Recently, I had the privilege of hearing Dame Margaret Sparrow, pioneer in sexual health services, speak at the New Zealand Medical Student’s...
New Zealand is not the easiest place to be sober. But we are increasingly questioning our attitudes towards alcohol. The 2019 Global Drug Survey...
Dear parents everywhere: no matter what you think, your child has probably secretly taken drugs. Maybe it’s not all the time, maybe it was just...
I read the comments.
Oh, God. I read the comments.
It doesn’t require any further context, does it? It doesn’t matter the subject...
As the time for university and scholarship applications draws near, my peers are voicing...
Our planet is in trouble. We’ve known about the climate crisis for some time, and now more than ever is the time for collective action. But there’...
Did you know that doctors in the United States are executing babies after birth? That’s right. Look up ‘born alive’ on Twitter and you’ll discover...
“It’s her choice!” has been the online battle-cry of feminists for as long as I’ve been socially aware enough to know what a feminist is (which,...
Over the years, I’ve attended numerous classes where university lecturers have passionately promoted the supposed value of mindfulness. Breathing...
If you’re reasonably in touch with the world, you may have noticed the rising sensation of KPOP, the rampant...
As the conversation around sexual assault gains worldwide traction, I’ve discovered a disturbing...
This is not us.
The words ring. As though saying them over and over again etches them into the whenua. Oh we want so badly for...
Let me just start off by saying that I have a lot of admiration for people who choose to maintain a vegan or vegetarian diet. Depending on where...
We are not the Us we...
I stayed in a three-year relationship out of fear that my partner would harm himself if I left....
New Zealand has a strange relationship with its own culture. I’d say it’s debatable whether New Zealand even has a culture. I’m not talking about...
Every year, a report about New Zealand fashion manufacturers and suppliers is released. The brands are assigned a grade based on the ethical...
Unless you have been living under a pop culture rock...
Social media is messing with young women. I’m not saying that as a baby boomer who thinks technology is evil. I’m saying that as a young woman...
I’ve decided to cut the bullshit this year. Below are my own personal no filter 2019 resolutions. Feel free to steal them, adapt them, use them or...
Free education for everyone between the ages of five and nineteen. That’s the promise that the Ministry of Education makes to New Zealanders. But...
First published on Monday the 30th of April, 2018, this piece comes in at number 2 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018.
I...
First published on Tuesday the 6th of November, 2018, this piece comes in at number 4 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018....
First published on Tuesday the 13th of March, 2018, this piece comes in at number 7 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018.
...
First published on Tuesday the 28th of August, 2018, this piece comes in at number 8 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018....
First published on Sunday the 25th of March, 2018, this piece comes in at number 14 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018.
First published on Saturday the 4th of August, 2018, this piece comes in at number 27 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018....
First published on Saturday the 14th of April, 2018, this piece comes in at number 28 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018....
First published on Thursday the 13th of September, 2018, this piece comes in at number 30 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018....
I am angry. I am not only angry about the senseless deaths of women at the hands of men. I am angry about the bigger picture. I am angry that some...
Trans rights have been in the news a lot lately. The Auckland Pride Parade board’s recent decision to ask police not to march in the parade in...
The holiday season is upon us, and with it comes the weirdest social event of the year: the work Christmas function. No matter how nice the people...
Rugby, beer, and “she’ll be right”. It’s not hard to define masculinity in New Zealand. A total stranger to our country, after watching about ten...
I try to keep things in perspective. I live in New Zealand – the 15 th country in the world to legalise gay marriage. I can walk down the street...
Short answer: yes.
I’m not a ‘climate change denier’. I believe the science. I believe that climate change is an urgent problem that needs...
For many women, Facebook is a platform where they can air their concerns about gender inequality and sexual harassment in a relatively safe...
Imagine cramps so bad that you can’t get out of bed. Every month. Followed by people dismissing the...
The Kavanaugh hearings and the #MeToo movement have revealed one depressing fact about the world: that no matter how terrible the abuse suffered,...
If you were too busy watching Jacinda win over the world with her maiden speech to the UN yesterday, you may have missed the most talked about...
By 2020, New Zealand’s refugee quota will rise by 500, to a total of 1500 refugees per year. That’s progress, but it’s nowhere near enough....
In 1893, we were not classified as people in New Zealand. Personhood hadn’t yet been extended to women. We were non-entities; vital to the future...
I’m old enough (read: not that old) to remember when people said ‘kiwi comedy’ was an oxymoron. The quip still pops up in the rubbish dump that is...
I love doing my makeup.
I also rarely, if ever, wear it.
That’s less the smug statement it may seem, and more a testament to my...
A few weeks ago, New Zealand’s warrior princess Lucy Lawless fired off a tweet stating she wouldn’t be bothered if she saw someone burning the New...
Drop the word Millennial and you’re guaranteed a response. Whether the response will be positive or negative is hard to say. But you’ll get one....
We need to talk about free speech. More specifically, who it protects and who it doesn’t. Human rights are a good thing, and free speech is...
Feminism is a broad concept, right? Recent efforts to make feminism mainstream (which have been relatively successful) have expanded the...
The Kiwi OE is a fantasy that I was brought up to believe in. In my pākehā, upper-middle-class world, your 20s are not complete without wandering...
How is this happening? Do I even want to do this anymore? As a female law student, revelations of sexual assault in legal workplaces throughout...
Satire. In which the writer imagines life from another perspective.
There is nothing worse than political correctness. Cancer, famine,...
Imagine yourself finishing {insert relevant high school/university/graduate course etc} and you’re about to enter the workforce. You’re feeling...
It seems like New Zealand is falling behind. Irish citizens have spoken and they want abortion...
“Today was so unproductive. I got nothing done.” I often find myself measuring my days in terms of how productive I’ve been. In other words: if I...
There are some words that are only ever used to describe women: Ditsy, feisty, frumpy, loose, and hysterical are just a few that spring to mind,...
Sometimes I love New Zealand’s ‘she’ll be right’ attitude. Not stressing over the details is great for things like playing sports or planning a...
When I was a little girl, I used to purposefully hate on the colour pink. I was a purple girl, thank you very much. Pink was far too girly ....
Let’s face it, New Zealand’s sex ed is generally pretty terrible when it comes to gender and sexuality. I don’t think the word ‘lesbian’ was...
In my experience, the first few trips to get contraception and protection from Family Planning or the doctor require a whole team of girls....
Women are creatures of wisdom. Call it intuition, experience, insight, a hunch, whatever… the...
If you based your knowledge of sexual consent on popular movies, books, and songs, you would probably be a rapist. So why is Western pop culture...
