How Not To Announce a Women’s Conference… August 1, 2012

How Not To Announce a Women’s Conference…

By Hemant Mehta
August 1, 2012

Well, it’s a conference for Christian women, so I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised… but this is the way Liberty Counsel told people to register for a women’s conference:

Please share this announcement with the women you know…

Hey Girlfriend!

Paint your toe nails, grab your journal, and get ready to attend the women’s event of the year!

And then put on makeup and make me a sandwich?

Ugh.

I kept a journal for years. Didn’t realize that made me less manly.

Just to make things as bad as possible, one of the big speakers will be Victoria Jackson, the clueless conservative Christian who used to be on Saturday Night Live.

Previous Post
Harry Potter Character Explains Common Sense
Next Post
Americans Don't Understand What a 'War on Religious Freedom' Really Looks Like
Browse Our Archives
What Are Your Thoughts?leave a comment
  • Melody

    So you think I should try this for Women in Secularism 2? 😛

  • anyone wanna room with me? we can braid each others hair…. and have pillow fights…

    (in our underwear)

  • revaaron

    As sexist as these people are, your reaction seems like a stretch. Doubly so for the journal. Suggesting that attendees bring a journal penny a surprise- I imagine Christians on all genders journal at these events about all of the chats they’re having with god, their guardian angels, and/or dead grandparents.

    Assuming all women like painting their nails is presumptuous, but hardly surprising. Hell, you could probably find more egregious examples of sexist language here or at at FtB.

    The contents of the actual talks are probably of the charts on the misogyny and sexism meters, though.

  • Brit

    Not like atheists are really any better, though.

  • I don’t think this sort of gender stereotyping is limited to Christians, but it is interesting to see the topics at this conference.

    Girls Just Wanna Have Guns

    When did fundamentalist Christianity become so entwined with right-wing conservatism? I guess it’s not possible to be a Baptist woman who doesn’t like guns. You can’t love Jesus without agreeing with the NRA?

    Parental Rights

    I’m sure they’re worried about the “right” to beat their children with implements without letting the government tell them otherwise.

  • Jesus wants every god-fearing American to have a gun. It’s in the Bible you know.

  • Tainda

    Self esteem optional.  Be sure to bring your husband’s permission slips or no entry!

  • 3lemenope

    Luke 22:36.

    Sort of.

  • Sadly, you’re right. You’d think that rational, logical freethinkers would be more “evolved” about issues such as misogyny, sexism, and privilege.

  • Baby_Raptor

    The Teahadist I live with believes that people should be dragged to church every Sunday at gunpoint, because we’ll “thank them in heaven.” He also believes that one should not be allowed to vote unless they own a gun. 

  • AxeGrrl

    “Hey Girlfriend” ?  Is Suze Orman organizing this thing?

    These Christian women might be in for an amusing surprise 🙂

  • Magic underwear?

  • JPMcC

    I wonder if the “theme song” will be “Put Another Log On The Fire”??? (A 70’s comedy song-the lyrics qualify as a “Christian woman instruction” guide!) 

  •  “people should be dragged to church every Sunday at gunpoint, because we’ll “thank them in heaven.””

    Sad thing is, that makes sense in the context of Christian beliefs. It doesn’t really allow for any doubt.

  • Totes.

  • comslave

    This actually make sense is an odd contrarian way.  I recently saw a small conference on cspan of conservative college women.  They were all hot babes.  Then I saw the skepchick conference, and well, let’s say there was no comparison.  It’s obvious conservative women are using sex appeal as part of their argument.   We really shouldn’t be surprised, because the conservative economic model centers around the primary male wage earner.  So this is exactly what they are shooting for.

  • Earl G.

    And they can’t even spell “toenails” properly.

  • Gunstargreen

    I remember the first time I saw Victoria Jackson going off about Christianity I thought it  was an elaborate poe.

  • At first I assumed “journal” meant like, in the peer-reviewed sense. I guess that explains why I’m so bad at painting my toenails.

  • Tim

    geek-girls are cool!

  • nakedanthropologist

    Not true!  We loyal readers here at FA have it on good authority from a hockey-masked alpha-Christian radio host that everyone wants to get in good with us Atheist babes, because we are easy, goth, and hot. 

  • amycas

      Of course, the recent atheists conference for women (to my knowledge)
    did not contain sexist presumptive language like this. Yes, there are
    people in our movement who have problems with sexism, but those who are aiming to include more women in the movement do not tend to be the ones with the problem.

  • amycas

     It doesn’t make sense in the context of my mother’s Christian beliefs. She recently told me that she knows no amount of forcing her children to go to church would help us get to heaven because she believes that you can’t force somebody to be a Christian.

  • amycas

     I’m not sure from your post whether you are agreeing with the shallow use of “hot babes” in garnering support for women’s issues, or if you are just pointing out how sexism affects women thinkers (as in,”we don’t have to listen to you unless you’re hawt”). I’m going to go with the more charitable assumption and agree with you that the conservative economic model is sexist and that their efforts to push “hot” conservative women to the front are rife with sexism.

  • I have no idea what a journal has to do with anything. I’m undecided on the painting toenails thing, though. A lot of women paint there toes and, try as I might, I can’t get my husband to be interested in it at all. In the environment of  a conference where there are likely to be a lot of women I don’t know who may or may not indulge in “girly” things, I probably wouldn’t use this language, but if it were a group of my girlfriends that I know well, I’d be fine receiving an announcement like this or sending one out. I guess it all just depends…

  • kaydenpat

    I wonder who is the “Mystery Guest Speaker You Won’t Want to Miss”. Sarah Palin? Michelle Bauchman?  Phyllis Schafly?  Ann Romney?  Mary Cheney? Curious minds want to know!