Taylor Swift

The ‘Pro-Life’ Party Has a Funny Way of Respecting Women

Tony Hinchcliffe’s categorically unfunny appearance at Donald Trump’s recent rally in Madison Square Garden leaves me wishing that whoever discovered him left him sleeping in his car behind The Comedy Store in Los Angeles. (It’s how he opens the 12-minute set.)

Most of the ensuing backlash targeted Hinchcliffe’s puerile reliance on racism as humor. But another underreported moment that caught my attention was Hinchcliffe’s “joke” about Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce becoming “the next O.J. Simpson,” referencing Nicole Brown Simpson’s murder, widely believed to be the responsibility of her known abuser.

The joke hinges on the idea that Kelce might murder his girlfriend, Taylor Swift. Hinchcliffe referenced Swift’s political endorsement of Kamala Harris immediately after this joke. His punchline: If a woman voices her opinion, intimate partner violence is a hilarious solution. It’s an interesting stance for the so-called pro-life party to broadcast publicly.

It’s the Season of the Witch. No, Not Halloween—Election Day!

The persecution of witches has never been about magic, it’s always been about punishing (mostly) women who do not conform to patriarchal standards. It’s as true today as it was in 1692. 

Are you a witch? If you wear trousers, can read, and want control over your own body and money, you bet your pointy-hat you are. As you prepare for this scary season, don’t despair—use your magic power. In 2024, don’t cast a spell, cast a vote. 

Will Taylor Swift’s Endorsement Swing the Election?: The Ms. Q&A With Scholar Janell Hobson

Since Taylor Swift announced her endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris on the night of the debate with former President Donald Trump, publications from NBC to Fox have been debating what it might mean for Harris’ campaign and the outcome of November’s election.

An Instagram post from Sept. 10 shows the pop star posing with a fluffy cat in her arms—a direct reference to JD Vance’s quip deriding single and childless women. Before signing the post, “With love and hope, Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady,” Swift told followers that she plans to vote for Harris “because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them. I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos.”

Ms. spoke with contributing editor and scholar Dr. Janell Hobson about about what the endorsement might mean.

Keeping Score: Liz Cheney Calls Trump and Vance ‘Misogynistic Pigs’; Women Break Barriers at Paralympics and Emmys; Taylor Swift Endorses Harris

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 this biweekly roundup.

This week: Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose admits anti-abortion groups helped him write abortion rights ballot language; Kamala Harris and Donald Trump spar over abortion, Project 2025 and immigration at the presidential debate; Paralympics athletes and Emmy winners break records; Taylor Swift endorses Harris and Walz; Montana Supreme Court protects minors seeking abortion care; attacks on women journalists and LGBTQ people; new pay gap data is worse than last year; and more.

In This Debate, a Woman Was the ‘Bigger Man’

If there was any doubt that a woman could lead this country, it was put to rest last night. From the moment she crossed the stage and reached out her hand to greet Donald Trump, Kamala Harris dominated the presidential debate on substance, style and seriousness.

Like the prosecutor she used to be, the vice president made her case sharply and cleanly, identifying and exploiting Trump’s weaknesses. In doing so, she effectively undercut her opponent’s longtime strategy of snidely attacking, denigrating and even looming over women in debates.

Keeping Score: Court Blocks Student Loan Relief Plan; Former N.Y. Cop Sentenced 10 Weekends in Jail After Child Rape; Trump’s ‘Tampon Tim’ Jab Backfires

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 this biweekly roundup.

This week: Kamala Harris reaffirmed her candidacy for president at the DNC; Republican-appointed judges strike down Biden’s student loan relief plan; a new law bans women from speaking in public in Afghanistan; working moms earn just 71 cents per dollar earned by dads; understanding the orgasm gap; gold-medalist boxer Imane Khelif fights back against racist and sexist abuse; new reproductive rights bills signed into law in Illinois; and more.

Trump Using AI Images of Taylor Swift Highlights a New Era of Election Disinformation

On Sunday, former President Donald Trump shared multiple fake images of mostly young, White blond women clutching iced coffees wearing “Swifties for Trump” T-shirts.

Swift had not endorsed Trump, but he declared “I accept!” in his post, implying that maybe she had. The message couldn’t be further from the truth, as the pop star made her support for the Biden-Harris campaign clear in 2020 and tweeted at Trump “We will vote you out in November.”

Taylor Swift, Underdog Voices, and Women’s Historical Right to ‘Bolt’

“The Bolter,” in Taylor Swift’s eyes, is a woman who does not fit traditional society. Swift gives the bolter a voice—one that until now had been silent. She’s a woman not interested in being a trophy wife for the masses to admire. She has her own desires, preferences and demands, but her hopes and dreams are stifled by the rules that others want her to play by. She is unwilling to give of herself to play this role.