by Sariel Friedman Being a feminist in a communist country isn’t easy. It was hard enough for Kathleen Hanna and Carrie Brownstein to make music and speak out against patriarchy here in the US, but at least they didn’t have to worry about evading the police. Although it may seem as if American women aren’t…
by Dee Putri Many times in the past, I’ve found myself wondering what everybody thinks about me. Am I pretty? Do I look cool? Or maybe, do I look pathetic? But I’m not brave enough to ask people about it. Also, when they say that I’m pretty, I’m afraid that it is just about having…
Is the word “bitch” acceptable? Kanye West posted a flurry of tweets on September 2nd examining his use of the word. He just wanted to think out loud with us today. So Kanye, here’s what we, the girls of SPARK, think about the word “bitch.” YingYing: As with any other word, “bitch” can only have…
by Izzy Labbe This is part one in a four-part serial blog about sexualization in the music industry, beginning with the 1960s. I’m one of those people who can live without food and water, shelter, human interaction and all that other stuff people are supposed to have to survive, but whose body and existence will…
by Sariel Friedman When the SPARKteam girls shuffled in to the SPARK retreat on the morning of Thursday, August 9th, little did we know that by the end of the weekend, we would have gotten hopelessly lost on public transportation, critiqued sexualized advertising wherever we went, spent way too much money on junk food from…
by Ria Desai In my whirlwind journey through the cartoon The Legend of Korra, I found that the show, while exemplary in featuring strong women as its leads – and strong women of color, at that – fails to empower those women. Instead, the female characters, as is all too common in media, fall victim…
by Seila Rizvic Girl Model is a documentary by filmmakers Ashley Sabin and David Redmond that explores what goes on behind the images we see in magazines. Specifically, the film recounts the story of Nadya, a 13-year-old girl who is found by model scouts scouring her home region of Siberia for “fresh” talent to send…
by Shavon L. McKinstry It’s that time of year: young students all around the world are looking forward to starting their secondary education. It’s a big step in life, and for some, it’s not just advancement in their schooling, but a time of important social lessons as well. Many college-age students have the opportunity to…