Race is a social construct. But it’s a perceptual construct first. — Race has long been described as a social construct: a framework used in dominance hierarchies to maintain power by those at the top. We also hear people claim to “not see race,” presumably in an attempt to deflate the power from those frameworks. Both stories are wrong. Well, they’re incomplete…

And I don’t recommend doing it in 2020. — Let me start out by saying this: I’ve never had a sweet tooth. I’ve always been able to take three bites of my desert and leave the rest sitting on the table like an extremely classy (maybe French?) person. My husband’s the one who makes toast or rummages through the…

What I learned from a homebuying counselor who specializes in dealing with student loan debt — I wrote recently about how absurd the student debt crisis in this country has gotten. In many cases, trying to pay off student loans prevents borrowers from making moves that secure their financial future, such as putting money into an IRA or buying a house. The Obama-era Income-Driven Repayment Plans…

The numbers aren’t even real anymore! — Thinking about my student loans used to induce crippling bouts of up-all-night, hyper-respirating panic and questioning of my life choices. I had done what a lot of my generation did: borrowed a a reasonable amount of money for college, graduated in a huge recession, and took out a less reasonable…

And I’m really struggling with it — Californians: Let me start off my saying, I get it. I don’t blame you for migrating in droves to my hometown of Missoula, MT. Your state burned all summer. The sea level of your coastline is rising at an alarming rate. Death Valley clocked the highest recorded temperature on earth…

It’s an example of how narcissists weaponize language — Since parting ways with my narcissist ex-husband, I’ve been struggling to put into words the peculiarities of how he used language. Trying to have conversations — okay, fights — with him was excruciatingly frustrating for a number of reasons. First, I never felt like I was being heard. …

Wishing him well and wishing him harm are both “what they want us to do.” — Twitter is ablaze. Facebook is on fire. California is probably still burning too, but, different story. Social media is self-immolating over whether it is “right” to wish the president a speedy recovery from the Coronavirus. Wishing your oppressors well is a slight variation on Stockholm Syndrome, isn’t it? …

Do women stay away from tech because it doesn’t enable them to solve real-world problems? — This article was inspired by a conversation with fellow Medium user @hollyjahangiri. Big thanks to her insightful comments on this topic. The tech industry and the problem of “Tech Waste” Almost by definition, technology is designed to improve the human condition. And, for the most part, it does — or at least tries to. We can debate how healthy…

Hillary Clinton’s run for president may have sped up the time to gender equality in politics by 12 years. What could a Harris presidential bid do? — There’s no way around it: The sexist rhetoric currently being leveled against Kamala Harris is dizzying and infuriating to many. Some women are expressing fears that the progress we’ve made in politics has regressed when faced with the blatant attacks on Harris’ gender. …