Check out this GORGEOUS collage over at the new collaborate blog Fourth Wave Feminism, which launched on the eve of the Democratic National Convention this year.  I just had to share:

While you’re at it, check out Fourth Wave’s mission statement, here.

As a chronicler of feminism, of course I’m fascinated by the term. Here’s Fourth Wave’s post on the third (wave, that is).  My basic position: I don’t care what we call it, let’s just keep on doing it.  Fourth, five, sixth, sixteenth….bring it on.

To veterans, these divisions get tiresome, and I have seen how they can keep us from coming together.  But IMHO, the rolling of waves and the recognition of intergenerational difference in any social movement is natural, and essential to its growth.  I’m not seeing the same tensions between the “new” and the “old” with this fourth as there seemed to be when the term “third wave” first came about in the early 1990s.  (Unless I’m missing something here?)  At the same time, as the savvy ladies over at the UK feminist blog, The F-Word, remind us, many of the aims of so-called second-wave feminism, both here and there, still haven’t been achieved.  So boo to generational in-fighting.  We’ve got far too much at stake.  And hence, a caveat: fourth, fifth, sixth, bring it on, but let’s all keep our eyes on the larger prize.

I write all about this waving of feminism (ah, the oceanography of it all…) in a book, of course, with a hot pink cover.  And the WomenGirlsLadies and I have been having a wonderful experience taking it all on the road.  Meanwhile, back in medialand, New York Magazine did a piece in April titled “The Feminist Reawakening: Hillary Clinton and the Fourth Wave” and there was an article in Utne Reader back in 2001 called “Feminism’s Fourth Wave.” Journalist Julie Leupold is doing a special project on “Fourth Wave Feminism” over at Porfolio at NYU.  And so the public conversation and feminism and its waves continues.

Once again, I’m curious…what do others think of the term?  Interesting conversation going on in comments, across the pond.

PS. Feminism, in some corners, has been known to eat its young. So to the Fourth Wave blog– “exploring feminism in the 21st century and grappling with the continued gender inequity in America and the world”–a hearty welcome again to the blogosphere! And speaking of exploring, do check out the 68th Carnival of Feminists, hosted at Fourth Wave.

Ok, so this is probably OBVIOUS from that shiny ad over there, but I didn’t want to be all sneaky about it and I wanted to explain WHY.

1. I heart BlogHer. For those who don’t yet know it, BlogHer describes itself as “the community for women who blog; you say it, we share it.” I went to my first BlogHer conference in 2007 and loved it from the first shalom. I learned a ton and credit the organization for helping me take all this blogging to the next level. I’ll be at BlogHer 2009, hopefully, this year too – it’s in Chicago, my hometown. And it’s their fifth anniversary this year!

2. I appreciate the mojo of the women who started BlogHer, and share their mission: increased visibility, support, and tools for women seeking to get their messages out there, via blogging in this case. I also appreciate their entrepreneurial spirit. Full disclosure: BlogHer and their bloggers share any ad revenue that comes in.

3. I’ve watched the trend of ads at political blogs unfold and have totally made peace with it. Many if not most of the progressivey bloggers I know and admire have incorporated ads on their sites over the past year. At first, I was hesitant, but I have come to feel that it is a-ok to try to earn a little extra from blogging, even when blogging is not itself commercially motivated. You won’t see the content change in any way, shape, or form. I promise. Except, of course, for this post.

4. We’re bringing on interns to help us develop now that we have gone group and there’s a whole lot more going on. And currently they are working for free. We’d like to change that.

If you have questions, comments, concerns, I do hope you’ll voice them in comments. And we here at GWP are more than happy to answer any questions! We are all learning as we go.

Speaking of learning as we go, a few preliminaries:
-Some ads are flash right now, but we’re opting for static, so that should change soon.
-We can also opt out of certain campaigns, so if you see an ad for Barbie or anything, know that I’m on it.  Of course, “or anything” is relative, but if you see something, say something, and we will definitely check it out!

This just in: The Daily Beast released a poll this morning that reveals the depth of women’s anger in the aftermath of Hilary Clinton’s and Sarah Palin’s campaigns. “The Barrier That Didn’t Fall” (downloadable) summarizes and analyzes survey results from 1,000 U.S. voters, coming on the high heels of “the first-ever presidential election with two high profile women candidates who ran but did not win.”

The stats:

• By an overwhelming 61% to 19% margin, women believe there is a gender bias in the media.
• 4 in 10 men freely admit sexist attitudes towards a female president. 39% of men say that a male is “naturally more suited” to carrying out the duties of the office
• Only 20% of women polled are willing to use the word “feminist” about themselves. Only 17% said they would welcome their daughters using that label.
• 48% of women thought Hillary Clinton received fair media treatment and only 29% believed Sarah Palin was treated fairly. In contrast, nearly 8 in 10 voters thought the press gave fair treatment to Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
• More than two-thirds of women said they were being treated unfairly in the workplace (68%)

In the words of a very articulate dear friend of mine: BLURGH.

(Thanks to Anna for the heads up.)

Many have asked me about the Progressive Women’s Voices program sponsored by the Women’s Media Center, and basically, I can’t sing its praises enough. In the program’s first year, they intensively media trained 33 women (including moi!) who have gone on to earn over 1000 media hits year to date. With the WMC’s stellar training and ongoing help, in 2008, our PWV women wrote Op Eds in the Washington Post and The New York Times, features for Elle and New York magazine, were quoted in USA Today, Forbes, Variety, Mother Jones, the Wall Street Journal, Slate, Salon, The New Republic, the Los Angeles Times, on the Associated Press and Reuters wires, appeared on Good Morning America, CNN, MSNBC, CBS Nightly News, Fox News, ABC News, CNBC, The Tyra Banks Show, PBS’s “To The Contrary,” Bill Moyers, on numerous NPR shows, and in hundreds of other significant media outlets.

And they’ve just posted their 2009 dates and deadlines, so for those of you who are considering this, I say GO FOR IT! The time is now. Here are deets:

2009 PWV Class 1 Schedule:
Dec 15: Application Deadline
February 6-7: First Training in NYC
March 6-7: Second Training in NYC
April 3-4: Third Training in NYC

2009 PWV Class 2 Schedule:
March 10: Application Deadline
April 24-25: First Training in NYC
May 29-30: Second Training in NYC
June 26-27: Third Training in NYC

2009 PWV Class 3 Schedule:
June 1: Application Deadline
July 24-25: First Training in NYC
August 28-29: Second Training in NYC
September 25-26: Third Training in NYC

For much more info, including how to apply, click here. Feel free to tell them you heard it here. And please do pass it on!

After that last post, I thought I owed you all an upper. So here are three things that cheer ME up:

1. The Happiness Project, a blog based on a forthcoming memoir about the year Gretchen Rubin spent “test-driving every principle, tip, theory, and scientific study I could find, whether from Aristotle or St. Therese or Martin Seligman or Oprah” ; The Happiness Project (just the name makes me happy!) gathers these rules for living and reports on “what works and what doesn’t.” On this daily blog, Gretchen recounts some of her adventures and insights as she grapples with the challenge of being happier. Happy that, Gretchen!

2. These cool fora (as in plural of forum, not as in “flora” with a typo) that I’ve been working on for the National Council for Research on Women’s new blog:

3. GWP’s new intern, Melinda Parrish, aka formerly Girl Sailor, who you will be hearing more about/from soon.  Welcome, Mel! We’re so excited to have you here!!!!

(Note, I did not say my kitten. Oops, I guess I just did. Hopeless am I.)

And, yes, given the economic meltdown, for everyone’s no doubt.  But here are a few items that caught my eye:

In technology…

According to an article in Saturday’s New York Times, women are veering away from computer science in droves.  The stat:

• Twenty-five years ago, more young women in colleges and universities were drawn to computer science than today.

What up?  Read the article, and do check out the amazing work that GWP’s own Science Grrl is doing on this front.  Paging Science Grrl!

And at Citibank…

In case you missed it, check out the article on how the chaos on Wall Street has cost Sallie L. Krawcheck’s career, cutesily titled  “When Citi Lost Sallie.” (Thanks to Purse Pundit for the heads up).

And in Afghanistan, a horrible blow for girls’ education.  This whole thing about the acid attacks on school girls in Kandahar makes me just weep.

Sorry to be a downer today.  I’ll be back with more cheery news, I hope, soon.

Courtesy, as ever, Rebekah at WMC:

For Women, It’s Not The Gender, It’s The Agenda

11/14/08

Boston Globe: While all eyes were focused on Palin and the “Sarah-centric” (her words) crowds that turned out for her rallies, there was a quieter “women’s story” in this race that may make the doorway a little narrow.

Summers May Be Off Of Treasury Short List

11/13/08

Politico.com: Intense backlash from women’s groups may have pushed former Clinton Treasury Secretary Larry Summers off the short-list to lead Treasury for President-elect Barack Obama, according to widespread reports circulating in Democratic circles.

Hillary Clinton Emerges As State Dept Candidate

11/14/08

Boston Globe: Sen. Hillary Clinton emerged on Thursday as a candidate to be U.S. secretary of state for Barack Obama, months after he defeated her in an intense contest for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Women Gaining Political Power

11/13/08

CNN: “Women are about 54 percent of the vote,” CNN contributor Hilary Rosen said. “Do we have equal representation? No. Are we closer to it? Yes.”

POLITICS-US: Feminists Say The Work Has Just Begun

11/13/08

IPS: Women’s right activists see an open door to the White House of President-elect Barack Obama, and they plan to walk right in and take a seat.

Ok, I can write that sensational headline cause I wasn’t there this time. But my fellow WGLs Courtney Martin, Gloria Feldt, and Kristal Brent Zook were, plus the amazing Maria Teresa Peterson (who stepped in for me – thank you MTP!).

For those who haven’t heard of this yet, Women, Girls, Ladies: A Fresh Conversation Across Generations is a traveling panel promoting intergenerational feminist dialogue across the land.  We speak at campuses and organizations (and are available to come to YOU! Rebecca Rosenberg, rebecca@parchitamedia.com, is our contact lady).  Here is Miss Courtney with a recap for us all:

We had an incredible experience yesterday in Kansas City. First we did a very interactive, intergenerational workshop over at University of Missouri-Kansas City where we met fascinating local women (many of them named Linda?!) from the YWCA, The American Association of University Women, the incredible UMKC Women’s Center staff and board, and so many more.

One of the big insights that came up from that experience was a question:

When do we, as feminists, confront sexism directly and when do we deal with it indirectly instead?

It seemed like so many of the experiences and anecdotes that women of all generations brought to the table were focused on this difficult negotiation. In order to get the progress we so desire, do we swallow some of our ire when a sexist guy says something inane? Or is it our responsibility as loud and proud feminists to call him out regardless of the fall out?

As if that conversation wasn’t rich enough, we still had the big event to come. Yesterday evening we had a panel in honor of Ruth Margolin, Founding Director of the UMKC Women’s Center. There was a huge crowd (300+) in the absolutely beautiful Kansas City Public Library-Plaza Branch. After wine and cheese we migrated into the newly renovated auditorium and got to hear some wonderful words about Ruth Margolin’s fiery character. Apparently she was never afraid of being a loud and proud feminist! It was so special to be having our dialogue in honor of her legacy.

The audience brought up a range of issues; everything from women in the military, pay equity, body image, abortion, Clinton’s infidelity scandal, Sarah Palin, and racial tensions within feminism were a part of the conversation.

Thanks to all who contributed your insights and questions. And thanks to everyone at UMKC, especially Brenda Bethman, for making this really exquisite event and experience possible! And a special, special thanks to Maria Teresa Petersen, who stepped in for the much missed Deborah Siegel with grace and eloquence. Maria Teresa was fantastic. Check out her organization, Voto Latino, here.

*The Kansas City Star did a great write up of the event. So did The Pitch, Kansas City’s weekly, but check out the title! “Meow Mix”? Come on people, this is exactly the point of our panel. When men disagree, it’s called a disagreement. When women disagree, it’s called a cat fight. Thank goodness we’re reclaiming the frame!

–Courtney Martin

Crossposted at WomenGirlsLadies.

It’s been a heavy week of working on my (endless) book proposal and dealing with lots of other stuff, and so I thought I’d finish the week out with a (gulp) kitten pic. Come on, I’ve been good all week! She’s just too adorable not to share.

I also wanted to send a heartfelt “welcome” to all the new commenters this week. We’re thrilled to have you here and look forward to getting to know you and your perspectives more!

This afternoon, a guest post from Amanda Marie Gengler, Visiting Assistant Professor in the School of Behavioral Sciences at Barton College in Wilson, NC. Here’s Amanda! -Deborah

While the election is over (hooray!) and we are at least temporarily saved, as Judith Warner wrote, from the “specter of Sarah Palin” as VP (or worse), her meteoric rise over the past 2 months is a stark reminder that we have a long way to go in gender and politics. Tuesday morning Palin appeared on the Today Show; back home, back in her kitchen, deftly navigating between the fridge, dishwasher, and countertop as she chatted with Matt Lauer and mashed food for the baby.

Some had suggested that the selection of Sarah Palin as McCain’s running mate represented a strange milestone for women: the one where mediocre women can achieve the same success as mediocre men. For years unexceptional men have easily attained exceptional positions, while exceptional women have struggled to do so. So why doesn’t Sarah Palin mark this feminist “victory”?

Because Palin is exceptional in the area a woman must most be: her femininity. While Hillary Clinton was derided for her pantsuits and her age, Palin’s background as a beauty queen, a mother of five, and her lavish wardrobe of fitted skirts and stylish heels (eagerly subsidized by the RNC) remind us that whatever other assets a woman may possess, her proper gender performance trumps them all. A quintessential femininity is the highest card in the deck. While McCain’s motivations were likely complex, it would be difficult to argue that if the photos and biographies that accompany Sarah Palin and Kay Bailey Hutchison were reversed, his choice would have been the same. He rightly guessed that her smile, figure, and photogenic family would resonate with an American public still deeply invested in traditional and essentialist views of gender.

Yet we are to believe that the highest aims of feminism have been realized when a VP candidate can be deemed “hot” by Alec Baldwin on Saturday Night Live, and lusted after by male voters across the nation. We are again reminded, in 2008, that if we are not properly plucked, pinned, coiffed, rouged, and of course, lip-sticked, we may risk our very professional lives. It seems after all, that those exceptional “true” women–the ones who manage to be maternal enough, to smile enough, to stay slim enough, and to keep all the obligatory feminine balls in the air (never missing a deadline, a diaper change, or a bikini wax)–set the bar today’s girls are to strive for.

Funny how “progress” can look so much like the past.

–Amanda Marie Gengler is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the School of Behavioral Sciences at Barton College in Wilson, NC.