TOP 30 OF 2017 - 10. Villainesse investigates rape culture in New Zealand schools

By Ben Mack, Lizzie Marvelly and Jo Raj

First published on Friday the 24th of March, 2017, this piece comes in at number 10 in the top...

TOP 30 OF 2017 - 12. A day in the life of Feminist Mike Hosking

First published on Saturday the 11th of November, 2017, this piece comes in at number 12 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2017....

TOP 30 OF 2017 - 14. Villainesse goes inside ultra-conservative New Zealand churches

First published on Friday the 19th of May, 2017, this piece comes in at number 14 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2017.

A...

TOP 30 OF 2017 - 17. Our nationhood was not born in Gallipoli

First published on Tuesday the 25th of April, 2017, this piece comes in at number 17 in the...

TOP 30 OF 2017 - 20. Are Kiwi women seeking the morning after pill being ripped off?

First published on Saturday the 22nd of July, 2017, this piece comes in at number 20 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2017....

TOP 30 OF 2017 - 21. The Daring Dozen: Paula Bennett, Jacinda Ardern and Metiria Turei on feminism...

First published on Wednesday the 8th of March, 2017, this piece comes in at number 21 in...

TOP 30 OF 2017 - 23. Dear Mike Hosking

First published on Tuesday the 4th of July, 2017, this piece comes in at number 23 in the top...

TOP 30 OF 2017 - 24. Ignorance about Māori culture is no longer acceptable

First published on Sunday the 19th of November, 2017, this piece comes in at number 24 in...

TOP 30 OF 2017 - 27. Why I am not celebrating this Waitangi Day

First published on Saturday the 4th of February, 2017, this...

TOP 30 OF 2017 - 28. Dear Mike Hosking, again, again

First published on Friday the 11th of August, 2017, this piece comes in at number 28 in the...

Dear Ms. Elf - A feminist wish list

It’s been a long time since I wrote a letter to Santa. Now I think back, letters to the North Pole are somewhat wasted on the young. I’m quite...

The pros and cons of sex on the beach

Sex on the beach. It’s either AMAZING, or the most horrendous experience ever. Opinion at Villainesse is passionately divided. So we came up with...

Is Don Brash Australian?

I really think Don Brash might be Australian.

It’s just a feeling I’m getting in my waters, and I have good...

Is non-medical labiaplasty a form of female genital mutilation?

We’re quite familiar with how women’s genitals are often depicted in porn and other media (when they’re depicted at all). Smooth. Hairless. Petite...

Should you dump your parents?

Aaaah .. parents. You can’t choose ‘em. You can’t blame them for everything. You can’t dump them.

Or can you?

If the relationship...

The Check-Up: Fuck the Bikini Body

Every year, usually around September, there is a marked change in the air. ‘Is it spring?’ you think to yourself. Maybe. Possibly.

All...

After Weinstein, how comfortable do you feel watching films made by abusers?

#MeToo .

#BelieveWomen .

#WomenBoycottTwitter .

Most of us know what these hashtags are, and the unspeakable vileness...

The most disturbing part of the Weinstein allegations is the silence

It’s been an interesting evolution of the demise of Hollywood producer and studio head, Harvey Weinstein. In case you’ve been living under a rock...

October-itis sucks: Introducing… The Check-Up

There comes a time in every year when I want to crawl into bed with a bottle of wine, a full season of my current Netflix addiction, a tub of ice...

Thank f-ck the election is finally over

Thank f*ck it’s finally finished. It’s been a dirty, long-winded, teeth-grinding, soul-destroying few months, but...

The Pitch: Where the candidates stand on sexuality education

This year, on September 23, New Zealand will vote on who gets to lead the country for the next three years. Over the past few months, Villainesse...

The Pitch: Where the candidates stand on youth suicide prevention

This year, on September 23, New Zealand will vote on who gets to lead the country for the next three years. Over the past few months, Villainesse...

The Pitch: Te Ururoa Flavell

This year, on September 23, New Zealand will vote on who gets to lead the country for the next three years. We've watched the unbelievable...

The Pitch: James Shaw

This year, on September 23, New Zealand will vote on who gets to lead the country for the next three years. We've watched the unbelievable...

Enough with the 'Jacindarella' comments...

The story of Cinderella is...

The Pitch: Peter Dunne

UPDATE: On August 21, Peter Dunne announced his resignation from politics. He will not be seeking re-election.

This year, on September...

The Pitch: Gareth Hughes

This year, on September 23, New Zealand will vote on who gets to lead the country for the next three years. We've watched the unbelievable...

The Pitch: Kiri Allan

This year, on September 23, New Zealand will vote on who gets to lead the country for the next three years. We've watched the unbelievable...

The Pitch: David Seymour

This year, on September 23, New Zealand will vote on who gets to lead the country for the next three years. We've watched the unbelievable...

The Pitch: Metiria Turei

UPDATE: On August 9, Metiria Turei announced that she would step down as Co-Leader of the Green Party and resign from politics at the election....

The Pitch: Andrew Little

UPDATE: On August 1, Andrew Little stepped down as Leader of the Labour Party. He remains at Number 3 on the Labour list.

This year, on...

Why we should never say “retarded”

“Are you retarded?”

Let’s be honest: we’ve all heard the above. And most of us know it’s incredibly offensive. So why do we keep saying...

Do you have to be wealthy to be an All Blacks fan?

Does Kiwi sport have a ‘locker room talk’ culture?

It was the tape heard around the world: then-US presidential candidate Donald Trump, allegedly believing he was off the record, graphically...

Time management hacks: How to survive being busy

These days, most of my emails begin with: “I’m so sorry for the late reply! I’ve been snowed.” At the surface level, the expression sounds quaint...

How to talk to friends and family about feminism

Imagine this: you’re hanging out with your flatmates or friends at a pub, and one of them makes a comment about the outfit a woman at the other...

In defence of the colour pink

My favourite colour is pink. I’m not talking dark tones that look more like plum or maroon than anything else, either – no, I’m talking shockingly...

Why I broke up with the pill

The pill was perhaps my favourite form of contraception – it was low-fuss, timing my period by its packaging made me feel even more excessively...

The bastardisation of International Women’s Day

North Korea. Russia...

Kellyanne and the many ways to con the American people

From The Hunger Games to 1984 , dystopian fiction has always been a bestseller....

There's no headline that can convey how f***ed this is: Plastic surgery games for kids...

I’m blaming the Kardashians. Or maybe Donald Trump. Definitely social media.

I need to blame someone because I’m so fucking angry....

Why the Women’s March needs to be just the beginning

It still feels like something out of a bad sci-fi novel depicting a dystopian hell: a bully with an orange face is the president of the United...

TOP 30 OF 2016 - 2. Is New Plymouth the new racism capital of New Zealand?

First published on Saturday the 7th of May, 2016, this piece comes in at number 2 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2016.

...

TOP 30 OF 2016 - 7. When I fell in love I never expected to end up in an abusive relationship [...

First published on Saturday the 30th of January, 2016, this piece comes in at number 7 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2016....

TOP 30 OF 2016 - 8. An open letter to the Minister for Women

First published on Sunday the 11th of September, 2016, this piece comes in at number 8 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2016....

TOP 30 OF 2016 - 11. Homelessness in New Zealand: Choices, denials and falsehoods

First published on Saturday the 4th of June, 2016, this piece comes in at number 11 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2016.

...

TOP 30 OF 2016 - 15. 10 ways to respond to an unwanted dick pic

First published on Friday the 22nd of January, 2016, this piece comes in at number 15 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2016....

TOP 30 OF 2016 - 17. Half of my family is voting for Donald Trump

First published on Friday the 21st of October, 2016, this piece comes in at number 17 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2016....

TOP 30 OF 2016 - 18. Men have no place in the abortion debate

First published on Tuesday the 22nd of November, 2016, this piece comes in at number 18 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2016....

TOP 30 OF 2016 - 19. ‘Should we lower the age of consent?’ is not the question we should be asking

First published on Saturday the 2nd of April, 2016, this piece comes in at number 19 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2016....

TOP 30 OF 2016 - 20. A first for Auckland: Introducing Councillor Richard Hills

First published on Sunday the 6th of November, 2016, this piece...

TOP 30 OF 2016 - 27. The Problem with the Real Housewives of Auckland

First published on Monday the 19th of September, 2016, this piece comes in at number 27 in the top 30 most read Villainesse...

Why style guides are rubbish

How many of these (or variations thereof) have you seen lately?

Wear this blouse and be the belle of all the Christmas balls!

...

Five tips for surviving the stagger to the finish

At this stage of the game, it’s really a miracle that I can still string a sentence together. I’m limping to the finish line sustained only by...

Tinder: It’s like real life but worse

"Tinder is how people meet. It's like real life, but better."

For those of you like me, who have been around the ol’ Tinder wheel of...

How I learnt to deal with online abuse

*Warning: Contains strong language.

I am many things: a musician, a columnist for the New Zealand Herald , the editor here at Villainesse...

Rural vs urban: A tale of two New Zealands

Just sit back for a moment. What’s the first thing you think of when you think of...

What the government SHOULD be doing to fix the gender pay gap

In 2016, as in pretty much every year since the beginning of time, a pair of ovaries may as well be a ‘discounted’ sticker in the New Zealand job...

What is going on with the Colombian peace treaty?

The people of Colombia are in shock. The South American nation, a country with...

The problem with calling Kendall the "classy Kardashian" ...

“I’ve always been super different from all my sisters,” Kendall Jenner confessed during her Vogue...