A – To spend an awesome afternoon laughing and conspiring with her favorite feminist comrade, of course!

***

You know those once in a lifetime friends? The kind of friends that are so incredibly amazing you still can’t believe they are in your life? Well, that is [...]]]> Q – Why did the feminist cross the causeway?

A – To spend an awesome afternoon laughing and conspiring with her favorite feminist comrade, of course!

***

You know those once in a lifetime friends? The kind of friends that are so incredibly amazing you still can’t believe they are in your life? Well, that is the kind of friend I am lucky enough to have in Ro. Even luckier? She lives right across the causeway from me in Bahrain, and back when Cody and I still lived there we were next door neighbors.

Ro is my mentor, my friend, my comrade, and all around the coolest person I’ve ever known.

You have probably heard me gush about Ro before. She is an internationally renowned feminist, global south advocate, vegetarian, and gender specialist. (Here and here are 2 interviews I did with her.) She is also a globetrotter extraordinaire so I have to be sure to catch her when she is in town. So, it was off to Bahrain!

Bahrain is a tiny island kingdom located right off the coast of Saudi Arabia. The two countries are connected by a very long bridge, a causeway, that spans 25km of ocean, with a checkpoint in the middle so you can go through immigration and customs to switch countries. It sounds like a lot, but it isn’t so bad. In fact, I used to commute (with a driver, of course) from Saudi Arabia to Bahrain and back again every day for school during high-school. On a good day the whole trip only takes about 45 minutes. So, heading over to spend the afternoon with a dear friend is simple and not too much hassle.

First, though, you gotta wake up and get the day started right. And with me that always means a green smoothie -

Then it’s time to change into my comfortable traveling duds. No matter the occasion, comfort is always the most important thing in determining what clothes I wear. And being stuck in a car for at least an hour, in this brutal summer heat, means I need something soft and easy.

After reliving my modeling days for a bit, I remembered where I live, and that any time I leave the compound I need to wear my abaya. Of course, I chucked it off the second I reached the very liberal shores of Bahrain.

After saying goodbye to one of the more elusive members of my herd (gotta catch her when I can)….

…I loaded up into my car for the trip across the causeway.

Women can drive on my compound, but not anywhere else in Saudi Arabia, so I have to use a driver to get around. Women can also drive in Bahrain, but I have to use a driver to get from here to there! So, as the trip begins I hand him my passport so he can hand it over to the causeway immigration guards to get stamped once we reach the border…

I get my tunes going (it is impossible to ride in the car for any length of time without good music!)…

I also like some light reading material; I can’t read anything that requires too much concentration while I’m in the car, otherwise I get a headache…

Yep, the one ‘starring’ yours truly…

After only half an hour or so waiting in line on the causeway we finished crossing the border and before too long reached Bahrain, and the lovely ramshackle compound where Ro lives. Actually, Cody and I lived there for a year or so, too, and we still keep an apartment there.

It is such an offbeat and unique place, exactly our style, and a type of compound you rarely find in Bahrain anymore. It is one of the very few ‘authentic’ compounds left, and one of the only ones with grass, flowers, trees, and room for dogs to run. Plus, it was located right in the village that is known as Bahrain’s riot hot-spot. Bahrainis love to riot, so a few nights a week we would always be surrounded by the sound of Molotov cocktails, riot police, rubber bullets, and flying tear gas canisters. It was exciting, to say the least!

Happily, the whole family was home to greet me. Even Crystal, the blind, yet pugnaciously pushy rescue dog.

Peter, Ro’s fantastic husband, is the best cook. He is a star at making hearty yet simple dishes that I can never seem to recreate. I wish he would write a cookbook! We feasted on a veggie packed lentil stew and a crisp and crunchy salad topped with a tofu salad dressing. Delicious!

After lunch Ro and I talked for hours and hours, but no matter what, the topic always came back to global feminist struggle – my favorite! We dished, we laughed, we ranted (as all good feminists do), and we had a wonderful, fulfilling afternoon.

There aren’t many people like Ro in the world, unfortunately, and there are even less in my neck of the woods, so spending time with her is like a breath of fresh air. I was sad to go, but didn’t want to leave the trek back across the causeway till too late. So, I called my driver and piled back into the car for the journey home.

You know you're back in Saudi when...

Before too long I was home sweet home in Saudi. I didn’t really do much that day, but whenever I have to travel any amount of distance in this heat it tires me out. I lounged in bed, cuddled with my dogs and Cody, did some writing, did some reading, and for dinner feasted on a super tasty snack plate!

What you see up there is mashed spicy beans, toast topped with avocado and hot sauce, a salad, a few crackers, and super sweet tangerines. I never get tired of snack plates, aren’t they delicious?

What a wonderful day!

***

***Don’t forget to spread the word about the t-shirts for sale from Conducive Chronicle. The proceeds will all go to the Navdanya Project in India to fight world hunger. To be honest, I was shocked and dismayed by the lack of enthusiasm about this simple and wonderful way for us to all raise money for a good cause. We are a community of people who claim to want to make the world a better place. Are we all talk? Come on people, buy a t-shirt if you can, and spread the word. Take a stand and do something!***

This post was originally posted on Conducive Chronicle.

***

This past May I undertook what many people considered an unusual project: I starved myself for seven days. Inspired by the actions of Kenda Swartz Pepper, I did a World Hunger Souljourn of my own; mimicking the diet of the world’s [...]]]>

This post was originally posted on Conducive Chronicle.

***

This past May I undertook what many people considered an unusual project: I starved myself for seven days. Inspired by the actions of Kenda Swartz Pepper, I did a World Hunger Souljourn of my own; mimicking the diet of the world’s 1.02 billion chronically hungry people while researching and exploring the causes of, and the potential solutions to, this manmade crisis. For seven days I immersed myself into the political policies, trade agreements, and financial wrangling that have created such an unfair and unbalanced global food system in a world that produces more than enough to feed everyone. I ate only 1,000 calories a day focused in one evening meal, a practice common to the 1 out of 6 human beings who do not have access to enough food.

While I began the journey feeling overwhelmed and nervous, discouraged in the face of this catastrophically huge problem, by the end of the seven days, while I felt sick and weak from the starvation, I also felt a buoyed sense of hope and optimism. In my short journey I had discovered so many amazing women and men fighting for global food justice, organizations dedicated to ending this crisis, and people the world over committed to doing whatever they could to help. Today I am honored to share with you another way that we can all pitch in to do our part – by purchasing a World Hunger shirt created by Conducive Media, the proceeds of which will go to the International Fund for Africa and Vandana Shiva’s food justice organization Navdanya.

When I first began my World Hunger Souljourn last May, the fact that I could not fully wrap my head around, was that the world already produces more than enough food for everyone. When we think of chronic hunger and starvation, we think of babies wasting away in their mother’s arms, listless eyes bereft of hope, and endless lines trailing behind food aid trucks. But what we do not always realize is that just behind those endless lines of people there are often huge storage silos filled with food produced right there in that country, waiting to be shipped halfway across the world to be sold to people who can afford it. The cause of chronic hunger is not parched fields and an unlucky roll of the weather dice, in fact, emergencies like drought or armed conflict account for only 8% of all the people suffering from hunger. The vast majority of hunger in our world is caused by an evil much more mundane and banal that anything that dramatic. 1 out of 6 people on our planet are starving to death simply because they are too poor to afford food. As I explored previously, because we do not see food as a basic human right that should be afforded to all human beings, we allow 18,000 children to starve to death every single day because in our current system poor people simply are not considered worthy of living.

In our world, huge transnational corporations are given more importance than the lives of individuals and the well-being of ecosystems, as everything is sacrificed in the quest for profit. People have decided that they know better than Mother Nature and have taken it upon themselves to alter the most basic components of our lives. We fill acres of farmland with toxic pesticides that kill, on contact, all living creatures, but are supposed to be rendered harmless by a quick rinse in the sink when we later want to eat the produce. Food scientists now clone and genetically alter plants and animals in an attempt to grow more, faster and better, ignoring the evidence that this meddling damages the long term health of the plants, the environment, and the food system. In a grotesque display of profit over people, companies are now patenting ancient grains and seeds, food stuffs that have been the foundation of societies for millennia. In our modern food system it has already become nearly impossible for a small farmer to support her family, but now it is becoming illegal for that small farmer to save her crop’s seeds and replant them next year. Our most basic requirement for survival, food, is being stolen away from us, with every patent that robs us of an indigenous grain, with every genetically altered Franken-food, and with every poison and chemical that is introduced into our bodies and our planet.

Fighting against this perversion of our planet’s natural food supply is one of the most vital struggles in the food justice movement. Protecting our basic right to healthy food requires that we view food as a human right, and not just a commodity to be owned and controlled by the wealthy. In India, the Navdanya organization is doing exactly that. Founded in 1984 by physicist, environmentalist, and eco-feminist Vandana Shiva, Navdanya is providing an alternative to the modern global food system by promoting biodiversity conservation, farmer’s rights, and organic farming methods, with an emphasis on seed saving. Navdanya means nine crops, in reference to the nine crops that represent India’s collective source of food security, and it is this self-sufficient food security that it hopes to preserve.

Like much of the world’s chronic hunger problem, India’s troubles can be traced back to the misguided theories of the Green Revolution and the exploitative neoliberal policies imposed on developing nations by the global north. In 1998, India was forced to open up its seed and farming sector to global corporations like Cargill, Monsanto, and Syngenta, by the World Bank’s structural adjustment policies. Seed saving by small farmers is made impossible when corporations like these patent seeds and genetically engineer seeds with non-renewable traits. A traditionally renewable and free resource, seeds become something that poor peasants must purchase anew each planting season. These new seeds also require massive amounts of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides, that destroy the land base, sicken the farmers, and pollute the nation’s waterways, but are conveniently sold by the same companies that own the patents to the seeds the farmers must buy. What this new farming system has unequivocally done is wreck the delicate ecosystem of India’s farmlands; create a monoculture of crops that has destroyed native biodiversity; sent millions of small farmers into debt as they are forced to keep up with the new chemicals, equipment, and patented seeds they must repurchase every year; and given rise to a generation of unemployed, homeless farming families that are forced from their land to live in the sprawling slums around India’s largest cities.

One of the most tragic consequences of this reshaping of a centuries old order is the epidemic of farmer suicides throughout the farmlands of India. Since 1997 200,000 Indian farmers have killed themselves, many by drinking the toxic pesticides that were supposed to improve their farms and their lives. Forced into skyrocketing debt to pesticide and seed companies in order to compete in India’s new farming landscape, the farmers fall into an ever increasing spiral of loss; mortgaging their house, sending their children away to find work, and losing everything they own as they struggle to compete in a game that was rigged against them from the start. The suicide economy is at a peak in the Vidharbha region of Maharashtra, where there are 4,000 suicides per year, 10 every day. This region also contains the highest acreage of Monsanto’s GMO Bt cotton. Centuries old sustainable farming traditions are being destroyed in the blink of an eye as the whole farming economy is transformed. The pursuit of profit takes precedence over the health and well being of people and farmland, and leads to a dangerously unstable food system, that paradoxically produces marginally more food while feeding a substantially smaller amount of people.

The suicide economy of industrialized, globalised agriculture is suicidal at 3 levels – it is suicidal for farmers, it is suicidal for the poor who are deprived food, and it is suicidal at the level of the human species as we destroy the natural capital of seed, biodiversity, soil and water on which our biological survival depends. ~ Vandana Shiva

Over the past 26 years, Vandana Shiva’s Navdanya has created an ever expanding alternative to the culture of death and debt pushed by the transnational corporations. Dedicated to the preservation of nature and the people’s right to knowledge, water, and food, Navdanya promotes global peace and justice through the conservation, renewal, and rejuvenation of the gifts of biodiversity. Navdanya has helped to create 54 community seed banks throughout India with the intent to rescue and conserve crops that are being pushed to extinction by monoculture farming practices. 3,000 varieties of native rice, 12 genera of cereals and millets, 16 genera of legumes, and 50 genera of vegetables have so far been saved due to their efforts. More than 500,000 farmers have been trained in organic and sustainable farming methods and more than 50 international courses have been offered on biodiversity, food, biopiracy, water, globalization, business ethics and more. Navdanya focuses on empowering local farmers to resist patents on seeds, and struggles to keep India free from GMO crops by recognizing humanity’s inherent right to food, water, and seed sovereignty.

When you purchase a World Hunger shirt from Conducive Tees, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to Navdanya in India to help fund the very important work they are doing on the front lines of the global food justice struggle. When faced with a crisis as large as global chronic hunger it can sometimes be difficult to know what to do, how to make an impact. When I first began exploring the topic I struggled to find a way to make my voice heard, wondering if one lone person could make a difference at all. It didn’t take long for me to realize that none of us are really ‘one lone person’, together we can make our voice heard and our actions reverberate around the world. It doesn’t take much, we just have to act. We must strive to make changes in our own communities, while standing in solidarity with those struggling around the world. Donating money to Navdanya, or buying a shirt whose proceeds will be donated to them, is one way we can all reach out right now to take a stand against food injustice. It’s nice to know that sometimes supporting a good cause can also mean looking great.

It is necessary to stop this war against small farmers. It is necessary to re-write the rules of trade in agriculture. It is necessary to change our paradigms of food production. Feeding humanity should not depend on the extinction of farmers and extinction of species. Another agriculture is possible and necessary – an agriculture that protects farmers livelihoods, the earth and its biodiversity and public health. ~ Vandana Shiva

In October, I will be joining other Conducive Chronicle writers Kenda Swartz Pepper and Jessica Hullinger for another World Hunger series.  A few guest writers may join us so stay tuned.

Purchase Your World Hunger Tee by clicking here to go to the Conducive Humanitarian & Human Rights Tees store.

Natasha’s World Hunger Journey

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 1

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 2

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 3

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 4

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 5

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 6

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 7

Remember how [...]]]> Well, as you know, Cody is in Washington DC on a business trip, trying to secure his work visa for Saudi Arabia. Hopefully, he should be home soon…but these things have been known to take weeks, and sometimes months. So, please keep your fingers crossed for us that it will all work out quickly!

Remember how upset I was that Cody was leaving? Well, I miss him desperately and can’t wait for him to be back….but….I’m doing better than I ever imagined! All of you who told me that I’m so much stronger than I know, were right! It has been a bit lonely and boring not having my best friend around to make me laugh and keep me loved up, but I’ve really surprised myself by how well I’ve coped. Of course, we talk non-stop on the phone, and spend several hours a day video chatting, which helps tremendously!

Something else that has helped me keep a smile on my face is the love of my adorable, wonderful dingo herd! I’ve been cuddling them even more than usual this past week and there isn’t a moment that goes by when one of them isn’t sitting next to me or is curled up (held captive) in my lap.

Lobi

Polly

Jack. Yes, he really does sleep like that!

Yesterday started like any other day….except there was a 25lb bed hog lying next to me!

Normally, Polly sleeps in her bed on the floor, right next to my side of the bed. But since Cody has been gone, we are two single ladies again and she is back in her rightful place. Unfortunately, in her sleep she quadruples in size and manages to hog every square inch of the bed. But I love her anyway.

Rise and shine!

Breakfast was an icy cold green smoothie…that was actually green. So often I overdose on blueberries and it all turns into a purple (but still delicious) sludge!

After chugalugging my yummy green breakfast I skedaddled to the gym. Okay, I didn’t so much as skedaddle as almost die from heat stroke during the 5 minute drive over there. Have I mentioned that it is HOT? Like 125F and 90% humidity HOT? It is brutal and I hate it. And it will last until about October.

ANYWAY. I had a great workout – 1 hour of cardio divided into 20 minute segments on 3 different machines. I can’t stay on one machine longer than 20 minutes without getting bored out of my mind. And it is a lung saving device, too. People around here wear A LOT of perfume – A LOT. And it is the most gag inducing thing, especially when you are huffing and puffing for air. Seriously, give me some stanky BO any day, over too much perfume.

I headed back home to luxuriate in the AC with my sweet dingos, do some editing and writing (feminist work! yay!) and eat LUNCH!

LUNCH!

This lunch made me SO happy. You know those times when you eat something that fills you up, refreshes you, and is EXACTLY what you were craving? Well, that was this. And it was good.

A big raw veggie salad, crackers topped with raw cashew cheese, avocado, and hot sauce, and some perfectly ripe tangerines. YUM.

The afternoon was spent working working working and taking my dogs for a long rumble in the desert. It’s times like that when I really miss Cody. Our family is incomplete without him!

And then for dinner….well, for dinner I ate dog food.

Yes. I did. I ate dog food.

Allow me to explain. You see, my dogs eat better than most people. I homecook all of their meals and it is as organic as I can get it. We can’t get fresh organic produce here, but we can get some dried/canned/frozen organic stuff…and that is what my dogs eat. I make several pots a week of different combinations of beans, rice, lentils, Bulgar wheat, sweet potato, zucchini, green beans, barley, millet, peas, carrots, pumpkin, etc, etc, etc. Anything delicious and tasty and organic, my dogs get it.

In the US my dogs were all vegan; I fed them Dick Van Patten’s vegan dog food. They loved it! Here in Saudi, the selection of dog food is pathetic, obviously no vegan options. So, while their diet is predominantly vegan, I do supplement their meals with a small amount of the highest quality dog food I can find. (Cue the hate mail.)

So, last night I had just cooked them up a big pot of rice, lentils, bulgar wheat and peas…and it looked so good I just had to try some. I piled it into a tortilla with added black beans, bell peppers, onions, and garlic, fried it up and served it with roast cauliflower. It was tasty, but the cauliflower was out of this world! I roasted it and then when it was all crispy and caramelized I tossed it with nooch and vegan butter. YUM!

Alright, you wonderful people, I’m off to relax for the rest of the evening and cuddle my sweet dogs…and keep my fingers crossed that Cody can come home soon.

Keep your fingers crossed, too!

I was blown away by the outpouring of emotion that was sparked by my FAT RANT. Thank you all so much for sharing your thoughts and feelings on the subject. I am so happy to have so many fearless and brave readers, you all had so many great [...]]]> (image source)

I was blown away by the outpouring of emotion that was sparked by my FAT RANT. Thank you all so much for sharing your thoughts and feelings on the subject. I am so happy to have so many fearless and brave readers, you all had so many great things to say – thank you!

Reading all of your comments and emails touched me so much and reminded me once again (as if a woman could ever forget) how much we are taught to hate our bodies. Every article, every advertisement, every commercial, every tv show bombards us with a million different products to buy and strategies to use so we can hide our supposed flaws. The flaws that as children we don’t even realize we have, but are ceaselessly pointed out to us as we grow older. By the time we are adults, instead of seeing our body as the beautiful space we inhabit in this world we have been trained to view it as a series of parts to be broken down and scrutinized, problem areas to be fixed or hidden.

When we think our body is looking good it can be a source of (usually short lived) pride, and when we think it is looking bad it can be a source of embarrassment and shame, and sometimes horror and rage. We beat it up and force it to deal with diet pills and toxic ‘cleanses’, crazy diets and ceaseless insults. We give our body stress fractures at the gym, force it into another pair of spanx, and cry when we realize it has had the temerity to gain a few pounds. Our body – we hate it, we loathe it, we bully it, we shame it, we hide it, we break it, we hurt it.

But when is the last time we told it thank you? Thank you for being. For letting us exist. For helping us and keeping us safe. For doing the best it can. When was the last time we stopped looking at it as a series of embarrassments and flaws to be whipped into shape, and started admiring it for the unique perfection it already has? Do you remember the last time you smiled at yourself and told each and every amazing part of you thank you from the bottom of your heart? When is the last time you looked in the mirror and took your own breath away?

Inspired by this glorious piece from Dianne Sylvan, I decided to do just that and I hope you will do the same.

***

Thank you body for being so healthy and strong. Thank you for carrying  me through my day without any objection or pain. Thank you for being so tall, I love that more than I can say. Thank you for giving me the past 3 years of perfect health, without one cold or flu or sniffle to speak of. Thank you for making me happy and joyful almost every single day. Thank you for letting me take care of my family and change the world and bake yummy cupcakes.

Thank you face for having so many silly freckles, they make me smile every time I look in the mirror. Thank you cheekbones for being so high and refined. Thank you chin for being so big and pointy, you announce my confidence to the world.

Thank you nose for being big and bony and perfectly crooked. You know the exact difference between too little cinnamon and the perfect amount of cinnamon in all of my tasty cakes. I can wear any glasses I want because your broad bump will never let them slide down my face.

Thank you eyes, you might not have perfection vision but with a little help from my glasses you do just fine and I love you for that. You are my favorite color of blue, tinged with cobalt and filled with turquoise. I love you for being rimmed with long, fluttery red lashes, almost invisible but still sweet. Thank you for being surrounded by fine smile lines that remind me of how much I love to laugh.

Thank you mouth for bringing me pleasure every time I eat, for letting me love cilantro and adore chocolate. Thank you for letting me kiss Cody and tell Polly how much I love her. Because of you I have an infectious smile and lips that are red and rich without ever needing lipstick. Thank you teeth for never getting a cavity and for being straight and strong. You might have needed braces for help, but I’m glad for you anyway.

Thank you hair, you really are my crowning glory! You are long and soft and you might look flame red at first glance, but you really have almost every color from platinum to auburn streaked through your waves.

Thank you neck for being long and lovely and Cody’s favorite place to kiss. Thank you collarbones for being delicate and fine, like the two sweeping wings of a bird. You remind me to always stand up straight and be proud of who I am.

Thank you shoulders for being so broad and so strong. You make any shirt or blouse or dress or jacket look phenomenal, and every time I see you I’m reminded of how much weight you can lift. You make me feel invincible. I can move mountains.

Thank you arms for being so long. I can hug the biggest horse and reach the highest shelf because of you.

Thank you hands for being so capable in the kitchen and for giving me the loopy, bouncy handwriting of a 6^th grader writing her first love letter. Thank you for being so gentle with animals and knowing how to stroke and pet and calm any fear.

Thank you breasts for being perfect pale tear drops. I waited so long for you when I was a little scrawny, gangly girl, and now that you are here I wouldn’t know what to do without you. You are one of my favorite accessories.

Thank you stomach for letting me eat whatever food I want without ever feeling the worse for it. Questionable street food, spicy food, old food, weird food, all different kinds of food, you’ve never let any of it bother you and I thank you for that. You let me be a fearless taste-bud explorer!

Thank you waist for being the perfect tiny accompaniment to my broad shoulders and curving hips. The juxtaposition makes me smile and always gives me a place to put a belt. You are soft and creamy white, sometimes flat and sleek and sometimes round and adorably pouty. I love you.

Thank you hips for flaring out so extravagantly from my waist; you give me a sense of drama even when I’m just walking around the house. I love to toss you from side to side and feel your strength. They tell me you are good ‘birthing’ hips, but I just think you make great dancing hips.

Thank you legs for being soooo loooong. You’ve made it hard to find jeans at times, but I don’t mind. You sometimes make me feel like a graceful deer, and at other times like a clumsy foal. You are stronger than I know and have never met a horse you can’t ride. You move with strength and anchor me to the earth, muscles bulging and lean lines dancing. You amaze me.

Thank you feet for carrying me through this life’s journey. You’ve never led me wrong and I will always trust your intuition. I like that you don’t hesitate to let me know when you’ve had enough and you aren’t shy about hating high heels. You are full of humor and look great with pink painted toes.

Thank you mind, for letting me be smart enough to do anything I can think of, courageous enough to face any opposition, determined enough to conquer any challenge, and with enough of a sense of humor to laugh at myself when I sometimes fail. Thank you for giving me more love and hope and compassion than I know what to do with.

Body, you’ve gotten me so far in life and you’ve done it without complaint. There were years when I didn’t treat you right, times when I took you for granted. You dealt with every blow with dignity, healed me, cured me, helped me, and saved me. Patiently and kindly you started to tell me when enough was enough, and you insistently guided me down a healthier path. I now revel in your beauty and your ferocious, limitless strength. I am in awe of you, humbled, enamored, and forever yours.

***

I encourage each and every one of you amazing people out there to write your own love letter to your body. Post it on your blog, write it down below in the comments, stick it on your mirror, tuck it underneath your pillow. Whatever you do with it make sure you know it is true! You really are that amazing and that beautiful and you deserve this praise. If you start to feel silly or worry that it is vain, give yourself a good shake and realize that kind of thinking is just the brainwashing we feel after a lifetime of being told we aren’t good enough, pretty enough, thin enough, or curvy enough. Pick up that pen, or your keyboard, or your snazzy colored markers, and remind yourself again and again and again that you are just right, exactly how you are.

(image source)

]]> http://thevoraciousvegan.com/2010/05/24/a-love-letter-to-my-body/feed/ 29 http://thevoraciousvegan.com/2010/05/17/fat-rant/ http://thevoraciousvegan.com/2010/05/17/fat-rant/#comments Mon, 17 May 2010 08:02:14 +0000 thevoraciousvegan http://thevoraciousvegan.com/?p=1104 Fat Chicks Rule

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Women and girls in our society are inundated from birth by the need to be thin and beautiful. Giraffe like models prance on every magazine cover, shrinking starlets grace all the red carpets, and every other show and advertisement on television is about how to lose weight, [...]]]> Fat Chicks Rule

***

Women and girls in our society are inundated from birth by the need to be thin and beautiful. Giraffe like models prance on every magazine cover, shrinking starlets grace all the red carpets, and every other show and advertisement on television is about how to lose weight, firm up, or hide your not yet skinny body with strategically draped clothes. In a time when we have almost outgrown the stupidity of other kinds of publicly accepted discrimination, making fun of fat people is still absolutely okay. Fat people are ridiculed, held up as examples of what not to be, made the butt of every joke, and are always the ‘before’ picture in any magazine spread.

When fat women have the audacity to embrace their bodies and celebrate their innate beauty and live the life they want to live regardless of society’s demand that they worship at the alter of anorexia and sacrifice two hours of their day to the treadmill gods, they are looked at as freaks, weird monstrosities that no one is quite sure what to do with. We all know how to handle fat women who feel shame and embarrassment about their size and who constantly profess their need to diet and work out, but when a women looks at her fat self in the mirror and says ‘I love my body’ and struts her hot stuff in a mini skirt and a tank top we all gasp in disgust and whisper to one another that she should not be wearing something like that, has she no shame, and shouldn’t she go to the gym? Doesn’t she care about being healthy?

That is one of the most disgusting things about fat discrimination, that it is done under the sickening guise of concern for the fat person’s health. I have heard some of the most convoluted and offensive defenses of fat hatred, ridiculous enough to make my head spin, but contrived concern over the health of the fat person in question is a whole new low. I have even heard it suggested that we should not ‘allow’ fat people to accept their bodies and celebrate their fatness because it is the easy way out for lazy people who just don’t want to do the hard work of exercising and being healthy. Excuse me? When a fat woman chooses to go against every single voice, image, and message in our thin worshipping culture, and decides to own her fatness and rock her hotness in spite of this, that is most definitely not the easy way out.

I’ve written many, many times before about how being overweight is not a very good judge of someone’s health. A fat person can be just as healthy, or just as unhealthy, as a skinny person. It is just that in our culture we have been taught to equate fat with instantaneous deathly health problems and thinness with the pinnacle of fitness. This brainwashing can make it hard to recognize the fact that weight does not directly correlate with health. Judging someone’s health by their size or the weight is inaccurate and baseless. But that is beside the point.

What if someone is fat and unhealthy? So what? Who cares? Do they have a duty to be thin and healthy? What is the problem if they want to eat nothing but junk food, do no exercise and be fat and unhealthy? Why do people feel they have a right to say anything or judge someone who is not hurting anyone?

People feel they have a right to say something because in our culture it is acceptable to insult and belittle and demean fat people. They are one of our acceptable scapegoats, they are not worthy of respect or kindness or even the fucking dignity that another human being deserves. We are allowed to pass judgment on their lives, their clothes, their food choices, their workout habits, their very existence just because they are fat.

Can you imagine if this pertained to other people? You out there reading this right now, you drink 2 or 3 glasses of wine every night. I don’t drink, and I don’t think it is all that healthy, so should I shame you about that? Should I make sure that you know how gross I think you are? Should I rally all my friends so we can cluck our tongues in disgust and ‘worry’ about your awful habits? What about you over there? You, the person who smokes cigarettes. Come one. Everyone knows that is unhealthy, let’s all point and laugh at this person now! And what about you? The woman who eats only 15 foods, all raw, all unseasoned, and proclaims health and well being. I disagree, so should I shame you loudly and in front of everyone? Can I ‘worry’ about you? And then there’s you. The person who spends all their money on fancy shoes and coats their face with 10 different kinds of make-up before stepping outside. What a waste of time and money! That isn’t healthy at all. And besides, shouldn’t you be required to donate all your money to charity anyway? And what about you, the person reading this who just had a fried donut and coffee for breakfast. Eeeww…how could you? Don’t you know that only a green juice and a colonic is an appropriate breakfast? And you…..

See what I mean? Where does it end? Whose level of fitness and dietary perfection do we need to aspire to? Who gets to decide what level of exercise and what amount of calories is healthy enough? What level of enjoying food and splurging is too much? At what point do I cross over from being thin to being fat enough to merit your ‘concern’? When do my habits become wasteful and bad? At what point does my dessert pass over from indulgence to mindless gluttony that needs to be punished? When do I get labeled unhealthy and slothful? When do you? My definition won’t match your definition, so which of us should get shamed and harassed and made to feel like shit? You or me?

Yeah, what about me? I mean, I exercise, but not obsessively, I eat healthfully, but I also love to inhale vats of chocolate and bags and bags of potato chips. I work out and have fun, but I am often stressed out and I don’t meditate like everyone says I should. I also still eat white sugar which people tell me is poisonous. Ooops, I also sometimes eat greasy street food which most definitely is dripping in transfats. So, what do you have to say to me? Maybe I should be more concerned about my health? Maybe I’m pretty disgusting? Oh wait, no, I’m not, because I’m thin and therefore I could never be anything but super healthy.

But you know what….I have plenty of fat friends who eat less than I do and they still rock their fatness. I’ve got friends who eat way more than me, and exist almost solely on junk food, and they are even more slender than I am. And back during college, in my pregan days, I existed on a bottle of whiskey a night, and nothing but loads of cheeseburgers, fries, and cigarettes during the day. And guess what? This will really short-circuit your fat hating brain…I was just as skinny then as I am now.

Nowadays, I am all for being healthy, I love being fit, but that doesn’t mean everyone does, and it doesn’t mean everyone should. If you want to be really fit and exercise all the time, have at it. If you want to spend your time painting or reading, or gardening, or volunteering at the old folk’s home, or reading to underprivileged kids, or making awesome cupcakes, or reclaiming abandoned lots, or studying, or going camping, or skydiving, or doing anything else other than working out or dieting, good for you. That is your choice.

So if you are one of those people who cluck and moan over fat people and their supposed ill health – shut up. You don’t know what you are talking about, and you sound pretty ignorant and obnoxious. You aren’t perfect by any means, none of us are. We all make our choice, we should all be proud of our bodies, no matter what size we are.

The whole world is set against women and is built to tear us down and keep us weak and ineffectual. Please, don’t add to that noise. Don’t shame your sisters for what they look like, their fitness level, or what they wear. And for dog’s sake, if they have the courage and confidence to stride with pride, no matter what they look like, applaud them. They are brave women on the front line of misogyny and they deserve your support. Fat, skinny, strong, weak, short, tall, whatever the mold, we can all be ferocious and phenomenal, and that is all that matters.

Too Big for My Skin – this is so beautiful, it makes me cry every time.

Fat Dinosty – This is genius, whimsical and sweet. It will make you laugh and cry!

Here are some of my favorite feminist, fat acceptance blogs:

Shapely Prose – Snark, feminism, body-love, and hilarity team up in the fantastically feminist bog.

Shakesville – One of the best feminist blogs period. Lots of fat pride and body acceptance here, too. You cannot go wrong with this site.

My Unacceptable Body – A fat Acceptance blog that I just discovered and can’t get enough of. The writing is phenomenal!

Fatuosity – On fat embodiment and sexual subjectivity, all wrapped up in one PhD thesis!

Axis of Fat – I love love love this blog, all things fat and feminist here. You must check it out!

Fat Lot of Good – More goodness that will make you think and make you laugh.

***

There will be absolutely no fat discrimination tolerated in the comments. If you want to spew misogyny, you are welcome to start your own blog.

This series is also being posted at The Conducive Chronicle. Please head over there to check it out.

***

The final day of my world hunger journey is here at last. For the past week I have been going hungry to raise awareness about global food insecurity while I research the [...]]]>

This series is also being posted at The Conducive Chronicle. Please head over there to check it out.

***

The final day of my world hunger journey is here at last. For the past week I have been going hungry to raise awareness about global food insecurity while I research the causes and potential solutions to this crisis. After a week of eating only 1,000 calories a day I think, for now at least, that my body has resigned itself to the situation. While I did feel hungry today, it was in a hazy, abstract way that was easy to overlook. Perhaps my body is fed up with its constant demands for food going ignored and has decided to conserve energy instead of causing a commotion. Conserve energy, sleep – It is all I want to do. The thought of curling up in my dark bedroom, pulling the covers over my head and closing my eyes seems like the perfect way to spend the day. And I never feel like this. I typically dislike naps and usually pop out of bed the moment I wake up in the morning. This overwhelming need for rest is frightening, and it makes me wonder how large a toll I’ve put on my body. I tried to stay clear headed today because I wanted to write about a topic very dear to my heart: empowering women and the important role they can play in overcoming world hunger. I will also share an interview with feminist activist and women in development expert Rosanna Barbero.

When I woke up this morning and looked in the mirror I saw that my skin is paler than usual, freckles standing out in sharp contrast on my face. My eyes which are regularly bright and lively are dull, with dark circles smudged heavily underneath. I eye my collarbones, are they sticking out more than usual? My shoulders have definitely lost some of their muscle tone and are looking unfortunately frail. I notice that my hair looks lank and I try to remember if I showered yesterday. I think I did, but it is hard to focus when all I can think about is sleep. I lean heavily against the bathroom wall and run through the list of things I need to do today. It all blurs together and I try to figure out how I can put it off till tomorrow.

Tomorrow. How lucky I am to have a tomorrow. A tomorrow where I can eat whatever I want, in whatever quantity I want and never have to worry about food again. A tomorrow where I can get rest and recover and catch up on all the work I have been putting off while on this hunger journey. How incredibly, undeservedly lucky I am that for the past week while I haven’t been eating much food I still have never even come close to knowing what real, true chronic hunger is…because of that tomorrow. I always knew this journey would end; there was a day on the calendar I could look at and know that on that day I could go back to my old life. I wonder if I could even survive if this hunger became a chronic state that I never knew if I would escape from. Could I find the strength, emotional and physical, to do my work, take care of my family, and survive?

As a feminist and woman’s rights activist my thoughts over this past week were never far from the women struggling with chronic hunger throughout the world. Women in the developing world routinely walk miles a day to find water for their families, and yesterday I was out of breath and trembling after taking my dogs down to the park for a quick game of fetch. The average woman (if there can be such a thing as an average women) in the developing world tends to crops, cooks food, feeds her family, goes to work, cleans her house, feeds the animals, travels to find water, and cares for her family every single day, and all without the half dozen or so modern appliances we in the developed world rely on to perform even the smallest of tasks. The thought of performing hard physical labor from dawn till dusk even on a good day with my belly full of food is daunting, but the thought of doing it every single day with hunger gnawing at my sides and sleep tugging at my eyes is simply unfathomable.

“Women work two-thirds of the world’s working hours, produce half of the world’s food,  yet they earn only 10 percent of the world’s income and own less than 1 percent of the world’s property.” ~ CARE

70 percent of the people struggling to survive with chronic hunger are women and girls. This statistic is shocking enough on its own, but in light of the fact that women produce nearly 80 percent of the developing world’s food supply, and 60 percent of the entire world’s food supply, it is truly staggering. And while women grow the vast majority of the world’s food, they own less than 1 percent of its farmland. So, why do women suffer so greatly from chronic hunger when they are the ones contributing the most to our planet’s food supply?

The answer is sexism. Because of social, religious, and cultural practices women are often forbidden to own or control the land they farm, they have unequal access to resources, jobs, and education, are at a higher risk for violence, and they are typically unwelcome in the traditional decision making process.

The contribution and importance of women has been historically undervalued throughout the world, and their worth continues to be dismissed in ways that drastically effect their health and their lives. When hard times hit a region and food is scarce, the men and the boys eat their fill first, leaving the meager leftovers for the women and girls. A lack of proper nutrition leads to young girls having an increased rate of sickness and a harder time in school. When money runs out even more, these young girls are often pulled out of school completely while their brothers continue to attend. (Many schools around the world used to be provided free of charge by the government, but under the United Nation’s International Monetary Fund Fund/World Bank austerity measures social spending was eliminated and tuition was charged for the first time.) A girl’s education is often seen as expendable and is one of the first things to go in a crisis. This has led to girls and women making up 2/3 of all those who have no access to education. There are 65 million girls and women throughout the world who never even started school and 100 million who did not finish primary education. More than 542 million women are illiterate from inadequate or incomplete schooling.This lack of schooling and education for girls permanently cements their lesser status as women. Without an education as a child, a woman finds it even hard to overcome the many other obstacles placed in her path such as cultural and religious proscribed gender inequality, and social and economic discrimination.

Violence is another way that women are kept subservient and on the bottom rung of society, and violence against women is at pandemic proportions. Around the world 1 in 3 women have been beaten, raped, assaulted, or abused – usually by someone they know. 1 in 4 women throughout the world have been abused while pregnant. Violence against women is the most common, but least recognized, human rights violation in the world. This kind of global terror war on women also serves to reinforce male dominance and control, which is perpetuated by a culture of silence and shame as women are often blamed for the attacks that males commit against them. Many times this environment is referred to as ‘rape culture’. As I mentioned in my Day five post about conflict in Cambodia, rape and violence against women is a frequently used tool of war because it effectively intimidates and subdues the enemy population, while also serving to fragment and dissolve community cohesion. Since women grow the majority of the world’s food, when they are uprooted from their lives and struggling in the face of grave violence, their ability to work the crops is destroyed. Fields lie fallow, crops go unharvested, and a community that may have once been food self sufficient is now at the mercy of food aid, which is usually controlled by the same men who inflicted the violence in the first place. Crises like violence and chronic hunger effect women in different ways than men. Because of long term, institutionalized gender inequality women are often placed at the back of the line to receive aid and are left out of the rebuilding process. Food becomes another means to control women and keep them dependent, passive and constantly weak.

“Violence against women has a far deeper impact than the immediate harm caused. It has devastating consequences for the women who experience it, and a traumatic effect on those who witness it, particularly children. It shames states that fail to prevent it and societies that tolerate it. Violence against women is a violation of basic human rights that must be eliminated through political will, and by legal and civil action in all sectors of society.” ~ Yakin Ertürk

Women must face this inequality and subsequent hunger and gender driven violence, all while continuing to care for their children. When hunger affects women it inevitably affects their children. Undernourished mothers tend to give birth to low birth weight babies, and low birth weight babies are 4 to 6 times as susceptible to physical and developmental illness, and 8 to 10 times as likely to die in the first year of life. More than 23 million low birth weight babies are born every year, 90 percent of them in the developing world. In this way hunger is passed on from generation to generation, an unwanted legacy of pain and sorrow, and the destructive effects of poverty begin even before a baby enters the world.

However, women are not only victims of chronic hunger, they are also the solution.

“People often ask: what can be done to defeat hunger? My answer is simple: empower women, because women are the secret weapon to fight hunger.” WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran

Women must achieve liberation in order for them to reach their full potential and change the world. While half of humanity is in shackles and society is built on their degradation and slavery, sustainable progress is impossible. All the food aid and redistribution plans in the world are only band-aids when our world is based on the premise that half of us are not worthy. But empowering women and striving for gender equality should not just be a moral imperative, it should be recognized that women hold the key to a better tomorrow for everyone.

“The research is unequivocal: If the goal is to improve health, nutrition or education, reduce fertility or child mortality, stem the spread of HIV, build robust and self-sustaining community organizations, encourage grass-roots democracy, and ultimately, temper extremism, successful efforts must target women.” ~ Isabel Coleman

Lack of education for girls is a situation that must be remedied; every human being has the right to an education and the right to enjoy the life changing potential it can bring. Education for girls is also one of the most powerful ways to end poverty and put a stop to chronic hunger. Of all the households in the world, 1/3 have a woman as the sole breadwinner and a higher level of education as children can raise their earning level, enrich their family, and ensure their ability to cope with hard times. Educated girls are also more likely to grow up to become women involved in their country’s political process, making decisions that could improve the lives of other women and girls.

“When girls go to school, they marry later and have fewer, healthier children. For instance, if an African mother has five years of education; her child has a 40 percent better chance of living to age five. A World Health Organization study in Burkina Faso showed that mothers with some education were 40 percent less likely to subject their children to the practice of genital mutilation. When girls get educated, they are three times less likely to contract HIV/AIDS.” ~ Jonathan Alter

Experience shows that when food is put into the hands of women it is more likely to reach the mouths of hungry children and it is distributed equitably. When a woman earns money more of it is devoted to the care of the family than when a man earns the money. The probability of a child surviving increases 20 percent when the mother’s income increases, compared to the same rise in a father’s income. In Kenya, when women took control of the finances children’s height increased 17 percent. Putting the tools for survival and for community improvement in the hands of women virtually guarantees the resources will be implemented equitably. In post-conflict zones women’s voices need to be heard and they must play a central role in the rebuilding process in order to create stable, egalitarian communities that respect the inherent worth of all people. The cumulative effect of championing women’s rights and empowerment in all spheres, but especially in regards to world hunger, guarantees a brighter future for us all. When we empower women we change the world.

***

To learn more about the way women throughout the world struggle with the burden of chronic hunger and poverty I turn once again to my dear friend Rosanna Barbero. Rosanna is the founder/director of Womny’s Agenda for Change in Cambodia, where she pioneered the Gender and Trade Mekong Network while supporting the establishment of the Women’s Network for Unity, a sex worker union in Cambodia and one of the world’s largest grass-roots sex worker networks. She has traveled the world for the past two decades as a development worker, a feminist activist, and gender specialist with Oxfam. Rosanna has also been a committee member for the world’s largest anti-globalization network World Social Forums, as well as an advocate against the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and World Trade Organization, and a member of the Jubilee South Network.

Burge: Globalization, conflict, and poverty have all contributed to the fracturing of families and the disintegration of community cohesion. What is the lasting effect of this disruption and how can it be repaired?

Barbero: Poverty and conflict are often a result of globalization, that is if we agree that globalization is the modern form of imperialism, what we call neo-imperialism. It’s a system whereby the rich nations in particular the U.S. maintain it’s domination, control and hegemony on the rest of the world. Conflict arises in many countries because they are fighting for power over scarce resources, and no longer accept oppression and the blatant theft of their resources in the hands of foreign corporations and local corrupt officials that allow this theft for a fee. Poverty is the result of a deliberate system that creates and perpetuates the haves and have nots. Wealth that is generated could be distributed more equally or equitably, Governments could spend on education, health for all and implement policies that give people decent jobs and a chance to develop and better their lives and those of their families. BUT they do not. Instead of building a country for the benefit of its people the money goes instead to a rich few and to service a debt that was used inappropriately.

Burge: When a family is hit with a financial shock and is facing hunger, what are some of the ways that women and girls are forced to bear the greatest brunt of the crisis?

Barbero: Girls are taken out of school and are forced to participate in the daily survival of the family. For children this usually means day laboring and for women and girls they are paid less than males. If they are teenagers they are sent to find work, and because of lack of education, skills and options available to them they end up in the garment factories or the brothels.  They only have their bodies for labor or sex and in the global south these are the options.

Burge: Can you describe how poverty and hunger become inherited conditions?

Barbero: When you are working just to eat, there is no way to improve the wealth of the family. You are vulnerable to falling into a spiral of debt which is left to the next generation to repay. In addition, with increasing pressure from policies that are anti poor, there are no safety nets or cushions like welfare, or government subsidies.  There is only landlessness, migration, vulnerability and exploitation.

Burge: In what ways has the spread of modern globalization changed the status of women? In general, has it seen an improvement in their lives or has it cemented their lesser status?

Barbero: Some idiots will claim that globalization has brought foreign direct investment to the global south included in this are brands such as Nike, Levis, GAP and other exploitative brands that produce in the third world so they can pay very little for the manufacturing of garments and do not need to treat those workers as human beings and basically get away with it because they are in cohorts with local corrupt officials. These women have been driven off of their land and displaced from their homes through no fault of their own, are desperate, therefore, for the work, live in terrible squatter conditions, and eat poorly in order to send money home. They work to eat and send money home for their families to eat, and if they are lucky to send a brother (boy child) to school.

On the other hand globalization has given rise to a leisure industry that is affordable to many males in the global north. As part of this leisure industry there is the promise of exotic girls for hire, therefore, hotels, resorts, etc. have an endless supply of women who are trying to survive and care for impoverished families.

Burge: Experience shows that when food is put into the hands of women it is more likely to reach the mouths of hungry children and it is distributed equitably. Why, then, do most development programs end up doing the most to improve the lives of men?

Barbero: Technically they really are not meant to serve men, almost all development programs have a gender perspective. Were this falls apart is in the tokenistic consideration gender is given, especially technical development programs. Because of the extreme inequality, most development workers just want to get the job done and if that means by building relations with the men and not considering women then that is what they do – because of financial and work plans limitations. But most of all, people in development are not outraged by gender oppression and end up ignoring it in the name of culture and tradition.

Burge: Why do you think women are the key to solving poverty and chronic hunger?

Barbero: Women are the main workers in agriculture and the carers of family and children. Because of centuries of oppression and hardship, they quite often have stamina and an enormous capacity for coping strategies which men do not always possess. In my experience, women can display great flexibility and a willingness to sacrifice that is vital in fighting poverty.

Burge: What are the key strategies to empowering women to overcome the hunger and poverty in their lives?

Barbero: Women need access and control over resources so they can shape their own lives. They need policies that grant them equal rights, including to property and inheritance. Legislation that grants women security and rights and control over their lives, both productive and reproductive, is also a necessity. Women need support services for them and their children, along with programs that support and ensure education access until the tertiary level. Laws and policies that ensure equal rights, eliminate discrimination and grant protection from violence must be created and enforced.

Burge: Can you tell us about a development program you saw that was geared towards empowering women to combat hunger and poverty that was successful and that transformed their community?

Barbero: One would be an agricultural collective which only allowed women as members and a percentage of the grant and profits thereafter went towards education for girls. For women to be members of this collective they had to agree to send their daughters to school all the way to graduation. A healthy percentage of the profits generated went into diversification of crops, nutritional programs, reproductive health and birth spacing, training a mid wife and establishing a creche in the village. Some of these women were then elected on to the village committee and underwent leadership courses and made decisions about their communities.  This caused conflict in some families as men felt their status was being challenged, but gender sensitivity training and conflict resolution including some harsh measures implemented by the women’s co-op ended the violence. They also established a refuge and had legal advice on divorce and cases of violence, land ownership etc. Another condition of membership was that husbands had to put their wives names on land ownership papers.

Burge: Can you share with us a story that particularly touched you or changed you in some way; about the women you have worked with who were struggling with poverty?

Barbero: When I saw sex workers standing up for their rights in a society that thought they were scum, a society that failed to see them as the poorest of the poor that were surviving in a society that presented them with little or no options and increasingly narrowed those choices. They stood up and called for their rights as workers, recognition as women who are responsible for the survival of their families, as women who found the only option available to them because their leaders and world leaders are not interested in helping the poor and improving the lives of the majority. They formed a union and they are now globally famous and this was my project, which humbled me as a feminist, as a development worker and a human being.

Burge: How can we in developed Western nations stand in solidarity with the women throughout the world who are facing chronic hunger and poverty and assist them in their struggle?

Barbero: You hold your governments accountable! Hold them accountable for aid, for the removal of conditions on aid and loans. Hold brands that exploit women accountable. Increase bilateral budgets to the global south. Call to abolish of the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization.

Thank you to Rosanna for sharing her knowledge and experience with us!

***

At the end of day seven, the closing hours of this world hunger journey, as I am measuring out my tiny dinner I find myself on the verge of tears. For the past week I have starved myself and obsessively weighed portions, measured ingredients, and counted calories – practices that were previously completely foreign to me. Like I said before, I’ve never in my life gone on a diet, I’ve never gazed at a scale in fear, and I’ve certainly never tried to lose a few inches. I have never looked at my body with anything other than respect and love, and food has always been just food, something to celebrate and enjoy, but never the enemy or something that caused me pain.

But, I know many, many women who would have found my actions of the past week all too familiar. I’m sure most of us know women or girls like this. I can count on one hand the number of women that I know well who do not worry about their appearance or constantly bounce from diet to diet. I have one friend who has a panic attack if she can’t spend two hours at the gym every day, another who adheres so stringently to her raw foods diet that she once cried after eating one of my cupcakes, and another who complains about the size of her hips at least once every time we talk. I even have a friend who asked me if she could join me on this world hunger ‘diet’ so she could drop a few pounds. I’m not sure if she was joking.

Bombarded by images of unattainable, digitally altered perfection, women in the developed world are forced to obsess about their looks, count calories, exercise obsessively and loathe their own body. As Naomi Wolf, author of The Beauty Myth wrote; beauty is the only thing woman are allowed to aspire to. Being thin and beautiful, in the eyes of modern society, is a woman’s greatest achievement. I have written before about the way too many women swallow this lie and end up paying diet and cosmetic companies vast sums of their hard earned money to continue eroding their sense of self-worth with yet another round of insulting ad campaigns.

Over the past week as I immersed myself for eight or more hours a day in the research and study of world hunger and actively created my own undernourishment, I read about the unimaginable pain women experience when their young child dies in their arms because they haven’t been able to find the food to feed him. I’ve read reports of young girls being sold into sexual slavery because their parents don’t have enough money to keep her fed. I’ve watched videos of women crying as they sell off their possessions, one by one, to make sure they can feed their children just one more day.

And on the other hand, I have heard my friends talk about how ‘good’ they have been on their diet, how much they wish they were just a little bit skinnier, how ugly they look when they gain weight, how much they hate themselves for eating a second slice of pie, how much they torture themselves when the numbers on the scale climb just a bit higher.

I wanted to scream. I desperately wanted to take the women on one side and lead them to the women on the other side and have them meet each other and share stories. I wonder what the woman whose child died in her arms from starvation would say to my friend who hates herself for eating too much dessert?

***

After seven days of this journey I am more than ready to be done. Today would have been the end no matter what because I simply cannot go on any longer. Since I went vegan over three years ago, I haven’t been sick once, not so much as a sniffle. But all day today I have felt that once familiar feeling of aches and unease that used to signal the arrival of a cold. In just seven days I never imagined such a drastic change could occur, I never thought I would feel this bad.

I am so happy to be done with this journey, but I have a lingering sense of disappointment because I know I have barely scratched the surface of chronic hunger. In my head on permanent repeat I still hear ‘1 out of 6 people, 1 out of 6 people‘, and I wonder if I have done this topic justice. What I do know is that I haven’t fully processed what has happened yet. I’m sure that will take some time, and some energy, which at the moment I simply do not have. I will be back, however, with two posts devoted to solutions to world hunger and chronic poverty.

For now, I leave you with my last dinner of the world hunger journey. I took the leftover millet, okra, and black eyed peas I had enjoyed on Day 3 and added a yellow bell pepper for crunch. It was delicious, but I’d be lying if I said my taste buds weren’t craving a gigantic green smoothie right now. Tomorrow…

Total Calories: 970
Total Fat: 35.7
Total Carbohydrates: 142.5
Total Protein: 23.7

To Follow Natasha’s World Hunger Journey

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 1

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 2

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 3

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 4

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 5

7 Days for World Hunger: Day 6

Sustainable giving programs dedicated to providing solutions that help eliminate poverty and world hunger.

• Food For Life
• Trees for Life
• Community Action Fund for Women in Africa
• Fruit Tree Planting Foundation
• Women’s Bean Project
• Sustainable Harvest International
  International Fund for Africa

If you would like to help in the fight against world hunger please spread the word about this Souljourn, we are trying to build a movement! If you would like to join in, let us know!

You can also donate to Food for Life and International Fund for Africa, they are both 100% vegan organizations dedicated to ending poverty and chronic hunger while spreading the benefits of a cruelty free vegan diet.

Thank you to BookPubCo for their support!

I’m a light sleeper so my eyes are open instantly and I’m out of [...]]]> 6:00 am – Polly wakes up and shakes her head, flopping her ears loudly from side to side. She does this every morning at this time from her bed right at the side of my bed, and it is my wakeup call.

I’m a light sleeper so my eyes are open instantly and I’m out of bed. I first brush my teeth, wash my face, and brush my hair. Then I’ve got to take the dogs outside and feed them and the cats. Not a small task when there are 6 critters demanding their breakfast NOW. Usually I stay in bed and Cody handles all of this, but he had to take a short business trip to Bahrain yesterday so the task falls to me today.

6:20 am – Dogs are fed, cats are fed, time to tend to Volvo.

Volvo is our ancient German Sheperd and he hasn’t been doing too well lately. We rescued him in Bahrain 2 years ago in the most disgusting condition I’ve ever seen. He was living at a stables, surrounded by horses imported from Europe that were in pristine condition, but he was literally starving too death because his nails had been allowed to grow so long he couldn’t walk. He had no skin on his back because of an infection and his eyes and ears were bloody and swollen shut from flies.

When we rescued him and took him to the vet he was given only 2 weeks to live. So, we made him comfortable and tended to his infections and his nails and gave him plenty of food and water and medicine. He completely recovered from his sicknesses; his skin healed and hair grew back, he gained weight and started walking again. He was a very old dog to begin with (the vet estimates he is around 13) so his hips were never quite right, he couldn’t really run or move too quickly so we kept him on joint treatments and arthritis medications. But he was happy. We walked him and he would relax in the grass while our other dogs ran and played. He loved his food, he even made reluctant friends with our cats.

After about a year he lost the ability to control his bowels, but we just cleaned him up and bathed him all the time and he still seemed happy. He lives outside in our beautiful and shady garden most of the time, only being brought inside during the hottest part of the day or coldest part of the night. We put his bed on plastic tarping to catch any ‘accidents’. (Just so you know, we are not ‘outside dog’ kind of people, we are very much ‘inside dog’ people. Dogs belong inside with their people at all times! Our beds, couches, everything we own is our dogs’ property and they are totally the bosses of the house. But we just can’t keep Volvo inside full time anymore after he started pooping on himself.)

About 5 months ago he lost most of his ability to control his bladder, so we just cleaned him up even more. But about a month ago he started losing the ability to stand up on his own and get around. It seems like his back legs are completely gone. They’ve always been weak but now they don’t even function. We pick him up and help support him as he walks around the yard, we turn him every few hours so he doesn’t get sore, and we massage him several times a day to keep the blood flowing. But unfortunately, nothing has helped. We are taking him to the vet tomorrow to see what can be done. Please keep him in your thoughts, hopefully he can be helped.

The difficult thing is that I am not sure what he wants. Even though we have had him for 2 years now I still don’t feel like I really know him. This is shocking to me since I am the world’s foremost dog lover. 5 minutes after meeting a dog I can read them like a book and I am always head over heels in love with them. But while Volvo recovered from his physical ailments he never really interacted with us too much. He always kept to himself, preferring to watch our dogs while barely acknowledging me or Cody. He is not scared of us at all but he doesn’t make eye contact or ever seek out our affection. I love him and want the best for him but since I don’t really know him I feel like it is an impossible decision to make.

So, after all the dogs and cats were fed I went out into the yard, washed Volvo off, cleaned his face, stood him up for a while, supporting his weight completely, walked him around the yard a bit. Found a nice shady spot and settled him down and gave him a short massage. When I was done I went inside and washed up.

6:45am – Start feeling sorry for myself. Cody and I are pathetically, overwhelmingly, completely enraptured with each other so being apart for even one day affects us both pretty hard. I feel like a piece of me is missing when he isn’t around and even though we have been together for 5 years this doesn’t seem to be fading. Luckily business trips are a very rare occurrence and when they do come up it is only for one of two nights. We have it easy, I know. I don’t see how people handle long distance relationships or having a spouse in the  military. The thought of those endless deployments just sends shivers down my spine!

Cody and I talked for hours on the phone last night but I still can’t get enough. I give him a call to wake him up and we talk and laugh. He feels the same way as I do so our conversations get a little melodramatic and ridiculous. He will be home tonight – I can’t wait!

7:00 am – Time to check my email. And answer email. Lots of email. I need an assistant to check and answer my email for me. I will pay you in cupcakes and sambusa.

7:30 am – Check all of my favorite news sites and save the stories I want or need to read later.

8:00 am – It’s Green Smoothie Time! I can’t start my day without one of these; I just love them so much. I take my dogs outside, relax on my lounge chair and sip my smoothie while listening to the birds chirping. After I’m done I go move Volvo around again and give his back legs a stretch.

8:30 am – Work. Which means research and writing. I’m currently writing a book that combines all of my favorite things: politics, feminism, veganism, consumerism, anti-globalization, etc. Right now I’m in the research and preliminary outline/sparse writing stage, which means that I get distracted constantly. In doing the research I have to use the web a lot, which means there are a zillion different chances for me to get sidetracked. MUST FOCUS.

8:37am – Oh no. Cody is on-line too and now we are chatting. He seems to be missing me even more than I miss him. Poor guy! I distract him by telling him silly stories of what our goofy dogs have been up to since he left yesterday.

9:00 am – Force myself to say goodbye to Cody and focus on my work. Research, read, write, delete, contemplate throwing my computer out the window, this is not going well and I am incapable of writing a word. Wait, now I’ve got an idea….oh this is good…okay, here we go….

11:00 am – Wrap up my writing, take the dogs outside for a bathroom break, give Volvo a walk around the yard, feed all of the dogs lunch, then head to the gym. (Call Cody on the way there to tell him I love him and miss him.)

11:30 am – 30 minutes on the elliptical. I love this machine because it is easy on my knees but it seems to strain my lower back a bit.

12:00 pm – 30 minutes on the summit climber. I love this thing! Makes me feel so strong! The last five minutes are pretty hellacious as the women who starts working out next to me has apparently spent the past week bathing in the stinkiest perfume I’ve ever smelled. Seriously, my eyes were watering.

12:30 pm – 12:31 pm – Stretching. I know, I KNOW I need to do more stretching. I just hate it so much. Any tips out there for how I can easily incorporate it into my routine?

12: 45 pm – Home from the gym, time for SHOWER.

1:15 pm – eat my delicious lunch (raw cashew cheeze pate on crackers topped with avocado and hot sauce and a big raw veg salad with basil balsamic dressing) and relax with my sweet dingos. Answer more emails and accept a writing assignment for a short article with an option for a short series. Cody calls and we chat for a few minutes just to say hi and I send a few emails to friends and family.

2:00 pm – Back to work. Luckily I manage to pick up my train of thought from earlier and I’m on a roll. The time flies by and I can’t believe it when I check the clock.

3:30 pm – Take the dogs outside for a bathroom break, walk Volvo around and rub his legs. Spot our cat Twilah lounging in the grass. She thinks we can’t see her so she bats at us every time we walk by. Cats are so weird, and Twilah seems to be even weirder than the average cat.

3:45 pm – Head out to the stables to ride my sweet horse Ender. I love love love him desperately, it is unreal. We have a blast going for a nice ramble through the desert and a lazy gallop through the grass. He is loving life here in horsey paradise, and I’m so happy he is happy. Being out in the beautiful sunshine with the wind on my face feels so amazing!

5:00 pm – Home, feed the dogs their dinner, harness them up and take them for a long walk. Usually Cody and I do this together, just like everything else in our lives, and we laugh and talk the whole time. I miss him so, so, so much. We must be psychic because he calls me during the middle of the walk and even though it is hard to juggle a phone and 3 dogs all pulling in different directions, I manage.

6:00 pm – Home from our walk, the dogs are tuckered out. Time for my dinner now. I roasted up a ton of veggies with lots of sea salt and garlic, added some black beans and piled it all on top of a bit of quinoa. And I had to have more of that cashew cheese pate, of course!

6:30 pm – After my feast I take all the dogs outside so we can enjoy the beautiful evening. I walk Volvo around and massage him as I watch the sun set. This is the hardest part of the day for me to be away from Cody and I can’t wait to see him in a few hours. I miss my best friend!

7:00 pm – Check up on all of my favorite feminist, vegan and political blogs, make comments, and brainstorm about future articles. Snack on a delicious homemade pomegranate blueberry juice and fresh strawberry popsicles. Yum!

8:00 pm – Head to the kitchen to make a green smoothie for Cody. I make him one every day to drink as soon as he gets home from work. Usually he is home by 5:45pm but his business trip has thrown him off schedule and he will be home a few hours late today. Can’t wait till he walks through the door and I can hug him and kiss him!

8:15 pm – Green smoothie done, time to relax and read the books currently sitting on my bedside table. I am an insatiable reader, a veritable book fiend, I plow through at least 2 or 3 a week. This week it is: The Essential Chomsky, and Feminism without Borders. I love both of these books, they are essentials for any politically minded feminist and I highly recommend them.

9:00 pm – CODY IS HOME! Gotta go, 24 hours is way too long for these lovebirds to be apart. Hope you are having a great day wherever in the world you are!

I’ve been really busy lately (who isn’t!?!) so I’m thinking of making the Wednesday Wrap-Up an every other week kind [...]]]> Hello there! I hope you are all having a fantastic Wednesday. Here in KSA it is getting hot already, in the mid 90′s. Sigh. My summer hibernation is starting early this year!

I’ve been really busy lately (who isn’t!?!) so I’m thinking of making the Wednesday Wrap-Up an every other week kind of thing. Hope you don’t mind!

Here is what I’ve been reading this week….

- A vegan’s view of Jaime Oliver’s Food Revolution.-

I can’t watch the show here, unfortunately, but from what I can tell he is overlooking the reasons so many Americans have no choice but to eat unhealthy foods. The fact is, most overworked, underpaid parents are doing the best they can with the resources they have and the reason they and their families are not making the best food choices is not because they don’t want to, but because they can’t or don’t know how. I do believe the public school food lunch program should be overhauled, and I admire his efforts, I just wish he would examine the systemic problems we are facing.

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- 5 Things Men Can Do to Stop Rape –

We’ve all seen those endlessly annoying articles instructing women on various things they should do to prevent being raped. Those piss me off SO much. We should not have to change our behavior at all. When women are given a set of rules they must follow in order to ‘avoid being raped‘ it is just one more way they are considered responsible when a man rapes them. It is preemptive victim blaming. It takes the blame off the rapist and puts it on the woman and the things she has or hasn’t done. No matter what we do, what we wear, or where we go, we are never at fault when a man rapes us.

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- Sweet Spreads from Choosing Raw –

Okay, both of these spreads look divine, but I’ve got a ton of figs soaking in water right now so I can make the raw fig jam later. I can’t believe how simple the recipe is, and I’m betting it is going to be out of this world delicious!

*****

- Classism from Vegans Doesn’t Help Animals, Nonhuman or Human.

I loved this article from Challenge Oppression that details why it isn’t always possible, or desirable, for vegans to toss all of their animal products right away. Issues of classism, consumerism, and intolerance abound when this topic is usually discussed, but, as always, Stephanie covered it brilliantly.

*****

- The Violence of a Recession -

“Our economic crisis is about a lot more than lost jobs and evaporating 401Ks. It’s closing off options for women in abusive relationships.”

As unemployment rates rise, so does violence against women. Keeping this fact in mind when planning strategies to alleviate poverty and create jobs is vital for the well-being of women and children.

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- Lentil and Walnut Pate from Choosing Raw –

You all know how much I love a good dip, and this one looks delicious. With a rich lentil base I know it will give me all the protein I need in one scrumptious package. I will be making this soon!

*****

-What is Life Like for the More than 1 Billion in the World who are Hungry?-

Like most of us, I have a continual nagging guilt that I have so much while most people in the world have so little. My kitchen is overflowing with many different kinds of food, while more than 1 out of every 6 human beings is going hungry, with the number increasing every day. In this series of articles a woman embarks on a 21 day ‘Souljourn’ by eating what the average person who is suffering from food insecurity eats. The results are heartbreaking and eye-opening. I’m glad that the article mentioned how much the West’s consumption of meat and animal products contributes to the hunger and starvation of others.

*****

- Ellen Page – I love you! -

“I’m totally pro-choice. I mean what are we doing to do – go back to clothes hangers?” - Ellen Page

I adored her in the awesome and hilarious movie Whip-It but I completely love her after reading this interview. More young women in Hollywood should self-identify as ferocious feminists. Yay!

(For more on being a pro-choice vegan please read this post before sending me your enraged hate-mail. And remember, no misogyny allowed on my blog so think twice or prepared to be deleted!)

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- Interview: Alice Walker on violence, peace, and compassion. –

A short interview with the always brilliant Alice Walker about her new book about the horrors she has witnessed in Rwanda, Eastern Congo, and Palestine. This woman is an absolute legend and I can’t wait to read her book.

*****

Voracious Vegan Flashback!

Have you made my Carne Guisada yet? If not, what are you waiting for? It is so simple, and the flavor is meaty and savory with a rich texture, perfect to pile on top of toast or rice. Careful – it’s addictive!

]]> http://thevoraciousvegan.com/2010/04/07/weekly-wednesday-wrap-up-9/feed/ 18 http://thevoraciousvegan.com/2010/03/17/weekly-wednesday-wrap-up-8/ http://thevoraciousvegan.com/2010/03/17/weekly-wednesday-wrap-up-8/#comments Wed, 17 Mar 2010 07:57:46 +0000 thevoraciousvegan http://thevoraciousvegan.com/?p=865 Hi Everyone! Back to our regular WWW, I hope you enjoy all the links. Don’t forget to leave your suggestions in the comments!

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I’m very pleased to announce that I’ve become a contributor to the new feminist blog Feminuity.

My first post was about the need for feminists to expand [...]]]> Hi Everyone! Back to our regular WWW, I hope you enjoy all the links. Don’t forget to leave your suggestions in the comments!

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I’m very pleased to announce that I’ve become a contributor to the new feminist blog Feminuity.

My first post was about the need for feminists to expand the body acceptance movement into a demanding what is best for our bodies movement. That article covers health, food justice, and body image. Demanding What is Best for our Bodies.

My second post was an analysis of an annoying article in the New York Times and it examines sexism in a supposed feminist movement, privilege, sustainability, and the role of housewives. The Trouble with Femivores.

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I Do Not Want to Live in a Little House on the Prairie – You’ve got to check out Vegan Burnout’s latest article. She takes apart the ridiculous NY Times Femivore article that I discussed, but with a lot more hilarity. I can never stop laughing when I read this awesome blog!

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What Are You Carrying? – In much of the world hard physical labor is considered women’s work, and in Eastern Congo journalist Nicholas D. Kristof learned first hand how difficult a woman’s burden can be.

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A heart breaking and very personal post that remembers a time when illegal abortion was the only option for a woman with an unwanted pregnancy. Heartbreaking and a reminder that we must never stop fighting for the victories we have gained.

For more info about being a pro-choice vegan please check out this post from Easy Vegan. I encourage you to read this article before asking me to explain my stance because it will probably answer many of your questions.

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This Vegan Corned Beef Hash from Hell Yeah it’s Vegan has me drooling like crazy! This is the perfect breakfast for St. Patrick’s Day, I think!

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Women of Color and Wealth – The Scope of the Problem via Racialicious is an examination of the recent study that found that “while white women in the prime working years of ages 36-49 have a median wealth of $42,600 (still only 61% of their white male counterparts), the median wealth for women of color is only $5.“

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Want to Know What’s Wrong with the War on Drugs? – also from Racialicious. “It’s the first time that 1 in every 100 adult Americans is in prison, proof of an exploding prison system that our country can ill afford and a movement away from rehabilitation programs.“

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Sweet and Salty Seedy Nut Bars from Sweet Beet and Green Bean – these babies look gorgeous! The chocolate drizzled on top is what sold me, I’ve got to give these a try.

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Round Midnight: Tortillas and the Corporate State – this is one of the best articles I have ever read, anywhere, in my whole life. PLEASE read this if you are at all interested in the state of America today, our current economic collapse, or the inherent cruelties of capitalism.

*****

Oyster Mushroom and Yves Pepperoni Pizza – this post from Comfort Food Vegan has me craving pizza like crazy! Doesn’t it look delicious?

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What’s Normal ‘Down There’? via Feministe is a great post about our culture’s obsession with body hair, especially the hair, ahem, down there. To shave? To not shave? To Vajazzle? The comments are the best, definitely check them out.

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Voracious Vegan Flashback! You know you need to make this Vegan Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich. It really is as good as it looks.

Remember when I asked you to send in your anonymous questions? Well you definitely did! We got a ton! And now I’m answering them.

Remember, I didn’t know about any of the questions beforehand, I heard them for the first [...]]]> Hi Everyone! I hope you are all having a great day wherever you are in the world.

Remember when I asked you to send in your anonymous questions? Well you definitely did! We got a ton! And now I’m answering them.

Remember, I didn’t know about any of the questions beforehand, I heard them for the first time as Cody read them to me. And when I realized thousands of people were going to be hearing my answers I’ve gotta say I got a bit nervous!

We’ve broken the Q & A down into segments so this is just part 1, with lots more to come. I had a great time so I’ll keep answering questions as long as you keep sending them in!

Here are the questions I’ll be answering in this segment:

1. If you were an animal what would you be?

2. What led to your involvement in feminism and feminist activism? How do you keep a strong sense of self, and have such self-assurance and confidence? I guess this is in relation to the pressure society places on women to be and look a certain way.

3. Do you think you’ll ever have kids? Will they be vegan too?

4. Do you think you’ll ever have kiddos (the human kind)? If so, will you simply encourage them to be vegan or will it be a requirement? And how will you handle it when he or she wants to go to a friend’s house?

5. How do you find living in Saudi Arabia and being a feminist? I imagine it can be challenging at times?