I Would Rate The Fact That I

In The United States, The Last Recorded Clitoridectomy For Curing Masturbation Was Performed In 1948--on A Five Year Old Girl.

Naming Things, Breaking Through Taboos And Denial Is The Most Dangerous, Terrifying, And Crucial Work. This Has To Happen In Spite Of Political Climates Or Coercions, In Spite Of Careers Being Won Or Lost, In Spite Of The Fear Of Being Criticized, Outcast, Or Disliked. I Believe Freedom Begins With Naming Things. Humanity Is Preserved By It.

What I Would Argue Is That Real Spirituality Is The Ability To Keep Encountering Two Opposite Thoughts At The Same Time And Still Maintain Some Kind Of Morality And Perspective In The World. It Is Not The Elimination Of One Side Of The Equation Or The Elimination Of What You Don't Like; It Is The Investigation Of Everything.

What I Have Found Is That Even When You Try To Transform Existing Structures They Are So Powerful They Often Overwhelm, Seduce, And Control You.

If You Look At Capitalism And Patriarchy, They're Both Such Hierarchical, Competitive, Oneupmanship Systems. They've Trained Us All [to Think] That Power Means Having All The Goods Or Having The Most Money Or Having The Most Attention Or Having The Most Fame. That's Not The Power That Interests Me. Actually, The Deconstruction Of That Power Is What Interests Me.