A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about Bridesmaids and how it could change the landscape for female-oriented programming in the theaters. I also mentioned how it indicates this country’s thirst for well-made studio fare by and about women. This past week The Help, a film about and targeted toward women, hit screens. The film […]
Yesterday, I was running late for a meeting in downtown Washington DC when I saw a homeless man lying on the street with his hands down his pants, appearing to do things that should be done in private. I found a female police officer and mentioned the man to her, also noting that he needed […]
What are you looking for when you head to the movies? Some of us want explosions; others desire great love stories. A lot of people want comedy; fewer need to cry at the end. Whatever it is that drives people to the theater — and it’s got to be good with ticket prices at $10 […]
It’s now almost 30 years since the publication of Helen Gurley Brown’s “Having It All: Love, Success, Sex, Money Even If You’re Starting With Nothing“. In the book, the former editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine argued that it was completely possible for the modern woman to have everything she’d always wanted, from a stellar career to […]
Marlo Thomas is something of a personal hero to me, but I was admittedly disappointed by her recent article for the official launch of the new HuffPost Women’s Page. I was raised on Free To Be…You And Me (I still occasionally catch myself humming the tune to William Wants a Doll), I have great respect […]
As a feminist, I sometimes bristle at my own attitudes and expectations when it comes to certain things. Case in point: how it feels to be the primary breadwinner in my little family. To clarify and provide a bit of context, my “little family” consists of me and my fiancé, who is in the process […]
Few research papers hit a nerve like the 2009 report The Paradox of Declining Female Happiness. Over the past 35 years, “women’s happiness has declined both absolutely, and relative to men,” Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers wrote in the American Economic Journal. Some interpreted this as an indirect indictment of the feminist movement, which — the argument went […]
Quick, what does a professor look like? Apparently not like me. I’m 5’3″, brown-skinned, and a woman. I still get ID’d at the liquor store and I have a modest tattoo collection. One of my greatest personal challenges (and annoyances) is how often people of all ages, backgrounds, and educational levels cannot seem to wrap […]
