Gina Athena Ulysse's Posts

How Audre Lorde Made Queer History

In her piece “Breast Cancer: Power vs. Prosthesis” in The Cancer Journals, black feminist lesbian mother warrior poet Audre Lorde wrote: “I also began to feel that in the process of losing a breast I had become a whole person.” This courageous insight and numerous others—about her mind, body and spirit being sites loaded with meaning, [...]

Why Context Matters: Journalists and Haiti

Earlier this week, the Ms. Blog interviewed journalist Mac McClelland regarding the much-discussed online article she wrote about dealing with PTSD after a reporting stint in Haiti. One of our Ms. bloggers wanted to weigh in with her thoughts about the controversial story. As a Haitian American feminist anthropologist who has written much on both gender-based [...]

After 25 Years of Paradox, A Changed Oprah Says Goodbye

When Beyonce launched into her latest faux girl-power anthem “Run the World (Girls)” to honor Oprah Winfrey on Monday afternoon, the moment crystallized what both the talk show and its hostess have been to television: 25 years of paradox. On the one hand, no one’s been a bigger proponent of real “girl power” than Oprah [...]

Haitian Feminist Yolette Jeanty Honored With Other Global Women’s Activists

Haitian feminist Yolette’s Jeanty‘s name may not ring a bell, but her tireless work has been rightfully recognized recently. As executive director of Kay Fanm (in Kreyol, House of Women)–an organization whose mission is to fight for social justice and women’s rights–Jeanty has been an advocate and supporter of women and girls for decades. This [...]

Click! Doing the Dishes and My Rock n’ Roll Dreams

It was the 1980s. I was an oddball. I loved Tina Turner, Pat Benatar, Cyndi Lauper, Eurythmics, U2 and the Rolling Stones. I was dreaming of becoming a rock star. My father wanted me to do the dishes. If you’d ask me back then whether I was a feminist, I would probably tell you to [...]

The Legacy of Haitian Feminist Paulette Poujol-Oriol

Paulette Poujol-Oriol, who died March 11 at age 84, left her birth country, Haiti, a legacy that is immeasurable. She was one of Haiti’s most ardent feminist leaders, as well as an unmatched cultural producer and worker. She was born in Port-au-Prince on May 12, 1926 to Joseph Poujol, founder of the Commercial Institute, and Augusta [...]

Why I Am Marching for “Ayiti Cherie” (Beloved Haiti)

At 4:53:10pm on January 12, 2010, I was at home in Middletown, CT, when the ground below Haiti ruptured. I felt like I had been hit with a forklift; I was in a blur for days. There are many ways I could commemorate the one-year marker of the devastating earthquake that paralyzed my birth country–memorial [...]

Haiti’s Fouled-Up Election

The events that unfolded in Haiti’s presidential elections yesterday came as no surprise. There was  fraud, confusion and mayhem. It had been predicted. Voters showed up to polls and did not find their names on registration lists. In some instances, there were not enough ballots. In others, people arrived to find that polling centers were still [...]

Why I Miss bell hooks

A month ago, when that white Seattle cop punched a black girl in the face over a jaywalking incident, I thought of bell hooks. When, with assistance from the Urban League, the girl apologized days later in order to get a reduced sentence and I waited for the public outrage that never came, I realized I [...]

Rape a Part of Daily Life for Women in Haitian Relief Camps

Even after the aftershocks of the devastating Jan. 12 quake subsided, women’s bodies were still trembling in Haiti. The cause, according to a new report, is the systematic, persistent (and often gang) rapes that have become part of women’s daily lives in camps for internally displaced persons (IDP). The report, entitled Our Bodies Are Still [...]

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