Obviously the Internet is an incredible resource to have available right now, but it’s important to consider the ways in which we use it and whether or not it’s having any harmful effects on us. We hear and read a lot about how to take care of ourselves physically and mentally, but we don’t often think about taking care of ourselves digitally…
Home and Prison: Women, Sentencing and the Private Sphere
The notion that the best place for a woman is the home is, for the most part, seen as an outdated one in the 21st century. In 2020, the home is the best place for everyone! However, this extended period of being at home has set me thinking about what home represents for women, and the fact that women can often have a complicated relationship with the notion of home…
Irise Art for Action Auction
Irise International, a charity focused on demanding period equality for people with periods in both East Africa and the UK, are holding an online art auction to raise money and awareness for their cause. The charity is doing crucial work and we spoke to some of its key members to find out more about period poverty, the challenges ahead with corona and of course, the auction.
Social media, the fight against racism and why it’s okay to tap out sometimes
has come a whole new digital space where we can interact with one another. As well as being a space for fun and light-hearted content, social media has also been used as a tool for activism and facilitating discussion…
A First-Hand Guide to Dating in Lockdown
Am I the only person that is bothering with dating while in lockdown? From the radio silence on social media and the responses I’ve been getting from my friends (‘What is the point?’ or ‘That’s weird’) it would seem most people aren’t too keen on the idea. Why bother when we can’t meet up with anyone? Why don’t we just wait until the end of lockdown?
Sustainability and Sex
I never really considered the environmental impact of my bedroom escapades. Even after being vegan for a year, I had no clue that condoms weren’t vegan, and I never really considered the environmental impact of the glittery silicone dildos I was ordering in abundance from LoveHoney…
Reclaiming Belly Dance
A beautiful explanation and history of Belly Dancing, a cultural practice which is a deeply personal and powerful act to many Middle Eastern women…
How life drawing counters the images of the body we see in the media
Life drawing exposed me to the beautiful uniqueness of bodies that mainstream media simply ignores. During the pandemic I found that drawing has helped me find a sense of inner calm and provided an escape from the sadness of everyday life…
The Joy of Reading
Do books tell us much about a person? I often find myself wondering whether I should be embarrassed by my selection. Whether the endless amounts of dystopian fiction I read in my early teens says something about who I am as a nineteen year old. I wonder if people will be able to decipher the books that have been read countless times to the books that are still on my TBR (to be read) list…
Is Second Hand Old News?
After over a month of adjusting to our new way of life, here are my Top Tips for Ethical Consumption under Capitalism and Covid to As Much of a Degree as is Realistically Possible…
Don’t Call Me Caramel
Our co-founder Laila examines the sexual racism prevalent in the language that white men use to approach brown women…
Lockdown and the Self
When quarantine began a very small part of me was excited. Without societal pressure and with nowhere to go, I could wear whatever was comfiest and closest, and not care how bad I looked. A luxury I never allow myself in the ‘real world’. And thus, my quarantine chic was born. Giant purple dungarees, a bare face and slipper socks became my daily uniform…
Never Have I Ever…felt the pressures of being a brown girl
Mindy Kaling’s new show Never Have I Ever debuted on Netflix recently, exploring the life of Devi, an American teenager of Indian heritage. Whilst trying to navigate high school, friendships, family and relationships, Devi finds herself caught in some cultural traps. It’s something that us brown girls growing up in a Western world can relate to. Whilst Never Have I Ever wasn’t intentionally all about race, it still showed some of the modern-day problems of girls torn between two cultures…
Corona is Not a New World Order. We Have Been Here Before: How the Public Sphere Changed Conceptions of Touch, Contamination, and Sex Work.
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, sex worker Lilia Lilith explores the history of how the public sphere has shaped attitudes towards the industry and touch…
What ‘Normal People’ reveals about mental health
Normal People is a book I read around a year and a half ago, whilst at home from university for Christmas. It left me feeling haunted due to its sense of such familiarity – leaving your hometown for a new city, to a university with elitist tendencies, only to face a life you could never had imagined had you decided to stay at home…
Interpreting the Self in Quarantine Compilation
Earlier this month, we reached out to several talented artists on Instagram asking them to explore the shift in their relationship to themselves through their artwork. As predicted, the artists have interpreted the lockdown differently, each pointing to something hopeful and affirming…
The YVA’s : Young Viral Artists
Many students, who have been working towards an end of year show, are now unable to exhibit because of social distancing and safety. Here’s a way to showcase some of the works by six talented new artists who are soon to be new graduates from institutions all over the country…
Corona Isn’t a Climate Cure: Resist Eco-Fascism
The coronavirus crisis has ground the world to a halt. Originating in Wuhan, China in November 2019, before spreading throughout Asia, to Europe and the United States and now to Africa, at the time of writing there have been over 2.2 million cases globally, with over 155,000 of those people having sadly lost their lives…
Interpreting the Self in Quarantine #2
Currently, I do not know what my sense of self is. I don’t know where she went. I don’t know if I want beans or peas with my dinner, I don’t know what time I should go to sleep, I don’t know what to wear for another day of the panny-D (an expression I have recently used to add a bit of light chic to the situation). What I do know is…
How Not to Exercise During a Lockdown
How do you exercise? Is your main focus how much you are “burning”? Do you feel as though food is something you must “earn”? For a long time, thoughts of a punitive nature would pop into my head during workouts, and I unfortunately know that I am not alone. I also know that is a sad way to live life…
How is Corona Affecting Relationships?
Our co-founder Laila questions the potential long-term effects of corona on our relationships…
Interpreting the Self in Quarantine #1
Our new series on the site, Interpreting the Self in Quarantine allows artists to explore how their relationship to themselves has altered in this time
Some Quarantine Culture
For those of us who are locked-down in our homes, working remotely or just trying to fend off the anxiety of unending news updates, it can often feel like we are trapped and unable to enjoy what we once did…
A word of thanks to the NHS
Our beautiful Society and Community editor Beth speaks about the profound role the NHS are playing in this time of crisis…
The Best Kind of Self-Care
I know what the best form of self-care is. Unionising. The pandemic is widening the cracks in our society every day, and the divide between rich and poor has never been starker. But lo, light out of the darkness: Amazon workers in Chicago have won paid time off by forming the organisation Amazonians United and presenting a petition to upper management…