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2024 Election:
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Jordan Williams

The Good-isms: Campaign aims to make gender equality everyone’s issue

By Jordan Williams | Sep. 28, 2014

United Nations ambassador and Brown University graduate Emma Watson (known by many of us as Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter films) lit up news feeds recently with her Sept. 20 speech promoting the launch of her HeForShe campaign. The campaign invites men to voice their support for feminism and contribute to the eradication of violence against females and the dismissal of oppressive gender roles. HeForShe has already received a huge wave of support, with an array of men worldwide making pledges on the campaign’s website.The arrival of HeForShe brings about the dreaded question I face at least once a semester as a Women’s and Gender Studies major: can men be feminists? My gut reaction is always yes, but there is always the debate that men will never fully be able to understand what women experience in a lifetime. Watson addressed the misconception when she explained how men are also affected by gender stereotypes. She said men are often valued as lesser parents and suffer from personal struggle when they feel they are not meeting the ideals of how a man should act. Furthermore, why would anyone reject that application when feminism is just as vital as ever? If you are willing to support every human being, then welcome aboard, my friend! That’s the beauty of feminism; it is not just for one group, and anyone can become a part of it to make life better for everyone.Ohio University is infallibly on track to promote gender equality on campus, and the action has continued in a big way over the past few weeks. The Ohio University Women’s Center hosts an event called “Walk a Mile in Her Shoes” which calls upon male volunteers to wear a pair of women’s shoes and walk a mile on campus “to raise awareness about the role men play in preventing sexual assault.” This year’s walk will take place on Saturday, Nov. 8 at 12 p.m.Emma Watson has been one of my favorite people in the universe for more than a decade, and I could not be more thrilled that she is using her visibility in the media to educate people and bring about some much-needed change. Watson’s speech has already proven to be a great step forward for feminism. Even under the cloud of online threats and harassment aimed at Watson for her activism, the campaign has grown stronger by the day. Watson has accomplished her goal of educating the world through her position in the United Nations and raise awareness of the importance of the movement for both men and women around the world. As Watson said during her speech, “It is time that we all see gender as a spectrum instead of two sets of opposing ideals. We should stop defining each other by what we are not and start defining ourselves by who we are. We can all be freer and this is what HeForShe is about. It’s about freedom.”

Grant Stover

Nurturing OUr Nature: Beatle or Bobcat, You Can Make a Difference

By Grant Stover | Sep. 28, 2014

Paul McCartney, the former Beatle and renowned recording artist, launched the Meat Free Mondays campaign to help support the climate, personal health, end to animal cruelty, and, of course, our bank accounts.The musician has been an outspoken vegetarian for years, so it is no surprise that #MFMclimatepledge is catching fire. As a vegetarian, I’ve found the pledge rather easy, but the pledge should act as a call to all students that indulge in our animal counterparts. Not eating meat for even one day can make all the difference.Right now, our climate is failing and the biggest issue is that there seems to be nothing we can do in our everyday lives to change it. Choosing not to eat meat, whether all the time or once a week, can make a difference. Livestock production is a major factor in greenhouse gas emissions, and choosing not to eat meat can help lower gas emissions overall. The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has said we need to lower our emissions by 80 percent before 2050 to avoid catastrophic damage.Choosing healthier alternatives instead of eating meat can do so much to make you a healthier person. Meat has links to heart disease, cancer, strokes and other medical issues that could be avoided by simply lowering the intake of meat each week. By eating at the dining hall, it can be easy to eat what is available or maintain a habit, but there are many vegetarian options that are much healthier for such a crucial time period of our lives.Ohio University freshman Daniel Kington has cut meat and dairy out of his diet entirely. He said “burrito bars and salad bars are two of the best options in the dining hall. You have to be creative but that is what makes it fun.” Joel Nadler, another OU freshman, has also given up meat and dairy. He agrees with Kington, but has expressed concern with the dining halls. “Cutting out only meat is easier, but when it comes down to it, exclusive vegetarian dishes are usually not healthier alternatives,” Nadler said. “A big problem with vegetarian dishes is they are heavily dependent on sodium and cheese.”Animal cruelty is a very real and prevalent issue across the globe. I spoke to OU’s vice president of FoodMatters, Janice Brewer, and she said the organization spoke out in support of the Meat Free Mondays pledge.Brewer said there are options to buy humanely raised meat. She said “local, humanely raised and socially just meat is easiest to find at farmers market where the money you spend goes directly to the farmer.”Part of bettering our environment involves taking care of the other beings that inhabit it. Cutting out meat one day per week can dramatically change meat sales, which in turn can help the fates of these animals. If that doesn’t work for you, humanely raised products have the “Certified Humane Raised and Handled” label. So if you do buy meat, make sure that it is humanely raised.If you are currently on a, ahem, forced dining hall plan, then pricing of meat is not as much of a concern. To those who are not on a fixed meal plan, you might already know that meat is expensive. Cutting it out of your diet can save you money that could go to other expenses in a budget.I understand that it is a lot to ask of one person to cut meat completely out of their diet. I have been doing it for the past two years, and it can still be difficult at times. That is why the Meat Free Monday pledge works so well. It only requires one day for people to be a little more environmentally conscious, and if enough of us join we can make a lasting difference for a better world.

Bailey Breece

Societal Sexism: Looking at celebrities' leaked nude photos is a crime

By Bailey Breece | Sep. 25, 2014

Everyone is talking about “sex scandals” and leaked nude photos nowadays, and everyone has an opinion. Some people are willing to consider it the fault of the victim. “She shouldn't have taken the pictures if she didn't want people to see them,” however, is on par with “He shouldn't have been walking home at night if he didn't want to be murdered.”

The Post

Column: Other leagues should take note of NFL’s mistakes

By Lauren Young | Sep. 23, 2014

Hope Solo, a 33-year-old professional soccer player who is a two-time Olympic Gold medalist with the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team, recently broke the team’s record for shutouts as goalkeeper at an impressive 72 games just last week.What seems to be forgotten is that Solo is facing charges of domestic abuse similar to fellow professional athlete Ray Rice.This past June, Solo was charged with two misdemeanor accounts of 4th degree domestic assault against her half-sister and nephew after an altercation that took place in her half-sister’s home. The police report stated that Solo was “intoxicated and upset” when she got into an argument with her 17-year-old nephew. She called him “too fat” which prompted him to ask her to leave the house. He went into another room where Solo followed him as the argument escalated, and then “charged” at him and swung a punch at him. They fought on the ground and she “repeatedly punched him in the face.” Once her half-sister tried to break them up, Solo then attacked her and punched her several times in the face. In court, Solo claimed she was not guilty and apologized for her actions. Her trial date is set for Nov. 4.Interestingly, this is not the first time Solo has been involved in this type of situation. Back in November 2012 before she and now husband Jerramy Stevens, former NFL tight end, were married, the two alongside Solo’s brother, were involved in an incident that led to Stevens’ arrest and left Solo and her brother injured. After charges were dropped, Stevens was released the next day — the same day the couple married. That is ironic considering that Rice and his then fiancée Janay Palmer pulled an identical move, marrying a day after Rice pled not guilty and was sentenced to therapy for first-time offenders.I, like most people, am wondering why it took the same issue to occur to a different athlete in a different league to bring attention to Solo. There are multiple factors that play into this. One, as I mentioned before in a previous column, has a lot to do with the audience’s response and it is clear that people are more inclined to immediately react to video footage of an incident rather than its written description. This again plays into the idea that there are levels of domestic violence.Domestic violence is domestic violence no matter if it was caught on tape or not, so this raises the question of why Solo has not been punished for her actions. She continues to play with her club team the Seattle Reign as well as the National Team as they approach the final stages of qualifying for the 2015 Women’s World Cup. It is also important to note that she has not lost any endorsement deals as of late. Nike dropped Rice as well as Adrian Peterson, running back for the Minnesota Vikings who was recently let go due to being charged for beating his 4-year-old son, but they have yet to reprimand Solo.Neil Buethe, the director of communications for U.S. Soccer told USA Today that the milestone Solo has been chasing was essentially more important than disciplining her for the domestic violence incident.Buethe’s statement is quite astounding. Buethe also did not even address her wrongdoings, instead calling it “a personal situation” rather than its actual name. That tactic resembles similar ones demonstrated by the NFL when they attempted to brush Rice’s incident under the rug by not further investigating.Another factor is the notion that football is substantially more popular than soccer, let alone women’s soccer. The NFL is definitely the dominant force when it comes to professional sports in this country, and it is very possible that part of the reason why Solo’s case was not publicized nearly as much is because not as many people would care. Again, this sheds light on not only sports, but also our society and what we decide to pay attention to, no matter the context surrounding it.We should care about domestic violence and be aware of it regardless of where it happens or what associations are affiliated with the victims and perpetrators.I also believe that race and gender played a role in the knowledge of Solo’s acts versus those of Rice, although they are not blatant claims. I think it would naïve to ignore the possibility that Rice’s race and gender played a role in the significantly larger amount of attention he received in comparison to Solo. Rice’s situation feeds into the stereotype of men, especially black men, being aggressive, destructive, dangerous, etc. Not to discredit any of the wrongdoing that Rice is responsible for, but I think it is inevitable for people to jump to conclusions based on demographics before knowing and understanding why a certain person is being brought to our attention over others. Based on our history and culture as Americans, we are much more inclined to condemn a black man versus a white woman, even if they are guilty of the same crime. Fundamentally, I think it goes without saying that a black man and a white woman are being charged for the same crime and who are also a  part of the same industry, should be punished accordingly and immediately by their respective leaguesOn the other hand, I believe that Solo will be punished eventually, but the fact that nothing has happened yet and that the National Team does not seem to make her “personal situation” a priority, may infer that it will take a lot longer for a penalty to go into effect than we all think it should.@TheSideline2016ly688912@ohio.edu

Lean in Further

Lean In Further: ‘Bobkitten’ labels are demeaning

By Jessica Ensley | Sep. 22, 2014

We need to stop calling women on this campus “Bobkittens.” We call the student body as a whole, “Bobcats” but then to turn around and say “Bobkittens” when it’s only female students. This is an example of how we as a society infantilize women. The use of language to demean women is nothing new.

Jordan Williams

The Good-isms: Trans actress works for equality

By Jordan Williams | Sep. 21, 2014

Emmy-nominated actress Laverne Cox — recognized as the most publicly visible representative of the transgender community — has stepped back from behind her prison hairdresser’s chair (on the acclaimed Netflix series, Orange is the New Black) in recent months and into an activist role for the general safety and well-being of the transgender community. Her work to educate the public and bring transgender rights to everyone’s attention has been a huge inspiration for me.The actress has utilized her rapid climb to fame as an outlet to help those who face the same stigmas she encounters every day. Cox has lived as a post-op transgender woman for an undisclosed period of time. She shares her experiences from her transition and daily life to educate audiences on the reality transgender or transitioning individuals face every day. As she said in a speech last January, “Healthcare for trans people is a necessity. It is not elective, it is not cosmetic, it is life-saving…But we are more than our bodies.”Cox has undoubtedly become the most visible advocate the transgender community has ever had. Following a September 16 appearance at Ohio State University, Cox announced that she will host an upcoming documentary on MTV to further educate audiences on LGBT youth. The documentary, titled Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word, will feature seven trans individuals of varying backgrounds and stories, all aged 18 to 24. The show will explore “the intersection of race and gender identity” with the seven young people. The first airing is scheduled for October 17 at 7 p.m. EST on MTV and Logo.With Cox’s inspiring activist roles in mind, let’s shift the focus back to the Bobcats. Our campus has sponsored a host of LGBT social activities through Ohio University’s LGBT Center. With a combination of college graduates and current OU students, the center brings all students together in supportive and educational social activities and training programs (most notably the popular SpeakOUT! program).Because I am sure the question has come up while reading this, yes, I am a proud ally of the LGBT community. That means I am simply not just a part of the LGBT community, but I support equality and every effort made to educate the public on the importance of general equality for all. OU has been amazing with all of the LGBT programs that have been conducted this semester, and I recommend everyone become more involved in the coming weeks to learn more and become more active in the fight for equality, from our city of Athens to the global scale. Jordan Williams is a junior studying English and Women’s and Gender studies. Email her at jw719111@ohio.edu

Zander Myers - Culture Shocked

Culture Shocked: Wanderlust is essential for personal growth

By Zander Myers | Sep. 21, 2014

I was having a conversation with my roommate last night about traveling and her experiences. She came up with some interesting points that I happen to agree with. We both think it is crucial to branch out and travel, even if that just means venturing to a neighboring state or nearby city. It’s important to explore places beyond your comfortable hometown, even if the little town you call home is actually a major city. Travelling expands a person’s view of the world, society, and culture around them. Even if you do not travel out of the United States, there are still many places that can have a big impact on the rest of your life.

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