Andi, I am very excited to read your book! I was able to order it two weeks ago, and I cannot wait to delve into it! My questions is that since the bitch of Bitch Magazine and popular culture, what the downsides of feminism being in the spotlight, and what can I and other activists/writers/ do to contribute to how feminism is discuss and promoted?

Andi Zeisler Thanks, Sophia! I hope you enjoy it. I think the downsides of feminism becoming trendy mainly have to do with the fact that we often end up focusing exclusively on individuals and products, rather than the systems that create them and sell them to us. One example is the way we have come to argue endlessly back and forth about which celebrities "deserve" to call themselves feminist, or which movies or TV shows are "legitimately" feminist. Focusing on products or individuals puts the onus on them, rather than on the systems.

So, for instance, arguing about whether a movie like Mad Max: Fury Road or Trainwreck is "really" feminist ends up shifting focus away from the deeply entrenched inequality re: whose stories are developed and financed and told by Hollywood. The battles need to go beyond individual people and products and really hit at the bedrock of inequality.

Likewise, looking only at what's "empowering" to women and celebrating "choice" effectively obscures the reality that many, many people are shut out of the marketplace that glorify empowerment and choice. Focusing less on choice and more on rights is a daunting task, but it's necessary if we want equality for all people, not just the ones who can afford it.

In terms of what activists and writers can do to help these conversations happen and progress beyond the surface: Critical thinking (and encouraging it in everyone you know who cares about these issues) is a crucial ongoing project. The more we're aware of how media works—who owns it, who benefits from the messages it sells us, who is invisible within it—the more power we have to push back and demand more from it.

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