More Than A Magazine, A Movement
On Presidents’ Day, we reflect on the legacy of the presidents who have led our nation since our founding. These leaders have differed in their ideologies, their policies, their professional experience, their age, their marital status. But in over 230 years of United States presidents, not one of them has been a woman.
Diane Rosenfeld’s new book The Bonobo Sisterhood: Revolution Through Female Alliance is a call to action, a way forward and societal shift that can free us from the grips of patriarchy.
“The bonobos are peaceful, loving, food sharing, freely sexual and xenophilic, meaning they love strangers, they do not fear them,” because “they have nothing to fear,” she writes. In the bonobos, Rosenfeld finds proof positive that “patriarchy is not inevitable.”
Over 100 years ago, my great-great-great grandfather Fredrick Douglass advocated for Black freedom and women’s rights. He was determined to push America to be a true democracy that encompasses all Americans regardless of race or gender.
Unfortunately, the fight for equality persists into 2022 and I am fighting for the same causes along with many members of my generation.
Books provide us not only with necessary information but also with the respite we need from the constant labor of securing our rights and humanity in all the ways they are under attack.
I hope of the 33 books here, you’ll find one that inspires, relaxes or distracts you for a little while.
While it is critically necessary to analyze the racial politics of January 6, this focus too often has the effect of rendering invisible another key aspect of that tragic event: the role of gender. The vast majority of insurrectionists were not only white people; they were white men.
Men—many of whom are conditioned from childhood to see themselves primarily as protectors and defenders—are the ones who respond most eagerly to pleas for them to help rescue their country, through violent means if necessary.
The political earthquake that was the 2016 election sparked a dormant ember that fired up Latinas to run for office against the threat of misogynistic forces bent on rolling back hard-fought women’s rights. Now, we’re witnessing the fruits of their labor flourish.
Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign targeted 3.5 million Black Americans to discourage their vote on Election Day.
Last week, Facebook announced the launch of its Voting Information Center, with the goal of “[helping] every eligible voter in the U.S. who uses our platform vote this year.” The launch of the Voting Information Center comes following years of widespread criticism against the site.
Unless we reckon with the depth and staying power of white supremacy and toxic masculinity, we will never be able to do anything more than defend what little inclusion and democracy we have. That begins with acknowledging it.