* The city of South El Monte, California, has imposed a nightly curfew of 11 p.m. for its mayor, Blanca M. Figueroa, the New York Times reports. Figueroa had a habit of burning the midnight oil in her office, often staying late to help citizens with “home foreclosure problems, layoffs and even buying groceries.” How sexist is this shit? Let me count the ways:

(1) She can’t protect herself. “One council member, Hector Delgado, said the curfew was needed for ‘safety and liability reasons.’ ‘What if something happens to her?’ said Mr. Delgado, who is also mayor pro tem, noting that on hot summer nights Ms. Figueroa left her door open to a hallway that led to a parking area.”

(2) She speaks her mind. “Councilman Louie Aguiñaga said tension over the mayor’s office hours had spilled over into the Council meetings and disrupted city business. ”She wants good things for the city,’ he said. ‘It’s just the way she talks out at meetings and disagrees with everything. I think the other council members finally got fed up.'”

(3) Decision result of creepy voyeurism. “Most nights, she said, she assumed that eight fishy eyes were her only audience. But security cameras captured her nightly work habits, Mr. Delgado said, and the images of her prompted him to propose the curfew, which the Council has not decided how to enforce.”

(4) Infantilization of women, anyone? “Mr. Delgado recommended confiscating the mayor’s keys.”

Photo by Bohman.