{"id":6285,"date":"2011-12-31T17:58:48","date_gmt":"2012-01-01T00:58:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/sexuality\/?p=6285"},"modified":"2012-01-01T12:23:39","modified_gmt":"2012-01-01T19:23:39","slug":"top-10-sexual-stories-of-2011","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/sexuality\/2011\/12\/31\/top-10-sexual-stories-of-2011\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 10 Sexual Stories of 2011"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the Gregorian calendar year officially comes to a close, we offer once again a sampling of the year\u2019s top ten sexual stories. While certainly not a complete, in-depth, or globally representative list, we do think that this list contains snippets that have both disturbing and hopeful implications for sexual justice.<\/p>\n

10. Rick Perry steals gay, secular icons\u00a0<\/a><\/strong>to create<\/strong>\u00a0anti-gay Christmas message<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Rick Perry in a replica of the jacket worn by Heath Ledger in "Brokeback Mountain."<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0“\u200bBy now, you’ve\u00a0probably seen Rick Perry’s “Strong” ad<\/a>, in which he opines, “There’s something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military but our kids can’t openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school.” Not only are gays in our military, they’re also composing music for our campaign ads. As the\u00a0Harvard Political Review<\/em>points out, the music that plays in the background of Perry’s ad is\u00a0inspired by or directly taken from Aaron Copland<\/a>, a gay composer.” (Nick Greene, Dec. 10, 2011, Village Voice).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

9. Herman Cain tests Mainstream American Media: What’s worse in a political candidate: Assault or Affair?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Presidential hopeful Herman Cain’s campaign abruptly crashed and burned after news media learned of his long time extra-marital lover. But this was after his multiple cases of sexual harrassment and assault against his former employees were also aired. Most news media, including reputable news outlets like the Washington Pos<\/em>t, failed to differentiate between Cain’s alleged criminal and consensual acts, using\u00a0the language of “accusation” to describe both. See for example this story with a headline of “Ginger White accuses Herman Cain of long affair.”<\/a><\/p>\n

…”Cain\u00a0denied the accusations<\/a>. In an interview that aired before White\u2019s allegations were broadcast, Cain\u00a0told CNN\u2019s Wolf Blitzer<\/a>\u00a0that he knows White and that the two had been friends but that there had been no sexual contact and no \u201caffair.\u201d He characterized their relationship as \u201ctrying to help a friend\u201d because of her \u201cnot having a job etcetera and this sort of thing.\u201d”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The story then goes on to simply state that:<\/p>\n

“This month,\u00a0Cain was accused<\/a>\u00a0of sexually harassing several women.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Such lack of differentiation between criminal and consensual sexual scandals is common among contemporary American mainstream media. Gratefully, Amanda Marcotte (Alternet, Nov. 30, 2011) provides a helpful guide for assessing the significance different kinds of sex scandals. See Marcotte’s article here: “6 Kinds of Sex Scandals: What Should be exposed? What should be left private?”<\/a><\/p>\n

8. Wienergate<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>… AND speaking of the need to have more sophisticated interpretative filters around why and how some Wieners constitute a “scandal” … see article above, again. … See also\u00a0our post about Anthony Weiner:<\/a><\/p>\n

“In contrast to the Dutch, Americans love sex scandals. We love them so much that in a good year we produce and consume not just one of these high-profile scandals, but several. For many of us interested in sexual justice, the juiciest stories are those of the hypocrites: the Elliot Spitzers who lead anti-prostitute campaigns while purchasing sex; the George Rekers who champion the anti-gay movement while hiring \u201crent boys,\u201d and the Newt Gingrichs who lead impeachment hearings while engaging in their own extra-marital affairs.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

7. \u00a0Obama’s Secretary of Health & Human Services overrules the FDA, pulls “morning<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0after” pill\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Kathleen Sebelius overrules FDA recommendation<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“In what can only be called an\u00a0astounding\u00a0<\/em>move by an Administration that pledged on inauguration day that medical and health decisions would be based on\u00a0fact\u00a0<\/em>not ideology and for which women are a major constituency, today Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) overruled a much-awaited decision by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to make emergency contraception (EC) available over-the-counter (OTC) to women of all ages.<\/p>\n

According to\u00a0the\u00a0New York Times<\/em><\/a>, “no health secretary has ever [overruled an FDA decision] before.” \u00a0See Jodi Jacobsen’s full story in RhReality Check here.<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

<\/strong>6. \u00a0The politics of Rape.\u00a0<\/strong>Rape committed by men against women was frequently in the news during 2011, not because the dynamics of it have changed (it’s always about maintaining\/exerting symbolic power), but because some people and institutions have found new tactics of exerting and\/or maintaining heterosexism. Here’s a sampling of three such tactics.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Ms Magazine posted several stories on rape this year. This image comes from: http:\/\/msmagazine.com\/blog\/blog\/2011\/05\/02\/25-facts-about-rape-in-america\/<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n