Canada Deletes Feminist From its History; Mind Your Business And Get Out Of Nicki Minaj’s Ass

The donk that launched a thousand thinkpieces. Image via Facebook.
This week, the owner of a hip-hop site suddenly decided it’s his job to parent female hip-hop stars. Meanwhile, a candidate for Toronto City Council (and well-known PUA) decided it was cool to publicly endorse violence against women.

In other news, we’ve got a Prime Minister who is now trying to actively delete the country’s feminist champions from history.

Here we go:

Screenshot via Dimitri the Lover's official website.
Revolting PUA Running for Toronto Council Is Also a Promoter Of Violence Against Women

Lately in women getting cyber bullied: a Toronto city councilor, Mary-Margaret McMahon, who is known for actually wanting to help other humans, is being targeted online.

Some depraved asshole by the name of James Sears (aka grotesque pick up artist Dimitri the Lover) is running against her in Ward 32, and he wants people to “help spank McMahon for stealing taxpayer money.”

On Sears’s website, he’s published a game that allows you to play as either Hitler, Putin, or Rob Ford. As you “play,” your sole objective is to spank McMahon, until her ass turns red, and the “stolen” taxpayer money flies out of it.

All of this goes down, by the way, while what appears to be a smiling Jesus dances in the corner.

I would hazard a guess to say this is against the City Councilors’ code of conduct, and Sears should be kicked out of the running if the City has any pride in itself. Imagine a City Councilor who unabashedly promoted violence against women in his campaign voting, say, on an item involving funding for women’s shelters? I’m not devoting any more words to this person, except for just “no.”

Image via Facebook.
Feminist Deleted From Canada’s History

And in another huge win for Canada, Harper has now managed to actually delete a famed Canadian feminist from the record.

Therese Casgrain, a prominent feminist voice from Quebec, used to have her name affixed to an award that was set up to honour activists in the country. The volunteer award was started in 1982 by Trudeau’s Liberal government, and eliminated in 2010. It was replaced by a different volunteer award with the Prime Minister’s banner.

Casgrain’s picture was also unceremoniously removed from Canada’s $50 bill, only to have a picture of an inanimate object—an icebreaker—put in her place. The same bill had a picture of the Famous Five women removed, as well.

That is some serious disrespect. A spokesperson for Employment and Social Development Canada gave a characteristically flavourless response about it all to the Toronto Star:

“There was no public announcement of its end. The spirit and objectives of the Therese Casgrain Volunteer Award were retained in two national categories of the PMVA (Prime Minister’s Volunteer Award).”

Why could it not just fall under its own award? I’m getting a drink.

Screenshot via AllHipHop.
My Anaconda Don’t Want None Unless You Got Buns, Hun

I’m going to proselytize, if you will, for a moment on Nicki Minaj’s awe-inspiring booty. Minaj, and specifically the all-out form her ass has taken in the much-circulated Anaconda photo, is signifying an important and necessary cultural shift.

Minaj is, arguably, as famous for her booty as she is for her rapping (see: “Google my ass”). And the art for “Anaconda” has inspired countless memes and rants about the supposed deception that it is Photoshopped.

But it’s also inspired a whole lot of sappy paternalistic lecturing disguised as good old handwringing and well-meaning cries of “What about the children!” Chuck Creekmur, owner of allhiphop.com, wrote Minaj an open letter as a concerned daddy, suggesting that, perhaps, she might tuck her bottom decently into some trousers so as to be a good influence on little girls.

“Now, the most popular, current Black female rapper starts overtly pushing her hyper-sexualized image again? Just my luck.” He laments that his daughter is turning into a young lady, and he doesn’t want her to be influenced by Minaj.

Erm, Chuck? I’m pretty sure Nicki’s image is her own prerogative, and I’m also sure she is a rapper, not a governess. Further: it’s not about you. By putting herself out there, she’s actually doing something good, I would say, for all women who don’t fit the white, skinny-ass Hollywood ideal. Minaj drove this point home on Instagram when she posted several hilarious photos of flat-assed white girls posing for Sports Illustrated with captions like “appropriate” and “acceptable,” words she felt aren’t oft applied to her own posterior—and why? Because it’s Black? Or round? Or both?

Let’s face a fact here as grownups, children aside: Women’s bodies are beautiful, and they’ll always be used as art and as advertising. Minaj is a businesswoman, and she is aware of that fact. But Minaj, whether it’s her intent or not, is opening the door for women of colour, curvy women, and gasp, curvy women of colour to also be regarded as desirable and, to use her word, acceptable.

As Jamilah Lemieux, Ebony’s senior editor, puts it:

“Nicki Minaj should be able to show her grown Black ass when and wherever she wants—for her own pleasure and/or for the entertainment of fellow adults. It isn’t her responsibility to cover up to save the children, though I do think she should also be clear on when she’s performing for kids and when she’s speaking to an older crowd.”

Yes, that. But Chuck Creekmur goes out of his way to slut shame and patronize Minaj, going so far as to assign her a moralistic homework assignment:

“For a moment, forget my daughter and let’s talk about you. My interactions and observations tell me you are this sweet, kind person at heart.” (Everybody knows you have to be either a Madonna or a whore; can’t be a bit of both). “When you get a quiet moment answer the following questions: “How is Onika Tanya Maraj doing?

How does she truly feel about Nick Minaj right now?

What is your higher purpose with young girls (and boys)?

How will boys, already conditioned to sexualize girls at a young age, internalize this big booty of yours?”

This makes me want to pluck all of the hairs on my head out, one by one, in frustration. Higher purpose? She isn’t God. And Minaj hardly gave birth to the fact that young boys “sexualize” young girls.

Perhaps Creekmur, in turn, could be suffered to ask himself what, exactly, he’s trying to protect his daughter from. Is he trying to protect her from Minaj, or from a world in which her sexuality is her own—a concept that obviously scares him.

As Mychal Denzil Smith writes for Feministing:

“Whenever black women own their sense of sexuality and it appears to not be controlled by the hetero-male gaze, the whole world gets into a tizzy.”

What people really mean when they say they’re concerned about their children being faced with overt sexuality is: “Oh no, what if our society changes the way it looks at women’s sexual autonomy, and more importantly, how will that affect me (and potentially strip me of power)?”

If anything, Minaj is doing little girls a favour. She seems proud to be in her skin, a feeling all women with big brown butts deserve just as much as those with tiny white butts. (This is a simple concept, but I feel I repeat it at the same frequency with which my mother used to tell me to close cupboard doors. It has been slow to catch on). If Minaj likes herself, and young girls of colour see her celebrating her sexuality and being comfortable with who she is, that’s a good thing. Especially if parents decide to stop letting their televisions parent, and actually start teaching their children some sex positivity. @sarratch