I’m still officially on my Man Boobz staycation, but I felt I needed to mention yet another example of a woman saying that men can stop rape … and getting rape threats in return.
Political analyst Zerlina Maxwell went on Sean Hannity’s show on Fox News earlier this week and made the terrible mistake of suggesting to a hostile audience that men aren’t really doing any favors to women by telling them to arm themselves against rapists. Instead, as Salon notes, she said this:
“I don’t think that we should be telling women anything. I think we should be telling men not to rape women and start the conversation there.” She told Hannity, “You’re talking about this as if it’s some faceless, nameless criminal, when a lot of times it’s someone you know and trust,” adding, “If you train men not to grow up to become rapists, you prevent rape.”
Indeed, increased rape awareness has contributed to a dramatic decrease in rape over the last thirty years.
But apparently a lot of men were shocked – shocked! – that a woman would suggest that their patronizing advice was less likely to prevent rape than rape prevention education aimed at the demographic group that is responsible for the overwhelmng majority of rapes. That is, men.
So, naturally, the angriest of these men decided they would show Maxwell just how wrong she was … by threatening her with rape on Twitter.
Here’s just one example:
Rape culture in action.
Maxwell’s supporters have stepped up to defend her and her remarks, and have started a hashtag — #TYZerlina — to continue the discussion. If you’re on Twitter, join in .
Here’s the Fox News segment in question featuring Maxwell:
No, good-faith poster get labeled as trolls. Read this post, katz.
@Argenti Aertheri:
I think Cassandra should reevaluate zir attitude about people who seek contact and yes, Just happen to Ask Questions.
Poxy, what the hell are you on about with that link? If you know the term JAQing off, then how about not doing it. And don’t come across all condescendingly “there, there” at the regulars, either.
FYI, this part of the discussion you linked to seems to point to your own developing behaviour here. I suspect it’s not the point you’re trying (?) to make.
fwiw, I’m still not calling troll on Poxy.
(When I think of some of the things I said when I was new to feminism, I cringe.)
*bangs head into wall* the difference is ever so simple — people honestly asking questions are willing to listen to the answers, is that really that hard?
Also, I’m stuck listening to my father complain about his father, he literally just said “oh god I’ve heard this before”…about something I’ve heard about a dozen times so far. To top this shit off, he’s moaning about how his father is just refusing to do things that he’s sure will be good for him…I have a special hatred for that currently, considering my last irate comment was while trying not to panic over my psych doing exactly that.
Someone come kidnap me, please. I make some mean coffee, strong but not bitter!
Poxy’s last comment really needed a “little missy” for full effect. 2/10 score from the British judge.
@ Argenti
Do you know how to use a French press? If so, come on over.
Nerdypants – “But I’m probably over-thinking it; they’re probably just using it as a post-hoc rationalisation for their own shittiness.”
I’ve yet to see any evo-psych stuff that wasn’t doing that. I don’t delve into it; the shit I see here is more than enough. Whatever the scientific origins, I despise the whole popular evo-psych business: like you said, it’s just reductionist, misogynist scum justifying their behaviour and trying to control women.
lol, thanks, I can tell the difference. My point was expressing you were sad, and whining about it, whining seemed more entitled. They had way different tones.
Probably weren’t the best example sentences, but I hoped they’d make the point.
/non poxy people, sorry if I’m not making much sense, it’s rather late here. Poxy, you aren’t making much sense anyway, so at least it’s mutual.
*extends hand to Argenti via teh intertubes, tries not to look like Michelangelo’s idea of God whild doing so*
Bring your summer gear and best iced-coffee making skills, it’s HOT here!
Marie – your statements made sense to me; the distinction between “I am sad ‘cos I’m alone” and “it is women’s fault that I am alone” was very clear.
Poxy, you troll, jackass–the people in that Texas town think she’s a trollop who asked for it. That’s society, dimwit.
Go ask you questions somewhere else, and get a better schtick. Yours sucks.
@kittehs
alright thanks 😀 I just tend to be bad with telling how well I communicate on the internet, so I wasn’t sure.
@ Marie
You’re being perfectly clear, it’s not your fault that trolls like to pretend to be stupid so they can make you keep talking to them.
And here’s the original, because the Akon version doesn’t quite capture the pathos that is the life of a troll.
http://www.lyrics007.com/Vinton%20Bobby%20Lyrics/Mr%20Lonely%20Lyrics.html
“Do you know how to use a French press? If so, come on over.”
Always! And with freshly ground beans 🙂
Guess I should get started on writing up instructions on caring for the fish?
Then again…it’s warm wear kitteh is…or is it warm your way too Cassandra? Decisions decisions! (I don’t like iced coffee btw, so I probably suck at it, I drink the stuff hot year round)
Pro-tip Poxy, you’re never going to either make friends or influence people if you come in with questions, ignore the answers, question the intelligence of the regulars and assume we don’t know how fallacies go. I’m only resisting the urge to play Spot That Fallacy because I have the good doctor Reid paused on the other screen.
Were you really that condescending? (I might have been at that age, but I strongly affirm everyone’s right to have told past-me to shut the fuck up.)
It’s still California-cold here (ie down below 50 at night). I’m a coffee slut, though – hot, iced, Arab, French, whatever. Just not instant, please.
@ CassandraSays
dang, was that song relevant to the troll? My love for music and headache are at war with each other, though, regardless.
Just click the second link, no sound there.
Ok, I shall 😀
(OT, but now I end up using the big smily face most of the time because the eyebrows on this one 🙂 start to freak me out after a while. and the eyebrows on this one 🙁 make it looks so sad I feel bad using it after trivial thoughts. This smily face rambling is probably a sign I should go to bed…)
Oh, is that what you think? Well, I think you’re the sort of person who comes here to say obnoxious things about extremely painful topics, and maybe that’s something that bears reevaluation.
I am so chastened by Poxy’s rebuke. Can’t you tell?
@Teh Kitteh’s:
Accusing someone of JAQing off means silencing criticism, which can go to the extreme, which is called immunization against criticism. I gave you an example where a good-faith poster explained the experiences he made at a different feminist blog, namely Skepchick, and was accused being an MRA, posting in bad faith while in reality the people who were accusing him just couldn’t support their claims. So with Skepchick of course, one could nearly sympathize with them being a bit paranoid, after all what happened. But as it turned out it wasn’t paranoia…
Marie – did you ever see the thread where someone (katz? cloudiah?) posted a link to the pictures of Sam, the cat with eyebrows?
@The Kitteh’s: Pop-science is always a bit crap, maybe the message gets garbled on the way down from the ivory towers, or maybe the early preoccupation with sexual selection meant it couldn’t be received without being politicised. But I think altruism research is nifty, inclusive fitness and evolutionary game theory. There’s a wonderful doco called ‘Ape Genius’ that explores that if you’re interested.