Links Round Up: Week Ending 31 January 2014

[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

Hi and welcome to the latest installment of our Links Round Up. :)

For folks who don't know, the LRU is a compilation of items from the past week that may be of interest to VPers and is intended to broaden the kinds of conversations we have here.

To submit articles for next week's round-up, e-mail vpteam@vaginapagina.com. If you have additional articles you'd like folks to know about this week, feel free to comment directly to this post.

As a reminder, in lieu of trigger warnings, I use keywords describing the themes of the piece. Please skim these before deciding to read the excerpt or click through for the full article. Outside sources are not safe spaces, and mainstream sources' comments should almost always be avoided. The links I highlight don't necessarily reflect VP's views, or even my own, for that matter.

This week's round-up includes: some thoughts on school dress codes; the intersection of disability and fat; and the Tarrant Test for Superbowl ads.

1. Some thoughts on school dress codes at I was a high school feminist (Keywords: clothing, schools, gender presentation, dress codes, sexuality, body policing)
   

   Next, it sends the message that one of the most important aspects of who a girl is is what she looks like. By making and enforcing dress codes, we repeatedly bring the topic of girls’ appearance to the forefront, making it seem like it’s normal that that’s an important thing to talk about. (Also, since dress code regulations often have to do with skimpiness or tightness, they reinforce the idea that a woman’s body is always sexual).

   
   


2. Intersection of disability and fat — bigotry abounds around them by vesta44 at Fierce, Freethinking Fatties (Keywords: fat bias, ableism, mobility, shaming)
   

   Who gets to determine who’s “deserving” of a mobility device? If you want insurance or Medicare to pay for one, you have to have a prescription and a letter from your doctor documenting exactly why you need that mobility device. Oh, and it better not be just because you can’t navigate the outside world, but can still navigate your home. Because if you can still manage to walk around your home, you’re shit out of luck, baby.

   
   


3. Take the Tarrant Test for 2014 Super Bowl Ads! at the Ms. Magazine Blog (Keywords: feminism, POC, advertising, media representation, Superbowl)
   

   You’ve probably heard of the Bechdel Test for judging movies, which has become increasingly popular and well-known since it was put forth by cartoonist/graphic novelist Alison Bechdel in her comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For in 1985. Based on an AlterNet blog post yesterday by one of our favorite bloggers and feminist scholars, Shira Tarrant, we propose that the Tarrant Test become de rigueur on Super Bowl Sunday.

   
   

In case you missed it, also check our most recent MMMMonday post on the phrase "women's issues" and trans inclusivity.

Finally, as always, feel free to share your thoughts on any of these articles, along with what you've been reading or writing this week!