FIC
Heart Arrhythmia by lavvyan [PG13; SGA; Rodney/Jennifer, John/Rodney, Ronon/Jennifer; Rodney suddenly had two good friends he was simultaneously in love with. And he desperately wanted to believe that love wasn't an either-or, except if the two people one was in love with didn't also love each other, one ended up with the unfortunate prospect of having to choose one of them or none at all.]
Language Barrier by arsenicjade [G; Gundam Wing; Une]
These Days of Darkness by memories_child [PG15; Original Fic]
Gone With the Rebels of Heart by valmontheights [PG13; Bandom (Empires); Tom/Danielle, implied Tom/Sean; Between Tom and Max and the constant noise coming from their basement, Danielle feels as if she'd walked into a darkened theatre in the middle of a movie in progress, and nobody bothered to catch her up on what's going on.]
There'll Be Peace When You Are Done by iseult_variante [G; SPN & Merlin; John was no knight, not of noble blood. He was called John of Winchester, or sometimes simply John Winchester, because there were so many Johns amongst Uther Pendragon's foot soldiers.]
Schism 2/2 by vipersweb [Mature Themes; Torchwood/Harry Potter; Before Ianto worked for Torchwood, he was a Hufflepuff and fought in one of the toughest wars in Wizarding history.]


ICONS
24 Icons by bunnymcfoo [icons of women]


RECS
Fic Recs by sansets [6 Bandom Recs, Victoria Asher centric</i>]
Music Recs by pocky_slash [14 cover songs done by female artists]


ESSAYS & PICSPAMS
an essay by lady_writes
20 Phenomenal Women, as per me by rebecca_star
my favorite art by women and women in art by secretsolitaire


MISC
Feather and Fan Circular Shawl by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - lace shawl]
Podfic: Sailor's Delight by General_jinjur read by aphelant
Kit's Sonnet by macey_muse [original poetry]
Berries, yogurt and granola by prairiedaun [Contains berries, yogurt and granola. End result: Deliciousness.
14 icon text brushes for GIMP by nokiaangel [inspired by valentines]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

International

You can term them the global north, the West, the industrialized nations. You can even term them “developed” (though please don’t). No matter the term used, there are values shared by the people and countries that control most of the world’s wealth, wield most of the world’s political power, and generate most of the world’s waste. One of the most egregious of these shared values is a common view of the global south, the East, the less-industrialized nations as primitive or as helpless.

Though there is much to be said for the most powerful recognizing its power and providing support to organizations and individuals in less powerful countries and regions, there is also a strong tendency toward a charity mindset, one where information or money is “given” to help people “reach our level.”

What if there were something that we could learn from people in these countries? What if it was more than a stereotyped view of their being closer to the earth or more connected to spirituality?

What if what we could learn were an entire way of living?

The Kufunda Learning Village is a community of farmers, craftspeople, intellectuals, and social entrepreneurs located in Zimbabwe. In the last few years, Zimbabwe has experienced some of the most crushing social structural instability and monetary inflation in recorded global history. The value of currency has become so unstable that people spend money as quickly as they receive it, not knowing if their paycheck will be halved in value by the next day. Medicine from foreign aid agencies cannot reach people, hospitals are closing, food is scarce. Recent constitutionally-mandated elections were, very likely, fraudulent, leaving a functional dictator in charge of this country that is so central to the politics of southern Africa.

Yet, in the middle of all of this, the Kufunda Learning Village has thrived. Founded in 2003, Kufundees have been developing systems of sustainable farming, rediscovering traditional healing and herbal methods, and educating their children. While the healthcare, food, and educational systems fall apart in Zimbabwe, Kufundees find themselves with the ability to reach out to their neighbors, to assist where they can.

The premise of Kufunda Learning Village is that we cannot survive without one another, that there is something that we can know intuitively about community that must be valued, must be heard. Founded and held together by Zimbabwean women, the community of Kufunda challenges us to think: What if we are wrong? What if we are missing something important in our rush to get things done? Kufundees call for a return to an awareness of ourselves as connected, critiquing the essentially Western and global northern ideas of independence and individuality with their experiences of interdependence and community.


[Today's essay is courtesy of belladonnalin]

FIC
Mind the Gap by turnyourankle [PG; Bandom (Multi-Band); Lyn's sophomore year of high school is off to a crappy start. It's not enough that her brother publicly asked her out and her best friend suddenly has no time for her; on top of everything her GPA is going down the drain and in order to save it she has to help out the drama club set up their fall play.]
Career Girl by arsenicjade [G; Jossverse; Cordelia]
All I Ask by lavvyan [PG13; SGA; John/Rodney; He wanted to be with Rodney, too. He wanted to live with him, day and night; wanted to take down the mask and say that he loved him into Rodney's ruined face.]
Red, Pink, White by misslucyjane [G; Torchwood; Jack/Ianto; Three years of Valentine's Day]
Not a Number 3/3 by vipersweb [PG; Harry Potter/The Prisoner; John Drake moves into No. 6 Privet Drive and decides to take Harry Potter under his wing.]
Knock and Run by emeraldsword [G; SGA; Rodney's attempts to work late are thwarted]



ART
Reaching For by shinshan [pencils, inspired by Cobra Starship]


ICONS
20 Icons by hermitsoul [Icons of Victoria Asher]
49 Icons by desertport [Icons of Classic Hollywood Actresses]
240 Icons of Female Musicians by bunnymcfoo [Post 1 Post 2 Post 3 Post4]


RECS
Fic Recs by sansets [7 Gilmore Girls fic recs]
Music Recs by lady_writes [The 42 top played women in my iTunes]
Book Recs</b> by sasha_feather [A list of recommended books about girls and women, where the girl or woman does not get married in the end]
My favorite female singer/songwriters by secretsolitaire
Various Recs by greenet [Three women in movies links, five female author recs, eight women in comics recs and 14 fanart links]
Vid Recs by nokiaangel [7 multifandom vid recs]


ESSAYS & PICSPAMS
Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves: On the OTW by cesperanza
Some thoughts on being a female writer (of sorts) by memories_child


MISC
Tokyo Tower by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - sweater]
I talked about the definition of love and baked some cakes by rebecca_star
you are sand on the wind by macey_muse [original poetry]
DAMN YOU PETE WENTZ by prairiedaun [(bandom socks) + pattern]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Arts & Entertainment

A great portion of a person's life is spent watching TV or movies, which makes it hard not to notice the representations of women that exist in such media. Often we are relegated to the sidelines, or made into a two-dimensional stereotype. Other times, we are used to affect male protagonists, our identity seemingly important only in how it relates to male characters.

If we look, we can find female characters who are strong and independent, who exists in and of themselves, and who represent who we truly are. It's certainly easier to find these characters than it used to be, but it can often times still take effort. Considering that the average girl will watch 5,000 hours of television before kindergarten, we need to have more, better and positive representation in the medial.

Organizations like Media Watch, The Women's Media Center, and the girls, women + media project strive to increase and improve the representation of women in all media.

[Today's essay is courtesy of idyll]

FIC
Natural as a Steampunk Train by lavvyan [PG; SGA; John/Rodney; "I love you," he said, baffled, only realising he'd done so when Rodney went completely still.]
First Day of School by arsenicjade [G; Harry Potter; Hermione]
Introduced As Friends 4/4 by rebecca_star [NC17; Bandom (TAI...); girl!Adam/Butcher; The final part of a fic where Sisky is a girl, telling the story of her friendships within TAI]
Not a Number 2/3 by vipersweb [PG; Harry Potter/The Prisoner; John Drake moves into No. 6 Privet Drive and decides to take Harry Potter under his wing.]


ART
Wallpaper by lady_writes [Everyone should have the right to an education, regardless of being a woman or a man]


ICONS
50 Icons by raz0rgirl [Veronica Mars icons]


RECS
Fic & Vid Recs by sansets [5 Faith/Dean Fic and Vid recs]
Fic Recs by nokiaangel [3 multi-fandom sad slash fics]
My favorite female book characters by secretsolitaire


ESSAYS & PICSPAMS
Thoughts on my experiences of education by memories_child
A ramble on my love-affair with maths by macey_muse
Education and Me by gblvr


MISC
Tess' Layette by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - baby sweater]
a quick and dirty list of women's/girls' literacy/education programs around the world. by traveller
Holiday Punch by aphelant [This recipe is easy to remember and easy to modify.]
Cranberry Cinnamon Scones by prairiedaun

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Education

Education provides choices. That's powerful for anyone, but especially for women. When educational opportunities for women became equivalent to that of men, we gained options beyond traditional roles in society and beyond stereotypical jobs. We can earn the same degrees as men and find ways out of poverty, become self-sufficient, and make serious contributions to the world in a larger spectrum.

That doesn't mean that there aren't still challenges to be faced. There are still areas of study which lack female representation, including fields like engineering and mathematics. Even in the United States, there exists illiteracy, especially among women. And in the world as a whole, more women than men lack even basic, much less advanced, education.

Our voices are not silent, however. We work towards literacy of women in the United States with organizations like WE LEARN. More broadly there is The National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education, which is a collaborative effort targeting various aspects of education as it relates to women and girls.

Globally, we have organizations such as The Initiative to Educate Afghani Women, and The Somali Women's Scholarship Fund, which strive to bring education to populations of women who desperately need the options and the choices that education can bring.

[Today's essay is courtesy of idyll]

FIC
Socks and Keys and Stuff (and John) by lavvyan [PG; SGA; John/Rodney; Rodney McKay was a collector. A collector of lost things.]
Non-Exempt by arsenicjade [G; Law & Order: SVU; Olivia]


ICONS
25 Icons by hermitsoul [Icons of Greta Salpeter]
Not A Number by vipersweb [PG; HP/The Prisoner; The houses on Privet Drive, located in Little Whinging, Surrey, looked exactly alike, nothing to distinguish one house from the other save for the presence of a fence, or lack thereof. Even now, some thirty years after his experience in the Village, he got hives when he saw such uniformity. He thought it all rather unnatural.]


RECS
Fic Recs by sansets [7 Bandom Fic Recs, Alicia Simmons-Way centric]
Art Recs by secretsolitaire [10 HP Art Recs]
Blog Recs by nokiaangel [4 cooking blog recs]


ESSAYS & PICSPAMS
on women in the Civil Service, trade unionism and equal pay by memories_child
This is about Martha Wainwright and how amazing she is by rebecca_star


MISC
Adama Shawl by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - shawl]
and this twisted fantasy by macey_muse [original poetry]
4 recipes from my kitchen by lady_writes [a few of my family's favorite quick(ish) recipes]
Podcasts by general_jinjur [astolat's the dark side, trinityofone's as well as valor, and annakovsky's i am a visitor here, i am not permanent]
Magrat Socks by prairiedaun [Named for Magrat from the Discworld books. Straightforward and (some would say) plain socks.]
Household Hints & Cooking Tips by gblvr [because who doesn't need shortcuts?]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Economics & Work

Women have always worked. Whether that work has been taking care of children, making food to share with the neighbors, or to sell to local workers, or driving friends and family employment outside the home, women have always been a part of the work force. In the last two centuries, however, women’s work has changed all over the world. In pay, but also in context.

One of the circumstances that has always affected women’s work is the impact of war and conflict. Women in conflict and post-conflict environments have unique needs – they are often either the only or the primary financial supporters of their families, they are more likely to survive then men, and they are more likely to be going into their financially-devastated communities trying to figure out how to support their families. These circumstances worsen what many women all over the world are already aware of. Mainly, that women and their children make up the majority of the world’s global poor.

One of the most effective economic stimulus strategies in developing countries in the last 20 years has been the microloan. These loans, ranging in value from $25US to $2,000US are granted to groups of women for investment in their own businesses. These business, which include community kitchens and restaurants and Village Phones that ensure communication access to war-torn towns, provide improved infrastructure in struggling areas, independence and agency to the women receiving the loans, and financial stability to families and communities. Because the loans are paid back within a short period of time (usually 6 months to a year), they avoid becoming an economic stranglehold on the borrowers and are reinvested with new lenders who were former borrowers, allowing a constant flow of microloans and outreach to continue.

Microloans have received increasing visibility in the last 2 years, since Muhammad Yunus was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. All microloan programs - examples include the Grameen Bank in India and the global organization Kiva.org - give substantial support to poor women around the world.

Women for Women International focuses support on women in conflict and post-conflict zones, those most affected by war. Women for Women International works with women on rights awareness, job skills training, microcredit lending, access to capital, and sponsorship. Their program allows those women to build communities of support to change their lives and their communities, to see a world outside of their conflict environments, and to follow their dreams and needs to help them support themselves and their children and to make a positive impact on the world.

FIC
That Which Binds by lavvyan [PG13; BBC's Arthur; Merlin/Arthur pre-slash, Arthur/Morgana, Gwen/Lancelot; The night Morgana bears Arthur a son, an heir he was never supposed to have, Merlin breaks his self-imposed solitude and visits the Dragon for a chat.]
What's Next? by arsenicjade [G; The West Wing; Nancy McNally]
Summer and Cigarettes by memories_child [PG; Original Fiction; You were in the middle of an epiphany, you’d said, a masterpiece that would change the world.]
Operation: Heir by vipersweb [PG; Torchwood; Tosh/Ross, Tosh/Tommy, Ianto/Jack, Ianto/Jack/Ten; It's been two years since the implementation of Plan Omega Alpha and Tosh decides she and Ianto need to move onto the next step.]
Home Life by to_say_nothing [PG13; Entourage; Vince/E; Vince has a place to go when things get to be too much at home.]


ART
A Colorbar, A Picture, and My Thoughts by lady_writes


ICONS
25 Icons by ceares [Women who made their mark and marked the path.]
56 Icons by raz0rgirl [from Battlestar Galactica, Fringe, Lost, & Middleman]


RECS
Fic Recs by sansets [4 Dr. Who Fic Recs, Martha Jones centric]
Music Recs by nokiaangel [2 songs; Not a Pretty Girl & 32 Flavors]


ESSAYS & PICSPAMS
sort of about race and music by rebecca_star
WoC picspam by gblvr


MISC
Trinity by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - vest]
a world more full of weeping by macey_muse [original poetry]
Still I Rise by Maya Angelou contributed by secretsolitaire
Vid: Superwoman by daybreak777 [For all of Galactica's superwomen of color.]
Roast Chicken, Rice & Glazed Carrots by prairiedaun [I made an amaaaaazing dinner tonight.]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Women of Color

Women of color face their own unique struggles. While women of color are roughly 30% of the U.S. population of women, their salaries still trail behind that of white women and men of color. Many women of color have issues receiving quality healthcare, are often employed in low-wage, exploitative work, and deal with the affects of racism as well as sexism. Beauty ideals exploit women of color financially while creating beauty standards which are impossible for most women to reach. Violence against women of color can include war, colonialism, police violence, rape, and domestic violence.

With issues such as these, it's important for critical dialog and community involvement to better the lives of women, which is why today we are highlighting INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence. INCITE! is a national organization of activist, radical feminists of color that strive to end violence against women and the community through their grassroots organization, action, and critique of dominant power and ideologies.

[Today's essay courtesy of vylit]

FIC
Fixation by lavvyan [PG13; SGA; John/Rodney; John didn't have anything against huddling up, per se. It was just that his team seemed determined to make him huddle up to Rodney.]
The International Society of Serving Men by mardahin [PG; Avengers (Marvel), Batman (DC), Torchwood, Tomb Raider, and Due South; In his own defense, Tony had never really thought about Jarvis' social life...]
Introduced As Friends, Part 4 by rebecca_star [Not Rated; Bandom (TAI...); Girl!Sisky/Butcher; Part 4 in this universe.]
Desert Heat by macey_muse [Not Rated; Temeraire; 'Laurence had never heard of such a force in modern warfare; it was the stuff of the Crusades, when dragons had been smaller and the country more wild, the more easily to feed them.']
Obsticle of Course by arsenicjade [G; SG-1; Sam Carter]
About a Girl by vipersweb [PG; SGA/Torchwood; Tosh/Teyla, implied Jack/Ianto; After Enemy at the Gate, Teyla takes advantage of downtime, to visit Cardiff, and Tosh. John tags along, to help watch Torran.]


ART
Wallpaper by lady_writes [My mother was a runner in high school in Nigeria]


ICONS
15 Icons by to_say_nothing [Multi-fandom icons ; "You Say Bitch Like It's a Bad Thing"]
32 Icons by bunnymcfoo [icons of women and sports, heavy on the surfing]


RECS
Fic Recs by sansets [8 Bandom Lyn-Z-centric Fic Recs]


ESSAYS & PICSPAMS
An essay on the baton corps I matured in, and the (rather scary) normative behaviors that our director enforced in regards to sexuality. by killing_rose
Pic spam of my favorite female athletes by secretsolitaire


MISC
the gap between 54th and 9th by memories_child [PG; a poem]
Cat Mittens by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - mittens.]
Soup Recipe by nokiaangel [Easily Customized Veggie Soup]
Red Heart Thrummed Mittens (AKA Emo/Hipster-tastic mittens) by prairiedaun [red and black thrummed mittens]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Athletics

In Nike's 1995 ad, If You Let Me Play, young women and girls stare at the camera and tell us that if we let them play sports, they will be less likely to get breast cancer, less likely to suffer from depression, and more likely to leave a man who beats them. The ad was powerful because these are facts. Women and girls who are physically active have lower rates of heart disease, osteoporosis, and contract fewer STDs. Additionally, they are more likely to do well in school and more likely to attend college, particularly if they are women of color.

In the 30 plus years since Title IX passed in the United States, insuring equal funding for girls sports, female participation in college athletics increased from 15% to 42%. We've gained a professional basketball league for women, and seen the US Women's Soccer team soar in popularity and acclaim. We've lauded and cheered for Billie Jean King, Mary Lou Retton, Florence Griffith-Joyner, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Mia Hamm, and Venus and Serena Williams to name a few, seen their faces on our televisions and on the covers of magazines ranging from Sports Illustrated to Time.

We've covered a lot of ground, but there's still a long way to go. The WNBA is operated at a loss, with salary caps that are literally a fraction of what men in the NBA are paid. Colleges offer millions of dollars less each year in scholarships for women, and recruit far more men. Female athletes are sexualized to a staggering degree, focusing on their sex appeal rather than their abilities and talents. While coaches of women's teams are now paid more than they were in the pre-Title IX era, those positions are now being filled more and more often by men.

We can do better than that.

The Women's Sports Foundation was founded in 1974 by Billie Jean King, and is dedicated to advancing the lives of girls and women through physical activity. They promote all sports and physical activities for women of all ages and skill levels and are acknowledged as the expert resource on all women’s sports issues. They provide grants and scholarships for female athletes, honor excellence in the media coverage and depictions of women and girls in sports, and provide opportunities to take action on a local and national level.

They are athletes, they are activists, and they are tireless.

[Today's essay courtesy of bunnymcfoo]

FIC
Weapons of Mass Distortion by vipersweb [PG; Eureka/SGA; Jack and John's friendship continues to provide gossip to the residents of Eureka.]
Call To Duty by amand_r [Not Rated; Dr. Who; She almost flashed her ID before she realised that she hadn't one. For a while she'd toyed with using her passport, but that seemed a bit much. Her fingers itched when she didn't have one, and she considered the fact that really, this was the first time in a long time that she had had the opportunity to introduce herself. Everyone, apparently took great delight in remarking on how much they knew her.]
Suffrage by arsenicjade [G; The West Wing; CJ Cregg]
The Permeable Facade by mardahin [PG; Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (Movie!verse); To say that her parents had not been pleased would have been to say that giants were just a bit thick or that the White Witch had been merely a touch misunderstood.]
Now by lavvyan [PG; SGA; John/Rodney; Completely out of the blue, Rodney experiences what can only be called a moment of "now or never."]


ART
Wallpaper by lady_writes [the women in politics and the other women making it possible for them to be there]


ICONS
52 Icons by bunnymcfoo [icons of P.J. Harvey]


RECS
Fic Recs by kinetikatrue [6 multi-fandom political recs]
Vid Rec by raz0rgirl [Ill Doctrine's Why I'm Happy, Why I'm Not Satisfied]
Fic Recs by sansets [6 The West Wing fic recs]


ESSAYS & PICSPAMS
female political leaders around the world by secretsolitaire
how I got started on a feminist path by rebecca_star
on women and politics in Wales by memories_child


MISC
Rice Pudding by prairiedaun [Another from Gramma's recipe box]
a list of things I have learned from children and mothers in my life by nokiaangel [in celebration of my sister being busy giving birth right now]
Iron Jawed Angels by springdove [A movie review]
Edinburgh by macey_muse [a poem about the city in which I've somehow found myself living]
(not your Momma's) Apple Crisp by aphelant [A favourite in my house, I hope you'll enjoy it too! ]
Reid by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - sweater.]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Politics & Voting

Being political isn’t simply about voting. Being a part of any participatory political system is never just about casting ballots, though that is an important step in most societies.

In the United States, we have recently made some pretty enormous changes in the makeup of our governing body. We have elected the first African-American president in US history, we have a Democratic majority in the House of Representatives and the Senate and a Democratic president for the first time in more than a decade. We have also passed Proposition 8 in California, once again proving that homophobic legislation will almost always pass, limiting our recognition of queer people and families. We fell victim to the progressive wars of race vs. gender, of pitting some of the most disadvantaged voters against others.

Not all of these changes in the last few months have been progressive changes.

More importantly, none of these changes in policy guarantees change. Yes, President Obama has called lifted the global gag rule, a US foreign policy that refused funding to any agencies overseas that even discussed abortion as a reproductive choice, thus forcing the policy preferences of a few upon some of the most impoverished people in the world, most of them women and children.

However, the US Supreme Court is eroding reproductive freedoms every time a case comes before it. We live with a legacy of welfare reform that has trapped women and children, primarily women and children of color, and with a likely future where elderly people cannot count on state support.

We still don’t have universal health care.

Now that the largest turnout in decades has voted our candidates into office, do we sit back and let the powers that be govern?

A project called 52 Letters says no. This community calls upon members to commit to writing to our elected officials once a week. These do not have to be to the president or to a US Senator – they can be to the Board of Education or your fire chief. A tremendous number of decisions occur in the United States at the state and local levels and, often, voices are heard less and can impact more at these levels.

52letters invites you to join. Don’t let your elected officials forget that you are here, that you are paying attention, and that it is the people they work for. Make your voice heard more than once every four years. Let’s try once a week.

[Today's essay is courtesy of belladonnalin]

FIC
And Sometimes, You Just Go Snap by lavvyan [PG13; SGA; John/Rodney; In 2012, Rodney died four times.]
Declension: a sound, a gun, a ruined thing by amand_r [Not Rated; Dr Who; She hadn't meant to date Harry, not really, because he was a bit silly looking, but he'd given her white roses and a book of very poorly translated Giacomo da Lentini that she could have done without. It was a sign that he was trying. He was interested.]
Occupational Therapy by arsenicjade [G; Criminal Mines; Emily Prentiss]
Voice of an Angel by dragonyphoenix [Adult; BtVS/AtS; How does Angelus view death?]
The Difference Between "Can't" and "Won't" by mardahin [PG; Star Trek: The Next Generation; It was too late to ask permission, and she'd only have to beg forgiveness if it worked.]
Schism 1/? by vipersweb [Mature; Harry Potter/Torchwood; Before Ianto worked for Torchwood, he was a Hufflepuff and fought in one of the toughest wars in Wizarding history.]
1,000+ word foray into the 'what if' world of Firefly by katherine_tag [PG13; Firefly]


ICONS
40 Icons by bunnymcfoo [Icons of women]


RECS
Fic Recs by sansets [6 fic recs, featuring Ashlee Simpson]
Blog Recs by rebecca_star [10 Feminist Blog recs]
Fic Recs by secretsolitaire [7 woman-centric Harry Potter recs]
Fic Recs by nokiaangel [10 Comfort Fic Recs]


ESSAYS
For My Mama by mirabile_dictu [I've been wanting to write about my mother for years, but I find it almost impossible to.]
Dealing with Domestic Abuse by memories_child [an article I wrote for a self harm website on dealing with domestic abuse]
Twirant by lady_writes
An Essay by ariadne83 [At the risk of sounding trite, domestic abuse is a complicated issue, and identifying oneself as a survivor of it even moreso.]


MISC
Image, commentary, and links by greenet [The picture might be triggery and features a women with bruises on her face.]
Feather and Fan Comfort Shawl by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - shawl]
Jefferson Mittens by prairiedaun [improvised from the first mitten pattern coleman_genie sketched out for me when I first learned to knit.]
Discretion as a Virtue. by macey_muse [An older poem of mine, on a relevant topic]
podcast of teeth of the hydra (with associated stories), by resonant read by general_jinjur [Due South; Fraser/Kowalski]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Domestic Violence

Domestic abuse against women has decreased steadily since 1993, but decreases do not equal eradication of the epidemic.

For every 1,000 people age 12 or older in the United States, there are 4 women being abused by a spouse or partner. In 2005, 1 in 320 households in the United States were affected by domestic abuse. Of the 260,000 cases of domestic violence perpetrated against women in 2005, 25,000 resulted in serious injury--including broken bones, internal injuries and knife wounds--and another 13,000 involved rape or sexual assault of some kind. Between 2001 and 2005, nearly 40% of the cases of domestic violence against women occurred in households with children.

The statistics and numbers are there, and if we think about them we cringe.

But we need to think about them, and we need to associate those numbers with names, and with women just like us.

What can we do? We can support organizations like The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, The National Network to End Domestic Violence, and The National Domestic Violence Hotline.

More importantly, we can reach out for assistance from the organizations above if we're being abused. We can offer knowledge and options to those who are being abused.

If you need assistance and you're afraid your internet and/or computer usage might be monitored, you should access the sites above at a public location such as a library or internet cafe, and/or call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE(7233).


[Today's essay courtesy of idyll]

FIC
Emancipation by shara_i [NC17; House; The story of strength takes a lifetime to tell. This is Lisa's story.]
Snake Eyes by lavvyan [PG13; Thoughtcrimes/Boa vs. Python; Brendan/Emmett; Emmett blinked at him, open-mouthed, then he shook his head. "All right, you know what? This jealousy thing you've got going on? It's not cute."]
Euphemism by arsenicjade [G; Alias; Irina Derevko]
The Breakfast Tray by memories_child [PG; Original Fic]
Introduced As Friends by rebecca_star [PG; Bandom (TAI...); This is part three of a five part fic where Sisky is female.]
our days are slow and dear (1/2) by pocky_slash [SGA; PG13; "No, no," Rodney says dismissively, "but why isn't he here?" "Because the Colonel doesn't need this, Rodney," Carson says. "Not like you do."]
Pinion by amand_r [NC17; Twin Peaks; Margaret wouldn't let him buy her an engagement ring, she just patted his chest and said, 'oh, build me a house, then.' And when he started buying fixtures and asking Pete and the boys to drop off logs at the property he'd purchased just for them, far away from everyone out in the woods, she knew that it was safe to announce that they were getting married.]
Looking Glass by vipersweb [G; SG-1; tag to Continuum - Vala's thoughts after returning from settling Ba'al's host.]
Innocent Mistakes by mardahin [PG13; SG-1; The thing was, Cam was pretty damn sure that he hadn't put in for leave this Thanksgiving.]


ART
Wallpaper by lady_writes [Please don't be silent, Don't even be quiet.]


ICONS
Icon Textures by nokiaangel [7 icon textures]
40 Icons by bunnymcfoo [40 icons of women]


RECS
Fic Recs by sansets [6 Sarah Connor Chronicles Recs]


ESSAYS


MISC
Days of Socks by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - socks.]
A poem by Lucille Clifton by secretsolitaire [To My Friend, Jerina]
Steamed Lemon Asparagus by prairiedaun [asparagus is delicious when still crisp.]
the fruits of autumn by macey_muse [(on (logically, for february ^.^') autumn)]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Sexual Assault

Every two minutes someone is sexually assaulted in the U.S., and one out of every six American women have been sexually abused.

These are the rape statistics in the U.S. alone, where an estimated 60% of rapes are never reported. Sexual assault has been used as a tool of genocide, domination, and oppression. For women around the world, sexual assault is a threat and an ever present fear.

The statistics can tell you it's a problem. It happens in the U.S., in France and the Middle East, in Australia and Africa. It happens in nearly every society in the world.

What people rarely talk about is the fact that people who've been raped or sexually abused are more likely to do drugs, drink alcohol excessively, and consider suicide. Rape brings up feelings of shame, disgust, and fear in the survivors. For all the trauma women face as a result of rape, it is not something we, as a society, discuss, and many women don't know what to do when it happens.

In cases like these, a place like the National Sexual Assault Hotline is particularly important. It offers counseling, information on community resources, and information on emergency protocols. Since the hotline connects the caller to a local branch, the counselors can also explain the legal aspects of the crime, and are familiar with the area and the local support groups available.


[Today's essay courtesy of vylit]

FIC
Three People Dean Met at 'Safe Haven' by mardahin [PG13; Supernatural, Stargate: Atlantis; Every time he walks through the doors of Safe Haven alone, Dean holds his breath for a bit longer than he ought.]
Crosswards by amand_r [NC17; DCU; Clark/Lois/Diana; She wants whatever Diana is making, and so she doesn't stop her then and there, set down the whisk and the rolling pin and pull the little towel from her shoulder and lay her out on the sofa. Besides, she did that last night, and Lois only allows herself one bold moment with Diana every twenty-four hours. It assures her that she doesn't make an ass out of herself.]
Own True Way by vipersweb [G; Tortall; At Raoul and Buri's wedding, Alanna gives Kel some advice regarding being a woman and a knight.]
Bound in Blue by lavvyan [NC17; SGA; John/Rodney; Imagine, if you will, Rodney McKay naked.]
Driven Snow? by arsenicjade [PG; Dirty Sexy Money; Juliet Darling]
Her Sense of Style by memories_child [R; the X-Files; Scully/Mulder; It is easy to forget, sometimes that she is a woman; clad all day in power suits with FBI issue weaponry positioned on her hip and ankle.]
What Love Aimed At by to_say_nothing [NC17; Hollyoaks; John Paul/Kieron; Kieron isn’t what most people would think of when they pictured an excited bride. (Schmoopy PWP set in the brief, shining time between telling Myra about the engagement and Craig’s appearance.)]
Childish Things by daybreak777 [PG13; BSG; Felix, OCs; He could win and then nothing would seem different.]
Pride Magazine, Issue 984, February 2007 by pocky_slash [PG; The West Wing; Sam/Will; Our exclusive interview with Washington's gay power couple! ("Oh my god, I can't believe they actually called us that!")
Sometimes, A Lemon Is Really A Turnip by macey_muse [Not Rated; SGA/XKCD; Perfectly safe! And delicious when mashed!]
10 Multifandom drabbles by ceares


ICONS
160 Icons by bunnymcfoo [20 icons each of 7 colors, 20 icons of rainbows]
28 Icons by hermitsoul [Sexuality]


ART
Wallpaper and musings by lady_writes [a desktop and a blurb]


RECS
Heroine Recs by serendipityxxi [My Top 5 Fictional Heroines for the last year]
Fic Recs by sansets [8 multi-fandom FPF porn recs]
Music Recs by nokiaangel [queercore and queercountry music recs]
Band Rec by rebecca_star [a whole lot of Smiths reccing, including a biiiig article from Uncut a couple of years ago]
Fic & Art Recs by secretsolitaire [Harry Potter and Queer as Folk fic and art recs]


ESSAYS
some of my thoughts on the subject of being a person who has never had an orgasm by kinetikatrue


MISC
Love Songs for Everyone by ghostrunner7 [Music Mix - Love doesn’t have to be about possession]
The Grey Album by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - hat, scarf, mittens.]
Recipes! by zeenell [I can't really cook, but I make a few different dinners really well.]
Pas de Cheval by prairiedaun [socks and pattern]
Sex (I'm A...) [a mix CD]
31 songs of women singing about sex by redangel618

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Sexuality

The LGBTQ community is large with needs that are ever evolving. Lesbian women of color are creating media and art projects to better educate the public, around the country programs are being developed to help teens feel comfortable with their sexuality, and people are coming together to speak to religious groups and schools to increase exposure and acceptance of sexualities that aren't strictly heterosexual. These groups are important in both acceptance of women's sexuality and sexual choices, and in allowing them to communicate their experiences to the larger public.

The Horizons Foundation provides financial support to community organizations and causes in areas ranging from youth to elders, from LGBTQ arts and culture to civil rights advocacy as well as providing support and training to leaders of these community organizations.

[Today's essay is courtesy of vylit]

FIC
Light On by lavvyan [G; SGA; John/Rodney; "Leave a light on," John says, "so I can find you again," and Rodney does.]
Concept(ion) by arsenicjade [G; Criminal Minds; JJ centric]
When Wind Wakes You Up at Night by daybreak777 [R; BSG; Kara/Felix; She’s squeezing his hand so hard, he’s sure that the bones will break. She’s that strong. But he doesn’t make a sound because she doesn’t.]
And I can name them in my dreaming by wintercreek [G; Due South; Fraser/Thatcher pre-relationship; Meg knows she'll find something to fill the space, but she'd wanted it to be someone.]
Introduced As Friends, Part 2 by rebecca_star [G; Bandom (TAI...); girl!Adam Siska and Mike Carden; Just after Sisky turns fourteen, Mike Carden comes into their lives.]
And We All Fall Down by vipersweb [G; BSG; Kara/Lee; Tag to the Oath]
Perfect Peace by memories_child [PG13; She travels the seasons, remembering.]
Runaways by serendipityxxi [PG13; Without A Trace; The first time Samantha Spade ran away from home she was thirteen and her mother, coming out of a weeklong binge actually noticed and came after her. The second time Samantha left she was seventeen, and it wasn't so much running away as moving out.]
Forgetting the Divine by misslucyjane [Adult; SPN; Dean/Castiel; In which cherry pie is eaten, and Dean cuts himself another slice of angel food cake.]
Time When... by tassosss [PG13; Firefly/SPN; Zoe/Dean; She got a woman's notion is how Jayne puts it ...]


ICONS
18 Icons by oconel [pregnant women, babies, women, condoms...]
40 Icons by bunnymcfoo [icons of women]


ART
Wallpaper by lady_writes [wallpaper on the theme]


RECS
Fic Reccers Recs by zeenell [6 recs of fan-fic reccers]
Fic Recs by sansets [7 multi-fandom fic recs on the theme of motherhood]
Vid Recs by greenet [7 Vid recs in 7 different fandoms]
Book Recs by pocky_slash [14 middle grade novels with female main characters and/or written by kickass female authors.]


ESSAYS
Why I Don't Opt Out by wendelah1 [an essay about my experiences as an RN caring for patients who have second trimester abortions.]
Reproduction and Reproductive Rights by belladonnalin [Beyond that I thought that all women should have access to safe, legal, affordable abortion with no shame, it was almost definitely a personal issue. Other reproductive choices became important to me later because, as many people are, I was fundamentally selfish.]


MISC
Teyla by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - kitty.]
Unbaked Cookies by aphelant [I've collected a few recipes that were passed down to me through women in my family. This is the first one. :)]
in the heart of the Land. by macey_muse [a poem on the theme of motherhood]
Quotable quotes by women by secretsolitaire
an open letter to the people with dead baby photos outside the abortion clinic down the street. by nokiaangel [an essay + icons]
Ginger Snaps by prairiedaun [cookies the way Gramma made them]
If Men Could Menstruate, by Gloria Steinem by gblvr
Podcast of a critique of pure reason, by annakovsky by general_jinjur

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Motherhood and Reproductive Rights

At the heart of the reproductive rights issue is the decision to become a mother or not - the choice to become pregnant, the choice to carry to term or to not carry to term. While some people may see this as an ethical choice, or a matter of religion, for millions of women around the world, having a child is literally a matter of life or death.

Every minute, a woman dies of treatable complications to pregnancy or childbirth. For every woman who dies, as many as 20 other women are impacted by injuries related to childbearing.

The simple fact of the matter is that women who have access to reproductive health services and who can choose when and if to become pregnant, are healthier, live longer, and have a higher chance to pursue higher education and careers. Their children tend to survive infancy in larger numbers, and to be stronger and healthier over all.

UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is an international development agency that aims to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect. They work to make motherhood safer and to bring gender issues to wider attention, promoting legal and policy reforms and gender-sensitive data collection, and supporting projects that empower women economically.

To quote their website. "Simply staying informed about the issues and sharing what you learn with others makes a big difference. Increased public awareness of issues often leads to greater political support to address them." In January 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama announced that the United States would again join in funding UNFPA, overturning a decision made by the previous administration to withhold some $34 million annually.

FIC
The Sickness Bit by lavvyan [G; SGA; John/Rodney; John had a cold at least once every winter, regular as clockwork. His nose started to run if someone even so much as mentioned the word "snow" in passing. Of course he'd catch the flu.]
modern grrrl by belladonnalin [PG13; Bandom; Jamia Nestor/Amanda Palmer; rebel girl, you are the queen of my world.]
Tonight, I'm a rock and roll star by rebecca_star [Not rated; Bandom (TAI...); Adam gets Rockband for Christmas]
Sex Ed 101 by arsenicjade [PG; SGA; Keller Centric]
Afterwards by macey_muse [Not Rated; Pern; Original Character]
Crashing by lyl_devil [PG; SPN; Dean’s never had many things that were his, but what he does have, he holds on to with an iron tight grip.]
Twenty-four hour bug by slob_child [Not Rated; Eureka; Jack palmed his face tiredly. "Are you telling me," he said, incredulous, "that my house has a twenty-four hour flu bug?"]
Past Forward by vipersweb [G; SGA; Ronon didn't expect to find someone else so soon after his failed romance with Jennifer, but he does.]
Not Made of Things Which Do Appear, Part 2/2 by pocky_slash [PG; The West Wing; Sam/Will; The people in Sam and Will's lives watch them try and put the pieces back together after Will is shot.]
Necessity → something something → invention. by amand_r [NC17; Torchwood; Jack/Ianto; When it was all said and done, Ianto had decided that he would never again doubt Owen's medical judgement, nor Jack's uncanny ability to come up with whatever was necessary, in this case a firehose and a fifty gallon drum of Zicam. He would, however, forever be rueful of his mistaken certainty that operating a flame-thrower was much like using a camera: point and shoot.]


ICONS
4 Icons by fizzawrites [icons from artwork by the the Korean Resource Center's Health Access Project]
40 Icons by bunnymcfoo [icons of women]


ART
Wallpaper by lady_writes [1 wallpaper]


RECS
Vid Recs by sansets [6 multi-fandom vids]
Fic Recs by zeenell [7 Bandom recs]


ESSAYS
An essay on mental health and my experiences with it by memories_child
February is American Heart Month by killing_rose [An essay on heart health; it includes links, statistics, and reminds us that cardiovascular disease is one of the predominant causes of women's death--that most likely, we each know a woman (or many) who have been impacted by cardiovascular disease.]
Women and Health – Being Me by nemesina77 [An essay on my struggles with various health issues (with a focus on Bipolar Disorder), also shows how various women in my family have dealt with their health issues (shows how stigmas have changed through the years), plus links to articles on Bipolar Disorder, a link to download an EBook by Sylvia Plath (who was Bipolar), and a mix of songs by musicians with Bipolar Disorder (20 songs - including 2 bonus, non-Bipolar artist tracks).]


MISC
Slutty by ghostrunner7 [A mix of 14 songs]
A collection of useful links by sasha_feather
Five Recipes That Can Be Made In a Dorm [or at least with a minimum of fuss] by pineapplechild
Narragansett Bay Scarf by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - scarf]
A rec list of rants about feminine hygiene products by nokiaangel
Pic spam for mental health! by secretsolitaire
Cantucci recipe. :) by inocciduous
less than three by prairiedaun [a knit anatomical heart]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Women and Health

One of the best things a woman can do for her health is to be informed of her choices. Whether it's the long-term consequences of smoking, proper nutrition, the affects of stress, what to expect during menopause, or questions about body variations, information allows women to make choices about their lives and their bodies knowing the information available. The first step to women making healthy choices for their body is knowing what those choices are.

In this vein, The Boston Women's Health Book Collective put out the book Our Bodies, Ourselves, which attempts to make women aware of their mental, physical, and spiritual health. The writing is clear, and the book covers a wide range of issues regarding women's health, making it an important step toward educating women about their bodies. While it is not a perfect book, it is an important one.

Several other books have been published by Our Bodies, Ourselves, and the organization works to advocate for women to have a stronger voice in medical practices and medical policy.


[Today's essay courtesy of vylit]

FIC
The End of the World as We Know It by lavvyan [G; SGA; John Sheppard lived in a small house by the end of the world, which is just a few miles to the south of the left end of the rainbow. It was a solitary life, the house surrounded by nothing but long grass and wild flowers and a few trees in the distance… and, of course, the sheer cliff dropping straight down into infinity about fifteen feet from the back door.]
Four Times Torchwood Discovers Ianto's an Immortal, and One Time They Don't by vipersweb [R; Torchwood/Highlander; Four times Torchwood-Three discovers Ianto's an Immortal, and one time they don't]
Sea Creature by arsenicjade [R; PotC:CotBP; Annamaria; The first time Jack slept with her, he thought he was seducing a boy.]
Introduced As Friends, Part 1 by rebecca_star [G; Bandom (TAI...); This is the first in a 5 part fic where Adam T Siska is female not male, and it tells the story of her history with TAI, starting here with William]
Somewhere Between Plato and Disney by allyndra [PG13; High School Musical/Stargate: Atlantis; Chad/Ryan (McKay/Sheppard, Kelsi/Laura Cadman); Atlantis was dangerous and far away, but Chad couldn't wait to go. He expected to love it, but he didn't expect it to become home.]
Like Snowflakes Wiping Out The Noon by memories_child [PG; Original Fic; She travels the seasons, remembering.]
Your own blood and bones. by sinsense [R; Bandom (the Used); Bert/Quinn; Bert can't stop writing, and Quinn can't bear the sight of his own hands.]
once in a lifetime by belladonnalin [PG13; Bandom (MCR & MSI); Gerard/Lindsey/Jamia; Lindsey always thought that she was going to be a rock star. So it was more than a little weird the day that she passed the bar. After all: who ever heard of a rock star lawyer?]
What Pronoun Do You Prefer? by gemmi999 [PG13; Bandom (MCR); Gen; It was a well known fact that Gerard preferred to shower as little as possible while on tour.]
at best, only light and momentary by beingothrwrldly [PG; Bandom (PatD); Jon/Ryan; Jon the tech meets Ryan and falls in loveee.]
Not Made of Things Which Do Appear, Part 1/2 by pocky_slash [PG; The West Wing; Sam/Will; The people in Sam and Will's lives watch them try and put the pieces back together after Will is shot.]
Gravity by misslucyjane [Adult; Torchwood/Stargate: Atlantis; Jack Harkness/Rodney McKay; “I can’t resist a physicist in his prime.”]
Wind His Branches Round by frausorge [R; Bandom (MCR & FOB); Mikey/OFC; "Mikey," Gerard said in his ear as they were leaving the stage, "hey, Mikey, I think you have a fan."]
For the Best by mardahin [PG; Supernatural; Dean had known going in that it wasn't going to be easy, that it was going to hurt. Doing the right thing always did.]
Kùaxìng by amand_r [NC17; Firefly; Inara-centric; There are flounces and silk and a few ties and buttons. There are necklaces and flowers in hair. There are a few more stolen kisses, anywhere but on the mouth, really, Xian-li's hands, her shoulder, the innocuous clavicle, the bend of the elbow, and then finally, when they are powdered and gleaming and their every movement produces the rustle of taffeta and the low groan sound of tight fabric being forced to move with their every breath, Inara offers Xian-li her hand, and they step from the shuttle to the darkness, where the private courier is waiting to take them to the hotel.]


ICONS
10 icons by raz0rgirl [BtVS/Angel icons, Cordelia and Oz]
32 icons by bunnymcfoo [icons of signs and writing on the wall]


RECS
Fic Recs by zeenell [3 fic recs, multi-fandom]
Web Comic Recs by slob_child [4 web comics dealing with transgender issues]
Book Recs by sansets [5 books about transgender issues]
Fic Rec & Playlist by lady_writes [1 fic rec (bandom) and 1 playlist]
Book Recs by secretsolitaire [2 books dealing with gender issues]
Book Recs by kimberlyfdr [13 book recs dealing with transgender issues]


MISC
Delicious vanilla pancakes by prairiedaun [family recipe]
on the nature of godhead, abandoned. by macey_muse [original poetry]
Quilts and Foliage by an_kayoh [14 knits for 14 days - hats]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Transgender/Transsexual Issues

It’s easy to think of fannish communities as progressive. Many talk openly about the big issues of silence – politics, sex, and religion.

But how progressive are we as disparate and varied (in terms of our preferences, our fandoms, our politics) communities when it comes to sex and gender? How many times have we, as participants, assumed the gender or sex of a person we were talking to online?

A lot of assumptions are culturally-shaped when it comes to discussions about gender and biological sex. This is not limited to fannish communities, but a lot of those assumptions bleed into the ways that we, as fans, see sex and gender. That is, how do we, as community/communities see the gender that people represent as compared to the biological sex that they identify as?

Gender, increasingly, is seen as complex – women are not necessarily feminine, men are not necessarily masculine. It’s even becoming more common to recognize that femininity and masculinity (or butchness or femmeness or androgeny or genderqueerness) as culturally-located, as descriptions that are set within particular contexts. Although a man wearing a skirt may be seen as feminine in the United States, a man wearing a kilt in Scotland is the height of traditional masculinity and men all over sub-Saharan Africa wear what people in the United States might call skirts.

This widespread examination has, largely, not been applied to biological sex. It would seem easy to say, perhaps, that biological sex is simple – it’s about what’s between your legs or your chromosomal makeup. Penis, XY = man. Vagina, XX =woman.

However, individuals within and without fannish communities can say firsthand that sex is nowhere near that simple. Biology is, in fact, not destiny and there are increasing numbers of individuals who are talking openly about their experiences of non-normative sexuality – for example, what it is like to be born into a body that is culturally-defined as female but feeling that you are a man.

Have you wondered how you can better educate yourself about gender and sex issues or learn to be more sensitive to transgender and transsexual people in your community? GenderPAC works to ensure that classrooms, communities, and workplaces are safe for everyone to learn, grow, and succeed - whether or not they meet societal expectations for masculinity and femininity.

As a human rights organization, GenderPAC also promotes an understanding of the connection between discrimination based on gender stereotypes and sex, sexual orientation, age, race, and class.

[Today's essay courtesy of belladonnalin.]

FIC
Elkins, West Virginia by lavvyan [PG; Thoughtcrimes/Boa vs. Python; Brendan doesn't care if the Potomac Highlands offer a lot of nature, or if the Hungary Farm Winery ("Best melomel in the world!") makes an interesting place for a visit. He misses Freya. He misses New York. The snakes at the Reserve lost their novelty value some time around day three, and the guy he's supposed to keep an eye on is an ass.]
Justifiable Anxiety by mardahin [PG; The Avengers; For seven years, Pepper Potts has had the singular (and somewhat dubious) honor of heading 'The List'...Tony had been of the opinion that nothing short of (another) apocalypse was going to displace her. He'd been wrong. So very, very wrong.]
Happy Feet (tell it like it is) by greenet [PG13; Bandom (TAI...); Sisky/Nate; Mike and Bill are apparently blind, Sisky is having relationship issues, and Andy is just exasperated by it all.]
In Your Head, In Your Mouth by misslucyjane [Adult; SPN; Dean/Castiel; No nightmares. Not this night.]
Just Jump by belladonnalin [PG-13;Sports Night; Dana is sixteen, her heart in her throat and her feet curled around the cool metal of the railing below her feet. The water isn’t running fast, but it’s 20 feet down and it sounds like the loudest thing that Dana has ever heard. On one side, Lenny Viachetti’s grin is almost blinding and, on the other, her hand clutches a support beam. Dana is terrified of heights.]
Be All My Sins Remembered by vipersweb [PG; Torchwood; After Tommy returns through the Rift, Tosh thinks back - on Torchwood, on Tommy, on the last four years.]
Cover Girl by arsenicjade [G; Bandom; Body Issues]
A Judicious Application of Force by macey_muse [Not Rated; Due South; RayK & Fraser; It'll all end in tears. And unfortunate occurrences of lederhosen.]
Well, Finally by amand_r [Gen; Angel; Harmony-centric; Back when she had been human, she'd never really stopped to think about what time of day it was. Now it was like, she had even less time in the day than she did before. Like, she had forever but that forever was chopped up into part free-time, and part 'oh no, going outside causes incurable burning cancer or something.']
Michael just tastes sweet by rebecca_star [PG; Bandom (TAI...); William Beckett/Michael Guy Chislett; Chiz gets a care package from his mum.]
Dancing in the Dark by lyl_devil [R; BtVS; Willow/Spike; Promised you a night of dinner and dancing, luv]
Reality doesn't deny fantasy by slob_child [G; Enchanted; The second year Andalasia Fashions has been open, it comes under attack for promoting unrealistic body images for young girls.]
This Woman's Work by inocciduous [G; X-Files; Scully; It's been a long time since Dana Scully has worried about being normal.]
Insight by to_say_nothing [PG13; BtVS; Xander/Riley; Dawn comes home early and sees something surprising.]
The Words That Bind by chandri [PG; SGA; Can a person's life be whittled down to so narrow a pinpoint, that a moment's glimpse could comprise all pride, love, yearning, passion? How? Teyla knows that this is a thing of vision, ofsight, of the brief scattershot communion Earth people seem to have with anyone outside of a handful of those tied to them by blood and long-term circumstance.]


ICONS
14 Icons by nokiaangel [female centric lyric icons and a video link]
40 Icons by bunnymcfoo [icons of women]
20 Icons by bessemerprocess [icons are all of hands]


ART
Thrum by sinsense [Mixed Media Art; Used, Bert, G rated.]
Body Image by helena_eternal [Mixed Media Art; Every piece of art has a fingerprint left in the glue, a nick in the wood: those are traces of love the artist left behind. - Our bodies have traces, too: moles, scars... signs we're all homemade.]
Morgana by medalline [Unfinished drawing; BBC's Merlin]


RECS
Fic Recs by sansets [7 fic recs about Greta Salpeter (RPF Bandom)]


ESSAYS
Just some thoughts... by secretsolitaire
A piece of my thoughts... by lady_writes
a personal essay on body image: because I feel it needs to be said by misslucyjane
A Short Essay by sasha_feather
Just some thoughts by memories_child [on women and body modifications]
Personal exploration of body image by springdove
day one - body image by mercuriazs [A college-level ballroom dancer's slightly-less-than-chipper thoughts on the subject]
Body Image and Disordered Eating by killing_rose [An essay on how, at least in my life, the two have been intertwined and why, sometimes, it isn't as easy to say, "No, that's not an eating disorder" as it may seem.]
Personal musings on height by wintercreek [I don't, in real life, look the way I look in my head.]
Personal Reflections by zeenell [I am sick and tired...]
Body Image. Women and tattoos. by wildestranger
I Am A Fat Girl by gblvr



MISC
Self Reflection by pocky_slash [Some self-reflection, but more importantly, some pie recipes.] [PIE! :D]
Reinvent <3 (the Braided Pullover) by prairiedaun
Baby Items by an_kayoh [14 knits in 14 days; A collection of baby items.]
Don't Call Me Baby by ghostrunner7 [Mixtape of girl power songs]
Poetry by llassah [4 poems about body image (by other people)]

One hundred and sixty one years ago, a group of women and men drafted the Declaration of Sentiments, stating that "The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman..." Their immediate goal of equal voting rights for women in the United States has long since been met, but this statement still rings with a tragic amount of truth.

Three years ago, when rageprufrock first began the project that would grow into 14 valentines, she spoke about how women are praised and worshiped, torn down and degraded. We live in a world where our bodies are revered for the ability to give life and derided for leaving behind the appearance of adolescence, where we can rise to the highest offices of power in some countries and are deprived of basic rights in others.

We are told to be strong, to stand up for ourselves, told that we can do anything, be anything - but only to a point, always to a point.

Around the world, women die from lack of basic medical attention, from infanticide, from starvation beyond their control, from starvation inflicted upon themselves in a twisted attempt to be beautiful. We are beaten, raped, murdered, told in so many horrifying ways that we are lesser that we don't matter.

Forty years ago we declared that Sisterhood is Powerful, and it still is. We must remember that, must continue moving forward.

It's 2009 and we've come so far, but there is still more work to be done. We deserve better, and we can do more. We're strong. The next fourteen days is meant to remind us of that. It's our time to take back our bodies.

V can stand for vagina, like Eve Ensler's groundbreaking monologues. V can stand for violence, under whose auspices all women continue to make a home.

V can also stand for victory.

---

Body Image

We are finding dissatisfaction in our bodies at younger and younger ages. The number 1 “magic wish” of girls 10-14 is to lose weight, regardless of their bodysize. In 2003, more than 223,000 cosmetic procedures were performed on patients 18 years of age or younger, and almost 39,000 were surgical procedures.

We are encouraged to be dissatisfied by plastic surgeons, diet plans, diet pills--all of which foster that dissatisfaction to make a profit. We are implicitly told we're not pretty-skinny-flawless-perfect enough by magazine covers, billboards, and advertisements--all of which are photoshopped and unrealistic.

When we are being marketed to in all ways by manufactured perfection that we can't possibly embody, where can we turn? Books like Body Outlaws inspire us to love ourselves and be healthy, no matter our size or appearance. We look to websites like Glossed Over, which criticizes all of those fashion magazines that lie to us so prettily. Those of us in the UK can turn to Any Body, a web site that challenges the physical representation of women in media and society.

When we love ourselves rather than covet and pine for impossible standards, we are happier, healthier, and ultimately more fulfilled.

[Today's essay courtesy of idyll.]