i feel great! this last week has lifted a fog from me. really! it's been there since i got back from nablus. i've been stumbling around. but, really, i feel like i've woken up. it's wonderful. i just got back from a rally and march in support of immigrant rights and it was beautiful. the whole day was awesome. there were hundreds of people and we walked and cheered. and people were so happy. it's like the means and the goals are the same. acting in solidarity, having fun, standing up, sharing, and acting. it was just awesome. it rained off and on which was beautiful. on the walk home there was a double rainbow. just brilliant and bright. it could not have been more appropriate.

julia, jen, and i worked on our garden plots for the first time this morning. it was great! what a great day! i was only there for the weed pulling and soil turning and some of the path making. julia and jen planted this afternoon. there are raddishes, carrots, tomatoes, peppers, kohlrabi (gramma and papa must be proud), onions, some sort of wierd brocolli thing, i think some beans, marigolds, basil, rosemary, spinach, lettuce, and probably some other stuff that i don't remember.

this has just been an incredible day and an incredible week. last night jen and i went to a high school production of death of a salesman. it was emotional and intense. the acting was serioulsy amazing. it's a heavy thing. and this week----awesome!

10 things....

10 THINGS MEN CAN DO TO PREVENT GENDER VIOLENCE

1. Approach gender violence as a MEN'S issue involving men of all ages and socioeconomic, racial and ethnic backgrounds. View men not only as perpetrators or possible offenders, but as empowered bystanders who can confront abusive peers

2. If a brother, friend, classmate, or teammate is abusing his female partner -- or is disrespectful or abusive to girls and women in general -- don't look the other way. If you feel comfortable doing so, try to talk to him about it. Urge him to seek help. Or if you don't know what to do, consult a friend, a parent, a professor, or a counselor. DON'T REMAIN SILENT.

3. Have the courage to look inward. Question your own attitudes. Don't be defensive when something you do or say ends up hurting someone else. Try hard to understand how your own attitudes and actions might inadvertently perpetuate sexism and violence, and work toward changing them.

4. If you suspect that a woman close to you is being abused or has been sexually assaulted, gently ask if you can help.

5. If you are emotionally, psychologically, physically, or sexually abusive to women, or have been in the past, seek professional help NOW.

6. Be an ally to women who are working to end all forms of gender violence. Support the work of campus-based women's centers. Attend "Take Back the Night" rallies and other public events. Raise money for community-based rape crisis centers and battered women's shelters. If you belong to a team or fraternity, or another student group, organize a fundraiser.

7. Recognize and speak out against homophobia and gay-bashing. Discrimination and violence against lesbians and gays are wrong in and of themselves. This abuse also has direct links to sexism (eg. the sexual orientation of men who speak out against sexism is often questioned, a conscious or unconscious strategy intended to silence them. This is a key reason few men do so).

8. Attend programs, take courses, watch films, and read articles and books about multicultural masculinities, gender inequality, and the root causes of gender violence. Educate yourself and others about how larger social forces affect the conflicts between individual men and women.

9. Don't fund sexism. Refuse to purchase any magazine, rent any video, subscribe to any Web site, or buy any music that portrays girls or women in a sexually degrading or abusive manner. Protest sexism in the media.

10. Mentor and teach young boys about how to be men in ways that don't involve degrading or abusing girls and women. Volunteer to work with gender violence prevention programs, including anti-sexist men's programs. Lead by example

Copyright 1999, Jackson Katz. www.jacksonkatz.comReprint freely with credit.

take back the night

i went to Take Back The Night last night. it was awesome! take back the night consists of a women identified speakout, march, and rally with speakers. women self-empowerment in the face of violence and gender violence are the main issues--there is probably a national webpage about it. there is also a men identified gathering, where men talk about sexual and gender violence, male privledge, and related stuff, followed by a march to the old town square where the men cheer and support the women as they arrive. it was great! i don't know how many people were there....i think maybe 40 men at the speakout and it looked like 400 women marching into the square. i've went a couple of times before (it's an annual event) and it has always been great. last night was really wonderful. it was just incredible to see all of these women walking together shouting and cheering. and to be part of the dialogue and action to change violence and patriarchy in our society. i'll include a list of 10 things that men can do to stop violence against women.

on another, actually not-so-different note, i read one of the best graphic novels i have ever read a few days ago at the library. it's called the tale of one bad rat. the last name of the author is, i think, talbot. read it. it is absolutely incredible. it's beautiful.

flyingears

i'm getting ready for a little talk about palestine at CSU this coming monday. i'm trying to make a bit of an outline so that i don't get off track. i'm nervous about it but i think it will go well. i did something similar last year and was really happy about it. i only wish i would have been doing many of these this past year. it's really stupid--i haven't done anything since i was last in nablus. nothing related to that. i feel shitty about it but i am happy that this presentation will be happening next week. i am a bit worried that there won't be many people in the audience but who knows. and i guess any is better than none. mostly i'll just talk about some experiences and illustrate them with photographs. and i'll use the stories and photos to talk about what is happening there...to give examples about the level of oppression and the realities that palestinians face.

i have been home now for over a week. i worked a couple of weeks doing archaeological survey stuff northwest of rifle colorado, in an area called the piceance creek basin (it's pronounced pee-aunts, strange huh?). out of all that walking i saw one projectile point, one really broken up projectile point, and one flake (as far as prehistoric cultural stuff goes). That is actually pretty nice; not much paper work. the area was beautiful and it felt great to get out and walk after all the digging this winter.

i guess this posting has turned into a personal update of sorts. i don't know why but there you have it. i feel strange writing posts to a blog. i mean, who is the audience? you know? am i writing basically a journal or am i anticipating someone reading it? of course i am anticipating it being read by others, both known and unknown to me. and i guess i find that to be a wierd place to write from. should it be a place to make quick notes about what i am doing or where i am, to keep in touch with friends....is it an honest and open space for expression....is it a place to publish or share things that i think are interesting/important....or what? i don't know, i guess. i do know that i like reading blogs that my friends and loved have--so write more all of you!