Articles curated by JSL - Issue #79

I'm working to finally finish an essay I've been trying to write for a year about how different cultures relate to the act of saying I love you (I'll share it once it's out). I came by this piece during my research--I think you'll enjoy it

And this, too. If you've ever heard about the five love languages and want to dig a little deeper, here's a chance. And if you've never heard of them, this is a good place to start.

It's rare for me to come by articles that make me excited about Biden (rather than just excited about Trump disappearing.) This was an exception--a Biden administration would be such a huge change for international diplomacy and stability.

Be like the Norwegians, go outside!

If I found the lamp and Aladdin popped out, this would be my first wish. Exactly this.

Here's something that frustrates me: fads that aren't rooted in evidence. So when an article comes by that makes me feel someone went through the effort of going through all the evidence out there and examining it, it makes me feel good in my stomach. Just do what this article says and you and the globe will both feel better.

This is amazing!

Non-article bonus link I: I cannot stop listening to the On Being podcast (you can also read them as transcripts). This is one of the best episodes I've heard but honestly they're all so good. Robert Kahneman!; Ezra Klein; Maya Angelou; Alison Gopnik. They're all great!

Non-article bonus link II: Do you wish you could spend more time reading weekly newsletters? Here's your chance. This is well-written and on-point and sometimes even funny. It focuses mostly on US politics, but also touches on, hmm, "global justice" and other topics.

Interview

For this inaugural interview, I've spoken to Rosebell Kagumire. She's a Ugandan writer, award-winning blogger, activist and pan-African feminist and media strategist. Her writing has appeared in numerous publications around the world and she's the embodiment of what I believe The Young People refer to as 'fierce'. You can follow Rosebell's work on AfricanFeminism.com.

What is the biggest challenge you’re struggling to overcome in your work?

How to get resources to the people who are actually shifting things in our society and doing the work that makes those with power uncomfortable, steering us towards progress. The work of young feminists in Africa is largely unrecognised, stolen, co-opted, erased while they continue to fight on the margins of society. 

The old adage that the personal is political—does that hold true?

Always! It’s about how we don’t just exist as individuals in a vacuum. We exist in systems that either privilege us or debase us, rarely are we just bystanders. Our positionality in this world is an important lens to remind us why we are where we are and what needs to change to bring true equality. It also speaks to how, as individuals, what we think is our preferences or choices are rooted in what the politics of the day avails us. Our individual needs and concerns are rooted in larger contexts that have its politics, whether we actively take part or not. 

If you could change something about the way women and men, respectively, are expected, allowed, forbidden, encouraged to have sex--what would it be?

I would begin with control of women’s bodies in norms that start when one is a child. I would change parenting to ensure children don’t grow up with shame around sexuality or with social sanctions for anyone who transgresses the norms. Policing how little girls sit, walk, talk, laugh, assign women and girls responsibilities around sex and their bodies, but deny them any rights.

Are there any misconceptions about (the fight for) gender (equality) in Africa that you’d like to correct?

The helpless African women trope is tired. It’s racist and sexist and it denies African women’s agency and denies that African women have always had a voice, fought, navigated their realities. It makes excuses for continued failed interventions for “women’s empowerment schemes”. These perceptions depict African women as ignorant, unaware and deny their expertise in their own communities, which continuously justifies the need to bring in outside “experts” to tell African communities what to do. 

What is something you wish you could travel back in time and tell your fifteen-years younger self?

That formal education is not enough to free you; the quest for freedom lasts a lifetime.