Alie Benge on the book that built a shimmering private world for her and her sisters. I own two copies of Little Women. One is bound in white leather, has gilt edges, a gold filigree pattern on the front, and the heft of a family Bible. Each copy of this edition is made to order. … Read more
Summer reissue: In the week that a woman was told her bikini was “inappropriate” to wear at an Auckland pool, Alex Casey provided some much-needed reminders for women wearing clothes everywhere. First published on 9 April 2019 Women, you probably already know this but… you’re wrong. Your clothes are wrong, your togs are wrong, whatever … Read more
*Yes it is. But in the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, Michele, Alex and Leonie go looking for all the reasons we have to be a little bit hopeful. In this end-of-year, possibly end-of-world episode, Michele does the unthinkable on behalf of all boomers, Alex discovers … Read more
Despite it being proven that women with dense breasts have an increased risk of developing breast cancer, there is currently no requirement for Breastscreen Aotearoa to inform women of their own density after a mammogram. Shoshana Maasland talks to the women advocating for that to change. This story first appeared on Te Waha Nui Fay … Read more
In this hard-hitting episode of current affairs show OTR 24/7, lady journalist Leonie Hayden comes face to face with one of society’s most elusive figures. “Hey baby, show us ya [insert weird word for body part here]!” To many women and non-binary folks this is a common greeting, usually delivered with great pizzazz by a … Read more
In the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, watch as Alex Casey, Michèle A’Court and Leonie Hayden get real about women and safety. Fasten your seatbelts and hold onto your tits, the seventh episode of On the Rag is all about safety. What did we learn about safety … Read more
Alex Casey, Leonie Hayden and Michèle A’Court tackle the past month in women, with thanks to our friends at The Women’s Bookshop. As Christmas breathes down our necks and summer threatens us with bikini waxing, it’s time to have a bit of a rage. November was a rough month for women in New Zealand. The Grace … Read more
Our recent Spinoff Art survey provided a snapshot on gender equality in the local art scene, but it wasn’t the full story. Anna Knox continues the conversation by asking some gallery owners and directors for their responses to our findings. The Spinoff’s survey of gender bias in visual arts found that the industry continues to … Read more
Alex Casey goes on a journey to find out all there is to know about what a “normal” vulva looks like. Spoiler alert: there are many, many versions of normal. The funniest and most embarrassing thing anyone has ever said to me in my whole life happened during my very first smear test. I was … Read more
After Massey University in Wellington cancelled Feminism 2020 last month, the controversial event has found a new home in the parliament banquet hall. UPDATE 2.30pm: David Seymour has confirmed that he is hosting Feminism 2020 in parliament. “After Massey University prevented Feminism 2020 from taking place on its Wellington campus, I agreed to host the … Read more
For Amy Russell, ceasing deforestation of her lower limbs was a declaration of independence. When I wrote on The Spinoff recently about going barefoot everywhere, and then about being a fat runner, I got a lot more positive feedback than I expected, and a lot less criticism. So I thought clearly I need to push … Read more
Gloria Steinem speaks to On the Rag about what she has learned from over 50 years of feminist activism. In this very special episode of On the Rag, we are joined by journalist, author, activist and feminist hero Gloria Steinem ahead of the launch of her new book The Truth Will Set You Free, But … Read more
Alex Casey, Leonie Hayden and Michèle A’Court tackle the past month in women, with thanks to our friends at The Women’s Bookshop. Boo! We witches are back for a scary Halloween podcast, after a month where Freddy Krueger (Harvey Weinstein) showed his face in public and was courageously confronted by two women in Los Angeles. … Read more
At Wellington’s New Zealand Portrait Gallery for one last week is Jacqueline Fahey’s Suburbanites, a survey show showcasing 60 years of the Auckland artist’s riotous oil paintings. Megan Dunn writes a fan letter, in lieu of a review. Dear Jacqueline, I wanted to make time to review Suburbanites but a four-year-old daughter, my own half-written … Read more
Anna Knox, who spent four years living in Saudi Arabia, has been waiting for a book like Celestial Bodies – a story that shakes up entrenched ideas of women in the Middle East. Early on in Jokha Alharthi’s Celestial Bodies, Abdullah, son of Sulayman the Merchant, describes his family home in the village of Al-Wafi with … Read more
Alex Casey, Leonie Hayden, Michèle A’Court tackle the past month in women, with thanks to our friends at The Women’s Bookshop. It’s been a big month for young women using their voice. Greta Thunberg admonished leaders at the UN for not doing enough for the dying planet, which annoyed brave old media boys who think teens … Read more
Catherine Bishop is embarking on the mother of all author tours for her significant new book, Women Mean Business. It’s a colourful history of women in business in 19th century New Zealand and it is busting with yarns and subtle zingers, beautiful old photos and a thoroughly-painted, confronting social context. Bishop writes about dozens of … Read more
For the ageing episode of On the Rag, Michèle A’Court decided to take herself along to a plastic surgeon to see what needed sprucing up. The results may shock you. I’m not as young as I used to be. I know this because a) I have a mirror and b) people mention it. It’s a … Read more
In the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, watch as Alex Casey, Michèle A’Court and Leonie Hayden tackle the issue of abortion and why the law has to change. In the fifth episode of our mana wāhine series On the Rag, Alex, Michèle and Leonie look at the … Read more
Alex Casey, Leonie Hayden, Michèle A’Court tackle the past month in women, with thanks to our friends at The Women’s Bookshop. Mother Earth? What about Father Earth?! In cool news, the world is on fire and some men aren’t using reusable bags because they think it makes them look less masculine. There’s also the scarily familiar … Read more
The Side Eye is a monthly non-fiction comic by Toby Morris, supported by NZ On Air. Read the rest of the series here.
In the latest episode of On the Rag, Alex Casey sits down with ALRANZ’s Terry Bellamak to bust some common myths about abortion. Since 2015, Terry Bellamak has been the president of the Abortion Law Reform Association of New Zealand (ALRANZ), a group that advocates for abortion law reform alongside further reproductive rights, including the … Read more
Jeanette Winterson has based previous fiction on witch trials, her experience of growing up lesbian in a Pentecostal community, and her own affair with her agent. Jean Sergent reviews her latest novel, a reworking of Mary Shelley’s classic – and of Shelley herself. I was so excited to read this book. Jeanette Winterson? Tick. Mary … Read more
For their latest ageing episode, Hilary Barry joins the On the Rag team to talk wrinkle creams, menopause and why people still think she is Jeremy Wells’ mum. This month’s episode of On the Rag is all about ageing. Time ravages us all, of course, but there’s no denying that women bear the bigger burden … Read more
In the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, watch as Alex Casey, Michele A’Court and Leonie Hayden wrestle with the positives and perils of being a woman online. In episode three of our On the Rag web series, we explore the ways that the promised utopia of the … Read more
Millions of women spend hours a day shaving, trimming, plucking, waxing and lasering their hair to maintain a certain ‘acceptable’ level of body hair. But why and where did the pressure come from? Alice Webb-Liddall investigates. In the years leading into puberty, my mum told me not to shave. I have light, fine hairs on … Read more
Climate change will affect us all, but it already affects women and other marginalised genders differently. The United States is in the midst of a battle over reproductive freedom. Seizing on the conservative political fervour of the moment, politicians are attempting to strip back women’s rights to abortion, contraception and other reproductive health care. Women’s … Read more
Alex Casey, Leonie Hayden, Michèle A’Court tackle the past month in women, with thanks to our friends at The Women’s Bookshop. Rough winds do shake the darling pod of May, but that won’t stop the On the Rag team huddling together in the midst of a thunderstorm. Not to get all Gone by Lunchtime on you, … Read more
Why would anyone go to a men’s summit, in an age of online self help videos and feminism, let alone bother to host one? Critic sent a reporter to find out by spending a day with Dunedin’s Men’s Rights Activists. Update, 10 June 2019: Hans Laven, the clinical psychologist who appears in this story, has … Read more