"My Vagina is Obscene"

i was reading feministing the other day and I came across this little link to an article about a recent scandal at a high school newspaper in which the student editor printed a front page article "Happy Vagina Day" that included a diagram of a vagina. It was an issue that focused on V-Week, a movement which we all know grew out of Eve Ensler's "Vagina Monolgues" and aims to raise awareness/end violence against women around Valentine's day. However, it seems the content was lost, as it sparked the outrage of the principal, administrators and teachers who refused to allow the issue to be handed out to students, grabbing it out of students' hands, and altogether patronizing the student body.

i was disgusted.
and then i realized it was MY high school.
and i was pissed off.

i never remember my school newspaper being notably alternative, but I couldn't be happier to hear that the current editor is taking a stand against the misogyny of this new awful principal. according to the article, he and a group of students organized on myspace and came to school the following day wearing shirts that read "My Vagina is Obscene" in response to the claim made by the principal that printing a picture of the vagina is "tasteless," "a disruption" and "should be handed out on hollywood boulevard." clever. the students were asked to take off the shirts and when the editor and several others refused, they were sent home. hurrah!

it was so exciting to read about a piece of alternative media having the power to stir things up and provoke some really awesome activism.

abra