‘Belonging Elsewhere’ by Alyson Wagner
Ostracism in the Workplace, that Subtle Destroyer
This post touches upon insidious forms of bullying, the many harms social exclusion causes, how you can help as someone in a position of power, and what you can do if you’re the one being ostracised. It ends with letters in which the authors share and reflect on their experience with bullying.
Roosevelt Island by Surya Ohara
Solo Travel: Wrong Turns & Buried Treasures
Through fragments of globe-trotting stories and reflections, this blog post touches on lucky accidents and the upside of having poor wayfinding skills; how solo travel can help forge an identity and bring you closer to other people; and why, despite the fear and sadness of being away from home, the travel bug is a tenacious one.
Photo by Nirana Ohara
Why I Love Reading and Writing
This post is about why I write in English most of the time while my first language is French, how I came to love reading and writing (with a capital L), and how these activities – fundamentally solitary at first glance – make me feel less alone.
Photo by Surya Ohara
International Humanitarian Aid: its Limitations & the Hope It Carries
Part report/travel diary part interview, this post suggests that, despite its limitations, international humanitarian aid is necessary. The question might be, what kind of humanitarian aid is needed? And what’s the value of nonconformist education? How can we bridge the gap between two very different cultures? How can we effectively help the locals? How can we repair damages when preventive measures are no longer an option? I asked community development worker Francis Laleman for his perspective.
‘Beauty and Herself’ by Kristina Stoyanova
Reflections on Gendered Ageism & Beauty
Thoughts about beauty and the intersection between sexism and aging.
“I want to know where I begin and end, what size I am, and what suits me… I am not ‘in’ this body, I am this body. […] But all the same, there’s something about me that doesn’t change, hasn’t changed, through all the remarkable, exciting, alarming, and disappointing transformations my body has gone through. There is a person there who isn’t only what she looks like, and to find her and know her I have to look through, look in, look deep. Not only in space, but in time.” Ursula K. Le Guin
Illustration by Jayde Perkin
Gender Equality: Why We’re Not There Yet
This post considers some of the roadblocks to gender equality. It discusses instances of everyday sexism and our cultural numbness when it comes to sexual violence. In addition, it explores how gendering emotions influences the way men and women express their feelings, teaching girls to bottle up their anger and boys to have trouble identifying and talking about their emotions.
“Gender Equality: Why We’re Not There Yet” also looks at the development of shame in both genders (in many societies, males learn to feel shame about their vulnerability and females about their bodies), and at how expecting people to play gender-specific roles hurts all of us. For example, the demand that girls and women be sweet and likable at all times impedes both their self-acceptance and our tolerance towards girls and women who fail to exhibit ideal behavior.
The link between sex discrimination and other forms of social inequity, such as racism and class inequality, is another topic this post addresses. It is crucial that mainstream feminism be more inclusive, and that it stop worshipping masculinity as a concept and overlooking issues that affect entire groups of women.
Although this blog article offers a few solutions to gender inequality, suggesting ways to contribute to creating a safer, more equitable world, its main aim is to help take things further by pointing to the progress made thus far as well as to the many themes well worth looking into, and by posing relevant questions.
‘Girl Braving the Storm’ by Judy Clement Wall
The Calmest Place Sits in the Heart of the Storm
Reflections on the transformative power of finding calm within a storm, recovery, the flip side of self-discipline, my ballerina days, the gut-brain axis, communal loneliness, the hard life lessons we learn as we go along, and Christmas trees.
“So don’t be frightened, dear friend, if a sadness confronts you larger than any you have ever known, casting its shadow over all you do. You must think that something is happening within you, and remember that life has not forgotten you; it holds you in its hand and will not let you fall. Why would you want to exclude from your life any uneasiness, any pain, any depression, since you don’t know what work they are accomplishing within you?” ― Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet
‘King David’ by Christopher Adam Williams
Spreading Minor Miracles as a Way to Dismantle Systemic Racism
This article seeks to show the ways we keep people of color from thriving, and hinder true visibility and diversity in both fiction and real life. It discusses how images and discourses shape our cultural notions of justice as well as our perception of marginalized ethnic groups. The media play an important part in the perpetuation of corrosive racial myths (such as the ‘model minority’ and ‘criminalblackman’ myths), by feeding our implicit biases, and by typecasting and oversimplifying minority identities and their experiences.
In addition, this article touches on: residential segregation and its connection with health care, the concept of intersectionality and misogynoir, the impact of Eurocentric beauty standards on non-white girls and young women, racial disparity and institutional biases in the prison environment, and how we can use humor to foster bonding rather than prevent it.
Moving forward in our fight for racial parity involves, as this blog post suggests, acknowledging our social responsibility and the link between our journey toward self-realization and our social activism, deconstructing our racial assumptions and unlearning our fear of the foreign, raising children so they regard individuals from different ethnic backgrounds as human equals, cultivating critical thinking and media mindfulness, supporting policies that promote equity, building justice where there is none through our actions, and comprehending why we can’t be truly free until everyone else is.
‘Prayers’ by Judy Clement Wall
The Role of Wonder in Surviving Grief
My story of grief and accounts of grief from other people who’ve lost loved ones to help you on your own journey
My imagination sought for her in the sky, at nightfall when we had been wont to gaze at it while still together; beyond that moonlight which she loved, I tried to raise up to her my tenderness so that it might be a consolation to her for being no longer alive, and this love for a being who was now so remote was like a religion; my thoughts rose to her like prayers. – Marcel Proust, Remembrance of Things Past
Photos by Surya Ohara
How to Wonder at Otherness and Save our Pale Blue Dot
What people say – vegans & non-vegans alike
“A thoughtful, non-aggressive thesis on veganism. Worth reading if you are in a place of curiosity, and baffled by the many dietary claims and counter claims.” Tobias
“Really useful & thoughtful.” Katie
“A true labour of love, your first post is so extensive, informative, and empathetic, and the fact you’ve referenced everything – great work.” Jayde
“Very impressive work, your points are well taken!” Oliver
“Rarely do I read something so long online, but it never felt long. Your words are really clear and well-presented.” Matt
“I am vegan and you’ve done a great job putting to words what I hope growing numbers of other people will feel as well.” Gordon