Safe Space Spirituality Discussion Group!

What does spirituality mean in your life? Do you always feel safe to discuss it amongst your peers?

Starting on Tuesday, February 28th from 5:30pm to 6:30pm and running bi-weekly until the end of March, the Women’s Issues Network is running Safe Space Discussion Groups focused on how individuals’ spirituality affects their lives. As the organizer of these groups, I am extremely excited to offer a space for both students and members of the larger community to talk about personal growth and spiritual exploration. By striving to offer a non-denominational and non-religiously-affiliated space, my goal is to foster an environment of self-reflection and learning from each others’ lived experiences. … Continue Reading

WIN Movie Night: Boy I Am

The Women’s Issues Network will be holding a movie night and discussion on the documentary Boy I Am on Thursday, March 1. This is a free event, and all are welcome! It will be held in UCC 315, Council Chambers. After the film, there will be time to discuss the specific difficulties that female-to-male transgender people experience, and how the film comments on them. Afterwards, we will also head downstairs to join PrideWestern at their event in the Support Services Centre!
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Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor,

As one of the VDay Commissioners this year, I am incredibly upset and appalled to hear that at the presidential debate at Huron on February 9, two candidates promoted false and slandering information about the VDay Western campaign. It was asserted by Jon Silver that VDay does not allow men on their executive team. Logan Ross’s response to this was that this practice is unfair and discriminatory. Now, this would be an entirely reasonable discussion to have in a presidential debate, WERE IT TRUE. … Continue Reading

VDay Western Presents…

Vday Western presents MMRP and the Vagina Monolougues. … Continue Reading

Combating Heteronormativity in Action: Gazette Sex Issue 2012

I wanted to take a moment to reflect on this year’s Gazette Sex Issue and publicly praise them for the actions they took to create a diverse and reflective issue. I was personally very proud to open a UWO student newspaper that contained multiple pictures of same-sex couples. Not only did they place same-sex pictures in the magazine but they placed them on the cover – as I’m sure we all remember, a huge improvement from past year’s issues. I am proud of the Gazette’s progress and acknowledge there is only so much they can do in their issue. What do you think about this year’s notorious sex issue?

Same-Sex Marriage and the Problem of Apodictic Reasoning

“It’s very dear to me, the issue of gay marriage. Or as I like to call it: “Marriage.” You know, because I had lunch this afternoon, not gay lunch. I parked my car; I didn’t gay park it.” ~Liz Feldman

I shall endeavor to write this article without making it sound too much like a formal philosophy essay. This means I may not give as much support or background for the claims I will set forth. My goal is to make this article easy to read and understand, and even though those reading it may not necessarily agree with my arguments, I hope it at least serves to spark a further interest in philosophy and/or some key LGBTQ issues- particularly the issue of same-sex marriage.  … Continue Reading

Combating Heteronormative Language

The Oxford Dictionary definition for “heteronormative” is:
“Denoting or relating to a world view that promotes heterosexuality as the normal or preferred sexual orientation.”

While in the LGBT community the term “heteronormativity” is spoken often, we must remember that it is not a commonly used term in the workplace or classroom (unless you’re studying women’s studies or queer studies).  It is also not uncommon for you to hear aunts, cousins, or elderly people talking to young girls and teasingly asking “so, have you got a boyfriend yet?” and it’s often difficult in the workplace or classroom to speak up when someone says something about advertising to “women looking for a man” or things like that.

So what can we do in times these situations? Do we speak up and out ourselves in a potentially non-queer friendly environment, or do we stay quiet and allow the teacher to keep speaking about “traditional” heterosexual sex and relations?

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Gay Blood Ban: Canadian Blood Services

Steven has been happily married to his wife for over 10 years. What his wife doesn’t know, however, is that Steven is sexually active with a dozen other women. The one good thing, in all this, is Steven practices safer sex with condoms.

John, like Steven, has also been happily married for over 10 years; however, John is unlike Steven in that he is fully committed in a monogamous relationship. Yet, there’s one other way Steven and John differ: Canadian Blood Services will accept a donation of Steven’s blood, yet, they’ll actively ban John from donating blood.

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Out in the Office

Out in the Office is an exciting initiative brought to you for a second year by Pride Western and The Student Success Centre. This series of events is intended to provide a safe space for students to dialogue about the challenges and opportunities associated with being open about your sexual orientation and gender expression/identity in the workplace and in future educational or career pursuits. It is our sincere hope that this program allows students – not only from Western, but all of London’s educational institutions – to explore their own education and career paths and network with professionals who have found success as their authentic selves. … Continue Reading

The F-Word

This week, I spent three days at the booth that the Women’s Issues Network set up, to promote WIN Week and the services that we are offering this semester. I was very excited for the opportunity to connect with students. We had two tables at the front, and one had a sign in front of it that read, ‘Ask a Feminist’. This was Jillian Clair’s idea, as the terms “womyn’s issues” and “feminism” aren’t always fully understood. … Continue Reading