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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Atheism and misogyny

188 replies

Dworkin · 29/12/2011 14:30

Some men sink to a new low when it comes to sexually objectifying a 15 year old girl on reddit. Sick and nasty stuff.

skepchick.org/2011/12/reddit-makes-me-hate-atheists/

OP posts:
lollygag · 30/12/2011 13:46

If sexism and misogyny are 'rife in atheist communities' and also rife in religious communities(according to other threads),and if one in four men are gay how did all my friends find decent men?

Dworkin · 30/12/2011 13:47

"personal comments", well that says it all. They were misogynistic and sexist. And why this needs repeating ad nauseum is beyond my comprehension.

OP posts:
Dworkin · 30/12/2011 13:48

Lolly - how did all my friends end up with indecent men.

OP posts:
noblegiraffe · 30/12/2011 13:50

"how funny then that this seems to have been the majority of posts on that thread"

chibi, the majority of posts (the vast majority of posts) on that thread were not rape threats. Have you read it? Read it here

lollygag · 30/12/2011 13:50

Sounds like carelessness to me.

noblegiraffe · 30/12/2011 13:51

"They were misogynistic and sexist. And why this needs repeating ad nauseum is beyond my comprehension."

I don't know why you're repeating it, because no one disagrees that the comments were misogynistic and sexist.

I disagree that they were representative of atheists in any way.

DioneTheDiabolist · 30/12/2011 13:52

I believe that the thread did point out that had she been a male, posting a photo would not have drawn comments on appearance or that misogynistic graphic of object and object posted by a female. And it is for this reason that it is sexist and should be addressed by all those striving for gender equality.

SardineQueen · 30/12/2011 13:53

God it's like banging your head against a brick wall.

Noblegiraffe "I disagree that they were representative of atheists in any way." I AGREE

However please give it a rest with the victim blaming. It is simply GRIM.

chibi · 30/12/2011 13:55

i have read it thanks, noble.

funnily enough, i don't feel up to counting the precise number of shitty comments, and cross checking them against numbre of upvotes and downvotes recieved etc etc, given that thread is 500 comments long

maybe you could make a spreadsheet? Smile

noblegiraffe · 30/12/2011 13:56

SQ please stop telling me that I'm blaming the victim for getting rape threats because I'm not. Please stop telling me that I haven't condemned the rape posts when I have. Please stop telling me that I can't reply to posts made by other posters because it's off topic. Please stop suggesting that my explanations for why her post was badly framed in the context in which she posted is somehow condoning the responses. And please stop misreading my posts and putting words into my mouth.

noblegiraffe · 30/12/2011 13:58

chibi "given that thread is 500 comments long"

2085 comments long, actually. I don't really rate your assessment of it if you can't even follow that.

SardineQueen · 30/12/2011 14:00

The assessment of the situation by most on this thread is that the reaction the girl got was revolting.

I;m not really sure where the argument is.

MillyR · 30/12/2011 14:02

As an atheist, I find the idea of an 'atheist community' an odd one. I suppose it might make more sense in the US, where atheists might find they share more similar experiences. In the UK, I think atheists are too disparate to be described in any way as a community.

I think it is important, if you are an atheist, to consider if sexism and sexualisation of minors manifests itself in a particular way when combined with atheism. I don't know if that is the case with the awful response to this particular girl, or if it is just generic sexualisation of minors, but I think it is important to discuss if there is a particular atheist type of behaviour.

lollygag · 30/12/2011 14:02

Not sure where the argument is and not sure how many comments.

Dworkin · 30/12/2011 14:03

So noble it's okay for you to criticise the 15 year old for badly framing her post but no one can be critical with your summation. You also criticise her for being possibly naive when all she was doing was copying others and posting a picture of herself with a Carl Sagan book she was given by her religious mother.

Her only problem in doing this, as far as I can see, was that she was female. This left her open to disgusting abuse.

OP posts:
chibi · 30/12/2011 14:06

wow noble, so since i misread the number of comments on that thread, my entire argument that the thread contains a lot of shitty rape threats by posters who felt entitled by virtue of the OP being female, and undeterred by the fact that she was underage, and furthermore this is really quite congruent with the endemic misogyny of the internet/human culture as a whole, and thus while not a function of atheism, really unsurprising if depressing...

has been obliterated!

I wus totes wrong! Whatever you say! You are a wizard!

as a side note, are you one of those fun lovin' people who goes around correcting other peoples' grammar and punctuation? i bet you're a real hit at parties Smile

AnnieLobeseder · 30/12/2011 14:07

I'm not sure what's distressing me more right now, the misogynistic wankers on the OP's link or the subsequent bitchfest going on here in response to it. Shameful.

lollygag · 30/12/2011 14:08

Well at least now we're getting somewhere.

MildlyNarkyPuffin · 30/12/2011 14:24

Same old names on here trying to blame the girl or suggest it's an 'Internet' thing when it's quite clear that similar male posts don't attract the same abuse.

I skipped a few pages, so apologies if I missed it, but no, the fact that men also attract abuse online isn't the same as the abuse isn't the same and saying it targets their gender - or 'weaknesses' - is admitting that it's sexist.

I've posted on here about the online misogyny, including graphic sexual threats, that is targeted at women who blog or who gain any media notice eg Gail Trimble of Open University fame. The same people pop up to explain why it's not actually misogyny.

The saddest thing in that article is the suggestion that the atheist section may have been infiltrated by MRAs. Those commenting are most likely not MRAs at all. Just men who feel that it's acceptable to treat girls and women this way online. And why wouldn't they? There are plenty of women on here saying we're all making too much of it and the girl has attracted this attention through her unwise posts. There are no consequences for those who behave like this, so why should they stop.

lollygag · 30/12/2011 14:32

You're all making too much of it!

Dworkin · 30/12/2011 14:39

Regarding the title of this thread, I'm linking to Melissa Ewan's take on Dawkin's 'Dear Muslima' reply to Rebecca Watson. ME also discusses misogyny and sexism within the atheist community.

shakespearessister.blogspot.com/2011/07/point-you-are-proving-it.html

OP posts:
lollygag · 30/12/2011 14:45

I think Dawkins has a fair point.

chibi · 30/12/2011 14:46

please elaborate, lollygag

lollygag · 30/12/2011 14:47

Well women in the West DON'T get stoned to death because of adultery.

chibi · 30/12/2011 14:50

that is so true.

also, neither do atheists. Dawkins should really stop whinging then, huh, the priviledged so-and-so

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