Two years ago, Mother Jones had a great feature on surrogacy in India. It didn’t receive a whole lot of traffic at the time but it’s come back up into the public eye, because this is an issue that has not gone away. In fact, it’s gotten a whole lot worse, and there’s a big […]
I chose to get sterilised for many reasons, but one of them was the overarching association between fertility and femaleness that runs like a dark bloody thread throughout our society, no matter how much people push back against it. If you have a uterus and ovaries and fallopian tubes and they are capable of producing […]
Like many progressives, I’ve been following the Tyler Clementi case with much interest, because it’s part of a larger ongoing conversation about the dangers of being queer in the United States. As the trial wound up and people started discussing the verdict, I found myself utterly fascinated by the intensity and viscerality of the progressive […]
Many medical students swear some version of the Hippocratic Oath when they become doctors; the oath has become the thing laypeople associate most with medical ethics, even though not all doctors swear by it, and it is more symbolic than binding. It’s a reminder, though, of the ethical training taken in school and the legal […]
Last week, The Washington Post broke what turned out to be a rather explosive story on Mitt Romney’s school days, with a headline about his school ‘pranks, but also troubling incidents.’ What ended up being particularly controversial about the story was both the reaction from the Romney campaign, and the reaction from readers, who seemed […]
I had promised, gentle readers, to stop writing about Glee. After establishing a reputation as a trailblazer in the Glee-hating department, I wanted to rest on my laurels; or, more accurately, I wanted to stop wading through piles of communiques from angry Glee fans, and I wanted to stop watching the show because it was […]
Please note that this post has a strong content warning for rape, sexual assault, mutilation, and medical assault. I’m in the process of preparing for surgery in June, which seems to require reams of paperwork and endless discussions with people in white coats who suck out your bodily fluids and wave devices at you. The surgery […]
(Content note: Discussions of racism below the cut, including graphic imagery.) On her Tumblr, Flavia frequently discusses feminist ethics and praxis; she talks about the transformation of theory, ideas, and dreams into concrete action. She also touches upon the critical importance of accountability among the feminist leadership, and feminists in general, and her coverage of […]
Yes! We have no bananas The history of US involvement in Colombia has been filled with violence and the exertion of colonial power. We have peeled back its surface and bitten down hard on a soft, creamy core. We have consumed it and we have dressed our consumption in a sweet sugary glaze to make […]
April is Autism Awareness Month. Are you aware of autism? Excellent, we’re done! Just kidding. Let’s start over. April is Autism Awareness Month. Originally developed in the 1970s, it’s designed to educate the public about autism and what it means to be autistic, demystifying autism and fighting ableism directed at autistic people. Like a lot […]