The powerful history (and future) of the Anti-Vax Movement
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson Almost a month ago the UK began its mass vaccination programme against Covid-19, with Margaret Keenan becoming the first person to receive the Pfizer vaccine. Since then, more…
Second hand September — How to wear the change you want to see
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson It is a shock to no one that 2020 joins the growing list of years of unprecedented events brought about by humanity’s misuse of the planet. You…
It is time for the government to stop blaming the youth of today
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson Was it not Matt Hancock who declared the importance of remembering that we are all on the same side in the fight against COVID-19? This very same…
Porn: the good, the bad and the ugly
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson Pornography is no longer the dark underworld of the internet, but now a heavy force in the entertainment mainstream. It is the fast-moving undercurrent of internet traffic,…
The future of theatre in the COVID-19 world
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson Theatre has survived many challenges before, but, without help from the government COVID-19 could be its biggest challenge yet. This week, Andrew Lloyd Webber declared that the…
Female genital mutilation: not just a foreign practice
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson Having been told that it was just ‘something that girls do’, Nazia Mirza, aged 8, was taken by her mother to have her genitals cut. Being held…
The women we grew up watching: muses, fantasies and troubled
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson Over lockdown I found myself slowly returning to the TV shows and films that many of us grew up with. This time round, I began to see…
Boris wants calories everywhere – but at what cost?
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson Boris Johnson is calling for the country to lose weight together, suggesting that this would help combat a possible second wave of COVID-19. A large part of…
Trump and Bolsonaro’s COVID-19 fake news is worsening our infodemic
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson In February of this year, the Director-General of the World Health Organization declared an ‘infodemic’. As COVID-19 began to spread at a terrifyingly rapid pace across the…
Lockdown’s wellness craze might be better left in lockdown
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson The domestic stasis of lockdown has for many ignited a new zeal for wellness. Whether it’s baking, walking or running, taking up arts and crafts or spending…
COVID-19 has brought the resurgence of the bike
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson Bikes are in and cars are out. This seems to be the new motto echoing through government at the moment that can only be good news for…
How would the Romans have responded to COVID-19?
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson Even the richest Romans could not escape contagions and curses. The Antonine Plague savaged Rome from 160AD until 180AD. The rich flocked to their countryside villas, the…
COVID-19, mental health and the view from the GDR
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson Since lockdown was announced, our world has grown smaller and our attention has shifted inwards to focus on the bare foundations. For many, this sudden refocusing has…
Isolating alone is not the romance that was sold to us
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson When the UK was plunged into lockdown two months ago we were forced to alter our relationships; with those we live with and those we do not….
Technology can benefit our mental health during COVID-19
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson The infectious pandemic has been a testing time for humanity and has affected individuals in ways scarily imaginable just four months ago. From increased loneliness due to…
COVID-19 has shown that health must always come first
Illustrations by Hannah Robinson In this global age when often, our worth seems to be based on economic performance and productivity, work is dominating our lives more than ever. It seems…
The rise of male eating disorders
Illustration by Hannah Robinson Why we need emancipation from rigid codes of beauty and gender. The always-hungry beast: the rise of male eating disorders and why we need emancipation from rigid…
Wombs are important, whether occupied or not
A few months ago, I underwent laparoscopic surgery for endometriosis, along with three other women. One of these women, who was in her 40s, expressed that she definitely did not…
Safe injection sites are short sighted and racially charged
In light of America’s current opioid epidemic, the US government has fallen under immense pressure to come up with a solution. With more than two million Americans suffering from addiction…
An apple a day isn’t ‘healthy’ enough
Mirroring the increase in obesity, the health industry has rocketed in recent years. Instagram feeds are riddled with toned, lean men and women promoting the latest food, workout or supplement…
Gayed’s gynaecological attacks cannot go unpunished
Australian news has been plagued in recent weeks by an investigation surrounding the male gynaecologist Dr Emil Shawky Gayed who appears to have butchered many of his female patients’ reproductive…
It’s time to talk ‘vaginas’. Period.
For women, so many sexual encounters are ruined by that not-so-little voice from down below, asking, begging, pleading: will it work? will it hurt? And if it doesn’t work, and…
Vaginal mesh: another way the patriarchy damages women
On 19 April, MPs in the House of Commons spent two hours debating whether or not to ban vaginal mesh surgery. Vaginal mesh surgeries, for those of you not avidly…
Hyper-sensitivity to fat shaming is potentially fatal
Earlier this year, Cancer Research UK – one of Britain’s largest and most reputable Cancer research and awareness charities – found themselves in hot water with the ‘political correctness police’….
Opt-out organ donations
You know a policy is a corker if you agree with Jeremy Hunt on it. After all, the man has continuously ran the NHS into the ground since he was…