Feminist Bookclub: Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity, by Julia Serano

From Publishers Weekly
With her first full-length book, biologist, writer and musician Serano positions herself as a Betty Friedan of the transsexual community. Making a case that trans discrimination is steeped in sexism and that trans activism is a feminist movement, Serano delivers a series of articulate, compelling and provocative essays that unmask many of the misconceptions surrounding transsexualism, gender and feminism. Where most books on the topic focus either on first-person accounts or clinical observations, Serano approaches her topic from multiple angles. Tempering her own experience as a transsexual woman with psychological documentation, historical research and sociological data, she explores the debate on biology versus socialization; the media's "lurid," "superficial" and "contrived" depictions of trans women; the psychology of transitioning; "boygasms" versus "girlgasms"; nonacceptance and marginalization of transsexual women by the feminist community; and the subtle shades of gray between masculinity and femininity. Though her writing is dense at times, Serano largely succeeds in breaking down complex issues and offering deep insights that will be valued by anyone interested in transsexualism or gender studies. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

http://www.amazon.com/Whipping-Girl-Transsexual-Scapegoating-Femininity/dp/1580051545/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1230992288&sr=8-1

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Happy New Year! We're going to give the book club another try, first up is this suggestion from a member of the group. I'm going to have to ask that those who want to attend should at least er, glance through the book before coming out. :P It's not that you have to have finished the whole book (I usually finish about 20 minutes before the meeting!) -but the conversation is more interesting if everyone has an idea of the plot and writing style.

Here's what I'm going to do though -I'll provide some potential book club 'questions' on the blog for anyone who needs more guidance. The discussions are generally loose and free flowing but apparently some people like a little more structure -hey, the book club works best when everyone is interested! If you have a book suggestion send it in and I'll try to schedule it relatively soon. :)

Happy reading in 2009!
-Nichole

TICKETS ARE SOLD OUT!!! If you don't already have your ticket, please change your RSVP to 'No'. If you do have tickets, please arrive early! Thank you.

"One of the best dramas I've seen... gritty authenticity... incredibly entertaining... in-your-face raw emotions and you will laugh with them and cry with them." -Brett Bundale, The Gazette
"I felt so tall and great when I came out. Arrive early: the room fills up quickly." -Sarah Brideau, Midnight Poutine

FIRST HAND WOMAN is an award-winning new stage play set within a womans heart and mind. This is a powerful journey through heartache and healing, as told by the boisterous and unapologetic stages of grief. Join the dynamic ensemble cast of Denial, Bargaining, Anger, Depression and Acceptance as they unravel the secrets of a love story gone bad. As the play progresses, layers of this womans truth, and the realities of the relationship with her lover and with herself are poignantly and sometimes joyfully peeled away. Thus revealing someone who is seeking the redemption and reconciliation of her fragmented self. CAUTION: Show contains spontaneous simulated Orgasms!

Sarah Michelle Brown is a writer/director/performer/producer who recently won the Chapters Best Text award for her new stage play “First Hand Woman” at the St. Ambroise Montreal Fringe festival.
http://www.sarahmichellebrown.com/

If you're interested you can buy your tickets online here or in person at the Factory Theatre.
https://www.fringetix.ca/scripts/max/2000/maxweb.exe?ACTION=ORDER#FIRE

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everybody!

Let's get together for - well, nothing purposeful:D We almost always have our 'serious hats' on when we get together, so for a change this is just a little holiday socialness over some drinks and board games. Come on out and get to know the gang or say hi to your old pals!

As always, 6 is when we'll start rolling but if you've gotta be late, don't let that stop you from coming!

“Every year at 6 PM on December 6th, people gather at the memorial boulder in Philosopher’s Walk to mourn the 14 women murdered because of their gender at l’Ecole Polytechnique in 1989. We vow not to forget these women and all women who live with violence, who have died due to violence, and those who have survived. Join Women Won’t Forget as we remember and tell the stories of those women who can no longer speak for themselves. It is the job of those of us who go on living to speak for them and to change the world we live in.”

We'll meet and then head over to Philosopher's Walk together. Remember, it's December and we're talking about standing outside so dress in layers.

So again, some of you might know that I went to a Pan-Canadian feminist gathering last month. Too awesome. Women from every province and territory got their butts to Montreal and we got down to business. One of the things that came out of that is, well, this. I'm literally taking a page from their book. See, they gave us some handouts for workshops that we can bring back to our own communities and I'm bringing it home to you guys!

This is the second of (at least) two workshops that I'm gonna bring to you guys from the conference. We'll go over the information they've provided and see what we make of it and then do an activity. When it's all done, I'm gonna submit our 'results' back to the Waves of Resistance gang because they want to know where we're at.

You don't need to be up on feminist theory and politics but if you are I think you'll still get into the discussion. It's basically for everyone who wants to think about how sexism and feminism can operate in our own lives and how we can organize around this.