Dress Immodestly on April 26, Take A Small Stand Against Oppression of Women

The event's tag line? "Help fight supernatural thinking and the oppression of women, just by dressing immodestly!"

The time and place? Monday, April 26, 12:05am - 11:55pm, everywhere.

And finally, the name: Boobquake.

It may not be the most elegant of titles, but keep in mind, this started out as a joke.

Its creator, Jennifer McCreight, a Purdue University student, writes in her blog that the whole idea was meant to be "a somewhat sarcastic reply to the ludicrous notion that women's immodesty causes earthquakes." However, it has exploded into an unintended phenomenon.

The Facebook event currently has 103,334 confirmed guests, with more than 28,000 who may also attend. Hundreds of comments can be found on both the Facebook event page and on Ms. McCreight's blog, not to mention new tweets on Twitter are popping up every minute for #boobquake.

You might be wondering what this ridiculous title has to do with the oppression of women. Simply read my post from Tuesday of this week. But for a quick update, this movement was spawned when an Iranian cleric, Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi, was quoted by Iranian media as saying, "Many women who do not dress modestly ... lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which (consequently) increases earthquakes."

You might be able to imagine the reactions of many people upon reading this. They included ranged from shock and profuse head-shaking to...well, a reaction like that of Ms. McCreight's. Her idea is to have all the women of the world (or at least those who use Facebook, Twitter or read blogs) to dress "immodestly" this coming Monday.

As she puts it, "On Monday, April 26th, I will wear the most cleavage-showing shirt I own. Yes, the one usually reserved for a night on the town. I encourage other female skeptics to join me and embrace the supposed supernatural power of their breasts. Or short shorts, if that's your preferred form of immodesty. With the power of our scandalous bodies combined, we should surely produce an earthquake. If not, I'm sure Sedighi can come up with a rational explanation for why the ground didn't rumble. And if we really get through to him, maybe it'll be one involving plate tectonics."

Ms. McCreight's idea has gotten a variety of reactions, ranging from "Awesome!" to "this is anti-feminist." She has responded with a blog post for clarification.

"I don't think the event is completely contrary to feminist ideals. I'm asking women to wear their most 'immodest' outfit that they already would wear, but to coordinate it all on the same day for the sake of the experiment. Heck, just showing an ankle would be considered immodest by some people.

Ms. McCreight continues, "I don't want to force people out of their comfort zones, because I believe women have the right to choose how they want to dress. Please don't pressure women to participate if they don't want to. If men ogle, that's the fault of the men, not me for dressing how I like. If I want to a show a little cleavage or joke about my boobs, that's my prerogative.

"And to the scientists who are concerned with my methods - don't worry, I fully plan on doing some statistics after the event. I know many earthquakes happen on a daily basis, so we're looking to see if Boobquake significantly increases the number or severity of earthquakes. Or if an earthquake strikes West Lafayette, IN and only kills me, that may be good evidence of God's wrath as well (I'm not too concerned)."

Let's just hope this coming Monday remains earthquake-free.

Photo credit: Facebook Event, Boobquake

UCLA Bruin Feminists Join Hundreds to Protest UC Fee Hikes

Guest Post by Cindy Le, Executive Board Member of the FMF-affiliate group, the UCLA Bruin Feminists for Equality:

Last week, UCLA experienced a flurry of activity in the form of student protests. The events included two days of marching and chanting, the occupation of Campbell Hall, festivities of Crisis Fest and a tent city welcoming students from UCs all over the state, as well as a takeover of one of Los Angeles’ busiest intersections – Wilshire and Westwood. These events – some planned, and some unplanned – were in the combined effort of getting students informed about the University of California Regents meeting in which a 32% fee increase would be decided on, and how that would affect UC students.

Hundreds of students came together on Wednesday morning to join in the peaceful protest that took place in Covel Commons. Among those students were members of the Bruin Feminists for Equality, an FMF-affiliate group. We joined in with the group by holding protest signs, marching around the Commons, and chanting phrases such as “No Hikes! No Fees! Education should be Free!” Check out the video - Bruin Feminists on CNN!



Many people wonder what the effect of this fee increase will be on the student population. In general, there is expected to be a drop in attendance, because fewer students will be able to financially cope with the fee increases.

As Bruin Feminists, the ideals of our student organization are to fight for equality for all in every aspect. Though the term ‘feminism’ is associated with gender equality between men and women, feminism - and Bruin Feminism especially, is the struggle for equality on all levels – including gender, race, sexual orientation, class, socioeconomic status, and the right to education.

This is the first mid-year increase in fees that students of the University of California have faced, and rightly so, the students are angry. The source of our anger comes from the contradiction of these fee increases to the idea of a public university and education as a means of upward mobility.

The raise of UC fees is coupled with many losses to educational services. At UCLA, we have seen cuts in library hours, writing requirements, English composition tutors, faculty and staff furloughs, as well as rumored plans to decrease degree requirements, cut foreign languages and consolidate ethnic studies.

On a larger scale, these fee increases are privatizing the university. Only those who are financially able to afford college will be able to attend. Though the Regents deemed the fee increase necessary and presented it as the only alternative to the lowered financial support of the state budget to the UC, this 32% fee hike affects not only lower-income students whose families are struggling to make ends meet, but also concerns students who do not qualify for financial aid and students who are considered middle-class – well enough off on paper to afford college without financial aid, but realistically without the means to.

Ethnic minority students are straining to continue on as well. A great number of minority students are first-generation college students. Already facing a unique set of difficulties to succeed in college, the financial burden is sometimes the deciding factor in the continuation of one’s education. The majority of the members in Bruin Feminists for Equality are first-generation and/or minority students.

The participation of Bruin Feminists in the protests was to show our unity as students. Furthermore, our continued participation is in opposition to discrimination for any reason. Students should not be funneled out of the college system due to race, class, gender, sexual orientation, or lack of financial ability. It is important to voice our opposition to the fee increases - education is a right, not a privilege!

Scheduling A Congressional Meeting

We have less than 2 weeks before hundreds of pro-choice activists descend on Washington, DC for the Stop Stupak-Pitts Lobby Day and Rally on December 2. We hope that you will be joining us if you are able!

Before you head to Capitol Hill, however, you need to schedule a meeting with your members of Congress. See below for a step-by-step guide.

Scheduling a meeting:

1. Call your representatives and senators’ offices. To call directly, find your senators’ contact information at senate.gov; and your representative’s numbers at house.gov. You can also call the U.S. Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask for the member by name.

2. When you reach the office, explain that you are a constituent and that you will be in Washington, DC on Wednesday, December 2 to discuss comprehensive healthcare reform, the Stupack-Pitts amendment, and women's reproductive healthcare. Ask to schedule a short meeting with the member of Congress, ideally, or their chief of staff, their healthcare staffer, or women’s issues staffer some time between 10 and 11:30 or 1:30 and 5.

3. If for whatever reason you cannot schedule a meeting, don't lose hope. You can drop in on members once you are on the Hill, or you may be able to join forces with a larger group day of.

Remember, if you cannot join us in Washington on December 2 there is still so much important work to do at home! Visit your local congressional office (especially during the week of Thanksgiving), hold a rally, write letters to the editor, and call, email, fax, and write your Congresspeople!

We can do this, but we need to keep the pressure on and keep fighting!

Email ekadar@feminist.org with any questions.

Students Counter Protest Westboro Baptist Church Protesters

Members from the Westboro Baptist Church in Kansas protested Monday on Wisconsin Avenue across from Sidwell Friends School. Students also held signs and took part in a counter-protest. The Westboro Baptists Church protesters held signs with the President’s picture saying “The Beast” and the others which said “morn for your sins.”

Google or wikipedia the Westboro Baptist Church, and a slue of things pop up regarding the beliefs and actions of group members. They range from anti-homosexual propaganda, to picketing at funerals (particularly military ones) and other types of protests. The group is well-known for the notorious and even provocative signs the members often hold.

Think Progressive showed a picture of the protesters and the Sidwell Friends School counter protest, the student’s signs in the background read a Quaker quote “there is that of God in everyone” decorated with hearts.

Administrators for the school say that since January (when the first daughters started) there have been two protests at the school. To put this into perspective it should be noted that there were only two protests total during Chelsea Clinton’s time at the school.

In the original picture, it appears the protesters had been overwhelmingly outnumbered by the students of Sidwell Friends School.

Photo Credit: on flickr.com

Should Only Men Get Tenure?

Passing this along - if you're in Chicago, join up! If not, this is just a reminder to support women faculty in your respective institutions!

If you’re concerned about discrimination against women in academia and the subordination of academic fields in which women predominate, please show your support for diversity in higher education TODAY, Thursday November 5th, from 1-3pm at the DePaul University student center to protest the discriminatory denial of tenure to female Professors.

As featured in Sunday’s Chicago Tribune (http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-depaul-tenure_grossmannov01,0,648862.story), DePaul University disproportionately denied tenure to qualified female Professors last year. These tenure denials will reduce the number of female Professors on campus and diminish the strength of the Women’s and Gender Studies Department, among others.

We need your help to show DePaul—and all institutions of higher education—that students do not support and will not tolerate their administrations denying tenure in a discriminatory manner. Please come and support diversity and non-discrimination in academia:

WHERE? Corner of Sheffield and Belden, NE Corner of LP Student Center by the statue.
WHEN? Thursday, November 5th, 1-3pm.
FACEBOOK? Tenure Bradshaw
QUESTIONS? Contact Chera Tribble, chera.patrice@gmail.com

FemNews: the Operation Rescue Counter Protest

Hello, everyone! So, as you saw yesterday, some of the FMF interns were planning to go to an Operation Rescue protest at the Capitol, and have a peaceful counter-protest. Well, we did it! It wasn't exactly what we expected it to be, but I think we did a good job of getting our message out! Check out the video!

Calling All Feminists! Counter-Protest to Operation Rescue Demonstration

Calling all feminists!

Join Feminist Majority Foundation interns in a non-confrontational counter-protest, tomorrow July 28 at 10:45 A.M., outside Cannon House Office Building. Troy Newman and Operation Rescue are planning to bring their “abortion is not health care” campaign to the Capitol and we will be there to offer a pro-women, pro-choice perspective!

Here are the details:
What: Counter-Protest to Operation Rescue Demonstration
When: Tuesday, July 28th at 10:45 A.M.
Where: Cannon HOB (Corner of Independence and New Jersey Ave.)

Join us and help to fight for reproductive rights to be included in the health care legislation!

Questions call 703-522-2214 and ask to speak with Laura Ponchick or Sarah Hejma.