The talent show is not free of criticism, but this season’s all-female group of finalists is sending a strong message, says Tina Boyer. In all its corny, commercial excess, American Idol isn’t exactly the highest form of culture, but there’s something brewing in the current finalist round of the competition that’s challenging the established formulas […]
Cynthia Kane has struggled with feelings of inadequacy since she was a young girl. I was 7 the first time I realized I wasn’t like other children. In school, sitting at the round table with my classmates, I watched our teacher, Ms. Allen, scribble numbers and symbols on the chalkboard. A heavy textbook clutched in […]
Originally appeared on The Frisky. Republished here with permission. Once upon a time—before URLs, handles, likes, and shares—I put some good old-fashioned postage stamps inside an envelope and sent away for a zine (made of actual paper!) that was filled with some very big ideas. I was 16 and the zine was called i’m so […]
Janna Payne wants to know what often well-meaning compliments from men say about the politics of body image. Midway through a mediocre domestic beer at a local bar, a stranger approached me to ask how tall I am. Having been asked about my height almost every day for the last 20-odd years, I responded, nonchalantly […]
When will people stop looking to women as “keepers of the hearth”? I will start this tale with a confession: I have never liked housework. My husband would rather read or write than dust, too, but for some reason that isn’t confession material. I started my marriage with a commitment to fairness. I would do […]
Countless people suffer from post-surgical depression for months on end, so why aren’t more people talking about it? I have lost count of how many surgeries I’ve had in the wake of an accident that left me with internal injuries and scores of broken bones. I know the drill, how to prepare, and what to […]
In the wake of the Boston Marathon tragedy, Emily Rapp discusses why she, like so many of us, grieved for people she’s never met. September 11th. Columbine. Waco. Matthew Shepard. Oklahoma City. Newtown. Boston. These dates and words and names trigger strong reactions and images in many of us. Perhaps we recall the television graphics […]
This originally appeared on Eat The Damn Cake. Republished here with permission. People think body image is only about girls and women. When I say I write about body image, sometimes people say, “Oh, women’s issues.” And they are right. And they are wrong. We have imagined these big immigration fences around so many issues, […]
