From 2013 issue of The Feminist Observer- JESSICA VALENTI INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW WITH JESSICA VALENTI (2013- THE FEMINIST OBSERVER, REPOSTING)
By Sarah Jeanne Browne
1) How did you get Feministing started?
I started Feministing with my sister and two women I was working with at the time - we all felt a bit jaded about the way the mainstream feminist movement was treating younger women. We wanted to create a space for younger feminist voices and a platform for writers who didn't necessarily get attention elsewhere.
2) What is Feministing and your work about? What is your goal with Feministing?
Feministing was about a few things - creating this platform for undervalued feminist voices, making feminism more accessible to younger people, and shining a light on the amazing activism young women do. The goal is always shifting - and the younger feminists who run the site now I'm sure have different goals than I did when I started it - but this foundation remains the same.
3) What is your stance on motherhood and feminism, coming from personal experience?
Well I don't know that I have one particular stance, it's such a complicated intersection. But I do believe that motherhood and feminism are inextricably linked. I do think mainstream feminism could do a better job of addressing motherhood and issues that impact parents - especially when we're talking about reproductive rights and justice.
4) How did your perception of either motherhood or feminism change after you became a mother?
I think if anything it made me more feminist, and feel more urgently about changing things. Now I have a daughter to worry about!
5) How do most women perceive raising youth in our culture? And how does the virgin/slut dichotomy play into the child's perception of self?
This is a great question! I think there's a real pressure on women not just to have children (the idea that some women might not want them is unthinkable) but to be PERFECT mothers. There's a lot of unrealistic expectations from breastfeeding to childcare to gender roles. In terms of the virgin/slut dichotomy, I think young girls are taught from a very early age that their value is largely based around sexuality, which is just so depressing.
6) How does the teaching of abstinence only sex education affect youth and this message of youth and virginity?
Abstinence only education is ideological, shame-based education - it teaches young women that their sexuality is unnatural and wrong. It's a horrible message to give young people. It's also medically inaccurate - which I think is a violation of young people's human rights. These programs are literally putting young people's lives at risk by telling them contraception doesn't work. It's immoral.
7) What do you think should change about the way that sex education is taught?
We need comprehensive sex education that's respectful of all people's sexuality, gender and family lives. Young people need information and tools to make good decisions, not fear and shame.
8) Where can we find more of your work?
You can find me on Twitter (twitter.com/jessicavalenti), Tumblr (jessicavalenti.tumblr.com) and at The Nation!
9) Can readers of The Feminist Observer respond to you with questions and if yes, where so? (If no, I won't include this question in the mag!)
You can hit me up on Twitter or Tumblr or on my Facebook fan page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jessica-Valenti/360994083159
10) Is there anything else you would like to share with The Feminist Observer and youth specific issues that relate to your feminist work?
I'd just like to encourage folks to embrace activism - no matter what that means to you. Maybe it means going to a protest, or reading a blog, or just calling out a friend when they tell a sexist or racist jokes. It all matters, and all it makes the world a little bit better.
-2013 Issue of The Feminist Observer Interview of Jessica Valenti by Sarah Jeanne Browne, reposted for viewing.