It’s hard to grow up in the world that we live in and not have body image issues. No matter what you look like, you undoubtedly have been exposed to advertising or messaging that tells you there's something wrong with the way you look. From “detox” teas to “anti-aging” skincare products to shapewear, someone somewhere is constantly telling us that there is something we need to … [Read more...]
Why I’m Over the Pressure To “Find Love” as an Asexual Person
I wish it were more acceptable in this world for people to live life without romantic love — without having it, without wanting it, and without waiting around for it. What tires me most about our cultural view of romantic love is the idea that, even if we don’t have it or want it now, romantic love will ultimately make its way into our lives, and it’s going to change … [Read more...]
Asian and Asexual: How I Came To Own My Asexuality While Fighting Cultural Stereotypes
As an Asian American woman who exists on the asexual spectrum, I navigate a tricky space when it comes to sexuality. On one hand, I experience hypersexualization and fetishization based on Orientalist assumptions about Asian women. On the other, I come from a culture of sexual conservatism, where families don’t speak about sex but the expectation of abstinence is always … [Read more...]
Why Reproductive Justice Means Going Beyond Pro-Choice Politics
For as long as I’ve been politically aware, I have considered myself staunchly pro-choice. From a young age, I knew that I didn’t want to have children or start a family, and now in my mid-twenties, that attitude hasn’t wavered. More than that, the idea of having to carry a pregnancy—especially one I didn’t want—to term terrified me. So before I had been exposed to the concepts … [Read more...]
Food Isn’t Just Fuel: The Liberation Politics of Food
“Food is fuel” is one of those statements that, as an immigrant, never quite resonated with me. In addition to being the thing that gives me energy to go through my day, food is also nostalgia, and it is also home. Flying back to my hometown across the world, one of my favorite things to do is eat all the delicious street foods and tropical fruits I can only dream of here in … [Read more...]
Why Economic Access Matters: What’s Missing From the Reproductive Justice Conversation
In 1994, a group of Black women coined the term “reproductive justice” in an effort to create a movement that, unlike mainstream pro-choice activism, would be inclusive of people who are most marginalized. To that end, reproductive justice as a movement encompasses far more than abortion rights. It also includes fighting for a living wage, equitable family leave policies, … [Read more...]
The Pressure of Productivity: What Unemployment Taught Me About Mental Health
As someone who struggles with anxiety and depression, I am all too familiar with how on-the-job stress can affect your mental health, and vice versa. What I didn’t realize, however, was how much worse not having a job would be for my mental health—until I had to live through several months of being unemployed myself. With unemployment, of course there’s the obvious stressor: … [Read more...]
How Social Media Can Help or Hinder Your Mental Health & Body Image
Throughout my struggles with mental health, I’ve had a lot of time to reflect on the things that have helped and hindered my healing as I worked my way through depression, anxiety, and a truly unhealthy relationship with my own body. Social media, thanks to its subtle but lingering presence in my life, is one of those things. To be clear, social media has hurt me. It’s been a … [Read more...]
