Seila Rizvic

"New Year, New You" is the same old junk

This post was originally published in January of 2012 and is, unfortunately, still 100% relevant. By Seila Rizvic Even before the holiday season ends you begin to hear it. People lamenting their holiday “indulgences” and vowing to “start fresh” in the New Year. To some extent it’s understandable. Sure, you might gain weight over the holidays;…

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"Ironic" Racism & Sexism? Come on!

by Seila Rizvic Recently, Netflix released another season of acclaimed Fox sitcom Arrested Development. In the weeks prior, the internet was abuzz with people watching and re-watching the previous three seasons, tweeting the series’ best known jokes, sharing screen-caps of their favorite scenes, and generally brimming with anticipation for the upcoming release. Naming Arrested  Development…

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Real Beauty, Real Talk: the SPARKteam Responds to Dove's Latest Campaign

Have you seen Dove’s latest “Real Beauty” campaign? It’s been making the rounds and causing quite a stir: The video, which shows women describing themselves as ugly and then other people describing them as beautiful, leading up to a big reveal where we all realize that we are our own worst enemy, is drawing both…

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Girl Model: an interview with filmmaker Ashley Sabin

by Seila Rizvic Girl Model is a documentary by filmmakers Ashley Sabin and David Redmond that explores what goes on behind the images we see in magazines. Specifically, the film recounts the story of Nadya, a 13-year-old girl who is found by model scouts scouring her home region of Siberia for “fresh” talent to send…

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An alternative to the LEGO Friends Collection: An interview with Limor Fried

by Seila Rizvic Limor Fried is an MIT graduate and engineer and the head of Adafruit Industries. Her goal is to empower a growing subculture of “makers” (do-it-yourself technology hackers and builders) with products and resources to facilitate their projects. Fried has been featured in The New York Times, Businessweek, Forbes and even graced the…

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Are You Kidding, Cosmo?

By Seila Rizvic By now, we’ve all likely heard of Demi Lovato’s struggle with eating disorders and self-harm. An MTV documentary based on her struggles aired in March of this year and no doubt inspired many girls to seek help for themselves. Demi’s experiences prove that celebrities are not immune to the constant public scrutiny and criticism…

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Let's Vote To Respect Women In Politics, Shall We?

By Seila Rizvic Becoming a successful female in a male-dominated world is a difficult thing. If you are able to get through the constant, overwhelming media messages that try to condition you into being submissive, silent and small and are able to come out the other side a psychologically healthy and functional adult, kudos to you,…

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LEGO Magazine: Girl Stuff and “Regular” Stuff

By Seila Rizvic If you weren’t convinced before that LEGO’s new pink-ified and short-skirted mini-figures weren’t a form of gendering and sexualization of young girls, then maybe this will convince you. Recently, a concerned parent and blogger reported that the LEGO Club magazines that had previously been delivered to her and her daughter had been…

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