Can you imagine if Hillary’s female speechwriter groped a cardboard cutout of Obama?
Oh, the fauxrage we would be subjected to!
December 5, 2008 at 3:03 pm
Sarah said:
I see this stuff all day long now. It’s everywhere. I never noticed it before or didn’t find it as offensive as I do now. Those 2 young male ‘creative class’ schmucks are infuriating and disgusting.
I just had a flashback of my first day on campus at Vanderbilt over 20 years ago. Across the street from the freshmen dorm was a row of frat houses. They’d sit up their with kegs and lawn chairs and hold up cards with #’s 1-10 to rate the female freshman walking by.
This is the same sh*t and it makes me furious.
December 5, 2008 at 3:07 pm
John Horning said:
Since about May I have made repeated attempts to reconcile myself with the reality of an Obama administration and these people that he chose to surround himself with. Every time I do, things like this come up. It isn’t that it just continues, it keeps getting worse! Hillary Clinton will be our Sec. of State in the near future. She represents our Republic and women in general. Damn!
December 5, 2008 at 3:25 pm
Kevin said:
Amy, Amy,
Thank you, Thank you.
Ms. Bair is the No. 1 women on WSJ’s Top 50 Women to Watch list and she is being marginalized. She should have been the Treasury Secretary. I would give money right now to the “Save Bair” campaign.
She gets it.
Kevin
December 5, 2008 at 3:32 pm
SantaFeK said:
The Obama admin. should show some statemanship, dignity, and manners, beginning with getting rid of this juvenile silly sexist boy.
A side comment: At th eU of Wisconsin years ago, the women got tired of the beer pub where the guys rated the women with signs “1-10.” They did it to all the guys walking buy, and it created a major protest of how bad it was for them to do that—from the guys.
December 5, 2008 at 3:36 pm
Kevin said:
Boy, I am one to give people the benefit of the doubt – we all make mistakes – but John should go based on stupidity and sexism.
Yes, we have returned to the 50s. This just goes to show that we can never sleep, ever. We must organize and band together to stamp this second class citizenship belief out. We must stay on constant guard duty so that we can stomp on this monster when it raises its ugly head.
Good work TNA! I am organizing here in the SF bay area. Look forward to catching up with others in my area.
December 5, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Sarah said:
Joanna,
I’m in san francisco! We should get together.
sarah
December 5, 2008 at 4:50 pm
Dawn C said:
If Jon Favreau worked in a corporate environment, and he did something like that with an image of one of the company’s senior executives, wouldn’t he be fired?
Feeding a woman beer and groping her? Are they aping sexual assault?
What if it was a cardboard cut-out of Obama, and they were putting a gun in his hand and aping a mugging?
I can’t believe he still had his job five minutes after that picture surfaced.
December 5, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Kendall Johnson said:
Amy,
Please do a press release demanding that Obama fire Favreau and his buddy!!! Also, can we get Gretta to report this. I doubt CNN will. Thay are more interested in smearing Ed Randell based on false sexism claims, much like the false racist smear that MSNBC did to the Clintons.
December 5, 2008 at 5:01 pm
Dawn C said:
Looking at it again: they really are pretending to take advantage of Clinton.
It’s not that this is a problem for Clinton, it’s that it’s a problem for every young woman who goes to a party where there are boys and alcohol.
If the President-elect does not fire Favreau, he’s essentially condoning something that encourages men to sexually assault women.
It’s not a joke – not to all the young men who will see it and take it as a cue for how they ought to treat women.
Thanks, Jon Favreau, for helping to make this sort of thing more necessary:
RAINN’s Top 10 Back-To-School Tips include:
1. Get to know your surroundings and learn a well-lit route back to your dorm or place of residence. If you are new to the campus, familiarize yourself with the campus map and know where the emergency phones are.
2. Trust your instincts. If you feel unsafe in any situation, go with your gut. If you see something suspicious, contact your resident assistant or campus police immediately.
3. Avoid being alone or isolated with someone you don’t know well. Let a trusted friend know where you are and whom you are with.
4. Be careful when leaving online away messages. Leaving information about your whereabouts or activities reveals details of your location that are accessible to everyone.
5. Try not to go out alone at night. Have a buddy system in place with your roommate or with someone you trust. Avoid the ATM and jogging at night.
6. Keep the phone numbers of both your campus escort service as well as the campus police with you at all times.
7. Don’t accept drinks from people you don’t know or trust and never leave your drink unattended.
8. Always watch your drink being prepared. Try to get your drink directly from the bartender or waiter.
9. Never loan your room key to anyone and always lock your door.
10. Avoid putting music headphones in both ears so that you can be more aware of your surroundings, especially if you are walking alone or at night.
We have tossed that and/or Bair around. We are trying to stay focused and not spread TOO thin. There seems to be so much to speak out against right now. Cabinet Watch is very important as well.
December 5, 2008 at 5:39 pm
John Horning said:
It seems obvious that the organizations that I think of as being “the ladies auxiliary for the Progressive Men Movement” such as NOW will either say nothing or be supportive of this behavior. Speaking as a man who has two family members that are at risk of brutal assault, I would like to find a way of objecting to this.
December 5, 2008 at 6:08 pm
Zee said:
I second John!
NOW endorsed Obama.
We should all be demanding KIM GANDY speak up on this and spearhead the Fire the Frat-Brat backlash.
December 5, 2008 at 6:32 pm
Cynthia GA said:
You know there is something about that picture that makes me feel like I just can’t put on enough sweaters. I think this is exactly the kind of thing we should address. There is something about sexualizing a woman that is like the ultimate domination for these frat boy types. It’s like if they can’t win the argument sexualizing her is the most demeaning thing they can do. I think it would have been just disrespectful if they had drawn a mustache on her or something, but there is something about the sexual nature of this that really skeeves me out. I’m having a hard time even putting into words how it makes me feel?
December 5, 2008 at 7:25 pm
Anna said:
LETTER: FREE TO GOOD HOME
————————————————————————————–
Dear President-elect Obama:
As I am sure you are well aware, it has come to the public’s attention that your top speech writer, Jon Favreau, has posed with a life-sized cut out of Hillary Clinton, groping her breast as one of his friends simulates getting her drunk. I wonder if the first response that you and your incoming administration had was one of embarrassment and a desire to get this out of the news as quickly as possible. However, I have no way of knowing since you have not uttered a word about it, so I can only guess.
Either way, it is not the fact of whether it remains in the news or not that is the issue. What is deeply concerning is that you would employ an individual who would so brazenly express such disrespect toward women. Surely you realize that countless women across America are date-raped. Frequently this occurs when a man gets a woman drunk or otherwise semi-conscious and then proceeds to rape them.
In looking at this objectively, there is simply no way around my deducing that you find it acceptable to have as part of your administration’s culture, the continuation of an old boys club mentality, where men chuckle and laugh, joke about and disrespect, women, including the woman who will be your Secretary of State.
I am well aware that sub-cultures exist behind closed doors and the is not privy to a great deal of what goes on. However, in light of the fact that Mr. Favreau’s actions have come to light, I would urge you to fire Jon Favreau immediately and to make a public statement as to why. In this way, you will be taking an unequivocal stance regarding your lack of tolerance of sexist behavior in your administration. Anything less is unacceptable.
Should you find my request or position extreme or unreasonable, I would ask that you imagine the scenario between Jon Favreau and the Hillary Clinton cut out and replace the gender and sexism issues with race and racism issues. I believe you will then appreciate the seriousness of the matter. I trust, however, that this will not be necessary since you have promised hope and change. As a woman, I would assume this includes the obvious: sexism is not tolerated in an Obama administration and you are an advocate of women’s rights.
Sincerely,
December 5, 2008 at 7:56 pm
Anna said:
Second paragraph of letter should read:
“…rape her.” (not rape them)
December 5, 2008 at 7:58 pm
Anna said:
Paragraph 4:
Should read: “….doors and the public is not….”
Sorry, I was typing fast, editing fast, and feeling really pissed.
Dawn, I’ll forward a copy of the letter to you if you want to use it at the top of a thread.
We are also very upset and are working on a press release and perhaps an accompanying action alert. Stay tuned!
December 5, 2008 at 8:14 pm
Anna said:
BTW, when sending out letters, I think it’s best for everyone to edit the template and personalize it. Otherwise, when recipients start to see a “form letter” coming in, they start to ignore or discount it. So, I always consider letters I may use from actions as a starting point, but rarely if ever use them as is. It reduces the liklihood of having one’s voice heard if the voice is repetitive in how the message is communicated.
December 5, 2008 at 8:20 pm
Zee said:
Amy, PLEASE include a separate letter to Kim Gandy, reminding her that as ENDORSERS of AN ALL MALE TICKET they need to take responsibility of the RAPE CULTURE that male ticket brings to the top of the land.
I think both Jon the frat boy needs to go, PLUS AN APOLOGY from Barack Good ol Boy Obama….and KIM NEEDS TO GO IF SHE DOES NOT ISSUE AN APOLOGY and exhort the full force of NOW to repudiate Obama’s rape culture.
Are we going to wait till the “jokes” in our country escalate to the Congo or Somalia standards?
December 5, 2008 at 8:33 pm
Anna said:
Dawn – You’ve got mail!
December 5, 2008 at 9:38 pm
yttik said:
I am still shocked that Barney Frank actually confronted the sexism head on. Well knock me over with a feather.
I am just reeling today, too. In addition to the three things mentioned, MSNBC had “technical difficulties” and called a female anchorwoman a dumb bi&ch on the air.
Thank you, Amy, for putting together a press release, and thank you, Anna, for the letter template.
Bottom line: if Obama hears us and fires his speech writer Faveau, it would send a tremendous message to the US that this sort of behavior will not be tolerated.
The press release is a great plan. In addition, to keep this on the radar screen, where can we send emails?
December 6, 2008 at 12:16 am
Kevin said:
While John’s behavior is contemptible, I rate Tim’s interest in firing Bair the bigger affront to women. No doubt, John should be fired but Bair is facing what so many women experience in business – she is more qualified than Tim, should have gotten the appointment and is now being threaten with keeping her job because she “spoke up” regarding the concerns of others.
I think there should be a “Save Bair, Dump John” campaign.
December 6, 2008 at 7:32 am
Marie said:
The gleeful portrayal of sexual assault by an Obama aide should immediately result in his removal from any position in the new administration. And that it was directed against our incoming Secretary of State is relevant, but no more offensive than directed at any female.
Mr. Obama, is this the image that your incoming administration wishes to be associated with? If so, you have only telegraphed how closely you must be watched and how little trust you have earned.
December 6, 2008 at 12:51 pm
purity1 said:
This Frat Boy mentality towards women is what keeps females out of selective clubs that are the usual pools of “talent” from which presidential administrations draw their staff. This seems to me to be partly why women are outnumbered by men in government. Additionally, our incoming Sec. Of State is a champion for women and children. I, for one, am calling all major women’s organizations tomorrow morning. It’s time, in 2008, that our girls have an equally level playing field in our country as they grow up and compete in the world.
[...] In December, I had what felt like a surreal experience. I was watching the hearings for The Big Three Automotive Companies Bailout and all I could see was a sea of white men. I posited at the time Did I Fall Asleep and Wake in Up 1950?. [...]
Washington State has an effective Reproductive rights group who proposes legislation at the STATE LEVEL.
Reproductive Parity Act. http://www.prochoicewashington.org/
Report sheds light on the ways in which the media profits from elections while polluting political discourse and failing to cover issues. http://www.freepress.net/press.....1&t=3
Go Barney!
He likened the situation to several regulators “up in the treehouse with a ‘No Girls Allowed’ sign.”
Nailed!
Obama needs to be hounded on these issues. That frat boy speech writer needs to be fired. Period.
I got an email from Code Pink today….there are at least some of Obama’s supporters who are calling him out on the brand of “change” he’s not bringing!
You know even more disturbing than the photo of two sexist jerks, are the comments on the website underneath the article.
At least in the 50′s they might have had enough manners not to let anyone take any pictures…what jackasses!
Can you imagine if Hillary’s female speechwriter groped a cardboard cutout of Obama?
Oh, the fauxrage we would be subjected to!
I see this stuff all day long now. It’s everywhere. I never noticed it before or didn’t find it as offensive as I do now. Those 2 young male ‘creative class’ schmucks are infuriating and disgusting.
I just had a flashback of my first day on campus at Vanderbilt over 20 years ago. Across the street from the freshmen dorm was a row of frat houses. They’d sit up their with kegs and lawn chairs and hold up cards with #’s 1-10 to rate the female freshman walking by.
This is the same sh*t and it makes me furious.
Since about May I have made repeated attempts to reconcile myself with the reality of an Obama administration and these people that he chose to surround himself with. Every time I do, things like this come up. It isn’t that it just continues, it keeps getting worse! Hillary Clinton will be our Sec. of State in the near future. She represents our Republic and women in general. Damn!
Amy, Amy,
Thank you, Thank you.
Ms. Bair is the No. 1 women on WSJ’s Top 50 Women to Watch list and she is being marginalized. She should have been the Treasury Secretary. I would give money right now to the “Save Bair” campaign.
She gets it.
Kevin
The Obama admin. should show some statemanship, dignity, and manners, beginning with getting rid of this juvenile silly sexist boy.
A side comment: At th eU of Wisconsin years ago, the women got tired of the beer pub where the guys rated the women with signs “1-10.” They did it to all the guys walking buy, and it created a major protest of how bad it was for them to do that—from the guys.
Boy, I am one to give people the benefit of the doubt – we all make mistakes – but John should go based on stupidity and sexism.
Yes, we have returned to the 50s. This just goes to show that we can never sleep, ever. We must organize and band together to stamp this second class citizenship belief out. We must stay on constant guard duty so that we can stomp on this monster when it raises its ugly head.
Good work TNA! I am organizing here in the SF bay area. Look forward to catching up with others in my area.
Joanna,
I’m in san francisco! We should get together.
sarah
If Jon Favreau worked in a corporate environment, and he did something like that with an image of one of the company’s senior executives, wouldn’t he be fired?
Feeding a woman beer and groping her? Are they aping sexual assault?
What if it was a cardboard cut-out of Obama, and they were putting a gun in his hand and aping a mugging?
I can’t believe he still had his job five minutes after that picture surfaced.
Amy,
Please do a press release demanding that Obama fire Favreau and his buddy!!! Also, can we get Gretta to report this. I doubt CNN will. Thay are more interested in smearing Ed Randell based on false sexism claims, much like the false racist smear that MSNBC did to the Clintons.
Looking at it again: they really are pretending to take advantage of Clinton.
It’s not that this is a problem for Clinton, it’s that it’s a problem for every young woman who goes to a party where there are boys and alcohol.
If the President-elect does not fire Favreau, he’s essentially condoning something that encourages men to sexually assault women.
It’s not a joke – not to all the young men who will see it and take it as a cue for how they ought to treat women.
Does the President-elect condone rape?
Isn’t that what this is about?
“College aged women are at the highest risk for being sexually assaulted.”
Thanks, Jon Favreau, for helping to make this sort of thing more necessary:
RAINN’s Top 10 Back-To-School Tips include:
1. Get to know your surroundings and learn a well-lit route back to your dorm or place of residence. If you are new to the campus, familiarize yourself with the campus map and know where the emergency phones are.
2. Trust your instincts. If you feel unsafe in any situation, go with your gut. If you see something suspicious, contact your resident assistant or campus police immediately.
3. Avoid being alone or isolated with someone you don’t know well. Let a trusted friend know where you are and whom you are with.
4. Be careful when leaving online away messages. Leaving information about your whereabouts or activities reveals details of your location that are accessible to everyone.
5. Try not to go out alone at night. Have a buddy system in place with your roommate or with someone you trust. Avoid the ATM and jogging at night.
6. Keep the phone numbers of both your campus escort service as well as the campus police with you at all times.
7. Don’t accept drinks from people you don’t know or trust and never leave your drink unattended.
8. Always watch your drink being prepared. Try to get your drink directly from the bartender or waiter.
9. Never loan your room key to anyone and always lock your door.
10. Avoid putting music headphones in both ears so that you can be more aware of your surroundings, especially if you are walking alone or at night.
Kendall,
We have tossed that and/or Bair around. We are trying to stay focused and not spread TOO thin. There seems to be so much to speak out against right now. Cabinet Watch is very important as well.
It seems obvious that the organizations that I think of as being “the ladies auxiliary for the Progressive Men Movement” such as NOW will either say nothing or be supportive of this behavior. Speaking as a man who has two family members that are at risk of brutal assault, I would like to find a way of objecting to this.
I second John!
NOW endorsed Obama.
We should all be demanding KIM GANDY speak up on this and spearhead the Fire the Frat-Brat backlash.
You know there is something about that picture that makes me feel like I just can’t put on enough sweaters. I think this is exactly the kind of thing we should address. There is something about sexualizing a woman that is like the ultimate domination for these frat boy types. It’s like if they can’t win the argument sexualizing her is the most demeaning thing they can do. I think it would have been just disrespectful if they had drawn a mustache on her or something, but there is something about the sexual nature of this that really skeeves me out. I’m having a hard time even putting into words how it makes me feel?
LETTER: FREE TO GOOD HOME
————————————————————————————–
Dear President-elect Obama:
As I am sure you are well aware, it has come to the public’s attention that your top speech writer, Jon Favreau, has posed with a life-sized cut out of Hillary Clinton, groping her breast as one of his friends simulates getting her drunk. I wonder if the first response that you and your incoming administration had was one of embarrassment and a desire to get this out of the news as quickly as possible. However, I have no way of knowing since you have not uttered a word about it, so I can only guess.
Either way, it is not the fact of whether it remains in the news or not that is the issue. What is deeply concerning is that you would employ an individual who would so brazenly express such disrespect toward women. Surely you realize that countless women across America are date-raped. Frequently this occurs when a man gets a woman drunk or otherwise semi-conscious and then proceeds to rape them.
In looking at this objectively, there is simply no way around my deducing that you find it acceptable to have as part of your administration’s culture, the continuation of an old boys club mentality, where men chuckle and laugh, joke about and disrespect, women, including the woman who will be your Secretary of State.
I am well aware that sub-cultures exist behind closed doors and the is not privy to a great deal of what goes on. However, in light of the fact that Mr. Favreau’s actions have come to light, I would urge you to fire Jon Favreau immediately and to make a public statement as to why. In this way, you will be taking an unequivocal stance regarding your lack of tolerance of sexist behavior in your administration. Anything less is unacceptable.
Should you find my request or position extreme or unreasonable, I would ask that you imagine the scenario between Jon Favreau and the Hillary Clinton cut out and replace the gender and sexism issues with race and racism issues. I believe you will then appreciate the seriousness of the matter. I trust, however, that this will not be necessary since you have promised hope and change. As a woman, I would assume this includes the obvious: sexism is not tolerated in an Obama administration and you are an advocate of women’s rights.
Sincerely,
Second paragraph of letter should read:
“…rape her.” (not rape them)
Paragraph 4:
Should read: “….doors and the public is not….”
Sorry, I was typing fast, editing fast, and feeling really pissed.
Dawn, I’ll forward a copy of the letter to you if you want to use it at the top of a thread.
We are also very upset and are working on a press release and perhaps an accompanying action alert. Stay tuned!
BTW, when sending out letters, I think it’s best for everyone to edit the template and personalize it. Otherwise, when recipients start to see a “form letter” coming in, they start to ignore or discount it. So, I always consider letters I may use from actions as a starting point, but rarely if ever use them as is. It reduces the liklihood of having one’s voice heard if the voice is repetitive in how the message is communicated.
Amy, PLEASE include a separate letter to Kim Gandy, reminding her that as ENDORSERS of AN ALL MALE TICKET they need to take responsibility of the RAPE CULTURE that male ticket brings to the top of the land.
I think both Jon the frat boy needs to go, PLUS AN APOLOGY from Barack Good ol Boy Obama….and KIM NEEDS TO GO IF SHE DOES NOT ISSUE AN APOLOGY and exhort the full force of NOW to repudiate Obama’s rape culture.
Are we going to wait till the “jokes” in our country escalate to the Congo or Somalia standards?
Dawn – You’ve got mail!
I am still shocked that Barney Frank actually confronted the sexism head on. Well knock me over with a feather.
I am just reeling today, too. In addition to the three things mentioned, MSNBC had “technical difficulties” and called a female anchorwoman a dumb bi&ch on the air.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybApSloTnzA
Thank you, Amy, for putting together a press release, and thank you, Anna, for the letter template.
Bottom line: if Obama hears us and fires his speech writer Faveau, it would send a tremendous message to the US that this sort of behavior will not be tolerated.
The press release is a great plan. In addition, to keep this on the radar screen, where can we send emails?
While John’s behavior is contemptible, I rate Tim’s interest in firing Bair the bigger affront to women. No doubt, John should be fired but Bair is facing what so many women experience in business – she is more qualified than Tim, should have gotten the appointment and is now being threaten with keeping her job because she “spoke up” regarding the concerns of others.
I think there should be a “Save Bair, Dump John” campaign.
The gleeful portrayal of sexual assault by an Obama aide should immediately result in his removal from any position in the new administration. And that it was directed against our incoming Secretary of State is relevant, but no more offensive than directed at any female.
Mr. Obama, is this the image that your incoming administration wishes to be associated with? If so, you have only telegraphed how closely you must be watched and how little trust you have earned.
This Frat Boy mentality towards women is what keeps females out of selective clubs that are the usual pools of “talent” from which presidential administrations draw their staff. This seems to me to be partly why women are outnumbered by men in government. Additionally, our incoming Sec. Of State is a champion for women and children. I, for one, am calling all major women’s organizations tomorrow morning. It’s time, in 2008, that our girls have an equally level playing field in our country as they grow up and compete in the world.
[...] In December, I had what felt like a surreal experience. I was watching the hearings for The Big Three Automotive Companies Bailout and all I could see was a sea of white men. I posited at the time Did I Fall Asleep and Wake in Up 1950?. [...]
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