We Need Feminism Cuz Mother Earth Needs Patriarchy To Step Down Now

Facebook album "I Need Feminism Because" on A Girl's Guide to Taking Over the World

Who knows how much progress we've missed out on because of sexism?

Do most young people even relate to the concept of feminism? And if so, what do they mean by that term?

Here I share my short video of just a few out of hundreds of conversations on that topic, and on how to save the world. From the Feminist General Assembly held at the Occupy National Gathering in Philadelphia, July 1, 2012.

Special thanks to Curtis Cole for much of the video. And for modeling his Bring Our War $$ Home black and white t-shirt on camera -- looking good!

Facebook album "I Need Feminism Because" on A Girl's Guide to Taking Over the World

Yesterday I blogged about why Israeli and U.S. policies aim to keep smart young Palestinians down.

Today I'm asking myself, why would elites in the Dominican Republic want to keep smart young women down?

And, can earthlings afford to keep anyone down who might have good ideas at this point in human history?

Satellites See Unprecedented Greenland Ice Sheet Surface Melt Source: NASA

#NatGat: Occupy National Gathering Philly - Day 1

My first day at Occupy National Gathering in Philadelphia. It was good to see some familiar faces.

 An excellent sign that I had never seen before, which aptly summed up why we occupy.

The march to end corporate personhood took us to Wells Fargo Bank -- a big forecloser -- as well as Fox News, the Mint, and Dow Chemical. "Whose streets? Our streets!" chanting a rambling crowd of about 300.

At the very start of the march, who should I see but Capt. Ray Lewis (left), retired Philadelphia policeman who showed up at Occupy Wall St. back when the first police brutalities had occurred, to remind officers that force is only supposed to be used when people are in danger of getting hurt, or killed. Oh, yeah, that. I wanted to shake his hand and he wanted to say, "It's you people who brought me out here. You're the ones that did this."

Soon encountered my good peace friend from Maine Palma Ryan, who helped me hold a flag that was very popular with the photographers in Philadelphia in the run up to 4th of July.

Also very glad to see Vets for Peace there.

This occupier on the cot had several run ins with federal park police, who insisted that he remove his cot -- which he would then flip up to display big words saying, "Now it's a sign," or collapse one of the legs asking, "Now, is it still a sleeping structure?" As our wonderful hostesses arrived from picking up FreedomLA at the airport to whisk us home,  we left behind a lengthy debate on the fine points of occupying public space.  More to come tomorrow....

Report back from Occupy Maine Summer Camp - Day 1

Occupy Maine Summer Camp got underway yesterday in Kennebunkport as campers began setting up tents, activity stations (banner painting! button making! and drumming circles, natch).  

Signs I brought along: the assephant that Occupy the NH Primary folks gave me, and the No East-West Corridor sign that my friends Abby and Fang gave me. Their friend Bozin made many of them to help us protect our state and its natural resources from the private-public partnership our governor and the CEO of Cianbro Corp. are in cahoots to build across the Maine wildnerness.

 

Some people really have this encampment thing down!

 

 

Following a terrific communal dinner, we held a GA with about 35 people participating. Hearing why everyone was there and seeing the generational diversity was very inspriring. A Norwegian artist named Una Hunderi who is traveling in the US to investigate "idealistic communities" came from the farthest away to be with us. We were also grandparents, young farm interns, and several videographers and writers. Something we all had in common -- the desire to occupy mosquitos!

  

As the GA wound down, who should arrive but a NYC contingent bringing activists from the New School to talk about resisting mountain top removal coal miming in Appalachia. It was so exciting to see the big van I've only seen in photos pull into our bucolic camping site.

 

Codepink Maine members Curtis Cole and Pat Taub posed in front of my favorite side of the first vehicle in the Occupy Caravan. There will be many more assembling over the next few days to head to the National Gathering in Philadelphia. Occupy the Roads!

Today we'll hold a Feminist GA at camp, in advance of the national one at NatGat on July 1.