Restless Is the Social Media Platform Fighting Sexual Assault

Olivia DeRamus on Restless, her new social media platform for women and sexual violence survivors.

“I knew I had to find a way to empower myself again within the circumstances I couldn’t change. I thought that maybe if I couldn’t tell my own story, I could at least facilitate the stories of other women. That maybe I could speak indirectly through them, and feel like I was reclaiming my narrative, even if indirectly.”

Jacob Blake’s Sister, Letetra Widman: “I Don’t Want Your Pity. I Want Change.”

Letetra Widman highlighted the broader impact of systemic racism around Blake’s shooting—one that the families of murdered Black Americans have been highlighting for a long, long time.

“When you say the name Jacob Blake, make sure you say father, make sure you say cousin, make sure you say son, make sure you say uncle. But most importantly, make sure you say human. Human life. Let it marinate in your mouth and your minds. A human life. Just like every single one of you all and everywhere … We’re human. His life matters.”

In Defense of the “1619 Project”

The “1619 Project” is critical in bringing the U.S. up to par in taking responsibility for slavery, and, perhaps even more so, in taking action to repairing the educational standard around slaver and all the ways its influence continues to permeate the United States.

It is no wonder white historians and senators alike feel threatened; Sen. Tom Cotton’s feet are firmly planted in the faith of American exceptionalism, so to him and those who share his beliefs, a curriculum that reveals a not-so-exceptional U.S. is earth-shattering.

Tools of the Patriarchy: Should Chivalry Be Dead?

While accepting a polite gesture should come easily, it is natural that polite actions created off of a basis of gender inequality may make women squirm—it certainly does make us.

“The fact is, chivalry is a standard that is based on sexist ideals—created during a time when women were referred to as damsels in distress, and when men with power were so out of control they needed a clear set of rules to tell them not to rape any woman they saw.”