Culture

Ana Valens reflected in a mirror being held by hands wearing red opera gloves

Not Your Fetish: Trans Erotica Writers Redefine Desirability

by Ana Valens

March 31, 2021 at 11:13am

Trans people have produced erotica long before 2017 and will continue to do so long after. Read more »

Jensen Karp, a white man, holds shrimp tails in her hand that allegedly came out of a Cinnamon Toast Crunch box

Shrimpy Shenanigans: We Could All See How the Cinnamon Toast Crunch Saga Would End

by s.e. smith

March 30, 2021 at 12:38pm

While the internet revels in tasks like identifying racists and getting them fired, it can struggle with milkshake ducks that may not have neat, tidy stories. Read more »

Lil Nas X, a young Black man, places the devil's horns on his head and stands in hell, which is red and rocky.

Only Here to Sin: Lil Nas X Continues a Tradition of Queer Blasphemy

by Nicole Froio

March 30, 2021 at 12:34pm

“Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” unequivocally embraces queerness to the absolute despair of conservative Christians. Read more »

Tina Turner, a Black woman wearing a blond wig, smiles brightly while performing on stage

Live Through This: HBO’s “Tina” Is a Fitting Final Bow for an Iconic Survivor

by Andi Zeisler

March 30, 2021 at 11:29am

The documentary isn’t a revelation or a surprise—it’s a much-needed closure. Read more »

The Act of Naming: “Girlhood” Embraces the Monster Within

by Stephanie Buschardt

March 30, 2021 at 9:12am

We’ll still be called sluts, witches, and harpies, so we may as well rise to the occasion. Read more »

Author Jennifer Keishin Armstrong, who wears a brown linen blazer, has dark hair, and wears red lipstick and glasses.

“When Women Invented Television” Revives the Forgotten Women of TV

by Shailee Koranne

March 30, 2021 at 9:04am

It’s time to honor the women behind television. Read more »

Doughy Distraction: Outrage over Krispy Kreme Masks Systemic Health Inequality

by Andréa Becker

March 25, 2021 at 2:12pm

Stop shaming donuts. Read more »

Miss Fiona Frizzle, voiced by Kate McKinnon.

The “Magic School Bus” Reboot Ditches Ms. Frizzle's Extravagant Spirit

by Maggie Chirdo

March 24, 2021 at 7:56am

There’s uninspired scenery and characters—and a weirdly sexualized Ms. Frizzle. Read more »

A young Jay-Z in black and white wears a t-shirt and a hat.

Nobody’s Savior: Jay-Z Can’t Be Our Messiah

by LaTesha Harris

March 24, 2021 at 7:55am

Jay-Z cannot deliver us into an era of racial equity. He’s nobody’s savior—not even his own. Read more »

Randa Jarrar, an Arab American woman with short brown hair, holds her hand up to her face as she looks away from the camera

“Love Is an Ex-Country” Triumphantly Prioritizes the Power of Joy

by Madhuri Sastry

March 23, 2021 at 11:00am

Joy is a way to heal people and to move forward in a world that’s constantly throwing ridiculous things at us. Read more »

Best of Bitch

Know & Tell: The Literary Renaissance of Trans Women Writers

by Katherine Cross

Winter 2015 • (Re)Vision

For so long, the people who wrote about us were not us. Finally, that is beginning to change. Read more »

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

by Erica Cardwell

April 27, 2015 at 3:26pm

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

Hot Under the Bonnet: The Cooptation of Amish Culture in Mass-Market Fiction

a blue and white illustration of a woman in Amish attire standing next to a fan and a chicken

by Audrey deCoursey

Spring 2014 • Maps & Legends

Dubbed “Amish romance novels,” “Amish fiction,” or the more waggish “bonnet rippers,” these novels just one entry point into the varying images of Amish communities in U.S. popular culture. Read more »