He Persists, Too!

Writes Mina Haq in the February 10, 2017 edition of USA Today:

Mitch McConnell had no idea that when he shut down Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren this week, his words would become a rallying cry for women everywhere.

After the Senate majority leader interrupted Warren’s recitation of Coretta Scott King’s 1986 letter against Jeff Sessions, he defended himself in terms that promptly flooded social media.

“Sen. Warren was giving a lengthy speech," McConnell said. "She had appeared to violate the rule. She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.”

And so #ShePersisted was born.

. . . Twitter user @CourtneyPrivett incorporated the phrase into a drawing that went viral. She drew a woman facing dozens of all-too-common insults, with the words “Nevertheless, she persisted,” written and underlined at the bottom.

The image garnered more than 1,000 retweets and more than 7,000 likes on Instagram. Twitter users responded to the image with feelings of understanding, frustration and gratitude. . . . After popular demand, Privett drew a male version of the image targeting toxic masculinity.

And in sharing this "male version" of her drawing on Facebook, Courtney Privett (right) said the following.

I was asked to do a male version. My hands are shaking so my lines aren't great. Like in my #ShePersisted drawing, the comments here are said by both men and women, and many of them begin in early childhood. Also like the first one, I ran out of space.

This is for my son, who loves to dance and should never be shamed for that.

Thank you, Courtney, for both of your powerful drawings!


Related Off-site Links:
How #ShePersisted Became a Feminist Social Media Rallying Cry – Mina Haq (USA Today, February 10, 2017)
At the Women’s March, the Men Mattered, Too – Petula Dvorak (The Washington Post, January 22, 2017).
Toxic Masculinity is Killing Men: The Roots of Male Trauma – Kali Holloway (AlterNet via Salon, January 22, 2017).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Something to Think About – February 8, 2017
• "The Movement of Love and Inclusion Has Just Been Unleashed"
• Integrating Cernunnos, "Archetype of Sensuality and the Instinctual World"
• The Trouble with the Male Dancer
• Rockin' with Maxwell
• Engelbert Humperdinck: Not That Easy to Forget
• A Fresh Take on Masculinity