So yeah, um, no to the whole “waist training” thing that every celebrity alive seems to be trying these days. In the recent past, actress Jessica Alba raved about how wearing a waist trainer day and night for three months helped her lose baby weight. And now we’ve got Scout Willis (daughter of Bruce and… Continue Reading →
The blank space Taylor Swift fills
What do you think of when you hear the name Taylor Swift? Perhaps the girl who writes a song about every breakup she goes through — or just the overly attached girlfriend who can never maintain a relationship long enough to be satisfied. Despite Taylor’s connection with developing females for over six years, people still… Continue Reading →
Living in an age of celebrity feminism
The Oscars are like prom for Hollywood: a time for glitz, glamour, and celebration of (debatably) the best films of the year. They’ve also steadily gained a reputation as a hub for sexism disguised as admiration, as women on the red carpet are inevitably asked, “Who are you wearing?” and consequently criticized or applauded all… Continue Reading →
“Era of the Big Booty”? No thanks.
I’m not a prude, and I don’t like to judge other women’s personal choices. But I do care an awful lot about how women are portrayed (and portray themselves!) in the media. We’re now averaging 13.6 hours of media consumption per person per day, which means the stories we see played out in the media… Continue Reading →
The feminist value of Amal Clooney’s beauty and brains
“Some readers may wonder how a woman described by Elle magazine as having ‘stunning looks, flirty dresses, tailored pants, colorful heels, and gorgeous hair’ is involved in such a complex legal matter? … It may be astonishing to most people that Amal Alamuddin, now Mrs. Clooney, is much more than a pretty face! In fact,… Continue Reading →
We’re getting Wonder Woman!
In my last post, I bemoaned the lack of a Wonder Woman movie – but it seems I spoke too soon. DC has announced that they will release a Wonder Woman movie in 2017. Yay! Not to be outdone, Marvel followed with an announcement of a female Captain Marvel movie for 2018. And Sony’s female… Continue Reading →
Pharrell vs. Beyoncé: Have feminists let men off the hook?
Are feminists forcing women to achieve a higher standard than men? Pharrell Williams, wearer of Arby’s-shaped hats and the artist behind one of the biggest hits of the moment, Happy, has recently declared himself a feminist and received a fairly warm welcome compared to his fellow feminist, Beyoncé Knowles. Celebrity feminists like Williams and Knowles have… Continue Reading →
I cringe every time a woman is called a “girl”
We hear it all the time in TV and movies: Women being called “girls”. Someone saying, “Hey, you should meet this girl” while referring to someone in their 30s, or, “The girls are here” about women in their late 20s. It’s happening so often that it’s even put in the titles of TV shows without… Continue Reading →
Does this name make me look fat? (Why “fatgirlism” needs to stop.)
At Thanksgiving this year, my aunt said I shouldn’t go by “Beth” because it’s “a fat girl’s name”. And before that, when a family friend named his kid Maddie, my brother cringed and said, “I can’t believe he named her that—it just sounds like a fat-girl name!” If you’re appalled and confused by these judgments,… Continue Reading →