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Feminist Friday: “Time” thinks Hillary could beat Republicans better than Obama, Girl Scouts are pro-transgender

Welcome to Feminist Friday, where we highlight a week’s worth of stories we think you’ll be talking about over the weekend.

Leading ladies in politics – It was bound to happen sooner or later. A Tea Party sub-group (or fringe of the fringe, I guess you could say) has called for Michele Bachmann to drop out of the Republican primary race, saying she’s only in it at this point to sell the book she’s got coming out next month.

Meanwhile, a new Time poll shows that Hillary Clinton is more popular than she’s ever been, and could, in fact, trounce every Republican primary nominee if she ran against them tomorrow. (President Obama could win, too, but not by the margin Hillary could.) Of course, Hillary isn’t running in 2012 and she says she’s not running in 2016. (Frowns forever!) Also not running apparently? Chelsea Clinton, even though loads of people are begging her to make a bid for Congress in New York’s 18th District where, according to Democratic leaders, she would be “an automatic win.”

The First Lady’s Guide to Fruits and VegetablesMichelle Obama announced this week that her first book, American Grown: How the White House Kitchen Garden Inspires Families, Schools, and Communities, will hit shelves in April 2012. The book will tell the tale of the First Lady’s White House garden, and the ways it inspired her “Let’s Move” campaign. According to a Random House press release, “Mrs. Obama will describe how her daughters Sasha and Malia were catalysts for change in her own family’s eating behavior, which inspired Mrs. Obama to plant an edible garden on the South Lawn – the first since Eleanor Roosevelt’s ‘Victory Garden’ planted during World War II.” Michelle and Eleanor! What friends they would have been!

We are half of the 99 percent – Wondering where the women are in the Occupy Wall Street movement? According to The Nation, they’re everywhere, and they’re not going away. Sarah Seltzer‘s article is one of the best I’ve read on the subject. It’s insightful, full of empathy, and it doesn’t shy away from the dark side of OWS.

The dozen women I spoke to for this story-most of them queer-identified and/or women of color-have witnessed varying amounts of offensive behavior, such as unwanted touching or use of casually misogynist language, within the movement. And they also differ as to the extent to which they think they can elbow the “isms” out of their space. But for the most part they share a defiant hope; just maybe, they say, for once, a mobilization for social change can get it right: maintain a broad base of support, connect the dots between different kinds of injustice and achieve staying power.

Deb and the dames of DexterBitch magazine posted an interesting rundown about women in the workplace on Dexter. With the exception of Deb, whom they (and everyone else on earth) love(s), they’ve noticed some real problems with Dexter‘s career ladies: “Let’s face it: Dexter doesn’t do women many favors. ‘Career women’ are not sympathetic characters, ‘housewives’ are vapid, and on the whole, women with power are conniving, dangerous seductresses.” It’s a good read, even if you, like me, can’t even watch a Dexter promo for fear of the blood.

Two boxes of Samoas and a shot of social progress, please – This week GLAAD released a statement saying that the Girl Scouts of Colorado welcome transgender youth.

Yesterday, the Girl Scouts of Colorado spoke out in support of transgender children. Following the story of a child who was denied enrollment in a local Girl Scout troop despite identifying as a girl, the Girl Scouts of Colorado released a statement saying that the associate responsible for that troop was unaware of the organization’s policy. “Girl Scouts is an inclusive organization and we accept all girls in Kindergarten through 12th grade as members,” the statement says. “If a child identifies as a girl and the child’s family presents her as a girl, Girl Scouts of Colorado welcomes her as a Girl Scout.”

Well said, Girl Scouts! Is it cookie season yet?

What do you think Time‘s presidential poll results? Would you like to see Chelsea Clinton take office? Interested in Michelle Obama’s cookbook? And how about those Girl Scouts?

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