Hey Allies! Thinking about cheering us on as we march in downtown Hamilton? We would love to see our supporters on the sidelines!
Here is our route for this year’s march:
Need ideas for signs? Check out this SlutWalk Chicago participant:
Getcher bike lights out folks, we’ve got some shining to do!
If you ride a bike and have any reason to support SACHA Hamilton’s Take Back the Night, this event is for you!
One in three women will experience sexual violence in their lifetime. This means that we all probably know someone who is a survivor of gender violence and oppression. If not, we at least know someone supporting a survivor of gender violence or oppression.
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This Event is Open to Bike-Riders of All Genders! Come Support Your Sisters who March at Take Back the Night!!!
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WHEN & WHERE?
Meet the Womyn’s Bike Crew between 7:45 and 8:00pm, on Monday, September 12th, at the York Blvd. entrance to the Hamilton Public Library. Bring lights, glow sticks, reflectors, small flash lights, a sequin dress or disco balls — anything flashy!
Please also note, as with all WBC event, that we commit to creating spaces that promote equality for all and are free of oppression. We want everyone to be empowered!
Last week, my co-TBTN blog editor Erin and I sat down to work through the plan for Trigger Warnings here on the blog.
As we worked through this, I found myself comfortably able to admit — Trigger Warnings and talk of triggers? Kind of triggering for me sometimes.
Today, I sat down with an enormous stack of resources from an amazing ‘zine called A World Without Sexual Assault. There in, I found a section about triggers. The first time I scanned through the package, I attempted to read more. Almost instantly, I got through four paragraphs without reading a word. I’d drifted off into memories of super unhappy past experiences.
Today, I tried again. I have coffee, Fugazi, and strong friends around. This is what I learned:
Taylor blogs at No Greater Male Supporter where you could find him musing on victim blaming, sexism, allyship and sometimes hockey. Taylor is generously guest blogging for TBTN Hamilton.
As prefaced in my last post, here are some ways male allies can help:
We can be okay with just being there in solidarity. We don’t always have to speak. Our presence alone can speak volumes, whether it’s at a rally or a bookclub.
We can invest energy in learning about all oppressed groups, not just our female loved ones who face oppression. If we read up on homophobia, racism, ableism, ageism, transphobia, et cetera, we’ll have a much broader spectrum through which we view how oppression works and how it can be counteracted. “Whistling Vivaldi” by Claude Steele is a great example of a book that encourages such a perspective. Challenge yourself to be a Feminist all the time, not just when you’re around your girlfriend. Continue reading
Even though our wonderful TBTN blog has only been around for two months we’re already starting to do grown-up blog stuff like having a guest blogger!
Taylor blogs at No Greater Male Supporter where you could find him musing on victim blaming, sexism, allyship and sometimes hockey.
What a pleasure to be writing for SACHA and Hamilton’s Take Back The Night this September!
I first learned about Take Back the Night during the weeks leading up to Vancouver’s SlutWalk a couple months ago. I was (and still am) very excited about the SlutWalk movement, but I originally did have two misgivings about it. One was the “mesh panty hose” image of the event, which I felt to be less an effective satire of the word, “Slut”, and more of a distraction of the event’s message, which is that, contrary to the beliefs of a certain Toronto Police Officer, women are sexually assaulted irrespective of whether they wear said mesh panty hose. If the vast majority of sexual assault happens in a trusting relationship, and given that clothing does not contribute to assault, why make the focus of the movement so attached to clothing…
Then of course the event happened and all of a dozen or so out of the thousand plus there actually dressed ‘sluttily’ (whatever the definition of the word may be to you). I’d been had. The “Look at us high fiving in our mesh stockings” message that SlutWalk was supposedly all about was more a function of reactions from outside the movement, and anyone who actually listened to Katie Raso, Vancouver SlutWalk’s organizer, would know the message of SlutWalk was to “get out of a culture that says hey women don’t get raped and [become] a culture that says hey men, don’t rape women.” Continue reading
Here’s a excerpt from an Absolutely Excellent, rad post, called (and I quote) “How to F**k Up”, by Teh Portly Dyke:
That’s what this post is about. “How to F**k Up” — and how to clean up when you fuck up.
I have a little tool that I call “The Four A’s” (I learned it from an absolutely fantastic teacher) and it has helped me through numerous f**k-ups in my life.
When you “F**k Up” (whether the f**k-up is minor or major) practice the “Four A’s”.
- Acknowledgment
- Apology
- Amends
- Action
…or sexist… or class-elitist …or anti-Semitic … or heteronormative… or ablist … or … otherwise oppressive:
This video is awesome because…
a) It Feels Great — Jay Smooth is hilarious! And not even dismissive while doing it. Look at that — non-oppressive humour! Awesome!!
b) It is Eloquent …keep reading…
Gender violence is a men’s issue, involving men of all ages, races and class backgrounds. View menfolk not only as perpetrators or possible oppressors, but as empowered allies who can confront abusive peers!
