Pop-Culture | Posted by Julie Z on 01/31/2010
Support Women Artists Sunday: Eliza Doolittle
Eliza Doolittle – strong of opinion, smiley of face, loud of tights – is the freshest girl on the block. London born and raised, she knows about the stresses of modern city life, teenage aggro, old soul and the appeal of simple, strong melodies built from clanking percussion and jazzy licks.
“Every song is an individual song,” she says of her debut album. “And the sound is just really happy and summery and light and breezy, but with thoughtful lyrics.” Her attitude, whether on-mic, in-studio or onstage, is not that of a high-maintenance diva. “You pick up something, you just play it…I love that whole sound – really simple – where you can just put it together and anyone can play it.”
Raised by a piano-playing dad and singing mum, …
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Feminism | Posted by Julie Z on 01/29/2010
To Have a Boyfriend…
There are a lot of things that suck about high school. For one, getting up after about four hours of sleep because of some ridiculous paper I forgot was due and started at 11. Also, having to pick out an outfit that won’t make me look like I escaped from a mental institution. Another one is the “boyfriend” issue. I always get asked by parents (mine AND others) and other various clueless adults seeking insight into our world, if having a boyfriend is still all that important to girls. Without even getting into the “it’s not an assumption that all teenage girls are heterosexual…it’s a fact in my mind” issue of misguided adults, they also reason that girls have as many extra-curriculars as boys (as if boys used to be …
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Pop-Culture | Posted by Helen H on 01/28/2010
The Mean Girls Reality
It may have been my simplistic seven-year-old view of the world that made me categorize everyone into ‘good’ and ‘bad’, but I soon got over it with the help of time, and even things like movies. Still, there was one kind of movie that never seemed to stretch that idea of good and bad, that always seemed to use the same archetypes, and frankly, that scared me.
Yes, I’m talking about the high school flick.The protagonist? The new girl, warm-hearted, pretty, smart. The antagonist? A typically blonde, vapid creature, who is usually captain of the cheerleading squad and always vain. Most of the time, the plots aren’t too creative either–our evil, sputtering antagonist realizes that new girl is a threat to her popularity, especially after new girl catches her boyfriend’s …
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Articles | Posted by Julie Z on 01/27/2010
An Interview with Sara K. Gould
It seems like you can’t turn on the news anymore without hearing about the disastrous pit of doom that is our economy. As often happens when people find themselves in a situation they have little control over, the blame game is in full force, and at the end of the pointing fingers there always seems to be a white man from Wall Street. It seems we are in unanimous agreement that the way the financial industry is run in our country, and in the world, needs to change. Sara K. Gould, president of the Ms. Foundation since 2004, and the founder of the Collaborative Fund for Women’s Economic Development (a program that supports female entrepreneurship) has a few ideas about improving economic wellbeing.
Ms. Gould earned her master’s degree in …
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Articles | Posted by Rose Cora Perry on 01/26/2010
The Oxymoron of Being BOTH a Female Musician & a Feminist
AKA: Do I Really Have to Put a Paper Bag Over My Head Just to Get You to Listen to What I Have to Say, Rather than Stare at My Ass?
I remember a few years back, I received the biggest insult of my life to date, in regards to my career as a professional musician. Some random dude (for no reason and without any provocation on my end) decided to send me a message which said (mind you, in fewer words and with worst grammar) that the only reason as to why I’ve had any success as an artist is because and I quote, “I’m a hot chick”. Not only was I offended because said individual essentially was saying that I had no talent whatsoever to back up and/or …
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Feminism | Posted by Julie Z on 01/25/2010
A Feminist Break Up
A few weeks ago, one of my best friends broke up with her boyfriend. I’m a teenager, so I should probably be used to this by now. It seems as though I can’t make it through an entire week at school without hearing about some type of relationship drama. But this break up moved past the realm of crying-in-the-bathroom-hysterically-with-your-friends-huddled-around-you-one-day-fine-the-next typical high school break up. This one was pretty bad.
Now, I’m of the school of thought that the end of a relationship doesn’t equate to the end of the world. While some might sarcastically comment, “How shocking that your life does not revolve around guys. You’re only a super-feminist” I’m not convinced that this personal way of thinking is entirely connected to my feminist sensibility. The fact that I’m a …
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Pop-Culture | Posted by Julie Z on 01/24/2010
Support Women Artists Sunday: Elle King
So I came across Elle King this week pretty unexpectedly by browsing through Jezebel. And…well, you’ll see.
The fashionable 19-year-old Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter’s piercing voice and heartfelt lyrics will captivate you. “I feel completely at home when I’m performing, and it gives me the biggest rush,” she said. “So, I’ve pretty much always known I wanted to be a performer.” King, who was born in Los Angeles “to some crazy, wonderful parents,” moved to New York when she was 11 years old. “My amazing step-dad was the lead singer in a kick-ass band called Bob City,” she said. “He was from New York, so he moved us with him.” King, who just finished her “pretty outrageous” first year of college, explained that he was the one who put a guitar in her hands.“I practiced …
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Feminism | Posted by Helen H on 01/22/2010
Wajeha Al-Huwaider: A Feminist in Saudi Arabia
A while ago I stumbled upon a blog post from the blog “Sand Gets In My Eyes” about Wajeha Al-Huwaider, a feminist in Saudi Arabia.
(In fact the blog itself is pretty cool. It’s written by an American journalist and mother who lives in Saudi Arabia. Anyway, though, back to Ms. Huwaider)
Needless to say, I was curious. I read through the post, and I was rather impressed. This woman wrote about issues that everyone was aware of, but no one bothered to clarify. And she wrote well, with blatant honesty and cutting sarcasm that I immediately fell in love with.
She’s made several statements on Arab and Saudi men and women, and in most of her statements she defends Islam, implying that the patriarchy in the Arab and Muslim …
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