On deinfluencing
Plus taking a moment to celebrate Black History Month
Dear Lazies,
As the winter weather lingers into March, it can be hard to stay motivated on your passion projects, studies and other commitments. The glimpse of lighter evenings is on the horizon yet still Spring still hasn’t sprung in all its glory. Whatever your headspace, make sure to use this time to unwind and be kind to yourself… warmer days are coming.
This month, Lazy Women is contemplating the power of de-influencing and the self-love it brings. And of course, it wouldn’t be February if we didn’t take a moment to celebrate Black History Month by revisiting some of our older articles on our website.
P.S. How are you celebrating Womens Day (March 8) this year? Let us know in the comments.
Your Lazies
De-Influencing
In the world of social media, what’s cool and what’s not changes very quickly, as our feeds become sites of the birth and death of many different identities - the “clean girl” aesthetic, the Slavic bimbo girl, the “mob wife” aesthetic. It seems as though especially women’s identities are often limited to and meant to change as these trends do. The question, “What’s your aesthetic?” is one now part of common parlance, signifying this need to define, and thereby, limit the way we dress, how we do our makeup, and even how we imagine our sense of self.
Often, these trends come as a whirlwind and make us question so much about ourselves, “Are these shoes cool enough?”, “Do I need to buy more satin ribbon?”, “I just need a new closet.”
However, these seemingly harmless “aesthetics” usually hide something meaner beneath. Like the old money style going around, which glorifies elitism, or the “clean girl” aesthetic which appropriates practices followed by Mexican-American women in the 90s. Moreover, these trends simply accelerate consumerism, making us believe we need things we do not need and maybe, do not even want. The constant stream of lip oils of the month and sneakers of the season is just one of the many ways consumer culture and hyper-capitalism are making our lives more unsustainable and also, burning a hole in our pockets.
But social media was once a place of inspiration and community-building, so here are a few accounts I follow, which do not try to influence, but rather remain comfortable in their identities, telling us to do the same.
@tenderherbs by Ethaney Lee may seem like an account simply dedicated to food, but makes us appreciate the little moments, whether that be through capturing her morning buttered toast in a ray of sunlight or posting pictures of her adorable dog, Cleo as he plays about. Lee’s heartwarming captions often bring us to appreciate the highs and lows of life, but especially the mundane and the ordinary.
@_____daksha is run by Daksha Salam, who is from Manipur which is in the Northeastern region of India. Daksha’s feed is a heaven for those tired of the inauthenticity of Instagram, featuring snapshots from his life, his recent bakes, and some very gorgeous flower arrangements. The account helps us reminisce over the point of social media - a place where we can share parts of our lives, what we find beautiful, and what we love, whether that be food or art, in order to strike a connection with the rest of the world.
Celebrating Black History Month
As we reflect on a month dedicated to honoring and commemorating the rich tapestry of Black history, Lazy Women are proud to spotlight the profound contributions and resilience of Black individuals around the globe. Intersectionality is crucial within our feminist framework, and many of us Lazies are sure that the fight for gender equality must address and dismantle the interconnected systems of oppression that impact marginalised communities.
There are so many Black creators nowadays: from internationally famous like Beyoncé to small ones, which names we are yet to learn. In this newsletter, we wanted to share some Black History month recommendations and reflections! Let’s talk about art first:
Lazy Eloïse has shared her recent impressions from Nina Chanel Abney’s exhibitions called "Big Butch Energy/Synergy". Here’s what she has to say about it:
’I was drawn to it by its colours : a light blue and pink, that reminded me of trans activist art that is so dear to my heart, combined with the darker skin of the characters in pastel clothes. Then, still thinking about the delicate way in which shades, hues and tints are paired, I focused on the people they depicted. Collegiate scenes : at the gym, in communal showers, between friends, playing sports. But this time, and for once, the white, hetero conforming characters are nowhere to be seen. Instead, in Nina Chanel's collection, black masculine women are at the center of everything. They are everything, in fact. I have not tried to find out whether this was Nina Chanel's actual friend group back in college or whether she imagined it, whether she dreamt of such a space -where gender norms do not seem to apply, nor exist- but I find comfort in them. I like to think that they have a mind of their own, and that Nina gracefully introduced them to us by carefully placing paper stripes or spray paint on these huge canvas. Thank you, Nina Chanel, for introducing us to Sheila, Mary, Keisha and Jordan. Lazy Readers, I can only encourage you to delve even more into Nina Chanel's work, a colourful representation of her mind, an exploration of gender, race, politics, pop culture and more.’
Lazy Women Articles: Black History Month edition.We also wanted to remind you about some of Lazy Women’s previous articles that shine a light on the Black experience.
Lazy Juli translated Judit Deen’s experiences as a mixed race Hungarian-African in ‘I’ve had enough - the thoughts of a Hungarian Black girl’.
2020 saw the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter protests across a global stage in response to the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery in the United States. One Lazy discusses the importance of confronting their white privilege and ways to support the movement.
Want to be more informed? Check out Lazy Luca’s reading recommendations on Black LGBTQ+ literature.
Make sure to update your agenda with what’s going on in March.
March 8 (for Paris people) - Lazy Women is coming back with producing and co-hosting “The Clitoris Act”, a feminist comedy show on Women’s Day!
Clit Comedy Club Performers Mari Volar and Anshita Koul talk and make jokes about everything: from weight to societal expectations. This 2-woman special premiered at the Hundertpro festival in 2021 and has since then entertained people across 15 cities in 8 different countries. It’s a great opportunity to catch up with friends, have fun and celebrate. Join Lazy Women and these brilliant comedians on March 8! Tickets are available here.
March 10 - *drum roll please* Our annual General Assembly will take place at 11am (CET). Since this is one of our most official events of the community, we hope you can participate! For those who don’t know, the General Assembly is a larger conversation on the past, present and future of Lazy Women including sharing opportunities and more ways to get more involved.
If you’re interested in attending, respond to this email for a link to the event!
Lazy Women Podcast Updates: 'Making it' in Western Europe: upbringing, selfishness, and purpose.
In the third episode of ‘Making it’ in Western Europe, we talk with Dinara, our Lazy Women social media manager. Dinara was born in Kazakhstan and moved to Budapest, Hungary, in 2018 to pursue an MA degree in Cultural Heritage. As Covid-19 coincided with her graduation, she decided to stay and build her new life in Europe. Witnessing tumultuous political environment and undergoing personal identity crisis, in this episode, Dinara ponders on the implications and choices of leaving /returning, on finding purpose in life and ways of giving back to the community and people who make us.
Special thanks to everyone behind the production.
Cover art: Juli / Music: Sophie M / Podcast idea and production: Lucie and Zsofi / Community: Dorina / Social media: Dinara
And, of course, we can’t leave you without our February favourites! Here’re just a few of them:
📚Angie Thomas ‘The Hate U Give’
I’d recommend this book to anyone who’s interested to read about race, but wants to read fiction. I loved this emotional story of non-silence and moreover, it’s very educative about systematic racism in the USA. Also it gave more sense to 2Pac songs, as I’m an old fan of his.📚Maya Angelou ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings‘
It’s an autobiography of the famous poet, where she tells the story of her childhood, painful and full of violence, but at the same time, the period of kindness, joy and love. Maya learns to navigate different sides of life, as we follow her growth. This story will surely touch you.
This Oscar-nominated movie sparked a big discussion in our community, as we reflected on not only its artistic part (the imagery was definitely beautiful), but on its portrayal of women and…feminism? We were not quite sure what to think of it! Just a strange tale or a hidden message? Would you like to share your views on this? Don’t hesitate to send your submissions on hello@lazywomen.com!
We want to thank Katarina Malikova for her wonderful contribution in February newsletter’s illustrations! You can check out her works here: https://www.instagram.com/kat_illuversum/ 🩷
