Activism

Some thoughts on privilege, agenda-setting, and what to do next

So The Angry Black Woman has called this Carnival of Allies, which these days feels to me like the best idea ever, because I really need some guidance. One of the many, many things the events of the last month and change have taught me is that, um, to put it mildly, my anti-racist ally skills could... Read more »

Come talk about the action

Please join these participatory discussions about how—and whether—feminism can become a transformative, justice-centered movement for social change. How can we drive attention to the power, privilege, and marginalization that continue to play out in feminist communities, and how can those of us... Read more »

Time out for some zine love

A few good ones I've stumbled upon recently.   Bitte Liebling ("Please darling" in Deutsche). As the subtitle, Hot Queer Action, suggests, it's a porn zine, so if you're not into that kind of thing, move on to the next one. But for others, the latest issue (#4) includes a very special photo essay... Read more »

Hope/politics of place

Here in Northeast Portland is a place called In Other Words Women's Books and Resources, a nonprofit bookstore founded in 1993. I've only lived in Portland for a year, so most of what I know I've learned from talking to people and reading news articles, like this. A few nights ago I went to a... Read more »

Some thoughts on silence, and breaking it

The sound of respectful listening is silence. The sound of complicity is also silence. I've been silent a lot lately. And sometimes I can't tell which is which. There has been a cascade of awfulness lately—from privileged cluelessness, however well-intentioned but inexcusable, to flat-out racist... Read more »

With respect

Yesterday, we lost one of the most critical voices in feminist media/justice.  I don't know what I should be doing or saying publicly about everything that's happening. Some voices in my head tell me to be quiet and make space; others tell me to stand up and scream. Some voices tell me it's... Read more »

On Seal Press, and the fucking of same

I haven't posted about either WAM or the rest of my trip east because, frankly, I haven't had time — I got back to Portland with a teetering pile of pre-production work about to fall off my already stacked-sky-high plate, and I'm still slogging through it. But I have been reading what others out... Read more »

WAM-n-me

A lot of discussion about WAM! is going on. Some of it's in public blogs, like here, and here, here, here, and here. (I know, that's a lazy way of linking, but I'm tired....) Also here. (OK, I promise I'll stop that.) A lot of the discussion is also happening over email, and so it's not public.  I... Read more »

More WAMmy goodness

Lisa already gave a good rundown of what makes WAM so fab. This was only my second WAM, and I was blown away by how much it's grown since I last attended. As compelling as the lectures and panel sessions may be, for me WAM is all about the networking, the mutual-admiration-society atmosphere, and... Read more »

Give away rice and expand your vocab

Now discovered - a new way to pass time at work, while expanding your vocabulary and giving away rice! Maybe it's because I've spent the better part of today intently reading last Sunday's New York Times Magazine on giving and philanthropy (focusing on the billionaires and millionaires out there... Read more »

Pages

Mad Science: Deconstructing Bunk Reporting in 5 Easy Steps

British scientists have uncovered the truth behind one of modern culture's greatest mysteries: why little girls play with pink toys. Is it...

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Where My Girls At: Meet Two of Ferguson's Black Queer Activists

Amid national discussions of police brutality and systemic racism, Black women have been the loudest and most consistent voices demanding change. Read more »

Sister Soldiers: On Black Women, Police Brutality, and the True Meaning of Black Liberation

Unless you’re looking for their names, you won’t find the stories of all Black women shot and killed by police officers in the past five years in the discourse surrounding police reform. Read more »

Will Filming the Police Keep Us Safe?

There’s a cultural idea that having someone looking over our shoulder makes us behave better. From fake security cameras to Elf... Read more »