Burning up significant water cooler time has been the New York Review of Books article, “Reflections from a Hashtag”. There’s been much discussion – public and private – with serious criticism lobbed against the author and the editor.

Select articles on the matter:

• Want to see the article fact-checked by the Toronto Star journalist who broke the original story?  Click here.
• Want to read The Atlantic article that discusses how the editor, by publishing the article and defending himself, revealed how out of touch he was with the current cultural climate? Click here.
• Want to read the Slate interview with the editor? Click here. It’s a doozy.
• Want to read the Vrij Nederland interview with the editor? Click here. The editor confirm he was not fired.

 So. Many. Issues. The situation resurfaced dialogue on the author’s acquittal and the associated footnotes. Some noted that the article was poorly written and didn’t uphold the standards expected of the NYRB. The trigger for me was how, once again, the narrative of our universe was curated in the vein of history is written by the victors.

 #WhyIDidntReport New perspectives and new voices seemed to have been the editor’s objective in the upcoming thematic “The Fall of Men”, but it actually fell quite short by giving a platform to someone of questionable nature with an underlying motive to redeem himself. To me, it felt the author was presenting his multi-page resume to a US immigration officer in hopes of an O-visa, basically saying, “I’m so extraordinarily accomplished that I simply can’t be the bad guy.”  Wolf in sheep’s clothing with the fresh take still missing.

 When it comes to a 360° narrative, victims underreport. It’s part of the complexity of human psychosis. It plays into what is considered “truth” and shapes the paradigm we view the world. We now know the author’s history, but what of the victims?

 It’s not clear what brought editor to author, but in a parallel universe, I envision the editor also reaching out to an alleged victim and this new Author 2 finding the courage within to bring a new voice to the table. I won’t go so far as saying Author 1 shouldn’t have been published, but I think the lack of context on the contents of the article made him an unreliable “subject matter expert”.

From Tone Deaf to Pitch Perfect So, what now? The print edition will be out soon and likely fly off the shelves. The NYRB will allocate more pages for “Letters to the Editor” in the next edition. The majority can continue blindly clicking through to the next hullabaloo playing out in public view.

For me, my homework is to listen to new voices and perspectives. If you’re interested, see the link to my new subscribe below, plus other podcasts I’m into.

 LEFT, RIGHT AND CENTER: Because I gotta start somewhere.

—

2 DOPE QUEENS: Started listening to this because of a friend. She knows who she is. PRO-TIP: She listens to podcasts while grocery shopping. Genius.

 CANADALAND: It’s funny and independent.

 THE DAVE CHANG SHOW: Chef Christina Tosi was on this week! Who EVER, ever, EVER has a female chef as a guest?

REVISIONIST HISTORY: Sometimes I feel like I’ve outgrown Gladwell’s ability to mainstream, but I do enjoy this fresh take on old news.

***YouTube bonus*** THE LAW TWINZ: I can’t get enough of their music video reactions. My first foray into their world was Childish Gambino’s “This is America”. Watched it again just now and 2m08s still gets me shook.

Hello,

Come in. Sit down. Grab some tea, because it’s all about to spill.

Welcome to the world of PRIVODEET.

If you’re familliar with “A Clockwork Orange”, you might recall the Nadsat language used by Alex and his three Droogs. PRIVODEET is taken from their vernacular and defined as “to lead somewhere”.

For almost ten years, PRIVODEET served as my treehouse on the Internet. At times, it operated as a bookmusicfilm review site[1], at others, a place to vent on human behaviour. In other iterations, it housed my poetry and my seemingly never-ending struggle to lose 10 lbs.  Throughout its evolution, PRIVODEET was always meant to track my growth as a person.

I kept PRIVODEET hidden. Judgment on my writing scared me. Positioning myself on an issue without weeks of research[2] scared me. Seeing my yet-to-be-fully-formed thoughts hanged, drawn and quartered in the public square scared the f*ck out of me.

What has usurped those superficial fears is this new fear that my silence on important issues means I’ve now sided with the oppressor.[3]  My hope for PRIVODEET is to cover a range of hot topics, but with a PRIVODEET slant. What that slant is, we’ll discover together, but I hope it is one that leads to not only a discussion, but also action.

I welcome constructive commentary and not so constructive commentary because it is in the in-between that will lead me to a better somewhere than where I am now.

—
CHICK LIT
Recently, I was packing for a move. During an unfortunate incident involving me, a shelf and a row of paperback books tumbling to the ground, I discovered an equally unfortunate truth about me.

I don’t read women writers.

My teenage years were filled with Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and Hunter S. Thompson. That was the canon that gave you a ticket into the subversive. It was philosophy, gonzo journalism and threatened the establishment. It was different and I loved it.

I scoured the titles on the other bookshelves to prove my penchant for XY writers was a result of a poor sample selection. I saw a Zadie Smith here and a Virginia Woolf there, my beloved Sylvia Plath was dog-eared but the majority of authors were men. As I packed the Matthews, the Marks, the Lukes and the Johns, my gender imbalanced reading history became more and more obvious.

It took a long time for women to be recognized and respected as writers, prompting a major delay in entering the literary industry. From publishing houses to editors to retailers, men ruled the roost leading to sexual discrimination on the shelves. But, I also blame myself for not seeking out and supporting women writers – did I fall into the trap of thinking women writers were less than? Did I place a premium on the voice of Kerouac because he is a man and inherently carries more authority in society?

I worked in the whisk(e)y industry for years and one thing that constantly niggled at me was that women whisk(e)y drinkers never wanted to be directly marketed to.  Build it pink and they will NOT come.  From qualitative marketing research and random conversations from women at whisk(e)y events, what made the spirit so compelling was that it was generally perceived as a man’s drink and it was an unexpected choice from the usual white wine spritzer.

Returning to my reading list, I can see some of that behaviour coming through. Good Girls don’t read Ginsberg and that’s what made it so attractive.

With 6 weeks of this glorious Summer 2018 to go, I decided to dial up the oestrogen and add three books by women writers to my summer reading list. I’ve shared them below, with little blurbs from one of my favourite bookstores, City Lights:

LOBA – Diane Di Prima. Loba is a visionary epic quest for the reintegration of the feminine, hailed by many when it first appeared in 1978 as the great female counterpart to Allen Ginsberg’s Howl. Now published for the first time in its expanded and revised form, Loba explores the wilderness at the heart of experience through the archetype of the wolf goddess.

BAD FEMINIST – Roxane Gay. In these funny and insightful essays, Roxane Gay takes us through the journey of her evolution as a woman (Sweet Valley High) of color (The Help) while also taking readers on a ride through culture of the last few years (Girls, Django in Chains) and commenting on the state of feminism today (abortion, C—- B—-). The portrait that emerges is not only one of an incredibly insightful woman continually growing to understand herself and our society, but also one of our culture.

THE HANDMAID’S TALE – Margaret Atwood. Funny, unexpected, horrifying, and altogether convincing, The Handmaid’s Tale is at once scathing satire, dire warning, and tour de force.

Please let me know your favourite women writers by either replying to this newsletter or emailing PRIVODEET AT GMAIL DOT COM!

Yours,
PRIVODEET