LUPE FIASCO
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Friday, 20 July 2012
ERIC WAINAINA
AND NNEKA
RELEASE
OTHER PEOPLE'S LIVES
COLLABO
Remember when Nneka was in town? Well she hooked up with Eric Wainaina to remix his single Other People's Lives. The video for the single was also shot “documentary style” on the same day, directed by Mbithi Masya and produced by Lucille Kahara.Here is the product of the recordings complete with the official music video...
__________________________
Eric Wainaina
on The Patricia Show
Season 2 Show 53
Call for Book Chapter Proposals
- Between Rhetoric and Reality:
The State of Human Rights in Africa
Deadline: 1 August 2012
The so called third wave of democratization in Africa in the 1990s induced some optimism about human rights in the continent. This optimism, of course tempered by dramatic reverses in countries like Rwanda, Liberia and Sierra Leone, has led to declarations of what Posner and Young (2007) referred to as the ‘institutionalization of political power in Africa’. Important questions are however still being raised about the commitment of African states to the protection of human rights.
For instance, it is unclear how human rights can be protected within the context of deepening economic crisis, or for that matter, what human rights means to an uneducated and marginalized population. Many states continue to face legitimacy challenges driven by questions surrounding the overall inclusiveness of the political systems. State institutions like the police, the judiciary and the army are also still driven by colonial mindsets which tend to create incentives for gross abuses of human rights in the name of national security.
Marginalized social categories like homosexuals, women, children and youth still face widespread discrimination that calls to question the commitment of African states to human rights. It appears that while both policy and academic discourses have been focused on the protection of human rights, the reality is often that human rights is at best ignored and ill understood or, at worst, flagrantly violated and abused. This book hopes to bring together cutting edge and original research on the state of human rights in Africa.
CONTRIBUTIONS WILL ADDRESS THE FOLLOWING THEMES:
- Theoretical perspectives of human rights
- The AU / regional organizations and human rights promotion (institutional frameworks, specific interventions, normative agenda etc)
- The Role of NGOs and International Organizations
- Environmental Rights Issues
- Sexual Rights
- The State and Human Rights
- Globalisation and Human Rights
- Specific Country Case Studies
- Media rights and access to information
- Labour Relations and Workers Rights
- Electoral Governance
- The Rule of Law (particularly in relation to investments and business)
- Police, army, militias and human rights
- Other related themes
The book will give priority to contributions that focus on current issues in African human rights.SUBMISSIONS: Please provide a 500-word proposal for your submission by 1 August 2012. Submissions may be sent to: riakonai@yahoo.com If your proposal is accepted, full papers will be due by 15 November 2012.
Dr. R.I Ako-nai
Department of International Relations,
Obafemi Awolowo University,
Ile-Ife, Nigeria
Email: riakonai@yahoo.com
Contact: riakonai@yahoo.comCONTACT INFORMATION:
For queries/ submissions: riakonai@yahoo.com
Call for Contributions:
The Review on
Sexuality and Equality in Africa
(honorarium:
$150 for accepted submissions)
Deadline: 15 September 2012
The African Men for Sexual Health and Rights (AMSHeR), was established in 2009 by fifteen organizations working to a. address the disproportionate effect of the HIV epidemic on MSM and LGBTI persons in Africa; b. to address the human rights violations these populations face on the continent; c. and to increase the visibility of LGBTI persons and issues in national, regional and international forums.
AMSHeR was formed in an attempt to foster regional learning and devise ‘home-grown’ strategies to address local issues, rather than relying on global, mostly western strategies. Through advocacy and capacity building, AMSHeR works towards achieving a healthy and empowered life for LGBTI and MSM communities in Africa, and human rights for all. AMSHeR takes guidance from its member organizations, its board and steering committee, as well as partners with a similar mission.
LAW AND HUMAN RIGHTS PROGRAMME
The Law and Human Rights Programme fulfils AMSHeR’s advocacy and capacity objectives by
a. Facilitating the development of the capacity of member organisations to monitor, document and report human rights violations; understand their socio-political, legal and judicial systems, and design context-specific responses to LGBTI/MSM issues; undertake evidence-based advocacy on MSM/LGBTI issues within their national and sub-regional contexts; respond to emergency and security situations in a pro-active manner;
b. Strengthening the capacity of human rights organisations, national human rights institutions, civil society and the academia to understand issues of sexual orientation and gender identity, engage with LGBTI communities in-country, mainstream the rights of LGBTI persons in broader national human rights discourse, and respond to human rights violations against LGBTI persons;
c. Engaging regional and international human rights mechanisms on issues of sexual orientation and gender identity as well as the protection of the rights of LGBTI persons in Africa.
THE SEXUALITY AND EQUALITY IN AFRICA PROJECT
The Sexuality and Equality in Africa Project aims to encourage the voices of young African students, scholars, researchers, professionals and activists to the discourse on sexualities, sexual rights, sexual orientation and gender identity in Africa and to develop a body of resources written by young Africans with a focus on how these issues relate to Africa and Africans. The Review on Sexuality and Equality in Africa will be produced under the Project as well as an online blog in which contributions received under the Project will be published and discussed. The Review on Sexuality and Equality in Africa will address human rights, equality, sexual orientation, gender identity, sexual minorities including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex [LGBTI] in Africa in five sections –Sciences, Law and Policy, Culture and Religion, Education, and Movement Building and in a variety of formats including academic/scholarly papers and more practice-oriented articles.
SUGGESTED THEMES/ TOPICS:
Contributions should be between 3,000 and 5,000 word count and may be submitted in English or French. Contributions are encouraged from graduate students, activists and civil society actors, young researchers, practitioners [medical, legal, media, psychosocial, etc], members of faith-based organisations, cultural institutions, migrant communities, sex workers, LGBTI persons, persons in detention.
All contributions must have an African focus, speak to respect for, non-discrimination and inclusion of varying sexualities and sexual orientations and be socially relevant. Although essay-type papers are preferred, contributions may also be submitted in other format including practice-oriented articles, testimonials and interviews.
Contributions are particularly encouraged for papers and articles discussing –
1. Sexualities and human rights particularly equality rights
2. Impact of discriminatory laws and policies on sexual minorities
3. Access to healthcare, public health policies, HIV and sexual minorities
4. Media, social networking platforms and sexual minorities
5. Education curriculum and sexualities
6. Access to justice, public institutions and employment
7. Sexual minorities, history and cultural institutions
8. Religion, faith and sexual orientation
9. Sexual orientation and forced migration
10. Resilience and community building
All contributions received which comply with the conditions of the call will be published as part of an online blog on the AMSHeR website. Papers of the highest quality will be published in The Review on Sexuality and Equality in Africa in the last quarter of 2012.
To ensure that high quality contributions are published, authors are urged to take special care in preparing their papers and submit a text ready for publication with regard to citation style, language and format. Papers submitted in unsuitable form may not be published. For format of essay papers, click here.
Papers must be sent in electronic form to contact@amsher.net on or before 15 September 2012. Any papers received after this date will unfortunately not be considered for publication. A reviewed final version of the contributions must be submitted by 30 October 2012.
Honorarium and awards:
a. An honorarium of one hundred and fifty dollars [US$150] will be given for every contribution which is published in The Review on Sexuality and Equality in Africa.
b. A prize of one thousand dollars [US$1000] each will be awarded to the English and French contribution adjudged the best by the editorial team.
c. Two writing fellowships will be awarded in the first quarter of 2013 for two papers addressing legal and policy barriers to the rights of LGBTI persons in Africa to enable the authors turn the papers into undergraduate dissertation papers. This award is only open to undergraduate students of universities in Africa. Note that the writing fellowships are NOT limited to students in any particular field of study.
Download: contributor's guidelines
CONTACT INFORMATION:
For queries: contact Kene C. Esom on kene@amsher.net or +2711 482 9201
For submissions: contact@amsher.net
Website: http://www.amsher.net
Call for Contributions: The Review on Sexuality and Equality in Africa (honorarium: $150 for accepted submissions)
Deadline: 15 September 2012
The African Men for Sexual Health and Rights (AMSHeR), was established in 2009 by fifteen organizations working to a. address the disproportionate effect of the HIV epidemic on MSM and LGBTI persons in Africa; b. to address the human rights violations these populations face on the continent; c. and to increase the visibility of LGBTI persons and issues in national, regional and international forums.
AMSHeR was formed in an attempt to foster regional learning and devise ‘home-grown’ strategies to address local issues, rather than relying on global, mostly western strategies. Through advocacy and capacity building, AMSHeR works towards achieving a healthy and empowered life for LGBTI and MSM communities in Africa, and human rights for all. AMSHeR takes guidance from its member organizations, its board and steering committee, as well as partners with a similar mission.
LAW AND HUMAN RIGHTS PROGRAMME
The Law and Human Rights Programme fulfils AMSHeR’s advocacy and capacity objectives by
a. Facilitating the development of the capacity of member organisations to monitor, document and report human rights violations; understand their socio-political, legal and judicial systems, and design context-specific responses to LGBTI/MSM issues; undertake evidence-based advocacy on MSM/LGBTI issues within their national and sub-regional contexts; respond to emergency and security situations in a pro-active manner;
b. Strengthening the capacity of human rights organisations, national human rights institutions, civil society and the academia to understand issues of sexual orientation and gender identity, engage with LGBTI communities in-country, mainstream the rights of LGBTI persons in broader national human rights discourse, and respond to human rights violations against LGBTI persons;
c. Engaging regional and international human rights mechanisms on issues of sexual orientation and gender identity as well as the protection of the rights of LGBTI persons in Africa.
THE SEXUALITY AND EQUALITY IN AFRICA PROJECT
The Sexuality and Equality in Africa Project aims to encourage the voices of young African students, scholars, researchers, professionals and activists to the discourse on sexualities, sexual rights, sexual orientation and gender identity in Africa and to develop a body of resources written by young Africans with a focus on how these issues relate to Africa and Africans. The Review on Sexuality and Equality in Africa will be produced under the Project as well as an online blog in which contributions received under the Project will be published and discussed. The Review on Sexuality and Equality in Africa will address human rights, equality, sexual orientation, gender identity, sexual minorities including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex [LGBTI] in Africa in five sections –Sciences, Law and Policy, Culture and Religion, Education, and Movement Building and in a variety of formats including academic/scholarly papers and more practice-oriented articles.
SUGGESTED THEMES/ TOPICS:
Contributions should be between 3,000 and 5,000 word count and may be submitted in English or French. Contributions are encouraged from graduate students, activists and civil society actors, young researchers, practitioners [medical, legal, media, psychosocial, etc], members of faith-based organisations, cultural institutions, migrant communities, sex workers, LGBTI persons, persons in detention.
All contributions must have an African focus, speak to respect for, non-discrimination and inclusion of varying sexualities and sexual orientations and be socially relevant. Although essay-type papers are preferred, contributions may also be submitted in other format including practice-oriented articles, testimonials and interviews.
Contributions are particularly encouraged for papers and articles discussing –
1. Sexualities and human rights particularly equality rights
2. Impact of discriminatory laws and policies on sexual minorities
3. Access to healthcare, public health policies, HIV and sexual minorities
4. Media, social networking platforms and sexual minorities
5. Education curriculum and sexualities
6. Access to justice, public institutions and employment
7. Sexual minorities, history and cultural institutions
8. Religion, faith and sexual orientation
9. Sexual orientation and forced migration
10. Resilience and community building
All contributions received which comply with the conditions of the call will be published as part of an online blog on the AMSHeR website. Papers of the highest quality will be published in The Review on Sexuality and Equality in Africa in the last quarter of 2012.
To ensure that high quality contributions are published, authors are urged to take special care in preparing their papers and submit a text ready for publication with regard to citation style, language and format. Papers submitted in unsuitable form may not be published. For format of essay papers, click here.
Papers must be sent in electronic form to contact@amsher.net on or before 15 September 2012. Any papers received after this date will unfortunately not be considered for publication. A reviewed final version of the contributions must be submitted by 30 October 2012.
Honorarium and awards:
a. An honorarium of one hundred and fifty dollars [US$150] will be given for every contribution which is published in The Review on Sexuality and Equality in Africa.
b. A prize of one thousand dollars [US$1000] each will be awarded to the English and French contribution adjudged the best by the editorial team.
c. Two writing fellowships will be awarded in the first quarter of 2013 for two papers addressing legal and policy barriers to the rights of LGBTI persons in Africa to enable the authors turn the papers into undergraduate dissertation papers. This award is only open to undergraduate students of universities in Africa. Note that the writing fellowships are NOT limited to students in any particular field of study.
Download: contributor's guidelines
CONTACT INFORMATION:
For queries: contact Kene C. Esom on kene@amsher.net or +2711 482 9201
For submissions: contact@amsher.net
Website: http://www.amsher.net
2012 NANO Prize
The Fourth Annual NANO Prize, awarding publication and $500 to a previously unpublished work of fiction 300 words or fewer, is now open. All entrants receive a one year subscription to NANO Fiction and winners will be announced in September.
This year the contest will be judged by Ryan Call, author of The Weather Stations and winner of a 2011 Whiting.
The entry fee is $15 for up to three shorts. Please visit our submission manager to enter.
Rules and Guidelines: All entries must be unpublished and 300 words or fewer. While there will be only one winner of the contest, all submitted pieces will be considered for publication.
The entry fee is $15 for up to three shorts. Please paste all three works into the submission manager as one submission. You may enter as many times as you like. Each separate entry requires its own entry fee of $15. Entry fees are nonrefundable. Please withdraw your submission immediately if taken elsewhere.
The entrant’s name should not appear anywhere in the body of the submission.
Friends and family of the editors are not eligible to submit.
How to submit: We prefer for entries to be submitted online but snail mail entries may be sent with a check or money order to:
2012 NANO Prize
PO Box 667445
Houston, TX 77266-7445Postmark deadline is August 31, 2012.
Winners will be announced September, 2012.
General Submissions
NANO Fiction is currently accepting previously unpublished works of fiction 300 words or fewer.
Guidelines: You may submit up to five pieces at a time. Translated works will only be considered in conjunction with the English translation. Simultaneous submissions are ok. We ask that all submissions for publication be sent through our online submission manager.
Before submitting, we strongly recommend taking a moment to read through our online archive.
Queries and other correspondence may be sent to Kirby Johnson or Glenn Shaheen at nanofictionmag@gmail.com. Unsolicited, emailed work will not be responded to. Submissions are rolling.
Print Rights: We require exclusive print rights to all accepted work(s) for three (3) months after publication and non-exclusive print rights indefinitely for potential anthologies and promotional materials. Electronic Rights: We require exclusive electronic rights to all accepted work(s) for three (3) months after publication and non-exclusive rights indefinitely so we may include it in our online archives and ebooks.
via nanofiction.org
Web Series to Watch:
“The Number” Is Back With
TWO Episodes
If you haven’t been keeping up, the folks over at Black & Sexy TV have been churning out quality web shows for the past few months. With comedic vignettes like “Hang Up!” and shows like “The Number” and “The Couple,” Dennis Dortch and his team are determined to give viewers good shows featuring interesting black characters.
“The Number,” which also features our favorite Awkward Black Girl Issa Rae, follows a couple after they’ve shared their sexual “number.” While Melissa isn’t moved by her fiancé’s sexual history, Jason has a problem that his wife-to-be is more experienced. Add to the mix Jason’s overbearing sister (Issa Rae) who hates Melissa, and tension and hilarity ensue.
When we last left off, Melissa and Lisa finally got into it, and now Jason has to decide between his sister and his boo.
What’s it going to be? Watch to find out.
Bonus: Check out the season finale of “The Number.”
Post navigation
__________________________
Black & Sexy TV:
Watch Episode #5 Of
'The Couple' Titled
'Man Of The House'
Episode 5 of The Couple... courtesy of Dennis Dortch, Jeanine Daniels, Numa Perrier and Desmond Faison.
Watch the latest below titled Man Of The House. And as an FYI, Dennis says that July is "The Couple Month," with all new episodes every Sunday; AND congratulations are in order, as the Black & Sexy TV brand hit it first milestone - 10,000 YouTube subscribers.
>via: http://blogs.indiewire.com/shadowandact/black-sexy-tv-watch-episode-5-of-the-...
Good Look:
Porn, feminism and Foucault
-Sat Jul 14, 2012 8:23 AM EDTI won't give too lengthy an introduction to last Saturday's thorough discussion of the politics and business of pornography in America, other than to ask: where else will you have feminism and Foucault intrude upon what is thought, generally, to be too taboo a topic to discuss in our public news sphere? From Mediaite's recap:
Harris-Perry noted that the question of who benefits is key to the discussion, with those who are adamantly against pornography not acknowledging that “hotel chains that show pornography, academics who write about pornography and sell their books” are among those who benefit. [Georgetown professor] Michael Eric Dyson agreed, “throw[ing] a little Foucault in there” to note that power “is distributed across the board,” and that the success of niche porn “an extraordinary view of affirmative action penetrating into the realm of pornography.”
That's just the beginning, folks. If you missed this discussion last week, I recommend making some time to not only watch it, but also read this from Amanda Hess, now of the forthcoming Tomorrow magazine. It's a terrific look from last November at the porn industry through the perspective of James Deen, a porn actor now trying to break into mainstream films.
The second half of the discussion is below the jump. See you all today at 10am ET, when we'll get it started with something that's definitely G-rated.
Melissa Harris-Perry and her panelists - including feminist pornographer Tristan Taormino, Fordham University's Zephyr Teachout, author Jaclyn Friedman, and Georgetown University professor Michael Eric Dyson - talk about the American porn industry.
Melissa Harris-Perry and her panelists talk about the business side of the American porn industry.
__________________________
In the adult industry, white women are “Hot,” Latina women are “Exotic,” Asian women are “Dolls,” and black women are "B!tchez." Black men are “Mandingos,” and "N!ggaz," and white men run the entire show. Join us for an in-depth conversation about race and sexuality where we talk about the implications and effects of continued stereotypes and racism in the adult industry and the how it affects perceptions in society. In the house will be two dynamic ladies helping to peel back the layers of how race and sexuality impact culture.
Tristan Taormino is an award-winning writer, sex educator, speaker, radio host and feminist p ornographer. She is the editor of 25 anthologies and author of seven books, including The Secrets of Female Ejaculation and Great G-Spot Orgasms and her latest, The Ultimate Guide to Kink: BDSM, Role Play and the Erotic Edge. She writes an advice column for Taboo Magazine. Check out her radio show, Sex Out Loud, on the Voice America Variety Channel.
Cherie Ann Turpin is an Associate Professor in the Department of English at the University of the District of Columbia. Dr. Turpin's research areas include African Diaspora Studies, Gender and Sexuality Studies, World Literature, Multicultural American Literature, and Film. She recently published How Three Black Women Writers Combined Spiritual and Sensual Love: Rhetorically Transcending the Boundaries of Language. She's also host to an online radio show on BlogTalkRadio: At the Edge: An Afrofuturist Salon.
>via: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/afroerotik/2012/07/27/race-and-sexuality
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Use and Harms
of Pornography
A Confusing World
To say the least, pornography is a controversial and confusing subject. Researchers, politicians, pornography producers, pornography consumers, those acquainted with consumers, and those passively exposed to erotic media (through everyday movies, advertisements, and internet pop-ups) have differing opinions and values toward pornography.
Supporters of pornography argue, "It's my choice and my right. People have been doing this for centuries - it's just what people do. It's all in good fun, and I'm not hurting anyone. So what could be the harm in using it?" Some think of pornography as sinful and immoral, while others think it can bring couples together. Politicians bicker about it. Pornography-producers, movie-makers, and owners of various franchises depend on mild to highly erotic images to sell their products. With an obvious motive for promoting a no-harm image, such businessmen minimize the negative effects of pornography to consumers. Those trying to understand the role of pornography, can be left feeling confused and lost.
The remainder of this article will briefly look at the meaning and prevalence of pornography as well as a more in depth look at the harmful effects of pornography use.
It should be known that it is not the author's intent to put down or degrade those who use pornography, but rather to build understanding and compassion between family members who otherwise may be feeling ashamed, confused, and alone.
The Meaning of Pornography
Sexual addictions specialist, Dr. Victor Cline (2002), describes the origin and meaning of the word "pornography":
The word 'pornography' comes from the Greek words 'porno' and 'graphic' meaning 'depictions of the activities of whores'.... In common parlance [or, phraseology], it usually means 'material that is sexually explicit and intended primarily for the purpose of sexual arousal....' (¶ 4)
Rory Reid, sexual compulsions specialist, extends this meaning: "Pornography is any visual or written medium created with the intent to sexually stimulate. If the work was not intended to stimulate but nevertheless causes sexual arousal in an individual, it constitutes pornography for that person. If you find yourself asking whether a work is pornographic, the question itself suggests the material makes you uncomfortable. That should be enough to tell you to avoid it" (2005, 47).
Birch (2002), a director of a Christian-based therapeutic and educational agency for families, remarks: "our culture is filled with images of sexuality. Some of these images portray healthy sexuality. Many, however, depict inappropriate, obscene and sometimes perverse perspectives on sexuality, depictions that are commonly regarded as pornography" (p. 18).
Prevalence of Pornography Use
In a day where sexually explicit images are easy to access through home computers, cable stations, 900 numbers, the near-by gas station, or the next door neighbor, it is naive to assume a friend or loved one has never had experience with, or been tempted by, some kind of pornography. Dr. Laaser (2000), executive director of the Christian Alliance for Sexual Recovery, reported during a U.S. Congressional hearing that the average age a person in the U.S. is first exposed to pornography is approximately five years old.
Zogby International and Focus on the Family conducted a nationwide survey of 1,031 adults and found that "...20 percent of American adults - as many as 40 million - click on sexually oriented websites. Eighteen percent of respondents who are married visit such sites. Almost the same percentage who called themselves born-again Christians told Zogby they indulge in online pornography" (Walker, 2002, ¶ 3).
How is Pornography Harmful?
Frank York, former editor in Public Policy for Focus on the Family (a pro-family political and educational organization) as well as writer and researcher on pornography, and Jan LaRue, Chief Counsel, Concerned Women for America, assert, "The most common damage, the one that affects everyone who views porn, is that it warps the person's perception of people, relationships, and sex" (2002, p. 14). Pornography teaches unrealistic and inappropriate sexual expectations, decreases satisfaction with monogamy and lowers family loyalties, objectifies and degrades women, links sex with violence and children, encourages promiscuity, and increases susceptibility to sexually acting out in ways harmful to others (Cline, 2002).
Gary R. Brooks (1995), psychologist and assistant chief of the psychology service at the Department of Veteran Affairs in Temple, Texas, calls the affect of pornography on people's perceptions "The Centerfold Syndrome." In his book, The Centerfold Syndrome, Dr. Brooks (1995) explains that pornography alters people's perceptions in the following ways:
- Voyeurism. Pornography teaches its users to focus on looking at people instead of forming real relationships.
- Objectification. Men, women, and children are portrayed as sexual objects, whose worth lies in the size and shape of their body parts.
- Validation. After repeatedly seeing people in an idealized form, pornography users begin to judge people's worth by their physical attractiveness. They feel masculine or feminine only when they are with beautiful people, and are less likely to be committed when their partner goes through life-changes (age, childbearing, etc.) that decrease their youthfulness or good looks.
- Trophyism. Romantic partners are trophies to be displayed and owned, not to be treated as real people.
- Fear of true intimacy. Because people portrayed in pornographic pictures have no demands or expectations beyond sexual-arousal and pleasure, pornography users do not learn how to form real relationships with others. They do not learn how to be selfless, sacrificing, and committed; thus, they come to fear true intimacy that requires them to relate emotionally and spiritually.
The sexual promiscuity encouraged by pornography also increases out-of wedlock pregnancies and the spreading of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Teens are particularly vulnerable to this. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Public Education (2001): "Adolescents have the highest STD rates. Approximately one fourth of sexually active adolescents become infected with an STD each year, accounting for 3 million cases, and people under the age of 25 account for two thirds of all STDs in the United States" (¶ 2).
Lastly, pornography use can develop into a compulsion. A compulsion is the intense urge to do a certain behavior regardless of negative consequences. Compulsions can be so powerful that people often feel helpless to deny them.
Many researchers, clinicians and organizations think of compulsive pornography use as an addiction. Like a cocaine addict is driven to use cocaine at any cost, so will a pornography addict seek out sexual material despite feelings of guilt, destruction of family relationships, divorce, overwhelming debt, and legal consequences (like jail time) for illegal activities associated with pornography (such as downloading or transmitting child porn over the internet). Pornography compulsions are very difficult to break, but it can be done. Learning to overcome compulsions usually takes a long time and often requires the help of a qualified therapist.
With these kinds of consequences, parents, spouses, and children need to be educated on the harmful effects of pornography. Parents and spouses should learn how to detect signs of pornography use in the home, how to protect their family from pornography before it becomes a problem, and how to handle the problem should they learn a loved one has become involved with pornography.
Gender Differences
Dr. Al Cooper (1998), formerly the clinical director of the San Jose Marital and Sexuality Center, conducted one of the largest studies of internet sexuality to date. He surveyed 9,300 respondents on a 59-item survey on the MSNBC website and found that 83% of pornography consumers were male and 17% were female. Some researchers have commented that the ratio of male to female users has changed over the last four years, with greater numbers of women consuming pornography (Morahan-Martin, 1998).
Research has shown that men and women are generally interested in different kinds of sexually-arousing material. Dr. Cooper (1998) found that men were much more visually stimulated and tended to prefer websites with pornographic pictures. On the other hand, women were stimulated by romance and emotional connection. So they generally favored sexual chat rooms where they could interact and develop relationships.
Conclusion
We may try to convince ourselves that pornography is just harmless fun, but research and experience are showing us otherwise. Pornography has both subtle and blatant negative consequences. People who claim to use pornography for fun may want to consider the following questions:
- What are the subtle ways pornography is changing me and my approach to relationships? Is it drawing me closer to others or pulling me away?
- What is pornography teaching me about sexual relationships and about the worth of people in general?
- How does my pornography use affect my partner?
- Is it really possible to separate what I repetitively and regularly see in a pornographic movie, website, or chat room from the way I look at and treat other people?
Comparing a genuinely intimate relationship with a pornographic relationship is like comparing a diamond to a stone. One is infinitely more lovely, satisfying, and valuable than the other. So, why would someone be willing to give up a brilliant diamond for a dull stone?
More often than not, regular pornography use is about trying to fill unmet needs. You may ask yourself, what is lacking in this person's life that he or she is trying to replace through using pornography?
- Are they lonely?
- Do they fear being in an intimate relationship?
- Are they lacking the opportunity or skills to form a close relationship?
- Are they trying to calm some inner anxiety?
Many resources are available to those seeking to learn more about pornography. For an extensive list of resources, see the article, "Helpful Resources for Pornography Addictions and Other Problematic Sexual Behaviors" found at this website.
Other resources are:
Self-help Literature
- False Intimacy by Dr. Harry Schaumburg
- Out of the Shadows by Dr. Patrick Carnes
- Don't Call It Love by Dr. Patrick Carnes
Websites
- Utah Coalition Against Pornography: www.utahcoalition.org.
- Pure Intimacy Website: www.pureintimacy.org/gr/intimacy.
- National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families: www.nationalcoalition.org.
Written by Amber Brewer and Rachel Jamieson, Research Assistants, and edited by Jill C. Manning and Rory C. Reid, Sexual Addiction Therapists in Private Practice, and Stephen F. Duncan, Professor, School of Family Life, Brigham Young University.
References
American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Public Education (2001). Sexuality, contraception, and the media. Retrieved on June 15, 2004.
Birch, P. J. (2002). Pornography use: Consequences and cures. Marriage and Families, 18-25. Retrieved June 15, 2004.
Cline, V. B. (2002). Pornography's effects on adults and children. Retrieved June 15, 2004.
Cooper, A. (1998). Sexuality and the Internet: Surfing into the new millennium. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 1(2), 181-187.
Laaser, M. (2000). The availability of obscene material on the internet. Hearing of Telecommunications, Trade and Consumer Protection Subcommittee of the House Commerce Committee, May 23.
Morahan-Martin, J. (1998). The gender gap in Internet use: Why men use the internet more than women|A literary review. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 1, 3-10.
Reid, R. C. (2005, February). The road back: Abandoning pornography. Ensign, 47. Retrieved March 17, 2005
Walker, K. (2002). Internet pornography frequented by 20% of U.S. adults, studies show. Retrieved August 3, 2004.
York, F. & LaRue, J. (2002). Protecting your child in an x-rated world: What you need to know to make a difference. Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
>via: http://foreverfamilies.byu.edu/Article.aspx?a=140
Simple Tweets Of Fate:Teju Cole's
Condensed News
by NPR STAFF
Teju Cole
Teju Cole is a Nigerian-American writer, photographer and art historian. He is the author of the 2012 PEN/Hemingway Award-winning Open City.
TEJU COLE INTERVIEW
April 9, 2012Blaise Pascal once wrote that writing succinctly can be hard. It's something many of us aim for, yet few of us master. But if you're writing on Twitter, you have to keep it short.
The Nigerian writer Teju Cole recently devoted himself to the goal of writing in brief. On his Twitter account, he crafts compact stories based on small news items, things you might overlook in the metro section of a newspaper. And with brevity, his stories gain deeper meaning.
In observance of National Poetry Month, Cole recently joined NPR's Steve Inskeep to discuss the Tweet-sized narratives he calls "Small Fates."
Interview Highlights
On the inspiration for Small Fates
"I had started doing research for a book that I'm writing, which is about Lagos, Nigeria — a narrative of contemporary life in the city. But as I was doing my research I found that there was certain material that I couldn't really put into the book. Odd stories, news of the weird — strange little things of the kind that would happen in any complicated modern society. And what was I going to do with this material? So I started writing short stories based on those narratives. I found that Twitter was a perfect place to post them."
On faits divers
"In doing this, I was leaning on the old French journalistic practice of the faits divers, which has not really caught on that much in the English-speaking world. But it's been around in France for hundreds of years. Basically what they are is small, uncredited news items that appear in a column in the newspaper. ... Around 1906, a writer — an anarchist and art historian, as it turns out — named Felix Feneon, for the newspaper Le Matin, for the course of 1906, was writing them. He somehow ended up elevating them to an art form. Where people were writing these news stories in a very plain and somewhat dull way before, he injected them with irony, with a dark humor, with a kind of epigrammatic compression."
On dark humor
Wives are flammable, a police inspector, Wasiu, of Okokomaiko, has found. - @tejucole
11:30am, 3/15/12
"Many of these stories are about mayhem and disaster and grievous bodily harm. ... There's only so many ways you can tell that story. But as it turns out, there's an infinity of ways you can tell that story. And there's something bracing about what happens to other people. We're not laughing at them — far from it, actually. We're laughing to sort of release the tension that we feel about the fact that fate can be so capricious with us. I think what I'm usually going for is irony rather than laugh-out-loud funny, because many of these things are actually not funny at all."
On stripped-down narratives
Not far from the Surulere workshop where spray-painter Alawiye worked, a policeman fired into the air. Gravity did the rest. - @tejucole
8:57am, 3/20/12
"I found that there was so much that you could take out of a story, a great deal more than you might imagine, and still have it be a coherent story. ... So, there's a spray-painter, there's a policeman somewhere near him who fires into the air, and gravity does the rest. I don't have to conclude the story, because it concludes itself in your head."
On everyday life in Nigeria
"I have a few people following me on Twitter who have been reading these who are not from Nigeria, who maybe know nothing about Nigeria. ... And yet, by virtue of following me, several times a day they were getting news stories about Nigeria that they would not seek out by themselves. ... I wanted people who were not Nigerian to know something about everyday life in Nigeria ... all the texture of everyday life that is basically missing from the news stories that we hear about Africa."
On absurdity
"I was most effectively able to advance this agenda — if you can call it an agenda — by telling absurd stories from Nigeria. But the reason those absurd stories work is because we are also used to absurd stories from Western countries. And the absurdity becomes, one, a trick to get the reader reading, and, two, a way of actually locating all the raw material and infrastructure around the story in a way that the reader doesn't notice that they're there."
On his new Small Fates project
Since Carter, the man he shot dead on 34th Street and 5th Avenue, was a negro, Plitt was at first not held. But he is now in custody. - @tejucole
9:21pm, 4/2/12
"Recently I decided to switch up the project and do something a little bit different ... Now I'm writing Small Fates about New York City, which is where I live. But I'm writing Tweets based on newspapers of exactly 100 years ago — so, exactly on the anniversary of whenever it came out in the New York Sun, or the New York Tribune or Evening World News. I go to the Library of Congress newspaper archive, which is wonderful. I go to the relevant date, and I basically trawl through the newspaper looking for interesting stories."
On the news of 1912 resonating with the news of today
"Since Carter, the man he shot dead on 34th Street and 5th Avenue, was a negro, Plitt was at first not held. But he is now in custody." - @tejucole
9:21pm, 4/2/12
"It was particularly striking, because this was something I read just on April 2nd, a few days ago. And all around me in my Twitter stream, what other people are talking about is a current event that is happening in April 2012 about somebody in the present who shot somebody who is black and has not been held for the crime. And I just thought, wow, there are these resonances. And our ancestors must be looking back at us and perhaps laughing grimly about how little progress we seem to have made."
Follow Teju Cole on Twitter: @tejucole
via npr.org
EDIBLE CITIES: HAVANA
For many Cubans, the global food crisis arrived two-decades ago. Facing an economic emergency, programs were initiated to increase production of fresh food throughout cities, and today their great success is being seen as possible model for populations facing hardship around the world. During the 1990s, the Cuban government began transforming the agricultural system by giving empty city lots to workers willing to farm them and by encouraging organic methods – then a response to the shortage of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. City farming took off and today 300,000 people - of which 40,000 are retirees - are employed in urban and peri-urban agriculture. Cuba's National Urban Agriculture Program has the backing of six government ministries and around 20 other institutions, social organizations and scientific research centers, which coordinate the work of thousands of intensive gardens, suburban farms, micro household gardens and other innovative forms of production.
According to an Oxfam report: ‘Today half of the fresh produce consumed by two million Havana residents is grown by ‘nontraditional urban producers’ in abandoned lots and green spaces wedged into the crowded typography of the city.’
‘It’s a really interesting model looking at what’s possible in a nation that’s 80 percent urban,’ said Catherine Murphy, a California sociologist who spent a decade studying farms in Havana. ‘It shows that cities can produce huge amounts of their own food, and you get all kinds of social and ecological benefits.’ Among these benefits, 5,000 garbage dumps have been turned into productive vegetable gardens across Havana, and day-care centers, senior citizen homes and semi-boarding schools for primary school students, and other social centers are linked to these production areas and receive 25 percent price discounts.
With fuel prices and food shortages causing unrest and hunger across the world, many say the Cuban model should proliferate. ‘There are certain issues where we think Cuba has a lot to teach the world. Urban agriculture is one of them,’ said Beat Schmid, coordinator of Cuba programs for the charity Oxfam International. While many countries have experimented with urban farming - Cuba’s initial steps were modeled after a green belt surrounding Shanghai - nowhere has it been used so widely to transform the way a country feeds itself.
WOULDN'T AGRIBUSINESSES JUST HAVE A COW OVER THIS? MY CITY JUST PASSED AN ORDINANCE PERMITTING 4 HENS PER HOUSE FOR EGG PRODUCTION! IT COULD HAPPEN HERE!