Are You A Feminist? Take This Handy Buzzfeed Quiz To Find Out!

A few months ago, this Buzzfeed quiz called "Are You A Feminist?" came out, and I guess the point of it was to illustrate that feminism isn't this extremist Kill All Men ideology and that, as bell hooks said in more words, feminism is for everybody. Which is kind of cool and I can get behind. It's refreshing to begin to see positive examples of feminism in popular culture and to see more of my peers begin to come around to this way of thinking.

But I also think that this definition of feminism is lacking. The "Are You A Feminist" Buzzfeed quiz maintains that, as long as you believe in the complete equality of women, you are, in fact, a feminist. And this is a pretty great start, don't get me wrong, but it glosses over a lot of the important parts, namely that while #YesAllWomen are unequal to men as a whole, some women (and non-binary individuals) are even less equal due to their race, gender identity, sexuality, socioeconomic status, immigration status, ability, and lots of other identities. Taking these identities into account when developing your feminism is called intersectionality, and without it, in my opinion at least, your feminism is bullshit.

I'm not here to tell anyone that they're not allowed to be a feminist, but if I'm going to consider you my ally and my comrade in this fight, your feminism has to apply to all women and not just expect that because #LeaningIn works for corporate cis white women, that it works for everyone. Your feminism has to understand that sexism, racism, poverty, transphobia, and other forms of oppression aren't failures of individuals to be decent human beings, but actually the successes of systems to keep marginalized people from ever escaping their circumstances.

So yes, it's cool that you read The Second Sex and some Tumblr articles about the wage gap and that they ~spoke to you~ and that you want to be part of this movement. But if your idea of this movement doesn't include my interests as a woman of color or the interests of any other marginalized people, don't consider me your ally. Because I'm not.

Why South Brunswick Can't Have Nice Things, v. 2.0

So I haven't written anything in a while and I know that I normally wait till the "optimal" time of day to post or write something (at least, according to social media analysts), but it would be irresponsible of me not to take this opportunity to talk about misogyny and slut-shaming in the place where I grew up and experienced it for myself.

A friend of mine brought to my attention the following Instagram account:

[I censored the avatar because it was of some girl's butt and just no]

Whoever the creator of this account may be, they want people to send them pictures (presumably sexually explicit pictures) of "hoes" in South Brunswick. I'm not 100% sure that this account was made by/for high school students, but I think it's a fair assumption to make considering that the majority of Instagram users are under 30 and there's no strong college demographic in South Brunswick, save for the few people who commute to school. This phenomenon of sending or publishing sexually explicit pictures that someone else has sent to you and trusted you with is known as "revenge porn", and when it involves people under the age of 18, it's child porn and is ILLEGAL.

Legalities aside, the entire premise of this Instagram account is incredibly misogynistic (not that I expect its creator to be well versed in feminism or social justice). This account takes advantage of young women in one of their most vulnerable places, when they have entrusted someone else with their bodies, and has the audacity to call them "hoes" and demands that they be "exposed" so that everyone can know how horrible they are for expressing their sexuality in what they thought would be a safe and healthy way. Revenge porn vilifies those who have the level of trust and confidence to send nudes while praising those who breach that trust and violate other people's privacy. It plays into the age-old idea of slut-shaming, in which women who express their sexuality are written off as sluts and whores while men who express their sexuality are treated as healthy, normal, and worthy of praise.

I left South Brunswick High School approximately one and a half years ago, and clearly the environment with respect to misogyny and women's sexuality has only gotten worse and more toxic. I definitely experienced my fair share of misogyny and variations of slut-shaming as a student, but this is an entirely different level of messed-up. Part of me feels like it has something to do with the "good Indian girl" narrative, where South Asian women are expected to uphold the highest standards of purity and cleanliness and South Asian men are allowed to get away with a lot more because, like, patriarchy. But part of me also feels, much like the racial tension that's also present, that the toxic levels of misogyny present in the social environment at SBHS are due to our failure to acknowledge that they even exist in the first place. When I was a high school senior, I was one of the only openly feminist students that I knew. I was at a point where I was afraid and uncomfortable as self-identifying as feminist for fear of social rejection, or, potentially worse, not being taken seriously. We're afraid to call out sexism, we're afraid to call out casual racism, we're afraid to call out messed up stuff because we have to see these people every day. But, I think, once we get past that fear, we can start moving towards a healthier and safer environment for every student.

[PS - hopefully by the time you read this, the Instagram account has been taken down, but if not, I strongly encourage you to report it by pressing the "share" button in the top right corner of your phone]

I Sold My Soul (To Google AdSense)

So in the pretty near future, this blog is going to undergo a few changes -- first of all, I'm actually going to start writing things again, and second (and more importantly), I'm going to start having sidebar ads. I know that I don't really have to justify this to whatever readership I have -- basically just the tangential network of people who stumble upon my writing on Facebook and Twitter -- but I felt morally compelled for whatever reason to justify my doing so. I don't want it to seem like the integrity or honesty of what I'm writing is going to be at all compromised by the fact that I am now attempting to earn some money for what I write, because I would never let that happen. In no way will the content of this project be affected by the ads, and by no means is anyone compelled to click on them or really even view them (AdBlock is a thing, y'all). As a college student with little disposable income, whatever money I can earn is helpful, and I would love to be able to earn it doing something that I enjoy. Even if that maybe makes me a minor sellout.

Hometown Glory: Why South Brunswick Can't Have Nice Things

My hometown has a pretty sizable population of South Asian people. This includes Indians, Pakistanis, and Sri Lankans of all faiths, including Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, and Christians. We're certainly not the majority - yet - but we are extremely present, more present than any other racial "minority", which is something that I'm thankful for. Growing up in a place with people who look like me, celebrate the holidays I celebrate, and whose parents are just as batshit crazy as mine are (love you, Mom and Dad!) helped me to feel comfortable in my own skin, moreso than my friends who grew up in places where they were the only South Asians around.

Despite this, all throughout my growing up, I've seen a clear racial divide in my town, and it seems to only be getting bigger the more South Asians move in. Today, someone who goes to my former high school tweeted something about how our school board chooses to observe Indian holidays (for the record, the only "Indian" (read: Hindu) holiday observed is Diwali, and we don't get the day off; we're just allowed to have it recognized as an excused absence*) and while I'm not interested in beating to death just one person's ignorance, this whole situation just plays into the broader issue at hand. Nobody discusses it at length, but the high school I went to is really self-segregated. I mean really self-segregated. And while there is an element of "sticking-to-one's-own" at play here, I also feel like the divide is a lot greater than that. In my four years, I often saw majority-white friend groups blatantly talk shit about majority-South Asian groups, stereotyping them as smelly, loud, nerdy, weird (FOBby) and a whole host of other adjectives. In embracing our cultures through participating in typically South Asian activities and making more South Asian friends, the non South Asian friends we made in elementary and middle school abandoned us. Those of us that did stick around our non-South Asian friends heard almost never-ending criticism of the "brown group", quickly amended by "Oh, but you're not like that. You're basically white!". I'm reminded from a quote from the movie A Passage to India: "Then, if I agree, the English will be able to say, 'Here is an Indian that almost behaved like a gentleman. But for the color of his face, we might even let him join the club." I can look and "act" white all I want but the fact that I am Indian is inescapable, and for anyone to say that to me intended as a compliment, and for me to have received it as one, is tragic.

South Asians of South Brunswick, I urge you to be brown and unapologetically so. Address the divide, call people out, and recognize racism for what it is. Because the face of racism is not only "Go back to India!" but also "You're lucky you're 'American' enough for me to associate with you."

*Edit (11/13/13): As of the 2011-2012 school year, South Brunswick School District has, in fact, given the day off for Diwali, as opposed to an opt-out excused absence that was previously offered.

A Very Brief Criticism of Columbus Day/Bartolome Day

So today is the second Monday in October, more commonly known as Columbus Day. To be honest, I almost forgot because Rutgers didn't give us the day off, which is really the only thing that counts in my mind.

With every passing Columbus Day, I notice more and more people realizing the fact that Christopher Columbus was actually a horrible person and shouldn't be credited with anything, and that's wonderful. I'm all for being critical of historical figures, especially when those historical figures were responsible for the rapes, murders, and torture of marginalized groups. This year, however, I've seen a push started by this article from The Oatmeal to stop calling it Columbus Day and switch to Bartolome Day, being that Columbus was The Worst Person Ever and Bartolome de las Casas was a pretty alright dude who eventually realized that slavery was wrong and then dedicated his life to advocating for the rights of native peoples.

My problem with this doesn't come from a criticism of de las Casas, rather from the fact that we keep excluding the people whom the "discovery" of the "New World" directly affected. Namely, the indigenous peoples of the Americas. Matthew Inman (the guy who runs The Oatmeal) succeeded his essay by saying

"I know that the discovery of the New World means a lot of different things to a lot of different cultures. I like the sound of Bartolomé Day. If you don't like that, call it Indigenous People's Day. Or perhaps Chris-Columbus-was-a-turd Day. I'd even settle for just calling it MONDAY."

but the problem with this is not that Bartolome Day sounds any worse; it's that it takes the focus of the "discovery" of the Americas and shifts it to another slave-owning White dude instead of celebrating and remembering the people who really discovered them and suffered deeply because of it.

I'm really happy that people are finally coming around to the idea that Christopher Columbus is not a person to be celebrated, but I urge you all to consider thinking of this day as an Indigenous Peoples' Day rather than shifting focus to a reformed conquistador.

Congratulations, Nina Davuluri

What I imagine the streets of Edison looked like last night 

As you've probably heard by now, Nina Davuluri of New York was crowned Miss America last night. And that means you've probably also heard the hysterical joy-crying of every South Asian-American person you know. (We get real excited whenever another South-Asian person does something. I was 10 and had no idea what White Castle was when Harold and Kumar came out and I was still excited.)

But, of course, no brown-skinned person's success is complete without the hoards of racist white people showing up. Twitter included such gems as "How the fuck does a foreigner win Miss America? She is a Arab! #idiots", "Miss New York is an Indian.. With all do respect, this is America", and "I swear I'm not racist but this is America." And then of course, there were these ones:

Straight screenshot from Buzzfeed, I'm not even ashamed

You bring up an excellent point, Twitter users @LukeBrasili, @wnfraser, and @anthonytkr. The twelfth anniversary of the September 11th attacks in New York, Washington DC, and Shanksville, PA was just four days ago. Now, I don't remember a whole lot about that day; I remember a silence in my second grade classroom, the panic in my teachers' voices. But mostly I remember the way my parents reacted. In the twelve years since those events, I've never seen them as afraid as I did then.

And they had every right to be. In the week following 9/11 alone, South Asian Americans Leading Together documented media coverage of 645 bias incidents against people of Middle Eastern and South Asian descent. Mosques and mandirs were firebombed and vandalized. Sikh men were repeatedly targeted, harassed, and assaulted for wearing the turbans that ignorant, frightened racists associate with Islam, but actually belong to another faith altogether. Eleven years later, six people peacefully practicing their faith were shot and killed in a Sikh gurudwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. Last spring, I called my mom frantically in the days after the Boston Marathon bombings, terrified that the internet was pointing the blame at an innocent South Asian-American man and that another wave of violence and prejudice was impending. And I remember at least once, as an 8-year-old girl in suburban New Jersey in 2001, having to defend myself by saying "But I'm not a Muslim!"

Hundreds (thousands, if you count the War on Terror) of Afghans, Pakistanis, Sri Lankans, and Indians paid and are still paying the price for an act of terrorism that we not only didn't commit, but also had friends and family members that were killed as a result of it. So yes, let's not forget that four days after the anniversary of 9/11, an Indian-American woman was crowned Miss America. I don't know if Nina Davuluri grew up anything like I did. I don't know which mandir her family goes to or which Bollywood movie is her favorite. But I'm almost certain that her parents felt the same hurt and fear that mine did in the days following 9/11. I've never had much affinity for beauty pageants, but congrats, Nina. You deserve it.

DOMA and Prop 8 Were Overturned But Then Again I Don't Actually Care

I'm going to preface all of this by saying that of course I am in favor of marriage equality and that same-sex marriage should have always been legal and it's ridiculous that it's taken this long to even get as far as we are.

I am, however, more concerned about the fact that the victories today with DOMA and Prop 8 are overshadowing more important issues: the struggles that are still facing the queer community and the fact that the Supreme Court, despite being ~sooOOOOooo awesome~ about the rulings this morning, also took a giant shit on people of color this week.

It's understandable to feel excited, but as much as it is tempting to want to paint a big 'ol rainbow flag on your face and share the YouTube link for Macklemore's Same Love on every social media website, it's important to recognize that marriage equality is a pretty trivial aspect of the issues facing the queer community. Homelessness, joblessness, and a high rate of suicide continue to be prevalent in the queer community, specifically queer youth of color. In Greece, Trans* people are being put into literal concentration camps and in more than half of the states in the US, you can still be fired for identifying as Trans*. Not to mention the fact that many "gay rights" organizations like the Human Rights Campaign (you know, those guys with the equals sign) have a tendency to drop the "T" from "LGBT".  Gay rights groups have consistently chosen not to support Trans* rights and silenced People of Color organizers, meanwhile honoring companies like Goldman Sachs, which create wealth inequality among POC and queer communities in the first place. In doing so, the mainstream movement for queer rights has thus far only served to advance the progress of the few: rich or upper-middle-class cis-gender gay white males, the Neil Patrick Harrises, Carson Kressleys, and Lance Basses. Marriage equality is popular because it's important to the rich white gay cis-guys who don't have to deal with other forms of oppression. My fear is that when it's finally achieved, the real oppression faced by members of the queer community will continue to go unacknowledged because nobody will care now that their Gay Best Friend can get married. As the video above put it so brilliantly, "Who needs money for bread when you can eat wedding cake?"

In coming to these decisions, SCOTUS has received a fair amount of praise for their "progressiveness", which I feel is a huge distraction from the fact that we should actually be really fucking furious. DOMA and Prop 8 almost completely overshadowed yesterday's ruling on the Voting Rights Act, which, within 24 hours, prompted 6 of the 9 states affected to push for new voter ID restrictions. The fact that same-sex couples can now get federal tax benefits is great and there is genuine cause to celebrate that, but we can't forget that we're praising the same people who just yesterday shit all over the rights of poor people of color.

I'm being critical, and I know that. I think part of it stems from the fact that I used to be one of those people that believed that marriage equality would be the solution to every problem in the queer community. I'm not saying that it's not a step in the right direction, because it certainly is, but in terms of equality for queer people, the working class, people of color, and every intersection in between, we have a very long road ahead.