by Cynthia
Morning, angels. Tomorrow, August 8th, marks many important people in my life’s birthday, my very pregnant sister’s due date, and, most importantly for your information, the LAST DAY to submit to the LOVE issue. We are looking for critical, engaging, political reflections on the topic of love. Check out the call for submissions, share with your pals, send us your pitches. We can not wait to hear from you.
- Women in Prison, a poem by El Jones
- Muna Mire on Korryn Gaines and making public the private violence that Black women face
- “The romanticization of dominance and submission kills. Once every 19 hours a Black woman is killed by a man.” For Korryn Gaines, Skye Mockabee and Joyce Quaweay
- “Just as abusive relationships don’t end with flowers, abusive police systems don’t end with ice cream.” Against feel-good cop videos
- On Tuesday the Canadian federal government announced its official inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women. Marion Buller, a First Nations judge, will lead the inquiry, along with four other Indigenous commissioners. The Native Women’s Association shared their concerns about the inquiry and stated how they will continue to work to ensure end violence against Indigenous women and girl. Read their statement here.
- “There is no amount of money in the world that will ever replace our sisters. There is no report that will make things OK while we are still facing colonial violence.” Erica Violet Lee, Melina Laboucan-Massimo, Rebecca Kudloo, and Vanessa Watts on what the MMIW inquiry is lacking.
- One of the biggest land conveyances in US history happened last week, proving that returning stolen land to Indigenous people is a totally viable and reasonable course of action.
- A sinking, stinking, hot and heavy jail: the environmental disaster that is Rikers island.
- “How do we hold on to the connections that we make in the world? How do we keep friends close? How do we accept support and kindness and love at the times when we are most vulnerable?” I loved this piece on feminist publishing, lesbian poetry, and the possibilities of love, sex, sensuality, community, and camaraderie between women.
- I refuse to link to that Zizek article, but I will re-link to this one: The Best Time I Pretended I Hadn’t Heard of Slavoj Žižek
- a super cute and useful hair accessory.
- “You have to be careful when you struggle for wages because wages are used to divide people, but as a tool for change they can be used in the opposite way…[this is what’s] happening in the struggle around the $15 minimum wage—it is about subverting these hierarchies, it is the bottom rising.” Silvia Federici speaks to Marina Stirin about social reproduction: between the wage and the commons
- Lily Gurton-Wachter on the literature of pregnancy and new motherhood, that’s establishing “a space in which pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum experience are neither ignored nor pathologized, but simply — and at long last — described.”
- “Crime begins with the state and the social order it enforces; punishment reflects the prerogatives of those who rule, not the choices of those who deviate.” Gabriel Winant reviews Sarah Haley and Talitha L. LeFlouria’s books on Black women and the carceral state
- “Skateboarding is really anti-systemic…There is this idea of wreaking havoc on society, and turning over the status quos. But who is to say that is not a peaceful process? Because society as it is, already isn’t peaceful.” The Brujas, an all-girl Bronx crew opening spaces for Latina and POC skaters in the city, talk skating, sisterhood, and the movement against aggressive gentrification (this piece was published a while back, but we missed it, so maybe you did too!)
- We’re thrilled to see skateboard clubs for women and girls are popping up across Toronto
- Good news for anyone who’s hobby is academic research or watching arty smarty films: Did you know that the Toronto Public Library gives members access to JSTOR AND the ability to stream the Criterion Collection (and probably a bunch of other things?). Get that content, bbs!
- “Trauma and healing can be positively assimilated and very much revered within sex and play.” New content from Amber Dawn
- A lit mix tape putting the spotlight on writers of colour
- Red Rising Magazine has a new call for submissions: submit!
