Issue 5 (Elle Dit)

89.51 Y 89.

UAR R T S B FE UGU A

JUlia Gillard on sexism

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pussy power playlist

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hijab ban

SRC ELECTION NOTICE SRC ELECTION NOTICE SRC ELECTION NOTICE SRC ELECTION NOTICE SRC ELECTION NOTICE SRC ELECTION NOTICE

POLLING DATES Monday 30th August - Friday 3rd September 2021

NOMINATIONS: Open at 9.00am on Monday 9th August 2021 Close strictly at 4.00pm on Friday 13th August 2021

POSITIONS AVAILABLE FOR ELECTION: SRC PRESIDENT (1 position) – responsible for the overall co-ordination and leadership of the SRC and as chief spokesperson for the SRC. GENERAL SECRETARY (1 position) – responsible for calling meetings, taking minutes and general administrative roles.

EDUCATION OFFICER (1 position) – Acts to highlight issues relating to student’s education and other academic concerns.

STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE COUNCIL NOTICE OF 2021 ELECTION

WELFARE OFFICER (1 position) – Acts to promote the welfare of all students and to promote and strengthen support for students.

WOMEN’S OFFICER (1 position) – Acts as an advocate for women’s interests, a co-ordinator of women’s action on campus. To be eligible to nominate for this position candidates must identify as a woman.

QUEER OFFICER (1 position) – Acts to advocate on behalf of queer students, to promote and strengthen the rights of queer students on campus and to combat discrimination at university and the wider community. To be eligible to nominate for this position candidates must identify as queer.

INTERNATIONAL STUDENT OFFICER (1 position) – Advocates on behalf of students enrolled as international students at the University of Adelaide, and to promote equality and opportunities for international students. To be eligible to nominate for this position candidates must be enrolled as an international student at the University of Adelaide.

POSTGRADUATE OFFICER (Higher Degree by Research) (1 position) – Acts to advocate on behalf of postgraduate students (Higher Degree of Research) of the University of Adelaide. To be eligible to nominate for this position candidates must be enrolled in postgraduate (Higher Degree by Research) study at the University of Adelaide.

POSTGRADUATE OFFICER (Coursework) (1 position) – Acts to advocate on behalf of postgraduate students (Coursework) of the University of Adelaide. To be eligible to nominate for this position candidates must be currently undertaking postgraduate (Coursework) study at the University of Adelaide.

ETHNO-CULTURAL OFFICER (1 position) – Acts to advocate on behalf of students with a cultural or linguistically diverse background. To be eligible to nominate for this position candidates must identify as having a linguistically or culturally diverse background.

ATSI OFFICER (1 position) – Acts to advocate on behalf of students who identify as Aboriginal

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or Torres Strait Islander. To be eligible to nominate for this position candidates must identify as being Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander.

ENVIRONMENT OFFICER (1 position) - Acts to advocate for environmental sustainability within the university and broader community.

SOCIAL JUSTICE OFFICER (1 position) - Acts to highlight issues relating to social justice.

MATURE AGE OFFICER (1 position) - Acts to advocate on behalf of Mature Aged students. To be eligible to nominate for this position candidates must be over the age of 25.

DISABILITY OFFICER (1 position) - Acts on behalf of students with a disability on campus. To be eligible to nominate for this position candidates must identify as having a disability, mental illness or chronic illness.

RURAL OFFICER (1 position) - Acts to advocate on behalf of rural and regional students. To be eligible to nominate for this position candidates must have must lived in a regional or remote area, or have moved from a regional remote area, within the last three (3) years and within six (6) months of commencing their studies at Adelaide University.

GENERAL COUNCILLOR (8 positions) – Acts as an advocate for all students, assists office bearers in the fulfilment of their functions.

TO NOMINATE AS A CANDIDATE: 1. Only students currently enrolled at the University of Adelaide who are financial members of the AUU may nominate.

2. Nomination forms must be either: a) completed and submitted online at www.auu.org.au/elections or, where a candidate is unable to submit online, b) obtained from AUU Reception during opening hours and once completed given in person to the Returning Officer or their nominated delegate or mailed to the returning officer via registered post.

3. A policy statement and photograph can be submitted, if desired, at the time of nomination at www.auu.org.au/elections .

• Policy statements must not exceed 200 words including the candidate’s name and the position for which they are standing; any words over 200 will not be published.

• No policy statements or photographs will be accepted after close of nominations.

• If you are unable to submit your policy statement or photograph as above, please contact the Returning Officer at returningofficer@adelaide.edu.au to arrange an alternative method of submission.

4. All SRC candidates will be required to attend an information session, to be held before the elections, outlining candidate election campaign responsibilities.

NOMINATIONS RECEIVED AFTER THE CLOSE OF NOMINATIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED

QUERIES: Any questions concerning the Election should be directed to the Returning Officer via returningofficer@adelaide.edu.au.

Published and authorised by the Returning Officer, July 2021.

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AUU ELECTION NOTICE AUU ELECTION NOTICE AUU ELECTION NOTICE AUU ELECTION NOTICE AUU ELECTION NOTICE AUU ELECTION NOTICE

POLLING DATES Monday 30th August to Friday 3rd September 2021

NOMINATIONS: Open at 9.00am on Monday 9th August 2021 Close strictly at 4.00pm on Friday 13th August 2021

POSITIONS AVAILABLE FOR ELECTION: GENERAL MEMBER OF THE AUU BOARD (5 positions; each elected for a term of two (2) years) - the AUU Board is the governing body of the AUU and is responsible for managing its affairs. The AUU provides funding for activities, events and services on campus, as well as providing support and assistance to affiliated student organisations. The Board meets monthly and has various sub-committees in which Board members are expected to participate.

TO NOMINATE AS A CANDIDATE: 1. Only students currently enrolled at the University of Adelaide who are financial members of the AUU may nominate. Members must be over the age of 18 years, able to hold a liquor licence and be legally able to hold the position of a director of an incorporated association.

2. Nomination forms must be either: a) completed and submitted online at www.auu.org.au/elections or, where a candidate is unable to submit online, b) obtained from AUU Reception during opening hours and once completed given in person to the Returning Officer or their nominated delegate or mailed to the returning officer via registered post.

3. A policy statement and photograph can be submitted, if desired, at the time of nomination at www.auu.org.au/elections.

• Policy statements must not exceed 200 words including the candidate’s name and the position for which they are standing; any words over 200 will not be published.

• No policy statements or photographs will be accepted after close of nominations.

• If you are unable to submit your policy statement or photograph as above, please contact the Returning Officer at returningofficer@adelaide.edu.au. to arrange an alternative method of submission.

4. All AUU Board candidates will be required to attend an information session, to be held before the elections, outlining the responsibilities of an AUU director and the structure of the organisation.

NOMINATIONS RECEIVED AFTER THE CLOSE OF NOMINATIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED QUERIES: Any questions concerning the Election should be directed to the Returning Officer via returningofficer@adelaide.edu.au.

Published and authorised by the Returning Officer, July 2021.

ADELAIDE UNIVERSITY UNION NOTICE OF 2021 ELECTION

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STUDENT RADIO DIRECTOR (1 position, however up to two (2) students may nominate to be joint directors) - responsible for coordinating programming, production and recruitment and management of content producers for Student Radio programs and podcasts which are hosted and broadcast online. Candidates will need to be organised, capable of working independently and confident managing a small team of students. It is highly desirable that the successful candidate(s) have knowledge of basic audio production and recording (if you are considering nominating, please find out what is involved).

TO NOMINATE AS A CANDIDATE: 1. Only students currently enrolled at the University of Adelaide who are financial members of the AUU may nominate.

2. Nomination forms must be either: a) completed and submitted online at www.auu.org.au/getinvolved/elections/studentmediaelections or, where a candidate is unable to submit online, b) obtained from AUU Reception during opening hours and once completed given in person to the Returning Officer or their nominated delegate or mailed to the returning officer via registered post.

3. A Mock Edition of On Dit for electioneering purposes (‘Mock Dit’) and photograph can be submitted, if desired, by email or through a file hosting service nominated by the Returning Officer.

If you are unable to submit your Mock Dit or photograph as above, please contact the Returning Officer at returningofficer@adelaide.edu.au to arrange an alternative method of submission.

• No Mock Dit or photographs will be accepted after close of nominations.

• If you are unable to submit your Mock Dit or photograph as above, please contact the Returning Officer to arrange an alternative method of submission.

4. All Student Media Director candidates will be required to attend an information session, to be held before the elections, outlining the responsibilities of a Student Media Director.

NOMINATIONS RECEIVED AFTER THE CLOSE OF NOMINATIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED QUERIES: Any questions concerning the Election should be directed to the Returning Officer via returningofficer@adelaide.edu.au.

Published and authorised by the Returning Officer, July 2021.

AUU ELECTION NOTICE AUU ELECTION NOTICE AUU ELECTION NOTICE AUU ELECTION NOTICE AUU ELECTION NOTICE AUU ELECTION NOTICE

POLLING DATES Monday 6th September to Friday 10th September 2021

NOMINATIONS Open at 9.00am on Monday 16th August 2021 Close strictly at 4.00pm on Friday 20th August 2021

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ADELAIDE UNIVERSITY UNION NOTICE OF 2021 STUDENT MEDIA DIRECTORS ELECTION

POSITIONS AVAILABLE FOR ELECTION: ON DIT EDITOR (1 position, however up to four (4) students may nominate to be joint editors) - responsible for the publication of the AUU’s student magazine which is published during academic term-time. It is highly desirable that the successful candidate(s) have some knowledge of print media (if you are considering nominating, please find out what is involved).

W

e wish to acknowledge and pay our respects to the Kaurna people and their elders past, present and

future as the traditional custodians of the land on which

the University of the Adelaide resides. Their cultural and heritage beliefs flow deep and steady through the land and burn bright within the Kaurna community to this day.

LIKe what you see? GET INVOLED!

Interact with our socials, read our digital issues and articles, or send us a pitch at onditmag@gmail.com

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COVER IMAGE:

FUCK THE PAPAYATRIARCHY

by Tiah Bullock

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CONTENTS editorial whats on? src state of the union vox pop econ dit international student voice sex and the small city LEFT RIGHT CENTRE sustanabili-dit club spotlight

12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32

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editors isobel Moore GEORGia PENGLIS michelle roylance MAYA TLAUKA design ISOBEL MOORE

Articles & creative writing Julia Gillard on sexism taboo! the Invisible (wo)man dear society ‘Nice’ guys aren’t nice my building on reading feminism reading list power to the pussy why girl boss never works BWS the asian community of the University of Adelaide france, Hijab ban and what it all means satanists are welcome. women are not, says auu audre Lorde promising young woman lili wilkinson interview my badass srupulous friend women don’t owe you pretty review

the greatest love story: one with yourself she said review goddess quiz believe me

36 38 40 44 48 50 52 54 56 58 60 62 64 66 68 70 72 76 78

cover art‘ TIAH BULLOCK FUCK THE PAPAYATRIARCHY SUBEDITORS GRACE ATTA LAKEISHA WATKINS TOM WOOD MIRCO DI GIACOMO HABIBAH JAGHOORI NGOC LAN TRAN ivan jankovic RORY SPEIRS LIA DEVETZIDIS FINLAY EDWARDS KIRSTY KITTEL TIAH BULLOCK BECK ROWSE Stasi kapetanos DEAN PLESA

80 82 84 86

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Welcome to Elle Dit, our feminist issue!

Our names are Georgia and Maya, and we are the guest editors for this edition. We share a mutual interest in bringing women’s voices to the forefront.

It’s been a turbulent year for women; from safety issues on campus to Brittany Higgins’s accusations of sexual assault at a federal level.

In light of these events we have published a collection of articles, creative writing and opinion pieces from both students and politicians alike who are committed to voicing female perspectives.

This issue does more than articulating female voices, we wanted to celebrate, inspire, challenge and critique current feminist discourse.

We were lucky to have had such a strong team of contributors and sub-editors assist us with the production of this issue, without them Elle Dit wouldn’t be the intersectional bastion of feminism that it is today.

Readers, we urge you to find your voice, regardless of your gender identity, political ideology or preferred medium of communication, and take an active role in disrupting complacency.

Georgia and Maya

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whats on?

things to do @ adelaide u

14th august

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Event: EMPoWER in Surgery - an AUSS x ANU x ASSA Women in Surgery Event time: 8:30am - 12pm host: Adelaide University Surgical Society where: online --------------------------------Event: Global Health Short Course time: 9:30am - 3pm host: Insight Global Health Group where: AHMS G030 --------------------------------Event: Cocktail Night 2021 time: 7pm host: Adelaide Nursing Students’ Society where: TBA fee: TBA

17th august

Event: Surgical research and case presentation night time: 5:30pm host: Adelaide University Surgical Society where: Joe Vergo, AHMS

19th August

Event: British Parliamentary Debating Education Sessions & Debating Tournament time: 5pm - 8:30pm host: Adelaide University Debating Society where: Lower Napier LG 21

19th August

Event: Young Republic Movement - Back to Uni Drinks time: 6pm host: Adelaide University Republic Club where: The Havelock Hotel

20th august

Event: CHEMS Pub Crawl 2021 time: 4pm host: Chemical Engineering Society where: TBA fee: TBA -----------------------------Event: ACYA Adelaide Cross-cultural Workshop 3 time: 5pm host: Australia-China Youth Association where: online -----------------------------Event: AUES QUIZ NIGHT 2021 time: 6:30pm host: Adelaide University Engineering Society where: Adelaide University Engineering Society fee: $280 per table, $35 per person.

20th August

Event: Introduction to Effective Altruism | Committee Talk and Q & A time: 7pm - 8:30pm host: Effective Altruism Club where: 2060 Barr Smith South

Things To Do Adelaide U puts all Adelaide University events in one Facebook group for your convenience. Our creation was inspired by our clubs, who work tirelessly to enrich the UofA student experience for all of us. During this time, we have witnessed how deeply you can be part of the community here, but you can’t engage with what you don’t know about. So when you wonder, “What’s On?”, we hope to be there with all the Things To Do At Adelaide U.

25th august

Event: CONNECT WITH YOUR DEEN: A DA’WAH SEMINAR ON ISLAMIC KNOWLEDGE time: 6:30pm-7:45pm host: Islamic Students Society of the University of Adelaide where: Hub Central Room 422

26th August

Event: British Parliamentary Debating Education Sessions & Debating Tournament time: 5pm - 8:30pm host: Adelaide University Debating Society where: Lower Napier LG 21

27th August

Event: Business Pub Crawl 2021: The Big Shot time: 7pm host: Adelaide University Economics Club where: see event details fee: $20

1st september

Event: Robogals Adelaide AGM 2021! time: 5pm host: Robogals Adelaide

2nd september

Event: Cultural Night Showcase #2 time: 11am - 4pm host: Adelaide University Rotaract Club where: Hub Central ---------------------------------Event: British Parliamentary Debating Education Sessions & Debating Tournament time: 5pm - 8:30pm host: Adelaide University Debating Society where: Lower Napier LG 21 ---------------------------------Event: The Runner Up Cabaret: A Tribute to Secondary Characters time: 7:30pm host: Elder Conservatorium Music Theatre Association where: The University of Adelaide, Rumours Cafe, Level 5 Union House fee: $27 non members, $22 members

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The political Mean Girls act has to stop.

The political Mean Girls act has to stop The political Mean Girls act has to stop

The political Mean Girls act has to stop The political Mean Girls act has to stop The political Mean Girls act has to stop 16

SRC Women’s movements claim to empower and celebrate all women. Unless you’re conservative. Then you don’t get a seat at the table.

Traditionally, progressive feminist movements and conservative ideologies are seen as worlds apart. They are viewed as being almost opposite, with conservative women being caught in the crossfire. Why do women refuse to support each other based on ideology? Can’t we agree to disagree politically, while still respecting the beliefs of our colleagues?

“ Conservative

women...[work] just as hard to advance the cause for women at every opportunity. ” We see this happening at an international level, and all the way down to a local level.

Is it simply the perpetuation of ‘mean girl’ syndrome?

If we want women to represent us in any leadership position, why are we fighting each other? Being taken seriously by the men currently dominating these positions begins with women respecting other women, regardless of ideology.

In our Federal Government, we have seen Nicolle Flint fight tooth and nail to be recognised as a strong conservative woman, yet the double standards she faces from her more progressive, often female counterparts contributed to the end of her Parliamentary career. Even with her relentless advocacy to make Parliament a better place for women, she was not accepted by the progressive feminist cause.

At a much more local level, conservative women, including those at our own university, are accustomed to being shut down and literally laughed at for claiming we too are advocates for women’s rights and equality.

It is often inconceivable to progressive feminist movements that people who believe in gender equality could hail from a right-leaning political party, and as a result, conservative women are shut out of these discussions.

Historically, many suffragettes whose strength won us the right to vote went on to join conservative political parties, some even running as their candidates in the United Kingdom.

The two first women to be elected to the South Australian Parliament were members of what went on to be the Liberal Party.

These women were trailblazers and achieved so much for the equality cause.

Holding conservative political views certainly didn’t stop them.

Conservative women exist, and recognise the undeniable struggle all women face, working just as hard to advance the cause for women at every opportunity.

Men appear to be able to disagree in ideology and maintain respect for each other.

Time and time again, we watch men from opposite sides of the political spectrum disagree, often rather vigorously, while maintaining an unspoken esteem for their counterpart.

If women could work together, I think we’d find gender equality to be a much more achievable goal.

We need to drop the Mean Girls act and give conservative women a seat at the table.

Words by Georgie Honan, src women’s officer

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Hi all, Welcome back to Semester 2 and the latest Elle Dit! Hopefully you have been taking care of yourselves and staying healthy.

In this Elle Dit, I would like to shine the light on women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM). According to the STEM Equity Monitor 2021 (a national data report tracking girls and women’s participation in STEM), 36% of students enrolled in university STEM fields of education in 2019 were women, 2% higher than in 2015. This is a promising change; however, we would still like to see the number increase in the future.

Why would we encourage more women to study STEM? To be honest, we are encouraging all who are interested in STEM to pursue their dream. However, many ladies seem to lose their dream for STEM not just when applying for university, but maybe long before, along the pathway of their education.

I want to talk about women in STEM, not because of my university experience, but because of my teaching placement. As a Master of Teaching student with background in maths and technology, I was teaching applied and digital technologies in a local high school. What I found out was, across all year levels, the number of girls in my technology classes can be counted using one hand – in fact, the total number can be displayed with two hands.

It’s hard to find the reason. Could it be because of peer pressure? Biased view from the society? Or a simple lack of interest? My mentor teacher said that he tried to retain as many as he could, but the result is obviously disappointing.

People often look to higher education and stress the lack of presence of women in STEM, but maybe the real issue emerges much earlier than we expected.

Again, women in STEM shouldn’t just be an increasing ratio. It should be about the support and encouragement for women and all others to follow their heart and do what they want to do, to retain the talented and intrigue the newcomers. To educate and inspire. And in AUU, we have multiple clubs serving this purpose – to name a few: Women in STEM Society, Robogals, Society of Women in Space Exploration……hopefully as these clubs flourish, we could reach out and take one baby step after another towards gender equality.

Angela Qin 2021 AUU President

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Cecilia Tran-Pham She/Her Law and Environmental Policy and Management 1.

I believe that feminism, for me, is more than focusing on female liberation. We need to think about how socioeconomic and sociological aspects including race, gender, disability, and sexual orientation intersect and create different experiences of the house that patriarchy, capitalism and colonialism built, and why it’s important to advocate past the scope of a middle-class, white woman scope that has been overarching in contemporary mainstream feminist discourse and advocacy.

2. Whoops! I think I merged this question with my response above. I guess to elaborate on that response, it’s important to think about how despite issues including BIWOC (Black, Indigenous and Women of Colour) (I’m just using this example because it’s one I can speak on more, to some extent), that they are provided a voice and are able to continue to use it, rather than be handed a ‘minority of the month’ pass to only be forgotten in the advocacy a month later. I hope that makes sense.

3. …Well… Am I able to say anything without being redacted? That’s a joke. But I think being here for four years made me realise how toxic and hegemonic aspects of the University can be. I might cop flack for this, but that fear alone makes it evident how the culture works over there. I’m a Law student, and without going into detail, I have heard an abhorrent number of comments about women within the Law School - belittling women’s success because they’re women (“she’s just another ‘Legally Blonde’”), sexualising women, comically addressing predatory behaviour. I was harassed myself. It’s strange – people know what’s going on, and whodunnit, but it’s disheartening how people are worried to speak out because it feels like there are repercussions for doing so. I think it’s disappointing considering everything that’s happened in the legal sphere as of late, and how it’s evident that the culture will take an incredibly long time to change, if it even wants to.

We’re told to speak out against these issues, but we can’t because it’s not worth the shit that you cop afterwards. I personally think I’m just done with it, which is not the most liberating response.

It’s kind of just worn me down, and I’m ready to get out.

4. I value being able to connect with other women if that makes any sense. Being able to communicate about any issue and having that sad but mutual understanding of things. I’m being vague, but I think everything I’ve said above provides enough context.

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1 2 3 4

What does feminism mean to you?

What is one feminist issue or ideology you feel passionate about?

Have you faced any patriarchal, misogynistic or other oppressive force during your Uni studies? How have you overcome this?

In identifying as a woman, what aspect of femininity/ womanhood do you most celebrate or value?

Emma Haddy She/Her Bachelor of Arts (Honours) – History 1. Equality among all genders, irrespective of race, religion, sexuality, career, relationship status, parental status, and appearance.

2.

Women’s and LGBTQI+ sexual and reproductive health - including better sex ed. in schools, ending period poverty, bridging the orgasm gap, genital mutilation awareness, pro-choice, male birth control, and paid leave entitlements for those affected by issues such as endo, PCOS or miscarriage.

3. Luckily Arts is a comparatively liberal, progressive space. But there is a sexist undercurrent throughout the wider culture of the Uni and its politics that can make women feel unsafe, unacknowledged, and unimportant. It’s important to understand the double standards that arise in the refusal to affiliate women’s clubs such as WoCo, and to support the incredible work that they do for women’s rights on and off campus.

4. The amazing relationships I have, and continue to build, with women and feminists everywhere who lift each other up and create the most wonderful global community.

Jessica Attard She/Her/They Bachelor of Arts (English and Anthropology) 1. Feminism means fighting for the rights of anyone who isn’t in a position of power. It is not the childish imagination of girl parts vs boy parts.

2.

Have you ever noticed that girls and women in your class are less likely to be called on by the lecturer and less likely to put up their hand?

It’s not because she’s less smart. It’s because she has been taught to be quiet, small, and he—who is often the person in the position of power, like a lecturer—has been taught to listen to the loudest. If you’re reading this and you’ve felt this oppressive requirement to be quiet (especially talking to women, transgender, and all women of colour) then I urge you to speak. Talk loudly. Talk when you’re not sure if you’re right. Because I can guarantee that the boy next to you—who has been rarely, if ever, challenged—is not smarter than you, but his opinion will be heard because of the simple fact that he is louder than you. Use your voice!

3. Last week I spoke to a transgender honours student. The week before that I spoke to a woman of colour and another few queer women in honours. They all felt like they had to argue the basic premise of what is racist, transphobic, or homophobic. It’s shameful that an institution that inherently seeks the future quashes the inquisitive nature of anyone who isn’t straight, white, or who identifies with their born sex.

4. I have the lady-bits that determine the usual question of whether you are ‘feminine’ or ‘woman,’ and even am married in a male/female relationship. But fem is so much more – it is navigating a medical world where we are not listened to, it is being over-sexualized for showing your shoulders; it is watching your male co-worker consistently deferred to although you are the expert; and it is your opinion dismissed as a dyke because you’re not appealing to men.

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econ dit

Words By Nghi Chau, Adelaide University Economics Club

How to become How to become a Superwoman How to become a Superwoman a Superwoman As a student, super is probably not the first thing on your mind when it comes to saving money. Retirement seems a long way away after all!

However, due to the power of compounding interest, it’s important to start thinking about your super now — especially if you’re a woman.

But first, what is super?

Superannuation, commonly known as super, is a system for retirement savings. Employers are obligated to pay the superannuation guarantee into your super account, which is 9.5% of your earnings. You can also make your own super contributions, which is encouraged through tax incentives. Your super is locked away, invested by your super fund and benefits from the magic of compound interest until you reach retirement age. Sounds great, right?

Not so fast…

Based on 2017-18 data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, women’s median super account balances are 30.8% lower than men across all age groups. Research by the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia shows that at retirement age, 23% of women have no super compared to 13% of men. These statistics are alarming, especially considering that on

average women live longer than men and therefore actually need more retirement savings.

Why is there such a disparity, and what can be done to tackle it? Well, the gender super gap is influenced by a number of factors, but let’s have a look at the root of the problem. The gender super gap stems from the gender pay gap. According to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency, on average, women who work full-time earn 13.4% less than men.

Although the gender pay gap has decreased over time, it still remains consequential. Lower earnings mean lower employer super contributions.

Further, women are more likely to take time out of the workforce to care for children and aging parents.

Despite the importance of caring, it’s usually an unpaid role. Even women who benefit from paid parental leave are left behind because super doesn’t get paid for this type of leave.

Remember the superannuation guarantee? Well, at the moment, this doesn’t actually apply if you earn under $450 per month. More women than men participate in part-time and casual employment, and in turn are negatively affected by the $450 per month threshold.

Closing the gender Closing the gender superannuation gap Closing the gender superannuation gap superannuation gap This also affects those who collectively earn more than $450 per month, but not from a single employer. In May, the government announced it would abolish this threshold, with laws expected to come into effect in July 2022. Though this reform alone won’t solve the gender super gap, it’s definitely a step in the right direction.

and personal contributions. But in this day and age, should we really have to be playing catch-up?

Although some progress has been made so far, there is still a long way to go to close the gender super gap and improve retirement outcomes for women. There are steps women can take to improve our super funds such as consolidation

“women’s median super account balances are 30.8% lower than men across all age groups”

Half-way there: Tales of advocacy and banana bread

The only thing I remember is that it all happened quite quickly. We arrived here as international students in February 2020, attended our orientation for two weeks, got lost on campus a few times (as you should) and before we knew it, the pandemic had taken over most parts of the world. Without wasting too much time, Australia had closed its international borders indefinitely.

No more international students, no more tourists, nobody but citizens were allowed inside the country, and even that seemed to be quite the challenge to get around. I missed home terribly, especially because I knew there was no going back now. I had no idea when I would get to see my family again, and all classes had moved online. My only escape was baking copious amounts of banana bread! If you can believe it, even that was not filling the giant home-shaped hole in my heart.

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On a whim, I decided to Google organizations in South Australia that I could get involved in, but I had no luck. I waited impatiently for an opportunity to come along, and my glimmer of hope materialised in September when I saw an ad put out by the Working Women’s Centre (WWC), asking for volunteers for a project examining how young women in South Australia were impacted by COVID-19. Within a few days, I had attended their interview and was accepted to volunteer every Monday!

Nothing felt better than coming into their beautiful office, seeing smiling faces, and talking to people! What a concept – to have a conversation. I finally found a place where I belonged I expected things to move slowly, but on the contrary, there was no time to rest! We had put out a survey that young women in SA could fill out which was gaining traction. We were doing heaps of planning and strategising and ensured that we

International Student Voice got the word out on our work. Most importantly, we were meeting with decision-makers to talk about how young women and vulnerable workers were impacted by the pandemic.

In October, my fellow volunteers and I presented in front of a COVID-19 Response Committee at Parliament

migrant and temporary-visa holders, and the inaccessibility of affordable mental health services, as well as gender inequality and racism.

Contributing to the advocacy work of the WWC pushed me to find a voice and do something actionable and meaningful with the feelings that I

“

House, and I tearfully explained that many of my friends and I felt deeply isolated, as international students.

We did not have the networks that local students seemed to have and found it much harder to get safe and secure jobs. It was a completely different culture and some of us had faced experiences cloaked with subtle and not-so-subtle racism. It felt good to be heard. In the midst of all this, I agreed to be interviewed for an article on mental health by The Advertiser. It was frightening to be vulnerable in public, but I realized that talking about the things that bothered me encouraged others to open too, and that makes all the difference!

More importantly, this points out some of the underlying systemic problems that contribute to our collective experiences, like the lack of awareness about work rights among

had. I am 8 months in as a volunteer, and I am continuing to do exactly that. Now, we have compiled all the information we collected over the past couple of months through survey responses, interviews, consultations with international students (some of whom are my dear friends) and released a shiny new report titled Loss of work, isolation & worry: the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on young women. It feels amazing to have something physical and substantial come out of the most volatile year of any of our lives, but it felt even better to have the connections I made along the way.

And the best part? I am still making heaps of banana bread and the hole in my heart is only half-empty! Only half-way to go.

Wordsby Manasvi Muthukrishnan

many of my friends and I felt deeply isolated, as international students.

We did not have the networks that local students seemed to have and found it much harder to get safe and secure jobs. It was a completely different culture and some of us had faced experiences cloaked with subtle and not-sosubtle racism.”

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sex and the (small) city

A Manifesto for Young Single Women

There is a social and cultural pressure for young women everywhere, including women of my background, to stay attached to someone. More specifically, attached to a young male of the same background.

A normal conversation between Vietnamese teens usually revolves, amongst other things, around girlish fantasies about when they will get married. I reflect on my own childhood, when the consensus amongst my school friends was that we would get married sometime when we have just gotten out of our teenage years. We would have our first child before twenty-five, and a second before we were thirty years old.

Sometimes, one of us would raise a radical idea that pushed back this plan by five years.

At no time did we dare to contemplate the life of a singleton.

So imagine how I feel now, at 21, unattached to any soul, with no intention to have a child in the next four years, and too occupied with

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my career to have a decent date.

As young women we have been too romanticised into the idea of dating and marriage, to the point that being single is only a fleeting half-lived state of existence that one goes through before they move on to the next relationship.

The plethora of romantic culture that we consume as a society tells us to constantly look for Mr Darcy.

That the moment he appeared, we would be struck by an exceptional feeling that makes us lock eyes while frozen. In that instance, all sorrows would be gone, and we would be eternally happy until our dying days.

The downside is this: if we fail to meet Mr Darcy, if we were either not looking hard enough or did something wrong to miss out on a destined meet-cute, our lives would be unfathomably worthless and miserable.

“

Singlehood is a privilege, a badge of honour. It allows you the time and space to discover and love who you are.”

I often see my fellow single women complain about being absolutely miserable over their single status, devastated over men, and beating themselves up for not being good enough.

I am writing this to call for my fellow single women and singles-to-be: Girl, embrace your singlehood, proudly, unashamedly, happily, enthusiastically.

Singlehood is a privilege, a badge of honour. It allows you the time and space to discover and love who you are. If there was one thing to be true in this world, it is this. You simply cannot escape the need for a truly healthy relationship with yourself.

WORDS BY Ngoc Lan Tran

Here is the problem: Since when do we have to be saved from a miserable existence by Mr Darcy?

Since when does the salvation of a man liberate women from the clutches of the misery of living? From my experience, being in the company of a man often amplifies my anxieties rather than relieving them.

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LEFT CENTRE

RIGHT

1. What are your thoughts on Christian Porter discontinuing his defamation claim against the ABC? Should he be allowed to continue to work in Parliament?

2. What do you think of the government's treatment of the Biloela Tamil refugee family in recent weeks? Do you think that this case will lead to changes in Australia's hard-line border policies?

3. A recent media report revealed an unacceptable prevalence of sexual harassment reports in South Australian universities. Should the university community and student politics groups become more involved in advocating for safety on campus?

LEFT: Socialist Alternative 1.

On Dit cannot print part of the response from the Socialist Alternative as it is defamatory toward Christian Porter. The

[defamation] case was part of the Liberals’ campaign to spin him into a victim. There has been a conspiracy from the top to protect him, including moving him from one job to another. This whole government is full of rotten sexists and has to go.

2. The bipartisanship of Labor and Liberal policies towards refugees is disgusting. The Murugappan family have received bridging visas while Tharniccaa recovers from the medical negligence experienced on Christmas Island.

This shows that we can win small changes, even on the most unlikely policies. We can’t rely on changing the hearts of politicians.

It’s ordinary people in mass campaigns that can shift the political terrain. So there is hope, but only if we pursue the right strategies.

3. As we’ve seen at this university and in class society, sexism comes from the top. We need a fighting campaign that takes on the administration and the

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government. Far from challenging sexism on campus, the right (Progress and the Liberals) have attacked people for opposing Christian Porter and sexism. University bosses are not our friends in this fight. We saw this last year when Cathy Branson campaigned to save the reputation of the university during its sexism crisis and when admin slashed jobs and conditions during the pandemic to maintain profits. So while fighting sexism on campus, we must avoid orientations towards management and instead mobilise from below to challenge oppression.

CENTRE: Labor Club 1. It is disappointing to see that Christian Porter’s discontinued defamation claim has become more commonly discussed than the sexual assault allegations were made against him. In a world where “he-said-shesaid” is code for “let’s believe what he said”, sexual assault and sexual harassment against women will continue to occur with limited consequences for the perpetrators. When it comes to the politicians, there should be absolutely no room for perpetrators. An independent inquiry into the allegations made against Porter would likely be the best way to determine if he should be allowed to continue to work in Parliament.

2. The treatment of the Tamil family has been disgusting.

After having been forced out of the Biloela community in 2018 and sent to multiple different detention facilities, the Tamil family, like countless others, have spent years without basic human freedoms. This was made evident when a then threeyear-old Tharnicaa experienced severe health complications in an off-shore detention facility, and had to wait almost two weeks before finally receiving medical treatment. The fact that the family was separated during Tharnicaa’s treatment is equally abhorrent. This government, like all Australian governments in the past decade, is failing to uphold basic human rights for asylum seekers who believed Australia would protect them. We should not be persecuting the people who are fleeing persecution.

While I believe Australia needs to fundamentally change its border

policies, I am beyond doubtful the current government will be the ones to do it.

3. As much as universities like to say they have “zero tolerance” for sexual assault/harassment, the simple truth is that forms of physical and verbal violence are persisting in both staff and student communities. Every single person in the university community needs to be part of a cultural shift that not only rejects sexual assault/harassment, but more importantly eliminates it.

From a student perspective, we need to call out unacceptable behaviour when we see it, stop making excuses for “friends” who were just “joking around”, become aware of and frequently utilise all safety and support services on campus, speak up if we feel like necessary services are missing from what is being offered, and always create a safe space for fellow students to feel like their lived experiences can be heard and honoured.

RIGHT: Liberal Club The Liberal Club did not provide comment.

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sustainabili-dit Sustainable Period Products

A Bloody Good Idea In recent times, an increasing emphasis has been placed on the issue of waste arising from menstruation. Traditional period products are manufactured and packaged using plastic materials that do not biodegrade and can damage the natural environment when disposed of incorrectly. In fact, in developing countries where the cost of disposable menstrual hygiene products is prohibitive, handmade reusable cloth pads are the norm. If you are curious about more sustainable alternatives to your current go-to period products, then look no further.

Menstrual Cup The menstrual cup is one of the pioneering and most widely used period products. Like a tampon, the menstrual cup is inserted into the vagina. Due to its cup shape and rubber construction, the menstrual cup effectively prevents leakages. Unlike tampons, the menstrual cup can be used overnight. Furthermore, it comes in an endless array of shapes and sizes to suit the user’s personal needs.

Menstrual cups can be sanitised between periods through boiling. On average a menstrual cup will set you back between 20 to 50 dollars and can be used for 1 to 2 years before needing to be replaced.

WORDS BY Maya tlauka

Biodegradable Tampons For those who are a fan of the tampon, switching to a brand made of biodegradable materials may be the ticket. While most tampons contain synthetic fibres, a few brands are championing biodegradable materials such as cotton and hemp.

In addition, the packaging for these tampons is in most cases also biodegradable.

While not as common in Australia as in other countries, tampon applicators also contribute to waste. Therefore, someone using biodegradable tampons may also opt to use a reusable tampon applicator. A box of 16 biodegradable tampons costs around 15 dollars.

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Reusable Pads Reusable pads mimic the style of traditional disposable pads, coming in a range of shapes and absorbencies. Due to their cloth construction, the pads can be washed after use and reused at a later point. Some people may be uncomfortable with the notion of cleaning their pads, however, most brands can be simply placed in the washing machine. The benefits of reusable pads include that they come in a range of prints, are comfortable and have a greater absorbancy than disposable pads.

Pricewise, a set of reusable pads falls between 30 and 100 dollars.

“Traditional period products are manufactured and packaged using plastic materials that do not biodegrade and can damage the natural environment ” Period Underwear In period underwear the absorbent lining is built into the body of the underwear, eliminating the need to wrangle two separate undergarments. The benefits of period pants are similar to those of reusable pads, offering enhanced absorbency, comfort and odour resistance. Some people choose to pair period underwear with a menstrual cup, using it as a backup on heavy flow days. Period underwear has a lifespan of around 2-5 years, and in most cases can be thrown in the washing machine after having been rinsed by hand. A pair of period underwear goes for about 20 dollars.

With these options in mind, it is important to remember that there will be a learning curve when it comes to using sustainable period products. Don’t be afraid to try a few different options to find what works for you and talk to your mates for advice and reassurance!

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club spotlight

WISTEMS Name: Isabelle Greco Club/Committee/Society Name: Women in STEM Society (WISTEMS) Position Title: Vice President Why did you decide to take on this role?

I’ve been lucky enough to be involved in WISTEMS since 2018 (only a year after the society’s formation!), and so becoming Vice President ultimately felt like the most natural step. As I first year, I loved being part of such an inclusive, passionate, and energetic committee who were so committed to supporting all women in STEM, at Adelaide University and beyond, and although the committee has changed, these goals and qualities have not. For want of a better word, I think WISTEMS has the most wholesome community and I have absolutely loved every second that I have spent working for and with this group.

What sort of events and activities do you run?

I like to think of WISTEMS as having two branches: a social branch aimed at connecting women in STEM and their allies (yes, everyone is welcome!) and creating a brilliant support network so that no one feels alone in their degree. We do this through meet and greets, quiz night, fortnightly coffee catchups, and the most awesome cocktail night on campus (stay tuned - details coming soon!). In semester 1 2021, we ran a Do It In

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A Dress fundraising campaign with Robogals Adelaide and SWISE raising over $4,200 for girls education in Sierra Leone and Uganda.

On the other hand, we also run more serious events, like industry talks and networking events, aimed at inspiring our members on a professional level and connecting them with incredible women in STEM. Related to this is our school outreach program, which just got off the ground this year. Alongside the Faculty of ECMS, we have designed and presented a series of interactive workshops for girls in Years 4-10 aimed at showing them why STEM is the perfect career path for them. Without a doubt, seeing this program succeed has been the most rewarding part of my WISTEMS journey!

Why do you think UofA needs representation for women in your field?

Frankly, because inequalities still exist, and women (particularly women of colour, indigenous women, queer women, disabled women, and women from more difficult backgrounds) are still hugely under-represented in UofA’s STEM programs. Being one of few women in a class can be daunting and discouraging, particularly when this intersects with other minority identities, so having a supportive and vibrant community of women in STEM and allies is key to staying connected and motivated. I firmly

believe that having these networks, and the connections that our members are able to create with industry, sets them up to not just survive their post-university careers, but genuinely thrive. This in turn motivates more girls to consider STEM careers and, hopefully, this cycle will continue until WISTEMS becomes an ancient relic because we have achieved full equality. Obviously, this requires some important things like, you know, policy changes to support both men and women to take on caring roles etc., etc., but I think the role of WISTEMS in this process is non-trivial.

the women with whom I attend university.

Their effervescent energy, relentless drive, unconditional support, and valuable friendship inspires me each and every day and I cannot wait to see all the brilliant things I know they will all achieve.

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It I ess

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Are there any female figures in your field who inspire you?

t Qu iz N igh

Me

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Too many! I could probably fill up the rest of this magazine with them if I tried, but, in the interest of diversity of content, I’ll try and restrict myself to just a few (at this point while writing this, I had a moment of intense decision paralysis, sorting through all the people I know and trying to pick the top couple). I think I am most inspired by

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club spotlight

Women in Economics Name: Mahya Panahkhahi Club Name: Adelaide University Economics Club Position Title: Director of Women in Economics Why did you decide to take on this role?

I was really keen to get more involved with the Economics Club this year. I was instantly drawn to the Director of Women in Economics position because it ensures female economics student are represented and it provides an opportunity to diversify economics at the university. This is especially important given economics is a male-dominated degree.

What sort of events and activities do you run?

The AUEC runs a range of social, educational, and career events, some of which are targeted at female economics students. In Semester 1, we held a Women in Economics Coffee Catch-up for students and staff to get to know each other in a casual, social setting. We also plan to run some informative events in Semester 2, bringing in female economists to discuss the opportunities available to students.

Additionally, we assist with the Women in Economics Network (WEN) mentoring program which has been really popular in the past. WEN was set up with the aim to bring together and support female economists. It is filled with talented and successful female

34

economists, so we encourage students to get involved and attend their events as well.

Why do you think UofA needs representation for women in your field?

Economics is predominantly male-dominated and this gendered gap widens with a move towards more senior positions. Female representation in this area is really important to ensure female economics students understand their potential and are aware of the opportunities available to them. We really do need more female economists, especially in more managerial positions. This would not only benefit women, but it would also be beneficial for society as a whole, so it is essential to represent women in economics at the university level to pave the way for future female economist

Are there any female figures in your field who inspire you?

For me, economists who use their knowledge and skills to make an impact within society are particularly inspiring. In that respect, Rosa Luxemburg, Elinor Ostrom, and Esther Duflo are a few names that come to mind.

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Words By

Julia Gillard It has been four decades since I was a student at the University of Adelaide. After graduating from high school, those early years on campus were some of the most formative of my life. I threw myself into life at university with huge enthusiasm, excited by the enticing possibilities it offered: learning, meeting new people and a world of intriguing ideas.

My time at the University of Adelaide also fuelled my interest in politics and my feminism.

Some of my earliest memories of political activism have those iconic columns of the Cloisters and Union Hall as the backdrop.

Propelled by what I saw as growing educational inequality, I became involved in student politics, and was successfully elected as President of the Adelaide University Union.

This time brought my first encounters with outright sexism and misogyny. It was not uncommon for woman activists, including me, to find ‘shit sheets’ in our university pigeon-holes. These flyers were full of many predictably sexist tropes, attacking and denigrating our appearance. You won’t be surprised to know the male student politicians were not subject to the same treatment.

I don’t know if I really understood the broader impact of these experiences when I was a student. Certainly, they were unpleasant, but they were also seen to be part and parcel of what happened if you were a female political activist.

But looking back now, the significance of all this strikes me much more forcefully. The different treatment of women, purely because of their gender, would be a thread through the lives of so many women leaders for decades to come, including my own.

In my university days, I certainly never thought I’d go on to be Australia’s first female Prime Minister.

I also never thought that some forty years after I had been at university, I’d feel compelled

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to dedicate much of my career post-politics to advancing gender equality around the world, through organisations like the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership. Instead, I somewhat naively believed that by 2021, gender equality would have been achieved so why would anyone need to spend time on an archaic topic of a bygone era?

Sadly, my optimism was misplaced; but there has been progress. While there is a fight still to be fought, much has changed for the better since my university days.

Recognised as an emerging and important field, Women’s Studies has been offered as a discipline since 1992 at the University of Adelaide. Women who are enrolled into Law now consistently outnumber men. In fact, a recent report by the Australian Government’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency shows that overall, women’s representation has increased across all fields of tertiary study, including in male dominated fields.

However, the report also details that change has stalled, and this sadly reflects a broader trend on gender equality in Australia.

We simply aren’t moving forward quickly enough.

Each year, the World Economic Forum ranks nations on gender equality. In the most recent report, New Zealand has moved up two spots and is at now at No.4 in the world, while Australia has dropped from 44 to 50.

Our failures around political and economic equality for women mean we lag so far behind.

I’m worried the recent events we’ve seen in our Federal Parliament will continue to hamper progress. I’ve felt angry about what I’ve seen and heard, and I am concerned these events will deter a new generation of women who could be our finest leaders.

I often get contacted by women contemplating a political career, but who feel unsure because of what they’re seeing and hearing about how hard it can be for a woman to succeed.

Despite every experience that tested me, my enduring message is that it is absolutely worth it to make a contribution in the Federal Parliament. If I had my time over, I would choose to do it all again.

I want our nation to be a world leader in gender equality. I think it is now time to declare as a national goal that in 2030, we will be in the top 10 on the WEF ranking. That might sound ambitious but if New Zealand can do it, then surely, we can.

Imagine how it would feel if, in less than a decade, we were able to point to practical, demonstrable improvement in gender equality. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could say to ourselves “propelled to action by the honesty and activism of Australian women in 2021, we found the will and the way to become a global leader in gender equality”?

I also want to see every political party committed to ensuring that 50 per cent of their representatives in Parliament are women.

The ALP, rather than trying to “fix” women – through training or otherwise – focused on fixing the structures that prevent women getting pre selected and elected. Back in 1994, when these affirmative action targets were introduced, 14.5% of Labor’s federal parliamentarians were women. That number is now at 48%. The Liberal Party on the other hand, was sitting at 13.9% women in 1994, and this has only increased to 26% in 2021.The outcome is clear – the targets have worked, and it’s time for the Coalition to adopt a comparable policy.

Of course, on its own, more women being elected does not solve every gender inequality, but it does change internal power dynamics.

It also means that merit is foregrounded. Given merit is equally distributed between

the genders, any team that is disproportionately male is, by definition, of lesser calibre than it could have been.

There is also more work to do to ensure that for every woman who works in Parliament House, the environment is safe, inclusive and respectful.

Every place in our nation, every work place and education environment, should be one which is free from barriers of stigma, discrimination and bias. That’s the future I dreamed of as a university student and that I remain committed to still. I hope it is the future that you will strive to build.

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taboo! taboo! taboo!

Words By emily tattersall

Periods. There are plenty of different ways to describe them, but put simply, they refer to the vaginal bleeding that women experience as a part of their monthly cycle, for the majority of their lives. Yet, menstruation is still considered to be a taboo in society, which seems absurd considering that in most cases women have no control of their menstrual cycles.

Seriously, no control. In some cases, this can result in some pretty awkward and embarrassing moments, and for me personally these range from two of my school teachers drying my uniform in a bathroom

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to being at a guy’s house and stealing his mum’s pads.

The continued stigmatisation of periods can be largely attributed to how poorly female menstrual health is addressed in sex education to primary and secondary school students. Honestly, I cannot remember any mention of periods in my own classes, and believe I mostly relied on my friends’ experiences to know what to expect. However, a friend of mine recalled the only advice that her class was given regarding periods: “there are options.”

“Tampons that go inside, pads that don’t, or the pill to skip it.”

Additionally, the fact that males do not menstruate is a major contributing factor to why discussions surrounding female menstrual health are not encouraged in society.

This is even more present in other cultures, which I became aware of through the experience of getting my period whilst staying with my grandparents in Indonesia.

There was a huge emphasis placed on keeping the whole concept of periods a secret from men which in turn required a great deal of effort. Furthermore, tampons are also considered a taboo in Asian culture, due to the extremely outdated theory that having your hymen intact equates to being a virgin. In general, the stigmatisation of periods causes women to feel ashamed of something that is normal.

Most importantly, destigmatising periods is instrumental to prompting discussions about female health issues. Linking back to the lack of education about menstruation provided to young girls, the absence of information regarding what periods actually entail makes identifying abnormalities incredibly difficult. A friend of mine who has Stage 1 Endometriosis, PCOS, and symptoms of adenomyosis, attributed this to being why she was unaware of her chronic disorders for years. Even when she did get diagnosed, she was “told [she] had a 40 year old woman’s disease”, despite the fact that “it’s very common for girls to display symptoms at 17 like [she] did.” Unfortunately, her experience, like many others, reflects the additional underlying gender bias present in healthcare.

Disclaimer: It should be noted that not all women menstruate, and not all people with periods are women.

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“ 60% of 543 women sur-

veyed by Women of Colour Australia, experience workplace discrimination with almost half also experiencing other forms.”

The Invisible (Wo)Man

“ the lack of

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representation only makes people like me harder to see myself as anything but the invisible ‘other’.”

Australia has a history with racism. Despite legalising protection for ethnic people in the Racial Discrimination Act (1975), the abrupt anti-Asian rhetoric during the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrates how quickly public opinion on people-of-colour can change. The introduction of the Delta strain created more incidents of racism, with strangers and acquaintances alike asking me why “my people” couldn’t handle the virus and had to bring it to Australia. The rhetoric, further emphasised in Pauline Hanson’s media and parliamentary comments, demonstrates the precarity of being ethnic in a predominantly white country. Parliament, as an institution, demonstrates the reality that people of colour face, even more so when you’re a woman. The combination of systemic discrimination and misogyny, particularly in Parliament being a patriarchal institution or ‘boys club’ creates unique challenges for women-of-colour.

Australians, with a non-European background, make up an estimated 29.7% of the general population. However, the Australian Human Rights Commission highlights that only 4.1% of parliamentarians [of the 45th Parliament] have a ‘non-European background’ and 0.4% are Indigenous. Of that, only 2.7% of parliamentarians are women of a ‘non-English speaking background.’

The scarcity of women-of-colour (WOC) in the Parliament demonstrates gaps in representation. These gaps are represented in other fields outside politics, only 1 WOC is chief executive in the top 200 ASX companies, 9% of WOC and 5% of Indigenous women are represented in Australian News and Current Affairs Media. In comparison, within the Australian population, 15.1% are migrant women and 3.2% are Indigenous women.

Words By Brisna Cardoza

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In reality, the lack of representation only makes people like me harder to see myself as anything but the invisible ‘other’. Unfortunately, this is a common experience among WOC. The multiple identities within WOC, alongside gender, privilege, race, sexual orientation and disabilities complicate this even further.

Attempting to overcome the systemic sexist barriers such as structural misogyny, gender-based violence, is often met with resistance, with women being ‘too domineering’, ‘intimidating’ or having other masculine traits revered in men and despised in women.

Furthermore, attempts to acknowledge discrimination are met with microaggressions, with efforts to speak up about women’s rights dismissed, devalued and denied. For example, Brittany Higgins’s allegations and the #metoo movement has exposed the vulnerability of women’s allegations and widespread dismissal of an unfortunately common issue. Since 1 in 3 women in Australia have experienced sexual harassment since they were 15, the inherently patriarchal structure ultimately hinders a woman’s capability to prosper in this environment.

WOC, in particular, are more likely to get sexually assaulted, with Indigenous women being 3.4 times more likely. However, no substantive research on family, domestic and sexual assault from people of cultural/linguistic backgrounds, further outlines the lack of attention by policy makers and researchers on women of colour.

However, 60% of 543 women surveyed by Women of Colour Australia, experience workplace discrimination with almost half also experiencing other forms.

Discrimination, particularly casual discrimination, is often easy to miss. For example, statements like ‘your people,’ ‘where are you really from?’ and other subtle microaggressions signify people treating us as ‘the other’. As casual discrimination is usually based on the discriminator’s unconscious racial bias, suggesting lack of a harmful intent, the prejudice is still harmful and diminishing.

The subtle reduction of my identity to a stereotyped one still reflects Australia’s inability to address cultural diversity through active efforts on education of discrimination. The invisibility I face often in research, in the media, and in Parliament reflects the sad reality of many WOC, forced to live in a society designed to devalue us for our ethnicity.

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References / Additional Readings All Together Now 2014, Racism in Australia.

Andrew Jakubowicz 2020, Dark data hole leaves Multicultural Australia in danger in second wave pandemic.

Australian Bureau of Statistics 2018, Estimates of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians.

Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021, Migration, Australia.

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2019, Family, domestic and sexual violence in Australia: continuing the national story, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australian Government, Canberra.

Ben, J Elias, A Mansouri, F and Paradies, Y 2021, ‘Racism in Australia: filling data gaps’, Centre for Resilient and Inclusive Societies, Deakin University, Geelong, Vic. Brooks, S 2021, ‘Women of Colour on the Fight for Gender Equality,’ Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Clay, R 2017, ‘Did you really just say that?’, Monitor on Psychology, vol. 48, no. 1.

Diversity Council of Australia & the University of Sydney Business School 2021, ‘Counting Culture’ Diversity Council of Australia, Sydney, Australia.

Evershed, N, Liu, R & Livsey, A 2016, ‘Are you reflected in the new parliament?’ The Guardian.

Hage, G 1998, White Nation: Fantasies of White Supremacy in a Multicultural Society, Routledge: New York.

Little, L 2018, ‘Women’s equality still doesn’t centre on women of colour – and it needs to,’ The Guardian.

Mao, F 2019, ‘2019 election: Why politics is toxic for Australia’s women.’ British Broadcasting Corporation.

Moran, L 2020, ‘I See People White but I’m too Black’: Whiteness and the Interpretation of Multicultural Belonging in Australia,’ Journal of Intercultural Studies, vol. 41, no. 4, pp. 474 - 489.

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Dear Society,

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I regret to inform you that your submission of “woman” has been rejected.

While I commend you for the effort that has been sustained for the past few thousand years, I cannot ignore the misguided intentions, sloppy execution, and complacent handling of alternative suggestions. I am not certain as to how you arrived at your conclusion of what a woman is – it seems as though there was very little consultation with those you sought to represent. Further, I could not identify any internal systems that recognise the differences between women. The straight, white and able-bodied woman that you like to reference is not the only variation. There are many different expressions of womanhood, including, but not limited to, women of colour, women who are queer, women who have a disability, women who are not a size 0, women who were born in the wrong body – the list really does go on.

While there were a plethora of additional reasons for this rejection, I have narrowed it down to three main points. They are interconnected and highly complex, however I have no doubt that you will be able to make sense of them. After all, for a group that holds so much power, you must be well versed on the complexities of “women” and broader implications of your own norms and standards. And if I, a woman can understand such complexities then you should have no problem doing so.

Before addressing these three reasons for your rejection, I must make two things very clear. The first is that, for the benefit of those with a limited capacity to transcend ridged binaries, I use the term “woman” to oppose “man”. These terms are based on the social construction of gender that has been attached to biological sex. While these are not the only genders, and gender can oppose the sexed body it has been attached to, when I refer to “woman” I refer to those you have clumped together as being feminine with “female” biological features.

The second thing I must make clear is that I acknowledge my hypocrisy.

Here I am, accusing you of using broad-brush strokes when categorising people, and then going ahead and doing the exact same thing! Society, I apologise. I recognise that you are not entirely bad. When I address your shortcomings, I am merely addressing the patriarchal systems that you have allowed to flourish in all spheres of life over the course of human history. That’s all.

Now that everything has been cleared up, let me explain why your submission of “woman” has been (emphatically) rejected.

The first point is the way in which female sexuality has been presented. I have to ask – were you joking around when you decided to sexualise the woman’s body in such a way that it is viewed as an object? Was it some twisted sense of humour that led you to the conclusion that you get to decide how a woman defines and uses her body? Did you think the phase would pass, and then everyone would forget how stupid your suggestions were? This must be the case, as I cannot fathom how or why you found it appropriate to claim ownership over a woman’s body in such a way that her own autonomy was decimated. A woman does not exist to please a man’s sexual desires. A woman’s body is not an object that belongs to someone else. A woman does not need to “cover up” or “take it off” depending on who is looking her way. And, I cannot stress this last point enough, a woman’s worth

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is not reduced to the way her body looks. Even if it was, you do not get to decide what “look” is the “right” one. She does.

The second point, leading from the first, refers to the belief that a woman is not complete without a man. This one is a little tricky to critique because you’ve done a marvellous job at pretending the problem has been addressed. As you increasingly “allow” more women into the workforce, positions of power and schools, you frame them as having the same standard of opportunities as men.

Subsequently, it is implied that women are free to pursue many different goals in life, not simply those that relate to marriage, having children, and tending to domestic duties. However, I’m not as stupid as you think – I see what’s going on.

You’ve added all these “cool new features” to a woman’s life in order to create an illusion of independence, yet you have failed to address the underlying assumption that single men can be happy while single women cannot. This is inherently connected to my first point. You see, by objectifying women and basing her worth on her appearance, there is a very clear message that what she does for herself is not as important as what she does for a man. She must abide by the beauty standards that you set in order to be attractive for the male gaze, all in an effort to please men and ultimately find “the one”. If a woman has the privilege not to follow these beauty standards, she is condemned and will automatically face additional hurdles in life. What does this all mean, you might be wondering? Well, even though you (society) have given women more and more opportunities to pursue and achieve personal goals, women are expected to also have the goal of finding a man (let’s face it, you won’t even consider that she might be attracted to other women). This means women are not truly “successful” until they are in a serious relationship. Think about it – if an older man is single, he is considered a bachelor who has chosen to focus on his career. An older woman who is single, however, is pitied, not able to “find” a man meaning she must be deficient in the qualities that really matter, and assumed to have lived an unfulfilling life.

The last point I’d like to raise is that you have the audacity to associate womanhood with fragility. “…Like a girl” is used as an insult, the fact that women are more empathetic and nurturing is used as a reason why they cannot succeed in positions of power, derogatory language is highly feminised – the list goes on, and on, and on. You have consistently painted a picture where women are weaker than men in every sense of the word. This has led to girls and women who second-guess every idea while men brazenly blurt the first thing that pops into their mind. This has made half of the population believe they are simply not as capable as the other half, leading to severe insecurities and underdeveloped skills among girls and women. This has ensured that men dominate in most spheres of life, and in the spheres where men do not dominate the pay is ridiculously low or non-existent. Women are seen as the weaker alternative to a strong male default. Would you care to explain why? Because this whole “men are physically stronger and have historically always been in positions of power” argument is getting boring and, quite frankly, embarrassing. It certainly doesn’t help that you have a tendency to get hysterical anytime a woman attempts to challenge social norms.

As I have outlined in the above sections, your submission for “woman”

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has been rejected. You have failed to account for diversity in how you imagine what a woman is (newsflash, it does not simply include those who are straight, white and able-bodied), a significant shortcoming that has detrimental affects on the physical and mental health of women across the world. Further, the way you frame womanhood is, to put it bluntly, disgusting. You have objectified women and turned their sexuality into something that “belongs” to men, you have created a narrative where single women cannot truly succeed in life, and you have come to associate being a woman with being fragile. Moving forward, I recommend that you seek professional help. It would appear that you have internalised several personal insecurities, and are taking them out on innocent women across the world.

It is time that women decide who they are and what they want to do with their lives.

We’ll take it from here.

Words by Leah SchamSchurin

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Words by Annabel Fedcesin

'Nice' Guys

Aren't Nice Let me get started on the “I’m a nice guy” statement. If you really were a nice guy, you wouldn’t need to state it all the time. ‘Nice Guys’ are a pandemic in the past 6 years that I have unfortunately become victim to. The type of men who claim that they only want to shower a girl in love and respect but the second she says “Sorry.

I’m just not into you.” he turns around and says something along the lines of “Whatever, you slut. You just

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want an arsehole who will treat you wrong. You’re a fat pig. Nice guys like me never...” or “I would have…” *blah blah blah insert hypocritical bullshit*. These guys unfortunately usually start out as a really good friend but often end up being somewhat of a neckbeard incel who expects to be gifted sex because of X amount of time of complements and friendship.

Or dick pics. “Oh, I’m sorry. You’ve exposed yourself to me? What a treat! I clearly have to send one back and reward such a valiant effort!” Get over yourself, dickhead.

I know what I’m worth and it isn’t some poorly lit, creepily posed, “Oh no, did you just see my junk?” picture that I never asked for. As a little tip, ladies, if a guy sends you a dick pic, send a dick pic back.

There’s plenty on the internet. It will definitely kill his mood if he’s

straight and has no sense of humour. And guys, as a little tip too, after years of accidentally seeing my brother’s tinder messages from girls, I can tell you that women are more likely to send videos and pictures if you don’t ask for them and are just a good bloke who can take a joke. But on that, we don’t owe you shit. You don’t need to see that, and we don’t need to send it. If it works out between us, you’ll see it in due time. Just remember some people are asexual or sexually uncomfortable.

you anyway. And we’re a Bitch if we break up with you. So, do we have to accept it and be a Bitch to every guy we meet on the off chance he’s a self-proclaimed ‘Nice Guy’? I don’t want to be a prick. My MO is always that of the sweet and caring friend, but how many more guys saying “now we sleep together” will it take before I break and just go full arsehole 24/7? If I just throw away my morals and sleep with this dude so he leaves me alone, I’m a slut. If I turn him down again, I’m a selfish pig.

Don’t get me wrong. This isn’t an anti-male piece. I have a lovely boyfriend who is actually a genuinely nice person. I love my brother and my dad, many uncles and guy friends. Real nice guys do exist. But somewhere along the way a subgroup of men has arisen after they mistakenly misunderstood the correlation of friendliness and attraction to mean a causation with dating and sex. Do we as women really have to guard ourselves from saying the ‘wrong’ thing?

Do we have to be an arsehole to keep guys like this away and risk that dreaded B word?

Because we’re a Bitch if we say no to dating

Furthermore, why is it that we always have to be called fat pigs when we do something ‘wrong’? Screw you, buddy! I’m god damn beautiful, fat and all! I love my body and you calling me overweight, or some sort of animal does nothing to change that. If you came to me to flirt with and hopefully date me but you’re calling me a fat pig, then what does that say about your self image and standards? I know I’m great, but you should really work on you if you think you’re only worth dating a fat pig.

Just saying.

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My Building

My body is my palace, my temple, my choice. I reserve the right to decorate it with art, sculptures and metallic features.

It’s my decision to open it up to the world, welcome anyone to seek the pleasures and beauty it holds. If I want an assemblage to roam my halls, listening to the silence, only disrupted by the echoing of their steps, or host a ‘rager’ that shakes the stained-glass panes and beats the boards of the grand organ under the spire, then this is how I will use the space I am given. Of course, most of the time I don’t.

I usually keep the place spic and span.

I have few visitors over and only occasionally turn myself into a living brewery.

But that does not mean I am any less a feminist. ‘My body, my choice’ means just that. It’s my choice. I may one day get one or five tattoos. My earrings may multiply from just the two in my lobes to the entirety of pierceable skin. And should a guest leave an unwelcome ‘gift’ that I have no means of maintaining or cultivating, then I am in the right to deal with it however I see fit. Should anyone attempt to thwart my efforts in living however my body, mind and heart drive me to live, they are threatening to put up large fences around my building. They’re asking that no light enter my windows and sending soldiers to ensure

that no unapproved features grace me.

You cannot banish me from my own land or tell me how I need to run and design my home. On both sides. Just because I dress in my brother and father’s handme-downs sometimes, does not mean I am less a woman. Just because I do not shave my head and burn my bra, does not mean I am less a feminist. I can dress cottagecore, 50s housewife, or pink, floral and frilly. I am a feminist. I can dress grunge, goth, or all men’s clothes, and graphic tees and jeans. I am a feminist. To all the god damn arseholes who tell me to sit like a woman or stop ‘manspreading’, act ladylike and talk sweetly, you can go to hell.

To all the god damn arseholes who tell me to flaunt my ‘money-makers’, stop talking like a fairy and rebel against the system, you can go to hell too. I own this palace.

I’ve worked this land. I can choose to trim the shrubbery or let it run wild. I can live boisterously or curb my speech habits. I will forever drape my castle in competing cloths. Deck my halls with whatever damn furniture I want.

This is my body. These are my rules. Your words mean nothing if they do not support me.

Words By Annabel Fedcesin

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ON READING FEMINISM “ WE READ TO revive feminist authors who

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Words By Lily Atkinson

have been hidden / forgotten / ignored ; distribute time and intellectual focus care-fully, ethically, and diversely ; re-member those who precede / succeed / exceed us ; think / enact / live informed and a/effective feminist lives”

READING FEMINISM, a newly established feminist reading group, was born out of small acts of feminist sharing and networked thinking, small acts that quickly transformed into a desire for bigger ones, a desire to exchange and encounter feminist thinking together as a productive and politically oriented practice.

There was a general recognition among us that there was no real space for us to read, think, and share as a collective. And following Audre Lorde’s observation in her essay The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle The Master’s House that ‘without community there is no liberation’, we organised a reading group, a site to explore histories of feminist knowledge and practice and, in so doing, offer a feminist space to explore our own present conditions.

Every month we read a feminist text from across time. Sometimes these texts are obscure, sometimes canonical, sometimes old, sometimes new, but always concerned with the liberatory politics of feminism. We believe that there is an ethical imperative to sit down and spend time reading, thinking, and speaking of feminisms that risk being ignored and lost. We believe it is a feminist respons-ability to create space to be a/effected by feminisms across time, with each other. We spend time with under-read, under-thought, and marginalised feminist voices. These meetings are grounded in a desire not to denigrate or critique the works we read but to learn from them, to find productive, useful, radical moments—as Maria Puig de la Bellacasa and Sarah Bracke (The Standpoint Theory Reader 2004) put it, ‘we would rather be better with/because of—than better than those who came before us’.

Every month, when we meet together, when we share space, when we think out loud and narrate the specifics of our feminist encounters, our feminism congeals. It becomes material, sticky, fleshy. It becomes concerned not with abstract theoreticals, but with ways that feminist textual encounters inform and are informed by our social, political, cultural, and economic realities. In this space, as we feel feminism, we live it.

Thus our group serves a dual function. It is a site for us to spend time and energy vitalising and exploring feminist knowledges and worlds that we may have missed. It is also a site for a certain consciousness raising and collective action. The personal is political and theoretical. And the words of Sara Ahmed and Andrea Dworkin and Audre Lorde and Marge Piercy and Angela Davis and Valerie Solanas and The Lesbian Avengers offer us language and theory through which to think and speak our lives and invent possible feminist futures out of these collective feelings.

Reading, thinking, reworking, and playing with ideas on your own is powerful and important. But there is always something missing from the individual consumption of feminist knowledges. We feel that feminism emerges from our encounters with the world, with trees and cats and moss and dogs and fungi and bricks and concrete and each other. Feminism should never be an I, a me, an individual experience or expression or want.

Feminism is a somewhat ambivalent and always shifting us, a collective movement and a synchronised breath. And it is by sitting with ‘books’ and their matterings, touching tree pulp or screens or listening to vibrating molecules, that we undo our I and encounter an us that precedes and exceeds me. And it is by sitwting together and articulating these encounters as a collective that our feminisms are enlivened, made productive, and maybe world changing.

We invite anyone and everyone with an interest in feminism and a desire to think about this feminism by encountering and engaging with a community to come to a meeting. We meet on the last Wednesday of every month at 5.30pm in Lower Napier LG24. It is also worth tracking us down on Facebook at Reading feminism 21, or emailing us at readingfeminism21@gmail.com to join our mailing list. You don’t have to have read the text to join us. However, we hope that our discussions make feminist voices and texts feel vibrant, alive, and worth your space/ time/attention.

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April

June

Natalie Harkin Archival Poetics

Gloria Anzaldua Borderlands/La Frontera

Angela Davis Woman, Race & Class

Marge Piercy Woman on the Edge of Time

READING LIST

Feburary

March Audre Lorde Sister Outsider

Breanne Fah edited anthology Burn it Down: Feminist Manifestos for the Revolution

Sara Ahmed Living a Feminist Life

January

May

October

December

Alison Bechdel Fun home

Aileen Moreton-Robinson Talkin’ up to the White Woman

Alison Kafer Feminist, Queer, Crip

Donna Haraway Manifestly Haraway

August

November

Paul B. Preciado Testo Junkie

Trinh T. Minh-Ha Woman, Native, Other

July September

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Reviewing the Latest Albums from Female Artists based on their Pussy Power (designated by a ranking system of 1-5 tampons)

steps back’ to add poignancy. Rodrigo combines the sounds of her idols with flow and flair; a youthful, playful quest for her own musical identity.

FEARLESS

BUT… how feminist is this album? “[T]hat Blonde Girl” sets up the ‘Other woman’ trope, a trope the media ran with in setting up the Rodrigo-Bassett-Carpenter love triangle. This is problematic, and Rodrigo insightfully proves it as she sings “now I’m picking her apart/ like cutting her down will make you miss my wretched heart.” Rodrigo exposes the female rivalry stereotype for the outdated, faulty narrative that it is. My main qualm lies with the final song, ‘hope ur ok’, which, addressed to a metonymic queer girl, ostracised by her family, seems to attempt a sentiment of female empowerment in recognising societally shunned women, but comes across more like a Disney-produced girl-boss anthem, tacked on to Sour in afterthought.

Re-recording Fearless is a reclamation of Swift’s ownership over her music, and a mammoth middle finger to Scooter Braun and the patriarchal dominion he exerts over the music industry.

Sonically however, there is little difference to the original. Swift’s vocals have matured, the mix is a little more polished, and perhaps there’s a touch less Country twang, but otherwise, the tracks are identical. The result is a transportation back to the internalised misogyny brimming in Swift’s naïve, early lyricism. The chaste, girl-next-door protagonist in ‘You Belong With Me’ is ‘not like other girls’; she listens to cooler music, gets a man’s humour, and dons “T-shirts” and “sneakers” as if these are somehow more deserving of self-worth and male attention than “short skirts” and “high heels”.

Swift diminishes the popular girl as superficial and self-absorbed; all because she’s cheer captain, wears makeup and generally conforms to the societally expected feminine mould. The song is a ‘pick me girl’/ ‘nice guy’ POV dressed up as an underdog empowerment narrative: Swift pits women against women and reaffirms a dangerous virgin/ slut dichotomy that suggests (incorrectly) that the former equates to a ‘better’ form of woman.

In effect, listening to Swift’s 2008 lyrics in 2021 enacts a weird internal dissonance. On one hand, there’s the knowledge that the re-release holds ground-breaking feminist significance for the industry, yet on the other, we’re forced to endure the off-putting stagnancy of some very outdated female tropes. Nostalgic? Yes. Timeless? Definitely no. Sorry Taylor, we ride our own White Horses these days.

SOUR Sh*t on “Drivers License” all you want, but you’re lying to yourself if that piano-driven, power ballad of teeny, suburban angst isn’t etched upon your weary heart every time you drive past your Ex’s street. And Rodrigo’s formidable falsetto is just the beginning. Sour is rife with an assorted array of musical influences; a kind of amalgamated homage to the musical predecessors she idolises. Set to punky guitar chords sampled from Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Voodoo Child’, ‘Brutal’ showcases Rodrigo’s witty, half-spoken enquiry into the whereabouts of her “f*king teen-age dream”. Paramore’s pop-punk influence explodes through ‘good 4 you’, and Taylor Swift’s balladry is subtly interpolated in ‘1 step forward, 3

Nevertheless, you have to admire Rodrigo’s honest, intimate style and her powerful ability to voice young female concerns. She misses the mark at times, but is self-reflexive in her growth as a woman and feminist. At only eighteen, she’s released a critically acclaimed album, performed on SNL and posed thumbs-up, shades-on, beside baddie Biden!

This girl is going places.

JUBILEE Michelle Zauner bridges electropop with indie sentiment in Jubilee, an album as ecstatic, catchy and attractive as its title suggests. ‘Be Sweet’ is a breezy, blissful ode to 80’s pop, ‘Sit’ translates oral sex into binary code and ‘Posing in Bondage’ is a frank enunciation of sexual wants. ‘Savage Good Boy’ is told in a metaphoric, sci-fi universe from the perspective of a male capitalist billionaire ready to colonise space; “I want to make the money until there’s no more to be made/ And we will be so wealthy I’m absolved from questioning.” However fictitious and elaborate Zauner’s world-building may be, she clearly grapples with very real patriarchal political concerns (think Bezos and his phallic rocket).

From a feminist perspective, what is so compelling about this album is its absence of a male subject.

This is not a break-up album but a heart-break album: Zauner lost her mother to cancer, and Jubilee is a coming to terms with life after bereavement; a simultaneous embracing of life’s joy and tumult.

Zauner is intricate and creative as she navigates her Korean-American identity, capitalist sentimentalities, base sexual desires and her art. She deals with complex, inclusive concerns of womanhood with subtlety and without male influence.

Words by Georgia Penglis 57

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Why Girl Boss Never Works I have just about had it with these ‘girl bosses’ and their claims of empowerment. What exactly are you girl bossing here? You are now in charge of a system with a façade of democracy but really what it is, is a very deliberate and organised system that oppresses and exploits women of colour, immigrant women, working women, poor women, disabled women, queer women and single mothers. Capitalism does not empower anyone, regardless of gender. The agents of capitalism are the economic elite and the political figures that support them. And often, such is the case with prime ministers and presidents. It is never a point of celebration when one of these agents are a woman or even a person of colour, because what marginalised, disenfranchised or oppressed these people is a specific structure of politics and economics that continues to live on. So, I don’t know about you, but when a woman finds herself as an agent of capitalism it only looks like she is now the power that harms society, breaks families and crushes the human spirit.

She has not ended the struggles women face, she has merely become the inflictor and enabler of the struggles. There is no liberation from the patriarchy, there is no safety from gender violence, there is no escape from exploitation and poverty, there is no peace with imperialism and there is no health, welfare, stability and prosperity in society under capitalism. By becoming a ‘girl boss’, whether it’s the prime minister, vice president or a CEO she is no hero and not worthy of any praise. She has only become the next tool to hurt people and to suppress people. She has only occupied the space of the problem.

She has become the iron fist. Sweet talking about women in leadership, fighting misogyny and supporting women are only words. It’s a deceptive front designed to impress and satisfy white feminism, or in other words, people who don’t critically think. If so-called empowering women like Julia Gillard really cared about transforming the conditions that all women live under she would not have cut-off the reasonable welfare for single mothers, she would not have participated in Australia’ s brutal imperialist foreign policy, she would not have protected corporations at the expense of the workers, she would not have planted hurtful policies such as the ‘My School’ website that turned out to be a multi-million dollar coaching industry and she would not have joined, enabled and commended the Labor Party. So called allies like Florence Given, author of ‘Women Don’t Owe You Pretty’ talked about her white privilege, talked about capitalism, talked about the male gaze and talked about living free of the social structures that objectify her and yet when she attained fame and a social media following from her book, it was revealed her ideas were stolen from a black woman and her team of lawyers promoted this white woman endlessly, thus ultimately pushing back the work of black people. At the end of the day, being a ‘girl boss’ is allowing capitalism to perpetuate, and there is nothing to praise about that. Look at what ‘girl boss’ really is, a fluke and a tool of the patriarchy.

It must not fool us into believing sexism has been battled and we have at long last been freed. Instead, let’s empower ourselves and other women by abolishing the very system that has made us objectified, exploited and pitted against each other. And giving black women the recognition and space they bloody deserve.

Words by Habibah Jaghoori

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Words by Michelle Roylance

BWS

“Mrs Hackworth? Do you understand the question?”

Alison Hackworth made no sign of response, instead she stared at her hands.

They were red, covered in something sticky. Paint she presumed, but why would she be covered in paint? She looked down. It was on her pyjamas; it was all over them and her legs too. Perhaps it had been the kids.

“Who are you?” She asked, without properly looking at him. Her eyes struggled to focus on one particular thing. Her throat was dry and there was something bitter in the back of her mouth. This red, sticky stuff didn’t smell like paint, it smelt like blood.

“I already told you ma’am I’m Sergeant Gahad, I’m just trying to ask you a few questions.”

Alison looked from his dark, blue uniform to the police car parked down the road a bit. She glanced around with a frown. What was she doing out on the street at night? And why were some of her neighbours standing outside their houses and staring at her?

“Now I’ve activated a tape recorder Mrs Hackwork, would you mind identifying yourself for me?”

“My name is Alison Hackworth.” Alison replied, her voice lacking any emotion.

“Thank you. Now I’ll proceed to ask you some questions. I must tell you that you do not have to answer these questions, but if you choose to do so they will be recorded and can be used as evidence against you. Do you understand?”

“I-” Alison paused, she looked at the recording device in the police officer’s hand, small numbers were ticking away with each passing second. “I think so.”

Sergeant Gahad sighed but continued with his questions.

“Mrs Hackworth do you know where we are?”

Alison felt almost insulted by this question. “Of course, this is my house.”

“Good, and do you remember when I arrived here tonight?”

Alison thought, she placed a hand to her cheek, it was cool, but also sticky, she pulled it away and rubbed her fingers together. Was it paint? It had to be blood. But she couldn’t remember what from.

“The last thing I remember was… I went in to say goodnight to my children, then went to bed myself. Normally I might read but my husband was already asleep, I didn’t want to disturb him.” She frowned, “Where is Peter? And the girls?” Alison looked around her front lawn, there were other policeman and ambulances.

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“Oh God. Oh no what happened.”

“Mrs Hackworth, I need you to calm down, forget everyone else. Can you think back to when I arrived? I entered the house, it was dark. I came into the kitchen; you were on the floor and so was your husband.”

“Peter?”

“That’s right, I need you to try and remember what you said to me, try and remember what happened.”

Alison’s mind coiled. She remembered wiping her cracked hands on the tea-towel and hanging it to dry on the hook above the empty sink. Climbing the narrow stairs, her ankle causing her a bit of difficulty, tucking in the already sleeping Lucy and Ruby. Then the lump in her throat as she neared her bedroom door. She remembered the care she’d taken to turn the gold knob silently with sweaty palms. Softly padding her way to the bed and slipping in beside her husband, but not too close. She was far enough to the edge that she could feel the thick stitching of the mattress where one side met the other. She knew it must have taken quite some time to fall asleep, it always did. Her ankle still throbbed from the fall a few days ago, but more than that, it was the time her mind always raced and always promised her that tomorrow would be different.

“I don’t remember anything after falling asleep.” Alison told the sergeant, “Now can you please tell me what’s going on.” She looked at him, and, for the first time she properly met his face, it wasn’t quite how she imagined, his skin was dark, and his face seemed kind.

Behind black-rimmed glasses his eyes were blue, a piercing blue. Like the man in her dream that night. The man who had found her after “No.” She muttered; her voice caught in her throat as images started to fill her mind.

“No, no!” She placed a hand on the Sergeant’s chest. “No, you’re not real. Where’s Peter?”

“Mrs Hackworth, can you tell me anything about what happened to your husband?”

Alison’s hands grew clammy, her breath ragged, as if the air was getting caught in her throat. Sergeant Gahad watched as she started shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

“Mrs Hackworth, your husband, Peter Hackworth is lying on your kitchen floor. Do you know how he got there?”

“Just tell me if Pete’s alright.” Alison whispered, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

Sergeant Gahad let out another heavy sigh. “Mrs Hackworth, your husband is dead.”

Alison doubled over with a throaty scream, snot ran from her nose, phlegm lined her mouth. “Oh God no, please no, God what have I done?”

“Mrs Hackworth, did you kill your husband?”

“I don’t know, I don’t know, I don’t remember.”

Alison brought her hands up and saw their bloody stains through a blur. She re-examined her clothes, her legs, her arms, even her hair, all were marked with the blood of her husband.

Had she killed him? She didn’t know. Moments of her dream kept surfacing in her mind, the smashed glass in the kitchen sink, the missing knife in the knife rack, Pete’s anger sending shivers through her, then his body, cold and lifeless on the white tiles of their kitchen floor.

Blood gushed from the wound in his chest where the black handled knife impaled him. The knife that had been in the set Alison had received for Mother’s Day three years ago, the set that sat in a rack on the kitchen counter. Always clean. Always sharp.

“Oh gosh. What if- I think I- I killed my husband.”

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The Asian Community of The University of Adelaide

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Testimonies

“I am a Pakistani immigrant. I migrated with my family about two years ago. When I arrived here, I noticed that my accent, the way I dress and the way I look differentiates me from the majority of the people in Adelaide. I noticed how sometimes it was hard for others to understand my accent like it was to me from them.

But , the reactions from them seemed of frustration and confusion rather than to learn and understand. Many times I wanted to fit in, but my accent, my skin tone, and my sense of style or living are my decisions. Someone’s opinion or frustration does not invalidate me.”

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“The recent travel ban on Australian citizens in India epitomises racism towards Indians. It has become increasingly obvious that those who have spent years in Australia to obtain citizenship and those who were born in this country continue to be seen as ‘other’. With COVID-19 raging in several other countries, no such drastic targeted action with the threat to jail citizens had been taken before. This differential treatment is not only racist in nature, but blatantly violates the autonomy of the Indian community and also Indian Australians like myself.”

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A Korean woman was at a park, sitting by herself beside a children’s playground. She had a book in her hands. A young girl came up to her, with her hand stretched out. The girl wanted to shake hands.

The woman bent down to greet the young girl, only for the child’s mother to run in her direction and scoop her child away from the woman’s friendly hands, a rushed whisper caught her ears: “We don’t go talk to those kinds of strangers”.

Those kinds. The words sank in the Korean woman’s heart, echoing in her mind like a mock.

4

A Vietnamese woman got on her bus on the way to the city to see a show at the Adelaide Fringe. A group of drunken people climbed on the bus, noticed her, and asked if she had Covid.

She dared not say a single word. She shook her head. But then, her throat itched and coughed reflexively. She rang the bell and got off five stops away from her destination, dodging a bottle stinking of alcohol on her way out.

A Filipino woman was withdrawing money at a bank. A white middle-aged male came up and asked her if she was sending money home. When another woman defended her, saying that what she did with her money was none of his business, the man said quickly: “It’s okay. I was just trying to say hello. I have a wife from Thailand.”

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Words by Bisma Changez, Habibah Jaghoori, and Ngoc Lan Tran

A Palestinian: “People tend to get confused when I tell them I am indeed a person of colour.

Yet, my looks and accent do not give away my ethnicity-according to people. A few years ago, I had an encounter with a man in his 40s at one of my classes at university. He said to me that I do not look Palestinian. My concern about his statement was his tone. His tone almost gave away how pleased he was with the assumption of me not being a person of colour.”

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An Asian girl was shopping at her local Foodland for the first time.

She wanted to walk around to see how aisles are arranged.

On her way to the check out, the service person asked to check her bag.

She wondered if she was being profiled, because none of the other shoppers were being checked.

She could not bear to stick around to confirm this, and she was too scared to ever come back to that Foodland for her groceries again.

These agressions, in all their shapes and forms, are being felt by the Asian community everyday. During the Covid-19 pandemic, this kind of racism and hate has been exacerbated in a multitude of ways and permeated throughout Asian communities in the world.

The seven testimonies presented in this article are all based here, in Adelaide.

And thus, we feel that it is time we make a change.

The students here lack the support they need to be safe from racism and other forms of violence. UofA has a large Asian student body, international and domestic, and it is time to centre their wellbeing and protection above monetary values.

The University of Adelaide should be held accountable. Academic institutions like UofA are structured as a business and put profit before people. It has participated in the violence that racism is, against its students.. Microaggressive or not. When Universities partner with weapons companies, they are ultimately targeting the peace and livelihood of their POC students. When Universities white-wash their literature and resources, they are ultimately erasing the pain that racism has inflicted.

We believe that such reactions and prejudice from society affects the wellbeing of the community. As women of colour and of Asian heritage, we created the page The Asian Community of The University of Adelaide on the basis of a mutual recollection of the racism and misconceptions that have been thrown at us as a community. The page is a platform for our voice to be heard.

One voice, one experience may be deemed as a micro-aggression; as small and insignificant.

But the voice from all of us is different. It is the voice of a magnified collective, a grand testimony to the recurring social problem of racism that lurks in the corners of our everyday lives.

We encourage Asian students to stand and use this page as a platform to speak up and make others aware about our struggles, our hurdles, and the battles that we fight. We embrace the inclusivity of all those who are of Asian heritage and identify as Asian on our campus and beyond. Let your voice be heard. Let us stand for human rights and advocate to encourage students’ wellbeing. Let us gather and appreciate the nuances of our cultures and the differences of our identities.

Student societies, student unions and student groups who fight against the status quo are the pushers for change. By revealing the impacts of racism on the lives of students we can greatly influence the discourse on racism as a systemic weapon and learn how to dismantle it. The Asian Community of The University of Adelaide is not only about amplifying the voices of victims but it’s about reclaiming our experiences, creating our own space and building a collective manifesto that will lead to a great many things coming.

Share your story, we’ll keep it anonymous: asiancommunityuniadl@gmail.com

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France, Hijab Ban and What It All Means.

“

And, you, Zainab! Mention your name in the hearts and souls of the women of our nation who desperately need you to put the fire of love and pain in her soul.

Ignorance has placed her in slavery and abasement, the West pulls her towards a hidden enslavement. Break the mechanisms that are making a new kind of fool out of her to further humiliate her by using her to fill their leisure time and for the greedy mouths of the capitalists who introduce her to the market, to give pleasure to the

”

dirty desires of the bourgeoise.

- Ali Shariati Oh France. With your fine dining, rich history of art, captivating architecture, exquisite fashion and the so-called language of love to top it off.

Oh Hijab. The model of eternal modesty, of devotion to a higher purpose, of resistance against systems, of freewill and choice, of piety and safeguarding.

Earlier in March this year, the French Senate introduced legislation as part of their ‘anti-separationism’ bill to ban Muslim women under the age of 18, mothers accompanying their children at school events , athletes at sporting events and university students from wearing the headscarf.

The hijab is an internal and external practice. It’s about promoting character, morals and virtue in the face of ever changing-trends, objectivity and

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materialism. The hijab is a religious prescription designed for a lifestyle that does not adopt social, cultural and economic influences as it’s drive and reason. Rather it is associated with a set of principles designed to prevent a person from becoming the target of these influences. Life’s journey should be laid out not by oppressive systemic ideals but by ideals that liberate and dignify humans. It is a practical code for living authentically and not living to perform.

It is something that is prescribed for all people in the faith, not just women. The physical aspect of hijab represents the veil over a woman’s body.

By introducing this bill, the French government has revealed it’s racist, sexist and Islamophobic face. This bill is an act of political and social warfare towards Muslim women. Further, the bill declares war on feminism, on freedom,

on unity among cultures and on equality.

The bill is set to take away the basic human rights of Muslim women by humiliating them and alienating them.

By stripping a woman of her right to dress and present herself to society in a manner that she has chosen and that her faith has prescribed is stripping her of freedom and autonomy. It is subjugating her to male centric standards that have been pioneered by corrupt and carnal hands and have made her an object of their offences.

The headscarf ban is an attack on all women and all women should be angered by this.

The reason this bill has been introduced and pushed for is because the essence of the hijab is a threat to the foundation of their perverted power.

rising poverty rates, the violent crushing of the yellow-vest protestors and the elitist tourism industry. Or perhaps, it can be found in the French Government’s involvement in imperialism and war crimes, in bombing the middle-east, in stealing oil and in helping facilitate apratheid Israel?

Perhaps, the French Government ought to focus on the injustice and cruelty it perpetuates at home and abroad before it pretends to care about liberty and equality.

Revolutionary martyr Amina Al-Sadr stood against the tyrant of her time, Saddam Hussein, while being present in her society, an activist in politics and firm in her faith and strong with her Hijab. Like her, I have hope that these tyrants will not force us into submission but rather only further fuel us in our strength and in our determination against them.

France is a capitalist country and its policies and laws revolve around upholding the rules of capitalism. Capitalism relies on all to follow a rigid mindset. Any thought or philosophy that questions the purpose of humans, human rights, human dignity and the genuine and overall welfare of society is an attack on the immoral, animalistic and anti-intellectual nature of capitalism. The hijab is a protest against capitalism and its agents.

Here, one must really ponder the national motto of France: “Liberty, Equality and Fraternity” and try to find evidence of these three concepts at play.

Maybe, it can be found in the increasing wealth gap, and oh so coincidentally

WORDS BY Habibah Jaghoori

The patriarchy works by objectifying women in the pursuit of their sexist and greedy desires. This bill is what the patriarchy looks like on a systemic level.

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Satanists are Welcome.

Women are Not, Says AUU

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In a bold new move, the Adelaide University Union has approved an occult club for Witches, Satanists & Occultists to share knowledge, food & company”.

One student at UofA, Mary, who wishes to remain anonymous said:

Meanwhile, neither the Women’s Collective, nor the Pro-Choice club NOR the Endometriosis and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) Society club have been affiliated at the time of this article.

I wanted to be part of the Women’s Collective (the real one, not the SRC knock off), but since I can’t have that, I decided to become what sexists keep calling me — a witch.

“I welcome the new Occult Club.

An anonymous member of the AUU whose board opposed the Women’s Collective twice, had this to say:

Now I can get out my anger in a healthy way— by cursing my enemies.

“Yeah well, some thought it was controversial to affiliate an occult club, but really the union has to stand by their standards of not discriminating against people for reasons of race, sex, religion or if they happen to worship the Prince of Darkness. Wait, did I say sex?

I’m sorry, we still discriminate against that.”

*We advise our readers on the satirical nature of this piece.

I’d bet my soul, it’s not.”

Words by thebashfulathiest

But, think about it. Is worshipping Satan really that bad? I mean, is Hell really that bad? The real Hell on Earth is if we allow women to have their own spaces to talk about and advocate for equality and protest against issues that affect women. Is that a world we want to live in?

So watch out” (cackle, cackle).

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Words by Kirsty Kittel

Audre Lorde Audre Lorde Audre Lorde

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If you have not heard of Audre Lorde, the self-defined “black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet”, and you consider yourself a feminist, put down your copy of Women Don’t Owe You Pretty and pick up Zami: A New Spelling of My Name.

were lived, and that among the most challenging paths were those walked by gay black women, whose sources of oppression from being gay, being black, and being women, simply do not and cannot exist independently of each other.

Zami is Lorde’s 1982 memoir, or “biomythography”, as she puts it, extending across her childhood in 1930s Harlem, her freshman year in Mexico, and later work in Pennsylvania as an X-ray technician. Zami follows Lorde’s exploration of the intersections between race, gender, and sexuality.

Across a vignette of her memories are repeated encounters with attitudes of gay white women, who collectively seem to suggest that the oppression they experience is indistinguishable from Lorde’s as a gay black woman.

In the backdrop of social movements for civil rights and women’s liberation, Lorde evokes within us how real lives

Yet despite differences of race and sexuality among women, Lorde’s prevailing message and spirit of the book is embodied in the meaning of the title Zami, “a Carriacou name for women who work together as friends and lovers.” Lorde gives her readers the privilege of glimpsing into her soul, perusing through a mosaic of diary entries, poetry, and anecdotes. During a time where, as she accounts it, women of different races did not mix with one another, stories of Lorde’s love affairs and friendships with queer women become shining examples of “connection in the name of woman,” a true unifying cause.

“ black, Lesbian, mother, warrior, poet” 69

TRIGGER WARNING: Sexual Assault + Suicide GENERAL WARNING: It’s a review…so spoilers.

I left the cinema, having viewed the recently released Promising Young Woman, overwhelmed by the profound and, even in its grimness, empowered storytelling. I was not alone in my appreciation of this film, with it winning the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. So, needless to say, I recommend watching it. The film to me, like most good art, shared messages about the world we live in today. Messages that, unfortunately, still not all are ready to hear, but must be delivered regardless. Why? Because there are too many promising young women who, statistically speaking, are destined to suffer in mind or body at the hands of men, if we do not change.

For those who have not yet viewed the film, a quick recap on the premise.

Cassie, the protagonist, is an intelligent and cunning young woman, who dropped out of medical school, seeking revenge for her best friend Nina who was also a medical student, but took her own life after being raped by another classmate.

In the beginning, this revenge focuses on men – a clear commentary on the ingrained rape culture of our society. We see Cassie pretend to be intoxicated, and then get taken home by unsuspecting, supposedly “nice guys”. Guys, who in every instance, attempt to take advantage of her; although all quickly backtrack when learning of her soberness, as she confronts them in their predatory behaviour.

Later in the film, Cassie’s revenge becomes more targeted. She contacts all the people involved in silencing Nina’s story – Madison, another fellow medical student, a university dean, and the rapist’s (Al Monroe’s) lawyer. This leads into the first message.

It appears empathy must be taught.

The director, Emerald Fennel, illustrates twice the idea that having empathy for a victim’s experience must for some be taught. To preface, this is in no way ever presented as an excuse for the behaviour of the silencers, but rather reveals an inherent bias that exists within humans – the ‘fundamental attribution bias’. In simple terms, sometimes when another person experiences difficulty, we as humans tend to assume that something about who they are or the way they acted brought about their unfortunate circumstances. This is the core cognitive bias that is at play in victim-blaming.

We see this in the first instance with Madison, who claims, that‘if you have a reputation for sleeping around then maybe people aren’t going to believe you…it’s crying wolf’. Further, as she herself becomes gradually more intoxicated she notes ‘… don’t get blackout drunk all the time and then expect people to be on your side…’ Seeing that Madison still has no understanding for the cruelty of her views, Cassie replicates the very circumstances that Madison deems incriminating for Nina. She leaves Madison drunk at a restaurant and pays a man to take her to a hotel room, although to simply to monitor her. This gives the illusion of an unwanted, sexual advance occurring. An incredibly dark

Promising Young Woman 70

A Film Sending a Message

Words by Grace Atta form of revenge – which in the real world, is in no way condoned – causes Madison to realise the error in her ways.

The second instance is with the dean of the university, who when made aware of Nina’s rape told her there was no point in pursuing the matter because it was ‘too much of a ‘he said, she said’ situation’. Further, she too points to Nina’s intoxication as ‘a bad choice’, in making herself ‘vulnerable’. The Dean continues to say that accused boys must be given ‘the benefit of the doubt’; a view Cassie instantly challenges when revealing she picked up the Dean’s daughter and introduced her to the boys who now reside in the room which Nina was raped in. As the Dean begs to know the location of her daughter, admitting her wrongdoing in the past, Cassie notes plainly the bias at play. ‘I guess it feels different when it’s someone you love.’

While this film presents a ‘teaching’ of empathy in the most extreme of circumstances, it raises the issue and possibly offers a solution for those who continually doubt the experiences of women. What if it were you? What if it were your daughter? Your sister? Your wife? Your best friend? Admittedly, I am the first to say that empathy should not require such framing, especially for mature adults. But if the alternative is victims not being heard, then teaching it in such a way is nonetheless a step towards progress.

The second message: not all men, but enough.

In amongst this pursuit for revenge, Cassie reconnects with Ryan, also once a fellow medical student, who she falls in love with. Cassie discovers, through acquired video evidence, that Ryan, among a crowd of other onlookers, witnessed Nina be raped and did nothing.

Continually, over the last year especially, we have heard the phrase ‘not all men’.

It is this very aspect of the film’s narrative that reminds me of the words of stand-up comedian, Daniel Sloss. ‘When 1 in 10 men are shit and the other 9 do nothing, they might as well not fucking be there.’ Director Fennel, with this revelation of Ryan’s past, once again presents us with the most extreme – though not unrealistic – version of men being bystanders to the abuse of women. The film was criticised by some for lacking a portrayal of a ‘good man’. I argue this was done not as a true reflection of the nature of all men, but to emphasise the power imbalance

that exists nonetheless. The film reminds us that the ability and opportunity to abuse, intimidate and silence a person of the opposite sex, with little repercussion, has always been held by men.

Regardless if they intend to use it.

The finale: we are all protagonists, and a narrative device will not save us either.

Following Cassie learning of her lover’s involvement in Nina’s rape, the film takes a turn. Cassie confronts Ryan, blackmails him for the details of the rapist’s (Al’s) upcoming bachelor party and crashes it. She gets Al alone in a room and intends on scarring him with Nina’s name all over his body…just as Nina had felt his all over hers.

However at the last second, Al frees himself from the restraints and overpowers Cassie, smothering her with a pillow. Cassie dies.

Like any film where the protagonist dies, not all were a fan. I argue however, that this is one of the few instances where it could not have ended any other way. The film is a dark comedy that presents us with the very worst of this world.

It is a bleak reflection of the fate faced by so many women. And the reality of it is that every woman who has died at the hands of a man was a protagonist in the story of their own lives.

No narrative device could save them, and so fittingly, Cassie could not be saved. She too was suffocated, but notably not silenced.

The film does not end at her death. Al and a friend burn her body (the witch’s death reference is not lost on me), and in the final scene, we see police arresting Al at his wedding, and a pre-scheduled text message from Cassie sent to Ryan, telling him that her revenge is now complete, signing off with ‘Love, Cassie & Nina’.

Although the audience may still be disheartened with her death, there is an undeniable satisfaction in knowing she still held the upper hand, and the justice she sought prevailed even beyond her death.

Three messages about one real world.

As I’m sure you have grasped by now, the film was confronting at times. But it sends a clear message about the world we live in today. So let’s learn from it. Let’s empathise. Let’s recognise that blood splatters onto every bystander.

And let’s sit with the gravity of grieving another protagonist, every time we lose yet another promising young woman.

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Lili Wilkinson Interview

Lili Wilkinson is the award-winning Australian author of sixteen books for children and young adults including Green Valentine, The Boundless Sublime and After the Lights Go Out. She established insideadog.com.au and the Inky Awards at the Centre for Youth Literature, State Library of Victoria. Lili has a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Melbourne, and now spends most of her time reading and writing books for teenagers.

What does Feminism mean to you?

For me, Feminism is a concept that’s always evolving as I learn more, and as the world around me changes. I want people of all genders to have equal rights and opportunities. I also acknowledge that intersectionality is and must be a big part of how we think about feminism – that race, sexuality, gender identity, socioeconomic status, ability, age and many other factors contribute to one’s lived experience, and one’s experience of discrimination.

making up stories was the next best thing.

What topics and themes are most important to you to write about?

I tend to write about the importance of being clear-eyed – of critical thinking. Of not blindly following, but making clear, informed choices. I also love writing about morality and ethics, and all the grey areas between right and wrong. And of course I love writing about teenage girls – girls who are smart and fierce and opinionated, who make their own choices and learn from their mistakes.

What do you think makes a good story?

Narrative traction. Relatable (but not necessarily likeable) characters. A great hook that reels you in and pulls you through the narrative. Well-crafted plot and pacing. Humour, even if it’s not a lot.

When did you first know that you wanted to become a writer?

How do you approach constructing female characters? Is it different from male characters?

As long as I can remember. Stories and storytelling were always a big part of my life. I wanted to have grand adventures, but after I determined there were no secret passages in my house, no wardrobe-portals, and I had no magic powers or hidden abilities, I figured that

I often start with an idea I want to explore in the character. For Green Valentine, I wanted to look at the trope of the ‘mean girl’. I’d just read a spate of books and seen a bunch of films that portrayed all popular girls as these monstrous bitches, and it was making me

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Words by lili Wilkinson, interview by michelle roylance

feel hugely uncomfortable. Because I’m pretty sure the mean girl trope is just another way to delegitimise powerful women. I was never a popular girl, but in my experience the popular girls weren’t mean – they were popular because they were nice and people liked them.

From that first conceptual idea, I ask two key questions – what does this character want, and what’s stopping them from having it?

After that I go through a more complex list of questions to figure out who they are, and what their story is going to be.

I do the same for male characters too. And, I try to question my own biases and assumptions. So in The Erasure Initiative, I had one character who was a corrupt politician, and one who was a tech billionaire/inventor. And I’d made both of them male without thinking – because in this world, corrupt politicians and tech billionaires tend to be men. I try to make time in my brainstorming process to ask – would it be more interesting if the genders here were flipped? Or if this character was different from the default in some other way? So then I had to decide which character I would make a woman… and realised that there was absolutely no reason why they couldn’t both be women, which they are in the final version.

When I’m writing about identities that I don’t share – race, disability, gender – I make sure I consult people who do identify in that way. I

have conversations with people, ask questions, do research and employ sensitivity where appropriate. I think this is hugely important – I don’t want to just write books about white middle-class girls because I don’t want my readers to think that these are the only stories that matter. But I do the work to make sure the representation is accurate and respectful.

I won’t always get it right – I think we need to have space to make mistakes, as long as we are committed to learning from them.

What do you think makes a strong female character and which literary character do you think embodies this the most?

I know there’s a lot of debate about the term “strong female character”. Personally I like it, and interpret strong to mean complicated and well-written, rather than physically strong. So, I think strong female characters want things.

They have hopes and fears and secrets. They have flaws. They are not defined by the men around them – they define themselves. They pass the Bechdel test! As for which characters, there’s no way I can choose just one.

How about Anne Shirley and Jo March for the classics? Kristy Thomas from The Babysitter’s Club. Alanna from Tamora Pierce’s Song of the Lioness series. Meg Murry from A Wrinkle In Time. The Princess In Black. And a shoutout to a TV show – the She-Ra reboot has some of

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Lili Wilkinson Interview

the most badass, complex female characters (and female friendships) I’ve ever come across.

Which of your books are you most proud of and why?

I’m proud of all my books, but probably Pink.

It’s nearly fifteen years since I wrote it, and I’m still getting emails from young people saying it helped them to figure out their own identity.

It’s pretty dated now, the world has changed so much in that time. There’s some language in there that I definitely wouldn’t use if I were writing it today, but overall I am super proud of it, and stand behind the message of it being fine if you haven’t decided what identity box you fit in (you never have to decide if you don’t want to).

What sort of messages do you hope your readers take away from your books?

So for my Phd, my research explored whether YA literature was making teens more engaged in activism. And the answer was… sometimes!

But rarely when a book had a really explicit political “message”. No reader likes being told what to think – teens especially. So I hope that my books encourage readers to think about something – anything – in a way that they haven’t before.

What do you think makes a ‘classic’?

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A text that remains relevant long after it’s published. A text that any reader can identify with, regardless of whether their own identities match those of the characters.

What is your favourite ‘classic’ and why?

It’s a tie between Winnie-the-Pooh and Anne of Green Gables. The first because the language is just so good and so funny. The second because I just adore Anne’s dreamy way of looking at the world. I related so strongly to her as a child, and still do.

There is a growing movement behind the need for new ‘classics’, why do you think that is?

Because most of the old ones are written by white men. There’s this bias we have that if something’s old, it must be good. And because most of the old books are by white men, we intuit that books by men are good, and books by women are frivolous. Hence the ridiculous genre of “women’s fiction”. We get into this tangle where books by white men are overrepresented on our curriculums, our bookshelves, and other voices don’t get elevated as a consequence.

If society was to re-classify titles that fit under ‘classics’, what impact might this action have?

Stories allow us to walk in someone else’s shoes – to see through someone else’s eyes. It is vital

for empathy. When all our stories are by white men, we are saying that stories about other people aren’t important. And if stories about women, or people of colour, or queer people, or disabled people aren’t important… aren’t we saying that their lives aren’t important? White male need to stop being the default, the normal. We need to see humans as they are – a complex, messy intersection of different identities, alike in our differences, but all deserving of respect and empathy.

As a woman in the publishing field, have you ever experienced sexism or seen it in the treatment of other female authors? How did you combat this?

I’m lucky to work in Children’s and YA publishing, which is female-dominated. It’s a very safe space that is putting in a lot of work to be more inclusive in the areas where it historically hasn’t been. But there’s sexism everywhere.

Male teachers at schools I visit ask “will there be anything for the boys in your presentation?”. Disrespect from students. Male authors asking “where are the men?” when an awards shortlist comes out with no male authors. That last one is particularly galling as for about thirty years, there was not a single book in the Children’s Book Council Older Readers award that had a female protagonist. I despise getting called Miss in the classroom (by staff and

students), so am pretty happy to be able to smile politely and inform them that “It’s Doctor, actually”.

You run workshops on ‘gender bias in literature and culture more broadly’, what sort of things do you cover in these workshops and what sort of impact do you hope they have on participants?

Sexism is learned, and it’s learned young. Walk into Target or Kmart and look at the designs on kids’ Tshirts. The boys’ clothes all feature predators (dinosaurs, wolves, lions, sharks), and the girls’ clothes feature prey (birds, rabbits, mice, butterflies). Pointing this out to kids and teens makes a big difference. By giving young people (and adults) the tools to evaluate some of this stuff – or even just to notice it – they become empowered to resist. I have a six-year-old son, and we talk about this stuff all the time. It doesn’t have to be lecturing or sanctimonious.

I’m not there to tell you that you’re doing it wrong. I just want you to think about some things you might not have considered. Because gender bias is bad for all of us, not just for girls and women.

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My Badass, Scrupulous Friend Sweetie, you are beauty I have love that could be compared To the way the moon loves The shine of the sun on her face Even when she hides away In the dark, she still Comes back to be blessed again

My love, you are truth Proof that women can grow from The concrete path A defiant flower in a crack Streaming through, unphased Saying “I will thrive and You will watch me as I do” My dear, you are endless And I hope to be there when you Take this world by the balls And scream your name Into the universe, claiming it And I hope everyone loves And accepts you, Like I have

WORDS BY ANNABEL FEDCESIN

Darling, you are simplicity My heart holds your face like A child holds the dearest toy That scares away the shadows And brings the phantom Sensation of a hug And the feeling of family

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Words by emily tattersall

WORDS BY Sage Jupe

I stumbled upon Women Don’t Owe You ate and transparent, resulting in Given’s Pretty earlier this year, being advertised words feeling inclusive and relevant to as a top seller in one of my favourite all. With the frequent incorporation of her are protesting too. OnIIsrael’s northernown personal by border check-points, tear gas, and bookstores.

In this instance, really did anecdotes, Given emulates border, troops opened fire when a group limited access to basic rights like runjudge this book by its cover and impula close friend giving you honest recounts of Lebanese and Palestinian protesters ning water.

A population of brave young sively purchased Florence Given’s first of when she fucked up, or finally asserted on the other side cut through the border fighters. published book due to its gorgeous exteher own boundaries. This also enables fence and briefly to rior and intriguing title.crossed. From JordanGiven to carefully integrate her own witEgypt, to New York and Sydney, almosttinessSides need practical to be taken in this struggle. alongside messages and everywhere people have stood up to this Hundreds in Adelaide picked the side of Women Don’t Owe You Pretty consists of “uncomfortable truths”. In turn, promptinjustice.

Palestinians in and the first protest, 21 chapters on varying, yet equally iming thethe reader to reflect absorb the but there needs to be more. portant topics. This allows one to read the new information being presented to Hereininthe Adelaide as well therein,was chapters order they appear or a them, whilst also enjoying the text. protest of hundreds, demanding a free treat the book like a directory: choosing Palestine in Rundle Mall. what to read based on the subject matter With every chapter I read, I continued to that resonates with them most. learn something new. At times it would Word leaders such as Scott Morrison, orbe about myself, my relationships, or President Biden, have explained GivenUS divulges her Joe initial statement - the the experiences of marginalised people this as a two-sided ‘conflict’ and have I was not fully aware of. For example, book’s title - and simultaneously highit more like a battle of equals, I finally understood why I never felt like lights treated the perspectives and behaviours in some cases outright demonizing that women have been accustomed to, the I could mention my own achievements Palestinians, claiming Israel has ‘a rightin a previous relationship, when Given as a result of “liv[ing] in a patriarchal to defend itself’.

A right to defend itself discussed the idea of “shrinking” yourself. society which prioritises our desirability”. from resistance to their Given also acknowledges her apartheid privilege and Other examples include my strengthened genocide? being a “white, thin, non-disabled, cisunderstanding of why personal “growth gender and neurotypical” woman with a can feel isolating”, and receiving deeper This is media a struggle between and Golilarge social following.

SheDavid uses this insights into identity struggles through ath.toOn the one an ethno-state.

One privilege provide anside: opportunity for Given’s concise explanations concerning of the most relentless military powers gender and sexuality. marginalised people who are often “inin thesilenced, world. Armed with bombs, tentionally mocked ortanks, ignored”, even nuclear arms, and the backing to express their own opinions and expe- of Whenever I was asked “what is it about?”

US,This Australia andinformed many others.

On the when reading Given’s book, I struggled riences. facilitates discusother side: a population of people sions and thoughts about topics that go whose to quickly summarise its highly conland beenrealm stolen, lives seen controlled beyond thehas typical oftheir diversity temporary, wide-ranging, empowering within mainstream media. Consequently, feminist content. Hence, why I wrote this the content of the book is not perceived review. However, in one sentence: Women as being palatable or gimmicky in an Don’t Owe You Pretty is the ultimate attempt to generate sales. “game-changing” feminist bible; encouraging self-reflection, self-discovery, and The tone throughout the text is passionself-love for all.

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One With Yourself

The Greatest Love Story:

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When you are a person of colour, a migrant, a refugee, a woman, transgender, non-binary, a person that has lived their life with any sort of battles and adventures you are a survivor. Being a survivor does not limit you because of your hardships and trauma, it expands your ability to live every day and accept yourself.

I as a woman of colour, a migrant and a Muslim, have always understood my identity and what I carry upon myself. I haven’t always embraced myself for who I am.

That takes time. You have to face what life throws at you: family issues, going through school, understanding yourself and associating yourself with specific communities and trying to fit in. You may be challenged by microaggressions, being cat-called, the feeling of unsafety in public, being scared taking public transport or walking alone, mourning loss, dealing with mental health.

Life is a spectrum , and your identity is how you carry yourself.

Growing up, I saw how women from ordinary households were different; they would always cater to others needs, but there was no scope for individuality. Their lives dwelled on being a homebody. However, my mother was a different being; she had a job catering to her so-called ‘wifely and womanly duties’. She was always an individual. I had a good education, strong public speaking and presentation skills, and was persistent at reminding young girls and individuals of their rights.

When my family and I migrated, I did not experience much cultural shock, as I already knew my rights and abilities. My mother and my

formative environment helped me nurture this perspective. .

Words by Bisma Changez

I am an individual who works to help other people - to help them value the individuality that I have because of my people.

Once you have that trust in yourself, you know you can take over the world, girl!

You are powerful, and you have the power to rock your confidence and talents.

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BOOK REVIEW

She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement

By Jodi Kantor and Meghan Twohey

Shock, sympathy, disgust, hope. This is what it feels like to be taken on the journey behind the investigation that exposed Harvey Weinstein’s repeated sexual abuse investigation against multiple women in the film industry, and as well as the groundbreaking story that ignited the #MeToo movement. Through meticulous recounts of conversations and correspondence, She Said details the trauma and courage of the actresses who spoke up , as well as the against a battle brought forth by Weinstein’s and his enablers to conceal the truth. Best experienced as an audiobook since it is, read by the authors of the book themselves- the New York Times journalists, Jodi Kantor and Meghan Twohey themselves, She Said reminds us that there’s still remains a long way to justice, but that all it takes is one brave woman to set a fire burning.

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Words by Kristen Lucas

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GODDESS QUIZ

1. How would you rather spend your Saturday night? a) Stay in and have a cosy night with a book b) Out in town, dancing the night away c) At the gym, no pain no gain d) A home cooked dinner in with the family

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2. How do you deal with conflict? a) Run away or give them the cold shoulder b) Get revenge by sleeping with their dad c) Go on a rant telling them everything they’ve ever done to wrong you b) They’re excluded from your friend group forevermore 3. You’d win a talent competition at which of the following: a) Sports b) Debate c) Growing the best garden produce! d) Fashion

4. What do you consider the most important attribute in a leader? a) Family values b) Strength c) Charisma d) Brains 5. What do you fear the most? a) Losing your father’s approval b) Kidnapping c) Men d) That you’ll die alone 6. Who is your favourite hero? a) Orion - the giant hunter, killed by a monstrous scorpion b) Aeneas - the founder of Rome, the hero of the Aeneid c) Orpheus - he rescued his love Eurydice from the Underworld d) Odysseus - King of Ithaca and the hero of the Odysse 7. Pick a colour: a) Forest green b) Blue grey c) Peachy pink d) Sunny yellow

Results

Athena: 0-6 Athena (known to the Romans as Minerva) was the goddess of wisdom, textile crafts and warfare. She was born from the forehead of her father Zeus, and in many myths is competitive, righteous, and interested in justice.

Aphrodite: 7-11 Aphrodite (known to the Romans as Venus) is the goddess of love, beauty, and passion.

Though in some myths she is a troublemaker, in Hesiod she is one of the oldest gods of the pantheon, a titan born from Uranus, testament to the elemental power of desire and procreation.

Answer key: (1.) a-0 b-1 c-2 d-3 (2.) a-3 b-1 c-0 d-2 (3.) a-2 b-0 c-3 d-1 (4.) a-3 b-2 c-1 d-0 (5.) a-0 b-3 c-2 d-1 (6.) a-2 b-1 c-3 d-0 (7.) a-2 b-0 c-1 d-3 Join us at Facebook. com/groups/ cahsadelaideuni

Artemis: (2s) 12-15 Artemis (also known as Diana) is goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, the moon, and is huntress, protector of young girls. She was sworn never to marry, and is associated with animals like deer, hunting dogs, bears and boars.

Persephone: (3s) 16-21 Persephone, a vegetation goddess, became queen of the Underworld when she was abducted by Hades. Each year her mother Demeter grieves the months Persephone spends in the Underworld causing the seasons to change to barren Winter. This makes Persephone as the personification of Spring when she returns to Demeter.

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Words by Grace Atta @_esfwr_

Believe me…

if you were to ask whether I see every man as a potential threat my answer will always be yes. (believe me) not because I think it is true

I know there are good men too but because I am not allowed to be wrong. (believe me) their “mishap” will be my misjudgement misunderstanding misguided “Miss. Undecided” Are you sure? not about what to say when you ask questions like that because you already know the answer but it is not one you want to face save it! (believe me) make an enemy out of a survivor but we will all stand beside her.

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