![]() I think the issue of sexism is something worthwhile and to be discussed as within the past 6 months I've come across what I consider over-sensitive individuals regarding the topic. I would like to think that I fall into the category of egalitarian by advocating equal wages, rights, and opportunities for all regardless of their circumstances unless they cannot do the job, but again and again I am faced by a wall of people who well, do the above^ What kind of actually concerns me is that this idea of cuddly ultra-sensitive group-thought takes hold of the popular movement and prevents progressive organizations from actually getting the job done(Greece for example) and continues the status-quo of North American 'progressive politics'.... Or maybe I just missed the train here with you guys and need to go for re-education, can I have some input on the matter? *shit* red-square this please?
What exactly are you talking about? I don't understand the question...
EDIT:Didn't see the picture (it didn't load the first time)... Last edited by Loz on 12 Feb 2012, 19:17, edited 1 time in total.
Not really a question I guess, just more of a talking point in hopes of stirring discussion Loz. I guess to make it clear:
What is Sexism? Would the above screencap in it's basic context be sexist? What is the role of the battle against sexism in socialism? And do you feel there needs to be the line in the sand regarding priorities on the topic? IE an over focus on combating sexism instead of the topic of worker mobilization?
I think "mama" jokes aren't overly funny, but I don't know if it's sexist in itself.
That being said, sexism is a legitimate problem of oppression, and it should be a conscious concern in trying to radicalise workers. As communists we are against all oppression of the proletariat, even when the oppression happens to benefit the priviledged white male. Soviet America is Free America!
Under communism, there is no freedom; you are not free to live in poverty, be homeless, to be without an education, to starve, or to be without a job
People need to man-up and stop finding things to make themselves feel offended by.
The moment one accepts the notion of 'totalitarianism', one is firmly locked within the liberal-democratic horizon. - Slavoj Žižek
Trent, you are culturally programmed to be who you are. Since you are a radical leftist in a Western country, that kind of makes you an anomaly at the moment, but going against the flow in politics does not mean that you are entirely outside the social environment experienced by everyone else. Hence, if you have some ideas that someone might construe as sexist (i.e. 'insensitive jokes') those people should realize that no one is really their own person, and that taking offense at every lewd remark or other verbal indiscretion will quickly get them ostracized from any social and political discourse that they try to get into. I find this especially important to remember when talking to real, old-fashioned workers (I mean the kind that still work in factories). If your buddies on facebook ever stepped in to some of the places I've been in and heard the kind of bigotry, sexism and outright racism exhibited by some people, I don't really think their first priority would be to correct these incorrect opinions formed over peoples entire lifetimes. I guess what I'm saying is that a) I agree with you that working class solidarity and the recognition that exploitation exists is paramount and b) changing other simple-minded opinions and views on everything else will take time, events and personal experiences (i.e. sometimes something more than you as an individual can do) to do. I'm not saying one has to tolerate hateful messages and ideas, but if someone just comes out and says 'you're wrong' just to demonstrate their moral stance, that's going to close the door to any opportunity to change someone's mind later.
Last edited by soviet78 on 13 Feb 2012, 04:53, edited 1 time in total.
"The thing about capitalism is that it sounds awful on paper and is horrendous in practice. Communism sounds wonderful on paper and when it was put into practice it was done pretty well for what they had to work with." -MiG
Quote: Done.
From what it seems to me,"sexism" today has largely become yet another epithet often used by liberals and such to automatically shut their opponents up,just like "fascism" etc.
"Radical" feminism has become counterrevolutionary from the moment when it proclaimed that "women are the proletariat and men are the bourgeoisie" and so on,which is of course sabotage and subversion against class struggle and the proletarian revolution. To paraphrase Lenin (who was referring to the "sexual liberation movement" in the 1910s),feminism was (and still is today because there are, as we know, many "strains" of feminism,some of which are truly progressive and to be supported) a legitimate protest against injustice and oppression,but that protest itself (against gender inexuality and oppression of women) had fallen into degeneracy with things such as man-hate and other ideas prominent among "radical" feminists. Loz wrote: The idea that feminism is about hating men is more a strawman built by the bourgeois, than a genuine viewpoint held by more than a lunatic fringe. Even if it WAS a majority viewpoint, this would mean nothing, as equality of all people is what we strive for. Soviet America is Free America!
Under communism, there is no freedom; you are not free to live in poverty, be homeless, to be without an education, to starve, or to be without a job Quote: Well i sort of agree.. Quote: Well it would only serve to further discredit feminism,not our communist struggle for real female equality and liberation... But do you agree with what i said, that "Radical" feminism has become counterrevolutionary from the moment when it proclaimed that "women are the proletariat and men are the bourgeoisie..."? I mean to me it seems that such ideas are completely anti-Marxist. Loz wrote: I don't disagree with that at all, I just aren't convinced that's really something anyone says. Soviet America is Free America!
Under communism, there is no freedom; you are not free to live in poverty, be homeless, to be without an education, to starve, or to be without a job
I'm pretty sure i read this somewhere although i can't remember the source/book right now ...
Anyway,here's what Wiki says: Quote: Quote:
Here's a joke you should tell her:
Q: How many feminists does it take to screw in a lightbulb? A: That's not funny.
Soviet cogitations: 5532
Defected to the U.S.S.R.: 04 Aug 2004, 20:49 Embalmed
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/feb/12/uni-lad-website-closure-banter
This. It just seems to be really bad, really ham-fisted humour that gets people being named as misogynists. In this case, joking about rape is way over the mark, but does that really show an inherent bias against women, or just a risible lack of judgement? I would probably opt for the former, as lacking experience or contact with anyone who has said they have been raped shows it is quite a touchy subject, however it can be verified or not. OP's post shows a really terrible joke and an expected over-reaction on the part of the other dude, but no way near being over the mark as no real forceful or unwillingness was necessarily implied for the shitty joke to work. I could overanalyse why you chose it to be a woman being shared around, not a man, whether the word "worker" conjures up the holotype of a burly man operating a machine etc. All I can really say on that point is that it's largely cultural and barely intended most of the time, hell, I'm completely unaware of half of the hidden connotations behind what I say - and they are meaningless to me, unintended accidents. They will vanish or grow, who am I to provide prognosis? ![]() "Phil Spector is haunting Europe" -Dr. Karl H. Marx
You have to look at the joke in context. I'm assuming the argument for why the joke is sexist would go something along the lines of "it's treating women like sexual objects to be possessed by men" (even that is a stretch, as it is really playing with the genre of yo momma jokes). But Trent was only responding to the idea of leftist memes, and sharing a well-known one. He was not saying the joke to delegitimize a girl's opinion or make her feel like a cut of meat in the context of an intellectual discussion.
Verdict: not guilty. |
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