This is great interview, Ms. Shoot. I recently took a course called Ethics and Gender and we talked in-depth about rape. I forgot who said it but the idea was that the person being raped is not the only one affected. Everyone is affected. The same goes with street harassment. We all internalize it and try to prevent that from happening to ourselves (whether it be not going out after a certain hour or yes, as Ms. Kearl said, changing our routines) but it's an ever-present fear that's hard to abate.

I think in general, many men grow up with a sense of entitlement over women's bodies. They don't see that street harassment hurts us. We are supposed to like the attention. What troubles me more is that women are not taught what to do when street harassment happens. We're just supposed to ignore it or pretend like it never happened. After all, we might hurt the harasser's feelings. But what about our safety and peace of mind? Don't we at least deserve to be respected as human beings?

Again, great piece, Ms. Shoot.

Great review, Ms. Clark. I picked up Click at Barnes & Noble about two months ago but chose to read Commencement, a book by feminist author J. Courtney Sullivan, instead. I guess I'll have to go back and check out Click now. One question: how did you like Jessica Valenti's contribution?

Harboring a secret like that for years must be emotionally taxing. I applaud the transsexuals who speak up despite the threat of societal, religious, and filial condemnation. They are so courageous.

I find it intriguing that it is more socially accepted for a woman to become a man than vice versa. That is probably so because men are generally preferred over women and are seen as more valuable in many cultures. If a man were to want to become a woman, his masculinity, power, and authority would be stripped away, I suppose. I feel like that's very similar to societal perceptions of homosexuals in the U.S. Here, it's more acceptable for a woman to be a lesbian because the stereotypical image of a lesbian is more "masculine" and therefore powerful -- crew cut hairstyle, Doc Martens boots, lower voice. Gay men are seen as more "feminine" and weaker -- higher voice, hairless, and with an increased attention to fashion and gossip. Do you see the similiarities as I do?

Thank you for your article on transsexuals in Bahrain. It was very informative.

Great review. I saw Adam this past weekend and while I loved Adam and Hugh Dancy's portrayal of him, like you, I could not get behind the ridiculous subplot involving Beth's dad. I didn't care for her parents the whole movie and thought the movie would have been exceptional if they weren't included. It's really too bad.

Jobeda Ali's documentary was very thought-provoking. It reminded me of something I learned in school. In my sociology classes at Santa Clara University, we discuss symbolic interactionism, a micro sociology theory that talks about how we relate to symbols, objects, ideas, etc. For example, in some countries/cultures, dogs are seen primarily as pets and in others, they are seen as a meal. Guns are another example. Some think that they are needed for protection and sport while others believe that they create violence and fear.

Here, the hijab is the object in debate. To liberal Muslims, the hijab represents unjust male domination and the suppression of women's rights but to conservative Muslims, the hijab represents tradition and faith. Unfortunately, sociology doesn't provide answers to what we should do but rather, it presents us with more questions! Hah.

In the meantime, thank you for posting this provocative video!