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Mar. 8th, 2020 04:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shadowkat1. Well this an interesting guide to journalists on how to accurately report on the coronavirus without inciting a panic. Reading that calmed me down considerably.
Also I finally found aloe vera gel and rubbing alcohol. (And yes, I have plenty of soap and various brands of it.)
NY is obsessing buying stuff. I go out to the grocery stores and run into frenetic energy.
2. Surviving Perimenopause - I was overwhelmed and full of rage - why was I so badly prepared?
Because the world is run by self-absorbed white males who are only interested in what personally pertains to them? That's pretty much the gist of the article by the way - in case you are curious. I had the male doctors too - fired the last one after ten years, mainly because he decided to devote himself to men's health. I'm seeing a female doctor now - best primary I've had.
Honestly, I went through this from 2009-2018, or thereabouts. It seems to be abating a little now. Or I feel less like I'm going to go off the rails. Still have the episodes, just not quite as bad. Which probably means I'm finally entering menopause. But it is still validating to see all these articles pop up -- on how other people are going through more or less the same thing I did.
They say it's different for everyone...hmm, it's not all that different apparently.
3. Oprah refused to cancel her American Dirt Show and reminded us what civil discourse looks like
I'm posting this because I find it interesting how Oprah chose to handle the controversy. Instead of cancelling the reading option - she chose to barrel through.
I think that was the wise choice -- the self-righteous left is ironically just as guilty as the self-righteous right in how they handle ideas, stories, and concept that offend them or that they feel are in direct opposition of their beliefs, views and values. Don't get me wrong, it's okay to be critical, but to do it to the degree in which it becomes censorship?
Oprah refused to cancel her ‘American Dirt’ show — and reminded us what civil discourse looks like
By
Ron Charles
In the end, Oprah could not be stopped. And we should be grateful that she persisted.
Early this morning, the legendary talk-show host posted two one-hour episodes focused on Jeanine Cummins’s controversial novel, “American Dirt,” about a Mexican mother and her son fleeing from a murderous drug lord. Before its January publication, the book had been heralded as the story about the immigrant experience and was extravagantly praised by Stephen King, Sandra Cisneros and Ann Patchett.
But dozens of other writers and critics said “American Dirt” promoted racist stereotypes and demonstrated the publishing industry’s ignorance of the Latinx experience. They had petitioned Oprah to rescind the imprimatur of her book club and cancel the show. Oprah refused, claiming the novel had moved her and that she would use it to inspire a deep discussion about immigration.
…
She did — in a remarkably well-designed two-part presentation on Apple TV Plus. The conversation that Oprah conducted in Tucson is civil, smart, empathetic and illuminating — a stirring reminder of what’s still possible even in our contentious society.
Oprah, being Oprah, started by acknowledging the criticisms that the novel and she have received. But she went on to note, “If one author, one artist is silenced, we’re all in danger of the same. I believe that we can do this without having to cancel, to dismiss or to silence anyone.”
Cummins, looking crushed and joyless, came onstage. Her countrywide book tour had been canceled in late January over concerns for her safety. “I know actually what it feels like to be attacked in the public eye,” Oprah said. “It’s not easy, and it’s hurtful, and it’s stressful.” But then she began to ask Cummins firmly about the complaints that have been lodged against her, the book and the way it was marketed. Cummins said, “I never meant to suggest that people haven’t already written their migrant stories.”
Oprah shifted expertly from interrogator to fan, saying, “One of your intentions was to be a bridge, and I think actually you have succeeded because there’s a big swell of people . . . who love the book and were opened up by it.” The novel has gone on to tremendous popularity, so far selling 325,000 copies in all formats.
The conversation grew richer when Oprah invited three Latina writers onstage: Reyna Grande, Julissa Arce and Esther Cepeda, who is a syndicated columnist for The Washington Post. Each of them spoke of the frustration and hurt they felt as they read “American Dirt” and heard about its seven-figure advance and its lavish marketing campaign.
“The publishing industry does not have the same attitude with our immigrant stories as they did with your story,” Grande said.
Arce agreed. “My issue is not Jeanine’s book, really. My issue is with a publishing industry that systematically silences us by keeping us off the bookshelves.”
On cue, Oprah introduced representatives from the book’s publisher and imprint: Don Weisberg, Macmillan’s president, and Amy Einhorn, an editor and publisher who worked at Flatiron when Cummins’s book was purchased. Weisberg readily acknowledged that the industry is too white, and he said he and others are working hard to diversify his company. Einhorn said she loved “American Dirt,” but she took full responsibility for the clumsy and sometimes tasteless way the novel had been marketed.
In one of the best moments of the first hour, Cepeda turned to the host and asked, “Oprah, was this a wake-up call for you? How are you going to respond to the call?” Oprah raised her hands and said, “I love that question!”
Arce followed up with a tough fact: “Since 1996, there has been zero books in your book club — zero — that have been written by Mexican Americans.”
Oprah readily admitted: “I am guilty of not looking for Latinx writers. I haven’t looked for any particular race or for any book. I just look for the book that I particularly like or that somebody recommends to me. I will now — because my eyes have been opened to see — behave differently, and that’s the most I can say.”
The first hour closed with Grande making a rousing plea to the audience members, many of whom had expressed high praise for “American Dirt”: “I would really like to see you transfer your concerns and your compassion . . . to the real mothers who have been turned away at the border, to the real children who are locked up in cages, to the real families whose lives are in peril, to our undocumented youth in this country whose futures are at risk, and also to hold our president accountable for all the pain and suffering that he’s been causing.”
During the second hour, Oprah presented graphic examples of that suffering and pain. Riding and walking along the wall on the border in Nogales, Ariz., she spoke with Luz Maria Garcini, a professor who studies immigration and trauma.
Oprah also spoke with several women who told death-defying stories of crossing into the United States. The abuse these women suffered and the risks they took to save their children left the audience visibly shaken.
We couldn’t have asked for a more thoughtful and searching discussion about this book, the publishing industry and America’s immigration crisis. Our political culture could learn so much from Oprah.
Then we have this article courtesy of Buzzfeed Media:
I Spoke out about American Dirt and Oprah Asked Me to Speak About it on her show.
At last, Oprah introduced us onto the stage. “What were your feelings when you read the book?” She asked me. I told her I was thinking about the real-life immigrants whose lives are in limbo, the immigrants whom this book fails. “The other thing that I was thinking is how, as a Latina writer, I am very often asked to make my stories more relevant, and to make them more accessible. And what I have to ask is when the publishing industry is 80% white, what I am really being asked to do is to make my stories more relevant to white people.”
Don Weisberg, the president of Macmillan, American Dirt’s parent publisher, and Amy Einhorn, Cummins’ editor, were sitting in the audience. I turned to them next. “I find it incredibly offensive that our very thoughtful critique about the book and about the industry was minimized as being ‘vitriolic rancor.’” I was quoting the press release that Bob Miller, the head of Flatiron Books (the imprint American Dirt was published under), released at the height of the controversy. “To have this language in that statement furthers the narrative that we are violent and that people should be afraid of us,” I continued.
I also said that I wished Myriam Gurba were there to speak for herself. Gurba is the Latina writer who unleashed the wave of criticism about American Dirt with her powerful review, and who has been the force behind the #DignidadLiteraria movement. “But what I will say is that [Myriam] has received death threats.”
And then I turned to face Cummins. “Jeanine, you can enlighten us here. Have you received death threats?” She replied that the publisher had never said she received death threats. Maybe she is right, but they have certainly let the public believe that she was in danger and that was why her book tour had to be canceled.
To my question, Einhorn replied, “Our first priority is the safety of our authors. But by no means did we mean to silence criticism of the book or discussion.“
While I do believe we pushed the conversation, it was clear that some of the segments were attempts to justify both why Cummins had written American Dirt and why Oprah had selected the book. Take, for instance, the second half of the show, which is made up entirely of human interest stories that were shared during the two-hour conversation.
And USA Today's article:
Oprah Winfrey's Book Club Awkwardly Tackles American Dirt
Eh...I'd feel more sorry for the publishers if I knew far less than I do about the NY publishing industry. And hadn't met the folks in it. And hadn't tried to break in myself. Suffice it to say there is no love lost between me and the NY publishing industry -- if they were to go belly up tomorrow, I'd not be unhappy about it.
As for the Latino Writers? Independent publishing, folks. Check it out.
Also I finally found aloe vera gel and rubbing alcohol. (And yes, I have plenty of soap and various brands of it.)
NY is obsessing buying stuff. I go out to the grocery stores and run into frenetic energy.
2. Surviving Perimenopause - I was overwhelmed and full of rage - why was I so badly prepared?
Because the world is run by self-absorbed white males who are only interested in what personally pertains to them? That's pretty much the gist of the article by the way - in case you are curious. I had the male doctors too - fired the last one after ten years, mainly because he decided to devote himself to men's health. I'm seeing a female doctor now - best primary I've had.
Honestly, I went through this from 2009-2018, or thereabouts. It seems to be abating a little now. Or I feel less like I'm going to go off the rails. Still have the episodes, just not quite as bad. Which probably means I'm finally entering menopause. But it is still validating to see all these articles pop up -- on how other people are going through more or less the same thing I did.
They say it's different for everyone...hmm, it's not all that different apparently.
3. Oprah refused to cancel her American Dirt Show and reminded us what civil discourse looks like
I'm posting this because I find it interesting how Oprah chose to handle the controversy. Instead of cancelling the reading option - she chose to barrel through.
I think that was the wise choice -- the self-righteous left is ironically just as guilty as the self-righteous right in how they handle ideas, stories, and concept that offend them or that they feel are in direct opposition of their beliefs, views and values. Don't get me wrong, it's okay to be critical, but to do it to the degree in which it becomes censorship?
Oprah refused to cancel her ‘American Dirt’ show — and reminded us what civil discourse looks like
By
Ron Charles
In the end, Oprah could not be stopped. And we should be grateful that she persisted.
Early this morning, the legendary talk-show host posted two one-hour episodes focused on Jeanine Cummins’s controversial novel, “American Dirt,” about a Mexican mother and her son fleeing from a murderous drug lord. Before its January publication, the book had been heralded as the story about the immigrant experience and was extravagantly praised by Stephen King, Sandra Cisneros and Ann Patchett.
But dozens of other writers and critics said “American Dirt” promoted racist stereotypes and demonstrated the publishing industry’s ignorance of the Latinx experience. They had petitioned Oprah to rescind the imprimatur of her book club and cancel the show. Oprah refused, claiming the novel had moved her and that she would use it to inspire a deep discussion about immigration.
…
She did — in a remarkably well-designed two-part presentation on Apple TV Plus. The conversation that Oprah conducted in Tucson is civil, smart, empathetic and illuminating — a stirring reminder of what’s still possible even in our contentious society.
Oprah, being Oprah, started by acknowledging the criticisms that the novel and she have received. But she went on to note, “If one author, one artist is silenced, we’re all in danger of the same. I believe that we can do this without having to cancel, to dismiss or to silence anyone.”
Cummins, looking crushed and joyless, came onstage. Her countrywide book tour had been canceled in late January over concerns for her safety. “I know actually what it feels like to be attacked in the public eye,” Oprah said. “It’s not easy, and it’s hurtful, and it’s stressful.” But then she began to ask Cummins firmly about the complaints that have been lodged against her, the book and the way it was marketed. Cummins said, “I never meant to suggest that people haven’t already written their migrant stories.”
Oprah shifted expertly from interrogator to fan, saying, “One of your intentions was to be a bridge, and I think actually you have succeeded because there’s a big swell of people . . . who love the book and were opened up by it.” The novel has gone on to tremendous popularity, so far selling 325,000 copies in all formats.
The conversation grew richer when Oprah invited three Latina writers onstage: Reyna Grande, Julissa Arce and Esther Cepeda, who is a syndicated columnist for The Washington Post. Each of them spoke of the frustration and hurt they felt as they read “American Dirt” and heard about its seven-figure advance and its lavish marketing campaign.
“The publishing industry does not have the same attitude with our immigrant stories as they did with your story,” Grande said.
Arce agreed. “My issue is not Jeanine’s book, really. My issue is with a publishing industry that systematically silences us by keeping us off the bookshelves.”
On cue, Oprah introduced representatives from the book’s publisher and imprint: Don Weisberg, Macmillan’s president, and Amy Einhorn, an editor and publisher who worked at Flatiron when Cummins’s book was purchased. Weisberg readily acknowledged that the industry is too white, and he said he and others are working hard to diversify his company. Einhorn said she loved “American Dirt,” but she took full responsibility for the clumsy and sometimes tasteless way the novel had been marketed.
In one of the best moments of the first hour, Cepeda turned to the host and asked, “Oprah, was this a wake-up call for you? How are you going to respond to the call?” Oprah raised her hands and said, “I love that question!”
Arce followed up with a tough fact: “Since 1996, there has been zero books in your book club — zero — that have been written by Mexican Americans.”
Oprah readily admitted: “I am guilty of not looking for Latinx writers. I haven’t looked for any particular race or for any book. I just look for the book that I particularly like or that somebody recommends to me. I will now — because my eyes have been opened to see — behave differently, and that’s the most I can say.”
The first hour closed with Grande making a rousing plea to the audience members, many of whom had expressed high praise for “American Dirt”: “I would really like to see you transfer your concerns and your compassion . . . to the real mothers who have been turned away at the border, to the real children who are locked up in cages, to the real families whose lives are in peril, to our undocumented youth in this country whose futures are at risk, and also to hold our president accountable for all the pain and suffering that he’s been causing.”
During the second hour, Oprah presented graphic examples of that suffering and pain. Riding and walking along the wall on the border in Nogales, Ariz., she spoke with Luz Maria Garcini, a professor who studies immigration and trauma.
Oprah also spoke with several women who told death-defying stories of crossing into the United States. The abuse these women suffered and the risks they took to save their children left the audience visibly shaken.
We couldn’t have asked for a more thoughtful and searching discussion about this book, the publishing industry and America’s immigration crisis. Our political culture could learn so much from Oprah.
Then we have this article courtesy of Buzzfeed Media:
I Spoke out about American Dirt and Oprah Asked Me to Speak About it on her show.
At last, Oprah introduced us onto the stage. “What were your feelings when you read the book?” She asked me. I told her I was thinking about the real-life immigrants whose lives are in limbo, the immigrants whom this book fails. “The other thing that I was thinking is how, as a Latina writer, I am very often asked to make my stories more relevant, and to make them more accessible. And what I have to ask is when the publishing industry is 80% white, what I am really being asked to do is to make my stories more relevant to white people.”
Don Weisberg, the president of Macmillan, American Dirt’s parent publisher, and Amy Einhorn, Cummins’ editor, were sitting in the audience. I turned to them next. “I find it incredibly offensive that our very thoughtful critique about the book and about the industry was minimized as being ‘vitriolic rancor.’” I was quoting the press release that Bob Miller, the head of Flatiron Books (the imprint American Dirt was published under), released at the height of the controversy. “To have this language in that statement furthers the narrative that we are violent and that people should be afraid of us,” I continued.
I also said that I wished Myriam Gurba were there to speak for herself. Gurba is the Latina writer who unleashed the wave of criticism about American Dirt with her powerful review, and who has been the force behind the #DignidadLiteraria movement. “But what I will say is that [Myriam] has received death threats.”
And then I turned to face Cummins. “Jeanine, you can enlighten us here. Have you received death threats?” She replied that the publisher had never said she received death threats. Maybe she is right, but they have certainly let the public believe that she was in danger and that was why her book tour had to be canceled.
To my question, Einhorn replied, “Our first priority is the safety of our authors. But by no means did we mean to silence criticism of the book or discussion.“
While I do believe we pushed the conversation, it was clear that some of the segments were attempts to justify both why Cummins had written American Dirt and why Oprah had selected the book. Take, for instance, the second half of the show, which is made up entirely of human interest stories that were shared during the two-hour conversation.
And USA Today's article:
Oprah Winfrey's Book Club Awkwardly Tackles American Dirt
Eh...I'd feel more sorry for the publishers if I knew far less than I do about the NY publishing industry. And hadn't met the folks in it. And hadn't tried to break in myself. Suffice it to say there is no love lost between me and the NY publishing industry -- if they were to go belly up tomorrow, I'd not be unhappy about it.
As for the Latino Writers? Independent publishing, folks. Check it out.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-08 11:06 pm (UTC)(It's both distressing and relieving to become more invisible as I get older.)
That stat about only 20% of gynecologists receiving training in menopausal medicine is appalling.
I liked several of the quotes in the last two paragraphs of that article. Bookmarking for later.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-09 01:47 am (UTC)Still get the asshole treatment though -- due to the male-centric workplace. It's aggravating.