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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

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Amnesty TV launches with 11 men and 0 women on its production team

126 replies

Bidisha · 24/07/2011 02:13

bidisha-online.blogspot.com/2011/07/to-coincide-with-its-50-th-anniversary.html

Is this really a product by the same charity that tells us "Women's rights are human rights" on its web site?

OP posts:
jennyvstheworld · 06/08/2011 23:06

Apologies. Not just me though is it?

SinicalSal · 06/08/2011 23:25

'Untermensch', somethingwitty?

What a strange thing to say.

Jenny do you find it odd that the best people for any role just happen to always be middle class white blokes? I do. I don't think the rest of us are that inferior. Do you?

AyeRobot · 06/08/2011 23:28

Isn't it amazing how many scenarios end up with white males at the forefront in our post-feminist, choice-rich, anyone can do anything utopia?

I reckon women are either not good enough or don't want it enough. Those must be the only explanations, surely? Hmm

SinicalSal · 06/08/2011 23:29

We live in a meritocracy AyeRobot. The evidence is all round you. So yes, your analysis must be correct.

AyeRobot · 06/08/2011 23:34

Oh, I just thought it was a case of thousands of strange coincidences. Like when you meet your nan's best mate's grand-daughter's childminder in a cafe in Oostend.

AyeRobot · 06/08/2011 23:35

Or that women are just not up to the job and the cream rises to the top, like you said.

FFS.

jennyvstheworld · 06/08/2011 23:37

"Jenny do you find it odd that the best people for any role just happen to always be middle class white blokes? I do. I don't think the rest of us are that inferior. Do you?"

What have I said that translates into that? I have already said that this situation is decidedly odd. The question I haven't seen answered is whether some of the people on the team should have been rejected on the basis that they were white males. These are volunteers remember, all of whom have given up their time to help a worthy charity.

HerBeX · 06/08/2011 23:38

No they shouldn't have been rejected becaus they are white men.

There ought to have been a wider pool of candidates than just white men.

SinicalSal · 06/08/2011 23:40

Don't forget women's choices. No woman probably even applied for the Amnesty job, instead preferring to stay home with the kiddies, or do some very useful and necessary admin work back in the office.

somethingwitty82 · 06/08/2011 23:43

"do you find it odd that the best people for any role just happen to always be middle class white blokes"

What like in football, athletics, the top 40, tv newsreaders? should all these well sought after and well renumerated positions be subject to positive discrimination?

HerBeX · 06/08/2011 23:44

They are.

In favour of middle class white men.

HTH

jennyvstheworld · 06/08/2011 23:47

Possibly there was, but, equally, maybe they just put the word out that they were looking for volunteers who specialised in online media and this is who replied... We don't know do we? I'm pretty certain of one thing though: no one sat down and decided that these people should all be men.

Remember, the blogger accepts that the team is not actually all men - they just chose to mention certain roles, all of whom happened to be men. I very much doubt that this is deliberate either. I posted earlier that the first few episodes have an address by Aung San Suu Kyi and contributions from Smack the Pony. I can't see anyone acknowledging this, but quite a few ready to condemn it all beyond actual reason.

HerBeX · 06/08/2011 23:47

Actually scrap the middle class bit when it comes to sport and music and scrap the white bit when it comes to sport.

But oh look, they're nearly all male.

HerBeX · 06/08/2011 23:48

No one sits down and decides they should all be men because that's the default position.

If they were all women, someone would have sat down and decided so.

SinicalSal · 06/08/2011 23:49

Or in any job/industry really, somethingwitty, even the less glamourous ones.
Do you think it odd?

Using football and athletics as examples is just silly, given there are physiological differences between men and women, I don't think any feminist would argue there isn't.
The Top 40 is hardly dominated by white middle class blokes - or maybe it is these days... TV newsreaders don't read the autocues with their genitalia either .
I'm not sure what point you are trying to make.

jennyvstheworld · 06/08/2011 23:51

HB Football, athletics, news presenters and the top 40 is positively discriminating against everyone but middle class white men? Can you justify this please?

I'll grant you that the news tends to prefer the middle classes - perhaps they should have less university graduates in journalism? Grateful for your confirmation that this is what you're after...

edam · 06/08/2011 23:51

How lovely of them that they've offered to bear women in mind for 'freelance or voluntary roles'. Look, everyone, it's fine, women can still make the tea without being paid, you can stop worrying!

Hmm

Depressing enough when you have to confront sexism from the usual sources, such as the current government. Really frustrating when it's from liberal organisations that supposedly fight for civil rights.

jennyvstheworld · 06/08/2011 23:53

Actually, yes - they are rather strange examples SW82...

HerBeX · 06/08/2011 23:55

Jenny I refer you to my post of 11.47

Don't know what you're on about viz journalists. HAving a degree doesn't make you middle class.

jennyvstheworld · 06/08/2011 23:55

Edam - are you willfully trying to be offended? First the criticism is for not having women on the team and when they then say 'you're right, we'l try and get some' you start smacking them over the head for offering them voluntary work... I do think it just isn't possible for anyone to win with some of the attitudes in these posts.

HerBeX · 06/08/2011 23:57

They're strange examples because the poster setting them up is someone who isn't interested in what we're discussing here: women's voices being heard and represented properly.

HerBeX · 06/08/2011 23:58

Well actually, they do win Jenny.

They get the best jobs.

That's winning IMO.

jennyvstheworld · 06/08/2011 23:59

I want to talk about your random and incorrect generalisation at 2344 - I hardly think a post you made at 1147 can justify a mistake you made twelve hours later.

If you want to say that it is significantly easier to get into the boardroom of a FTSE 100 company if you're a middle class white male I'll agree with you, but what you said was just absurd.

What is your definition of middle class please? I would suggest that a university degree is certainly one of the criteria.

SinicalSal · 07/08/2011 00:00

Jenny - are you wilfully trying to offend? Or are you genuinely unaware of feminist issues, or do you just not think they matter? I'd be very interested to hear you explain your perspective.

HerBeX · 07/08/2011 00:02

What are you on about?

11 hours earlier? Can you stop this crap please?

I'm not interested in going down the wanky examples post Jenny, I'm interested in discussing why a human rights organisation thinks it's OK to cut women out of the decision making process and public profile of its TV venture.