Your Connection to the Election

Hi everyone,

I know that the In Her Image blog focuses on things like women's rights and media literacy, but since I feel that without Obama in the White House we won't have much women's rights or free media, it seems like time to blog about the election.

Here are two really fast, painless things you can do and can pass on to friends to support getting the Democrats back into office. (By the way, if you're undecided or thinking of voting for McCain, I will personally buy you a coffee and pastry and we can sit down and talk about the future of this country and the world because I seriously want everyone possible to vote for Obama.)

1. Voice your opinion to Moveon about how to persuade undecided voters to vote for Obama here
http://pol.moveon.org/y2f/y2fsurvey.html?id=13765-4394626-R3erKAx&t=1

2. Give the price of a pizza or movie ticket ($12) to Moveon to help get young voters in swing states registered, and get your very own Obama t-shirt! (This is the *good* kind of free advertising folks ;) Seriously, this is a great deal - who can get a shirt for $12 normally anyway in our brand-crazed society? And right now there's really nothing better to put our money and efforts toward, right!?
http://pol.moveon.org/obamatshirts/index13.html?id=-4394626-EXBd_Mx

The state of the world is only hopeless if we think it is, and we are only powerless if we don't act.  If everyone does something small, amazing waves will be made!  (Of course, if you want to do something big like calling undecided voters, kudos to you too.)

Thanks for letting me get on my soapbox for a brief moment there.  Only for the important things :)

Other than that, I apologize for falling off the blogging bandwagon completely last month during some travels, but I'd still love to keep updated on your thoughts and what you're up to! And if you're going to Turn Beauty Inside Out or the Girl Scouts Leadership Institute in October, please come say hi!!  I'd love to see you round.

Contribute to an upcoming book!

The awesome ladies Claire and Magali over at Inside Beauty and the 5 Resolutions blog are writing a new book about body image, pregnancy, and motherhood--and they want your input! You can fill out surveys, be interviewed, or pass the info along to friends to help get real women's voices and issues out there.

Check it out at their full blog post!

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline Gallery

I just found out about the Lifeline Gallery, an online space where "survivors of suicide, suicide attempt survivors, those who struggled with suicidal thoughts, and those in the suicide prevention field [can] share their stories of hope and recovery" by speaking out through avatars. These avatars can be embedded in websites and blogs to help spread suicide support, which I hope will help to release the topic from its taboo status that so often leads to unnecessary and sad deaths.

This innovative project was created by Chris Gandin Le, the husband of an awesome feminist writer I know, Jennifer Gandin Le, and you can read more about it at the Crucial Minutae blog that she contributes to. In the Lifeline press release, Chris says, “If you can’t [talk about suicide], maybe your avatar can...The Gallery offers a safe platform for people who have traditionally stayed silent about suicide and mental health.”

You're Amazing!

I just got word from the awesome Claire Mysko at 5 Resolutions that her book for girls is out this week!

Claire writes: "You're Amazing! A No-Pressure Guide to Being Your Best Self is based on the Girls Inc. "Supergirl Dilemma" study, which shows that girls are feeling increasing pressures to be perfect and please everyone. Perfectionism is a major source of girls' stress (60% of girls in the study reported that they often feel stressed), low-self-esteem, and poor body image. That's the bad news. The good news is that with the right tools and support systems, girls can learn to give up the quest to be "super" and start celebrating what makes them amazing. My hope is that this book will help to kick-off that celebration. I would like to say a big, big thanks to you, dear readers! Your support and kind words have meant so much to me. Speaking of amazing...you all fit the bill."

To kick things off, Claire is doing a book giveaway for girls on her blog! Girls who post a comment about what makes them amazing will be entered to win an autographed copy of the book. The contest runs through July 7th and girls can enter here.

Woohoo for positive change!