feminist theory

In the 15 years since Kate Bornstein’s groundbreaking
Gender Outlaw: On Men, Women and the Rest of Us
exposed the cracks in the construction of gender,
the world has seen some significant changes.

Ani DiFranco’s commitment to being a free agent is inspiring.

While the indie musician is definitely concerned about the state of her country, she’s not particularly worried about the impact George W. Bush’s administration has had on civil liberties—not on hers, anyway.

“As Utah Phillips would say, ‘The amount you resist is the amount you are free.' And I think I will always resist this basic encroachment on my human rights, so I will always feel free. “

nah-ee-lah and d’bi young are creating sparks with their word sounds. These second- generation dub poets—who are also noteworthy playwrights and actors—rhythmically fan those sparks into flames of resistance against injustice as they burn new pathways toward social liberation.

In this article, Afua Cooper blows the whistle on Canada's history of slavery and gives a voice to unsung heroes of the past.

Afua Cooper is a poet and writer whose work includes Memories Have Tongue, Utterances and Incantations: Women, Poetry and Dub, and (with co-editors Peggy Bristow and Dionne Brand) We're Rooted Here and They Can't Pull Us Up: Essays in African Canadian Women's History.

"Third-wave feminism" is a catchy yet contested term for the ideas and activism of young North American women. Lara Karaian, Allyson Mitchell and Lisa Rundle created an anthology that reflects the issues and experiences of these women. Their book, Turbo Chicks, (Sumach Press, 2001) challenges the image of young women as apathetic, apolitical dupes of an anti-feminist backlash. Instead, the contributors to Turbo Chicks present a lively, intriguing series of opinions and perspectives which are by turns thoughtful, provocative, funny, angry and poignant.

The federal government wants you to mark April 17, 2002 on your calendar. On that day, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms will turn 20. There will be ceremonies on Parliament Hill, academic conferences and media retrospectives commemorating this milestone in Canada's constitutional history.

Sunera Thobani's speech at the "Women's Resistance: From Victimization to Criminalization" conference in Ottawa on October 1 2001, provoked a storm of controversy after her remarks were interpreted as blaming the September 11th terrorist attacks on U.S. foreign policy. Canada's Prime Minister, Jean Chrétien, described it as a "terrible speech that we are 100 percent against."

Sunlight twinkles on the water as waves cover the rocks, then recede, and then engulf them again. The light breeze is fresh and the day welcoming. Surroundings are resort-like, with beaches, green playgrounds and tiny, ivy-covered houses.

"Open?" I inquire. "Yes, the water is considered safe to swim in," explains my born-and-raised-in-Toronto companion. "I wouldn't go in there though."

Still, many barefoot and water-winged children laugh and play at one end of the beach.