Culture

Four bubbles with girls curled inside in the fetal position with a caption that says "In seclusion living delusions".

“Nightmare Temptation Academy” Is a Video Game Challenging Rape Culture

by Greta Rainbow
May 14, 2020 at 10:48am
Creator Lena NW’s shit isn’t for everyone. Read more »
Siena Liggins, a Black, masculine lesbian, looks directly at the camera. Her dark hair is braided and comes to her shoulders, and she wears layered denim on denim and sits relaxed on the ground.

Siena Liggins Hates Being Told What to Do

by Lindsay King-Miller
May 14, 2020 at 9:26am
“I hate my voice,” the pop singer says. Read more »
Tyra Banks has red hair with blond highlights. She looks seriously at someone who isn’t in the shot.

We Were Rooting for You: On the Changing Legacy of Tyra Banks

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
May 13, 2020 at 3:34pm
Banks has been around since the ’90s, but it has taken this long to reckon with her true legacy. Read more »
A pink tinted image of two women with their eyes covered in black boxes. Pink subscribe buttons are overlaid on top.

Subliminal Messaging: This YouTube Trend Promises Teens the Power of Self-Perfection

by Frannie Comstock
May 13, 2020 at 1:33pm
Subliminals call to mind new-agey fads of yore. Read more »
Alison McGhee, a white writer with short, blond hair, smiles for the camera

Remember and Resolve: Choice Is Central to “The Opposite of Fate”

by Reina Sultan
May 13, 2020 at 12:29pm
Every choice we make is influenced by everything that has come to bear in our own lives and on our own belief systems. Read more »
Bordadoras, Mexican women embroiders, stand together on the street of Nogales, Mexico

Weaving the Wall: Devotional Art Counters State Violence in the Borderlands

by Barbara Sostaita
May 13, 2020 at 12:15pm
Border artists summon the sacred and repair what has been broken. Read more »
Doja Cat, a South African woman with short, brown hair, performs on stage in a red outfit

Dr. Luke is Overshadowing a Woman’s Accomplishment. Again.

by Evette Dionne
May 12, 2020 at 4:39pm
Though Dr. Luke should be a pariah in the music industry, he’s instead credited as one of the producers on “Say So.” Read more »
hris Harrison, left, and contestants Julia and Brandon, all white people, stand on a stage. Juilia and Brandon hold microphones.

We’ve Entered Peak Dystopian Television, and Chris Harrison is Our King

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
May 12, 2020 at 1:49pm
Dystopian television is here, and it’s coming for our love lives—whether through song, or otherwise. Read more »
Porochista Khakpour, an Iranian American writer, poses in a patterned shirt in front of a patterned background

Her Own Terms: “Brown Album” is Porochista Khakpour’s Ode to the Others of Society

by Reina Sultan
May 12, 2020 at 12:02pm
“Brown Album” clarifies who Porochista Khakpour considers her audience to be: those who have been othered in the United States of America. Read more »
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, an Indian teen, wears a black hoodie and black glasses while walking down a school hallway

Never Have I Ever Watched a Better Comedy about Grief

by Evette Dionne
May 11, 2020 at 2:02pm
Saying goodbye to those we love when they pass on is the hardest thing we’ll ever do; it is also the most necessary. Read more »

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Best of Bitch

Why You Should Pay for Porn

by Casey Quinlan
April 29, 2015 at 7:27pm
If you’re a progressive middle-class individual, chances are you think about where your food comes from. Maybe you try to buy shoes that are... Read more »

The Dramatic History of American Sex-Ed Films

by Sarah Mirk
June 17, 2014 at 10:29am
In 1948, in a seventh grade classroom in Eugene, Oregon, a teacher dimmed the lights and flipped on 16mm projector. A film called Human... Read more »

Saying Goodbye to Maria and the End of a Sesame Street Era

by Angely Mercado
August 13, 2015 at 5:52pm
Growing up, Sesame Street's Maria was one of the best Latina role models I had. Read more »

Mock & Awe: Janet Mock on Truth-Telling, Community Building, and Writing the Story She Had Been Waiting for Her Whole Life

Janet Mock, a transgender Hawaiian woman with curly, brown hair, smiles
by Tina Vasquez
Spring 2014 • Maps & Legends
“Redefining Realness” is written with astounding honesty and heart. Read more »