Culture

Pop Pedestal: Abed Nadir

Welcome to this week’s edition of Pop Pedestal, Bitch’s series of tributes to characters we love. Today, I’d like to recognize the Greendale student whose favorite film is “a tie between Ghostbusters,... Read more »

Political InQueery: The Fake Democrat Experiment Fails Miserably

Lots of people attempt to manage election laws; it happens all the time. We’ve seen it in vote-counting, with one side or the other suing their way into forced recounts after a close election. Of course there’s “gerrymandering,” named after a real Mr. Gerry, former Governor of... Read more »

Adventures in Feministory: Betty Ford

Former First Lady Betty Ford passed away on Friday. She was 93 years old—the same age her late husband was when he passed five years ago. The mega media... Read more »

Political InQueery: Tier-Two Glitterbombs

I expect that Vander Plaats, the founder of The Family Leader, will be glitterbombed soon. If Newt Gingrich got a dose of party supplies for his anti-gay stance and writings, surely some of the... Read more »

Beyonce in Weddingland

My love of Beyoncé has been well documented on this blog before, so I won’t get into it again here. However, I do want to talk about Bey’s new video for “The Best Thing I Never Had,” or rather, talk about the way other people are... Read more »

Political InQueery: Social Security is a Feminist Issue

I’ve written a few times on this blog about unfair criticism and downright racist language aimed at President Obama, in part because it’s so prevalent and persistent, and in part because I believe it deflects attention from policy critiques. For a president as centrist as Barack Obama,... Read more »

Douchebag Decree: Barbara MacEwen & the Haters of New York

Still thrilled about New York’s victory for marriage equality? Yep, me too. I wish I could have finished off Pride month in the Big Apple amongst millions of ecstatic fellow QUILTBAGs. You know who’s not as happy, though? Douchebaggery all-stars like... Read more »

Political InQueery: The Someday Senator Baldwin?

Earlier this week, Rep. Tammy Baldwin said she was “likely” to run for the Senate to become Wisconsin’s junior senator. After all of the strife in Wisconsin this spring, it was welcome news to progressives, who lost longtime Senator Russ Feingold in the 2010 midterm election and who have been... Read more »

Political InQueery: Gaffes & Annoyances

We are still early in the 2012 election cycle, but already the primary phase has had its share of missed opportunities, hilariously inaccurate statements, and misplaced emphases. Defining those moments is probably up to some debate, but here are some candidates: Read more »

BitchTapes: Slowin' it Down

Lots of songs are slow, but to recall the awkward, needlessly dramatic tradition of the junior or senior high school “slow dance,” tunes need to have several additional qualities for me: They must speak of a love most intense and cinematic. They must have a late-'90s sensibility,... Read more »

Pages

Politically Correct Language Isn't Just About Being Polite—It's About Survival

Photo by Phillipe Leroyer (Creative Commons). Two weeks ago, Jonathan Chait published the lengthy essay “Not a Very P.C.... Read more »

All Hail the Queen?: What Do Our Perceptions of Beyoncé's Feminism Say about us?

The policing of feminist cred is the real moral contradiction. Read more »

It’s Time to End the Long History of Feminism Failing Transgender Women

To imply that trans women pose a threat to cisgender women in restrooms is misinformation that preys on unfounded fears. Read more »

Black Girls Hunger for Heroes, Too: A Black Feminist Conversation on Fantasy Fiction for Teens

What happens when two great black women fiction writers get together to talk about race in young adult literature? That's exactly what happens... Read more »