• Shameless Self-Promotion Sunday by Jill January 6, 2013
• Shameless Self-Promotion Sunday by Jill January 13, 2013
• Shameless Self-Promotion Sunday by Jill January 20, 2013
• Shameless Self-Promotion Sunday by Jill January 27, 2013
• Shameless Self-Promotion Sunday by Jill February 3, 2013

Carole King’s “Tapestry” with lyrics

So, what have you been up to? What would you rather be up to? What’s been awesome/awful?
Reading? Watching? Making? Meeting?
What has [insert awesome inspiration/fave fansquee/guilty pleasure/dastardly ne'er-do-well/threat to all civilised life on the planet du jour] been up to?

* Netiquette footnotes:
* There is no off-topic on the Weekly Open Thread, but consider whether your comment would be on-topic on any recent thread and thus better belongs there.
* If your comment touches on topics known to generally result in thread-jacking, you will be expected to take the discussion to #spillover instead of overshadowing the social/circuit-breaking aspects of this thread.

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• Weekly Open Thread with a Yarn-bombed Willow by tigtog April 5, 2013

1. Does it qualify as “brave” or “heroic” to get a preventive mastectomy? I don’t know. Mostly, it sounds like a medical decision made with the aid of her doctor in response to a medical threat, so I suppose that is what it is. What does qualify as brave, in my mind, is to speak about it so openly in a society where women are evaluated on the basis of their breasts, where breast-cancer fundraising comes with the admonition to “save the ta-tas,” and where even now commenters question her choice to “sacrifice” her precious breasts because of a mere 87 percent chance of getting breast cancer. Hopefully, her openness about it will make other women feel more comfortable and less stigmatized discussing their own breast health concerns.

2. Is her choice the right one for every woman? No. It appears to have been the right one for her, but every person’s situation is different. A woman in similar circumstances who chooses not to follow that path is not making an irresponsible choice or failing herself or her family.

3. Mastectomy is not “maiming” or “mutilation.” It’s the removal of body tissue for medical reasons. Her body is not now useless, ugly, or disfigured; it just has different parts than the ones that grew there originally. She is no less a person and no less a woman for having had her breasts removed.

4. That said, her feelings about her post-mastectomy body are hers to feel, just as with any other woman. Some women feel incomplete after a mastectomy, or see their missing breasts as a reminder of what they’ve been through, and choose to get a reconstruction. Some women don’t particularly care, or see their scars as a badge of honor, and choose not to reconstruct. Jolie says she’ll be getting a reconstruction, and her reasons are hers. Our job is not to question; our job is to create a world where a woman isn’t pressured to make medical choices based on society’s expectations of her body, and then leave her to make her choices in that free environment.

5. In her letter, Jolie acknowledges her privilege in having access to exceptional medical care for genetic testing, prophylactic surgery (mastectomy and the oophorectomy she’ll be having in the near future), and breast reconstruction. Some health insurance companies will pay for preventive surgery and reconstruction; others won’t; and many women don’t have health insurance at all. It’s a thing that needs to be fixed. Jolie says, “It has got to be a priority to ensure that more women can access gene testing and lifesaving preventive treatment, whatever their means and background, wherever they live.” That’s hard to argue with.

6. Every day, women go through what Jolie has gone through and don’t get New York Times op-eds about it. They are no more or less brave, nor more or less important, than she is. But almost all of them are less famous, and that’s what enabled Jolie to do what she’s done: Use her sounding board to demystify a scary medical procedure, shed light on an aspect of breast cancer that often gets hidden amid the pinkification, draw attention to a serious gap in women’s access to health care, and maybe make other women feel less alone as they deal with their own circumstances. And that’s hard to argue with, too.

The ACLU Women’s Rights Project (WRP) is dedicated to ensuring that all women can lead lives of dignity free from violence and discrimination, including discrimination based on gender stereotypes.

Women make up almost half the workforce today, and, if they become pregnant, most will work throughout their pregnancy. Given this reality, you probably think the stories below are works of a bygone era. Well, you’d be wrong.

• A woman was 16 weeks pregnant and worked as a cashier at a large retailer in New York City. One day she fainted and was taken to the emergency room. Despite doctor’s orders that she remain vigilant about drinking water, she was severely dehydrated. When the physician asked why she was not drinking enough fluids, she said that her boss would not allow her to drink water while working at the cash register.
• When Shelly (not her real name) became pregnant, she was working two jobs in Indiana to support her family: the overnight shift stocking shelves for a major national retail chain and the day shift packing items to ship for a medical supply company. Her doctor advised her not to lift more than 20 pounds. The medical supply company immediately accommodated these restrictions, but the major national retailer refused to modify her duties. She experienced a lot of pain while doing the heavy lifting and miscarried shortly thereafter.
• An airline ticket agent in Louisiana was told by her doctor not to lift anything heavy at work. Her employer refused to provide her with a “light duty” assignment and told her that she would be placed on unpaid leave if she brought a doctor’s note. Not having an income wasn’t an option, so throughout her pregnancy, she continued to lift heavy bags and spent 10- and 12-hour days on her feet. Toward the end of her pregnancy, she suffered stress-induced toxemia and went into labor prematurely. Her child suffered numerous health complications.
• Julie worked as a full-time driver at UPS. During some months, the size and weight of the packages explode and the work can be physically exhausting. When she became pregnant, she requested a light duty position, just as she had done when she had been injured on the job. But UPS refused to accommodate her and put her on unpaid leave for the rest of her pregnancy.

Stories like these are all too common, and that’s why we need the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), which was introduced in Congress today.

Despite the passage of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act over 30 years ago, which prohibits discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, some employers continue to deny pregnant women the minor job modifications that could protect not only a woman’s pregnancy but also a family’s economic security, forcing pregnant women out of their jobs.

The PWFA would make it crystal clear to employers that they can’t treat pregnant women worse than other workers who have certain job limitations and instead must make reasonable accommodations if doing so doesn’t pose an undue hardship on the business.

Even though Mother’s Day is over, do one more thing for your mom and all the other moms out there: call your members of Congress and ask them to co-sponsor the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act today.

You can find the phone number for your representative here and your senators here.

Learn more about pregnancy discrimination and other civil liberty issues: Sign up for ACLU breaking news alerts, follow ACLU on Twitter, and like ACLU on Facebook.
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• States Fight Back Against Pregnancy Discrimination by Guest Blogger April 19, 2013
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Well, you’ve done it now, Minnesota. You’ve gone and okayed same-sex marriage, and now Michele Bachmann is leaving.

Congresswoman Michele Bachman threatened to leave Minnesota today if the state goes ahead with its plans to legalize gay marriage.

In an interview with a local television station, the conservative firebrand said she believes God will destroy Minneapolis once the legislation is enacted, and wants to be far away when the reckoning happens.

No, don’t go, Michele. Really. Minnesota is begging you. Stay. Well, darn, there she goes.
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Of course, some of you reading this are bisexual. So am I. But for those who aren’t, you may be wondering how to be our allies. Here are some suggestions (by the way, if any other bisexuals have suggestions they’d like to add, please feel free to say so in the comments.)

1. Keep in mind that bisexuality exists when considering someone’s possible sexual orientation. If a person is in a same-sex relationship, don’t assume they’re gay. If a person is in an opposite-sex relationship, don’t assume they’re straight. If a person once dated a man but is now dating a woman, or vice versa, don’t assume one of those relationships was a sham and the other represents their true orientation. If a woman is in a sexual relationship with a man, don’t assume anything she does with a woman is just a show put on for his benefit (by the way, don’t forget polyamory exists too.)
2. Don’t tell someone they’re not really bisexual. You don’t know their feelings. Even if someone has only dated men (or women), it doesn’t mean they’re not also attracted to the other sex.
3. Don’t claim bisexual people aren’t really part of the LGBT community. Even if someone is dating an opposite-sex partner, they can still face biphobia. Being in a straight relationship doesn’t erase a bisexual person’s orientation or mean they can’t be oppressed or don’t need LGBT rights. (For example, I was fired when my employer found out I was bisexual from a post on Facebook. Sadly, this is legal in my state. Did the fact that I was dating a man at the time save my bacon? It did not.) This is also another opportunity for inclusive language – when you’re fighting for people not to be fired, excluded from the Boy Scouts, etc. due to their sexual orientation, say that. Don’t say you’re fighting for gay people specifically, or only talk about gay people being oppressed/excluded.
4. Don’t buy into myths about bisexuals. No, we’re not incapable of being monogamous, at least not any more than straight or gay people are. No, we’re not out to sex up everybody we meet (again, at least not any more than straight or gay people are.) No, we’re not all confused, indecisive, or going through a phase. If someone thinks of themselves as straight but later realizes they’re actually gay or bisexual, does that mean being straight is just confusion, indecision, or a phase most people who identify as straight will grow out of?
5. Use inclusive language. Unless you know for a fact that both members of a couple are gay, refer to them as a same-sex couple, not a gay or lesbian couple. Likewise, use “same-sex marriage” rather than “gay marriage”, “LGBT rights” rather than “gay rights,” “the LGBT community” rather than “the gay community”, “pride” or “LGBT pride” rather than “gay pride”, “homophobia and biphobia” rather than just “homophobia”, and so forth. When naming an organization or group, use “LGBT” rather than “gay” if applicable (for example, a “LGBT-Straight Alliance” rather than a “Gay-Straight Alliance”.)
6. Don’t forget bisexual pride. Remember, it’s LGBT Pride Month (June) and LGBT History Month (October), not just gay pride and history. If your organization or school is acknowledging LGBT pride and/or history, don’t forget to include the contributions of bisexuals. And did you know September 23rd is Celebrate Bisexuality Day? Unfortunately, few people do. You don’t have to go all out – even a Facebook post acknowledging the day could do a lot to raise awareness.
7. If you are part of or support an LGBT rights organization, push them to include bisexuals. Encourage them to use inclusive language (including in the name of their organization), recruit bisexual people as members and staff, dedicate a reasonable amount of time and energy to bi-specific issues, celebrate bisexual pride, and speak out against biphobia. Consider finding another organization if they don’t.

Remember, bisexuals are part of the queer community, not to mention mainstream society. Try your best to fight biphobia within yourself and society at large, just as you no doubt fight transphobia, homophobia, sexism, racism, and so forth. Good luck and thanks for reading.
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• Shameless Self-Promotion Sunday by Jill January 6, 2013
• Shameless Self-Promotion Sunday by Jill January 13, 2013
• Shameless Self-Promotion Sunday by Jill January 20, 2013
• Shameless Self-Promotion Sunday by Jill January 27, 2013
• Shameless Self-Promotion Sunday by Jill February 3, 2013

e.g. What have you been up to? What would you rather be up to? What’s been awesome/awful?
Reading? Watching? Making? Meeting?
What has [insert awesome inspiration/fave fansquee/guilty pleasure/dastardly ne'er-do-well/threat to all civilised life on the planet du jour] been up to?

* Weekly Netiquette reminders:
* There is no off-topic on the Weekly Open Thread, but consider whether your comment would be on-topic on any recent thread and thus better belongs there.
* If your comment touches on topics known to generally result in thread-jacking, you will be expected to take the discussion to #spillover instead of overshadowing the social/circuit-breaking aspects of this thread.

Similar Posts:

• Weekly Open Thread with Tapestry by tigtog May 17, 2013
• Weekly Open Thread with knitting Hepburns by tigtog March 15, 2013
• Weekly Open Thread with Silk in a Market by tigtog March 22, 2013
• Weekly Open Thread with Toys in Trees by tigtog April 26, 2013
• Weekly Open Thread with a Yarn-bombed Willow by tigtog April 5, 2013

If a dog was hanging out at my office, I’d be psyched, because: Puppy! I’d be less psyched if that dog were wandering the hallways unsupervised, distracting everyone from work and encroaching on the space of people who, unlike me, are not enormous dog-lovers. And then there are spaces where dogs are probably not appropriate. Dogs at the gym? Probably not ok with most gym-goers, especially those who have allergies and are trying to breathe in an enclosed space! Restaurants? There are usually public health regulations against that, thankfully, but I’ve seen folks try to do it. And if your dog isn’t particularly well-trained or if he’s aggressive, maybe avoid letting him off the leash in parks with children and other dogs.

The exceptions, of course, are service animals. But your beloved pet? I love dogs too, but yeah. A little common sense and understanding that not everyone finds Fido as perfect as you do would be good.

Update: this post is now in full automoderation for all comments because the moderators received a giraffe alert.