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By Nichole Guerra, March 18, 2013 7:00 am

Now that the initial sting of Fox-CT’s obscene coverage of Women’s Day has subsided, we can all agree that some reflection is in order. After all, the event did mark the 40-year-battle for gender equality in Connecticut.

The obvious takeaways: yes, the progressives’ disdain towards Fox News has been validated. And yes, the footage highlighted that even in a 21^st century, blue state like Connecticut, the effects of misogyny and gender discrimination persist at best. Even though Fox was publicly shamed, I can’t help but wonder if they won this round at the end of the day.

Think about it. For those who weren’t able to attend the event, the only newsworthy piece of information revolved around the news outlet’s unfortunate—but unsurprising—distraction from the depth of the issues and their solutions. In Connecticut, full-time working women earn 78% of their male counterparts. The wage gap is even more drastic for African American women and Hispanic women, who earn 59% and 48% of what men earn, respectively (The Permanent Commission on the Status of Women, Policy Agenda 2013). Violence against women, whether it’s domestic violence or sexual assault, abounds and causes costly long-term health problems for women everywhere.

But what does this mean for Hartford, where poverty and crime are concentrated more than anywhere else in the state? Continue reading 'Focus on Women, Not Fox News'»

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By Kerri Provost, March 4, 2013 2:30 am

Sign from Rally for Gender Equality in Bushnell Park, April 2012.

State Rep. Hewett made a corny joke, which some imaginative individuals construed as a sexual reference. Both the intern to whom the comment was directed, and Matt Fleury of the Connecticut Science Center, have said they were unaware of any controversial remark until it was reported on by the news. The politician apologized, the intern accepted the apology, and a rational person would expect this to be the end of story. Yet days later, in what seems more like character assassination than true concern about respect for females, there remain those who feel Hewett will not have made amends until he resigns.

Like the outrage over the Onion’s recent tweet, the outrage over Hewett’s remarks is not about respecting females. It can’t even be called outrage. Armchair activism has been reduced to 140 character spurts of reactionary anger, often not based on any context.

While this rage is blowing up on Twitter and Facebook, attention spans have been whittled down so far that few can digest the actual widespread violence against women.

In January, Connecticut Sexual Assault Crisis Services (CONNSACS) released its 2012 Campus Report Card. The organization surveyed 21 four-year and four two-year higher education institutions in Connecticut last summer. Anything lower than an ‘A’ grade should be unacceptable, but with marks ranging from A-F, this report card was still received as, at most critical, “mixed” by reporters.

According to CONNSACS, “up to one in four women experience unwanted sexual intercourse while attending college in the United States” and “one in twelve college men admit to acts that meet the legal definition of rape.” Continue reading 'March Forth to Respect Women'»

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By Kerri Provost, August 31, 2012 9:46 am

Connecticut was ranked 44 out of 50 for bike friendliness by the League of American Bicyclists in 2010; now, the state has moved to 20. South Windsor was the only new “Bicycle Friendly Community” in the state, receiving a bronze award.

Given the United States’ abysmal cultural attitudes toward people-powered transit, this move up the list may mean little. Continue reading 'Connecticut Improves in Bicycle Friendliness?'»

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By Kerri Provost, June 29, 2012 9:25 am

First Rule: You do not talk about it. Continue reading 'Blight Club'»

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By Kerri Provost, June 24, 2012 10:45 pm

Judy Blume’s visit to Hartford was a big deal– not for tourism or economic growth, or even as much for the Mark Twain House & Museum, for which this event was a fundraiser, as for each person who was impacted by the author’s writing. Continue reading 'This Happened: Judy Blume at Lincoln Theater'»

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By Kerri Provost, June 20, 2012 10:36 am

On the heels of a press release about why the news media must not conflate CREC schools with Hartford Public Schools, the latter sent communication about how the State, with its Commissioner’s Network, may help to confuse the public even more on the question of who is running the show. Here it is, dissected:

Former Hartford Mayor Thirman L. Milner today urged the State Department of Education to include the Hartford public school that bears his name on the list of schools that will be on the $7.5 million Commissioner’s Network for the coming school year.

This is not the first time Mr. Milner has issued the complaint that the school with his name was “embarrassing” to him. No ink has been spilled over how students feel when they hear their school creates an embarrassment.

The network was created at part of the education reform legislation passed by the state legislature earlier this year to turn around schools, such as the Milner Core Knowledge Academy at 104 Vine Street, considered one of the 25 lowest-performing schools in Connecticut. An announcement on the first group of network schools is expected shortly.

This will not be Milner’s first experience as a turnaround school. In 2008, it was reopened as a Core Knowledge Academy, with Dr. Kishimoto — the assistant superintendent at the time — saying, “Our first and foremost goal is to get a significant increase in student achievement.” Continue reading 'Dissecting Turnaround'»

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By Kerri Provost, May 24, 2012 10:04 am

Connecticut is not boring. It is revolutionary. Still.

But tourism websites and ad agencies never capture this for a multitude of reasons, giving the masses yet another branding campaign to mock.

One reason these don’t work: they are too slick. We know someone is trying to sell us on a trip here or there. The realness is removed through photography and videography that is just too polished. There’s no human voice there.

Contrast that with two homegrown sites that exist primarily for the authors’ own amusement. Connecticut Museum Quest, authored by Stephen Wood, comes with its own mission statement: “destroying the myth that there is nothing to do here.”  Wood, often with his family in tow, travels around the state exploring museums, trails, food, and specializing in the quirky. This is how I learned there is something called “peak-bagging,” which is not what it sounds like. If all you know about Connecticut is Mystic Seaport, Mark Twain, and Mohegan Sun, this is the site to visit. He’ll show you everything on and off the beaten path, make you laugh while doing it, and tell the truth about which places have employees with nasty attitudes or venues with inconsistent hours. Even if you have lived in Connecticut your entire life, this site will introduce you to at least one thing you did not know existed.

The Size of Connecticut is a blog about the author’s “attempt to discover (and live in and travel around and photograph) these 4,845 sq. miles.” Johnna Kaplan was raised in Westport, where she understandably developed a skewed sense of what the rest of Connecticut was like; now, in New London, she travels the state learning about life outside of Fairfield County. This is where to find out about synagogues randomly in the middle of nowhere, replica schoolhouses, and what might attract young(ish) people (back) to Connecticut. Yes, she writes about Nathan Hale, but her portrayal has flavor.

There is nothing touristy about these sites, yet they are compelling in ways that the well-funded official sites are not.

The Connecticut Office of Tourism’s website is not without merit. There is information. It does make Connecticut appear attractive. But there are gaps. Look at the “Creative in Connecticut” list, for example. Someone unfamiliar with our state may glance at it and believe that we lack in creativity; we simply lack in people willing to put together comprehensive lists about creative offerings. To be fair, the “This Weekend” lists are better than the “Getaways.”

The other major failing of the “Still Revolutionary” official propaganda is that it wholly ignores activism in Connecticut today. Governor Malloy should get credit for acknowledging Connecticut’s role in the sexual revolution, but he speaks of it in the wrong verb tense. Continue reading 'Still Revolutionary, Real Hartford-Style'»

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By Kerri Provost, April 4, 2012 8:40 am

387 Capitol Avenue

One objective of the Livable & Sustainable Neighborhoods Initiative is to crack down on blight.

Still waiting for that crack. Continue reading 'Movement on Blight'»

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By Kerri Provost, March 11, 2012 10:42 am

Continue reading '13 Things to Know about Hartford’s Saint Patrick’s Day Parade'»

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By Kerri Provost, March 5, 2012 3:54 pm

When our understanding of reality is filtered by a medium, do we really understand it? Continue reading 'Reactions to Crime (Part Two)'»