Feminists don't wear pink and other lies by Scarlett Curtis
Penguin, 2018. ISBN 9780241364451
(Age: 15+) Highly recommended. Scarlett Curtis assembles a
magnificent 'guide book' for the Girl-Up movement, with this
anthology of short essays, blogs, narratives, lists, poems, diaries,
interviews, anecdotes - including an Alphabet. The Girl-Up brand,
spanning over 2,000 clubs worldwide, is transparent but both the
foreword and further reading sections encourage any and every level
of feminism. Listing websites, books and everyday actions, Curtis is
expansive, including books like The
Hate U Give and The Bone Sparrow to reassure
girls that equality for women runs parallel to equality for all
people. Important quotes and truisms loom large covering entire
pages. 'Women's history is bigger than one person, so the way we
talk about the past needs to be as well.'
Kiera Knightly addresses her young daughter fiercely regarding the
lie of the weaker sex. Nothing is sacred as her co-contributors
gleefully discuss periods, bras, genital mutilation, masturbation,
man-hating, ableism, #MeToo, intersectionality and more.
This historical quest for equal rights across gender, age, race,
class, disability is pervading, although the history of the women's
movement is extolled in the very last 'Education' section. It's a
shrewd device because we have spent 300 pages being highly engaged
by comedians and actors with amusing perceptions and fascinating
experiences - from transgender girls to traditional Muslim girls.
The reader does not want for feminist definitions, but Scarlett
Curtis, while pinpointing the gender stereotyping of the patriarchy,
opens her feminist arms wide, 'The goal of the feminist movement
aims to give each person on the planet the freedom to live their
life the way they want to live it, unhindered by sexism or
oppression or aggression.'
One of the contributors warns against using the internet abounding
with confusing fallacies, encouraging girls to go right to the
source - the wealth of books written by historical and current
feminists. Perhaps drawing on those higher tier needs and habits of
humanist thinkers, Curtis encourages girls not to leave any girl
behind, rather support them with understanding and encouragement for
their own difficult struggles against aggression. Beanie Feldstein's
drama teacher encapsulates the books sentiment, 'Stuff your
pockets'.
Although females and males of all ages will devour this funny,
uplifting and sometimes shocking collection, school libraries are
likely to run into problems with the many colloquial referents for
female genitalia - thus an 'M' for mature sticker is mandatory.
There's not one picture in this verbal 'mash-up' but there's a
brilliant reason for the cover's particular shade of pink - finding
out is definitely worth it. Want more? Investigate the podcasts on
itunes found on the book's site.
Deborah Robins