the furor surrounding that whole thing, a 60-something classmate called me the “Susan B. Anthony” of our grad program. God, I had forgotten about all that till just now. Good times.

15 May, 2007 | 5 Comments

I just deleted 1500 spam blog comments (without reading any of them) and 1800 spam e-mails from my blog account (once again, without reading them). If you left a legit comment or sent me an e-mail and it went to spam, I apologize for missing it. It wasn’t personal, I promise. I will try to go through the spam every few days from now on, though I resent having to deal with spam and may just keep bulk deleting it. What really creeps me out is when my e-mail password appears in the subject line of the spam e-mail.

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14 May, 2007 | 31 Comments

I wanted to post a few links to recent news stories concerning the public stoning and murder of Du’a Khalil Aswad:

ABC News seems to be one of the only mainstream news outlets to have covered this story. “The Dishonorable Death of Doa.” From the story: “Women in Kurdistan and Iraq are oppressed. The few rights they do have are very limited and in most cases they are treated as subhuman. Killings, suicide, and violence against women are an everyday occurrence in this region.”

Voice of America’s article quotes Yousif Aziz, the Kurdistan Regional Government’s “human rights” minister (that’s laughable), as saying about honor killings: “I think it takes place daily, some [women] are killed, some burn themselves, so there are many cases.” Apparently, many women who have “dishonored” their families light themselves on fire and commit “suicide.” A woman who runs a women’s center in the region is quoted as saying that since the video footage of Dua’s murder began to circulate, honor killings have increased. “Since the seventh of April, so many women have been killed. So many women, it has just been packed, packed with killing women. Because it just made it okay. When people saw that, people who have got this idea about killing a woman for whatever the reason: whether she did not listen to you, did not obey your orders, did not want to get married to so and so. Well then, if that happens then I can do the same thing.”

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13 May, 2007 | 3 Comments

In London, when you’re in the train or Tube station, you constantly hear announcements about reporting unattended baggage because of security risks. Today I was in one of the big train stations and someone had left a black canvas bag behind in a rather high-profile area. I was buying a drink when I noticed it and I told the guy who was serving me that he should report it. I expected that he’d call someone right away. Instead he said:

“Yeah, I guess I should tell someone. Ummm, maybe you could do it.”

Meanwhile, no one else took any notice of this bag. So I went to find a security person and she did take it seriously. But it is a bit unsettling how complacent people are. I always look out for suspicious things when I’m in public places. Maybe I’m just paranoid.

12 May, 2007 | 6 Comments

I’ve been home working all night under deadline pressure– because the fun never stops chez moi. I’ve been dipping in and out of the Eurovision Song Contest on TV. I’ve never watched it before and I don’t really understand what the fuss is about, but apparently the once-yearly contest is a big deal over here. The BBC has devoted more coverage to this than they did to the Iraq War. [Probably.]

To my American friends, let me explain what Eurovision is. After watching the British act (all dressed up as flight attendants - barf), I think I figured out what this contest is all about:

Each country in Europe (plus Israel and some other non-European countries) sends their least talented, most embarrassing amateur musical act to represent them on worldwide TV. It’s like the opposite of a talent show.

If I’m wrong about this, someone please let me know.

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12 May, 2007 | 4 Comments

Last night at the pub, my friend told me that it’s fun “to take the piss out of men.” I had no idea what she meant by this, but I just agreed with her because it certainly sounds like fun. Then when I got home and discovered what it meant, I realized it’s something I already do quite often.

And yes, it is fun.

12 May, 2007 | 2 Comments

I shouldn’t blog when I’m feeling this way, but oh well. I finished my grueling course today. I passed. In four to six weeks, Cambridge University will send me my CELTA certificate. I can’t remember the last time I worked so hard for anything.

I should be happy. And I am. I now have a lot more extra space in my brain. This course was so much work and it was so intensive that I could not have continued with it for much longer. Not even a day longer, probably. I feel proud of this accomplishment. But I also feel completely gutted that this experience is over.

I hate when life surprises me like this.

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9 May, 2007 | 2 Comments

I haven’t posted much this week because I am busy finishing up my class from hell. And work is crazy. I’m convinced there are numerous people out there — on both sides of the Altantic — who want to see me go bonkers before Friday night rolls around. The odds right now are 50-50.

Also, it’s tough to transition back to my normal fare after my recent posts on the murder of Dua Khalil Aswad. I have felt such horrible grief for this woman who I never knew. It affected me terribly for days. And my reaction surprised me. The news is filled with horrors on a daily basis. We obviously must distance ourselves from such things or we wouldn’t be able to function. But Dua’s story affected me in a way that few other news stories have since 9/11. I am taking steps to turn my rage and sadness into something productive, something that will make a difference for women. I will write about that soon. If you want to see a picture of Dua as she looked in life, I will link to a page in a moment that includes a photo of her and news stories. But please note that there are a couple of disturbing images on this page, so please take that into consideration before clicking through. Link.

Finally, thank you to The Vol Abroad for tagging me with the Thinking Bloggers Award! I’m very flattered, especially given how much her blog makes me think.  You know, she was the first blogger who linked to Anglofille, which was very exciting for me when it happened. I felt like a real blogger! I think now I am supposed to tag five bloggers who make me think. Hmmm, that would be tough. There are so many. Maybe I’ll just accept my award and be happy!

6 May, 2007 | 12 Comments

Continuing on from my previous post, I am haunted by the image of 17-year-old Du’a Khalil Aswad, the woman on the video who had been lynched by a mob of men. The subject of “honor killings” is nothing new for me – in fact, I’m sure I’ve written about it on this blog before. But I’ve never seen it with my own eyes. And seeing it for myself has affected me in a visceral way. It has changed me in ways I am still trying to understand.

Images have the power to affect people in a way that words cannot. Think about images from the Vietnam War or the Iraq War that changed the tide of public opinion. Though honor killings are nothing new in Kurdish areas of Iraq, this event – captured on camera phones by men who hoped to use the footage to terrorize the women in their community – has mobilized Kurdish and Iraqi women and activists around the world. If this horrible, repulsive video footage is a catalyst for change, then perhaps this poor tortured woman will not have died in vain.

As I thought about Du’a and her brutal murder, I couldn’t help but think of the murder of Emmett Till, whose lynching in Mississippi – and the photographs of him that were published – ignited the Civil Rights Movement. I feel that this event could have a similar effect on people in the Middle East. I hope so.

While I can’t necessarily recommend watching the video that I linked to before [which only contains footage after Du'a had already been killed and not the actual killing], in some ways I think it should be shown on television and people should be forced to watch it. Many people living their comfortable lives in America and Europe cannot possibly imagine such horror. You might think you can imagine it – but trust me, seeing it is something else all together. I was not able to finish watching it, but what I did watch caused me to feel quite sick. I also had difficulty breathing and nearly had a panic attack. I’ve felt sad and depressed all day and rather than doing the pile of work that’s waiting for me, I’ve been writing about this instead. Pages and pages of writing. Writing is the only way I can work through how I’m feeling about this.

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6 May, 2007 | 4 Comments

A commenter to my previous post provided a link to a petition you can sign that is part of the International Campaign Against Killings and Stonings of Women in Kurdistan. The woman in the video I wrote about was a 17-year-old girl named Doa who lived in Kurdistan. [I think the part of Kurdistan she lived in is within the borders of Iraq.] You can read more about her story if you click on the link to the petition. Please sign it. I am still upset about the video I watched yesterday and I will have more to say about it tomorrow. Part of the reason I feel so upset is that I want to help women like Doa, but I feel powerless. This petition is one small thing we can all do to help. I have been getting tons of hits on my blog post about Doa and I really hope there will be a big internet/blog campaign to shed light on her story.

6 May, 2007 | 5 Comments

I’m posting a link here to a blog post that contains a video that is probably one of the most horrific things I have ever seen in my life. I wish that I hadn’t watched it because it has upset me in a terrible way. It is video footage of a woman in Iraq who has just been stoned to death by a mob of men as part of an “honor killing.” These men are filming this woman with camera phones and laughing. This act of misogyny and pure savagery is incomprehensible to me. I can’t even begin to explain how I feel right now so I won’t try.

I think it is important that this video is posted on the Web as a testament to this poor woman and to the thousands of other women who have died similar deaths — anonymous women that no one cares about. This woman’s battered and bloodied body is evidence of what patriarchy does to women. Feminism is about ending patriarchy. If you’re a woman or a man who scoffs at feminists like me, or who cowers in fear at the word “feminism,” why don’t you go ahead and watch this video and educate yourself. Please.

5 May, 2007 | Enter your password to view comments

5 May, 2007 | 2 Comments

I just finished the third week of my class. And now it’s a 3-day holiday weekend. Hurrah! This has been a hellish week. The course I’m taking is notoriously difficult. And it’s been made more difficult because during the first week, one of my teammates dropped out, leaving us with four people instead of five. So we have to teach all his lessons in addition to ours, meaning that I have to teach almost every day. Grrrrrrr.

I’m not surprised he dropped out. During the first — and last — lesson he taught, the students terrorized him. He tried to lead a class discussion. The topic was:

Where were you on 9/11/01?

He wrote this on the board, with the date in the American format (m/d/y). This is obviously how people around the world refer to this date in history, regardless of how they write the date in their own countries. But the students immediately began to raise their hands. “We don’t understand that date.” Little lying bastards. My fellow teacher and teammate was very flustered by this point because the rest of his lesson had not gone well either. So he rewrote the date in the European way, but made a mistake:

9th September, 2001. Where were you?

[And for our next assignment...Where were you three days before Kennedy was shot?]

He was oblivious to his mistake, even though me and the other team members were signaling to him from the back of the classroom. And the students took full advantage of this error. They claimed they could not possibly remember where they were on the 9th of September, 2001. And they were laughing. To complicate matters, several of the troublemakers hail from countries that, while not quite “Axis of Evil,” are close cousins. So my fellow teacher thought they were just being insensitive to what had happened on 9/11.

And things went downhill from there.

After this disastrous class, he fled and refused to come back. In fact, right in the middle of the class he was teaching he said he considered “doing a runner.” I really want to kill this guy for being a quitter and adding so much work to my life. During one of our planning sessions this week, I remarked to my teammates: “If I see Steve, I’m going to tell him off.”

“Oh no,” a guy in my group said. “No. If we see Steve…we drown him.”

Right about now, that sounds like a good idea. But at least it’s Friday. And I have three days off. Excuse me now while I pass out…

2 May, 2007 | 6 Comments

In my previous post I mentioned the fact that yesterday and today, I had to do my student teaching while being evaluated by the meanest instructor in the program. I managed to survive, but boy oh boy! Today was quite explosive.

First, what happened yesterday. After my teammates and I teach our lessons, our students leave and the instructor gives us our feedback as a group. Yesterday I got a good grade. I had a fairly easy lesson. The instructor told me one of my strengths is that I am very calm when I teach. Others have remarked on this as well, which is stunning to me. Inside, I am literally on the verge of a panic attack. It’s a mystery to me how I can feel one way on the inside yet appear the complete opposite to everyone around me. Anyway, he said I was calm (dot dot dot) but I am almost too calm. “You’re calm to the point of being too understated,” he said. Then he told me: “You need to vary your speaking voice. You speak in the same tone of voice all the time.”

So to translate this for you: I am so calm I look like I don’t give a shit. And my California accent gets on his nerves. Well, at least I don’t sound like Hannibal Lechter…or dress like him…or act like him.

Moving on to today. I got a bad grade. Very bad. Poor me. This instructor has pretty much slashed his way through my team and I was his last victim. Not to bore you with these details, but I was assigned to teach a section of a chapter in the textbook by our main instructor and I did what she said. The instructor who evaluated me today (her underling) criticized me for not deleting about half the lesson because it was too much material for one person to handle. I agree it was too much to handle, but I was under the impression that I had no choice but to teach all of it.

So he gave me my bad grade and immediately, a woman in my group said: “That’s ridiculous. She did a wonderful job. The other instructor assigned her this lesson. She had no choice but to teach it.” And she went on from there. After that, a guy in my group jumped right in and basically said the same thing. Well, I was quite stunned. In my experience, people rarely come to the defense of others, especially when to do so goes against their own best interests. It means a lot to me that they would stand up for me like that. I’m very touched by it. My team really does function as a team and that makes this experience more bearable.

But that’s not all. My four-person team actually turned on the instructor and began letting him have it. This wasn’t about the grade he gave me, but about his awful treatment of all of us over the past few days. One guy just blew up and told him that he was just trying to intimidate us with his actions and behavior and that he wanted us to fear him. Everyone then jumped in with their own gripes. I’m serious! The instructor just sat there, completely shocked. It was painfully obvious that no one had ever called him on his behavior until today.

He responded by saying that we were all clearly very upset with him and that if we didn’t like his tactics, we should have told him. Oh please!!! He then apologized, but he was just going through the motions — I’m sure it wasn’t based on any sincere feeling of regret. But it was fun to turn the tables on him. After the feedback session was over, he left the room. My teammates and I were chatting. A few minutes later a woman from another team came in and said: “What did you guys do to [the instructor]?” She could tell there was something wrong just by looking at him.

I feel bad about my grade, but at least I don’t have to deal with this guy again. It’s another instructor’s turn to evaluate my team for the rest of the course. I have so much work left to do that I can’t let this bring me down. I have to dust myself off and all that.

But there was still a bit more humiliation in store for me. I was running to catch the central line today (for those who don’t know, this is a line on the Tube). I sort of leapt through the doors as they were closing and I stumbled a bit. I reached out to steady myself and my hand landed on some guy’s…lap. Yes, it’s true. I said, “Oh, sorry!” He laughed and looked down and said: “No worries.”

It’s always nice to end the day in style.