Reading List: If I Melt Into The Sea Tonight, Know I Died As I Lived: Scream-singing and Dancing My Butt Off Carly Rae Jepsen
Dearests, happy Friday! I hope that your weekend plans are filled with rest, relaxation, yoga, punching the patriarchy in the nose, some light shopping (treat yourself!), giving and receiving hugs from your favorite people, stanning Kamala Harris for her masterful debate performance, shaking your fist at people that cut in lines, finding a very good dog and giving it a very good pat on the back, and consuming allllllll of the longreads below.
Casey Newton, Bodies in Seats (The Verge) - you MUST read Casey’s story from last week on the human collateral damage of the online content war arms race we currently find ourselves in, in which contractors in remote offices around the country are on the front lines of preventing the world’s worst from entering your news feed every morning. And unlike the fabled tales of the free lunches and nap pods of Silicon Valley, these contractors suffer horrible working conditions with little to no support for their mental health. Newton has been reporting on this issue for years, but this piece puts our dire reality into sharp relief.
(CW: Sexual assault) E. Jean Carroll, Hideous Men Donald Trump assaulted me in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room 23 years ago. But he’s not alone on the list of awful men in my life. (The Cut) - This is from last week, and it’s absolutely gross (but not surprising tbh) that this story faded from the headlines after being initially being treated as an afterthought by major media. TL;DR, a prominent writer wrote a difficult and detailed piece about how the President of the United States of America sexually assaulted her in a dressing room, and there seemed to be a collective ¯_(ツ) alongside the questions of why she didn't say anything soon. And yet people ask why women aren't willing to subject themselves to the hate and scrutiny of going public with accusations. Huh! I wonder why! Coolcoolcoolcoolcool
Seth Harp, I’m A Journalist But I Didn’t Fully Realize The Terrible Power Of U.S. Border Officials Until They Violated My Rights And Privacy (The Intercept) - For all the people who, after Trump was elected, that I would “be fine” because I am an American citizen, please read Haip’s account of being detained at the border. And recognize that, while not nearly as terrible as what is happening to the families who are attempting to enter this country to seek a better life, if an American journalist being treated this way whilst trying to re-enter this country isn’t indicative of the slippery slope we are current hurtling down, I don’t know what is.
Erin Griffith, A Unicorn Lost in the Valley, Evernote Blows Up the ‘Fail Fast’ Gospel (The New York Times) - Haven’t read this yet, but any piece written by Griffith on the weird lifespans of startups in this weird timeline we find ourselves in is definitely worth time on your Kindle.
Alison P. Davis, The Wild Ride at Babe.net (The Cut) - Holy crap, toxic workplaces are no joke. And this account of one such environment at a media startup does not pull punches. Sigh.
You’re all lovely. Be kind to yourselves, and to each other.
Xoxo Amy