Earlier this month organizers of a top annual fashion show banned 5 models from the show because they were underweight. The models were examined by medical doctors and based on the standards of the World Health Organization were not allowed to walk the cat walk. Organizers wanted the show to “project an image of beauty, elegance and health, so we also banned makeup that makes models appear sickly.Clearly we don't want walking skeletons.”
The news of the banning created a lot of buzz.
Our friend Audrey Brashich received an inspirational post on her blog. http://audreybrashich.blogs.com/audrey_brashich/2006/09/more_on_skinny_.html
Magali Amadei and Claire Mysko http://www.insidebeauty.org shared their opinion about too thin models on the CBS website. http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2006/09/25/couricandco/entry2037956.shtml
An article in the September 25th edition of USA Today http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2006-09-25-thin-models_x.htm explored the effects underweight models have on girls’ and young women’s body images. According to the studies sited in the article, being surrounded by an image of beauty that most girls and women can’t attain, has negative consequences.
The list of blog posts and articles about this subject goes on and on.
All of the buzz is great! Unfortunately, most of the talk is from adults. We want to know what girls think about this issue! Girls, how do you feel about the ban that was put on the models in Madrid? Do ultra skinny models have a negative effect on your body image? Whose responsibility is it to determine the body type of fashion models? The fashion industry? The consumers? An outside organization? Do you think the ban is discrimination?
Send your comments to blog@newmoon.org.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Monday, October 02, 2006
New Moon "Breaks the Silence."
In New Moon's September/October 2006 issue of the magazine, we ran an article called "Break the Silence" by Carrie Rethlefsen. Carrie wrote about seeing the play The Vagina Monologues and how it inspired her to wear a pin that said, "I [Heart] My Vagina." This has ended up being a pretty controversial article. Two GEB members have responded to our readers about "Break the Silence."
"New Moon recently published an article called "Break the Silence." It was about a girl who had been molested who went to see "The Vagina Monologues", which is a play about women talking about their experiences. After seeing the play, the girl wore a pin that said "I [Heart] My Vagina." The school threatened to suspend her if she didn't take off the pin. So when she came back to school she wore a shirt that said the same as the pin to prove that she had a right to say what she wanted. The GEB (Girls Editorial Board) talked about this for a while and we came to the same conclusion each time: that it was OK to have this article in the magazine because it was OK to talk about, and that by talking about these things, girls can create a support system for each other.
We have recently been getting letters from subscribers, mostly adults, saying that it was inappropriate to put this article in this magazine. Some people have even unsubscribed from the magazine because of this article. Our response is: This article is a way to show what one girl did to create a kind of support system. Girls can handle this stuff--the GEB are girls 8-14 years old! If we can handle it, and we want to read about it, it's most likely that other girls out there can handle it, too. This article is about girls and women helping each other out, and not exploiting anyone.
We are sorry if we offended anyone with this article, but this is something that we think girls should know about, and are capable knowing about.
Thank You for Reading this,
GEB Member, Sage, 11"
"TO: New Moon Readers One and All
We have received some letters concerning the article 'Break the Silence.' We have mixed reviews from parents who don’t like their children reading articles containing the word 'vagina,' or talking about the word 'vagina.' We have also received letters from readers who appreciated the article and what it was about. I would like to clarify that this article was about someone trying to get the word out about molestation and sexual abuse, she was not just trying to get attention or to see what would happen if she wore a pin that said, 'I love my vagina' on it.
I am sorry to all the readers and parents out there who didn’t like the article but it was there for a reason. We liked the idea, the article and what it was about. I am not telling you to cancel your subscription or send us hate letters I would just like to know what offended you or made you angry about the article.
GEB Member, Libby, 12"
What do you think? Have you read "Break the Silence"? Do you think it was OK for New Moon to print this article? Please share your thoughts by leaving a comment!
"New Moon recently published an article called "Break the Silence." It was about a girl who had been molested who went to see "The Vagina Monologues", which is a play about women talking about their experiences. After seeing the play, the girl wore a pin that said "I [Heart] My Vagina." The school threatened to suspend her if she didn't take off the pin. So when she came back to school she wore a shirt that said the same as the pin to prove that she had a right to say what she wanted. The GEB (Girls Editorial Board) talked about this for a while and we came to the same conclusion each time: that it was OK to have this article in the magazine because it was OK to talk about, and that by talking about these things, girls can create a support system for each other.
We have recently been getting letters from subscribers, mostly adults, saying that it was inappropriate to put this article in this magazine. Some people have even unsubscribed from the magazine because of this article. Our response is: This article is a way to show what one girl did to create a kind of support system. Girls can handle this stuff--the GEB are girls 8-14 years old! If we can handle it, and we want to read about it, it's most likely that other girls out there can handle it, too. This article is about girls and women helping each other out, and not exploiting anyone.
We are sorry if we offended anyone with this article, but this is something that we think girls should know about, and are capable knowing about.
Thank You for Reading this,
GEB Member, Sage, 11"
"TO: New Moon Readers One and All
We have received some letters concerning the article 'Break the Silence.' We have mixed reviews from parents who don’t like their children reading articles containing the word 'vagina,' or talking about the word 'vagina.' We have also received letters from readers who appreciated the article and what it was about. I would like to clarify that this article was about someone trying to get the word out about molestation and sexual abuse, she was not just trying to get attention or to see what would happen if she wore a pin that said, 'I love my vagina' on it.
I am sorry to all the readers and parents out there who didn’t like the article but it was there for a reason. We liked the idea, the article and what it was about. I am not telling you to cancel your subscription or send us hate letters I would just like to know what offended you or made you angry about the article.
GEB Member, Libby, 12"
What do you think? Have you read "Break the Silence"? Do you think it was OK for New Moon to print this article? Please share your thoughts by leaving a comment!
Friday, September 29, 2006
It's been a great week for free speech
Banned books week is coming to a close, but that doesn't necessarily mean the discussion is over! I hope all our readers have enjoyed reading girls' thoughts about censorship as much as the staff at New Moon has. I loved hearing about different banned books you've read and loved. One girl says that the only reason for banning books is if you just don't like reading:
"I have read the Harry Potter books and I really enjoyed them. I'm actually really upset that there's only going to be one more. The thing is, Harry Potter is a wizard. He's FICTIONAL! For Heaven's sake, no one can ever really become a witch or wizard! There's no reason to take the Harry Potter books off the market unless you absolutely despise reading period."
And to finish off the week, 13-year-old Sydney writes in with her thoughts about censorship:
"I believe cenorship is incorrect, if a parent does not wish to let his or her child read a certain book they should not allow them to read it. However trying to ban this book from a whole county is unfair to the poeple whose parents are allowing them to read it. I think that children should be able to read what they like with their parents permission but no one else's. It is up to the parent to see what their children are reading, if they don't like it, it should be the parents not the teachers or othe adults to take it away and give them another.
I also do not belive it is correct for a book to be banned because of homosexual content, race, religion, history, or language styles. The reason books have these topics in them is because it is important to the story. Many books are banned because of these topics, it is alarming to me when I am teased for reading a banned book."
Even though banned books week is almost over, we hope you'll keep commenting on the discussion here and speaking up for free speech!
"I have read the Harry Potter books and I really enjoyed them. I'm actually really upset that there's only going to be one more. The thing is, Harry Potter is a wizard. He's FICTIONAL! For Heaven's sake, no one can ever really become a witch or wizard! There's no reason to take the Harry Potter books off the market unless you absolutely despise reading period."
And to finish off the week, 13-year-old Sydney writes in with her thoughts about censorship:
"I believe cenorship is incorrect, if a parent does not wish to let his or her child read a certain book they should not allow them to read it. However trying to ban this book from a whole county is unfair to the poeple whose parents are allowing them to read it. I think that children should be able to read what they like with their parents permission but no one else's. It is up to the parent to see what their children are reading, if they don't like it, it should be the parents not the teachers or othe adults to take it away and give them another.
I also do not belive it is correct for a book to be banned because of homosexual content, race, religion, history, or language styles. The reason books have these topics in them is because it is important to the story. Many books are banned because of these topics, it is alarming to me when I am teased for reading a banned book."
Even though banned books week is almost over, we hope you'll keep commenting on the discussion here and speaking up for free speech!
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Is censorship OK sometimes?
We got a letter from 11-year-old Abbey, who feels that censorship is OK in some situations. Here's what she has to say:
"I believe it is okay to censor some books that mention things like sex and puberty and even dating from younger children. I only believe that it is okay to ban books that talk about sex to YOUNGER CHILDREN. I also believe it is partially your parents choice to what you read and when to explain to you things like puberty and sex. I believe in some cases censorship is okay; but definitely not in all cases is censorship okay."
I definitely agree with Abbey that parents should have some say over what their kids see and read. And I'm interested in the argument about whether censorship is OK in some cases. For example, when books tell you how to do something harmful -- like how to break into someone's house or how to create a computer virus -- should bookstores and libraries still be allowed to carry these books?
Please comment to leave your thoughts, or write your own post and send it to blog@newmoon.org.
"I believe it is okay to censor some books that mention things like sex and puberty and even dating from younger children. I only believe that it is okay to ban books that talk about sex to YOUNGER CHILDREN. I also believe it is partially your parents choice to what you read and when to explain to you things like puberty and sex. I believe in some cases censorship is okay; but definitely not in all cases is censorship okay."
I definitely agree with Abbey that parents should have some say over what their kids see and read. And I'm interested in the argument about whether censorship is OK in some cases. For example, when books tell you how to do something harmful -- like how to break into someone's house or how to create a computer virus -- should bookstores and libraries still be allowed to carry these books?
Please comment to leave your thoughts, or write your own post and send it to blog@newmoon.org.
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
A New Moonie shares her favorite banned book
New Moon's Administrative Assistant, Melanie, has this to say about How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell -- one of her favorite books.
"I read this book at least three times when I was in grade school. When I did a quick Google search, I found that it is also a banned book! Here is the link.
http://mail.newmoon.org/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.funtrivia.com/ask.cfm?action=details%26qnid=50609
Anyway, it was a quick easy read for me as a kid and the first time I read it I couldn't believe that the main character Billy actually ate the worms! It was so goofy and fun that I had to read it more than once! Memories of reading the book came back to me when I saw that a movie was being made based on the book!As far as the reasons why How to Eat Fried Worms is banned, I've never eaten fried worms and I'm not a compulsive gambler.
I've also read SuperFudge and Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume, who was mentioned in the kick-off post for how many times people have tried to ban her books."
"I read this book at least three times when I was in grade school. When I did a quick Google search, I found that it is also a banned book! Here is the link.
http://mail.newmoon.org/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.funtrivia.com/ask.cfm?action=details%26qnid=50609
Anyway, it was a quick easy read for me as a kid and the first time I read it I couldn't believe that the main character Billy actually ate the worms! It was so goofy and fun that I had to read it more than once! Memories of reading the book came back to me when I saw that a movie was being made based on the book!As far as the reasons why How to Eat Fried Worms is banned, I've never eaten fried worms and I'm not a compulsive gambler.
I've also read SuperFudge and Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume, who was mentioned in the kick-off post for how many times people have tried to ban her books."
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Banned Books Week Continues!
And the discussion continues with 12-year-old Katie's opinion about banned books:
"I have read the Harry Potter series over twice, most of the people at my school have. In knitting club we talk about it, during lunch we talk about it, to the teachers we talk about it. Is Dumbledore dead? Is Snape good? I don't know a person at my school who doesn't know what we're talking about. It's common knowledge. If it promoted witchcraft then my entire school would be full of witches and wizards, which would be pretty cool, and believe me, all the little kids dress up and try to wave their wands, but it just doesn't work. We can all dream, but this book is FANTASY. It's never going to happen, so why take it off the markets? A group of kids may just protest to get it back on! And we've won the fight on one thing, we can do it again. Kids DO have power!
I have also read It's Perfectly Normal and I believe that all teens should be educated about this stuff, because, as studies show, if they don't know about them they're more likely to have sex or get pregnant. Trying to hide sex is a poor way of doing things because sooner or later they're going to find out, and who would you rather have tell them, you, or some random teenager who tells them it's fun? Exactly, if you have any sense at all, you would say that you would like to tell them, which is why girls should be open with their parents about these things. And parents should be open with their girls."
"I have read the Harry Potter series over twice, most of the people at my school have. In knitting club we talk about it, during lunch we talk about it, to the teachers we talk about it. Is Dumbledore dead? Is Snape good? I don't know a person at my school who doesn't know what we're talking about. It's common knowledge. If it promoted witchcraft then my entire school would be full of witches and wizards, which would be pretty cool, and believe me, all the little kids dress up and try to wave their wands, but it just doesn't work. We can all dream, but this book is FANTASY. It's never going to happen, so why take it off the markets? A group of kids may just protest to get it back on! And we've won the fight on one thing, we can do it again. Kids DO have power!
I have also read It's Perfectly Normal and I believe that all teens should be educated about this stuff, because, as studies show, if they don't know about them they're more likely to have sex or get pregnant. Trying to hide sex is a poor way of doing things because sooner or later they're going to find out, and who would you rather have tell them, you, or some random teenager who tells them it's fun? Exactly, if you have any sense at all, you would say that you would like to tell them, which is why girls should be open with their parents about these things. And parents should be open with their girls."
Monday, September 25, 2006
13-year-old Caitrin reads banned books
In the January/February 2006 issue of New Moon, we asked girls to share their thoughts on censorship so we could post them during Banned Books Week. Below is 13-year-old Caitrin's response.
"I have read the Harry Potter Series, To Kill a Mockingbird, and The Adventures of Hucklberry Finn which at some point in time have all had people try to ban them. I enjoyed all of them and thought they were perfectly appropriate for New Moon age group and up. The Harry Potter Series has such a wonderful, exciting storyline and allows the reader to use their imagination. Besides the book isn't saying, 'You must do witchcraft, this is how you do it.' It is clearly written as a fun fiction book.
I can see were the people could be coming from in a way about To Kill A Mockingbird, however I dont agree. I think it is a great book about a young girl growing up and finding out about how the world is or was in the time the story takes place. I think slavery is a horrible thing but that doesn't mean we should ban it being a part of any book because then we would blocking out a piece of our history. To lose history threatens not learning from our mistakes. To Kill a Mockingbird does not promote slavery or rape, the young girl's father is even the lawyer representing and defending the accused African-American man.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a classic book that I really enjoyed reading. Although some of the slang used in the book is not appropriate or nice to use in conversation it was the terminoligy of the time. It is an author's job to portraye and tell the story. Part of a story is setting and time period which includes ways of speech. So I believe to tell the story well the slang used was necessary and not meant to be offensive to anyone.
I really like the Harry Potter series, To Kill a Mockingbird, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I think many girls around my age would enjoy them."
"I have read the Harry Potter Series, To Kill a Mockingbird, and The Adventures of Hucklberry Finn which at some point in time have all had people try to ban them. I enjoyed all of them and thought they were perfectly appropriate for New Moon age group and up. The Harry Potter Series has such a wonderful, exciting storyline and allows the reader to use their imagination. Besides the book isn't saying, 'You must do witchcraft, this is how you do it.' It is clearly written as a fun fiction book.
I can see were the people could be coming from in a way about To Kill A Mockingbird, however I dont agree. I think it is a great book about a young girl growing up and finding out about how the world is or was in the time the story takes place. I think slavery is a horrible thing but that doesn't mean we should ban it being a part of any book because then we would blocking out a piece of our history. To lose history threatens not learning from our mistakes. To Kill a Mockingbird does not promote slavery or rape, the young girl's father is even the lawyer representing and defending the accused African-American man.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a classic book that I really enjoyed reading. Although some of the slang used in the book is not appropriate or nice to use in conversation it was the terminoligy of the time. It is an author's job to portraye and tell the story. Part of a story is setting and time period which includes ways of speech. So I believe to tell the story well the slang used was necessary and not meant to be offensive to anyone.
I really like the Harry Potter series, To Kill a Mockingbird, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I think many girls around my age would enjoy them."
Friday, September 22, 2006
Banned books -Censorship - Freedom of Speech
Banned books week starts this Saturday (tomorrow!!). Banning books has to do with censoring what people say. In the U.S., the first amendment of the constitution gives everyone the right to “Freedom of Speech,” which pretty much means we can say and believe whatever we want. In some countries, the government decides which books people can read and which books are forbidden. In families, parents can say what’s “off limits,” but I don’t think that’s the same thing as banning books. When I was a kid, I wasn’t allowed to watch R-rated movies. Lots of my friends’ parents let them watch R-rated movies and I thought it was unfair that I couldn’t. My mother had final say in my house, and I respected her (OK, I snuck into an R movie ONE time). But if someone, like the government or another group of adults, told me I couldn’t watch certain movies or read certain books I would think they were crazy! When I was a kid I read everything I could find, from magazines to books as thick as a dictionary. It turns out that lots of my favorite books were banned in certain places—Huckleberry Finn, Harry Potter, and tons of Judy Blume’s books (because of her open discussions about girls bodies and sexuality). I feel bad that everyone didn’t at least have the CHANCE to read these books because I learned a lot about the world and about myself from reading them.
Next week, we’ll be talking more about banned books and freedom of speech on our blog. Banned books week is a celebration of freedom of speech and you can participate in lots of ways. Post to our blog. Talk to your parents about their views of censorship. Read a banned book! What do you think? Is it OK to ban books? Have you ever read a banned book? Send your thoughts and opinions to blog@newmoon.org.
Next week, we’ll be talking more about banned books and freedom of speech on our blog. Banned books week is a celebration of freedom of speech and you can participate in lots of ways. Post to our blog. Talk to your parents about their views of censorship. Read a banned book! What do you think? Is it OK to ban books? Have you ever read a banned book? Send your thoughts and opinions to blog@newmoon.org.
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Join the club!
Adele Griffin, author of Hannah, Divided (and other great books!) will chat online with members of New Moon's Book Club on Monday. I can't wait! I'm going to re-read Hannah this weekend so it's fresh in my mind.
Members of the club, don't forget to come to the chat room at 7 pm Central (8 pm Eastern and 5 pm Pacific)! If you're not a member, you can still send me your questions for Adele.
"Talk" to you soon!
Members of the club, don't forget to come to the chat room at 7 pm Central (8 pm Eastern and 5 pm Pacific)! If you're not a member, you can still send me your questions for Adele.
"Talk" to you soon!
55802--The Basement. Part Three
Congratulations! You have made it to part three of the New Moon Publishing office tour. You’ve missed parts one and two? Shame on you! No worries. You still have a chance to read them.
Part One
Part Two
Melanie will be leading the tour without Jen today. Jen is currently detained in an undisclosed location, to be revealed later. We have seen all there is to see upstairs, so let’s go into the depths of the basement! The basement is where we keep all of our back issues and wonderful, girl-friendly merchandise, available at www.newmoonstore.com. Of course, we have all of the normal, boring stuff too, like extra toilet paper, paper towels and hand soap, envelopes, old computer parts, and our new wonderfully fabulous server.
The first thing you will notice about New Moon Publishing’s basement is that it is surrounded by a tall chain-link fence. We share the basement with two other companies and it helps to keep all of our stuff separate. But, sometimes when a New Moonie gets in trouble we lock her in the “cage.” The other two companies thought it was a weird business practice, but now they see the benefit and lock their employees in there, too.
Ah, and this is where we find my detained sidekick Jen. What exactly did Jen do, you ask? Well, she left her dirty dishes in the sink!
We even put up a sign to remind her to wash them, but it didn’t work.
The "cage" was the last option. She has served her time. I think it’s safe to unlock the door. Now, Jen and I can continue the tour together!
What occupies the most space in the basement? New Moon back issues! We have several boxes of each issue from the past fourteen years! For those of you that are new to New Moon here is the cover of our very first issue from 1993.
Wait! Where did Jen go? I think I have lost her!
Never mind. She is hiding behind our stacks and stacks of New Moon back issues! She's so silly. We have to be careful when trying to find a back issue because there are so many boxes. That’s why we have started the movement “Save a New Moonie.” 
It looks like I’m the one that needs the help today! Help save a New Moonie by purchasing lots, and lots of back issues!
Don’t get caught in the basement alone after 5 pm. We have our very own security system to protect the merchandise. Her name is Moonie Monster and she only has three fingers. She is very shy and doesn’t like her picture taken.We had to sneak up on her to get this rare photo.
She bears a striking resemblance to Jen doesn’t she?
I think we have disturbed Moonie Monster enough for the day, so we had better end the tour. Thanks for joining us. We enjoyed having you! Look for other tidbits from 55802 on the New Moon Blog!
Part One
Part Two
Melanie will be leading the tour without Jen today. Jen is currently detained in an undisclosed location, to be revealed later. We have seen all there is to see upstairs, so let’s go into the depths of the basement! The basement is where we keep all of our back issues and wonderful, girl-friendly merchandise, available at www.newmoonstore.com. Of course, we have all of the normal, boring stuff too, like extra toilet paper, paper towels and hand soap, envelopes, old computer parts, and our new wonderfully fabulous server.
The first thing you will notice about New Moon Publishing’s basement is that it is surrounded by a tall chain-link fence. We share the basement with two other companies and it helps to keep all of our stuff separate. But, sometimes when a New Moonie gets in trouble we lock her in the “cage.” The other two companies thought it was a weird business practice, but now they see the benefit and lock their employees in there, too.Ah, and this is where we find my detained sidekick Jen. What exactly did Jen do, you ask? Well, she left her dirty dishes in the sink!
We even put up a sign to remind her to wash them, but it didn’t work.
The "cage" was the last option. She has served her time. I think it’s safe to unlock the door. Now, Jen and I can continue the tour together!
What occupies the most space in the basement? New Moon back issues! We have several boxes of each issue from the past fourteen years! For those of you that are new to New Moon here is the cover of our very first issue from 1993.
Wait! Where did Jen go? I think I have lost her!
Never mind. She is hiding behind our stacks and stacks of New Moon back issues! She's so silly. We have to be careful when trying to find a back issue because there are so many boxes. That’s why we have started the movement “Save a New Moonie.” 
It looks like I’m the one that needs the help today! Help save a New Moonie by purchasing lots, and lots of back issues!
Don’t get caught in the basement alone after 5 pm. We have our very own security system to protect the merchandise. Her name is Moonie Monster and she only has three fingers. She is very shy and doesn’t like her picture taken.We had to sneak up on her to get this rare photo.
She bears a striking resemblance to Jen doesn’t she?I think we have disturbed Moonie Monster enough for the day, so we had better end the tour. Thanks for joining us. We enjoyed having you! Look for other tidbits from 55802 on the New Moon Blog!
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