Elizabeth Barrette (ysabetwordsmith) wrote,
Elizabeth Barrette
ysabetwordsmith
  • Mood: busy

Dressing for Safety

In the long ugly debate of blaming the victim for many crimes, clothing often comes into question, and the general agreement is that clothes don't cause crimes, criminals cause crimes.

However, there is one clothing change that is very old, and if you can make it work, then it reduces certain types of crime by quite a lot -- crossdressing.  You have to be good enough to PASS or it just makes you more of a target.  But if men are looking for a woman to rape, and they think you're a man, they'll ignore you.  If they're looking for a man to murder, and they think you're a woman, they'll ignore you.

Right now, being a black man makes you look like murder bait to some people who are considered free to murder anyone they want with little chance of reprisal.  So I figured that I would point out this historic solution.  It's not ideal, but it might keep people breathing long enough to effect a longer-term solution. 
Tags: activism, gender studies, networking
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  • 21 comments
...go 5 levels up... Expand
ysabetwordsmith

Re: Well...

ysabetwordsmith

December 7 2014, 11:05:54 UTC 6 years ago

>> You have hair like Hermione, eh? Yes, I remember that from a picture I saw of you once.<<

Yep.

>> You kinda looked to me like Professor Trelawney, but with Hermione's hair. <<

*laugh* Several people have compared me to Trelawney.

>> Hermione's un-tamable hair makes me think she could be black. Nowhere in the books does it ever say she's white. <<

Point.
fayanora

Re: Well...

fayanora

December 7 2014, 11:13:29 UTC 6 years ago

In fact, I prefer black Hermione. It would make her indignant reaction at the slavery of house elves make a LOT more sense, and would eliminate the "white savior" aspect of S.P.E.W. that a white Hermione creates.
ysabetwordsmith

Re: Well...

ysabetwordsmith

December 7 2014, 11:22:56 UTC 6 years ago

I agree. Mixed-race would work too: especially with Draco's snitty "mudblood" remarks.

My interpretation of him? He's all one white spot. Which if you know anything about white-spotting genes and domestication, explains one hell of a lot.
fayanora

Re: Well...

fayanora

December 7 2014, 11:25:54 UTC 6 years ago

White spot? Please explain.
siege

Re: Well...

siege

December 7 2014, 19:18:03 UTC 6 years ago Edited:  December 7 2014, 19:19:04 UTC

This link is an explanation of dog genetics -- apparently a "white spot" is a dog's coat having a region of white in it. And an ALL white coat is potentially bad (it's albinism), often leading to problems like deafness because some of the relevant pigments are normally active in the inner ear.
ysabetwordsmith

Re: Well...

ysabetwordsmith

December 7 2014, 19:51:50 UTC 6 years ago

Actually there's a difference between the genetics of a solid white coat over pigmented skin, which can have side effects like deafness; an albino; and white spotting so complete that it covers the whole body. One comparison appears in cat genetics:
http://messybeast.com/whitecat.htm
ysabetwordsmith

Re: Well...

ysabetwordsmith

December 7 2014, 19:58:28 UTC 6 years ago

During the process of domestication, humans select animals with desirable traits, usually beginning with friendliness/docility. Even when selecting only for temperament, other changes soon begin to appear including coloration and morphology. The white spotting is one of the more striking changes in coloration and appears across most or all domestic animals. Because it's a disadvantage in the wild, it's a pretty clear marker of animals that have been bred to be pleasing at the cost of their independent survival potential.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/03/taming-wild-animals/ratliff-text/2
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/07/140714100122.htm
fayanora

Re: Well...

fayanora

December 7 2014, 23:58:51 UTC 6 years ago

LOL, so Draco is so domesticated he's lost any real survival skills? :-D
ysabetwordsmith

Re: Well...

ysabetwordsmith

December 8 2014, 00:01:25 UTC 6 years ago

Yep. Overbred.
fayanora

Re: Well...

fayanora

December 8 2014, 00:06:01 UTC 6 years ago

So Draco is overbred, which makes sense, given that Aunt Marge once called Harry "underbred."

Re: Well...

Anonymous

April 15 2015, 08:54:57 UTC 6 years ago

As a woman, Hermione already is part of an oppressed class, though. And one who is forced to do men's household chores for them. I see a similarity there ...

That said, black Hermione would be cool regardless of S.P.E.W. I would have liked for her to be black in the movies. The actor's hair was very disappointing.
ysabetwordsmith

Re: Well...

ysabetwordsmith

April 15 2015, 09:24:30 UTC 6 years ago

That makes sense.

  • Unsold Poems for the June 1, 2021 Poetry Fishbowl

    The following poems from the June 1, 2021 Poetry Fishbowl are currently available. Poems may be sponsored via PayPal -- there's a permanent donation…

  • Poetry Fishbowl Report for June 1, 2021

    This month's theme was "I never thought I'd have to say that." I wrote from 1:30 PM to 5:45 AM, so about 14 hours 15 minutes, allowing for…

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    People use voice profiling and recording to spy on each other. Shit like this is why I refuse to be recorded. And that means there are things I…