SEXY CALENDAR TO RAISE FUNDS FOR WOMEN'S HEALTH
OAKLAND--Decorating your breasts with whipped cream and cherries before posing for a photographer might not seem like a feminist act, but according to the 20 young Bay Area women who created the Pinup Clinic Calendar, it is.
"We were inspired by the idea of being pin-up girls and doing it in a way that is taking control over our own image," said Amanda Kennedy of Oakland, who conceived of the plan to raise funds for a local women's health clinic.
"When women choose to portray themselves as sexual objects, some feminists object. But it's fun to feel sexy, and it feels good when people appreciate you and what you look like in a photograph."
Kennedy's original plan was to sell enough calendars to make $5,000 to donate to the Women's Choice Clinic in Oakland, a welcoming place for women that "changed my experience of going to an ob/gyn doctor," she said. But over the course of the 15 months it took to bring friends on board as models, stylists, photographers, and staff, that clinic closed due to lack of resources.
So the group looked for, and found, another clinic in the Bay Area that offers free pap smears, birth control, STD testing, and other services essential to low-income women. No one who worked on the project will be paid. All proceeds will go to the Women's Community Clinic on Hayes Street in San Francisco, another place which doesn't turn anyone away who needs help.
Now the calendar is finished and ready to be unveiled at a Pinup Clinic fundraiser set for Saturday, Nov. 13, at 7pm at Homespun Bikes, 494 Wesley Avenue, in Oakland, where musical performances are scheduled by Mark E. Deutsch with David Jaberi, and Suitcase Jones (J One and Ashley G), along with readings by Dusty Horn, a fun photo booth, and more to be announced. The public is invited to attend, as long as they make a donation at the door or buy a $15 calendar.
Those who can't make the unveiling can order the calendar online at the Pinup Clinic blog, where you can also preview photographs and read about the many people involved and the experiences they had along the way.
