I just got back from a fairly off-the-grid vacation, and I’ve got a lot of catching up to do on multiple projects! So, while I’m bursting at the seams to talk about a bunch of things (so many things! oh my gosh people! so much exciting change happening!) in depth, I’m going to give you all a bunch of links to peruse instead! We’ll get to the good stuff later. I promise!
Below, find out all about a feminist pornographer’s philosophies, get some hot visuals, learn about the clitoris, watch some videos about consent and food-sex-education, help Shine Louise Houston make a film, develop deeper respect for BuzzFeed, enjoy Cindy Gallop’s audacity, attend Madison Young’s upcoming art event, and marvel at my journalistic butt-kicking!
1) Okay, so BuzzFeed has been really impressing me lately. They’ve always been a diverse site, but recently they’ve been putting out some sex-positive and gender-diverse and really forward-thinking articles and videos and it’s making me so happy. And then they published this amazing set of still photos and quotes from an interview with feminist pornographer and fantastic human Jennifer Lyon Bell about her work. Hot still photos from her film Silver Shoes? Check. Super-clear and thoughtful comments on sexuality, diversity, sex-positivity, and porn? Check. Excellent read? Check. NSFW as all get-out? Definitely check.
2) In other sex-positive news, the Huffington Post has apparently climbed aboard artist Sophia Wallace’s Cliteracy campaign and taken on the monumental task of re-educating the world about the misunderstood, magical, massive clit. The website is informative, gorgeous, and oh-so-freaking-empowering!
3) Speaking of sex-positivity, check out this adorable and funny and straightforward video about sexual consent vis-a-vis a simple cup of tea. I imagine this might be particularly useful in the U.K.
4) Shine Louise Houston, the multiple-award-winning visionary behind The Crash Pad and Pink & White Productions, is crowdfunding her first independently produced feature film, about queer women of color coming out (and having explicit sex, naturally). Help support her in her new venture by donating to SNAPSHOT. I guarantee you’ll be happy with the results. (Yes, that’s a guarantee. Quote me on that.)
5) In case you’re skeptical about my glowing praise of BuzzFeed in #1 above, check out these portraits of transgender children: informative, beautiful, poignant, important, and honest. Keep up the good work, BuzzFeed!
6) A far-reaching and fascinating essay from the ever awe-inspiring and mega-articulate Nina Hartley on why she’s still doing porn in her mid-fifties. (The article says she’s in her late fifties, but I personally think 56 is squarely in the mid-fifties range, don’t you?)
“There will be one day when my vulva is no longer employed on camera,” she says, “but I will always be interested in being on camera having sex with other people.”
I love this woman.
7) Dude. Kimberly Kane just did this video profile of Auntie Angel, a sex educator with a passion for food and sex. It will leave your jaw on the floor and your salivary glands working overtime. (NSFW AS ALL HELL!)
8) The Glamminator just ran a lovely profile of Cindy Gallop and her venture to fund and run MakeLoveNotPorn.tv–a primer for the uninitiated, or another chance to enjoy Cindy’s explosive interview style for those who are familiar!
9) Madison Young, the ever-inspiring mother, artist, activist, author, and sex-positive powerhouse of my dreams, will be hosting “Hackermurmur: Summer of Love, Death, and Parenthood,” an art show by body based performance artist and author: Madison Young and magic-realist Sheila Metcalf-Tobin, at Hacker Moms in Berkley. If you’re in the Bay Area and have any interest in sex-positivity, parenthood, art, or having a fantastic evening, check it out! More info on the Hacker Moms’ Facebook page!
In the interest of blatant back-patting, I was pretty impressed with myself when I realized I have interviewed five of the earth-shatteringly amazingly people mentioned above. Hell yeah, Lynsey. And so I will link you to all of those interviews, because I can. (Interview with Nina Hartley here, multiple clips from my interview with Madison Young for my art show “Consent” in the videos here, the juicy cuts of my interview with Shine Louise Houston for Bitch Magazine here, my interview with Jennifer Lyon Bell here, and one of my multiple interviews with Cindy Gallop here.)