After a youth spent with Jagger and Warhol, Jerry Hall is marrying patriarchal conservatism made flesh, Rupert Murdoch. Of course Jerry’s ex, Mick Jagger, IS the establishment too, accepting his knighthood whereas David Bowie, always the subversive outsider, wanted nothing to do with it. The death of a great idol, David Bowie, and the marriage … Continue reading I’m beginning to think we need to find our idols elsewhere
Author: Rachel Bell
Challenge Porn on International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women
Sentencing the murderer of teenager Becky Watts, the judge, Mr Justice Dingemans, broke down and cried. The sixteen year old's step brother, Nathan Matthews, inflicted over 40 injuries on the school girl and dismembered her body. November 25 is International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. In court, Matthews confessed to watching porn … Continue reading Challenge Porn on International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women
Unreported rapes of teen girls show smashing sexism and rape myths is essential in school
This week The Children's Society report finds that thousands of sex crimes against 16 and 17 year old girls in England and Wales were unreported last year. With only 1 in 4 cases against children leading to a conviction and a 5.3% conviction rate for rape in the UK, girls, understandably have little faith in the … Continue reading Unreported rapes of teen girls show smashing sexism and rape myths is essential in school
Men! Quit Being Freaked by Feminism and Join its Male Allies
Ending male violence against women is one of the key priorities of feminism. It is a men’s issue and one which men can really make a difference to, says Rachel Bell
Speak up like a woman
I had never heard of the BBC broadcaster Barbara Sturgeon and now I want to be one of the girlfriends who do karaoke with her, and I’ve never cared much for that. This week I met Barbara as she trained a group of women, including me, in public speaking. We are to become a group … Continue reading Speak up like a woman
Rape in schools and universities is killing girls’ education
In the last decade I’ve heard myself and other feminists refer to our culture as a ticking time bomb. We call our culture ‘rape culture’ because the conditions for rape are facilitated through the sexualisation of girls, a narrow masculinity that tells boys that violence and power over women is the way to be a … Continue reading Rape in schools and universities is killing girls’ education
Kids day in: Dreamland’s Octopus Garden
A woman asks the kids if they want to be shown around and I say ‘Yes we do!’ loudly for everyone because the place has so many intriguing doorways and rooms and nooks and crannies and everything to fire up a child’s imaginative play.
Dreamland digested
Read my review of Dreamland, where environmental pleasure counts
Hollywood sexists watch out – actresses have had enough
Since #feministoscars, many of the biggest actresses in the business have been naming and shaming sexism in Hollywood at an ever increasing rate, culminating this week with an incredulous high heels ruling at Cannes.
Know about porn… because your kids will
This post is an insight into Gail Dines findings on what a 12 year old boy will find today, because that’s the age a boy will typically look for free porn on google. It can be younger. And in the words of the anti-porn academic, author and campaigner, the porn he’ll find makes the magazines of the 1970s such as Playboy and Hustler, look like ‘the good old days.’
Betty Bandit 