Raising The Bar

We’re not even far into 2017, and it’s becoming clear that it’s going to be the year that everyone remembers as “the year I became an activist.” In retrospect, this can be seen as both a good and bad thing. Now that everyone seems to have something to fight for, everyone is getting active, and with more people speaking, the message gets louder. Granted, there is, and always have been hundreds of issues worth standing up and speaking out for, so the fact that 2017’s overwhelming political situation (and various attached issues) might be some people’s first “cause” can seem a little delayed. But, there’s a first time for everything.

So now we’ve all had somewhat of a wakeup call. We’ve attended some protests, called our representatives, raised money, probably deleted (or at least unfollowed) a couple people on Facebook, and we’ve made sure that our core group of people is on the same page as us. This is a given, because at this point, you expect your friends to agree with you, to be fighting the same fight as you, to be preaching the same truths as you. If they’re silent alongside you the whole time while you speak out, you might feel like the fight is a bit unbalanced, or even unsupported. But if all of a sudden they speak against you? That’s a different story.

Open dialogue is good and can be highly productive if both parties are interested in the debate. But often, this is not the case. People end up talking in circles, getting angry, and driving a wedge between them and whoever else is involved. So why would you consider ending a friendship over ideals, but at the same time cheer on your fave celeb who spews anti-feminist, racist, or just ignorant statements without thinking? “Well they’re a great actor, so I’m really just a fan of their work, not their personality.”

What? We can’t be making exceptions.

We know the names: Amy Schumer, Lena Dunham, Shailene Woodley. We’ve heard them say ignorant things, both subtly and sometimes not-so-subtly, and yet, they are still getting jobs, still famous with millions of fans, and still saying ignorant things. At what point will we start holding our favorite entertainers to the expectations we would hold our own friends to? Yes, you can respect someone’s talent without respecting their ideals, but when we find ourselves in this debate specifically pertaining to those with celebrity status, the question changes from, “Can we look past a not-so-perfect personality and respect artistic talent?” to, “Who do we really want to give a platform to?”

With the rise of social media, being a celebrity today comes with way more responsibility than it used to. Brands are beginning to hand-pick models, actors, musicians, and athletes to represent their clothing, products, or just overall vibe, and for not just their looks, but for what they represent as an individual. Trans supermodel-on-the-rise Hari Nef was chosen in 2015 to represent a gender-neutral pop-up shop in Selfridges called “Agender,” and was also cast in a campaign for H&M-owned brand, & Other Stories, that featured a full cast and creative team of trans individuals. She also continued her acting career (the 24-year-old is a theater graduate from Columbia University) when she was cast in the second season of Amazon Prime’s Transparent, a show revolving around a family who’s father comes out as a transgender woman. Recently she’s made headlines as the first transgender model featured on the cover of Elle Magazine, the first trans woman featured in a L’Oreal campaign, and has been featured as a favorite in shoots and runway shows for brands like Gucci, Eckhaus Latta, Hugo Boss, and Vejas. Nef’s popularity is not only due to her spunky-sultry, soft, but androgynous looks, but also the way she has used her rising fame in the fashion world as an outlet to speak out about trans rights and representation, overall issues of diversity in the modeling and fashion industry, and simply the way that our society views “minority success stories” as something to be gawked at in awe. A triumph for activism! Now we can sit back and relax.

No, we can’t relax. It’s never the time to get lazy about representation. And for those in the spotlight, knowing that your words will reach exponentially further than the voices of others who are fighting for change, means you hold a responsibility to keep yourself informed. Nef is a prime example of someone who is using their air time or online space to bring important issues to the forefront of their industry, forcing brands and professionals to confront the problems and take a stance.

Nef’s candid opinions of society and her trailblazing role in the fashion industry make Amy Schumer’s claim that her racist jokes are okay because she plays a “dumb white girl character” on stage seem ridiculous and lazy. The biggest issue with celebrities like Schumer are that women around the world see her comedy and say, “Wow, she’s so likable and funny, I relate with all of her jokes, we would be best friends.” From there, Schumer gathers an alliance of women who relate to her and support her, and will keep supporting her, until they really, really can’t excuse her bullshit anymore. People are really ready to support and lift up someone who seems like them and is also successful, and in many cases, forgive them for being a half-there activist or just a lousy human. Not to say that people can’t make mistakes and grow from them, but a meager apology, in many well-liked celebrities’ cases, is all it takes for loyal fans to excuse someone who uses their time commercializing on stereotypical rhetoric and shutting down the voices of others.

These issues are complicated and activism surely isn’t easy, but it’s vital for us to support people that speak for us, and for everyone else who doesn’t have a voice. If we chose to only raise up voices of change with our money, likes, time, and conversation, we can begin to redefine the type of people who gain success in our world. This is how society is shaped, and we all have to play a role. We have to hold our icons to a higher standard, and hold ourselves higher. So make 2017 more than just your activist awakening, make it the year that you ditched your #problematicfave in exchange for someone who stands for what you do.

Text and image by Carina Allen

Unplug

When tsunami-sized waves of social pressure come crashing onto the once blissful shores of your consciousness, it may to time to make a change. In our little bubble of a world, anxiety threatens from all sides like a sharp pin—one wrong move, and POP! We find ourselves in over our heads, drowning in a FOMO-fueled nebulous of if-only-I-hadn’t’s and wish-I-had-just's.

You know what they say: Too much of a good thing...can land you waist deep in negative thoughts. Forget finals—the tempered glass screen in your hand might actually be stressing you out more than anything else in your life. Pop ups, push notifications and reminders tug at our metaphorical sleeve every moment of the day. Our small chirp from our pocket, and we’re itching to check our messages, unable to think of anything else until we know what it says. It’s as if our lives depend on having control over the endless minutia of daily technology.

As if affecting our mental health wasn’t bad enough, perhaps the worst part about our cell phone obsession is that it distracts us from what is most important. Instead of worrying about our responsibilities, we choose instead to fret over over latest Instagrams, Tweets and Facebook mirror selfies. Less than thirty likes, and our self-esteem takes a shot to the heart; we find ourselves staring at nothing, our thoughts running around in our heads like a rat in a maze. We wonder what we did wrong.

In a day in age when the majority of our social interactions occur online, validated only by the lucrative upvote, it’s understandable why Millennials seem to be falling prey to worse anxieties than any generation before.

This summer, I challenge you to unplug. I’m not insisting you quit social media altogether — quitting something cold turkey is more likely to leave you in a lurch than foster a healthy transition. Instead, try embracing moderation as a more long term remedy to a life controlled by technological vices.

It starts with a walk along a pebbly beach. Feel the wind trace the high points of your cheekbones as you walk parallel to the shoreline. Focus on the billions of grains of sand stretching along behind and in front of you. Close your eyes as it squelches between your toes. The more your fill your headspace with nature, the less room you’ll have in there for self-critical thoughts. Make peace with peace with ups and downs. Whatever criticisms get thrown your way only have as much power as you give them. With a little effort and a mind towards self-love, a garden of positive intentions will bloom in you.

As the balmy days we dreamt of in the throes of winter creep over the horizon of reality, test the reaches of your resolve. Can you make it a day without checking social media? If you have trouble, it may be time to take a break. You may be pleasantly surprised by how much perspective you gain.

Text by Margeaux Sippell

Photography by Sara Nagie

The Twenty-First Century Witch

Healing stones are on windowsills of college dorm rooms, candles are lit with new sparks of symbolism, and you can buy tarot cards at your local Urban Outfitters. Witch culture seems to be making a comeback, but this revival holds far more significance than a trinket or a tchotchke.

Movies and television shows like American Horror Story have reintroduced witch culture to a new generation. If you explore past representations of witches in popular culture, you are likely to see various tropes of witches and their spirituality. Anti-Semitic depictions of Jewish women, racist depictions of Romany people (gypsies) or black women, and depictions of women as "hags" or Satanists are unfortunately not uncommon. These stereotypes only further explain why witch culture and the Wiccan religion has been deemed necessary for a revival.

“To reclaim the word witch is to reclaim our right, as women, to be powerful,” wrote writer Starhawk, in her 1979 book The Spiral Dance. “To be a witch is to identify with 9 million victims of bigotry and hatred and to take responsibility for shaping a world in which prejudice claims no more victims.”

The revival of witch culture can be linked to today’s revolutionary age of feminism; To be a feminist is to carry a political ideology that looks to reject the oppressive structures in our current society, and many consider aspects of Wicca to coincide with the basic principles of inclusion and appreciation.The basic ideologies behind Wicca or pagan witchcraft revolve around the morality proclaimed in the Wiccan Rede, which states that "an it harm none, do what ye will.” Wiccans believe in creating as little harm to oneself or to others as possible -- a belief that coincides with their alternative medicinal practices. Crystals are used as amplifiers of energy and can be used for healing and magic, while tarot cards are viewed as powerful tools for transformation and communication. Viewed as a "mirror to the soul,” a tarot reading can also be used to communicate messages and facilitate emotional healing. This  belief in herbal, crystal, and medicinal healing for mental and physical health is practiced with the intent of dominating anti-feminist, inaccessible, or ineffective modern medicine.

Witches are most notably remembered for being burned at the stake in Protestant and otherwise conservative Western communities. The times of persecution went hand-in-hand with the rise of the church as a socioeconomic and political power. Because of this, the victims weren't strictly those who would have identified with the craft, but they were those whose views did not strictly align with the teachings of the Christian church, whether as a religious group or a political power.

For hundreds of years, to be a witch was to be an outsider. In today's tense political and social atmosphere, it is especially noticeable that more and more women are hailing difference not as something that should cast one out of society, but as something that warrants a new perspective and celebration.

Text by Caroline Long

Illustration by Katrina Chaput

Embracing Isolation

For an artist, thinker, or simply any human, isolation almost seems like a rite of passage—to create is to reflect and to reflect is to isolate. When we take to the pen, the brush, the camera, we must think of the muse that took control of our body. If we can have an understanding of its origin, then perhaps we can predict its future.

Maybe the muse was born out of our desire to show, like when we take pictures of our travels to share with friends. Maybe it came to us one night while we had no one to talk to, no one to connect with, no one to hear our thoughts and answer our questions. If such a thought came to us at that time - when we were seemingly isolated - people may cast it aside as nothing but emotional and personal; however, as creators and artists, we must not ignore these thoughts, but rather cherish their reflexive insights.

The history of art is nothing more than a record of human feelings, ideas, and achievements. We can often look back to art from times past and still derive meaning. To think that a person of the twenty-first century would tattoo words said almost three hundred years prior seems absurd. Yet, it’s rather common.

The people who originally created these works that still hold meaning today often did so in a state of isolation, while feeling that their voice was singular and unimportant. Just imagine if the poems you wrote, while adrift and anxious in a marriage, became the basis of another’s story fifty years into the future. It happened to Sylvia Plath. It’s beautiful and sad and ironic that a writer could be so alone and confused during life, but create work that has so much meaning for millions posthumously.  

The internal struggle of the artist is answering whether the creation of art is for one’s own benefit, or for the benefit of others. Of course it can be tempting to create for others in this day and age. For example, having a large Instagram following can give you reassurance or even money. It may even seem somewhat delusional not to compare yourself with the peers around you, since you can garner perspective from such comparisons.

This split is telling of your personality. On one hand, those who create for others are gregarious, observational, and attentive. On the other, those who create for themselves tend to be more introspective, resilient, and curious. While not always the case, the artists who create for others are doing so for some sort of monetary or emotional compensation. The self-creators, however, are free from such chains and can instead rely on their own intuition and isolation to properly guide them through the dark and lonely sea of creation.

Text by Joseph Boudreau

Photography by Andri Raine

Meet Your Favorite Cocktail

Meet Old Fashioned: a charming, gentlemen type. Always waits three days to call before asking you out. Has a generic, monosyllabic name. Has mastered the art of ghosting—thinks it hurts less. No matter how much he explains it, you’re not really sure what his job is. Maybe it has something to do with math, or with people. Went to a state school. Wears an unusual amount of orange. Interrupts his stories with his own laughter.

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Meet Vodka Cranberry. She peaked in high school. Loves her Lululemon, loves her little. Hair always looks perfect. So unapologetically basic she doesn’t even realize it. Tinder is always open, but she says she uses it “for giggles.” Consistently reliable. Roar is #1 on her “Work That Booty” playlist.  You hate that you still like her even though she hasn’t changed since high school, though you only “found yourself” in college.

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Meet Jack and Coke. Attractive in dim lighting. Brooding. Second drink of choice is “whatever IPA do you have on tap.” Doesn’t ever seem to blink. Never buys girls drinks, but always seems to leave with one. Great at listening, but you’re not really sure if he knows how to talk.  Is either “working on his manuscript” or just  “figuring out his sound.” Standard uniform: leather jacket, red flannel, boots. Never takes the jacket off, even in the bar, even in the summer. Talks about how Europe transformed him.

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Meet Long Island Iced Tea. Good girl, with a secret bad side. You don’t realize it, but when you go out with her you end up forgetting large parts of your night. Really good at sneaking up on people, or sneaking into places––basically she is just sneaky. Walking contradiction, can’t be trusted even though you want to. Cute girl in a sweater, but loves her ripped CVS tights. Parents love her. Plus, she’s not even from Long Island.

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Text by Courtney Major

Illustrations by Morgan Wright

Toddler Fashion

“You look stunning” said a blase voice from below my knees. I spun on my jelly heel to thank whomever was into outfits that didn’t match. “Oh, thanks,” I replied to a woman pushing a stroller and was in shock when she pointed to what had actually supplied the compliment that changed my life. Peering out from her oversized heart-shaped sunnies sat my newest style icon—a five-year-old named Poppy who didn’t give a shit that my leggings didn't match my bow. Her noisy pineapple bomber and uneven space buns contained a fashion freedom I had forgotten when I threw away my barbies.

In my mind, I looked like a hot mess, minus the hot part; I looked loud, immature, and silly. My outfit that day had resulted from a lack of quarters and a rebellion from trying. Yet in the eyes of someone who was not yet aware of how adults dress, I was stunning. That was the day I realized: not only did I secretly love dressing like a toddler, but I was accepted in a carefree community of expression by Queen Poppy.

I walked away feeling empowered. Yes, I looked loud, immature and silly, but isn’t that kind of… fun? My whimsical leggings screamed whatever and my bow was two sizes too big. When did women decide that dressing your age meant tailored neutrals, polite kitten heels and blunt bobs?  I remember in an episode of Glee when Rachel Berry was supposed to chill the fuck out and start dressing less like a toddler-grandma hybrid and more like a hot girl. They took away her Peter-Pan-collared-dreams and stuffed her into American Apparel disco pants. They took away everything that made her Rachel in order to fulfill the beauty standards set in that scenario—going against everything a toddler believes in.

If you think about it, this concept of “makeover” has been applied to every TLC show ever—perpetuating the noise-cancelling idea that the best way to signal adulthood is to only wear suit jackets, pair neutrals, and collect heels on heels. The briefcase into which women have stuffed their fashion sense has stripped away the ideology of childhood fashion in the name of “professionalism,” robbing personal style and ruining my life for a year. (Yes, I owned a blazer for one year and one year only.) A secret philosophy of the boring business lady is be “just right,” always looking put together and never “too much” in order to be noticed but not too bold.

In 2009, Leandra Medine helped open the flood gates to fashion freedom with her counter- cultural fashion blog Man Repeller.  She explained that “A Man-Repeller is she who outfits herself in a sartorially offensive mode that may result in repelling members of the opposite sex. Such garments include, but are not limited to, harem pants, boyfriend jeans, overalls, full length jumpsuits, jewelry that resembles violent weaponry and clogs.” Not only is dressing like a blithe lil’ kiddo fun, but it also fucks with the patriarchy. “Why is that kinda-adult person wearing overalls?” he might ask, and the answer is “because she wants to.”

Giving yourself permission to pair pieces that society says are reserved for people under three-feet-tall restores a childlike point of view that we accidentally lost. Nobody actually wants to dress like a sad corporate lady, but somewhere we decided that's what we had to do. Next time you have the choice between a terry-cloth romper and khaki trousers, think of me. Think of Poppy, and think of yourself making the most noise you can. Take up space and stand out because you owe the world nothing, and a pair of keds never hurt anyone.

Text by Jenny Griffin