One editorial in last week’s New York Times has started a significant debate about women of colour and their relationship with their bodies. Alice Randall wrote that many black women are fat because “we want to be.” That is why, she explains, “four out of five black women are seriously overweight” and “one out of four ...
As feminists, we get it ingrained in us that choice is every person’s (read: woman’s) right. But what if things weren’t as simple as that? Choice is a common rhetoric used by many feminists and social justice activists. The topic ranges from jobs to abortion; sexuality and contraception to marriage; how we look to what ...
I always request books for Christmas. I always have. I’m not sure if that made me an easy child to buy for. Novels are certainly cheaper than a new Nintendo (which is what we called an Xbox back in my day), but how to select one for a grumpy nine-year-old? Or, for that matter, a ...
The freedom to define ourselves as individuals, rather than by our relationships with men, is a global feature of feminism. Indira Goswami, who died this week, was an activist and writer who took that notion seriously. Widowed as a young woman, Goswami lived amongst other young widows in an Assam ashram; she wrote her first, ...
My first encounter with Ludmilla Stephanovna Petrushevskaya was on a cold January night, in a shadowy Moscow bar full of antique upholstery and cigarette smoke. She arrived nearly two hours late and took the stage in a purple dress and huge matching hat. At 70+, Petrushevskaya, dissident writer, had reinvented herself as a cabaret performer. ...
Women and girls in Somalia are earning a living and helping others access education through a sanitary pad project. Galkayo Education Centre for Peace and Development, an NGO funded by UNICEF, employs internally displaced women to manufacture the pads, which are distributed in IDP camps. This not only enables women to earn a living; girls ...
Cloth diapers may soon be given to low-income families in the USA. Legislation is currently being debated that would provide subsidized diapers, including washable diapers, to low-income families. As long as those receiving reusable diapers are shown how to use them properly I really hope this legislation is passed. Disposable diapers are unbelievably expensive and ...
One in twenty women will experience menopause before the age of 40, a new study has found. This early menopause can threaten more than your sex drive and mood swings. Risks include heart attack, stroke and bone disease, but researchers have been unable to explain the cause. This research, done by the Imperial College London, ...
Everyone knows you can’t build a house on crooked foundations, so why do people think you can empower only part of a family? Women in 20 Latin American countries are getting paid to help their families. They must attend diet and hygeine classes, and also ensure their children attend school and regular check-ups. The classes ...
The problem with HIV and AIDS is that we always think of it as a problem for The Other — people with different lifestyles, sexual orientations and even nationalities. But the virus doesn’t discriminate and neither should the health system. Women who could benefit from treatment are being left out in the cold in Canada. ...
So, we’re having this baby. It’s due in a few weeks and we’re trying to get organized with all...
I recently heard about what is claimed to be the rising phenomenon of Japanese men remaining virgins for longer...
Ladders. Patriarchal conspiracy. I’ll explain… This week I climbed a ladder. I was trying to reach a loft space,...
Dear Madame X, My boyfriend needs to look at porn while we have sex. It bothers me because I...
Mrs. Dalloway is yet another feminist classic that I had to grow into. Wrapped up in Woolf’s instantly recognizable...
Last week saw a Big Thing come to our soggy little island. Well, it was a Big Thing for...
Last weekend I was entertaining a guest, you know, the sort I was planning to have lots and lots...
All little girls want to be princesses… right?! It’s bad enough that toy aisles are separated out by what...
