MARANDA PLEASANT’S
T H E
C O N S C I O U S
BEN HARPER
HEALING WOUNDS + HIDING is not an OPTION
+
BONNIE RAITT Recovery. Conservation. Activism
Consumed by GMOs
C U L T U R E
M A G A Z I N E
BREASTFEEDING BACKLASH ››
DOES our CULTURE
HATE WOMEN? The FEM REVOLUTION Feminists. Rebels
Revolutionaries Leaders. Teens
A GI TA T O R
ROSE MC GOWAN On Feeling Like Prey
‹‹ Nikki Reed:
VEGAN FASHION
CLIMATE CHAMPIONS: RICHARD BRANSON. GISELE. MARK RUFFALO VIVIENNE WESTWOOD. IAN SOMERHALDER
AWOLNATION
CLOTHING FOR PEOPLE WHO LIVE FULLY, PL AY LONG, AND TR AVEL WELL.
2 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
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4 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
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origin issue 27
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SIDE ONE
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SIDE ONE
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SIDE two
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SIDE two
CONTENTS SIDE ONE
SIDE TWO
10
10
ben harper On healing our pain, feeling everything, reuniting with the Innocent Criminals, how hiding is not an option, and the role of art in social change
18
CLIMATE CHANGE The greatest threat to humanity. In a global effort, well-known activists unite in their mission to act on climate change now
34
ROSE McGOWAN On seeing yourself through the eyes of a world of men, feeling like prey, and being called fat at Home Depot
40
AWOLNATION: Aaron Bruno One of our favorite musicians, crushes, and inspirations on awkwardness, self-doubt, not waiting for good shit to happen, and having the power to leave unpleasant situations
48
NIKKI REED Actor, musician, activist, and our favorite handbag designer creates beauty with recycled, cruelty-free bags, supporting animals
54
the dangers of GMOs Zoe Lister-Jones, on her new film exploring the disturbing, complex world of genetically modified organisms (gmos), Consumed
LAURA PREPON Discovered Eastern holistic medicine and cutting-edge food science, and launched a book to help others heal
12
Professional Vegan Chef: JASON WROBEL EATERNITY: Recipes on how to live to 100
18
SECRETS of a PEAK MIND Transforming our lives through meditation + diet, the link between our brain + our gut
20
Bonnie Raitt On the need for a new revolution, clean energy, her sobriety, equality for women, protecting the earth, and taking personal responsibility in our lives
48
DO WE HATE OUR GIRLS? Are we tolerating a culture created to destroy our girls and wage war on their bodies, objectify them, and reduce them?
58
Our Fem Revolution We are mothers, daughters, and sisters calling for a cultural revolution creating a world where women and girls are valued, respected, equal, and protected
72
Indecent Exposure A culture of shame against breastfeeding mothers
28
ignitors. rebels. mavericks. feminists
Strong women share the labels and words used to try and reduce them and why it is so important to empower women + girls right now SIDE two
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 7
origin issue 27
EDITOR’S LETTER
ORIGIN TEAM PUBLISHER/EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Maranda Pleasant Twitter: @marandapleasant Creative DIRECTOR Melody Tarver
“
SENIOR EDITOR Amanda Stuermer
Transformation comes from knowing that there is no change without conflict and being vocal will always be met with some form of backlash.
COPY EDITOR Colin Legerton ECO EDITOR Ian Somerhalder ANIMAL EDITORS Barbi Twins contributing editorS Leilani Münter Moby Laura Dawn
”
— Sally Bergesen
GLOBAL YOUTH EDITOR Ocean Pleasant
Ignitors. Rebels. Mavericks.
Feminists. pioneers. Agitators. Last month we plastered the streets of Paris with thousands of our FEM Revolution posters, letting women know they are not alone, that we are all connected, standing together, taking back words and labels used to reduce and minimize us. What I didn't expect was that hundreds of women came up to us on the street to say thank you. In that moment, I had never felt more connected, a part of something huge and urgent, an uprising. We refuse to be kept small any longer. Don't get me wrong. We really, really love men. But this is an urgent time for women. There is a cultural assault against girls, women, our bodies, and the planet. I believe that it is only when we as women come fully into ourselves and celebrate ourselves and the loudest voice we hear is our own that we will rise up together and create a culture that supports, nurtures, and protects women. We will get change when we demand change. We are no longer willing to move forward as things are.
1. Celebrate your big, juicy ass.
Enjoy your powerful, strong body. Maybe for the first time we can stop the self-hatred and the loathing of our bodies. We start now, defining what beauty looks like, even though unnatural images are reinforced every day in the media. Our value has nothing f*cking to do with what we look like.
2. Protect our breastfeeding mothers. Let’s create a world where
nourishment are celebrated. We must create a culture that supports, nurtures, and protects women. We will now do this for one another.
, 3. Get a lil angry. Thanks, Rose McGowan,
for reminding us that real change happens when we get fired up and refuse to tolerate abuse any longer.
4. Create strong, confident girls.
We can no longer engage in behavior than undermines our teens. Enjoying their bodies doesn’t lessen their value. Whore. Slut. Cunt. We just won’t tolerate attacks like these anymore. One in five will be raped in college. That stops now. Let’s show them they have value, worth, and importance. When we as women are fully empowered, we can stand up and protect our girls.
5. Demand 100% renewables. Let’s unite
for 100% clean energy. Those hardest hit from climate change, f’ed up water, and polluted air are females. Let’s protect the ultimate mother, this planet.
Let the loudest voice you hear be your own.
Maranda Pleasant ORIGIN Magazine • Mantra Yoga + Health THRIVE Magazine • REAL Magazine Founder / Editor-in-Chief editor@originmagazine.com
Special Projects Philippe Beer Gabel Antoine Level Lisa Rolls Jaclyn Matfus Harper Seane Corn Kylie Ruszczynski Lea Mahjun COVER PHOTOGRAPHY BONNIE RAITT Marina Chavez BEN HARPER Danny Clinch Contact us Head Ninja editor@originmagazine.com Advertising ads@originmagazine.com
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beauty, mothering, gentleness, and
photo: LECHON KIRB 8 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 9
ben harper
Musician. Poet. Environmentalist. Activist. Prophet
On Healing our Pain, Feeling Everything, Reuniting with the Innocent Criminals,
How Hiding is Not an Option,
and the Role of Art
in Social Change I n t e r v i e w : m a r a n da p l e a s a n t
NE W AL B U M : Ca l l I t W hat I t I s , o u t n o w Maranda Pleasant: Hi, Ben, how are you? Ben Harper: Great! MP: Through your work, you can tell that you’ve gone through some shit in your life, and you’ve reflected on it, and you’re so close to the rawness, I think, more than any other artist. And when I tell people you’re going to be on our cover, they tell me their personal connection to your music. They say, “Oh, did you hear that part in ‘Skin Thin’? Those lyrics had a huge impact on me or got me through a rough time.” You’re considered a visionary who can put words on pain for deeply-feeling people, and those of us who have gone through a lot in our lives. When I hear your music, I find it very healing and people seem to connect with you in a way that is different from other artists. BH: I just feel really fortunate that there’s someone out there that gets it. You know, because some do, some don’t, some will, some won’t. You just hope it hits the mark and it reaches a destination. I appreciate that something I’ve done has found a safe place to land.
MP: Your music is vulnerable and so strong at the same time. BH: The good news is at this point as I get older, the load has gotten heavier but my shoulders have gotten wider because I've gotten happier so it’s a damn good thing. For other people it goes the other way and they’ve got to check out other things and methods, but to go through this life and see it through—what it really is—and not be insane or addicted, is a minor miracle for anyone. MP: That’s amazing: to go through this life and not be insane or addicted is a minor miracle for anyone. BH: To look at it straight in the eye is brave, if you’re really clocking it and if you really care and how easy and pleasant it would be to not care or not feel . . . there is a wonderful fatalist argument to be had. It will be another species’ turn next, but you’re not living next. You’re living now; this is it. You’re living life in real time, man, and we’ve got a good amount of work to do for each other. Hiding is not an option and you’re going to step out
and you’re going to make mistakes. I’m going to look stupid. I’m going to say things I want to retract. I’m going to sing notes I wish I could have back, there’s just no getting around the stumble, but if you stumble enough times you’re going to fall off the edge and have no choice but to freakin’ fly. MP: Well, you’re describing my week. And this is why you just let Ben Harper talk. BH: But you’re on the front lines. I don’t kid myself in thinking that I’m on the front lines. I know the people who are on the front lines. I mean there are people in some freakin’ significant places making on-the-ground social front line change. I’ve marched. I’ve put feet on the ground for what I believe and what I’m against with no compromise. And there are people who are risking a whole hell of a lot more than me to make change, that’s for damn sure. So, I don’t kid myself but I also don’t kid myself in regard to the role of art in social change. ›
Photos: Danny Clinch 10 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
“
To go t h ro u g h t h i s l i fe a nd s e e i t t h ro u g h —w h at i t re a l l y i s — a n d n ot b e i n s a n e o r a d d i c te d i s a m i n o r m i ra c l e fo r a nyo n e.
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 11
MP: Can you tell me about a struggle you’ve had and if there’s something that has helped you transform that? BH: What’s at the core of my struggle—that’s really the question. I can’t not put myself in the shoes of every person I pass. I don’t know how to not become every person I walk by. That makes it a little tough. MP: Are you a water sign? BH: Yeah, Scorpio. MP: Oh shit, you feel everything. I’m a Cancer so we’re screwed; we feel everything. Do you mean your core struggle is that you feel deeply? BH: Yeah. And also, I’m not sure—regardless of experience, therapy, good fortune, privilege, blessings, whatever, that can somehow make a difference for the better in anyone’s life— I’m not so sure as a species if we’re able to completely heal because I went through some shit as a kid, as everyone does, and I want to be able to not be that person. I want to try to not be the child that had to go through too much too young. I want to be who I am now and not who I was then. I want to try to be who I am today, not who I was yesterday. So, you know, I’m fighting the fight not to be that child who had to react at too young an age to too deep a pain. MP: I was just having the same conversation about how when you start leading things, you have to make sure you’re not leading with the wounded child. BH: That makes so much sense to me. And when aren’t we? How couldn’t we? MP: I think pain has been my greatest teacher and then getting to the point where I can’t
12 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
fucking repeat this thing in my life one more time because I won’t survive my own self-induced cycle of heartbreak. It’s amazing work, how the pain of childhood, how much of yourself, if it’s not checked, keeps repeating our reactions. I don’t know if it can be completely healable, either. BH: But we’re working it out, that’s where the best conversation and dialogues come from, so it’s necessary. What we’re doing now is necessary. If interviews are just interviews or if music is just music, why are we even doing it? You only get so many hours in a lifetime, man. I mean, David Bowie just left us, for crying out loud. Let’s not hold punches and waste time here. If I’m going to talk to someone and this someone just happens to be yourself and clearly we’re in this together. This is great, there’s got to be a back and forth here. I just can’t waste time with anyone; neither can you. So, to be able to come this far and to meet at this time in both of our lives is great. MP: What does love represent for you, as a person and as an artist? BH: Love for me is my North Star. It’s the highest form of grace. And I love that there’s different levels and different ways of showing it, and different representations of it. Whether it’s love shown to a stranger, love to a sibling, your child, your parents, your partner. It turns out that there is something more magnificent than nature. It’s love. MP: And we can have love in nature, even better. {Laughs.} BH: And then there’s that, right? I mean, for crying out loud, between the two of us we’ve probably seen some views, and imagine the most beautiful view you’ve ever seen and it pales in comparison to love. ›
,,
ben harper
You’re living life in re al ti m e, man , and we’ ve got a good amou nt of wor k to do for e ac h other. Hid in g is no t an op tion and you’ re goin g to s te p out and you’ re goin g to make mis t akes.
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 13
MP: How does this album feel different? Were you in a different place emotionally writing and creating this album? BH: Yeah, the place that this record was written from is different than any place I’ve ever been, and of course, we’re always moving forward in different places physically and psychologically. But the place where this record was written from was incredibly grounding. I was very grounded, very centered, and to come back to that sense of home, with the guys, with the band and everything we had come through together, collectively being put into the sound, the songs, the record, the community, the conversation. It’s all in here in a way that I think is fresh and it’s grounded in, anchored in, a sound that is highly recognizable from this collective, but it’s taking
14 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
what I hope is a step forward creatively, as well. MP: Is there a particular song for you that was like, man, that one ripped me apart? I know it’s like picking a favorite child, but is there a song that was unique in some way? BH: Yes, the title track, “Call It What It Is,” and also “Don’t Know How to Say Goodbye to You” is another one. Like you said, it is a challenge at this stage to pick one over another, but those two in particular, if I had to start. MP: Wow, I don’t know how to say goodbye to you? I’m going to have to meditate before I listen to that one. BH: I think I did before I wrote it.
MP: I think healing is serious fucking business. Is there anything you want to say about healing? BH: It’s amazing all the different perspectives and directions and angles that healing encompasses. It’s so infinite. I don’t want to be reckless in discussing something that is so important, but it’s easy for me to say, “There’s so much there, there’s so much to heal for.” MP: That’s beautiful, there’s so much to heal for. BH: It can depend on what you have to heal from as to how much there is to heal for; those two are somewhat inextricably linked. Don’t let what you have to heal from blind you to how much there is to heal for.
�
I went through some shit as a kid, as everyone does, and I want to be able to not be that person. I want to try to not be the child that had to go through too much too young. I want to be who I am now and not who I was then. I want to try to be who I am today, not who I was then.
ben harper ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 15
PHOTOGRAPHer Feature
White Girl in
Nepal
Photography: Bojana Novakovic
Sin dho palcho k, N e pal fo llowi n g t h e d evas t ating ear t h q u a kes i n 2 0 15. De Re G al l e ry, L o s A n ge l e s
Invited by the villagers, I took photos of the classes I conducted, the homes I lived in, and the people I met. I also took photos of the disastrous effects of the earthquake, but honestly, the photos don’t really show the soul of the place. The photos might be what we in the West want to see—to make us aware, or make us feel different, or perhaps to make us feel like we are doing something simply by being aware, even though we are so different. But the truth is that I spent time with people who, even though they were confused, tired, and homeless, were also beautiful, ego-less, and oftentimes happy. They live in a landscape unlike any I have seen. They live with minimal means and maximum awareness. They had their families (the ones
who had survived) around them. They were busy working— re-building, cooking, teaching, learning, organizing, helping each other, and they did this slowly, with no sense of urgency. No panic. The kids particularly were eager to learn, to be seen, to be helped. They, and their families, opened their arms, eyes, and homes to me. Bojana Novakovic is participating in the rebuilding efforts after the earthquakes in Nepal, and volunteering at the schools in Bhotenamlang, Sindhopalchok. She is raising awareness and funds to make The B Project a reality. She has created the blog and exhibit WHITE GIRL IN NEPAL, and 100% of proceeds from all picture sales (which are 100% tax deductible) will go to The B Project.
Photo F emmes will be on display exclusively at De Re Gallery from April 13-May 17 in Los Angeles: 8920 Melrose Ave. whitegirlinNepal.com | deregallery.com 16 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 17
Climate e g n a h C T h e G r eate s t T h r eat t o Hu m an i t y . In a G l o ba l E ff o r t , W e l l - k n o wn A ct i v i s t s U n i te i n T h e i r M i s s i o n t o A ct o n C l i m ate C h ange N o w P r o j ect + P h o t o g r ap h y : Mat h i a s B r a s c h l e r & M o n i k a F i s c h e r in support of the work of UNFCCC & UNEP
Act Now! is a major photography project to raise awareness on climate change by the critically acclaimed creative duo Braschler/Fischer. The photographers have shot portraits of influential and trendsetting climate activists. The project aims to raise more awareness for this pressing problem in partnership with UNFCCC and UNEP.
braschlerfischer.com 18 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
Richard
“
B r an s o n
Virgin Group Founder
Taking bold climate action now has the potential to unleash the full power of business and lift millions of people out of poverty at the same time. We’re the first generation to recognize this and the last generation that will have this opportunity. ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 19
C LIM A T E C H A N G E
Gisele
B ü n d c h en
Model. United Nations Environment Programme Goodwill Ambassador
“
Climate change is real. In order to alter this reality, we need all hands on deck. Cleaner, more sustainable energy is possible and can transform our lives, our economies, and our planet. We must make living in harmony with the Earth a priority. This is our home... the only one we have!
20 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
”
Ja m e s
“
C a m e r o n
Film Director
Climate change is critical to me because I’m a parent; I feel a sense of responsibility to the future. I’m not going to be around to see its worst effects, which are going to be hitting in the 2030s, ’40s, ’50s, but my kids will. Everybody is always talking about droughts and sea level rise, but when human civilization, with more crowding and greater resource depletion, is under that much stress, it translates into wars and huge displaced populations. The Syrian refugee crisis is just a first taste of what it’s going to be like. I don’t want my kids growing up in that kind of world.
”
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 21
C LIM A T E C H A N G E
Ma r k
“
Ruffa l o
Actor
We are living in revolutionary times. The good news is we have everything we need to leave fossil fuels in the ground. All we need is for you to join the rest of the world to bring about a cleaner, more stable, and peaceful future. Join the #SunlightRevolution, #100isNow.
”
22 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
V i v i enne W e s tw o o d
“
Fashion Designer
The migrants are not a temporary crisis. The crisis is mounting. There are many war refugees and three times as many climate refugees. All of them are people who can no longer live where they were born. I hope we face reality in time to save ourselves. We will all be migrants soon.
�
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 23
C LIM A T E C H A N G E
Ian S o m e r h a l d e r
“
Actor. UNEP Goodwill Ambassador
Collaboration, partnership—the ultimate intertwining of skills, shared passions, and knowledge—is what concocts the most shatterproof forms of change making. Let’s unite our impassioned voices to combat climate change. The time is now.
24 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
”
N i k k i
“
Ree d
ACTOR
The degradation of our environment is undeniably a direct result of our lack of regard, lack of accountability, and lack of responsibility. If we don’t start acknowledging our correct position as nothing more than a part of the planet as opposed to this perception that we’re superior, then we won’t have it much longer. We’re facing a very turbulent, war-torn, drought-ridden existence for future generations unless we act now.
”
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 25
C LIM A T E C H A N G E
M i c h ae l R . B l o o m be r g U.N. Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Cities + Climate Change
“
Former Mayor of New York City
Fighting climate change isn’t just an obligation we owe to future generations. It’s also an opportunity to improve public health—and drive economic growth—in the here and now. After all, the same steps that reduce carbon pollution also clean the air we breathe, which saves lives and reduces disease. Cities with clean air also gain an economic advantage, because where people want to live and work, businesses want to invest. By speeding the transition to cleaner energy, we can improve the lives of billions of people, while also reducing the risks we face from a changing climate.
26 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
D o n
“
C h ea d l e
Actor. UNEP Goodwill Ambassador
I pray that our leaders stop pointing fingers and playing the blame game and seek a real solution for the good of the planet and all who inhabit it. It is the least represented among us who will be the most affected first. We have a moral responsibility to protect them.
�
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 27
C LIM A T E C H A N G E
Moby
“
Musician
For me the two biggest issues are climate change and animal welfare/animal agriculture. And oddly enough animal agriculture is such a contributor to climate change. According to the United Nations, 25% of climate change comes from animal agriculture, so every car, bus, boat, truck, airplane combined has less CO2 and methane emissions than animal agriculture. So to me, one of the easiest ways of addressing climate change and potentially remedying climate change is to stop subsidizing animal agriculture.
28 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
Ma r y
R o b i n s o n
U.N. Special Envoy for Climate Change
“
Former President of Ireland
The changing climate is a threat to human rights. The fossil-fuel-based development model has not benefitted all people and those who have benefitted least are now suffering great harm in the face of climate change. But tackling the issue of climate change presents us with an inflection point in human history—a climate justice revolution that separates development from fossil fuels, supports people in the most vulnerable situations to adapt, allows all people to take part, and, most importantly, realise their full potential.
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 29
C LIM A T E C H A N G E
Da r r en A r o n o f s k y
“
Film Director, Screenwriter + Film Producer
I fear our descendants will look back on us at this moment in time, on people who lived in the 20th and 21st centuries and they’ll ask, “What the fuck were you thinking?” We all have to help. Because for too long we have been taking, and the Earth has been giving. But that free-for-all, that all-you-can-eat buffet, it’s over. The salad bar is closed.
”
30 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
A c h i m
“
Ste i ne r
Executive Director, UNEP
We are at a pivotal moment in our shared history. The global goals of a healthy planet, social equality, and economic opportunity for all are within reach. But we cannot prevaricate. Our vision of a sustainable future will only materialize through action taken today.
�
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 31
The Road from Paris Leads to
100
%
Renewable Energy [
It , s better to light one candle ,, than to curse the darkness.
[
- By John Quigley -
T
he coordinated terrorist attacks that hit Paris and shocked the world last November brought the two major issues of our time—terrorism and climate change— together as never before. Coming just weeks before the most important climate conference in nearly a decade, the attacks had a chilling effect on public expressions that had been planned for months. Al Gore’s 24-hour Climate Reality Project global broadcast, hosted from Paris and in progress at the time, was shut down just hours after it began. Hundreds of thousands were expected to march on the streets of Paris to call for an urgent action on climate change. But French authorities, desperate to prevent another attack, issued a ban on all large-scale public gatherings, muffling the voices of civil society. There was even talk of whether the United Nations Climate Conference (COP 21) would be postponed or cancelled. All of this brought into focus the interconnectedness of peace, freedom, and the challenge of climate change that is often forgotten in the global debate. It’s difficult for a society to have a healthy discourse on its future when people are afraid to gather to express themselves and authorities won’t allow it. Perhaps that’s why it resonated so powerfully when a group of 300 people, led by female climate leaders from
32 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
the Women’s Environment & Development Organization (wedo.org), gathered by the Peace Wall near the Eiffel Tower on December 6 for this historic photo (right). The people assembled here embodied the message of freedom with a call for 100% renewable energy and lit that proverbial candle for the world. They were not afraid to gather publicly as a free and open society to communicate their demands and aspirations for leaders to act ambitiously for our future. Their courage rippled out around the world on front pages and through a viral social media wave imprinting 100% renewable energy on the Paris climate talks. While the agreement signed in Paris between 195 nations to combat climate change was historic and significant, it’s still vague and lacks the ambition to truly meet the challenge. The next step is to move aggressively toward a transition to 100% clean renewable energy as quickly as possible (that means no fossil fuels, nuclear, or big hydro). We’re already seeing movement on the local level. Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo hosted a summit with 700 mayors from around the world who pledged to be 100% renewable by 2050. Shortly afterward, the San Diego City Council upped the ante by voting unanimously to commit the city to going 100% renewable by 2035.
Clearly, cities will be leading the way. In January the Sierra Club launched the #Readyfor100 campaign challenging 100 cities in the United States to step up and commit to 100% clean energy. A broad coalition of groups is forming to amplify the call. (Go to readyfor100.org to tell your mayor you want your city to commit to 100% clean energy.) The race is on for the 100% renewable transition. All the old arguments of political and economic feasibility are quickly falling by the wayside. 100% renewable energy is 100% possible and can happen sooner than we think. We need to call on presidential candidates to follow the lead of the cities and commit to the 100% renewable energy goal and support groups and cities working on the local level to achieve this. Perhaps when we look back on the circumstances surrounding this photo shoot in Paris, this image may well indeed be viewed as the dawn of the 100% renewable energy age. John Quigley (SpectralQ.com) is an international artist, producer, and activist who also serves on the board of the Environmental Media Association (green4ema.org) He along with Magalie BonneauMarcil (dancingwithoutborders.org) produced the Eiffel Tower Peace Symbol – 100% Renewable aerial image.
,,
,,
100% renewable energy is 100% possible and can happen sooner than we think.
SpectralQ.com | ema-online.org | dancingwithoutborders.org
Photo: Yann Bertrand + Spectral Q. ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 33
Interview:
L au r a Daw n , f o u n d e r o f a rt n o t wa r
T he r o tat i Ag
On Seeing Yourself Through the Eyes of a World of Men,
F e e l i ng L i k e P r e y,
B eing Called Fat at Home Depot , and Being Grateful for Having a Mind t hat Can Want
M or e f or Pe ople
and the
Plane t
A
ctor, director, activist, and feminist Rose McGowan’s uncompromising spirit, which first captured us with her unforgettable performance in The Doom Generation, bloomed into a career with iconic roles in films like Scream and Robert Rodriguez’s Planet Terror. Her directorial debut film, Dawn, was nominated for the Short Film Grand Jury prize at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. Activist and filmmaker Laura Dawn sat down with Rose in New York City last summer, discussing art, street harassment, and the trouble with being a feminist in Hollywood—nothing was off limits in this fierce and funny conversation. ›
photos: Janell Shirtcliff 34 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
We don ’ t have t he
an g e r ye t and that’s u sual l y
what shi fts a nd m o v e s
thi n g s.
ctor, director, activist, and feminist Rose McGowan’s uncompromising spirit first captured us with her unforgettable performance in The Doom Generation, bloomed into a career with iconic roles in films like Scream and Robert Rodriguez’s Planet Terror. Her directorial debut film Dawn was nominated for the
Short Film Grand Jury prize at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. Activist and filmmaker Laura Dawn sat down with Rose in New York City last summer, discussing art, street harassment and the trouble with being a feminist in Hollywood—nothing was off limits in this fierce and funny conversation. ›
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Laura Dawn: So, I noticed that you and Julia Stiles almost made the film version of The Bell Jar together? Rose McGowan: It would have been amazing. LD: I’m a crazy Plath-Head. A bit of a fanatic. And I have to say, that really would have been amazing. RM: It’s quite sad that it never got funding. You never know what goes on behind the scenes, but . . .
I kind gr e w b r e asts of
overnight
and then
the wo rld g o t r e a l ly
lo ud.
LD: I’m gonna take a wild leap and posit that the reason it didn’t get made is because Hollywood has been so afraid of telling women’s stories. I mean, you and Julia Stiles in a film version of one of the best selling, most iconic books of all time would kind of seem like a no-brainer and yet that didn’t get funded? RM: It’s incredibly shortsighted, it’s just sad, and it renders a large sector of the population voiceless and under-represented. It’s interesting how we have a lot of people banging the drum for equality, which is all fucking awesome, but it’s different when people are bitching about the lack of real roles for women versus getting angry about it. We don’t have the anger yet and that’s usually what shifts and moves things. People get so burned out on hearing about sexism, but you know what? I would love to burn out on it. I would love to never talk about that again, but until we’re all equal I shall have to fight, and remain fighting. LD: And I’m so happy that you are! I imagine, as a former child model, you have a lifelong perspective on this, yes? RM: Of sorts. You know, I was a boy in the ads I did as a child. My sister was the girl, and I was the boy. I had short hair and I was in overalls and I was giving flowers to my sister Daisy, who fit their model of what a girl was supposed to look like. She had blonde ringlets and big blue eyes and so I was relegated to being the boy and all the pictures are of me looking quite surly. LD: That’s interesting. RM: Yeah, it was quite funny. LD: And now you’re renowned for your beauty. At what point did you start getting noticed for your looks? Is that something that happened later or was it early? RM: Well, I moved from Italy to Oregon in the ’80s—sort of like moving to the middle of a “Duck Dynasty” episode, which was massive culture shock to say the least. LD: Ha!
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RM: I’d never even seen orange cheese. I mean, who decided to make that orange? And so there was something different about me that they wanted to crush. I don’t think it had anything to do with my physicality, but every single day in school it was, “You’re the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen.” Instead of just thinking, “Oh, this person’s from another culture, what’s different, what can we learn about this new person?” It was just, “Stamp it out! Stamp it out immediately!” And because I’m a girl, the surest way to do that is through, “You’re ugly.” LD: Wow. That’s such a hard experience at that age. RM: And I’d kind of look at myself in the mirror and think, “I’m not sure, but I think they might be wrong. My features seem normal, what is it that they find so off-putting?” So I didn’t take to heart what they said, and I was just puzzled. And then I would go to another state where my photographer father was living and there I’d be revered for what I looked like. What it did was cancel both out, and that served me really quite well. I kind of grew breasts overnight and then the world got really loud. I went from being just a kid to all of a sudden not being able to walk a block without a man waggling his tongue through his fingers, which is disgusting. I mean, I was 13 and suddenly I’m trying to see myself through the eyes of men, trying to figure out why I’m getting this reaction from them versus just being able to walk through the world whole. LD: When I was younger I felt like prey, that’s the only word I can use. RM: I was prey. LD: And I’d try to figure out a way to dress that wouldn’t invite it. So some days you would have a ponytail and sweats on and that’s the day you’d get . . . RM: That actually gets you more harassment weirdly enough!
Recently I was at Home Depot, of all things, and some guy that works there walks past me and he’s pushing cartons of something and he says, “Hey, you’re much fatter in real life.” LD: No!
If somebody
said so me t h i ng
LD: First of all, that is not true . . .
a round me, or you , or most people, yo u
LD: Jesus.
racist
would correct it,
yo u would
stop it,
but when they
say things about
women, so f r eq u e n tly no o n e says
a ny thing. That has to
change.
LD: I know, right? Why is that? Maybe you look vulnerable or younger. RM: You’re not scary to them because you’re not wearing lipstick. Ooooh, that’s scary! LD: So, when you add fame on top, does that give you a layer of protection from that kind of harassment or make it worse? RM: Well, both. With fame, all of a sudden you’re seeing yourself through the eyes of a world of men, and that’s . . . Look, it’s very weird to have part and parcel of a job to feel like you’re a lure for men to come into the theater. Some people do have a very innate sexuality to them. I may or may not have it, but it makes people see you in a certain light that has nothing to do with me.
RM: I was like, “What?” It snapped me out of my . . . I mean, I was looking for light bulbs.
RM: I was like, “Well how thin am I supposed to be, jerk?”
RM: And I just felt like, “Why would you discuss my body as if it’s an object?” People will come up and say things like, “Are your breasts real?” I mean, people will come up and discuss my body as if I’m not human. It went from men looking at me in a predatory way, or in an appreciative way, depending, to “And there’s the animal in its natural habitat.” Like I’m an oddity, or a strange creature that doesn’t quite exist, ergo, you can say anything you want and it doesn’t hurt me, right? LD: It sounds like street harassment on steroids. There’s a whole street harassment subculture of men who get off in some way by saying demeaning things to women, right? RM: Oh, yes. LD: I have a friend who claims her favorite comeback to that is “You will never, ever get to fuck me.” RM: Ever ever. Ever ever ever. LD: I wish I had the guts to say something like that. RM: “How does it feel to be somebody that will never fuck me? What’s that like?” LD: “What’s that like?”
rose M Gowan c
RM: “What’s that like, idiot?” {Laughter.} LD: But you know, the truth is I’m always afraid to say something like that. I’ve had enough scary things happen, so . . . the fear is that talking back, that engaging at all, is to open the door for god-knows-what. RM: Because every woman knows that any man engaging in street harassment can switch to anger very quickly and that anger goes to rage and their rage is their masculinity being threatened. We’re scared for good reason. ›
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 37
Look, I’ve been in some hairy situations. I was a homeless runaway. LD: In Oregon? RM: That was in Oregon. That was really fun to be homeless in one of the rainiest places in the country. LD: How old were you at that time and how long were you on your own? RM: I was 13. And on my own for about 10 months, but those were long months. My stepdad wanted me out of his hair and tried to put me in a home, a hospital kind of place for kids with drug problems, which I absolutely did not belong in. So I left that place and struck out on my own and banded together immediately with three trans girls and a stripper named Tina. Tina had an apartment.
rose M Gowan c
LD: Have you written about this? RM: I have a lot to write. You have no idea. LD: That sounds like an incredible novel, or film—something that you really need to share with the world. RM: There’s a lot, definitely. It was an adventure for sure. It was like Huckleberry Finn but in the gay club world. I would collect cans and then dress up like Charlie Chaplin from Goodwill suits, like men’s suits from the ’20s and the ’30s, then do like crazy checkerboard makeup. And you know, it was great in a way because it gave me somewhere to go. Heterosexual men terrified me. I found them to be dangerous. Not all of them, of course, but it took me some time to learn to be comfortable. And while I learned, I hid out largely in the gay community, and overall it kept me very safe. Since I didn’t grow up going to school dances, etc., I didn’t have the normal . . . I grew up in a very different way so a lot of the childish concerns or teenage concerns weren’t my concerns. My concerns were survival. The people that are the invisible ones, the marginalized, the quote-unquote weirdos, the people that get things thrown at them, the people that get harassed every day just for existing . . . I just still strongly align with them. This hetero–normative behavior and herd mentality is dangerous. It’s okay to be different. It’s okay to stand out for whatever reason. Some people are just born that way and instead of trying to tear them down, learn something new. Be curious and open because maybe that’s a pathway out for you, too. LD: I agree, wholeheartedly. So I’m sure you’ve seen the annual Celluloid Ceiling report stats that found women
38 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
Th e i n v i s i b l e o n e s ,
the marginalized, the quote-unquote
weirdos, t h e p e o p l e that
ge t th ings t h r o w n at t h e m , t h e p e o p l e that
g et harassed e very day just for existing . . . I just still
s t r o n g ly a l i g n with them.
accounted for about 16 percent of directors, writers, executive producers, producers, editors, and cinematographers working on the top 250 domestic grossing films. RM: Oh yes. LD: So, I want to touch on your recent, absolutely fucking glorious moment on social media where you publicly called out Hollywood misogynistic casting practices by tweeting out a casting call that “encouraged” form fitting clothes and a push-up bra. And I just want to say, on behalf of millions of women online who saw this: Thank you. RM: Well, you’re welcome, but it’s funny, the first tweet that turned into this whole situation? I was just like, “This is just Tuesday,” you know? This shit happens every single day and we’re all just so used to it, and that is what’s not okay. To me the most egregious thing was the amount of people that probably saw that and in no way flagged it. It was just so gross and tired. I live a very international life, but when I come back to Hollywood, a town I love in a lot of ways, I have to wonder, “What decade are you in? Like, seriously, what decade? It’s not this one.” And it’s not the future. You have to be at the forefront of culture to create art, which they call “product,” and Hollywood is not. It’s this very old business model, which I think is dying in a lot of ways. It’s like the Mad Men era and they’re holding on for dear life. A guy friend I was speaking to last night said he was talking to a group of male producers and he was just shocked that they said, “But if we give women directors a job they’re going to take jobs away from the men.” I almost fell out of my chair. But when I encounter this kind of thing, what I try to do is give a chiropractic adjustment to the mind, quickly. LD: Ha! I like that. RM: Like, I have 30 seconds with you. I’m going to shape and slap the shit out of your brain so you can actually look at this and perceive it differently. Because if somebody said something racist around me, or you, or most people, you would correct it, you would stop it, but when they say things about women, so frequently no one says anything. That has to change. And I don’t mind being disliked—I will be the one to step up and say what needs to be said if it helps one woman who comes after me. And why are women still this underclass? If we all banded together . . . LD: We’re a larger voting block than men and yet we don’t fully exercise that power.
RM: Exactly. LD: Ok, I am all fired up! But I have a few more questions. What keeps you up at night? I’ve been personally losing sleep over climate change these days. RM: Oh god, so much . . . I think of the kids that live on top of garbage dumps, I think of the ways we could reach out to other countries, I think of certainly climate change. There’s so much. The nighttime is that time, is it not? LD: Oh yes. RM: I mean, short-sightedness is killing us. How do these people running corporations like Monsanto—how do they justify that paycheck? That destructive greed? LD: And the oil and gas industry . . . RM: What do you mean? I love BP. They’ve done a great job in the Gulf. Keep on keepin’ on! LD: Could you imagine being their lawyers and having to lie to the public about how much of the environment they’ve destroyed? RM: How do they sleep at night? LD: Since you’re such an incredibly intelligent and sensitive person, how do you combat the darkness? What are some tools that you use to beat it back? RM: You know what? I don’t know how exactly but I’m maybe perverse in the sense that I like being disappointed in something on a daily basis. Because it means that I’m still not jaded. LD: Oh, I love that. I love that perspective. RM: When I get my feelings hurt, or when things scare me, or freak out my sensibilities, or when my feathers get ruffled, it takes me aback, of course, but then I think, I’m grateful that I have a mind that can want more for people and want more for the planet. It’s not that hard. It’s really quite simple. It just boils down to people perceiving each other as equal humans, and if we can achieve that we can achieve really anything. So that, more than anything, keeps me going. I see so much beauty in people and in the world and when I see ugliness I try to either expose it or fight but also remind myself thats it’s mostly just people who can’t spell who say mean things. {Laughs.} It’s funny, honestly, by rights, with a lot of the stuff that’s happened to me I should be running down the street with my hair on fire, but instead I want to shape things, and I want to shake things up. There’s nothing wrong with being an agitator.
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 39
I RAn Away for , a Couple Years Just to Prove I ve Never Been Free. —“Hollow Moon” Lyrics Our Editor Disturbingly Lip Syncs in Public
7x Platinum AWOLNATION celebrate their new album, Run.
Musician: Aaron Bruno One of our Favorite Musicians, Crushes, and Inspirations on Awkwardness, Self-Doubt, Not Waiting for Good Shit to Happen, and Having the Power to Leave Unpleasant Situations I n t e r v i e w : M a r a n d a P l e a s a n t | P H OTOS : KARI RO W E
Aaron Bruno: Hey, Maranda. Maranda Pleasant: Hey, Aaron, how are you? AB: Sorry about the delay, the power went out at my place and my phone was dead, blah, blah, blah. MP: I’m listening to some of these lyrics on your latest album here in Paris, and they’re pretty conscious. I feel like a lot of it is poetry, in a way, but you can tell that you’ve felt a lot in your life. Is there something you’ve struggled with that had a huge impact on you and how did you come through it? AB: I would say just typically the same kind of insecurities we all have as humans. From being accepted, to different relationship situations—which is sort of the same thing— to wanting to be heard. Trying to put music out there in the world is a pretty exciting, yet terrifying, thing and I’ve just been through the ringer. I’ve been through a lot of ups and downs. I’ve been on both sides of it all, I guess. So there’s not one specific event or thought that I’m dealing with or drawing from necessarily. Mostly just what makes us tick and what makes us happy, sad, scared, full of soul, terrified, all those things. I just feel a lot
40 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
of that, and when I cruise around, I can’t help but study people’s faces and emotions and wonder why they’re feeling the way they are. And the world’s pretty trippy. I just like to travel around and see what’s out there. I have a lot of questions and I don’t have that many answers. So what better place to exercise those thoughts than the lyrics, I guess. Of course with my first record I didn’t think anyone would hear those lyrics, it was just what I was doing at the time. MP: Surprise! AB: Yeah, now I’m talking about it, it’s a weird thing. But I remember songs on the first record, going, “This is pretty gnarly to write this but nobody is going to fucking hear it, so who cares.” MP: That’s when we do our best work. Someone was telling me about you and said, “Oh, he’s into mindfulness, and he’s a vegetarian, and he’s into pain.” I’m like, “Done. I’ll download him and listen to him.”
MP: I’m not saying you’re into pain, I’m saying I’m into pain. AB: I just find that with music I’ve always felt a sort of comfort. Like when Radiohead’s OK Computer came out, “Paranoid Android” was the saddest song I felt like I’d ever heard in my life, but it felt so good—it was like, “Oh, you understand where I’m coming from.” I was at a weird age at the time. I was in a hardcore band that had no melody, no chance of finding any success, and I was just trying to figure out what the hell I was going to do with my life. And that came out and changed my life forever—on an artistic level, and a lyrical level, for sure. I just find that I enjoy the music that feels like there’s a journey to the top of this mountain, then you’re at the top of the mountain finally with this magical feeling, and you’re stoked because you made it, and you’re up there, but there’s a little bit of sadness to think of all that you lost along the way to get there. ›
N L O W AB: It’s not that I’m into pain, it’s just when music expresses . . .
N O I T A
The older I get, the more I realize that you don’t have to be around people you don’t want to be around, and you don’t have to be in a situation you don’t want to be in. You have the power to rise up and leave.
awolnationmusic.com
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 41
,
If you re waiting around for something to be handed to you or win the lottery, chances are nothing is ever going to go down, you know, so you got to make it happen on your own.
I guess I relate and enjoy the path and the struggle very much. Maybe that’s just being a surfer, growing up in Southern California and having to scrap for waves, or being in punk rock bands before social media, and you really had to fight to get people to care at all. Maybe it’s the competitive spirit in me. I’ve always found it pretty difficult to write a happy song. Since I was a kid, when I pick up my guitar it’s been hard for me to write some sort of bubblegum lyrics. It’s not really ever been my route. I do it sometimes but it never seems to fit the mood of being Awolnation. There’s a bunch of songs that I call B-sides on the record that you could argue could maybe have some potential commercial success with another artist, but for me, they just felt really whack. In fact, on a side note, after the success of the first record, I got asked to write for some pop artists, as everybody does, and I did a couple songs for some of these massive stars and the review that I got back was, “This artist likes the song but it’s too POP-y for them.” I was like, “What do you mean, I thought I was writing for a pop star.” My point is I’m kind of an outlier. For whatever reason, the success still blows my mind—that I’m able to talk to people about the music I’ve written. At the same time, I’ll tell you I’ve always been confident about it. I always felt like there was something there because you don’t put out music unless you have a sense that people will maybe like what you’re doing or you’re standing for something artistically. I don’t mess with that. It’s more about just music and trying to keep the integrity, I guess. I just said basically nothing in five sentences. MP: Well, fantastic. We’ll stretch it out to like four pages, it will be great. AB: Cool. MP: I listen to you, and you sound like an outlier. You sound like someone that’s punk, but there’s a thoughtfulness to it that sometimes I feel is missing. There’s a fun playfulness to your music, and there’s also a rage to it, and there’s lightheartedness at the same time. Not easy. There’s that line in “Hollow Moon (Bad Wolf)” that goes, “Motherfucker I’ll be back from the dead soon.” There’s a real, close-to-the-vein rawness that doesn’t sound manufactured when I listen to that song, which is a very rare thing. AB: Well, I appreciate it. That’s the nicest thing you could possibly say, really. MP: You don’t sound angry, but like you’ve felt every bit of it. There’s something very poetic and very creative about it that doesn’t sound like a studio has overproduced it. It sounds like you just cut yourself open a little bit and bled out. This is one of my favorite lines: “I ran away for a couple years just to prove I’ve never been free.”
AB: Well, I remember when that came together, that little part, and then that drum riff and then that drum fill; I was pretty proud of that. Coming from heavy music too, it’s really hard to have heavy music not sound too butthead-ish or jock-ish, and there’s a fine line between Limp Bizkit and Nirvana—there’s a fine line there, and it’s terrifying. MP: How do you stay centered and not lose your shit? AB: I’ve had the same friends I’ve always had. I mean, I’ve lost a few over the years. Stuff gets a little weird when you put it into perspective . . . some people are more affected by, I hate to use the word “success,” but I don’t know what else to say, but some people are more affected by that than others. I’ve had the same core group of friends that I’ve always had. We’re surfing, so that definitely keeps you grounded. Just when I think I’m cool because we’re playing these massive shows or having some sort of commercial success, I can always be reminded how small I am when I try to surf a wave that’s a little bit out of my league, and I just get pummeled. And, when your life flashes before your eyes kind of stuff, deep down under the water where you don’t know what’s up or down, and that kind of thing, or just Mother Nature reminding you how small you are compared to it. That’s kind of the main thing for me. MP: Do you do yoga or meditate? AB: No, not so much. I’ve been stretching more lately. MP: [Laughs.] When you’re on the road is there something you do to stay grounded? AB: I’ll tell you what, I don’t take myself that seriously when it comes down to that stuff. My drummer is my favorite drummer in the world, and he also happens to be the funniest person you’ll meet. He’s a constant reminder every time stuff gets a little too heavy, maybe I have a bad show or I’ll hit a horrible note on some recorded TV thing or something, and he’s like, “Man don’t take yourself so seriously—this is a joke, we’re playing music.” And that’s a great thing to keep me grounded at all times. We’re not saving lives, but the power does help us. Growing up from Nirvana to all the bands I was listening to at the time, those were my best friends, more than my real friends. Those were the people that sang me to sleep or gave me the confidence I needed to go to first period. When we’re all so insecure with weird stuff, when we’re having weird feelings toward girls or guys, or whatever. It’s the insecurity of life that we all go through. So music helped me. Those are my friends, so I know that I now have become some people’s best musical friend in the same way those people were for me, so that’s a great accomplishment, in my mind.
MP: You exude energy and passion, and when I started googling you, I got why you have this cult following. Your song “I Am,” on your latest album, is fucking beautiful. AB: Well, I’ll say it was a risky video. Videos are tricky because stuff sounds amazing on paper and it seems like it’s going to be this mystical experience and you’re going to look back and go, “Wow, that was magic.” But more times than not, it doesn’t end up that way, so I never know what I’m going to get. I don’t know, you just got to do your best, keep your head down, and see what’s fixed and not take it all too seriously. MP: What is “love” to you? AB: I guess no one’s ever asked me that question . . . that’s pretty heavy. MP: In 30 seconds or less. AB: Hey, what does life mean to you? MP: That’s the next one. No, I’m joking
There’s a journey to the top of this mountain, then you’re at the top of the mountain finally with this magical feeling, and you’re stoked because you made it, and you’re up there, but there’s a little bit of sadness to think of all that you lost along the way to get there.”
N O I T A N L O AW
AB: I don’t know that I can say what exactly love means to me because it would be hard to put that into perspective. But I’ll tell you that the older I get, the more I realize that you don’t have to be around people you don’t want to be around, and you don’t have to be in a situation you don’t want to be in. You have the power to rise up and leave and that’s part of the band name philosophy in a kind of tongue-in-cheek, lighthearted way. Let’s say I’m at a party and I don’t like the feeling I’m getting, I’ll just leave. Why do I have to be there? I want to surround myself with the people I care about and that has a lot to do with what love is. It’s surrounding yourself with the people you do love and trust, and that kind of thing. Or everybody has got their vibes—it could be mountain biking, it could be hiking, but for me, it’s surfing and music. There’s a lot of different things, but I think love gives us peace one way or another, and a calming effect on our soul, so I don’t know exactly what love is to me, but I know I try my best to surround myself with that. Whenever I can. It’s hard sometimes. We travel all the time, so I’m sitting there at TSA, so pissed off, my armpits are sweating and I’m just miserable, but then I have to go inside my own head and go to some happy place, you know? MP: What is a truth that you know for sure? AB: Look, one of the things that I know for sure is that none of us truly knows. That’s it. It’ll hit you later. MP: Best line. {Laughs.} That’ll hit you later. AB: I don’t think we’ll really know what’s going on until we enter the next dimension and all that.
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 43
“
Look, one of the things that I know for sure is that none of us truly knows. , , That s it. It ll hit you later.
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MP: You should work that into your next song. How old were you when it went big? AB: Thirty, dude. I was 30, I guess, or 31, 32 when it really went down. My first attempt at real music was when I was 13. My first signed band was when I was 21; that failed. I got another deal at 26; that failed, and then I was broke. I imagine trying to handle this head-trip of an experience when I was younger—it would have just turned into too much, probably. We all go through ups and downs with drinking, and I think it would have probably been a lot worse had I experienced that before. I never wanted to do it to get girls, right, to get popular, or anything like that. I really love music and I want to make it better the best I can. I can tell when something’s real, or when something’s put together. I can just feel it. So I’m my own worst critic and harshest critic and I just want to put honest music out there. There’s a difference. It’s been a weird experience to hear other versions of “Sail,” which is our biggest song, obviously. MP: I love that line from “Hollow Moon,” “Waiting patiently was waiting taking up space. We are waiting taking up space.” AB: If you’re waiting around for something to be handed to you or win the lottery, chances are nothing is ever going to go down, you know, so you got to make it happen on your own. MP: Are you a vegetarian? AB: My wife and I are on this raw kick. We’ve been eating raw as much as we can over the last couple years. I was already on this health kick for a while. More importantly, I just didn’t trust what was being put in the food that I was eating, so I just woke up one day and went ballistic and started on that kick. And then we met and she was on the same path so we kind of joined forces. My point is, I don’t see the need to eat animals. I love animals; besides the horrible stuff that’s put in meat, I actually love cuddling with animals and petting them and stuff. We’re practicing a pretty healthy raw vegan diet. We try not to be too militant about it. I haven’t touched meat or anything like that in over six years. You know what’s pretty trippy, once
I stopped, I didn’t get sick from that point on. I’ll get a light cold once in a while, but ever since that, I’ve just been completely on my toes and it helps for surfing too, to stay light on your toes and be healthy. I find that a lot of times when family members get bronchitis or the flu or something like that, I’ll kind of skate through and be really lucky and not get that sick. MP: Isn’t that amazing? AB: It’s weird, right? You start treating your body right and your immune system is better. MP: People are always like, “Oh you get sick all the time if you’re vegan.” And I’m like, “I never get sick. I don’t fucking ever get sick.” AB: Me neither. MP: A good diet and being in nature, for sure. That’s the thing. AB: You got to head north. It’s always about going north, you know? MP: Going toward the sun.
N O I T A N L O AW ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 45
{
The Wisdom of
Esperanza Spalding Musician.
On Art as Commerce: It’s a pity if someone who has a really profoundly potent art to share chooses not to or doesn’t fit into this very thin slice of what’s desirable and marketable, chances are the public will never get a chance to hear what they’re doing. On Sexism: There is an assumption that if you’re young and pretty, you will get all these opportunities that are way beyond your musical foundation.
}
Lyrical Sorceress. Rebel People are more used to seeing men who are masters at an instrument than women. When people say, “Oh, she plays like a dude,” it’s usually dudes who are the ones saying it. They’re saying, “Oh, she’s as good as us.” Of course, that’s a stupid statement. It’s totally stereotypical to say, “We have an advantage on this, and if anyone else can do it well, it’s only because they’re like us.” I think more men are starting to learn that this attitude is totally hollow and based in imagination. As more women are involved in music, this kind of thing gets said less and less.
New Album EMILY ’S D+EVOLUTION out now esperanzaspalding.com 46 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
PhotoS: Holly Andres
On L i fe:
On Love: You can grow up with literally nothing and you don’t suffer if you know you’re loved and valued.
I’m not gonna sit around and waste my precious divine energy trying to explain and be ashamed of things you think are wrong with me. On Being a Rebel: I am insubordinate by nature. I can’t help it. On Criticism: Whoever you are, if you know what you’re doing, you don’t want other people to overtake the merit of your art. On Getting Shit Done: You don’t have to be fearless to do anything; you can be scared out of your mind.
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 47
fashion Feature
Sustai nable. Ethical. Luxury.
Nikki Reed Inteview: Maranda Pleasant
{
Actor, Musician, Activist, and Our Favorite Handbag Designer Creates Beauty with Recycled, Cruelty-Free Bags, Supporting Animals.
}
Freedom of Animals
Maranda Pleasant: I’ve known you for a while now. You do so many amazing things. What are your passions? What drives you? Nikki Reed: First of all, that’s very kind of you to say, so thank you. I have always been a very passionate person. Some people are born with this fire burning inside to “do,” or create, with an insatiable hunger for knowledge and experience, and I am no exception. If I ever find myself overwhelmed, it’s only because I am overwhelmed by how much more I want to learn. That is what drives me. My love for animals started before I can remember. I have a mother who allowed me to take in anything and everything that needed food, a bath, or a forever home, which resulted in a home that was always filled with warmth and love regardless of any other struggles we were presented with. That is why I am so passionate about Freedom of Animals, my bag line created by my partner Morgan Bogle. Together he and I have tried to find a way to marry fashion with a cruelty-free and pro-sustainability type of mentality, as all of our bags are made from post-consumer polyurethane from the ocean and landfills. It’s all about creating options for people in a market where there aren’t very many. MP: What is something that you’ve struggled with personally? How did you get through/ transform it?
“
NR: I think we are all overcoming tiny obstacles every second of every day even if that means just a small shift in perspective. I think the greatest lesson I have just recently learned is how powerful the mind is, informing our decisionmaking unknowingly. Once I realized that the only thing I can actually control in this life is my own mind, how I choose to react, feel, and perceive, I felt immediately liberated. MP: Why do you do so much to help animals? NR: Animals don’t have a voice, so I think it is our job to give them one. I think we learn some of the greatest lessons in life from animals, whether it’s love, suffering, or the value of silence. But what I find the most interesting about this conversation is how easy it is to forget that what we do to animals, we do to ourselves. So yes, it is about helping animals, but it’s a much larger conversation. What we do to animals directly impacts everything, because we are all connected. It disrupts the food chain, it funds terrorism (ivory), it changes our climate, our oceans, it starts wars. I think it’s time we take a step back and recognize that while we are hurting our animals, we are hurting each other, and we are hurting our planet. MP: Tell me about your new projects and the challenges they bring.
NR: I’ve definitely recognized the challenges that come with trying to create a sustainable line with a strong cruelty-free message behind it. I partnered with Morgan in such an organic way, and we immediately decided to create a more concrete role for me within the company because it just made sense on so many levels. And because I have lived dairy/meat-free for so long, embracing the wonderful community of people in California who love to talk about new discoveries in the world of animal-free products, I was sort of oblivious to the fact that other challenges would present themselves once the company started to grow beyond what I was familiar with. So as the company expands, so does my knowledge of the fashion industry, and how destructive it is to our planet. What I have experienced on this journey is invaluable. Reusing and recycling our materials is the most important thing we can do. And despite the initial hesitation I sense from people when they first hear that the bags are cruelty-free/recycled plastic, there is an overwhelming sense of love and support that follows. It took me a second to remember that most people are guided by love or fear, whether it’s fear of something new or fear of the unknown. So rather than shoving it down anyone’s throat, I think the best way to invite people into the conversation is to just create something beautiful out of love, and people naturally gravitate towards a new way of looking at fashion.
I think the best way to invite people into the conversation is to just create something beautiful out of love, and people naturally gravitate towards a new way of looking at fashion.
FreedomOfAnimals.com | @Iamnikkireed 48 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
“
Animals don’t have a voice, so I think it is our job to give them one. But what I find the most interesting about this conversation is how easy it is to forget that what we do to animals, we do to ourselves.
”
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 49
“
”
What we do to animals directly impacts everything, because we are all connected. It disrupts the food chain, it funds terrorism (ivory), it changes our climate, our oceans, it starts wars. I think it’s time we take a step back and recognize that while we are hurting our animals, we are hurting each other, and we are hurting our planet.
50 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
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Golden Globe + Emmy-winning actor, star of SOLD
Gillian Anderson On the
Global Business of S e l l i n g C h i l d r e n for Sex,
Generating Billions of Dollars E v e r y Y e a r , and t h e E v e r yday H o r r o r s of
Human Trafficking
in Her New Film, SOLD
Maranda Pleasant: Your new film SOLD deals with the horrors of human trafficking. How deeply does this issue affect you emotionally? Gillian Anderson: I simply cannot fathom the horrors of being enslaved, and the thought that children are ripped apart from their families and used year in and out for sex and hard labor under the threat of violence and death breaks my heart. MP: Was there something you learned about human trafficking that you didn’t know before you started the film? GA: That human trafficking is a globally assisted pandemic that generates billions of dollars of income a year. MP: What is one of the most shocking things about trafficking that you learned?
Interview: Maranda Pleasant
GA: There are so many shocking things. Is it more shocking that there are children sold into slavery in every city in the world and right under our noses or that there are villages in Nepal where there are no children left because they have all been kidnapped for sex trafficking, or that there are generations of slaves in some countries where indentured slavery passes from generation to generation and that kids grow into adults not knowing that another world—another life—exists? MP: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now?
soldthemovie.com 52 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
GA: It is always important, but right now the topic of female empowerment is at the forefront of conversation and it’s important we take advantage of the trend while there is added pressure to adjust long-standing beliefs, prejudices, and cultural discrimination. MP: How are girls/kids viewed in this world and do you think there’s a global epidemic of disregarding women? GA: Unfortunately, the belief that women are a minority is endemic in most cultures around the world. Obviously some take it to the extreme where violence against women is legal and supported and in other cultures it is more subversive and easy to dismiss as “progress.” MP: How can we get involved and shift things? What can we do? GA: We have to raise the status of girls and women in every country. It’s a proven fact that when you raise the status of girls and women in a country, that country does much better economically. Education is key. We have to keep girls in school and give them the same opportunities that boys have. They need access to vocational training and mentorship, as well. It’s an issue of gender equality, which is fortunately a hot topic right now, but we need to keep at it and not rest on our laurels. There’s a lot of work to be done.
“
It’s a proven fac t t ha t w h e n you raise the status of girls and women in a c o u n t r y , t ha t country does m u ch b e t t e r e c o n o m i ca l l y .
”
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 53
}
the dangers of GMOs Zoe Lister-Jones, Wr ite r
| Ac to r | Pr o duc e r
Consumed the movie
On GMO Labeling, Toxic Childhood Exposure, The DARK Act, Superweeds, Dangers of Glyphosate, and Her New Film Exploring the Disturbing, Complex World of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), Consumed. Interview: Maranda Pleasant
consumedthemovie.com | @consumedmovie | @ZoeListerJones 54 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
Photo: Courtesy of MarVista Entertainment
Zoe Lister-Jones: I think the dangers of the impact of GMOs on the environment are undebatable. Genetically modified crops are tied to the chemicals sprayed on them. As such, herbicide use in this country has skyrocketed since the introduction of GMOs on the commercial market. According to a 2012 study published in Environmental Sciences Europe, GMO herbicide-tolerant crops have led to a 527 million pound increase in herbicide use in the U.S. between 1996 and 2011. The World Health Organization recently concluded that glyphosate, the main ingredient in the most-used herbicide on GMOs, is “possibly carcinogenic to humans.” One study found glyphosate in 60% to 100% of the rain water in some agricultural areas. What’s even scarier is that more than 3,200 elementary schools are within 1,000 feet of genetically modified corn or soybean fields. Drift is a very real thing in agricultural communities, so the proximity of these toxic substances to children is terrifying. MP: What do so many of us not know? ZLJ: Oh boy, where do I begin? I think a big misconception about GMOs is that there is a scientific consensus on their safety. The fact is, some of the most respected scientific bodies in the world, including Codex Alimentarius (jointly run by the World Health Organization and the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations), the American Medical Association, the British Medical Association, and the American Public Health Association, have stated that more research needs to be done on GMOs through premarket safety assessments before we can truthfully determine their safety. MP: In your opinion, why has GMO labeling been so hard for us to push through? ZLJ: Well the Grocery Manufacturers Association is behind the bills which have been trying to pre-empt states’ labeling laws in the Senate. And they have a lot of money and power in Washington. So it’s a classic David versus Goliath story, where corporate lobbying outweighs consumers’ rights. The good news, however temporarily, is what is commonly referred to as the Deny Americans the Right to Know (DARK) Act failed to pass the Senate in March. So we are on track to have Vermont’s labeling bill go into effect July 1, as long as an amended bill isn’t introduced before then. MP: What are some of the biggest physical threats to us with GMOs? ZLJ: Because GMOs aren’t labeled, it’s very hard to prove causality in terms of health effects. It’s even more difficult because the
“
GMOs are fo un d in nearly 80% of pro cessed fo o d in the U nited States. Curren tly up to 92% of U.S. co rn is g en etically en gin eered, as are 94% o f s o ybean s an d 94% o f co tto n .
“
MP: What are your biggest concerns about GMOs?
seeds are patented, so independent researchers have a hard time gaining access to them. At this moment, glyphosate is the biggest threat. And because of its overuse, we are seeing the emergence of superweeds, which have grown resistant to glyphosate. This has led to biotech corporations developing even more toxic herbicides, including 2,4-D, one of the main components of Agent Orange. MP: Why are you so passionate about this? ZLJ: Because it’s our food supply! And our environment! There is no way to deny how imperative both of those things are to our future! MP: In your opinion, why is it so hard to get GMOs out of our food supply? ZLJ: They’re just so pervasive, it’s irreversible at this point. GMOs are found in nearly 80% of processed food in the United States. Currently, up to 92% of U.S. corn is genetically engineered, as are 94% of soybeans and 94% of cotton. In short, they are everywhere. But as consumers, we can buy organic and non-GMO verified products, so look out for those labels when shopping! MP: How do we get involved? How do we support? ZLJ: There are a lot of great organizations who are fighting for food and environmental safety in this country. The Environmental Working Group, Just Label It, Food Democracy Now, and the Center for Food Safety, to name a few. If you get on any of their mailing lists, you can be kept abreast of very important information regarding the food we are feeding ourselves and our children. And of course, please support Consumed. It is the first narrative thriller (not a documentary) to tackle the world of GMOs. Because there are so many factors when considering the potential impacts of GMOs on our health and environment, we wanted to make a film that could unpack complex subject matter, while taking the audience on an entertaining ride. It is a very powerful tool because it allows viewers to understand the nature of these very complicated issues in a digestible format, and then hopefully engage in a dialogue about them in their respective homes and communities. Zoe Lister-Jones wrote, produced, and starred in Consumed, a dramatic thriller set in the complex world of GMOs. The film, which became available digitally in March, was called “a real eye-opener” by environmental activist Erin Brockovich. Lister-Jones is currently starring on CBS’s Life in Pieces and appears in Confirmation, a film about the Clarence Thomas hearings, which premieres on HBO in April.
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 55
OUR KID,S PICK
Our Fav Book + Film Connecting Kids with Caring for the Ocean Joel Harper’s beloved book is now an animated movie premiering on Earth Day, April 22. It features our fav acclaimed actors, award-winning musicians, and dedicated activists, including Amy Smart, Ben Harper, Burning Spear, Jack Johnson, Joel Harper, Marcia Cross, and Xavier Rudd. James throws a plastic bottle in the gutter and doesn’t believe that it will go all the way to the ocean. His friend Isaac warns James about the consequences of his littering. The adventures begin with James and Isaac as they learn about the harmful effects of storm drain pollution and spread the word to their friends and the rest of their school. Helping the kids along this journey are a concerned Crane from the coast line and a surprisingly insightful Surfer Dude. Love this film! Watch the trailer and pre-order your copy: vimeo.com/ondemand/allthewaytotheocean
56 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
youth feature
Actor, Murder in the First
Mateus Ward
Ou r In s p i T een r at i o n
“
No need to bully, start fights, talk trash, or hate on anyone because they are different. Ocean Pleasant: What inspires your work? Mateus Ward: I’m inspired by good work. Whether it is a great performance by another actor, a piece of art, or someone doing something altruistic. People doing what they love and doing it well always inspires me. OP: If you could say one thing to everyone on the planet, what would it be? MW: Be. Nice. To. Each. Other! We are all we have on this little blue dot, so there is no need to bully, start fights, talk trash, or hate on anyone because they are different. OP: Can you share advice for other Millennials pursing their dreams? MW: Work. Study. Focus. Dedicate yourself to it and don’t give up. OP: Name three things we probably don’t know about you. @mateusward
MW: I love to draw. I spend hours every day drawing. I am a huge comic book fan, and I love everything vintage: cars, movies, music, art, and style—especially the 1950s style. OP: How do you feel you are making a difference in the world? MW: I feel strongly about helping fundraise and donating to causes that help children, animals, and the environment. I wish I could do more! OP: What does “love” mean to you? MW: To me, love is the strongest and most amazing force in the world. It can bring people together, tear them apart, lift people up, or bring them down. But if it is true and pure, love can create a beautiful and peaceful world.
”
MW: I am an ambassador for an organization called Planet Dot Eco, whose goal is to bring awareness to our planet and the environment. You can learn more at Planetdoteco.com. I grew up in Hawaii and I think those islands are some of the most amazing places on the planet, so I donate and support the Hawaiian Land and Trust Foundation, which protects land and the beaches of Hawaii from development and pollution. You can visit their website at www.hilt.org. I love to work with and help children, so I donate money, fundraise, and encourage those over 17 to donate blood to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Please donate blood and save a child’s life! chla.org Mateus Ward won a 2012 Young Artist Award from the Young Artist Association for his recurring role on the Showtime comedy-drama Weeds.
OP: Are there any causes or organizations you support? If so, how can our readers get involved? PhotoS: Marc Cartwright ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 57
T H E C O N S C I O U S C U LT U R E M A G A Z I N E
MARANDA PLEASANT’S
The FEM
REVOLUTION Disrupters CHANGE MAKERS Feminists. CEOs BREASTFEEDING BACKLASH
BONNIE RAITT Diggin’ in Deep
DOES our CULTURE HATE WOMEN? The Labels Leveled Against Us
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FIGHTING GMOs
BEN HARPER
Healing Pain + Feeling Everything
T ruth Teller + Ag itator
ROSE Mc GOWAN CLIMATE CHAMPIONS RICHARD BRANSON. GISELE MARK RUFFALO + VIVIENNE WESTWOOD
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PEACE WITH PERFECTIONISM
MEN
YOGA
WheRe he’s gonna get the money &
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M A N T R A
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actor, containment
Claudia Black
INTERVIEW: MARANDA PLEASANT
On Trusting Your Gut, Investigating Your Shadows, Never Trash-talking Yourself, Raising Heart-centered Men, and Supporting Renewable Energy
Maranda Pleasant: What’s your most important message for girls right now? Claudia Black: Listen to your bodies. You are constantly receiving information from your body about how to care for it and yourself. Trust your gut. Respect and show up for yourself or no one else will. Show up for your friends too. Whatever you want that others in your life can’t give you, ask yourself how you can give it to yourself. You always have choices no matter what. You are perfectly imperfect. Make mistakes; it’s what you do about them that counts. Always be accountable. Forgive and let go. Never trash-talk yourself or others. Stay curious. Speak your truth. When there’s a right and wrong thing to do, choose right regardless of what your friends do. Sleep is underrated. Sleep! Only place yourself around people who love your strengths and are also safe to be vulnerable around—you’ll need both power and vulnerability in womanhood. Sisterhood is magical and medicinal—use it as a lifelong resource. Build other females up and only compete with yourself. And as Dr. Mark Hyman says, “There’s no such thing as junk food. There’s junk and there’s food.” Stop eating junk. Be a good listener and a loyal friend. Be your best you, and when things get tough always know that you can hand it all over to the universe and it will support you. Never underestimate the healing power of breath. It is a radical act to believe in and like yourself. I dare you. I double-, triple-dare you to. MP: What inspires your work? CB: Playfulness. My children. Being of service. Kindness. Community. Collaboration. Group
effort. Narrative—where mine meets what’s on the page. Beauty. Current events. Art. Music. Other people’s courage, talent, and stories. MP: If you could say one thing to everyone on the planet, what would it be? CB: Sustainability. This planet is our home and we’re trashing and killing it. Support renewable energy. Recycle. Reuse. Restore. Replenish. Leave every environment you go into better than you found it. Turn the damn tap off when you brush your teeth—Aargh! And, we’re one race. No matter our religion, beliefs, mother tongue, or skin color. MP: Name three things we probably don’t know about you. CB: I know a lot about health, wellness, and nutrition. I make my own kombucha. I’m clumsy. MP: How do you feel you are making a difference in the world? CB: Raising two conscious, mindful, thoughtful, heart-centered young males. The projects I’m developing for kids related to intellectual and neurodiversity, trauma, and conflict resolution. I aim to have meaningful, honest interactions with people and be open to their uniqueness. I am service-centric. I always intend to leave places better than I find them. I share pretty much everything I have with those in need around me. I have phenomenal mentors who guide me to maximize my effectiveness.
MP: What does love mean to you? CB: Never giving up and yet a lot of surrender. Self-care. Truth. Trust. Openness. Growth. Courage. Faith. Collaboration. Compassion. Communication. Affection. Support. Passion. Joy. Warmth. Mindfulness. Rigorous self-work. Sympatico, empathy, flow. Forgiveness. MP: Are there any causes or organizations you support? If so, how can our readers get involved? CB: I am passionate about the work Gina Ross (ginaross.com) is doing for the world in terms of trauma management and global conflict resolution. I’m equally passionate about Dawna Markova, Ph.D., and her tireless work with children. Her latest book, Collaborative Intelligence, was co-written by Angie McArthur and published by Random House (cqthebook.com).
{
“
Build other females up and only compete with yourself.
”
}
I’m passionate about transformation. Everyone should go inward, get curious about themselves, and investigate their shadows. It’s one of the most important gifts we can give humanity. It’s one of our most vital causes. Volunteer. Find ways to be useful. Be kind. Watch Claudia’s show Containment on the CW. Photo: Nate Taylor
8 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 9
Interview with
Laura Prepon star of
Orange is the New Black
Struggled with weight issues, digestive issues, and low energy. After years of starving herself with crazy diets and countless grueling workouts, she discovered Eastern holistic medicine and cutting-edge food science, and launched a book to help others heal.
Maranda Pleasant: What keeps you grounded? Laura Prepon: Working hard and appreciating the accomplishments that have come from that. I get to wake up and do what I love every day and I don’t take that for granted. I feel grateful for it every day. MP: What’s your health/fitness routine? LP: My fitness routine includes things that are not stressful on my body—swimming, yoga, stretching, and rebounding. When I used to kill myself in the gym, it had an adverse effect on me because my body would be so stressed out and constantly in fight-or-flight mode. I eat organic and cook my food whenever possible, and I live by the 80/20 rule. Eighty percent of the time I’m Stash all the way, 20 percent I enjoy the things I want. MP: Why is food a passion for you? LP: Food is a passion because I basically grew up in a kitchen. My mother was a gourmet chef and I’m the youngest of five kids. We would always congregate in the kitchen. I love cooking and spending time in mine. Food nourishes you, brings people together, and I feel that anybody can bond over food. MP: What is a truth you know for sure?
thestashplan.com | lauraprepon.com 10 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
LP: That when you eat pure food that isn’t genetically modified, your physical and mental state does improve and it’s worth the effort to make that happen. MP: How do you nourish your spirit? LP: Experiencing other cultures and trying new things that push me outside of my comfort zone. Meeting new people who live completely different lives than I do and learning from them. MP: What inspired you to create this book? LP: What inspired me was that I knew there were so many other people who were struggling with the same things I was and didn’t have answers. When I finally started to heal, that was the inspiration. My body changed, my energy level changed, and my overall well-being improved. Laura Prepon, star of Orange Is the New Black and That ’70s Show, struggled with weight and digestive issues before meeting integrative nutritionist Elizabeth Troy, who combines Eastern holistic medicine and cutting-edge food science. Troy “unstuck” Prepon’s malfunctioning organs and jump-started her metabolism through targeted eating and stretching that finally allowed her to thrive. Their book is The Stash Plan.
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When I finally started to heal, that was the inspiration.
”
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 11
EATERNITY: Recipes on How To Live to 100
Jason Wrobel Professional Vegan Chef
Coconut Cacao Cookie Dough Balls Makes
12
balls
Cookie dough is one of those primal dessert urges that must be satisfied . . . or else! This mostly raw, dairy-free version comes chock-full of heart-healthy coconut shreds, a caramel undertone of flavor from lucuma, and magnesium-rich cacao nibs. The coconut oil contains MCTs; I’ve noted that unlike other saturated fats, MCTs provide an energy source for the body rather than being stored. The MCTs also help to boost thermogenesis and fat burning in the body. These mouthwatering balls are a healthy way to get your sweet fix and are a true people pleaser at parties! ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons organic virgin coconut oil ¾ cup lucuma powder ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon coconut nectar ½ teaspoon ground vanilla bean 1 ¼ teaspoons sea salt ½ cup cacao nibs 3 cups fine coconut shreds, plus extra reserved for garnish Add the fine coconut shreds to a food processor. Turn the processor on and slowly add coconut oil, stopping to scrape down the sides of the processor bowl with a spatula as needed. Add the lucuma powder and coconut nectar and process. Add the vanilla bean and sea salt, pulsing until the mixture is incorporated. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and add the cacao nibs. Stir together and roll the mixture into balls. Plate on a serving dish and sprinkle with the reserved coconut shreds. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. Jason Wrobel, professional raw food chef, instructor, and a vegan for nearly 20 years, shows thousands how to prepare deliciously easy and satisfying plant-based recipes. His popular YouTube channel, The J-Wro Show, features over 250 vegan recipe demos and vibrant living vlogs. As the first-ever vegan chef on Cooking Channel, his TV series How to Live to 100 merged healthy comfort food recipes with a humorous blend of sitcom skits and epic animation. 12 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
Š2015 Eden Foods 08981
c i t n e th u A
There is no better food | edenfoods.com ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 13
Jason Wrobel Professional Vegan Chef a u t h o r , EATERNITY
Sweet Crepes with Strawberry Tomato Coulis Sweet Cashew Crème: 2 cups raw cashews, soaked for at least 1 hour ½ cup coconut nectar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract ¼ cup fresh lemon juice ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons filtered water ½ teaspoon lemon zest ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons organic virgin coconut oil, melted C r e p e B at t e r : 1 cup gluten-free all-purpose baking flour 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk 4 tablespoons organic virgin coconut oil, divided 2 tablespoons coconut sugar 3 tablespoons golden flaxseed, finely ground ¼ teaspoon sea salt 1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder ½ cup filtered water 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 cup diced strawberries, reserved for garnish 1 cup crushed walnuts, reserved for garnish S t r aw b e r r y To m at o C o u l i s : 2 cups diced strawberries 1 ½ cups chopped tomatoes 5 tablespoons coconut nectar 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice pinch sea salt To make the Sweet Cashew Crème: blend all cream ingredients in a high-speed blender for 40 seconds until ultra smooth and creamy. Chill for at least 2 hours before serving. To make the crepe batter: mix together the baking flour, coconut milk, 2 tablespoons of the coconut oil, coconut sugar, golden flaxseed, sea salt, baking powder, filtered water, and vanilla extract, preferably with a high-speed blender or hand mixer. Cover and 14 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
refrigerate for 30 minutes. The batter will keep fresh in a covered container stored in the refrigerator for up to three days. To make the Strawberry Tomato Coulis: combine all the coulis ingredients in a highspeed blender or food processor and pulse the mixture gradually until well combined, retaining a slight amount of chunkiness to the mixture. Set aside. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of coconut oil over medium-low heat in nonstick pan or crepe pan. If using an 8-inch pan, use ¼ cup of batter. If using a 9- or 9 ½-inch pan, use ¹/³ cup of batter. Pour the batter into the pan and shake the pan immediately to spread the batter evenly. When the topside of the crepe is totally dry, starting to brown slightly around
the edges, and producing little bubbles (after about 2 minutes), carefully flip the crepe with a thin spatula. The other side will need less cooking time, around 1 to 1 ½ minutes. Carefully remove the finished crepe and transfer to a plate. Repeat until all of the crepe batter is used. To assemble, fill each crepe with a large dollop of the Sweet Cashew Crème, spooning it lengthwise. Fold the edges of the crepe toward the middle, one at a time, and then flip the crepe over, with the top facing down on the plate. Spoon a generous amount of the Strawberry Tomato Coulis on top and garnish with diced strawberries and chopped walnuts.
Cheesier than ever.
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 15
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ORIGIN SERIES:
Same Questions | Different Artists | Powerful Answers
Optimism is a huge “help when it comes to health.
”
Tia Mowry On the importance of optimism, her endometriosis diagnosis, and
happiness as a choice Interview: Robert Piper
Robert Piper: What inspires you? Tia Mowry: My family is my biggest inspiration. My son, my husband, and my family inspire me to be better, do better, and live better. RP: What is the hardest obstacle you’ve had to overcome in your life? TM: The most challenging obstacle I’ve had to overcome was my endometriosis diagnosis. Besides the physical pain that I had to endure, I had to completely change my perspective on food. It was a huge challenge to have to change the way I’d eaten for so long. RP: How do you stay healthy? TM: Exercise. Rest. Water. And keeping a positive outlook on life. Optimism is a huge help when it comes to health.
RP: What’s the best advice you could give someone about life? TM: Happiness is a choice. Choose to be happy. Nobody’s life is perfect and in the grand scheme of things, life is short. I think it’s so important to live life to its fullest and choose to smile. Carpe Diem! RP: What projects are you currently working on? TM: My sitcom Instant Mom is going into its third season. I’m very proud to not only star in it, but also produce the show. Also, my cooking show on The Cooking Channel, Tia Mowry at Home, is going into its second season, and I’m in the writing stages of a cookbook called Whole New You that I’m very excited about.
Photos: Kevin Thomas 16 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
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ORIGIN: What are some things we probably don’t know about our mind/how the brain functions? MT: Many do not know how profoundly linked our brain is to our gut. Your gut produces more serotonin (the ‘feel-good’ neurotransmitter) than your brain! Your intestinal organisms influence immunity, detoxification, inflammation, neurotransmitter and vitamin production, and nutrient absorption. All of these processes factor into whether you experience chronic health problems like allergies, asthma, ADHD, cancer, dementia, and diabetes. Your microbiome also affects your mood, your libido, and your mental clarity. Therefore, what you eat has profound implications on your overall mood, mindset, and health. Treat your gut well!
“
Your microbiome also affects your mood, your libido, and your mental clarity. Therefore, what you eat has profound implications on your overall mood, mindset, and health.
”
ORIGIN: What are some ways we can lead happier, healthier lives and reach our highest potential through meditation?
SECRETS of a PEAK MIND Michael Trainer F o u n d e r of P e a k M i n d On Transforming Our Lives Through Meditation + Diet, the Link Between Our Brain + Our Gut, and Channeling His Frustration from His Father’s Dementia Diagnosis
ORIGIN: What are the most important things we can do to have a clear, peak mind? Michael Trainer: I suggest a morning routine. Many of the world’s top CEOs and peak performers are early risers and have a consistent morning routine. I highly recommend meditation, diet, and exercise to start your day. In terms of mental clarity, your brain is predominantly fat, so eating healthy fats like coconut oil and avocado are great for your brain. I also recommend high-dose B-complex vitamins, Vitamin D, Coenzyme Q10, and Magnesium for optimal brain health and performance. You should also move every day; exercise helps produce new neurological activity and enhances mood.
peakmind.org 18 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
MT: Research out of Harvard University shows you can actually change your neuroplasticity through eight weeks of mindfulness. Through meditation you decrease activity in the stressproducing amygdala, your emotional response fight-or-flight center, and increase activity in the hippocampus, the center of your brain that controls memory and creativity. Whatever method you choose, I recommend committing to 10 minutes a day for eight weeks to see results. Headspace is a great free mobile app to get started. ORIGIN: Why did you create Peak Mind and what exactly is it? MT: I created Peak Mind when my father was diagnosed with dementia. I wanted to channel the frustration I felt into a proactive platform. Peak Mind is a place where individuals can come to get the information and inspiration they need to live at their peak. We host and support events with some of the Peak Minds of our time.In the last nine months we hosted His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Deepak Chopra, and Eckhart Tolle, and we are launching a digital platform to share research and best practices in health and wellness. Michael Trainer, a social movement innovator and founder of Peak Mind, brings together the most influential thought leaders of our time to help those all over the world live happier, healthier lives and inspire them to their highest potential. PhotoS: Marc Cartwright
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INTERVIEW: MARANDA PLEASANT
Bonnie Raitt L e g e n d . Ac t i v i s t . M u s i c i a n
On
th e need f o r a Ne w Revo l ut i o n ,
Clean E nergy , her Sobriet y, th e need f o r a Political Revolution,
Equalit y for Women,
Prote cting the Earth , a n d Taking Pers onal Responsibilit y in o u r Lives
Maranda Pleasant: You’ve done so much with conservation. You’re a heroine for so many who work in conservation, and with endangered species. You donate so much of your time. Is there something that makes it personal for you? Bonnie Raitt: There are so many people out there working with great grassroots and global and national organizations that are unsung heroes to me. And those of us with a microphone who are blessed with the gift of being in the public eye have a special opportunity to give voice to all those groups whose activism is sometimes ignored or put on the back pages with the the dumbing down of television and the tabloidization of journalism. As Ralph Nader called it, “sound barks,” not even sound bites. Really important issues are getting lost, so I can say I’m glad to be a citizen of the planet and do my part. I think that we have a unique opportunity as performers and artists to be kind of the town criers and also to get more people to listen, so that’s a blessing and a responsibility that I take very seriously. I have to stay informed about the issues across the board, between gun control and Native American rights, women’s rights, safe food, plastic pollution, safe energy, clean air and water, our resources, and conservation and efficiency. I don’t know if I’m a heroine; I’m just somebody that can cheer the troops by singing to folks, and have receptions after the show, and
bonnieraitt.com 20 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
tithe a dollar of every ticket sale for all kinds of different great charities and social action groups. There are a lot of people that never get their stories told. MP: Is there something that makes it deeply personal for you? Is there some issue that you feel really personally connected to that makes it personal? BR: Absolutely. Part of the reason I had such a drive to be an activist, and support other activists, is because I was raised Quaker and my parents kept us very much informed and involved as kids in civil rights and the conservation movement. A dear family friend started Save the Redwoods League, up in the Palo Alto region of California, and I just remember being very much aware of the efforts to protect the water, the quality of water, and later in my adult years, the threat of oil rigs in California. It’s very personal in California to live within hours, and sometimes just a few miles, of earthquake faults when nuclear plants were being built. Between the redwoods, growing up and enjoying nature, camping on almost every vacation, and getting to go to summer camp in the Adirondacks, it was really very apparent to me that we had to preserve what we had on the earth. I learned so much from studying Native American approaches to balance with the earth, and I have to say that since I was a kid, I was raised with the blessing of being involved with peace and social justice, and the environmental movement. I have my parents to thank for that. ›
Photos: Marina Chavez
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I was raised with the blessing of being involved with peace and social justice, and the environmental movement. I have my parents to thank for that.
�
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 21
MP: Well, I love you even more! [Laughs.] BR: Oh god. Well thank you for saying that, but when they were putting oil rigs up and down the California coast, the whole issue of safe energy and the addiction to fossil fuels really came into focus. The connection between toxicity and cancer and safe air and water and food, all of that was important all along, as were women’s and human rights issues, but the nuke issue and the safe energy movement became really important to me in the mid-’70s.
an equal position in the cultures all around the world. There’s been just a fantastic explosion of articles that I haven’t seen in many, many years and films coming out like Suffragette. There’s a lot of synchronicity that’s blowing open the issue and I think it’s engaging across the aisle politically— whatever religion or political affiliation you are, whatever race you are, whatever age you are, everybody is concerned about it. So I think people speaking out on all levels in every different profession is really helping out. I’m encouraged by it.
MP: What’s the new revolution now? BR: Well, there’s so many amazing articles coming out all the time and because of the internet circulating great writing—even if the writers don’t get paid enough most of the time, unfortunately—but there’s never been a more amazing flow of information on all of the issues. I would love to see a revival of what we had against the war in the ’60s—we could do these teach-ins on the internet, live and split screen, and have real in-depth debate between people that are on the “other” side of issues—nuclear, gun control, whatever. We could really be having a much more democratically involved and exciting debate with people emailing their questions and having a virtual town meeting. I think it would be a really exciting way to re-engage and engage this new generation—many of whom are really angry and frustrated and have grown up with nothing but ineffective government and money hijacking the whole political system. They don’t know it any other way. I mean, those of us who grew up in the ’50s and ’60s, we had the dream that this could be turned around, and the earth could be back in balance, and that we could level the playing field with men and women and pay, and you know, minority groups having equal opportunity. We just magically thought this was all going to happen: we were going to have clean food, and organic this, and conscious that, and it just didn’t happen. We need the people who are doing the hard work in the forefront, like Mark Ruffalo and Leonardo DiCaprio. There’s so many people working to get more attention in the press and it seems to be working. MP: Tell me about your work with women becoming more powerful and equal. Is there anything you wanted to say around that, about women’s issues? BR: I have been really heartened by how much coverage there has been about inequality of pay across the board, between the entertainment industry and almost every industry worldwide. And just the problem of young women not getting an education, not being able to have
22 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
“
MP: My personal mantra. I think sometimes I slip into that, not realizing how much I’m responsible for the energy I bring into a room or a situation.
On sobriety:
The same thing that was my problem has become my silver lining, really.
that I needed comfort or I needed to vent or this or that. But I started to understand that the kinds of personalities and backgrounds that lead you to have a little bit more of something, whether it’s a dependency on overworking, or sex, or gambling, or substance abuse. Understanding how we become unbalanced that way and addicted, and what that personality is, has been a real eye-opener for me. The challenge of course is in sobriety and that’s been the blessing, to realize, to take accountability for the ways that your own thinking impacts your happiness, and your serenity, and your ability to be a productive and a loving, giving member of your family and society. So the same thing that was my problem has become a silver lining, really.
”
MP: What is something that you’ve struggled with in your life and what’s something that really helped you work through it or transform it? I’m all about vulnerability and suffering. BR: Yeah, well in my case I’ve been sober for 30 years. You know, a lot of people feel that sobriety is about just stopping using whatever it was that you appeared to be addicted to, but it really has to do with a way of looking at your life and taking accountability. The big turning point for me was being unconscious to the way that my behavior was impacting myself and other people. I tended to think, “Oh, if only this person would act better this way or the record company would do this,” putting that focus on an explanation or the blame outside of myself, that was a lot of my my story, a lot of the self-pity involved—it led to my feeling
BR: Yeah, exactly, and we become those personas, you know. Whatever role we were in our family of birth, we take on this persona and in your 20s and 30s in particular, you end up thinking that’s you and that isn’t necessarily you. You’re all kinds of things: you’re still eight years old, you’re still the 90-year-old along with the current 66-year-old, so there are all these playful and cranky and flawed and magnificently strong and vulnerable . . . all those things at the same time and just learning how to be realistic and not let yourself coast too much and go numb, and abusing whatever it is that makes you go numb to not deal with stuff. It’s a lot harder to be clear-headed, but the good stuff is when you start realizing who’s really you. I don’t want to sound like a self-help book, but it really has been transformative for me to take a look at my relationships in a new way and see my part in them. Everybody’s going through that. The women’s movement resurgence of standing up for so many things that were kind of sleepy there for a decade or so, there’s been a reawakening and I think the consciousness movement in general is dovetailing with a lot of recovery and self-empowerment. There’s so much power and support in a support group of any kind, whether it’s your closest friends or an actual group you attend because you had a problem and you want fellow people that are as twisted as you are, or whatever. The fact is that this conversation is going on at every level at every age, we’re all going, “God, what a jerk I’ve been,” “How could I have married that guy?” or “How could I have done this or that?” With time, this is the gift of being older, that you get to look back and say, “It wasn’t all about them.” ›
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 23
circumstance. It’s as simple as the serenity prayer; it’s a very, very real thing. MP: Beautiful. “Pulling in your wings.” I’ve never actually heard someone phrase it like that. As you evolve as a woman and as a being, does your music evolve with you? Is this album different than what you’ve done in the past for you emotionally? BR: I don’t go into any album with a concept or a deliberate direction. It’s more letting the best music that really appeals to me at the time, the best songs that I find after many months and years of search and sifting through my collection, and asking radio people and journalists. It’s really an ongoing search that’s as much daunting as it is somewhat exciting. I mean it’s always enjoyable to listen to a friend’s work, but if it doesn’t resonate with you, then you can just appreciate it and it inspires you in its own way. But going into this record, it’s really a matter of finding 11 or 12 songs that really speak to me at the time. This time I was able to co-write three and write two of my own. I hadn’t written in a long time, so it was really based on grooves that I wanted to play in my show that were kind of missing. You know, one was a gospel shuffle and that was “What You’re Doing to Me.” Some of them were thematically things that I wanted to say. So my tunes were things that I wanted to express musically and lyrically. The other songs, they find their way to me, and when there’s a good fit, I know they’re right for me. It takes a long time, and when I get enough, that’s when I have the record. So it isn’t any different, the process isn’t any different than any of the other records I’ve made. But hopefully people will just hear 12 more great new songs, played with my wonderful band.
MP: And have you noticed sometimes where you’re in a spiral and you really put too much energy on what they did and it’s becoming more and more like, “Wow, what role did I play?” BR: I wrote a song on my new album that’s all about that. That’s the last song on my new record. MP: What’s it called? BR: “The Ones We Couldn’t Be” and that’s what it’s all about. That’s exactly what this is about. It’s the last song on record and it’s one I wrote. MP: I’m going to replay that as soon as we get off the phone. I think you’re kind of like a cult figure for a lot of women. BR: Well, thank you, I’m glad I present that but I’m hoping people can really see what I sing about and who I am in public. There’s lots of flaws and frailties and cracks in the armor, and nobody wants to put themselves out there as some kind of Joan of Arc because none of us can live up to that, but I’m grateful to be a role model and be respected because I have a whole slew of people, men and women, that I feel the same way about. And I’m happy to have been a positive influence. MP: I think it’s your vulnerability that really allows us to connect to you because we can see our own vulnerability. Is there a truth that you know for sure? BR: We create our own happiness. The one thing I know is that if you’re not paying attention, it will come back to bite you. Whether you should be spinning in a sort of toxic swirl of drawing people to you that feed that story that you keep telling yourself and them, and you re-create your own pain and your own excuse, whether it’s procrastinating, or not living up to your own potential, or pulling your wings in because you don’t want to look too powerful. You create the happiness and the balance that you have, and your own power. This is one thing that I know to be true. You know, it was something that I came to realize more and more—when I recognize something is not working, I pull myself out of it. Then I can go, “Wow, I’m a lot happier.” I learned by experience that you can change your
24 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
I’m so happy to be held in the respect that you’re clearly holding me in and I have a forum to say what’s important. Usually I’m talking about guitar strings. Most of the time I am talking track by track and people ask about the band and stuff like that, so it’s really nice for me to be able to stretch out a little bit and talk about bigger issues.
“
Whatever role we were in our family of birth, we take on this persona and in your 20s and 30s in particular, you end up thinking that’s you and that isn’t necessarily you.
”
MP: I think people love you as a whole person. I think people love your music, but I also think people are in love with the vulnerability and rawness you exude. You’re so down to earth, there’s no way to separate you from your music. BR: Well that’s the best review I’ve gotten. MP: You’re one of those in-your-bones musicians. You make people feel it in their bones. To me, I don’t know a guitar riff, but I know that I’m not alone in this world, I know I’m going to get through it. That’s what you give people and that’s why I’m excited about this album. BR: What a wonderful thing to say. I called it Dig in Deep because that happens to be a lyric from the first song. The band and I have been together, some of us for over 30 years, and you know, you get into a telepathy with each other and a soul connection and are able to go deep. We have an unspoken way of digging and a way of playing together that can only happen really when you are so attuned and that comes with experience. And then Dig in Deep was also a nod to some of the topics that I wrote about and am singing about—not just my songs, but other people’s songs on the record, so it was a double-edged meaning, as they often are on my albums’ titles. MP: Your work on this album is rich and there’s so much texture and there’s so many layers. Anyway, thank you so much. BR: Thank you, Maranda.
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The
Loudest Voice you Hear
Should be Your Own. You are More Than Enough. Let’s Stop the Self-Abuse. Ways We Silence Ourselves
Every day: I Hate my Body He Wouldn’t Have Cheated If I Was Prettier I ’m So Stupid If I Looked Like Her, I Wouldn ’t Be Single He ’ll Get Bored of Me Eventually I Really Shouldn ’t Eat Today My Boobs are Sagging All these Wrinkles Make me Look So Old I Was Too Assertive at the Meeting I Can ’t Leave Him, Who Else Would Want me? My Thighs are Disgusting
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Trailblazers. Heroines
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CNN COLUMNIST + P OLITICAL COMMENTATOR, P OLITICAL E SSAYIST, S OCIAL JUSTICE P OINEER + OUR HEROINE
ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire? Sally Kohn: People fighting for justice. I’m so moved when I see everyday Americans standing together, against all odds, to make their lives and communities better—whether it’s organizing against big factories polluting their air or against big banks corrupting our economy and political system. The fire in the bellies of the good people who work for a more fair and just world for all of us—that spark never fails to inspire me and warm my heart. ORIGIN: What labels have been used to describe you and how do you use them for good? SK: What haven’t I been called? Every antigay, misogynist, anti-Semitic, anti-liberal smear you can think of. I don’t think I can transform those smears; I can’t even repeat them! But I proudly embrace the identities beneath them. Hell yeah, I’m a woman and a lesbian and a feminist and a Jew and so many other things, and those identities are a source of pride and strength for me. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? How did you transform them?
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SK: I have never, not once, gone on television and not received some email or tweet or comment about my hair. Without fail. Isn’t that absurd? All it does is make me want to shape my bangs into a sort of middle finger-like sculpture. ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now? SK: That’s like asking why it’s important we breathe. Women are more than half of our globe, more than half of our promise and potential. And we have been not only underusing that resource but suppressing it. We are worse off—all of us, including men and boys—if our society is not developing and empowering 100% of the resources of humanity, including women and girls. ORIGIN: What causes are you passionate about? SK: There’s too many to list, but I would say that I think racial justice—and addressing the sick and enduring legacy of structural racism—remains one of the greatest challenges of our time, and one that’s particularly important for more and more white people to speak up about.
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I have never, not once, gone on television and not received some email or tweet or comment about my hair. Without f a i l . Is n , t t h a t a b s u r d ? All it does is make me want to shape my bangs into a sort of middle finger-like sculpture.
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Lauren Fleshman Veteran Professional Distance Runner for Oiselle.
Won Loads of State Championships, NCAA titles, USA Championships and Finished as High as 7 th in the World s o far. Business Owner, Picky Bars. Author. Activist ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire? Lauren Fleshman: Finding the thread between seemingly unrelated people, systems, or projects. Interdisciplinary work. Speaking up. People acting with purpose and respect for humanity. ORIGIN: What are the labels you’ve been called that impacted you and how did you transform them? LF: Has-been. Uncommitted. Success has a very narrow definition in professional athletics: medals and records, and pursuit of anything outside of that is looked down upon. I decided to make the life I want, and put energy into what moves me, and not rely on anyone for approval of my choices. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? How did you transform them? LF: Mannish. My sport has transformed my body to be powerful for a specific task over years of training and competition. The more tuned for competition I am, the less “feminine” I look, and it has made me feel powerful on the track but self-conscious in AskLaurenFleshman.com 32 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
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We can t expect to effectively move forward with half the population carrying sandbags.
the sack. That transformed for me as I let go of feminine ideals of all kinds, in work, parenting, etc. ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now? LF: We can’t expect to effectively move forward with half the population carrying sandbags. ORIGIN: What causes are you passionate about? LF: Anti-doping in sports, a second wave of feminism in sports, creating sports environments for women and girls that are more enriching than destructive, breaking down monopolies and power structures that don’t serve the people well. Lauren Fleshman is a veteran professional distance runner for Oiselle with multiple national titles and Team USA berths. She is a vocal activist for positive change in sports, community builder, co-author of the Believe Training Journal, and co-founder of Picky Bars.
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Our world loses out when the leadership , doesn t reflect those who are being led. ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire? Amy Richards: Surrounding myself with smart women who are making a big impact. Being outside my comfort zone and learning— and adapting. ORIGIN: What labels have been used to describe you and how do you use them for good? AR: Thoughtful, energetic, smart, determined. I tried to own and further those qualities and often mustered them up when they were dormant and something wasn’t going my way. I’ve been called a “baby killer” and I’ve been told I should die and that I’m ruining women’s lives. Those accusations hurt for sure—and I pause when such labels are applied to me—but because they come from people I don’t necessarily respect, I have an easier time moving beyond them. The harder labels are those that come from people I love and trust, like when a friend
called me “PC,” as in politically correct. I was hurt because it seemed a misunderstanding of what motivates me. I’m motivated by injustice, which is embedded and constant and wrong—not by a vernacular soundboard. In college, a group of guys labelled me a “righteous little beaver.” Again, I was slightly pissed because it seemed offensive and misdirected, but when I learned that beavers swim upstream, I realized that maybe it was fitting after all.
“Because it’s 201[6].” But our world loses out when the leadership doesn’t reflect the led—when a minority makes decisions for the majority. Empowering women isn’t for women, but for the world.
ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? How did you transform them?
Amy Richards is a writer, producer, and the president of Soapbox, Inc. Amy has written three books, including Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future. For the past 25 years, Amy has lectured at more than 300 universities and community forums and has been featured on or in most mainstream and feminist media. Amy is a founder of the Third Wave Fund and feminist.com and is on the founding boards of the Sadie Nash Leadership Project, MAKERS, and Chicken & Egg Pictures.
AR: Cute. Initially used it to try to accomplish things and ultimately realized that it was more a hindrance than a help. ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now? AR: As the Canadian prime minister said,
ORIGIN: What causes are you passionate about? AR: Reproductive rights, politics, income inequality, violences against women.
, Empowering women isn t for women, but for the world. soapboxinc.com | feminist.com | feministcamp.com | makers.com 34 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire? Jaclyn Matfus Harper: BULLIES set my soul on hot life-threatening fire. INJUSTICE sets my soul to volcanic extremes. There is nothing more infuriating than people who are in a position of power that exploit those who are vulnerable. ORIGIN: What labels have been used to describe you and how do you use them for good? JMH: I have been called headstrong. Stubborn. Overly sensitive. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? JMH: With regard to my body and appearance, as a young girl I developed early. It made for very uncomfortable attention from boys. I felt ashamed and embarrassed about my body. One can assume this isn’t a problem. What girl doesn’t want attention from boys? But when you are young and still learning about yourself, your body, and in essence, your identity, that kind of attention is very confusing and degrading. ORIGIN: How did you transform them? JMH: I transformed these hurtful feelings by playing sports. I decided young that I was an equal to them and I realized I had to relate in a new way somehow. I wanted to make them my friend as opposed to being seen as an object and treated like a piece of meat. It helped level the playing field and helped them see me as an equal. ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now? JMH: It’s incredibly important to empower women and girls now more than ever because we are finally being heard in a meaningful way. Having a woman running for office— we have a new platform to stand on. Right now women are realizing more and more their own power through the representation of Hillary Clinton. We will no longer be treated as objects that are replaceable once we reach a certain age; we will be seen as irreplaceable forces to be reckoned with.
Jaclyn Matfus Harper
ORIGIN: What causes are you passionate about? JMH: I am very passionate about being an advocate for the boys in the global sex trafficking epidemic. I work with an organization in Calcutta called New Light and have created a home for boys to live and learn a new way of being in the world and relating to girls and women. It’s important to realize that sex trafficking isn’t only a gender issue but a human issue—just as feminism isn’t only a gender issue. The boys I work
with in India often have no other example of how to live life than what they see their male figures do: running brothels and selling their wives and daughters. Giving them a home to feel safe in and new examples of how to live their lives allows us to get deeper in this epidemic. Sex trafficking is a systemic problem. Helping the boys become great men is preventive medicine to this crisis.
Jaclyn Matfus Harper is currently working on a show for PBS called Humanity on the Move. This new initiative was designed to meet the overwhelming and urgent challenge of the global refugee crisis using a multi-platform media and communication campaign to change negative attitudes and reshape perceptions of refugee children and families. Check out the trailer for Humanity on the Move on Facebook.
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T r a n sf o r m a t i o n comes from knowing that there is no change without conflict and being vocal will always be met with some form of backlash.
FOUNDER/CE O, OISELLE
SALLY BERGESEN
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The forces of feminism are blowing up! ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire? Sally Bergesen: Women who have found their voice and use it. Fearless creativity and experimentation. Sobriety, athleticism, and mind-body confidence. Self-determination and people who are willing to put in the work. Strong but sympathetic women in business. ORIGIN: What labels have been used to describe you and how do you use them for good? SB: Selfish. Overly involved in business. Striving. Unattractively ambitious. Transformation came from understanding that obsession is an ingredient for success. Greedy. That community is a money-making scheme for Oiselle. Transformation comes from knowing the value we offer and that there’s very little fat on the business. Hysterical. Speaking out against injustice or corruption is seen as a potshot at competitors. Or irrational. Transformation comes from knowing that there is no change without conflict. And that being vocal will always be met with some form of backlash. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? How did you transform them?
SB: As Kyleanne Hunter said, “I don’t read the reviews.” So I’m guessing there’s bad stuff out there (old, pale, blotchy, fat?). ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now? SB: The forces of feminism are blowing up! But the forces of the media, weird celebrity culture, and male-driven objectification that preys on youth or under-educated women, is still so crazy. We need to keep fighting that with some serious “tag that bitch” feminism, as Maranda Pleasant said in her talk at the MUSE conference. ORIGIN: What causes are you passionate about? SB: Everyone can be an athlete for life. It’s not about age, size, pace, or anything—just about moving your body. Move the body and the mind’s confidence falls into place. Sally Bergesen is the founder of Oiselle, which produces a full range of women's athletic apparel for both competition and lifestyle. The company also sponsors world-class and recreational athletes and is an emerging brand on the pro track and field circuit.
But the forces of the media, weird celebrity culture, and male-driven objectification that preys on youth, or under-educated women, is still so crazy.
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Founder, World Muse Muse Conference Muse Magazine
Amanda stuermer ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire? Amanda Stuermer: Those moments when I feel completely on purpose, when I see women and girls who are realizing their full potential. When I get to witness the spark in someone else coming to life, it makes my own spark burn brighter. ORIGIN: What labels have been used to describe you and how do you use them for good? AS: Growing up, I was always called Bossy, Hard-headed, Stubborn, Rebellious (and that’s from my family). Others called me a Troublemaker. I believed those labels for a long time. I lived inside those boxes and let them keep me small. I can now see how those traits were my power tools just waiting to be honed and sharpened. Bossy, Hardheaded, and Stubborn became Confident, Committed, and Determined. Rebellious became Visionary. Troublemaker became Social Change Activist. By transforming those labels, I took back my power, and I used my new power tools to break those tiny boxes wide open. That said, I still get labels slapped on me from time to time. The most common one is Feminazi. I just always have to remind myself that labels are intended to keep us small, and I refuse to be kept small any longer.
Labels are intended to keep us small, and I refuse to be kept small any longer.
ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? How did you transform them? AS: Dumb blonde. I played into it for a while. I’ve since learned to own my intelligence. The hair on top of my head is completely irrelevant to the wisdom inside it.
We’ve already waited far too long for equality. Now is not the time, yesterday was the time, and the day before that was the time. It’s past the time.
ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now?
ORIGIN: What causes are you passionate about?
AS: Because we still have to ask that question.
AS: Women’s Equality, Conscious Social Change.
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Amanda Stuermer is the founder and director of World Muse, a social change organization inspired by and for women and girls. She is a faculty member for both Project Springboard and Off the Mat Into The World, a board member of the Women’s Foundation of Oregon, and part of the Nobel Women’s Initiative. Amanda was recently announced as a 2016 Woman of Influence by the Portland Business Journal. Photo: Heaven McArthur
ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire?
Founder/CE O, Pacific Superfood Snacks
Sarah Pool: Knowing that we can positively and radically shift our individual and collective world toward good, toward benefit, toward enlightenment. Partnering with action-oriented people with positive disruptors. Social entrepreneurship. Kindness.
The War on Women’s Bodies, Teaching our Girls to Become CEOs, and the Greatest Lie We’re Told.
ORIGIN: What labels have been used to describe you and how do you use them for good? SP: Dude. Look/act/talk like a boy. Not feminine enough. These labels opened my mind wider. Through inquiry, I understood the myriad benefits of diversity, of authenticity, of breaking down boxes and constraints. I realized the most beautiful, strong, influential people are those who are unabashedly and unforgivingly themselves. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? How did you transform them? SP: Stocky. Thick. Big-boned. Women are taught to hate their bodies from day one. We wage a war against ourselves—that we are not thin enough, that we aren’t curvy enough in the right places, that we have to cover ourselves in makeup to be truly beautiful, that our hair has to be long and layered. The greatest lie we are told is about what “beauty” looks like and it’s reinforced every minute of the day. I transformed this self-negation through practicing self-love, believing wholeheartedly that no matter what condition I am in, I am perfect just the way I am. ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now? SP: There is as much pressure as ever for girls to fit into tiny boxes, whether in appearance, education, their careers, their social and political lives. Yet, maybe more than ever we have female leaders in remarkably high positions (Sheryl Sandberg, the COO of Facebook, or Mary Barra, the CEO of General Motors). ORIGIN: What causes are you passionate about? SP: Sustainable agriculture. Transparency in our food system. Teaching young women to become future CEOs. The alleviation of animal cruelty.
The greatest lie we are told is about what beauty looks like a n d i t , s r e i n“f o r c e d " e v e r y m i n u t e of the day.
Sarah Pool is the Founder and CEO of Pacific Superfood Snacks, a company revolutionizing healthy snacking. She was the director of finance of a global non-profit and a wealth management advisor at Merrill Lynch. She was team captain of the women’s basketball team at UC Berkeley, where she earned her M.A. and B.A. She is passionately committed to driving transparency in the food system and helping youth learn how to build socially conscious businesses.
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Fem Series ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire? Melissa Jun Rowley: So many things. That moment during a live concert when the musicians and the audience are so present and unified that everything inside of your brain stops while the earth reverberates. The ripple effect that can change a person’s life through a simple introduction or shared story. Collaborating with motivated, creative people who believe they can collectively transform their communities for the better. The tenacity and ingenuity of young activists and entrepreneurs who aren’t afraid to fail. Hiking through the jungle. Greasy, funky hybrid jazz. Being in love. ORIGIN: What labels have been used to describe you and how do you use them for good? MJR: Feisty. I’m passionate and at times very vocal, which I suppose can translate into feisty. While my passion hasn’t diminished, I try to be more selective about when I’m vocal. Too brainy. I’ve been told I hide behind my intellect. No, I don’t. I’m simply horrible at small talk. Oddball. I’ve heard that my entire life. When I was younger, I would get defensive. Now, I take it as a compliment. There is power in being what some consider peculiar and in sharing your views and experiences in your own unique way. That’s called living life. That’s called making art. As powerful as words are, they only carry the weight we put into them. We can take back that power and rewrite our own narratives. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? How did you transform them?
Founder, Humanise, Inc.
Melissa Jun Rowley
MJR: Token Asian/Gook. There’s nothing “token” about me and I’m not here to fill a quota. I haven’t been called gook since I was high school, but I remember the word stinging to the bone. If I could go back in time and talk to myself as a teenager I would say, “Don’t sweat it. These kids are trying to hurt your feelings, and all they can come up with is a name based on your Asian descent?” Stuck-up. A few years ago, some people on social media said I seem “stuck-up” because of the way I dress and wear my hair. I’m not sure how to respond to this other than, “Stop following my profile.”
roles, the return on investment is higher than when they’re not. Gender equality is not a female issue; it’s a human issue. The current generation of young girls has the ability to create the shift the world needs. There are girl coders harnessing technology to help others and young female activists building foundations to promote peace. Teenage girls are of an age that they believe they can do anything, and with investments, mentoring, and opportunity, they can. We have the data. We have the means. We know it’s the right thing to do. It’s the year 2016. Enough already!
ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now?
ORIGIN: What causes are you passionate about?
MJR: Empowering women and girls is crucial for the well-being and progress of our planet. When females are educated and empowered, families are healthier, poverty cycles are broken, and economies become stronger. The bottom line is that from local communities in the developing world to the corporate ecosystem, when women are in leadership humanise.global | thetoolbox.org 40 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
MJR: Aiding the Refugee Crisis. Gender Equality. Education for All. Digital Civil Rights. Youth Entrepreneurship. Making STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts & math) programs available for young people everywhere. Melissa Jun Rowley is a journalist, entrepreneur, and activist. She created the human rights media company Humanise, Inc., which powers TheToolbox.org, the humanitarian tech initiative created by the iconic musician Peter Gabriel. A compulsive traveler and music geek, Melissa is frequently in search of adventure, good hiking, creative food, and new sounds.
, There s nothing token about me , a n d I m n o t h e r e “ t o f i l l” a q u o t a .
I do realize, however, while striving to be your true self to the level I do, there will push back, resistance, and misunderstanding. of an individual by a few words. While I have embraced my specific labels because I am all of those things, I also know I am so many others. I am a multi-dimensional woman who pushes boundaries and dares to be herself. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? How did you transform them?
Badass soccer Player, Washington Spirit, the National Women's Soccer League. Coach. Mentor
Joanna Lohman ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire?
Joanna Lohman: Doing what I love each and every day. For me, this has been the journey of becoming a professional soccer player and sustaining a 12-year career. As a current member of the Washington Spirit, when I walk off the field exhausted, drenched in sweat, knowing I pushed myself to the physical, mental, and emotional limits, there is no better feeling. Playing the game in front of thousands of fans, many of whom have followed my entire career—the ups, the downs, and the in-betweens—and never left my side. As a professional athlete, I have an incredible platform to inspire, impact, and deeply affect another human being. It sets my soul on fire. ORIGIN: What are the labels you’ve been called that impacted you and how did you transform them? JL: Athlete, Lesbian, Jock, Tomboy. I realize that labels are placed upon an individual to simplify him or her, but it is impossible to capture the essence
JL: Because of my compact and muscular body composition, my short hair, and my “Johawk,” I have been mistaken for a boy on many occasions. Each time it happens, it feels like I have been punched in the gut. It is extremely discouraging. I do realize, however, while striving to be your true self to the level I do, there will be pushback, resistance, and misunderstanding. I look at each of these experiences as an opportunity to educate and make the path potentially less daunting for anyone else that follows in my footsteps. ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now? What causes are you passionate about? JL: There are women & girls who are pushing the boundaries for what society deems as “normal.” We need these pioneers to inspire future generations to dream big and strive to achieve those dreams. If a young girl feels comfortable to pursue her passion, we as a collective will be stronger and more equipped to face the challenges life presents. Sports Diplomacy: Using the universal passion for sports as a way to transcend linguistic and sociocultural differences and bring people together: http://eca.state.gov/programs-initiatives/sports-diplomacy LGBT Organizations, Athlete Ally: Educate and activate athletic communities to eliminate homophobia and transphobia in sports. Joanna Lohman, a three-time Academic All-American at Penn State University, has spent 12 years in the Professional Soccer circuit including 7 caps with the United States Women’s National Team. She currently plays midfield for the Washington Spirit in the National Women's Soccer League. She is also a coach, mentor, world traveler, TedX Alum & dream chaser.
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I had a boyfriend tell me that I shouldn't break up with him because I was lucky he is okay with my stretch marks, and that no one else would be.
Angie Aker Upworthy.com Badass. Feminist Changemaker. Abuse Survivor. Rockstar Single Mom. Former Editor-in-Chief of MoveOn.org
ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire? Angie Aker: Envisioning the world we’re trying to create, and then skipping over all the debate and just trying to model what that can look like through my own life and work is the most fulfilling way for me to marry the big picture with the short-term stuff. When I see my daughter focus on her future career more than
anything else as a tween, or when I see my teen son make generous, wise decisions about his personal relationships instead of the typical toxic male crap, I feel so validated. I believe in the Buddhist tenet of turning poison into medicine. We can take the things that have hurt us and transform them into good that the whole world can partake in, whether it’s within our arm’s reach or on a national level.
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ORIGIN: What are the labels you’ve been called that impacted you and how did you transform them? AA: Slut. Difficult to love. Bad mom. Bitch. I’ve been with prettier.
One time I actually sat down and made a list of all of the bad things I sometimes think about myself. It sounds ridiculous, but getting it all out on paper, in black and white, makes some of them look ridiculous. You can start to make an inventory. You can say, “Oh, that one about my disorganization is kinda true. But that one about being a bad mom is bullshit.” So you cross the ones that aren’t fair off the list. The very act of this is like a mental tidy. You make order out of the chaos and, in a way, kind of deal with these things and make a decision to toss it, just like an old receipt you don’t need that’s cluttering your purse. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? How did you transform them? AA: I had a boyfriend tell me that I shouldn't break up with him because I was lucky he is okay with my stretch marks, and that no one else would be. It actually made me more defiantly fine with my stretch marks. It got in my head a little, but in more of an “f you!” kind of way. I think because I was a little older and wise to the ways of some kinds of men, I was able to shut out his voice more than if he had said it when I was younger and less aware of his type.
As o l d e r w o m e n , we went through the decades of feeling shame and uncertainty about ourselves. Imagine how much faster we could have g o t t e n o,n w i t h our lives callings if we had known how much of that t o x i c, n e g a t i v i t y wasn t about us,but about the society we live in. ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now? AA: As older women, we went through the decades of feeling shame and uncertainty about ourselves. Imagine how much faster we could have gotten on with our lives’ callings if we had known how much of that toxic negativity wasn’t about us, but about the society we live in. I took my daughter when she was seven to Chicago’s SlutWalks—a march to call for an
end to rape culture and to stop the power that words like “slut” have on women and girls. We talked about the word and why certain people will use it against you and why it has utterly no meaning. She knows when and if she hears someone try that word on her exactly how weak they are and that they’re using it because they’re afraid of her power. Can you imagine if you’d been armed with that knowledge the first time anyone called you a slut? We’d have saved so much time and bad feelings.
If we can stop people with negative agendas from getting a toehold of power in the first place, if we can stay connected to the issues that affect our towns, counties, and states, and every community was holding it down like that, imagine how different our entire nation would be. It’s not sexy to talk about municipal issues at your City Council meeting, not as sexy as taking on big national campaigns, but dammit, it’s the most important work you can do.
ORIGIN: What causes are you passionate about?
Angie Aker has made a life out of creating positive change in the world. She’s an abuse survivor who writes to shine a light for others. Formerly Editor-in-Chief of MoveOn.org, she helped start Upworthy.com, where she now works with videos, after playing a key role in developing their business model. Angie speaks on issues like abuse and consent culture, and lives with her two kids and their dog.
AA: I’m really passionate about local politics and community involvement. So many of the widespread ills we see in America and all over the world stem from good people not having a grasp on what’s happening within arm’s reach.
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Fem Series
Former U.S. Marine officer and combat Cobra helicopter pilot Co-founder/co-director of the Think Broader Foundation
On the Intolerance of Gender Identity, Her Sexual Assault, Living with Scars of Her Bilateral Mastectomy, Choosing Career First, and Never Questioning Her Womanhood
ORIGIN: What sets your soul on fire? Kyleanne Hunter: Intolerance surrounding gender identity. Throughout our lives, girls are taught to be peaceful, to be passive, to be demure. We are taught to only be sexual on a man’s terms. We are taught to shrink our personal and professional desires to fit masculine desires. Be caring, be small, be gentle … that’s what we’re taught. But I chose violent, hard jobs. I chose to put a career first. I chose to not settle for the first opportunity that came around. For most of my life (until my wonderful life partner came along), this made me a target. While I dedicated my life to fighting for this country, I was assaulted physically and verbally. I was blackmailed. I lost relationships. I distanced myself from my family. I convinced myself that I had to become masculine, to betray my gender and myself to succeed in my given career. As I grew and matured, I was able to reconcile the fact that though I chose a “nontraditional” path, it did not mean that I had to give up my gender, my femininity, or my passion for myself. Gender identity is therefore a passion of mine. Allowing each individual to express themselves in their most authentic way, without being pigeon-holed by false narratives about what women (or men) are supposed to do, lights my soul. If I can inspire one girl or woman that she
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can be something other than what society tells her to be, that soulful fire is stoked. ORIGIN: What labels have been used to describe you and how do you use them for good? KH: As a Marine I was called “too violent,” “a bitch,” “evil,” and also “a whore.” Recovering from assault I was called both “weak” and “strong” and “cold” and “independent” and “calloused.” I have been called “unattractive,” “butch,” or “masculine.” On the one hand, I took these labels and made them my own in the “bitches get things done” kind of way. But I also took them as liberating. By not being described in the typical feminine way I was free to explore the dualities of our human nature. I was free to try hard things that pushed myself past my physical and emotional bonds. I was free to leave relationships, and ultimately find the one that was perfect for me. But this has not always been easy. In the aftermath of sexual assault, the humiliation that ensued made me believe some of these labels. I was publically called a whore by several of my professional peers for daring to have personal relationships after I had been assaulted. I had one partner use my past trauma as reason to accuse me of not being “sexually open” enough to ever please him. I convinced
myself that I deserved to have been assaulted. That I deserved the labels that resulted. That it was my fault for not being woman enough. That this is what women who broke the rules of girlhood got. I went into a dark place. Sometimes I literally hid in storage boxes while I was deployed, thinking that if I could make myself less strong, less independent … if I could become the feminine opposites of these things, maybe I could overcome the pain caused by my attackers. But the most damaging of these labels has been being called “weak.” Weakness is the antithesis of everything that I created myself to be. As a child, I developed a persona around the idea of being strong. I wasn’t necessarily pretty. I wasn’t very social, so I was never was perceived as nurturing or kind. So I became strong. I excelled physically and academically, and became driven and self-assured. This strength would later be disparaged as masculine traits of “violence” or “butchness,” but for a long time I took it as a badge of honor. I crafted a strong persona and worked hard to maintain its appearance. Being sexually assaulted is the most violating thing one can experience. It strips an individual of the dignity and choice in the most intimate of ways. After the assault, my partner left me. He told me I was “too weak” to ever be attractive. Not only did I deserve to be assaulted for the choices that I had made, but I deserved to have been made weak because of them. ›
I have the power to be in control of how I perceive myself, and how I present these perceptions to others. My strength as a woman is not dismissed by the changes in outward form.
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 45
Fem Series is grotesque. But it is also who I am now. In survivorship circles and support groups, there is also concern about losing breasts and sexuality. Yes, breasts are erogenous, and I had quite ample ones. The common assumption, from doctors, support partners, and concerned loved ones, was that I would reconstruct. This assumption became such a part of my life that I started to question my own decisions, and later my own identity as a woman. This all came crashing to a head in a locker room conversation. Changing from my work clothes, I was approached by a woman. “You don’t belong in here!” she screamed. She pointed to my scars and said, “I don’t care what you think you are, but you are clearly a man trying to pervert this space reserved for women!” I was stunned. And I didn’t know how to respond. But I made a conscious decision to never again question my womanhood—many other people would already do that for me.
I n t h e a f t e r m a t h o f s e x u a l a ss a u l t , the humiliation that ensued made me believe some of these labels. I was publically called a whore by several of m y p r o f e ss i o n a l p e e r s f o r d a r i n g t o have personal relationships after I h a d b e e n a ss a u l t e d . I c o n v i n c e d m y s e l f t h a t I d e s e r v e d t o h a v e b e e n a ss a u l t e d . However, it took time to understand that these things—these “masculine” qualities that women shouldn’t have—were the ones that I needed to become strong again. In order to find myself as a woman again—to fully appreciate who I was and live my authentic life—I needed to fully internalize all those “non-womanly” things that I had done and use them to recover, and realize that being a woman is not inconsistent with being strong, independent, or even violent. By de-gendering words such as strong, or cold, or calloused, I have been able to realize who I am. Strong is how I survived. And cold and calloused are not descriptions. They are responses to situations that we don’t always know how to process immediately. They have also allowed me to be cautious in my future decisions. I now prefer to say that I am “cautiously optimistic.” Being called calloused for so long made me feel that I was cut off from the world or incapable of love. But what I realized was that it made me value the people close to me more. It made me love with more depth and passion when it was time to love.
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ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance? How did you transform them? KH: About a year ago I had a bilateral mastectomy and chose not to reconstruct. This was a very personal decision for me, and I never regret it. However, I hear murmurs and whispers in locker rooms of being “freakish,” “mannish,” “grotesque,” and “ugly.” In survivor and support groups I have been questioned as “butch.” In conversations I have been told that I am “clearly a trans man” and that my opinion on my womanhood “doesn’t matter,” since I present more androgynously than I did when I had boobs. Reconciling my post-mastectomy body with femininity has been difficult. It is difficult to see scars—they are a sign of weakness, a sign that something in my body needed to be “fixed.” However, I view them as a sign of power as well. I had the ability to be the architect of my future, and not let a disease control me. Perhaps this is a freakish view of oneself. Perhaps focusing on scars as a positive
Reclaiming my femininity is an ongoing process. I will never create life. I will never nurture a child with breast milk. I will never fit the conventional buxom sense of beauty. I am grotesque, freakish, mannish. But I am a woman. I have the power to be in control of how I perceive myself, and how I present these perceptions to others. My strength as a woman is not dismissed by the changes in outward form. I can still be a lover, desire, and be desirable. These grotesque scars are a reminder that I am the author of my own ever-continuing story. ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower women + girls right now? KH: It is time to de-gender gender. Women and girls need to stop being told that there is only one way to act. They need to be comfortable being both weak and strong, violent and compassionate, grotesque and sexual. In 2016 we are still teaching women that they should be meek, and that going against the grain will cause them pain and discomfort. It is time that each individual has the right to self-expression in their own way. ORIGIN: What causes are you passionate about? KH: Veterans issues. Suicide. Gender identity. Kyleanne Hunter is the co-founder and co-director of the Think Broader Foundation, a consulting firm aimed at eliminating gender bias in the news media. She is a Ph.D. student at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver, where as a research fellow she focuses on gender construction and anti-government collective action. Kyleanne is a former U.S. Marine officer, the first female AH-1W Super Cobra pilot in her squadron, and one of the first helicopter pilots to fly combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Fem Leaders into this project for years and came out with something that was a game-changer in the wetsuit market, which has relied on neoprene, a really dirty material, for years. Our goal in these kinds of innovations is to amplify the impacts of what we’ve done as far and as wide as possible. As a result, we’re seeing more surfers interested in greener alternatives to neoprene, and we’ve started to see some of our competitors move toward plant-based alternatives, which is really exciting.
“
Having more stuff does not make for a happier life. the planet has limits and we need to recognize that and change our own habits to protect what we love.
”
ML: Is there anything that we can do to help you with Patagonia and your life’s mission?
Rose Marcario, P r e s i d e n t & CEO , P a t a g o n i a
Badass CEO. Committed to Business for Good.
Groundbreaking ECO innovation. Changing Interview
the Game.
Molly Lavik, Executive Director, Sustainable Business Council
Molly Lavik: What advice do you have for women with a goal to become a CEO of a conscientious company? Rose Marcario: I think the advice for anyone looking to be CEO of a company that shares your values is to find your community, your tribe, work hard, be curious about every area of the business, and always challenge yourself, challenge your own status quo, and lead by example no matter what job you hold. ML: What led you to share the bio-based wetsuit material IP with the rest of the industry, and what impact has this had on the industry? RM: Patagonia has long had a tradition of sharing innovations that have a real benefit to the planet with the rest of the industry. Sharing groundbreaking environmental innovation helps positive impacts to scale. Our plant-based rubber was a perfect example—we poured R&D PatagoniaWorks.com
RM: As individual consumers, the single best thing we can do for the planet is keep the stuff we already own in use longer. I really encourage everyone I meet to think hard before buying anything new. Often, what we already own can be repaired or repurposed to serve a useful function, and by keeping it in use longer, we can avoid the need to produce more stuff, which has a really terrible impact on the planet. At Patagonia, we make high-quality gear and we repair it for free, or teach our customers how to make repairs themselves. The result is a garment that can last a lifetime, rather than be thrown away and replaced over and over again. And we’re helping our customers think differently about their purchases as well, whether at Patagonia or elsewhere, which is the real objective. Having more stuff does not make for a happier life. The planet has limits and we need to recognize that and change our own habits to protect what we love. ML: You and Yvon Chouinard launched a VC arm of Patagonia called $20 Million and Change to identify and assist ecologically minded startups. How would an entrepreneur apply for funding from your $20 Million and Change program? RM: The response we’ve seen to the fund has been amazing so far—hundreds of applications have come in since we launched it. Entrepreneurs can visit PatagoniaWorks.com to learn how to apply for funding. I’m excited about the impact our investments are already having—whether it’s supporting residential solar or developing chemical treatments for our products that don’t persist in the environment. Capital needs to have greater returns than monetary returns: it needs to improve quality of life for future generations; it must do good. ML: Can you give us a little preview of the type of inspirational remarks you will be sharing during the Sustainable Business Council’s award ceremony in April? RM: I’ll be talking about how business success and doing good can go hand in hand. In fact, they must, if we want to have a world worth living in. With the growing B Corp movement and a growing consumer base that wants to support companies that show commitment to a set of values, I think there’s a chance that business can be the greatest agent for positive change. But it will take the willpower of business leaders around the globe to shift the way we think about success to include a responsibility to all stakeholders, including customers, our employees, communities, and the planet itself—not just the interests of a few shareholders. Photo: Amy Kumler / Courtesy of Patagonia ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 47
youth labels Feature
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It ta k es years as a woman t o u nlearn w hat you have been
tau ght t o be sorry for. –Amy Poehler
”
D o We H ate O u r Girl s ?
Inspiring Young Women Share Their Wisdom Are we tolerating a culture created to destroy our girls and wage war on their bodies, objectifying and reducing them? Do we base their value solely on appearance, and force them into a fragile and brutal world, where they are valued on how they look and not who they are as people? How do we tell them that they’ll probably be paid less than their male colleagues? That one out of every five will be raped in college?
That their bodies will be objectified to sell products, but if they attempt to enjoy their own bodies they will be called sluts, whores, and ridiculed as they watch their social value lower among their peers? Simultaneously we force them to be puritanical and overly sexual at the same time. Culturally their value is determined by how pretty they are, with bodies that will never
be good enough to fit an imaginary media standard. We teach them to starve, abuse, and hate their bodies to fit a marketing ideal. We keep them in the mall and in the gym to earn their visual value, and encourage our boys to plan for the boardroom, building companies and financial security for themselves. Our girls are taught to compete for men, rather than collaborate with each other to build dreams, communities, support, and companies.
We are committed to transforming this culture, bringing attention and awareness to the challenges and struggles females are faced , with today. If we don t talk about it, how can we change it?
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}
Madison Maxey, 22
Founder, The Crated Wearable Tech Pioneer Thiel Fellow Forbes 30 under 30 ORIGIN: What are the labels/ words you’ve been called that impacted you and how did you transform them? Madison Maxey: People often ask me what it’s like to be me in a world of people who don’t look like me. They’re not calling me anything offensive, but I find it bothersome that we like to remind people that they don’t belong. I think that’s damaging. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance or sexuality? How did you transform them? MM: I’m such a huge fan of this question because I think we often tell women that they’re valuable for how they look, and this is damaging. I feel as though I haven’t received too much body shaming, approving, or general commentary, but something that really transformed my view on beauty was reading Iris Apfel’s statement about being considered “pretty” and how that wasn’t something she wanted. I think we often tell women that we owe it to the world to be beautiful and it’s exciting to see amazing women reject that notion. ORIGIN: How do you feel your value is established in our culture? MM: I think I’m valued for what I can produce in the world and I feel so lucky to be seen this way as skills don’t fade like looks and drama do.
interactions than female to male interactions and I think we can all just treat each other like sentient beings. ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower girls right now? MM: It’s so important that we encourage girls to be agents in their lives, and the earlier that begins, the more wonderful, exciting, and impactful their lives will be!
Madison Maxey is a creative technologist and 2013 Thiel Fellow. Her work and contributions to the wearable technology space have been ORIGIN: What are things you’ve featured in Wired, FastCompany, heard males say about women and New York Magazine and she that make them feel reduced or has provided wearable tech insights to disregarded? the White House and Google. She is a MM: I’ve experienced chatting with Forbes 30 under 30 Member and on a group of men and another woman the NYCBLK 28 under 28 list. More will arrive and they will either ignore than anything, she loves fabricating the future at The Crated, a company her or only focus on her depending she founded in 2013 focused on creating on her looks. There seems to be textile-based wearables. a different code for male to male
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I think w e o f ten tell w o men that w e o w e it t o the w o rld t o be bea u tif u l and it ’ s e x c itin g t o s ee ama z ing w o men re j e c t that n o ti o n . ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 49
youth labels Feature
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O cean Pleasant, 19 Founder/CEO, Real magazine + aPP Thiel Fellow Forbes 30 under 30
N e w Y o r k City , N Y ORIGIN: What labels have been used to describe you and how do you use them for good? Ocean Pleasant: Intense, nitpicky, overpowering, condescending, sensitive, and reactive. There is nothing more belittling as a woman than being called “intense” and “overpowering.” I’m assertive and straightforward. I know what I need, and I speak directly. I have a lot to say, and I refuse to feel self-conscious for having an opinion. ORIGIN: How do you feel your value is established in our culture? OP: I get more comments on the shade of my lipstick, my hairstyle, or what I’m wearing than I do about my work or my art. It’s challenging to be outspoken and passionate in an appearancedriven culture that says, “This is all we want from you”—but you learn to push through it. Don’t get me wrong, I love dressing up. But I’m angry at the emphasis we place on appearance-based judgments. Getting ready for an investor meeting, I actually choose dress pants over a classy dress to avoid looking “too feminine” for fear that they’ll judge my ability to run a company based on my appearance. ORIGIN: What are things you’ve heard males say about women that make them feel reduced or disregarded? myrealapp.com, | opleasant.com 50 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
“Strong women
crushing it at work aren ’ t bossy, they ’ re assertive.
End of story.
”
OP: They call them bossy. Strong women crushing it at work aren’t bossy, they’re assertive. End of story. ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower girls right now? OP: We’re biologically hardwired as intuitive and compassionate beings, anatomically built to create and support life—that’s not a bad thing; it’s actually an asset in the workplace. We need to empower girls because we can’t keep our superpowers hidden any longer. We’re tough as nails handling day-to-day responsibilities, empathetic when guiding a team, intuitive and reliable while planning for the future. We can empower ourselves when we stop competing for the approval and validation of men. There’s enough success and love to go around; if we stop the comparison we can build each other up. Ocean founded a nationally distributed youth culture publication at 17 years old. She recently announced REAL app, to help millennials meet new friends and make an impact, free of gender bias and sexual pretense. She's a 2015 Thiel Fellow, Forbes 30 under 30 member, and a singer-songwriter releasing her EP soon.
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I ha v e a l o t t o s ay , and I re f u s e t o f eel s el f- c o n s c i o u s f o r ha v in g an o p ini o n . Getting ready for an investor meeting, I actually choose dress pants over a classy dress to avoid looking “too feminine
”
for fear that they'll judge my ability to run a company based on my appearance.
I get more comments on the shade of my lipstick, my hairstyle, or what I ’m wearing than I do about my work or my art. ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 51
youth labels Feature ORIGIN: What are the labels/ words you’ve been called that impacted you? Fiona Dolan: Conceited, full of yourself, ditzy, bitch, not deserving, boy-crazy, selfish, annoying, and more. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance or sexuality? How did this make you feel? FD: I have been called “easy,” and that guys will “just use me.” But the thing is, it was by people who didn’t even know me. They knew nothing about who I actually was, and had completely made assumptions about me and my personality based on rumors that had floated around. It made me feel degraded, like it was taking away my worth. People were basing their entire opinion of me on how I interacted within my own personal relationship, which obviously had no relation to them and didn’t affect them in any way. The worst part was that is was all done anonymously over Tumblr messaging. ORIGIN: How do you feel your value is established in our culture?
}
Fi ona Do lan, 1 6 Founder, Social Empowerment Club
B end , Ore g o n
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The constant belittling of girls t h a t a re s t ill in their teenage y e a rs i s unr eal.
52 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
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FD: I definitely think, in high school at least, your value is highly based on superficial things. For example, judgement can be made on anything from whether you wear the newest, most expensive shoes to what grade you got on the math test to how many people you’ve been involved with. And the thing is, even if you do the slightest thing wrong, you can pretty much count on someone—you may not even know them—talking behind your back about it. And I think this is a mistake we all make, it’s not just on one person, and I’m not saying I’ve never done it before either, but I think we are too quick to judge as a society. ORIGIN: What are things you’ve heard males say about women that make them feel reduced or disregarded? FD: “Fat bitch,” “bossy,” “stuck-up,” “pretentious,” “Is she just really horny all the time?” “Her boobs are too small, she looks like a pancake.”
ORIGIN: Why do you think men disrespect women? FD: This should not be a question in the 21st century, yet there is still no clear answer. Is it because they do not want to feel “less” than their female counterparts? Is it because they feel like women are an easy target to scrutinize or stereotype? The constant belittling of girls that are still in their teenage years is unreal.
“Iw ethinarek
too quick to judge as a society.
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ORIGIN: Why is it so important that we empower girls right now? FD: I think supporting other women is the most crucial thing we can do right now. It seems that a lot of the time, it’s more important to be the most liked or get the most guys, and this causes girls to be maliciously pitted against each other, always in a competition, when what we really should be doing is uplifting each other. In order to empower women, a supportive community that encourages every girl, no matter who it is, to pursue their dreams is vital. Plus, us high school girls are going to be the women who rule the world one day, so we might as well start empowering each other while we are young and learning to work together in order to create a better culture for women. Fiona is 16 years old and works with World Muse to empower women and girls. Fiona is a founder of the Social Empowerment Club at her high school. She also enjoys writing, lacrosse, running, and being outdoors.
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}
Rachel Gray, 26
In today ’s culture, my value is established by my package: How I look, where I work, am I single, do I have money, where I live. And as a woman, I feel pressure to be the complete package. To be a superwoman.
”
Photographer/Filmmaker
s anta m o ni c a , c a
ORIGIN: What is something that really transformed your life? Rachel Gray: I grew up in Malibu, so people think money and movie stars. My brother died three-and-a-half years ago, right after I graduated college, from colon cancer. He was 38, and his death transformed me. I was devastated. But it gave me a newfound courage to take risks and delve into serious social issues. A few months later I traveled to film burn victims in Nepal, and then the children of sex slaves in India. I was shocked that these realities existed on such a large scale, and it empowered me that I can help bring these issues to light. I developed a strong sense of responsibility to use my voice and media to change these terrible practices. ORIGIN: How do you feel your value is established in this culture? RG: In today’s culture, my value is established by my package: How I look, where I work, am I single, do I have money, where I live. And as a woman, I feel pressure to be the complete package. To be a superwoman. ORIGIN: What are the things you’ve heard males say about women that make them feel reduced or disregarded?
RG: Calling a woman “babe” in a work situation (I hate that). Sitting among a group of guys the morning after a party, and hearing how they fucked two girls last night—“dude-pride” (one in the vineyard, one in the bedroom). Calling a woman adorable when she is being serious or expressing a point. Being touched at bars or an unexpected and unauthorized penis grinding on the dance floor. Calling a woman a girl. And you know, women can also reduce or disregard women with gossip, competitiveness, and jealousy. ORIGIN: Why is it important to empower girls? RG: Because so many girls are not being empowered. Young girls are growing up in a culture where they have already been exposed to too much too fast (sex, violence, bullying). It is critical that girls understand their strengths, bodies, and values so they can understand who they are and then make decisions for themselves. Not decisions influenced by social media pressures. It is critical that young adult women lead the way, that we take on mentoring roles and show up for the girls in our lives. Rachel has a strong background in media and social activism with substantial experience developing content for international non-profits. Her photography company, Rachel Gray Media, is currently creating a portrait series of women in their 20s. Rachel works at NBC Universal.
rachelgraymedia.com ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 53
youth labels Feature ORIGIN: What are the labels/ words you’ve been called that impacted you and how did you transform them?
}
Meghan Day: “Dumb,” “annoying,” “weird,” and I transformed them by making a change in myself by studying more and trying harder in school and just realizing that I am who I am and I can’t change that so if people don’t accept me for who I am then they don’t deserve to have an influence on my life. And this is just something that I tell myself and want to do, but sometimes I can’t always do that and will occasionally conform and try to change things about myself such as my clothing style or the things I say in order to “fit in” even though I know it is wrong.
Meghan Day, 17
ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance or sexuality? MD: Relating to my body: “small,” “weak,” “dumb blonde.” To transform that, especially in sports, I did things on my own time, pushed myself, and proved people wrong by doing the things they thought I couldn’t do. My favorite thing to do is to see
people’s faces when I do something they thought I couldn’t do. ORIGIN: How do you feel your value is established in our culture? MD: My value in culture in other people’s eyes is that I am just an average teenager who will be “irresponsible” and “make bad decisions” and not make any impact on society and in the culture. Especially for a teenage girl there are stereotypes that make me think I don’t need to be smart or try hard because I can always “marry rich” and they make me believe that I can’t be the successful CEO, but rather marry one. But I believe that I do have a value in culture and I want my voice heard because my opinions should matter!
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ORIGIN: What are the labels/words you’ve been called that impacted you and how did you transform them? Grace Boyle: I’ve been called quiet and for some reason that really bothered me. I feel like girls in this generation are expected to be loud and fun, which “quiet” usually isn’t. I wanted to transform this by putting myself out there and trying to find positions of leadership to show that I wasn’t quiet and that I could step out of my comfort zone. I think especially being a girl it’s a little more difficult to try and run for office of a club or even just speak in a crowd. Not only do you have to look nice, you have to be funny, but not too funny, and say the perfect thing. Anyhow, trying to get rid of my quiet reputation since middle school has been something I have been changing. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance or sexuality? How did you transform them? GB: Relating to my body, I have been called fat indirectly. I’m a bigger girl; I’m tall and not very skinny. Entering my sophomore year in high school I was very insecure because seeing on tv, even media calls you fat. Just seeing models starving themselves made me want to do the same. In an attempt to try and transform myself, at first I did as any other insecure girls did, which was trying to limit eating, workout more, etc. I later got into mindfulness and realized how important it is to accept who you are and love yourself. In the beginning I heard people talking about loving themselves and I didn’t understand, but once I put my mind to it, I was able to accept who I am. ORIGIN: How do you feel your value is established in our culture? GB: I feel many girls in the U.S. are insecure with their bodies or who they are inside. The reason I believe this occurs is due to the exposure to “perfect” people in media, so these girls (and boys) don’t realize how unrealistic it may be to be “perfect.” Photos: Amanda Conde Photography 54 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
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I feel many girls in the U.S. are insecure with their bodies or who they are inside.
”
}
Grace Boyle, 17
I am who I am and I can’t change that so if people don’t accept me for who I am then they don’t deserve to have an influence on my life.
”
ORIGIN: What are the labels/ words you’ve been called that have impacted you and how did you transform them? McElle Kelley: “Sassy,” “annoying,” “indecisive,” and “pushy.” I deal with them by speaking my mind and standing up for what I believe and not basing things off of what others may think or believe, and having a voice for myself and not living up to the expectations of those surrounding me. ORIGIN: How do you feel your value is established in our culture?
}
MK: By showing others that expressing your personality and values to others is how we can be heard and sharing them in order to make the change we want to establish and allowing everyone to have the voice they want and be able to speak for themselves and not feel as though they are being shadowed upon or judged by those around them.
McElle Kelley, 17
“ “
I deal with them by speaking my mind and standing up for what I believe and not basing things off of what others may think or believe, and having a voice for myself and not living up to the expectations of those surrounding me .
I’ve definitely had a lack of confidence not from what someone has told me directly, but rather what the media is trying to tell young women, which is truly heartbreaking.
}
”
Anniston Ward, 17
“ ”
I think women are still considered less than men, although immensely better than our past, however it is still degrading to me personally.
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–Brigette Agnew
}
Brigette Agnew, 17
ORIGIN: What are the labels/words you’ve been called that have impacted you and how did you transform them? Brigette Agnew: “Bitch,” “slut,” “annoying,” “loud,” “weird.” I just didn’t listen and tried not to let other people’s words define who I am. ORIGIN: How do you feel your value is established in our culture? BA: I think women are still considered less than men, although immensely better than our past, however it is still degrading to me personally. I believe that taking a stand in feminist groups helps us voice our value, and I believe that believing in myself can really make an impact on myself as well as others around me.
ORIGIN: What are the labels/words you’ve been called that have impacted you and how did you transform them? Anniston Ward: I’ve been scrutinized for being a feminist; however, what most people don’t understand is the true denotation of the word “feminism” and that it represents the equality of both sexes, not the superiority of women over men. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body, appearance, or sexuality? How did you transform them? AW: In our society today there is such a small variety of the ideal “body type” a young woman should have. These “perfect” bodies are shown in the media through models and different advertisements. If a girl doesn’t follow these characteristics, insecurity is shot in the girl because she feels like she can’t live up to being perfect. I’ve definitely had a lack of confidence not from what someone has told me directly, but rather what the media is trying to tell young women, which is truly heartbreaking. Photos: Amanda Conde Photography ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 55
youth labels Feature ORIGIN: What are the labels/ words you’ve been called that impacted you and how did you transform them? Ily Nicholette Logeais: I’ve been called ugly, fat, too tomboy, not good enough, stupid, irrelevant, bitch. I have yet to try and make a truly positive spin off of these terms; I can only accept them and reflect upon myself. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance or sexuality? How did you transform them?
}
I ly Nicholette Logeais, 15
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Once you move past what others are saying, you can get on with your life and truly begin to find yourself and help others, and in the end I hope that’s all that matters.
”
ORIGIN: What are the labels/words you’ve been called that impacted you and how did you transform them? Lila Reinecke: “Bossy,” “feminist,” “over-passionate.” I’ve accepted them. People say the word “feminist” with such a negative connotation and I try to remember and think about what it truly means to be a feminist and what feminists are fighting for. People who think I am bossy or over-passionate are truly scared of a powerful young girl who isn’t afraid to say and project what she believes in. ORIGIN: Any relating to your body or appearance or sexuality?
INL: Being called too tomboy, ugly, and fat were directed towards my appearance and were the toughest to deal with, I think. Those were the ones I went home and thought about the most, wondering if I should stop eating or wear more makeup or just try and do anything so that I could stop being labeled. In the long run all it took was for a few people to say things like this to me and my mind did the rest. From these comments, I was able to back myself into a corner. It took a long time, I’m actually probably not even there yet, to be able to block those feelings and ideas out. But, it helped me to learn that I can
LR: I feel my value would be nothing if I didn’t try to have a place in our culture. If I didn’t project who I am and try to push things I am passionate about relentlessly, I would never be heard. Photos: Amanda Conde Photography 56 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
INL: I feel powerless a lot of the time. But, I think that drives me forward. Knowing that I am a very lucky person being born in America, where many many freedoms have been bestowed, and I still feel very powerless at times, I cannot imagine how women and men in countries where basic human rights have little to no meaning are feeling. That drives me forward to want to bring awareness and promote understanding so that everyone can be involved and invested in making tomorrow better. I’ve learned to take a lot of shit from people, but that’s life and the quicker you learn to suck it up the easier it’s going to be to move on. Once you move past what others are saying, you can get on with your life and truly begin to find yourself and help others, and in the end I hope that’s all that matters.
“
”
ORIGIN: How did you transform them?
ORIGIN: How do you feel your value is established in our culture?
ORIGIN: How do you feel your value is established in our culture?
If I didn’t project who I am and try to push things I am passionate about relentlessly, I would never be heard.
LR: I’ve been called short my entire life. It’s something that defines who I am.
LR: I stand tall in everything I do and I never let it discourage me.
function and even thrive under negativity, which is a weird thing to say, but I’ve found that at a certain point, I am able to let go and nothing but good things have come from that.
}
Lila Reinecke, 17
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Our Fem Revolution Paris. Los Angeles. New York. 2016
Join the Movement.We are Mothers, Daughters, and Sisters Calling for a Cultural Revolution Creating a World Where Women and Girls are Valued, Respected, Equal, and Protected. It is Time. We Rise Together. Connected. This March We Plastered the Streets of Paris, Guerrilla Style, Bringing Our Message to Thousands during Fashion Week. We Watched Women Connect and Respond with Tears, Relief, Joy, and Look into Our Eyes and Say, “Thank You.” Art Project Collaboration: Maranda Pleasant + ORIGIN Magazine Support the Movement. Coming to a City Near You. ORIGINmagazine.com | MarandaPleasant.com
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resPect.t hequality. Protection. e fem revolution sinÊad o’connor
Patricia arquette
Julia ormond
crazy. Bossy. weird. old. too emotional erykah Badu
annie lennox
too strong to o much
ani difranco
angry
maranda Pleasant
laura dawn
Bitch
Jaclyn matfus harPer
slut. fat. too sensitive
words to make us small. to weaken us.
to make us feel shame. we are taking these laBels Back. we are mothers. daughters. sisters calling for a cultural revolution. creating a world where women are valued. resPected. equal and Protected.
it is time. we rise together. connected. time to shine. OriginMagazine.com | MarandaPleasant.com
not shrink.
Our Fem Revolution
“
Frederique: Thank you for putting these up. All my life, "pretty" was the only option given to me to determine my worth. It starte d with little things, like words, when I was young.
FEM
”
revolution
The Feminist Space Punk Band
Maranda
+the
fembots WELCOME TO THE REVOLUTION.
Stay Pretty. Keep Quiet. Don’t Make Waves. Go to the Mall. Live at the Gym. Appearance-Based Worth. Beauty Is Starvation and Youth. Bodies Only for Male Pleasure. Don’t Stand Out. Be Nice. You Were Asking for It. I Wanna Tap That Bitch.
Fem bots : A declaration that things change when we no longer tolerate a rape culture, pay inequality, a media assault on our bodies, and poverty for our Mothers. Our Daughters are not bitches, whores, or sluts, attacked for enjoying their bodies. We are more than the size of our thighs and laugh lines.
We determine our story. Write it.
MarandaPleasant.com ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 61
PHOTOGRAPHer Feature
The Bodies of
Mothers Photographer Jade Beall
i
became passionate about truthful, body-positive photography after the birth of my son in 2012. My body changed dramatically after his birth. The thing was, I had already lived nearly my entire life in self-loathing and subscribing to the idea that I needed to always change my body to be beautiful, to be worthy, so it was nothing new to frown in disappointment at my reflection in the mirror. But I was really done with valuing myself based on my fat rolls and the acne on my skin after giving birth. I decided to change that disempowering belief system. I took a few nude self-portraits breastfeeding my newborn a few weeks after he was born. I was 50lbs heavier than I had ever been. I was sad, I was what the “old me” would have loved to hate. But I posted that self-portrait on my social media pages and on my website, and an entire movement came from that one moment I decided to get honest, vulnerable, and to start loving me. I ended up creating and self-publishing a book of photographs and stories called
Jadebeall.com | Abeautifulbodyproject.org 62 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
The Bodies of Mothers and I started a blog called A Beautiful Body Project. My images circled the world and I learned that post-birth body image was a worldwide epidemic. Today, you can google “A Beautiful Body” and you will see mostly my images because the Internet listens to what we choose to search. A rad side project that came from photographing mothers and their babies and children was that I ended up taking a lot of breastfeeding images. It has certainly become a passion now, something that before I was a mother I never even knew would be so powerful and beautiful. These images I am sharing with you now are a collection that have happened over the last three years working with self-esteem with mothers and promoting self-love, and those tender and fleeting moments of breastfeeding. Jade Beall is a self-taught photographer who specializes in truthful, honest images to promote self-love, self-worth, and body love.
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The thing was, I had already lived nearly my entire life in self-loathing and subscribing to the idea that I needed to always change my body to be beautiful, to be worthy, so it was nothing new to frown in disappointment at my reflection in the mirror.
”
—J ade Beall
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 63
Photographer Jade Beall
“
I was really done with valuing myself based on my fat rolls and the acne on my skin after giving birth. I decided to change that disempowering belief system. —Jade Beall
”
“ Photographer Jade Beall
An entire movement came from that one moment I decided to get honest, vulnerable, and to start loving me. —J ade Beall
�
“
It has certainly become a passion now, something that before I was a mother I never even knew would be so powerful and beautiful.
”
Photographer Jade Beall
—Jade Beall
★censored
“
... promoting self-love, and those tender and fleeting moments of breastfeeding.
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Photographer Jade Beall
—Jade Beall
PHOTOGRAPHer Feature
Indecent Exposure
A Culture
Shame
of Against Breastfeeding Mothers Whitney Hempsey Photographer + Breastfeeding Advocate
W
omen from all walks of life have one thing in common: we want to give our children the best start possible. For some of us that means breastfeeding our babies. Some for a year or two, some longer. Whatever we choose to do as parents, the goal is giving our children the absolute best we have to give. It saddens me that women are shamed into feeling like they need to hide away in order to feed their children. Go to the bathroom, sit in your car, lock yourself away in a bedroom where no one is at risk of seeing part of your scandalous breasts. It’s just not right. Breasts were created for babies. Breasts not only provide the perfect food for newborns and infants, they also provide amazing supplemental nutrition for toddlers and older children, they help regulate the child’s body temperature, they provide immunity, and all this for free. So why does our culture have such a problem with breastfeeding? I hear the same things over and over, “I’m 100% pro-breastfeeding, but….” Well, if there is a “but” then it’s not 100% is it? “I’m probreastfeeding, but just cover up.” Why? Many babies refuse to nurse under a cover and can you really blame them? In most cases when a woman is nursing there is nothing showing that wouldn’t be visible in a bathing suit or low-cut top. Living in a beach town, I can confidently say that I see way more breasts on a trip to the beach or grocery store than I do in a group with an entire room full of breastfeeding women. So
Studio412 Imagery: myrtlebeachbirthphotography.com 72 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
if those women walking around in their bikinis and revealing clothing aren’t being harassed into covering up, then why are breastfeeding women? Or what about “I’m 100% pro-breastfeeding, but that baby is too old.” Where exactly do people come up with these ages where a child is “too old”? Is it because it looks strange? Well yeah, because in our society we have been taught that breasts are sexual objects even though that is not backed by science. Yes, it is going to look out of place to see a three-year-old breastfeeding, because that isn’t something that is common in our society. I do not choose to parent based on society’s opinion of what I should be doing, but rather based on my own research, instincts, and intuition. Thankfully I have science on my side since both the AAP and the WHO recommend breastfeeding until AT LEAST two years of age and continuing as long as it is mutually desired by mother and child. Science says breastfeeding toddlers is good, even normal. So why the fuss? I’m not sure, but whatever the reason, it needs to stop. Babies need to be left alone to eat in peace whenever, wherever, and however they are comfortable without fear of ridicule. I want women to be able to answer their babies’ cries of hunger wherever they are without feeling like they need to hide away. Whitney is a lifestyle maternity, birth, and newborn photographer based in Myrtle Beach, SC. She is a mother of four and a passionate advocate of birth and breastfeeding rights.
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 73
PHOTOGRAPHer Feature
“
I can confidently say that I see way more breasts on a trip to the beach or grocery store than I do in a group with an entire room full of breastfeeding women.
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”
—Whitney Hempsey
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 75
breastfeeding Feature
Celebrating Amazing Women
+
Addressing the Cultural Assault on Breastfeeding Mothers Why does breastfeeding cause so many to react in anger or distaste at the site of a mother feeding her child?
{
Have we as a society accepted the unnatural as natural, and the natural now seems obscene to many? Women’s bodies are used every day as objects, exploited to sell products, but when we use our bodies to nurture our children, most mothers encounter reactions of anger, disapproval, or disgust.
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Whether we chose to breastfeed or not, we are all in this together. We are all responsible for protecting each other. The world changes and shifts when women protect other women. It is time for women to rise, together.
}
“
Breast s are not solely sexual objects. Perhaps the act of b r e a s t fe e d i n g i s p o l i t i c a l because it shows that a woman is more than just a sexual being . It shows that a woman’s body is not r e d u c e d t o b e i n g o n l y fo r the enjoyment of others. It shows that her body is a monument, a work of art, a s o u r c e o f n u t r i t i o n a n d a s a fe h a v e n fo r h e r c h i l d r e n . M o r e i m p o r t a n t l y, i t s h o w s t h a t h e r body is her own.
”
—Jaden Davis
Angela McElwee with KIRRA ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 77
breastfeeding Feature
{
Moth er. Vi ce Presi dent of Sales Operat ions, Gaia Herbs
Angela McElwee with
I
kirra,
13 months
Aust in, Texas
have nursed my daughters on trains all over Europe, on flights across the US, on boats in the Caribbean and Mediterranean, in the fields of organic farms, and in Gaudí’s spectacular Sagrada Família cathedral in Barcelona, while tucked into a quiet alcove. I have also nursed far more frequently at home, up all night, sitting in the rocking chair, half asleep, weary, and wondering if sleep would evade me yet again. The intensity and totality of having an infant depend on your body for their every meal is deeply profound, and also incredibly sacred. It’s a spiritual practice of sorts, I think. A moving meditation. It didn’t take long before I realized that my decision to feed my baby with my breasts (which were designed for just this purpose) was highly offensive to some, despite being profoundly natural to me. We were in a small town in the Texas Hill Country, visiting a pumpkin patch. My daughter was hungry, and at only one month old, I was feeding her constantly. I stopped and sat down to nurse, mostly covered by a white and pink blanket. A couple walked past us, the woman snorting with disgust. “That’s revolting!” she said. The man with her responded, “What kind of person does that in public?” I was stunned. Normally assertive, I was so shocked by their comments that I couldn't even muster the words to defend my baby’s right to eat in public. They walked away, and she continued to nurse, eyes closed, mouth working hard to take in enough of my milk. A sigh escaped her lips, and she began to relax, tiny fists unfurling and softening, trusting me to cradle her as she drifted into
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}
sleep. This is the act that had been so insulting? All those months of nourishing her from my body, all over the world, at all hours of the day and night. The movable feast that I brought with us everywhere, always ready to feed, soothe, and nurture. So controversial and polarizing in our modern culture, but as old as the human race. My baby needs to eat, and so I feed her. This is not a political act, or a stunt for attention. If you saw me on the beach, you’d see more of my breasts there, but somehow the act of breastfeeding causes some to feel uncomfortable enough to react in anger or disgust. I am proud of my strong, healthy, imperfect body, and the fact that it has grown and fed our daughters. I am grateful that I can nurse to satiate my baby’s hunger, to calm her teething fevers, to soothe her when she is overtired. I am thankful for the time I have to connect with her like this, and the trust that she has because of our bond. This is what a strong woman looks like. Empowered, confident, and unapologetically herself, whether that is in the act of breastfeeding her baby, leading a business, running a marathon, or planting a garden. Angela is an executive, mother, wife, and lover of Life. She has been writing poetry for 22 years, loves ethnobotany, vegan baking, and tending her overgrown organic garden. When not burying her hands in the dirt or responding to a million emails, she can be found practicing hot vinyasa yoga, making salted maca cacao truffles, and going to bed early. Angela lives with her husband Jeremiah and their four young daughters.
“ {
If you saw me on the beach, you’d see more of my breasts there, but somehow the act of breastfeeding causes some to feel uncomfortable enough to react in anger or disgust.
”
ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM 79
breastfeeding Feature
{
Molly Venter New Haven, Connecticut
Why do you think many in our culture treat public breastfeeding mothers negatively? I’ve noticed several people become uncomfortable when I’m nursing in public. I imagine some of them are a bit turned off by seeing a breast in a way that’s not explicitly sexual, just a boob in a baby’s mouth! I also think arousal is somewhat mysterious, and that some find the scene a little bit... stirring, and are made uncomfortable by that. The impulse is to shut it down. But this whole messy human experience, especially anything around procreation, is inherently a little bit sexual. Better to learn to feel and hold whatever feelings arise for us than to shame that which stirs us. Side note: I’m lucky that breastfeeding works for us, some moms can’t and then get shamed for bottle-feeding. Good grief! Photo: Anthony Decarlo
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Chelsea Richer + Owen 6 months Longmont, Colorado
“
{
Nicole Riviere Woodland Hills, California
What have you faced when trying to breastfeed in public?
Better to learn to feel and hold whatever feelings arise for us than to shame that which stirs us.
”
—MOLLY VENTER
We were out at a restaurant the other night for an early dinner. It was me and my family, plus maybe one other couple in the restaurant. My son needed to eat, and I opted to make him a bottle instead of breastfeed because I felt it was too intimate and quiet of an atmosphere to feed him in public. I was afraid I’d draw too much attention. I told my husband, “If it were busier, I’d feel more comfortable.” In hindsight I regret that decision because it’s well within my right to feed my son in public no matter what and I don’t need to protect the public’s feelings or make them comfortable with it.
What have you faced when trying to breastfeed in public? The first time I breastfed in public, I was at a restaurant with a few of my girlfriends. I had always been a fierce supporter of public breastfeeding. During pregnancy I often envisioned myself telling off anyone who might discourage me from feeding my baby openly. For some reason, though, when my moment came, I got nervous. Despite feeling quite encouraged by those close to me, I used a scarf to cover myself. I think about that moment with fondness: a short blip in time of feeling what so many women before me have felt, the innocence with which I operated out of fear that a stranger would judge me, the recognition that I had a challenge to overcome. It took a few more public tries before I began to own the fact that covering myself further embeds the impulse that breastfeeding is taboo. Shaming of public breastfeeding is learned, not inherent. People who have learned to feel uncomfortable by seeing a woman feed her baby are the ones in an unfortunate position. Not me. Only if we collectively and openly speak the breastfeeding language will the future hold space for more women to feed their babes with comfort and confidence. I am incredibly fortunate to be given the gift of nurturing my little one now with such unbounded joy and freedom. Photo: Kate Broussard
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{
Melissa D’Antoni + Sophia Flora 7 days old Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts
Why do you think many in our culture treat mothers breastfeeding in public negatively?
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S o meh ow, our cul ture ’s idea s abou t wo men have created thi s story that a woman must always b e h ypersexual and a vi r g i n, all at once.
”
I think we shame women for their bodies as a way to control them and keep them covered and hidden or repressed. We are conflicted because of clashing religious and cultural beliefs about women. Often referred to as the Madonna and the Whore complex in modern psychology, the role expectation to be either portrayed as the virtuous Virgin Mother or the sex object responsible for fulfilling every desire, but rarely are both aspects allowed in one feminine persona. As we evolve as a society, we must integrate these two parts of a woman’s psyche on both the individual and collective level. Women need to embrace all aspects of their feminine nature to truly express their wholeness. Men need to empower women to express their full selves as they embrace and learn to trust the feminine. Nurturing, as embodied in breastfeeding, is a core essence of feminine power. Empowered mothers nurture healthy attachment in children, setting the foundation for healthy development and an empowered world. Photo: Traeger di Pietro Firetreestudios.com
—Jaden Davis
Why do you think many in our culture treat mothers breastfeeding in public negatively? Breasts have always been a haven for baby mammals. However, we humans have branded breasts as sexual objects, which often is what people see them solely as being. I think that many people subscribe to the patriarchal belief that a woman’s body is not her own. This belief has perpetuated the concept that women do not get to make the rules around their own bodies, including how they feed their babies. Somehow, our culture’s ideas about women have created this story that a woman must always be hypersexual and a virgin, all at once. Perhaps this is why breastfeeding is so controversial? Perhaps it is that a baby suckling at a breast is a clear indication that this woman is breaking those subtle patriarchal rules. She is, at once, NOT a virgin and is living proof that her breasts are not (solely) sexual objects.
{
Jaden Davis Austin, Texas
The act of breastfeeding is political because it shows that a woman is more than just a sexual being. It shows that a woman’s body is not reduced to being only for the enjoyment of others. It shows that her body is a monument, a work of art, a source of nutrition and a safe haven for her children. Most importantly, it shows it is her own. Photo: Samantha Larson
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breastfeeding Feature
{
Jenn Falk Somerville, Massachusetts
{
Heather Gallagher
Breastfeeding has been one of the most profound and deep experiences of my life. A version of yoga that goes far beyond the mat. The power that it gives me as a woman is remarkable. I have now solely nourished two humans to life! The connection I have with my children is indescribable. The entire experience has made me so proud to be a woman and more willing to support and fight for women’s rights than ever before. Photo: Cara Brostrom
{
Austin, Texas
Breastfeeding is my greatest gift to my child and to myself. It keeps us connected to our bodies’ needs and it roots us in nature. It is easily taken for granted, but when I’m able to step back and look at our whole experience, it makes me so incredibly proud of my body, my will, and the bond my son and I have formed.
“
Photo: Heather Gallagher
When she came into this world, I took my newfound realization of love for my body and nature and put it into action through breastfeeding, and again my body and nature provided. —Nicole M Henning McNeil
Nicole M Henning McNeil + Collette Shanghai, China
”
Breastfeeding means to me trusting in and falling in love with my body and nature. For 20 years I didn’t love or trust my body. I hated what my body looked like and accordingly didn’t properly fuel it or listen to it when it was fatigued or aching. When it said it was hungry, I told it it was wrong. When it showed signs of fatigue and pain, I didn’t listen and kept doing what I was doing only to experience an injury or complete exhaustion. When this breakdown happened, it would only confirm my hate for my body. During those 20 years I allowed the media to tell me what it thought was best for my body: processed, “fat free” food, diets, diet pills, powders, shakes, etc. I experienced what seemed like an endless cycle of hating, starving, binging, and hurting my body with every new “fad,” product, diet, or food. In 2011 I decided to put an end to the hurtful cycle. After this epiphany and after three years of infertility, my body and nature gave me one of the most precious gifts, my daughter Collette. Even after years of treating it badly, my body provided me with a beautiful daughter. When she came into this world, I took my newfound realization of love for my body and nature and put it into action through breastfeeding, and again my body and nature provided. Breastfeeding provided all the nutrition and antibodies that nature intended, and my milk changed according to my daughter’s needs. We built an amazing bond. A bond so wonderful that words cannot express its beauty. Breastfeeding to me is getting back to the basics, trusting and loving my body and knowing that if you allow nature to lead, the results are magical. Photo: Barefoot Photography·
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Breastfeeding represents a great achievement for me, and an experience that was beautifully primal and fulfilling. Early on, in the throes of postpartum isolation, it represented an opportunity to connect with the purest living form that I will ever come in contact with in my life, without the distraction of the too-busy world around us. It slowed me down and in that presence I was able to truly understand the gravity of this being in my arms. We were enmeshed with each other while the world around us faded and blurred into the background. With both my children it was not easy in the beginning: there was frustration, doubt, and feelings of inadequacy, but when I overcame the dependency on breast shields and bad latches, I felt a cathartic freedom and bliss in my ability to nurture and feed my child. There are so many emotions in those first few weeks and months after childbirth. In the end, what matters is the hungry mouth that needs to be fed and a mother that is answering that call whenever and wherever that may be.
{
Jennifer Andrau Shpilsky Los Angeles, California
Photo: Studio SLB
“ ” {
Breastfeeding represents a great achievement for me, and an experience that was beautifully primal and fulfilling. —Jennifer Andrau Shpilsky
Kylie Ruszczynski Paris, France
Breastfeeding for me was the chance to give my baby the fullest of my mothering capabilities, to know that I was doing everything I could to feed this new little person with everything she needed. To give her a share of my friendly microbes for her tiny little gut, to have the privilege of bonding with my daughters, being their everything. I can’t imagine not having been able to give my milk to my babies. Every child deserves to be fed naturally by its mother, if possible. Of course it requires time and sacrifice, staying at home every night because they need their mummy to fall asleep, or popping out a boob on a busy bus to give them some comfort. They need to know their mummy is there and being present. Feeding them my milk communicates this. Photo: K. RUSZCZYNSKI
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breastfeeding Feature
{
Victoria Alvarado-Haase Austin, Texas
Breastfeeding to me is so much more than feeding a child. They are moments spent nurturing a human life. As a mother, these moments are filled with a sense of calmness that mirror a meditative state, where time stops and the world around me melts away as my child and I engage each other in gaze, feelings of safety, comfort, and where mutual love is communicated. So much happens during a nursing session, from physical and chemical changes in the brain, to emotional exchanges that create deep-seated roots between a mother and child. The growth of a child goes beyond the nourishment from a mother’s milk. For me, it is the purest exchange of unconditional love and nurture that provide incomparable developmental value. It is life-sustaining and primal; it is what my breasts were meant for. There is no easy way to educate those with an ideology that continuously depicts breastfeeding negatively. There is something wrong with our society when people are more accepting of women walking around topless, but a woman breastfeeding should cover up. If the possibility of everyone experiencing nursing their child existed, maybe then our culture would see a paradigm shift in the objectification of breasts, but more importantly, women, mothers, and the gift of nursing a new life. Photo: Lara Gale
{
{
Megan DiSabatino New York, New York
Breastfeeding has been one of the most magical experiences of my life. I wouldn’t trade this peaceful time bonding with my daughter for anything. I am proud and feel empowered every time I nourish my baby girl in private or public. Breasts are beautiful! If feeding my baby makes someone uncomfortable, then they don’t have to look. It isn’t my business what others think. When my baby is hungry I feed and cuddle her. I don’t need anyone’s approval. This is what our bodies are designed to do. It is my right, my duty, my pleasure. Mother’s milk is incredible, by far the healthiest choice for both baby and mom. I have never felt more strong, sexy, and content in my entire life.
Kassondra Coxson Mount Dora, Florida
What have you faced when trying to breastfeed in public? I get a lot of looks when I am nursing in public. Not only am I feeding my child (or children) but I happen to be a plus-size woman of color and I don’t fit the crunchy, peaceful, mother nature look that many people associate with breastfeeding. My breasts are large. Nursing a small child is difficult in the most comfortable setting, but manipulating my breast in an unfamiliar place is really tough. I’ve received all kind of looks—annoyed, confused, disgusted—and that made it difficult when my first child was young. I was not confident in my abilities and I’ve always been selfconscious, so people looking at me was something I tried to avoid. After a while though, I decided I didn’t care about people’s thoughts on the subject. They need me for food and/or comfort. I am here for them. I am also my own person and what I need is to not hide out at home for however many months or years my children need me to breastfeed them. My family needs to have nice dinners out and go to the zoo and shop and do all the things that other families do, and we deserve to feel just like everyone else when we do them. Now if I get a look when I am nursing in public, I just smile pleasantly in return. They can waste time and energy getting upset. I won’t let them ruin my day. Photo: Jen Pritchett
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PHOTOGRAPHer Feature
Public Shaming for Breastfeeding Moms. Raising Awareness and Acceptance through Art.
Alicia Juniku Wilmington, North Carolina
PHOTOGRAPHer Feature
“
Alicia Juniku
Luckily, this environment has built a fire and forged a certain type of woman: She is strong, she is confident, and she is not afraid of the backlash.
”
aliciajunikuphotography.com 86 ORIGINMAGAZINE.COM
At the mall, hanging in the window is a huge banner display of a woman in lingerie, beautiful curves on display for all to see. In front of the store there is a bench, a woman sits breastfeeding, her shirt shifted just enough to allow her daughter access to the milk that keeps her thriving. One of these scenes is entirely accepted by modern social standards, while the other is cause for bullying and shame. Here in my current home state of North Carolina, lactation activists and breastfeeding families alike are fighting an uphill battle in our struggle to feed our children whenever and wherever they need, as NC is a traditionally conservative, non-baby-friendly area known for its sometimes backwards politics (the recent LGBT discrimination law passed in March). For me, this stands in stark contrast to the state of my birth and where a large part of my heart resides, Oregon. My daughter was born in the Willamette Valley, in a city full of midwives, birth and postpartum doulas, and lactation consultants. When I nursed my
daughter, it was wherever we happened to be, without shame or concern. Here in Wilmington, I know of far too many mamas who have been publicly shamed for breastfeeding in public, sitting at cafes, at the waterfront, in the store. “Cover yourself!” “That is to be done at home!” “You just want men to see your boobs!” Luckily, this environment has built a fire and forged a certain type of woman: She is strong, she is confident, and she is not afraid of the backlash. I made this series of photos for a fundraiser for the Port City Breastfeeding Project, which aims to bring awareness and acceptance of breastfeeding in Wilmington, NC. Over the course of three days, I photographed 66 individual mamas breastfeeding and nurturing their children. These women have shared these images on their social media pages, in their homes and pass on to their children, who refuse to put a blanket over their child so they can eat.
“At the mall, hanging in the window is a huge banner display of a woman in lingerie, beautiful curves on display for all to see. In front of the store there is a bench, a woman sits breastfeeding, her shirt shifted just enough to allow her daughter access to the milk that keeps her thriving.
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