“The Day After” refers, of course, to a real-time event: the presidential election. The dizzying buzz and swirl of the campaign and the selection of the White House occupant make distraction all too easy. But feminists and progressives know that they need to keep their eyes on core issues no matter what — before, during and after the election cycle. These enduring values are catalysts for future activism and the subjects of our new Fall issue, The Day After.
On wide-ranging issues — the economy to the environment, reproductive freedom to voting freedom, sexuality to media representation — our writers, artists and thinkers in The Day After remind us to extend our vision beyond the ballot box to where we need to place our energies, build our muscles and put our feet on the ground every day of the year.
Safety and security are prime issues for women. Juhu Thukral talks about the need for passionate leadership at the top in protecting women and sexual minorities from violence in Victims of Gender Violence Find Solutions Slipping Away, while Jamie Hagan explains important efforts by women around the world to make sure that all populations are included in peacebuilding in Global “Security” Equals Human Security and Gender Rights.
Amanda Marcotte looks around the culture wars today and finds that they add up to one thing: a reactionary freak-out on sexual freedom in No Dancing: The Right Aims to Take Down Sexual Liberation. And Color of Change commentator Dani McClain looks at the black community and gay marriage, wondering if it isn’t time to come out and support single people, especially women, in Can Black Women Lead the Way in Redefining Marriage?
How women’s issues fare in the world is intricately tied to the media, writes Jennifer L. Pozner in My Feminist Media Road Trip: Time to Take The Wheel, as she looks at stalled progress for women in media representation and suggests future activism. Media inequity also joins other cultural and social factors causing lopsided political leadership, writes Diane Vacca in Getting Closer to the Levers of Power, while Mary E. Plouffe urges a four-step plan of continuous, active engagement to keep feminists moving forward in Standing Our Ground: Beyond Maslow’s Basic Needs.
One of two men may change the future of the country, but we are the best candidates to shape the outcomes of our own lives. Read the new issue now.
You can also engage in the conversation through our comments section at the bottom of every article, and on Facebook and Twitter, using the hashtag, #TheDayAfter.
Hot Topics Pick: Shulamith Firestone and Me
Third wave feminist icon Jennifer Baumgardner shares a touching story on her experience knowing the recently passed radical second wave theorist. She writes:
Losing Shulamith Firestone chills me. Are her ideas sufficiently embodied in the DNA of the feminist movement? Will her contributions live on? I think so, and yet I wonder. The bold thinkers of the second wave, those rare birds, are scarce. Is it only by reading their books and radical feminist history that we make sure that they don’t become extinct? Or is it also important that we continue to uphold, as she did, a unique vision of the world?
OTI News: We Have A New Senior Editor!
After four incredible years with author and friend Cindy Cooper, The Day After is her last issue as she hands over the reigns — we’re excited to announce our new Senior Editor, author and journalist Barbara Fischkin. More to come!
As always, thanks for your readership and support.