Culture

Michaela Coel as Arabella, a dark-skinned Black woman wearing a pink wig, stands in an alley and looks directly at the camera

Consent Creator: “I May Destroy You” Takes on the Messy Realities of Rape

by Nicole Froio
August 12, 2020 at 1:14pm
The 12-episode series is an exploration of rape culture that leans into its gray areas. Read more »
Ellen DeGeneres, a white woman with short blond hair, sits on stage and holds a microphone.

A Queer Icon, a Terrible Boss: Why It Matters That Ellen Can Be Both

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
August 11, 2020 at 2:13pm
Queer people can and do hurt other people. Read more »
Zoë Kravitz as Rob, a light-skinned Black girl with long braids who stands behind the counter of a record store, in High Fidelity

A Goodbye to the Black Bisexual Messiness of “High Fidelity”

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
August 11, 2020 at 11:31am
In honor of Rob, I spoke to a few bisexual people of color about Kravitz’s portrayal of Rob, and the state of Black bisexual characters on TV. Read more »
Alisson Wood, a white author with brown hair, sits down on a bench

Alisson Wood Reclaims Her Power in “Being Lolita”

by Evette Dionne
August 11, 2020 at 10:00am
“My voice is my power, and I’m now able to share this with other women and make them feel like they’re not alone.” Read more »
A photo of five animated She-Ra characters who are dressed in bright outfits and stand amid mountains.

Queerness Shines in “She-Ra” and Other Animated Shows

by Lena Dean
August 10, 2020 at 1:50pm
The message out there for young people was that straights get to have fulfilling personal growth and relationships—and queers and queer romance don’t exist. Read more »
Megan Thee Stallion, a brownskinned Black woman with long, black hair, poses in a red, leather dress

If You Want to Protect Black Women, Start with Megan Thee Stallion

by Donna Marbury
August 10, 2020 at 9:52am
“Protect Black women” is floating around social media, but there’s a more powerful sentiment that Black women are undeserving of being shielded from violence. Read more »
An apple with the text, “what I eat in a day.”

Very Online: TikTok Has Embraced Pro-Eating Disorder Content in Quarantine

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
August 7, 2020 at 12:28pm
TikTok itself is also encouraging this behavior by promoting ads that encourage weight loss. Read more »
Kate Stayman-London, a white woman with short, brown hair, looks at the camera over her shoulder

A New Fairy Tale: “One to Watch” Imagines a Fat Bachelorette

by Evette Dionne
August 7, 2020 at 9:00am
Kate Stayman-London beautifully pulls back the curtain on what fat women in particular endure, not only when attempting to find love, but also in simply existing. Read more »
Various brown women make and share bread made by hand over a fire

Ghost in My Mouth: A Modern Diaspora’s Endangered Language

by Aditi Natasha Kini
August 6, 2020 at 10:07am
Konkani has nearly 13 million speakers and a growing diaspora continuing the tradition of migrant language. Read more »
a Black woman with her hair in a cornrowed ponytail sits in a tub with her head in her hands

Trauma-Centered Art Should Be the Future of #MeToo

by Taylor Crumpton
August 6, 2020 at 9:00am
The film is an offering to those who have been affected by gendered violence. Read more »

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Best of Bitch

Ms. Opinionated: I'm a Man. How Can I Help the Feminist Movement?

by Andi Zeisler
February 19, 2014 at 2:29pm
Welcome to Ms. Opinionated, our weekly advice column dealing with questions of life, love, feminism, and pop culture. This week, a reader... Read more »

Sojourner Truth, Unveiled

by Deesha Philyaw
April 29, 2009 at 2:58pm

The leaders of the [women's suffrage] movement trembled on seeing a tall, gaunt black woman in a gray dress and white turban,...

Read more »

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

an illustration of a Black woman with long, flowing, blonde hair
by Tamara Winfrey Harris
Summer 2013 • Micro/Macro
The policing of feminist cred is the real moral contradiction. Read more »

Eat, Pray, Spend: Priv-Lit and the New, Enlightened American Dream

Elizabeth Gilbert, a white woman wearing a navy blue jumpsuit, leans forward and holds hand with and Oprah Winfrey, a Black woman wearing a gray cardigan and jeans
by Joshunda Sanders
Summer 2010 • Action
Even as reports on joblessness, economic recovery, and home foreclosures suggest that no one is immune to risk during this recession, the popularity of women’s wellness media has persisted and, indeed, grown stronger.  Read more »