Thanks for Being You!
Or a space for us to reflect on those way cooler people than us
Every week, I (Shelby) like to do a collaborative piece that features all our voices as we discuss the same thing. This week though, I was struggling to think of a collaborative topic but Aimée suggested we spotlight a person who we see as a role model or someone that is doing some really cool shit right now. On Friday’s we already showcase a person (or people) who are super awesome, so for today we’re going to expand on it and do a deep dive into someone who inspires us the best versions of us and who have inspired us.
Sydney’s Pick: Olivia Gatwood
Olivia Gatwood is a is a full-time touring artist and performer, podcast host, poet, and a Title IX Compliant educator in sexual assault prevention and recovery. While in quarantine, Olivia started the Instagram account Girls of Isolation which spotlights self-portraits of women, non-binary, and queer people in quarantine.
Olivia was first introduced to me through her viral video “Ode To The Women On Long Island”. It was the first time I connected with poetry and felt like I understood it. Sure, she’s speaking in lay terms about the types of women that live on Long Island, but she was also making a bigger statement about the power dynamics of women and how fucking strong they are.
The first time I was supposed to see her perform live was the day of Sam’s funeral so obviously that did not happen. Instead I read her first collection cover to cover twice. A year later, almost to the date, I saw her read from her newest collection in the Rare Book Room at The Strand. It’s a collection of stories about women and the violence and fear we experience in the world at any given time.
While there are so many poems from both of her books that I love and connect with, the one that means the most to me is from New American Best Friend called “Alternative Universe in Which I Am Unfazed by the Men Who Do Not Love Me”. A theme in my life is the constant need for love and affirmation from men and this is a poem about overcoming that feeling of not being enough for someone else. It’s an alternate universe in which she and I are fulfilled by art and books and activities that have nothing to do with being fulfilled by another person. We have hours upon hours of time to devote to people and things that bring us joy, a concept that is still so foreign to me (after years of therapy and 12 steps).
The last line of the poem? I have some much beautiful time.
Aimée’s Pick: Teens4Equality
If you read my piece on Wednesday, you know that I’ve been struggling internally with figuring out how I can be of service in the face of this current national crisis. I’m sure many people feel similarly, but fortunately, there are also those who really are out there getting shit done. Today, I want to spotlight six incredible young people: Jade Fuller, Nya Collins, Zee Thomas, Kennedy Green, Emma Rose Smith, and Mikayla Smith. These six teenagers (whose ages range from 14–16) worked together via social media to organize a massive protest in their home city of Nashville, TN last week. As a middle school teacher, I’ve seen teenagers do some impressive stuff (and, of course, a lot of really dumb stuff), but I’ve gotta say…these girls are next level.
The Teens4Equality, as they’ve come to be known on social media, did a lot more than just collectively have the “nice” idea to protest the unjust killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many other black Americans at the hands of the police; they thought of everything. In their first Instagram post (which announced the protest), they reminded prospective protestors to wear masks (both to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and to protect identities), to NOT wear contacts in case of teargas, and to bring other much needed but oft-forgotten items like water bottles and backpacks. They also provided specific information regarding times and locations for each part of the protest. Like I said, these girls are next level. A lot of adults I know are nowhere near as organized and competent as they are.
The protest lasted five hours, drew in a crowd of 10,000, and remained peaceful. It was a total success, but I doubt the Teens4Equality are just sitting around patting themselves on the back now. They’ve continued to use social media as a means to engage in conversations surrounding systemic racism and police brutality, and I’m excited to see what other ways they choose to use their voices in the future. If you’re looking for a little glimmer of hope in the darkness that is our nation these days, look toward the fine examples set by Jade, Nya, Zee, Kennedy, Emma Rose, and Mikayla.
Shelby’s Pick: Angela White and A Professor
Full disclosure: I am 100% that person that when you ask “What’s your favorite music?” every song, artist, album whatever immediately flies from my head and disappears into the ether. I then have to force my brain to remember what music even is and it’s a totally awkward experience. When asked about inspirational people, since they’re both way better people than I, Sydney and Aimée instantly came up with someone that they wanted to feature and I was like “This is great!” while also quietly freaking that I had no one to talk about. There are literally SO many people that deserve the spotlight — how can I possibly choose one?? It shouldn’t surprise people, then, that I’ve selected more than one kick-ass woman and all of them have something do with sex (LOL you had to have had seen that coming).
I instantly thought of either adult-film star and director, Angela White, or the equally famous Stormy Daniels. Both women are progressive in their field and work to destigmatize pornography while also making it a women-led industry. Angela White, for example, stars and directs in all her own videos and has won a myriad of AVN (Adult Video News) awards including Female Performer of the Year three years in a row! Angela White is deliciously busty, not unlike myself (in fact, we have the same bra size LOL), and she just knows how to rock her curves. While porn tends to lean to the skinny side of things (except for the men…), Angela White scoffs in the face of skinny and shows off her incredible body-positive self. Seriously, she’s hot AND super cool for being super outspoken about the misogyny and patriarchal ruling of the porn industry and how she’s working on turning that around. While I could link her information on Pornhub.com, I don’t want Sydney and Aimee to think all I do is watch porn (newsflash: it is all I do), but here is her official website and a super cool interview she did a while back. I also have to shout out my boss bitch Stormy Daniels. She’s popular for similar pornographic reasons, but certainly most notable for her courageous stance against our idiot of a president and his unsurprisingly similar misogynistic and patriarchal ruling of our country.
The other inspiring woman I must talk about is my past professor, Dr. Kathleen Lubey. Assistant professor at St. John’s University — where I received my Master’s — Dr. Lubey is the pinnacle of cool AF teachers, but still highly respectable and memorable. She takes no bullshit (mad respect) but creates an environment of vulnerability and safe discussion when talking about sexuality and gender (most of the time combined with race) in literature. I didn’t know that there was the field of sexuality studies until I met her and knew that how I dissect and look at literature has an actual name that isn’t just “pervert.” Dr. Lubey’s compassion for her students, mixed with her passion for her field along with her obviously successful teaching style creates a classroom experience that is hard to duplicate. I know that she will tell me if I’m talking shit, incorrect, or just plain wrong, but she’ll also encourage me to keep trying, continue my thoughts even if they’re fractured and all over the place, and — get this — she encourages you to learn. I’ve learned more things in her literature classes than I have in four years at my alma mater (besides my classes with Dr. Shakespeare — those were really special too). Her lessons are never more resounding than now too as she looks at the eighteenth- century slave-trade literature that is often sexually-charged but most definitely about race. Some of my favorites I’ve read from her class that covers sex, race, or a combo of both include The Woman of Colour written anonymously, Clarissa: Or the History of a Young Lady by Samuel Richardson, and literally anything by Aphra Behn (like Oroonoko: Or the Royal Slave).* So Dr. Lubey, if you happen to be reading this, I love you and sincerely want to be you when I’m older.
*Remember, all these links are affiliate links through Bookshop!
