Workflow
‘My husband and I have been working from home, but he got the office. Here’s why it matters’
If you’re working from home with a partner (kids or no kids), this essay will resonate. The decision of who gets the best remote working space feels like an practical relationship compromise, but when Jessica Moldovan began asking friends in heterosexual relationships about who was working where, she found many women were hopping from bed to chair to anywhere, while their male partners took the more desirable and stable location. How she interprets that unofficial data without blaming men—we think that’s key—is impressive. The Washington Post
‘Put gender equality at the heart of the post-COVID-19 economic recovery’
There are so many ways women impact the global economy, through both paid and unpaid labor. This post from the International Labour Organization lays out the five pillars of a feminist economic recovery plan, which takes into account the disastrous loses women have faced and will face because of the pandemic. That might sound like a heavy read, but in actuality, the best part of this writeup is its approachability. Gold star for digestible economics. International Labour Organization
‘On all that f**kery’
Trolling is awful, but what happens when you’re trolled while trying to do your job? In this article, an Asian-American woman in tech outlines the trolling she experienced play by play. As she expertly points out, many trolls will write their comments off as “just a joke” but such rampant, targeted sexism and racism is clearly not a laughing matter. Her words: "Access and representation in tech isn't a pipeline or qualification problem. It's a white supremacy problem." (Please note: Post includes racist, sexist, transphobic, hateful language and online abuse.) Tiny Kat Cafe
‘If your house is a mess, nature is healing’
Ah, mess. It seems unconquerable now with so many families stuck in the same space all day, and maybe that’s a good thing. For many women, the concept of dropping the ball, or opting out of unpaid tasks such as housework or being their relationship’s human calendar in order to prove a point, isn’t new, but never has scattered Legos and unwashed cups felt so fun and empowering. “Because those middens of clothes and toys and Signs-level accumulations of glasses are actually just proof that one person isn’t martyring out, following everyone around like a cleaning-up robot.” Forge
Women to know
‘Reading Elena Ferrante in English? You’re also reading Ann Goldstein’
My Brilliant Friend by Italian author Elena Ferrante (a pseudonym) is wildly popular, and the way the author depicts female relationships, stinging. Yet if you can’t read Italian, then you’re not reading Ferrante’s direct words. You’re reading the interpretation of her editor, Ann Goldstein. We like this profile of Goldstein, aka the woman behind the work, sheerly because such hidden labor is so fascinating, and brilliant women like this are so inspiring. The New York Times
