bitch (thing)

BITCH is a quarterly magazine read mainly by third-wave feminists all over the world (but a good majority of them are in the U.S.). Their tagline is "A Feminist Response to Pop Culture", which is astoundingly accurate. This magazine is not preachy and does not read like a Women's Studies textbook.

Features include:

• Love It/Shove It- Editors write sassy, sarcastic reviews of current events, celebrity news, interesting (and sometimes totally useless) new products, and more. There is occassionally a good review, but most of the time the writers just bash the subject. They're eloquent in the same way Dear Dotti of the Weekly World News is... and it's no surprise, I love reading both.
• Where to Bitch- Offers addresses and phone numbers for letter writing campaigns towards such issues as supporting gay marriage, fighting for sex workers' rights, helping women in other countries, stopping police brutality, etc.
• The Bitch List- Subtitled "An Annotated Guide to Some of Our Favorite Things". A list in every issue of products and such that the editors are obsessed with, along with a short summary or description of each. Vitamin Water, Bonne Belle lipsmackers, Dora the Explorer, pet portraits, Elton John, rainbow cookies, the word "douchebag", and pilates have all appeared in various issues.
• Bitch Reads- Book reviews; and...
• Suggested Listening- Album reviews.

Then, there are at least 7 great articles in each issue about anything and everything-- subjects from the past that I remember include:

• A discussion of using the word "guys" to refer to women.
• A feauture on and interview with Dame Darcy, queen of the comic book world.
• A feature on and interview with Lynn Peril, femininity historian, collector, and author of the books "Pink Think" and "Mystery Date".
• An article on the Michigan Womyn's Festival and their "womyn born womyn" anti-tranny policy.
• An article on Female DJs.
• The sudden phenomenon of Girl Guide type books.

Also, this is one of the few magazines that I can actually read the ads in, and sometimes will even purchase one of their products. They advertise such things as indie records/bands, sex toys, reusable cloth pads, political t-shirts, feminist porn sites, and DIY businesses. The ads are small and most take up only 1/8 of a page or so, but I read them anyway- most are for great things!

This mag is perfect for third wavers who like to be political and smart, but enjoy reading pop culture magazines more than wordy, textbook-like ones. BITCH is a fantastic compromise between "Off Our Backs" and "Cosmopolitan".