Culture

Two teen girls, one white with short brown hair and one Black with shoulder-length curly brown hair lay in bed next to each other, their noses nearly touching as they smile.

“I Am Not Okay with This” Turns Queer Angst into Physical Power

by Rachel Charlene Lewis

March 13, 2020 at 8:58am

Syd’s burgeoning queerness, in particular, becomes verbalized via her superpowers. Read more »

The Dixie Chicks, three white women, two with long hair, one with short hair, stand close together, their hands on each other's shoulders, each wearing bold, flamboyant clothing and an unapologetic look on their faces.

Taking the Long Way: The Price of Political Dissent in Country Music

by Torrey Crim

March 12, 2020 at 4:18pm

The severity of the punishment wasn’t retaliation for an act of dissent but rather one of betrayal; and to commit a betrayal, one has to first be a loyal soldier. Read more »

Tatyana Fazlalizadeh, a Black woman, wears gold hoops and dark red lipstick and looks at the camera. Her hair is in long braids and she wears a black sweater.

Tatyana Fazlalizadeh Is Widening Our Understanding of Street Harassment

by Rachel Charlene Lewis

March 12, 2020 at 9:38am

Women have been talking about our experiences with every form of sexual violence since the dawn of time. Read more »

Three animated and purple figures wearing police uniforms stand against a colorful background with the word "Onward" displayed prominently

Concealed Pain: Why Are There so Many Lesbians Cops Onscreen?

by Rachel Charlene Lewis

March 11, 2020 at 8:59am

Queer representation shouldn’t overlook, ignore, or become complicit in the painful history between queer people and cops. Read more »

Taylor Swift dressed up as a man: Tyler Swift wears a suit and sits, manspreading, on a busy subway.

Dusted or Busted: In “The Man,” Taylor Swift Seeks to Critique Sexism, but Twists Drag to Do So

by Leanna Garfield

March 10, 2020 at 10:37am

While Swift is trying to call out a double-standard, she may be enabling a double-standard for the queer community. Read more »

Anita Vandyke, a thin woman with dark hair, takes a mirror selfie. In the background are plants, and she wears a nice sweater and jeans.

Sustainable Influencers and the Problem with Trendy Environmentalism

by Mary Retta

March 9, 2020 at 2:04pm

Not everyone can afford to go vegan or spend hundreds of dollars on ethically made clothes—and they shouldn’t have to. Read more »

Amanda Leduc, a white woman with wavy dark brown hair, looks at the camera. She has a soft smile and appears to be outdoors.

Amanda Leduc and Fantasy Authors Challenge the Trope of “Broken” Disabled People

by Alaina Leary

March 9, 2020 at 1:54pm

Fairy tales and their contemporary counterparts—superhero tales, science fiction, fantasy—shape our collective ideas about what it means to be powerful and beautiful. Read more »

Portrait illustration of Lucy Parsons with a partially erased face and a fragmented shadow in the background

Lip Service: Lucy Parsons’s Revolution Was Beautified

by Kim Kelly

March 6, 2020 at 9:00am

Desirability politics, social capital, and lookism remain present in even the most conscious radical spaces. Read more »

Madison Prewett, a white woman with long, light brown hair and blue eyes and a dark tan, speaks to another woman, who has her back turned.

She’s so Pure: “The Bachelor” Still Has a Virginity Problem

by Ilana Masad

March 5, 2020 at 2:04pm

Madison’s “purity” rhetoric illustrates a much broader, scarier problem with her virginity-focused narrative arc. Read more »

Backtalk: Rage On

by Amy Lam

March 5, 2020 at 11:02am

This week, Dahlia and Amy reflect on the past years of pop culture, feminism, and rageful conversations. 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 »