In the last few years, crowdfunding has become an increasingly popular means of raising money for both personal and creative ventures. Many sites have become commonplace, such as Kickstarter, GoFundMe, Indiegogo and RocketHub, and provide opportunities for virtually anyone to contribute money to a variety of causes. The two most popular websites are Kickstarter and GoFundMe, which can be distinguished by the different purposes they serve. The former provides opportunities mainly for creative purposes and has been used by celebrities such as Zach Braff, Whoopi Goldberg and even Neil Young...

As someone who is frequently in the midst of many female friends, it is not uncommon to hear the word “bitch” or “slut” thrown around in a casual, joking manner. For some who utilize these phrases, a social movement to reclaim derogatory terms may not be at the forefront of their mind. But the casual, habitual use of these words may be evidence of just that. There is indeed a well established effort in which women deliberately utilize the previously mentioned words, as well as many more—some which are traditionally...

Just by simply walking around the Puget Sound campus, it is easy to see that electronic cigarette use is on the rise. Known as e-cigs, these cigarette alternatives are usually considered fairly inoffensive due to the light vapor that they produce and an odor much less noticeable than combustible cigarettes. Some restaurants and bars even allow them in places that are considered “non-smoking” areas. Studies from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that younger generations are becoming more and more attracted to e-cigs. Their results found that...

The pay gap may not be as wide as it was 50 years ago, but it is still a major conversation point today. This infamous issue has been exposed, debated and even determined to be an outright myth by some. However, some states, such as Oregon, are addressing the issue head-on and are proposing bills intended to help decrease the discrepancy. According to the Oregon State Legislature website, two House bills were introduced in order to decrease the gender earnings gap. If approved, House Bills 2006 and 2007 would make...

“Feminism” is one of the most loaded words in today’s society. Too often it is associated with images of bra-burning and man-hating, which tarnish and can occasionally silence the movement’s call to action. This, I contest, is a result of distortions and exaggerations spread by both unflattering coverage in the media and through people or groups with negative, and perhaps uninformed, views. Recently, an example of this phenomenon is the blog Women Against Feminism, which is essentially a photo collection of women holding handmade signs that ridicule the entire movement...

Despite strides made towards equality of the sexes, toy stores are still dividing their merchandise into boys’ and girls’ sections. Not surprisingly, the aisles designed for young girls are shockingly pink, focused on beauty, fashion and family role-play, while boys’ aisles contain toys that are more centered around destruction, action and building. Commercials for stores such as Toys ‘R’ Us and Walmart depict each gender in different scenes playing separately with their relatively stereotypical toys, such as guns or baby dolls. In fact, it seems that gender-directed advertising and manufacturing...

Each Thanksgiving, thousands of bargain hunters across America line up outside retailers in preparation for the biggest consumer holiday all year: Black Friday. Stores boasting extended hours and slashed prices have fostered such chaos surrounding the sales in the past so much that it has divided the population on the day’s place in our society. Some shoppers see Black Friday as a great opportunity to buy gadgets and designer brands for a fraction of normal prices. However, the consumer may be being deceived or made to have unrealistic expectations. Many...

For almost all of women across the world, each day spent simply walking around can be a battle. Being constantly stared at, hollered to or even followed by men on the street is a real and frightening form of harassment, known today as “catcalling.” Such a harmless-sounding name may not be an appropriate way of describing how many people feel about this type of objectification and pestering. But in many cases it is not harmless—catcalling means anything from leering and hollering to the physical pursuit of reciprocated attention from people...

In the past few years, one advertising technique has become increasingly popular, standing out from the rest: commercials geared toward women and girls. “Femvertising,” a phase coined in October at N.Y.’s AdWeek 2014 conference, describes a type of mostly video advertising aimed at women that contains positive and forward-thinking messages, rather than the shallow, unrealistic themes that other brands have used for decades. It is now common knowledge that many brands have stooped to photoshopping, use of models and downright pressure to convince women to buy their products. Despite the...

Each year, on the second Monday of October, our nation celebrates Columbus Day, the man often highly regarded for his journeys across the Atlantic ocean. However, America has recently become severely divided on the idea of admiring the explorer and celebrating Columbus Day. The first part of the controversy regards the actual historical facts associated with the holiday, such as the belief that he was the man who discovered America. He wasn’t. Leif Erikson, a Viking born in 1st century Norway, and has been historically named as the first European...