Frances Bell

@francesbell
261 Followers
153 Following
324 Posts
woman,friendwifemothergrandmothersisterauntcousin, feminist, ALT 4eva member, blogger, itinerant scholar, knitter, quilter, gardener,reader, writer #femedtech
Websitehttp://francesbell.com
FemEdTechhttp:/femedtech.net
FemEdTech Quiltquilt.femedtech.net/quilt
Feminist Special Issuehttps://femedtech.net/special-issue-of-learning-media-technology-feminist-perspectives-on-learning-media-and-educational-technology/
Frances BellJan 18, 2025
Kate BowlesJan 15, 2025

The more that AI promises to do the work of reading, summarising and composing for us, the more I’m searching for signs of human writing. That’s what this hashtag is to me: respecting the effort and craft and all the signs of life, the writer’s own handprint.

It’s the moment where you see the palm shape of the potter in the pot, the typo, the irregularity in the quilt. I once saw a boot print in paint on the margin of a huge Pollock canvas and I’ve never forgotten it. I think we can see it in digital writing too.

#WordsWorthWriting

Frances BellJan 12, 2025
Alan is @cogdog 🇨🇦Jan 12, 2025

Thinking of the #FemedTech quilters especially @francesbell but also remembering being inspired by the quilt bloggers at the early Northern Voices conferences.

Times are demanding even more acts of protest. Get the craftworks going.

https://aeon.co/essays/when-womens-needlework-becomes-an-act-of-subversive-protest

When women’s needlework becomes an act of subversive protest | Aeon Essays

Knitting and embroidery are laden with stereotypes of domestic femininity – and the subversive potential for protest

Aeon
Show threadFrances BellDec 19, 2024
@lornamcampbell/113674376705399541 I trust that she will recognise the seeds of cultural change she has sown. The potential for change is spread across those she has inspired. This, for me, is a feature of feminism - that we don’t rely on the knight on a white charger - we turn to solidarity, kindness and hope, and make the change. Women are actors not objects, and feminists can find joy in taking action together , even in distressing circumstances.
Show threadFrances BellDec 19, 2024
@lornamcampbell/113674376705399541 Watching the trial, it became clear that Gisele couldn’t change the 20 year maximum sentence for rape that her former husband received, or the even lighter sentences that many of her rapists received. Gisele has been recognised as a feminist icon, acknowledged by the women and men who came to applaud her as she left each day of the trial. She can’t know that culture and laws will change in France but …
Frances BellDec 19, 2024
I have loved the conversations around https://mastodon.social/@lornamcampbell/113674376705399541 by @lornamcampbell and Lorna’s ideas about feminist refusal. Like many of you I guess, I have been gripped by the steadfast refusal of Gisele Pelicot https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cnv35lp14z9t. Her refusal to accept shame, hence her fight for the right to waive anonymity in her husband’s rape trial and be reported under her Pelicot name that she abandoned as the trial concluded
Gisèle Pelicot trial live updates: Fifty men sentenced along with Gisèle Pelicot's ex-husband after mass rape trial in France

Dominique Pelicot, 72, is jailed for 20 years for drugging and raping his ex-wife, and recruiting strangers to rape her.

BBC News
Frances BellDec 4, 2024
It’s my lovely late son Dan’s birthday today. We celebrate it. I saw this slightly negative review https://amp.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2024/nov/28/smoggie-queens-review-an-adorably-sweet-drag-sitcom today. I think Dan would have smiled at the review and been keen to watch Smoggie Queens. #misshim
Smoggie Queens review – an adorably sweet drag sitcom

This series about a tight-knit queer community joyfully celebrates British camp culture – from deadpan humour to loving Lorraine Kelly. What a shame it’s not more funny

The Guardian
Frances BellNov 4, 2024
I just watched the last episode of Mr Loverman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr_Loverman_(TV_series)?wprov=sfti1 , based on a novel by Bernardine Evaristo. It was magnificent - Evaristo deals with a challenging subject with deftness . She enables us to look at cultural challenges and human nature and still leave us with hope for growth, change and possible futures. And it was very entertaining 👍
Mr Loverman (TV series) - Wikipedia

Frances BellSep 10, 2024
This is such a tragic story of (almost certainly Violence Against Women and Girls) What an amazing athlete the world has lost https://bbc.in/3TomSe7
Rebecca Cheptegei killing: Ex-boyfriend who set Ugandan athlete on fire dies from burns

Rebecca Cheptegei was set alight and later died after Dickson Ndiema ambushed her near her home.

BBC News
Frances BellAug 18, 2024
I just read this Guardian long read https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/aug/13/israel-gaza-historian-omer-bartov?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other I can recommend this sobering read #gaza
As a former IDF soldier and historian of genocide, I was deeply disturbed by my recent visit to Israel

The long read: This summer, one of my lectures was protested by far-right students. Their rhetoric brought to mind some of the darkest moments of 20th-century history – and overlapped with mainstream Israeli views to a shocking degree

The Guardian
Frances BellJul 18, 2024
MostlyHarmlessJul 17, 2024