Only 41% of Your U.S. Peers are Pro-Choice
I hope you weren’t having a good day, because here’s some upsetting news: the number of pro-choice Americans is down to 41%. Let’s think about that. Forty-one percent. Less than half. Not the majority.
Read More
We Try It: Essie Grow Stronger Fortifying Nail Treatment
I’ve always had an issue with biting my nails. I say biting, but what I actually mean is that I have a history of inflicting such brutalities upon my fingertips that you would shudder to know of them. Biting, picking, ripping: I’ve done it all. The destruction is the result of a condition known as dermatillomania, a facet of Obsessive …
Read MoreFeminists are Not Immune to Domestic Abuse
[TRIGGER WARNING: This post contains descriptions and discussions of domestic violence, including physical, emotional, and verbal abuse.]
Read MoreWhat’s This? Proposed Legislation Actually Supports Women
Woman-friendly legislation and some gay marriage support all in the same week? Am I still living in the same country?! Hopefully, because my optimism meter is actually starting to look less empty. This week, Democratic representatives introduced legislation that would actually support pregnant women. And do we ever need it! The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act would ensure that preganant women …
Read MoreWhy Do People Hate the Concept of Enthusiastic Consent?
[TRIGGER WARNING: This post contains potentially triggering material related to sexual assault and consent.] For the past several months, my academic research has been focused on sexual violence prevention and healthy sexual relationships. Yes, it’s a little depressing to read sky-high statistics and rape myths all day long, but I love what I do. Last month I attended a conference …
Read MoreWe Try It!: Bodyrock.tv Fitness Program
I was initially hesitant to write this given how subjective exercise is. I think many of us realize by now, either from activism, experience, or both, that not everything works for everyone. We’ve all got different bodies, different metabolisms, and different comfort levels, and we all have to find what works best for us. But then, the only way to …
Read MoreI Do Not Turn Off My Feminism
“Why do you have to make such a big deal out of everything?” If you’re a feminist, you probably get this a lot. If you haven’t yet, just wait. It’s coming, I guarantee it. Really, it’s gotten to the point where I keep my social circle very tightly closed (Elfity-speak for “I have no friends”) because I am so sick …
Read More
Elfity’s Beauty-O-Rama: Skin Edition!
For someone who doesn’t wear a lot of makeup or spend a lot of time performing skincare magic, I am a deceptively adamant beauty junkie. I love makeup, I love skincare products, I FREAKING ADORE nail polish. I blame a beauty-obsessed mother who instilled in me at quite a young age the value of Chanel lip gloss and the importance …
Read MoreYeehaw! Planned Parenthood is Suing the State of Texas
Cool, right? Here’s reason #(insert unrealistically large, made-up number here) why Planned Parenthood is awesome. They are suing the state of Texas. Yes, one of my favorite organizations is suing my home state. Things are about to get dirty here, and I’ve got a front row seat. Time to get out the popcorn and the picket signs!
Read More
Pushing Forward
I don’t believe in bright-side, think happy bullshit. I’m too crazy for that, personally. I can’t smile my way out a depression. I can’t calm a mania just by doing some yoga or taking a relaxing bath. That doesn’t mean that I don’t wish I could. It does mean, however, that I fly into a rage of a thousand angry …
Read MoreSo We’re Jailing Our Rape Survivors Now?
I wish I could say that you read that title wrong. I wish I could say that we, the United States, were not tossing our survivors of sexual assault into prisons. Sadly, we are. Get ready to scream, throw things, or dive head-first into what you have left of your Girl Scout cookies, because you’re going to need it.
Read More
Book Review: Fed Up with Lunch: The School Lunch Project by Sarah Wu
Just so we don’t get off to a bad start, I guess I should state that the full title of this book is actually Fed Up with Lunch: The School Lunch Project: How One Anonymous Teacher Revealed the Truth about School Lunches- And how We Can Change Them! What a mouthful! Get it? Mouthful? Because the book is about food? OK, back to the …
Read More
That Guy (or Girl!) in Your Class
You know how it goes: you’re sitting in class, tapping your pen, and half listening to your professor lecture about your assigned reading, half worrying about whether you’re going to get a parking ticket for the parking pass you may or may not have remembered to hang up. And then all of a sudden, your ears perk up, because that …
Read MoreWhy Are Republicans Fighting the Violence Against Women Act?
Didn’t think it would get this bad, did you? Really, who would have thought that in 2012 we would be debating over what should be a common sense issue like domestic violence. Ten years ago if you had asked me if this would be something we’d have to worry about, I would have (naively) said no. But here we are! …
Read MoreHow Lifetime Movies Helped Form My Feminism
I love Lifetime movies. I’m not going to deny that, shameful as it might seem for a radical feminist such as myself. I grew up with these movies, spending hours laying in bed or lounging on the couch with a book and a Lifetime movie (I have never been able to just watch television). You see, I was raised on …
Read More
Lazy Mushroom Casserole
There were two things in the kitchen that scared me when I was a child. One was the crock pot, ever-present and always containing edibles of a questionable color. The second was casserole.
Read More