By Tamara Winfrey Harris Steve Harvey is convinced you could use a few lessons in being “a lady.” So he says in his relationship advice tome, Act Like a Lady; Think Like a Man, in a chapter titled “Strong, Independent–And Lonely–Women.” Ladies are those who let men take the lead in picking a dinner spot. […]
Author: Tami Winfrey Harris
Tami Winfrey Harris writes about race, feminism, politics and pop culture at the blog What Tami Said. Her work has also appeared online at The Guardian’s Comment is Free, Newsweek, Change.org, Huffington Post and Racialicious. She is a graduate of the Iowa State University Greenlee School of Journalism. She spends her spare time researching her family history and cultivating a righteous 'fro.
What the Racist “Psychology Today” Post Means for Feminism
If you somehow managed to miss the Internet firestorm over the past week, Satoshi Kanazawa penned a Psychology Today post last Monday allegedly “proving” that black women are objectively less attractive than other women. Though the article has been pulled from Psychology Today, you can find it in full here. Other writers have capably illustrated […]
Bridesmaids: Can an Apatow Movie Pass the Bechdel Test?
Turns out, to my enduring surprise, the answer to my headline query is “yes.” I went to see the Judd Apatow-produced Bridesmaids with the thinnest of hope. A gung-ho comedy centered on a group of women? I’m in! But previews made it unclear whether the film would be the lady Hangover or a tepid rom-com […]
Hip Mama: For Uncommon Parents
Crack open issue number 47 of Hip Mama—The Body Issue—and here’s what you get: a photograph of a pregnant woman in the desert, posed like a warrior, belly full and exposed; a piece about the physical changes birthing can bring, complete with a photograph of the author’s sagging bum and loose tummy skin; “99 reasons to […]
I Have Big Thighs
Surfing Flickr, I ran across a photo taken surreptitiously of a woman sitting in a subway. Her above-the-knee skirt is slightly parted to reveal her large thighs. It was posted with the following commentary: Just wanted to point out that mini dresses really aren’t flattering – especially on…larger women. The buttons were straining, and if […]
Lady Antebellum and the Glorification of the Pre-Civil War South
A few months ago, “Need You Now” by the country group Lady Antebellum was among iTunes’ free downloads. I’m a curious music lover with eclectic tastes, so I snagged the song for my iPod. It was catchy and nice in the inoffensive and pop-y way of crossover country–think Carrie Underwood not the rougher alt-country of […]