More Than A Magazine, A Movement
As abortion becomes increasingly inaccessible in much of the U.S., many more people may soon find themselves with no choice but to fly or drive long distances to access the care that they need.
People should be able to exercise their bodily autonomy and control their reproductive lives without leaving their communities. Whether people opt to make lengthy drives or to fly in the face of bans and restrictions, the environmental cost of forcing this travel will ultimately impact us all.
This week, we celebrated the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which was included with the fiscal year appropriations package approved by Congress. VAWA is a crucial support for women across the country experiencing violence, more so than ever in this current moment. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its economic stressors and repeated lockdowns, has compounded domestic violence problems, leading advocates to name it a “shadow pandemic.”
Exactly one year ago, as my colleague and I were working on written testimony for a House Judiciary committee hearing on anti-Asian violence and discrimination, news broke about the killings of eight people, six of them Asian women, in the Atlanta area.
The news cycle has moved on—but I refuse to. Each time I see a picture of the latest Asian American woman victim, I see a family member, a friend. I see me.
For those of us ready and able to speak, claiming space as women of color in conversations about eating disorders is not just about reducing stigma, but about challenging the dominant narratives that have obscured our pain or failed to comprehend it in its full complexity.
In the mid-1930s, Anna May Wong was Hollywood’s preeminent Asian American starlet frustrated by a racist film industry. She connected with Bernardine Szold Fritz, a Jewish American writer and American salon hostess in Shanghai.
Today, 100 years after Anna May starred in her first leading role, The Toll of the Sea, stereotypes and casting white actors for Asian roles are still all too prevalent. Outside Hollywood, the U.S. is just beginning to recognize her groundbreaking achievements—Anna May Wong will be one of five American women to be featured on a U.S. quarter this year. It’s a start.
Each month, I provide Ms. readers with a list of new books being published by writers from historically excluded groups. March and April are historically big months for new book releases, and this year is no exception. I’ve narrowed down a list of hundreds of books to 36 this month. In addition to some compelling fiction, there’s imperative nonfiction, memoirs and debuts.
Each month, I provide Ms. readers with a list of new books being published by writers from historically excluded groups. The aims of these lists are threefold:
1. I want to do my part in the disruption of what has been the acceptable “norm” in the book world for far too long—white, cis, heterosexual, male;
2. I want to amplify amazing works by writers who are women, Black, Indigenous, Latinx, APIA/AAPI, international, LGBIA+, TGNC, queer, disabled, fat, immigrant, Muslim, neurodivergent, sex-positive or of other historically marginalized identities—you know, the rest of us; and
3. I want to challenge and encourage you all to buy, borrow and read them!
I’ve spent the last few months scouring catalogs and websites, receiving hundreds of books and even more emails from authors, publicists and publishers, reading your book Tweets and DMs, all to find out what books are coming out in 2022 that I think you, my exceptional, inquisitive and discerning Ms. readers, will want to hear about.
There are 101 incredible books on this list. I’ve been a professional book jockey for 15+ years and I am encouraged to see more books each year that reflect the lives we actually lead. There’s always more work to be done and more to be written, but I’ve reason to be hopeful. So let’s get to it!
“How could I, a highly-trained physician, not recognize the symptoms I taught trainees everyday?”
Society has convinced women we have to do it all: be successful in the workplace while fulfilling the lion’s share of care work at home. Women overcompensate by outperforming in both their fields and families—but the cost many face to their personal well-being is not worth it. Women must forgo this illusion and work to find balance in their life that works for them, accepting that they themselves have to be their own top priority.
In every issue of Ms., we track research on our progress in the fight for equality, catalogue can’t-miss quotes from feminist voices and keep tabs on the feminist movement’s many milestones. We’re Keeping Score online, too—in in this biweekly round-up.
This week: Senate fails to pass landmark voting rights legislation; the 49th (and last?) anniversary of Roe v. Wade; OPM raises minimum wage for federal employees to $15 per hour; Minneapolis City Council elects Andrea Jenkins as its first Black, transgender woman president; D.C. mothers eligible for $900 in monthly assistance; Michaela Jaé Rodriguez is first transgender actor to win a Golden Globe; women patients see significantly better outcomes with female surgeons; and more.
