The institution of marriage has long been considered a cornerstone of American society, but in recent years, there has been a notable shift. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2021, the U.S. marriage rate hit a new low, with only 14.9 marriages per 1,000 women, down from 16.3 a decade earlier. Furthermore, the divorce […]
Read More The Declining Marriage Rate and the Benefits of Putting off MarriageKristen Shrewsbury is an instructional faculty member at JMU who teaches the special topics course WGSS 300: Queer Families. She’s a Harrisonburg native who went to JMU for her undergraduate degree from 1996 to 2001, and began working at JMU as a professional in 2007. She’s married to a same sex spouse and has two […]
Read More An interview with JMU professor Dr. ShrewsburyMoving through the world as a queer human being has it’s struggles. I would like to shine some light on what I and many others deal with every damn day of our lives, and hopeful show people that it’s more than just rainbows and sunshine. One of those struggles that absolutely drives me crazy is […]
Read More Situations queer people deal with everydayThe laws created echo the continuous struggles of women and other marginalized groups. Laws are the culmination and the realization that our patriarchal society has created from its inception. The laws that have been created by our society came into being during the revolutionary war and the subsequent creation of the Declaration of Independence. These […]
Read More Women and Controversial TopicsThere is a unwavering hype behind current and past prime-time shows such as Friends and Grey’s Anatomy. Friends, with 10 seasons, focuses on the friendship of six young-adults while navigating life in New York. Grey’s Anatomy is the longest running prime-time medical drama and continues follows the lives of surgeons in Seattle, Washington. Both shows’ […]
Read More How Our Favorite Shows Defy Our Real ConcernsOne thing that makes students feel comfortable to say what is on their mind is when a teacher or professor maintains a safe space in his, her, or their classroom. Personally, I have been in many classrooms that have felt like a safe space for me to share all of my opinions and thoughts. The […]
Read More Shifting SpaceAmerica is ready for a gay president, especially if it’s Mayor Pete.
Read More GET HIP TO PETE BUTTIGIEG, LIKE, NOWAs I prepare to graduate in just 6 short days (*sobs), I’m looking back at all my time here while also looking forward to my next adventure. Part of what defined my experience here was my growth in feminism. Prior to college, I would not have called myself a feminist. I would have told you […]
Read More Thanks For the MemoriesThe other night I was sitting in the photo lab on campus, sorting negatives, when I started Speaking Up, one of NPR’s Ted Radio Hour podcast episodes. It began with the story of a queer, Bahrainian woman name Esra’a. She introduced herself to a crowd, describing her upbringing in Bahrain: “You were encouraged to be invisible, and […]
Read More Where are you, in the fight for unity?In a class this semester, we’ve been learning about this thing called the Social Pain Overlap Theory. Basically, what it says is that social exclusion and being stigmatized register in the brain along the same neural pathways as physical pain. This fact blew my mind, but it makes sense. Recently, I got to see this […]
Read More Ignorance is…pain