Sarah Palin gets ‘Foxified’ in new SNL skit

Posted on April 11, 2010 by margotmagowan

Last night Tina Fey reprised her Sarah Palin role on Saturday Night Live. I’m psyched Tina Fey’s brilliant parody is back. Not only is she hilarious, but her portrayals of the politician in 2008 were instrumental in turning America on to the silliness of Palin’s candidacy.

Tina Fey was funny last night as usual, but here’s a new idea: instead of depicting Sarah Palin in her signature updo, Fey should show her losing her look because now she’s joined Fox, home of the pornstar/ anchor.

Here’s the skit.

SARAH PALIN GETS ‘FOXIFIED‘ (scary music)

Tina Fey is in her dressing room at Fox News. She’s got big, blonde Fox woman anchor hair, a bright pink suit with cleavage and new, large breasts. She’s surrounded by make up artists, hairdressers, stylists etc, all putting the finishing touches on her new look.

Make-up artist: “For your debut on Fox News, we want to keep it kind of natural. We’re just going with some rouge, some foundation, a little concealer, some blush, some mascara, some eyeshadow, some lipstick, some powder, some bronzer…”

Sarah Palin trying to wait patiently, finally interrupts, still looking at herself in the mirror: “I’m just not sure about the hair.”

Hairdresser: “Oh, it’s great! I’ve done lots of famous people– Pamela Anderson, Paris Hilton, Heidi Montag, Denise Richards, Kate Gosselin. Not a lot of people know this…” He bends down to her, “But they all had lots of problems. Their hair was…brown.”

SP: “What’s the matter with brown hair?”

HD: “Oh, nothing, honey. It’s just, you know, sometimes it can make you look… smart.”

Other make up people and stylist people nod.

SP: (Pats her hair) “Does everyone here get this kind of treatment?”

MA: “Oh, yes, sure. Although with guests, sometimes we just make suggestions. You know Anne Coulter? She used to weigh over 100 pounds.”

Bald and fat Fox News president, Roger Ailes enters, saying, “We’re so happy to have you here, Sarah. Come on out, lets meet your colleagues.”

RA puts his hand on SP’s back and leads her out of hair/make-up room.

There’s a group of blonde haired, big breasted, heavily made up women. Sarah Palin starts shaking their hands, smiling.

SP: “I’m so happy to meet you. I’m so excited to be part of the team.”

RA: “No, Sarah. Those are Tiger Woods mistresses. They’re about to go on Greta’s show.”

SP: “Oh.” (Looking confused)

RA: “Here are your colleagues.” He gestures to as second group of women, identical in look and dress to the first.

SP excitedly shakes hands.

RA: “You really look great Sarah. As you know, presentation is a big part of making the Fox Network a success. Hey look, here’s the star of the network!”

Enter Bill O’Reilly, looking slovenly and bald.

SP: “I’m a big fan!” She pumps Bill’s hand.

Other male stars get introduced until there’s a crowd of old, fat balding men. Sarah stands in front of women and men, everyone clapping and patting her on the back. Sarah faces the audience, smiling triumphantly. SP: “I’m so proud to be a part of this network! I can’t wait for my show go out to all 60 states! From Quebec all the way to Juneau, to tell America for the first time, Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night Fever!”

Please read my related post When women join the Fair and Balanced network, they get FOXIFIED.

When women join the “fair and balanced” network, they get “Foxified”

Posted on April 8, 2010 by margotmagowan

Even though I wasn’t a supporter of Sarah Palin, she was recently hired at Fox News, and I feel I need to warn her. After all, she’s a brunette who often wears glasses– a breed targeted for extinction in Foxworld.

There’s something creepy going on at Fox, and it’s not just the skewed way they choose to report the news. When a woman gets a job on the “fair and balanced” news network, she gets “Foxified.” No matter how she looks or how old she is when she signs her contract, these female contributors transform, appearing on our screens strangely clone-like, blonde and so heavily made up they all look around 40.

Greta Van Susteren famously made the cover of People after she scored her own show on the network and got “Foxified,” sporting much lighter hair and tighter skin.

When I used to produce talk radio programs for the ABC affiliate in the Bay Area, and the host had a legal issue he wanted to discuss, I often booked a brilliant and beautiful law professor as an expert: Lis Weihl. After 9/11, she was hired by Fox News. The next time I saw her on TV, I only recognized her by her name in the byline.

Fox News is a modern day Stepford factory for accomplished women. By turning professors and authors into porn star doppelgangers, the network effectively communicates what women say is not as important how they appear.

The older, winkled, balding male stars of the news channel obviously have different physical requirements to get a job on TV. Maybe Palin earns some of those privileges, because she’s already famous with her own loyal following. We’ll have to wait and see if her brown hair and Tina Fey glasses survive the preferences of Fox News President Roger Ailes, himself not the most svelte, glossy headed guy in town.

Update: I’m not attacking these women for getting jobs; I’m pointing out the sexist requirements for men versus women on TV. Furthermore, being “Foxified” doesn’t translate to being attractive or beautiful. As a commenter pointed out, it has to do with becoming a “femmebot.” The blonde dye jobs and overly made up faces on Fox News women are indicative of a culture dominated by caucasians and capitalism, keeping women in line by rewarding them when they conform to the rules. It’s a reflexive, but still clever, way to keep women in their place and uphold the power structure as it is.

dailyuw.com

Liz Wiehl

Lis Wiehl, “Foxified”

People

Greta Van Susteren gets Foxified

Can you tell these women apart?

Michelle Obama gets a facelift from Good Housekeeping

Posted on April 8, 2010 by margotmagowan

First problem: there’s still a magazine called Good Housekeeping.

Magazines and newspapers are dying left and right, the whole publishing industry is imploding, yet Good Housekeeping lives on? It survives not only to give women crucial tips on vacuuming, ironing, or what Febreeze actually is, but to produce a commemorative “125th Anniversary Collector’s Issue” graced with the creepiest cover photo of Michelle Obama I’ve ever seen.

Good Housekeeping

Michele Obama

This from Jezebel’s Jessica Coen:

The entire bottom half of Michelle’s face seems to have been replaced, her forehead has been nicely tightened, and the entire right (our left) side of her face seems to have scored some extreme chiseling. A solid helmet head and weird lighting finish off her look.

Michelle Obama is a stunning woman in every way– why did Good Housekeeping transform her into a waxy, Stepford wife, lips and teeth bossed and glossed, hands clasped primly just under the appropriately wifey headline: “Keeping her marriage close, raising her girls and overcoming her biggest fear.”

I’m so tired of the media’s abuse of first ladies, forever handicapped by that prissy label. When a woman finally becomes president, I can guarantee her “spouse” will never be referred to as the “first gentleman” without irony.

And on a day even further into the future than the debut of “Madame President,” people will look back on how women were photoshopped into drag queen aliens and be completely appalled this was considered “attractive.” The only modern invention more disturbing than these computer altered coverwomen, is the transformation that happens when a woman gets hired by Fox News. For more on getting “Foxified, see this post.

Geena Davis’ new study on gender bias in kids’ media

Posted on April 6, 2010 by margotmagowan

Variety :

The L.A.-based Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media is set to release this summer the findings of a lengthy study on gender roles in movies and TV shows aimed at viewers 11 and under. The org is also planning a daylong conference in L.A. this fall. The institute has a programming unit dubbed See Jane that aims to work with execs, creatives and other industry orgs to encourage the inclusion of a wider range of femme characters in kid-oriented programming.

Academy Award winning actress Geena Davis says, “Kids need to see entertainment where females are valued as much as males.”

Here is her institute’s mission:

While watching children’s television programs and videos with her then 2-year old daughter, Academy Award winner Geena Davis noticed a remarkable imbalance in the ratio of male to female characters. From that small starting point, Davis went on to raise funds for the largest research project ever undertaken on gender in children’s entertainment.

The research showed that in the top-grossing G-rated films from 1990-2005, there were three male characters for every one female – a statistic that did not improve over time.

The concern was clear: What message does this send to young children?

I can’t wait for this new study. Thank you to Geena Davis for recognizing the gender bias in kids movies and doing something to change it. Go Thelma!

Lift the curse, change the shape

Posted on April 5, 2010 by margotmagowan

After watching Joy Behar’s show on the Oscar curse, and hearing a male guest suggest that when actresses are “given this giant gold ballast, men get insecure.” Also, feeling that the curse is another way of letting women know they can’t have it all, I decided to start a movement.

Lift the curse, change the shape.

“How to Train Your Daughter” from DreamWorks

Posted on April 5, 2010 by margotmagowan

“How to Train Your Dragon” is a great movie; I was riveted from start to finish. The story is compelling and the animation is wonderful. A misfit boy, Hiccup, refuses to kill the dragons who relentlessly attack his Viking village, even as everyone around him, who he loves and respects, viciously slaughters them. Hiccup, instead, befriends and trains the creatures, ultimately bringing peace to his people.

But why couldn’t Hiccup have been a girl? Why couldn’t the dragon in the title have been female?

This movie, like most modern day animation blockbusters, does throw girls a few bones. There are two main characters that are girls; Astrid and Ruffnut are both good fighters, but they are clearly in supporting roles. Their job in the movie, as for most girls in most movies, is to help propel the guy, in this case, Hiccup, to greatness. Astrid and Ruffnut preform their archetypal tasks as helpmeets very well. Rah rah.

There are a few minor, minor roles for adult female Vikings, drawn as fat rather than strong, shown mostly in crowd scenes, never getting more than one line at a time. Hiccup’s father is a main character; he’s the leader of the tribe. His mother– surprise, surprise– is dead, so unusual for the mom to be killed off in a kids’ movie. She’s mentioned just once, when Hiccup’s dad hands his son a helmet which he tells his son used to be half of his mother’s breast plate. Ha ha.

The repetitive gender dynamic of boy-leader/ girl-follower is troubling because, like it or not, Hollywood provides our kids with some of their earliest leadership training. The star of the movie is the leader of the movie. Hiccup demonstrates all the skills of a truly visionary and effective leader: he’s smart, compassionate, creative, listens to his own truth, advocates for causes he believes in, builds constituencies, and trains his team. The girls’ critical choice in the movie is whether or not to follow him.

What gets me about “How to Train your Dragon” is here was a prefect opportunity to put a girl in the star role, even without messing too much with Hollywood’s beloved gender stereotypes.

Usually, when I complain about the lack of girl characters, people respond with something like “But in real life, lionesses never lead a pride” (Lion King) or “There aren’t really female chefs in top tier French kitchens” (Ratatouille)— temporarily forgetting while this may be true, it’s also true that rats can’t cook or even speak, and that lions don’t pal around with warthogs and meerkats or sing songs either. Why can’t DreamWorks create a magical world where girl and boys are equally important?

In “How to Train Your Dragon” Hiccup was already stretching the bounds of accepted masculinity by being so skinny and sweet compared with the muscley, hairy, slow-thinking, Popeye-on-steroids Vikings. Hiccup redefined bravery by refusing to kill. Why not go just a little further and make the character a girl? Apparently, DreamWorks is still too afraid, or too unimaginative, to come out with a movie starring a female, so I guess a skinny, weak boy is the next best thing.

How is Astrid finally convinced to put her trust in Hiccup instead of in his father, the tribe’s real leader? Hiccup takes her for a ride on his trained dragon, Toothless. As she dares to climb behind him on the saddle, grinning and clinging to his back, she reminded me of watching “Superman” as a kid, seeing Lois Lane dazzled by handsome Christopher Reeve as he flew her through the starry night or myself, cruising down a freeway in Austin, on the back of my boyfriend’s motorcycle, in awe at the sunset in the giant Texas sky. Yeah, it’s seductive and all, but why can’t Hollywood give girls the chance to be the hotties in the driver’s seat?

There’s one more female in this movie, blink and you’ll miss they call her a she. Spoiler alert: it turns out all the dragons are stealing food to feed a secret, hidden, giant, boss dragon, “like worker bees to a queen,” Hiccup discovers. I’m going to look at this paradoxically minor/ major female role as subversively feminist, and awarding the movie an extra G for it, though I don’t know how many people who see the movie will get that part is a female one.

“How to Train Your Dragon” gets a GG/S rating: some girlpower, some stereotyping.

For those of you who are going to comment boys will see movies about girls, girls will not see movies about boys, please see this post.

Phooey on Ratatouille

Posted on April 4, 2010 by margotmagowan

I wrote this for The San Jose Mercury news in 2007. It inspired my blog ReelGirl.

Phooey on `Ratatouille’: Female leads lacking in kid films

STUDIOS ACKNOWLEDGE, ACCEPT SEXISM

By Margot Magowan

Article Launched: 07/06/2007 01:32:35 AM PDT

“Ratatouille” made $47 million opening weekend, but as I watched the

film with my 4-year-old daughter, I felt depressed. There was nary a

female rat in sight. I’d forked over $9 so my daughter could get yet

another lesson in sexism direct from Pixar or Disney: No matter if

you’re a rodent, car, or fish – boys are the ones with the starring

roles while girls are relegated to sidekicks.

“Cars,” “Toy Story,” “Finding Nemo,” “The Lion King,” “Monsters Inc.”

each features a male hero and multiple male characters; often a token

female is around to help propel one of the guys to greatness.

“Ratatouille” faithfully follows suit. Colette, a female human sous

chef, even justifies her secondary role in the film with a brief

monologue on misogyny: “Do you know how hard I had to work to get

ahead in this male-dominated kitchen?” she yells at our hero.

The speech is there to throw girls a bone, and you can find this

gesture in most modern day motion picture cartoons. It’s that nod to

the audience: unlike all those cartoons of yesteryear, we know this is

sexist, but there’s nothing we can do about it.

When I complained to my mom and sister: “Why couldn’t Ratatouille have

been female? Why no girls – again?” They said, “Didn’t you hear

Colette’s talk? That’s how it is in the real world.” OK, let me get

this straight: It’s just fine to stretch our imaginations to believe

in a talking rat who can cook, but when it comes to gender

roles, we admire realism and authenticity?

When my daughter goes to the movies, she sees animals talk, fairies or

unicorns prance around, witches cast evil spells, but she’s never

shown a magical land where boys and girls are treated equally, where

gender doesn’t matter. Why can’t Pixar or Disney allow her the fantasy

of equality?

After I saw “The Lion King,” I wanted to know: Why couldn’t the

lionesses have attacked weak, old Scar? Why did they have to wait

around for Simba to come back to Pride Rock to help them? I was told:

that’s how it is in nature – lionesses need a male to lead the pride.

So a lion can be best friends with a warthog and a meerkat without

gobbling them up, but a lioness heading a pride? That could never

happen in the animal kingdom!

Pixar has yet to allow girls any starring roles, but Disney permits it

if she’s a princess. Audiences can count on the contemporary princess

movie to throw girls their bone: Unlike princesses of the past who

happily went off with the first guy who kissed them out of

unconsciousness, these modern girls get to choose whom they marry.

Ariel, Belle, and Jasmine put up a huge stink, stubbornly refusing

betrothal to the obvious choice. But these elaborate shows of

independence are bases for entire plot lines, keeping the princesses

stories almost entirely focused on marriage: rebellion within the

safest possible framework.

When my daughter was watching “Mulan” – probably the most feminist of

all the motion picture cartoons – dress up as a boy to fight in a war,

she asked me, “Why can’t girls fight?” Before she can even understand

how Mulan is empowering, first she has to understand sexism. But does

she need to know, at age 4, about sexism? Does she need to know people

still believe girls can’t do so many things, like cook in a top-tier

French kitchen? Why can’t she just see a girl chef making great food,

receiving acclaim for her talent, being helped along by a girl rat or

sous chef boy?

The hyper-concern for gender accuracy in the fantasy world extends to

things like plush toys – when I refer to my kid’s animals as “she,”

adults invariably do a double take, checking for manes or tusks: even

female toys must stay in their place. And of course, toys are a big

part of the problem. With today’s mass marketing, all these movie

characters live on as action figures, dolls, games, on T-shirts and

cereal boxes. On my daughter’s kite, her beach ball, her pull-ups, the

trifecta of Jasmine, Belle and Ariel smile shyly. My daughter wasn’t

born with this fairy tale-princess fantasy embedded in her brain, but

like any kid, she’s self-centered. She likes the movies that are all

about her. Females are half of the population. We pay our $10 just

like everyone else. When can we get more representation in our movies?

How long do we have to wait?

Pixar is made up of a bunch of guy geeks. Disney’s top brass is

practically all male. Maybe when we get more female studio heads, more

female directors and producers and writers, we’ll see groups of girls

having adventures; girl heroes doing cool, brave things in starring

roles where marriage may never be mentioned at all. Maybe then people

will wake up, finally recognize the radical lack of imagination going

on in our make believe worlds; Princess Charming finally rescues

Sleeping Hunk.

Chris Rock’s daughters inspire a film

Posted on April 3, 2010 by margotmagowan

Comedian Chris Rock’s documentary “Good Hair,” just out on DVD, begins with stills of his two young daughters. “Those are my daughters, Lola and Zara,” Rock narrates, “The most beautiful girls in the world. And even though I tell them that they’re beautiful every single day, sometimes it’s just not good enough. Just yesterday, Lola came into the house crying and said ‘Daddy, how come I don’t have good hair?’ I wonder how she came with that that idea?”

So begins Rock’s quest to discover why so many black women don’t like their hair and what they go through– money, time, refusing swimming and sex– to ensure that it stays “beautiful.”

mediacommons

Six year old getting relaxer

Actress Nia Long tells Rock: “There’s always a sort of pressure within the black community, like, oh, if you have good hair, you’re prettier or better than the brown skinned girl that wears the afro or the dreads or the natural hair style…The lighter, the brighter, the better.”

Rock travels from Greensboro, North Carolina, the capital of the 100 million dollar hair business (and also, the former capital of the Confederacy) to India where hair is the country’s biggest export, and finally to the pricey salons of LA. He interviews black women, their boyfriends and husbands, and even the well coiffed Al Sharpton trying to figure out the root of the hair obsession.

Comedian Paul Mooney explains it most concisely: “If your hair is relaxed, white people are relaxed. If you hair is nappy, they’re not happy.”

The chemical many African-Americans use on their hair is, in fact, called “relaxer.” The “creamy crack” or “napidote” is the dangerous chemical sodium-hydroxide. “Get some in your eyes, it’ll lead to blindness,” explains a worker at Greensboro’s massive relaxer factory. “If you inhale the chemicals, its will have an adverse affect on your body.” Rock visits a scientist who dips aluminum cans in sodium chloride, showing them in various stages of charred decay.

The movie has sad scenes like when Rock interviews a group of female, African-American college students and young professionals, most who agree they wouldn’t go on a job interview, nor would they even hire someone, who was sporting the kind of hair that looks too natural, even a “cute” short afro that one girl in this group wears.

Also poignant but funny is when both genders adamantly agree on the rules of “weave sex:” never touch a black woman’s hair. Taking a shower together is more intimate than practically any other act; swimming ranks a close second if it involves getting in past the chin.

www.topnews.in

Actress Nia Long

All cultures include people who do crazy stuff to their hair and bodies, and Rock leaves pretty much everyone except for African-Americans out of his film. Reality star Kate Gosselin’s much mocked do and subsequent makeover could be its own documentary. Not only that, poker straight haired white girls have always pined for curls and vice versa. But teen dreamers and reality stars generally don’t experience anything as profound as being black and living in a culture that celebrates and rewards whiteness every day, and that unique experience is exactly what Rock set out to make a movie about.

“Good Hair” ends as it begins, with images of Lola and Zara, now shown at a playground, Rock musing: “So what do I tell my daughters? I tell them that the stuff on top of their heads is nowhere near as important as the stuff inside of their heads.”

Congrats to Chris Rock for listening to his small daughters, taking their words seriously enough to make a film that communicates how tyrannical and insidious our ideals about “beauty” can be. “Good Hair” gets a triple ***GGG*** girlpower rating (though it’s not a movie for kids, too much weave sex.)

UC Davis threatens to cut women’s rowing

Posted on April 1, 2010 by margotmagowan

As we all know, California is in financial crisis, and California schools from elementary to university level are suffering. Arts and athletics programs are being cut, and women’s teams are especially vulnerable. This is a tragic situation for women, resonating far beyond sports. Being on a team is a crucial part of an education; students learn basic leadership skills, discipline, confidence, ethics, how to work with others– basic life skills that serve them throughout their lives and careers.

Women’s sports are always the first to go, because they generate less revenue then men’s sports do. Obviously, its a viscous circle. Only when more money is invested in training young female players, providing them with the best equipment and practice spaces, launching PR campaigns to inspire players and audiences, will women athletes finally get the kind of coaching, leagues, and PR they deserve. And only then can women’s leagues reach their capabilities and get real opportunities to bring in large revenue streams. We need to stop tossing off a deeply entrenched catch-22 with the line, “No one cares about women’s sports.”

Darcy Ward cares very much. She’s a varsity rower at UC Davis on full athletic scholarship. She’s also a pre-med student. Here’s her team’s story:

To Whom It May Concern,

When our Women’s Varsity Team at UC Davis was told that our program was at stake for being cut from the University, we believed it was our obligation to share our passion for this sport in hopes to salvage it. We contact you out of pure love, and solidarity. We believe our story should be heard as a call-to-action. The decision will be made in early April and we must act now.

Before 1973, the idea of female rowers was unheard of. These stereotypes lead women to work through discrimination to prove that women are allowed to participate in sports. Women’s participation in sports is possible now because of law Title 9 that mandates college athlete must have equal number of females as males which rowing helped create. Since that time, UC Davis has built one of the most competitive female rowing teams on the west coast. The program has been around for thirty-three years and has excelled beyond its expectation by moving into a new level of competition-Division 1. The women’s rowing team competes in the Western Intercollegiate Rowing Association and San Diego Crew Classic, two of the most prestigious races in the country. What makes our team so special?

Rowing News

Women’s crew

Our coach enforces us to believe we are strong and before we take out our boats we say “My name is_________ and I am a strong female rower.” Her name is Carissa Adams and believes women deserve the greatest opportunities in life. Our mission statement says, “Each day we strive to go beyond our expectations. We rise to the challenge with confidence, pride, and positive attitudes. We empower and engage one another through a network of trust, support, improvement, and respect. We work as a team on and off the water.” There are 60 strong women rowers who never stop trying, constantly work together and encouraging one another to just keep striving for more. The sport of rowing teaches women to become strong and smart leaders for the future, by working as a team and conquering unbelievable goals while balancing the rigorous academia of college. We need to keep building strong females in our society.

Here are a few women out of many on our team with unique stories.

Becca loves rowing because it gives her not only a physical outlet, but she loves the way it forces you to connect to the other eight women in the boat. Eight women have to be able to move in synchronies with each other, and the product is so rewarding: a beautifully set boat, the single noise of every single oar feathering at the exact same time, and just the feel and run of the boat. That’s why she loves rowing. She is a strong female rower.

Caleigh is a 4’11” coxswain, the voice and brain of the boat. On a 5’8″ average rowing team, she has learned how to make her small body transform into a strong and confident voice on and off the water. She is a strong female rower.

Brittani started rowing her freshman year as a walk on. Now she is a third year rower, stroke seat of the V8, and captain of this team. Rowing has been the hardest thing that she has ever done, and she can say that she is a better person for it. She has never felt so strong and capable before (physically and mentally). She has also met a group of amazing women that have become trustworthy teammates and life long friends. She is dedicated to this team and proud to be a part of its legacy. She rows for her teammates and herself. She is a strong female rower.

Emily who is 5’3 was discriminated because of her size. Coaches thought she was unable to compete against the “stereotypical” rower. Now she competes in the (V8) varsity eight keeping up with the Big dogs. She is a strong female rower

Brittney and Brooke are twins who dropped out of high school. They were at a disadvantage in society because their parents didn’t have the tools to support them to achieve going to college. They entered a community college with nothing to lose and everything to gain. Now they row here at UC Davis because of the discipline, the opportunity, and the chance to create a new way of life. They are strong female rowers.

Maggie never gives up. In high school she rowed for years and no one believed that she could reach her potential, but she never quit. Finally, during her third year of rowing, she found the power within her and became the varsity stroke. The stroke is the leader of the boat. She sets the pace and stroke for all seven women behind her and each rower trusts and looks up to the stroke. Now when she looks back, she never thought she would be rowing for NCAA division one. She is a strong female rower.

Jessica has become more self-confident, more driven and more focused than she ever was before joining rowing. Upon joining the Women’s Rowing Team at UC Davis, she was greeted with friendly faces and a warm yet, extremely competitive nature. This past year she has made new friends, pushed herself harder both mentally and physically than ever before and; in turn, discovered a new family that she would do anything for. She is a strong female rower.

Robyn is a Pisces who was born to love the water. Her parents sailed the world, fell in love, and upon Robyn’s arrival her parents give up their sea legs for land legs to support their new family. Now, she enjoys rowing more than any other water sport and appreciates its international community of athletes and supporters. She is a strong female rower.

Paige started rowing with her mom for fun and then tried out for the local team. As she continued in the sport, she fell in love and she learned to be more disciplined in every aspect of her life and how to approach a challenge. Rowing is unique because as a team and a boat you must all strive for the same goal. Today, she can’t imagine her life without rowing. Rowing has taken her further in life than she has ever imagined because of the opportunities and experiences it has given her. She is a strong female rower.

Danielle joined college homesick and overwhelmed, even contemplating dropping out. However, one day she was approached by rowers who asked her to Row! Her confidence to pursue sports in college was challenged. Beyond what she expected, joining the women’s rowing team allowed her to truly reach potential. The team became her family and she gained a sense of confidence she has never had before. Each day she is finding new ways to push herself to bigger and better things, learning not to settle for mediocre. Thanks to this team, this sport, she has learned to be dedicated to things bigger than just herself. She is a strong female rower.

The UC system is in a huge financial crisis. The UC Davis chancellor has just mandated the athletic department cut up to 12 sports. This means the UC Davis women’s rowing team is at stake for being cut. We have potential to save our team, keeping the opportunities alive for people that come after us.

Now the crisis begins.

The women’s rowing program at UC Davis has a long-standing 30-year plus track record of athletic excellence and a strong tradition of producing accomplished women who have become valuable assets to their communities throughout the U.S. and the world. The women’s rowing program also reflects well on the university putting it in a class that is equally attractive to prospective students and parents as many of the Ivy League colleges and Universities who offer strong programs in women’s rowing, and it will continue to help attract many talented young women long into the future.

There is no obligation to this letter, but I feel that you support the core of what women’s rowing at Davis strives for everyday. If we raise enough money our team can be saved and the potential for future women to develop into powerful and passionate people through rowing at UC Davis. Please donate to save UC Davis women’s rowing so that our future generations have the opportunity to achieve great things. Here is a video on Youtube that will give you a sense of the passion we have for rowing at UC Davis:

Here is the website where you can donate risk free and all the donations go to the UC Davis Rowing Fund must be used for rowing. If the program is cut, the University will return your donations.

Sincerely,

The UC Davis Women’s Rowing Team

VBACs sink to all time low in U.S.

Posted on March 26, 2010 by margotmagowan

The New York Times is reporting that Caesarian births, the most common operations in American hospitals, have reached an all time high in this country. A major reason for the increase is that many doctors and hospitals are now discouraging or even refusing to perform VBACs (vaginal births after c-section.)

About 1.4 million Caesareans were performed in 2007, the latest year for which figures are available. The increases- documented in a report published Tuesday- have caused debate and concern for years. When needed, a Caesarean can save the mother and her child from injury or death, but most experts doubt that one in three women need surgery to give birth. Critics say the operation is being performed too often, needlessly exposing women and babies to the risks of major surgery. The ideal rate is not known, but the World Health Organization and health agencies in the United States have suggested 15 percent…

Repeat Caesareans are another part of the problem. They account for about 40 percent of the total and have become increasingly common in the past 15 years as more and more hospitals have refused to allow women who have had a Caesarean to try to give birth normally. Fewer than 10 percent of women who had Caesareans now have vaginal births, compared with 28.3 percent in 1996. Many hospitals banned vaginal birth after Caesarean because of stringent guidelines set by the obstetricians’ college, which said surgery and anesthesia teams should be “immediately available” whenever a woman with a prior Caesarean was in labor.

The disappearing VBAC is a disturbing trend. I had two of them. When I tell people this, they’re surprised. More and more, I fall into an ever-shrinking minority.

I was not a typical VBAC candidate. I usually follow doctors’ recommendations. I’m not a risk taker with my health or my kids health. I’m not a natural birth advocate either; I love my epidural. I opted for VBACs only because having a c-section was so awful.

Before I had my first baby, I didn’t even understand why having a vaginal birth was preferable to a c-section. Frankly, both exits sounded bad.

At my birthing class, there was a lot of talk from the teacher about how to avoid a c-section, but not to be disappointed or feel like failure of it didn’t happen. I didn’t get what the fuss was about. Why would I feel like a failure? I thought the empathic concern was a San Francisco hippie thing. I felt like– who cares how she’s born, as long as she is OK?

So my big mistake with my first baby was that when my water broke, I didn’t know it. Apparently, water breaking is not usually a sudden dramatic splash like it is in the movies (in fact, nothing about giving birth for me was fast or dramatic like in the movies.) Generally, the doctor breaks the bag of waters when you’re in the hospital, after you’ve been in labor for a while. But if your water does break, you need to go to the hospital immediately because your baby loses that boundary of protection against infection.

Spokane Publishing

Pregnant woman

About 30 hours into labor, my baby was stuck. My temperature was rising which indicated the baby or I might have an infection. When my doctor recommended the c-section, I took her advice– lying there, exhausted and drugged, I wasn’t in the mood to argue, and like I said, I don’t tend to argue with doctors anyway. When my doctor sat down on my bed and told me very seriously that she thought I needed the operation and I felt like– fine, whatever, just get this baby out!

The problem was the recovery. It was horrible. I was in intense pain for weeks and slight pain where the scar was for months afterward. Somehow, I didn’t fully understand that recovering from major abdominal surgery would be really slow and painful. I couldn’t be there for my baby at the level I wanted to be. She was colicky, and the only way to calm her in those early weeks was to bounce her for hours in your lap while sitting on one of those of giant exercise balls, but because of the incision, I couldn’t bounce. There was a lot I couldn’t do, or couldn’t do easily, and that lasted a long time.

Tests of the placenta came back weeks later to show neither my baby or I had had an infection. Obviously, no one knew we were OK at the time. I probably would have done the same exact thing, except hopefully, been more aware of water breaking and also delaying my epidural because the anesthesia supposedly slows down labor, though no doctor would confirm that for me. The cost of the c-section and 4 day hospital stay it requires, covered by my insurance, was $50,000. The point being hospitals make more money and avoid more lawsuits when they preform c-sections.

After one c-section, at my practice/ hospital, you’re allowed to schedule another for the second pregnancy, but I chose to try a VBAC because the recovery from the operation had been so hard. I waited much longer for the epidural. It was a long labor, but an easy birth. I pushed for just twenty minutes. Within hours, I was sitting “criss cross applesauce” as my daughter would say now. I felt happy and energized. The next day while my baby was having some standard tests, my husband and I walked a couple blocks to get a Jamba Juice. My nurse was pissed when we returned; I wasn’t allowed to leave the hospital, but it didn’t occur to me to ask permission because I felt so good.

The early infanthood with my second baby was a completely different experience than with my first. Right away, I was taking her out on walks. I felt calmer, happier. Part of that may just have been the second baby is less of a shock, you’ve been through it. But also, of course, I just felt so much better. I understood in a way I hadn’t before something basic: women’s bodies are designed to expand and contract with the pregnancy and birth. Even if the whole process seems alarming to someone who’s never had a baby, as it certainly did to me, we heal pretty easily and quickly. On the other hand, getting your abdomen cut open and stitched back up, is a serious physical invasion and feels just like that.

The cost of the VBAC was about $15,000, covered by my insurance.

My third baby, because she was the third, was supposed to “pop out.” She also got stuck. After about fifteen hours of labor, my doctor was ready to do another c-section. Even though I had delayed the epidural again, part of the reason my labor had slowed was that the hospital was no longer allowed to give me the level of Petocin, a drug that speeds up contractions, that I had with my second baby. As the New York Times reports, many hospital policies have changed for VBACs, now only allowing the lowest levels of Petocin. My doctor wanted to give me more, believing it was safe, but the nurse refused, saying it was against hospital policy. Having my doctor and nurse argue while I was in labor made me anxious, as if I weren’t anxious enough already. So I was headed for surgery when my doctor’s shift was up. The new doctor came into the room, examined me, and said, “I think we’re ready to push this baby out. What do you think?”

I told her I thought I was going to have a c-section unless they could up my Petocin.

She said: “No, we’re going to push!”

We are going to push– ha! But like I said, I follow doctors orders so I said OK. I was thinking: this doctor is clearly insane. As she, my husband, and the nurse were all leaning over me, telling me to push I was thinking– where did all these crazy, bossy people come from? But an hour later, I had my 10 lb baby. Yes, surprise! No one had any idea I was going to have a giant baby, but there she was. Recovery was more painful than baby #2 but again, my body felt normal pretty quickly, nothing like the c-section experience.

It’s pretty amazing that how I gave birth was so dependent on the particular doctor whose shift I was on, the nurse, and the hospital policy. I think this happens to a lot of women; how they give birth is influenced by what state or country they live in or random timing like a doctor’s schedule. I’m surprised and disheartened by the massive movement of hospitals away from VBACs. More women, not less, should be attempting them; doctors should stop forcing women into something “safer.”

Reel Girl

Imagining gender equality in the fantasy world

Yearly Archives: 2010