​S. Jane Gari author of Losing the Dollhouse

Because I write about women’s issues, I often get blowback on Twitter, in my email inbox, and other online forums. And by blowback I mean I’ve been called some horrible things that are too awful to repeat. I’ve been told I should kill myself and that I’m “horse-faced” and “ugly”. I’d be lying if I said these comments didn’t affect me. But I don’t let them stop me from believing I have the right to voice my opinion. It is mind-blowing that in 2016 women are still fighting t

Whenever I write about women’s rights issues, there’s always some blowback from someone in the “manosphere” about how First-World feminists should shut up about their cushy lives and address the problems of women in Muslim nations and developing countries. And they do have a point. We should care about those women. We should care about ALL women. Fighting for equal pay and respect in the First World doesn’t preclude caring about and working to effect change elsewhere. But I

Last April, for Sexual Assault Awareness Month, I posted a review of my memoir left by an Amazon customer named Katrina. Her commentary hit the mark, and I feel compelled to quote it again: “Anyone who has been the target of sexual or physical predation will know that, too often, the victim's voice is the first casualty of the abuser's relentless campaign of emotional manipulation, threats, and gas-lighting.” Anyone who has been the victim of sexual abuse or assault knows the

I love listening to NPR’s Here and Now to get the rundown on issues of the day, but I’ve never commented on their website after listening. Until last Thursday, January 14. I listened to their 10 minute segment entitled “Bill Clinton’s Past Infidelity and What It Means for Hillary’s Campaign”. I felt compelled to weigh in because the allegations against Bill Clinton hit a nerve with me. Bill Clinton’s bad behavior is about more than just “Past Infidelity”. This is about a

On today’s NPR broadcast of Here and Now, journalist Robin Young interviewed Emily Lindin about her book Unslut: A Diary and Memoir. The story recounts the minefields of adolescence where girls are branded as “easy” or “teases” based on their sexual behaviors or half-baked rumors based on those decisions. The most stunning revelation in Lindin’s NPR interview was how the young author never assigned blame to the boys while she was in the thick of it. She absorbed misplaced g

Every year, thousands of women in the military report being sexually assaulted. They face the same difficult roads to recovery that civilians do. And their healing is compounded by additional layers of stigma for whistle-blowing among some of their colleagues. But there is a silver lining in the military’s response to the trauma endured by these women. The VA in Nashville is now offering supplemental therapy through a partnership with Operation Song, a program founded by Bob

There’s a comedian named Margaret Cho. She’s hilarious. She’s also full of rage. Cho, like so many women, has been the victim of multiple sexual assaults. Some of the attacks on Cho happened in dark parking lots and at friends’ houses. But some happened in broad daylight with witnesses—no one questioned the man playfully lifting a girl in a swimming pool. What people didn’t see was how he strategically placed his fingers inside of her as he lifted her out of the water. What

In light of the recent Duggar family story, I thought this was an appropriate story to share from fellow author, Krista Wagner. When an older minor takes advantage of a much younger child, it is serious and must be addressed. This type of behavior is still predatory and is not simply “kids being kids and experimenting”. More than a third of sexual abuse against children is committed by minors. There is clearly something wrong. When Krista was only 7, her best friend was a

There has been a lot of criticism of TLC’s famed Duggar family in recent days. But I’d like to replace the public shaming of the family with a dialogue about the underlying issues at work in the scandal. I have a lot of stake in this discussion because there are similar issues at work in my own life. And I am not alone. The Duggars’ story stokes the fires of public outrage because it’s familiar. The sting of betrayal is particularly sharp when the perpetrator is a so-called