LitBit Speaks

Hi, my name is Shane Dawson, and I'm here to tell you that it gets worse. It really does. The problems you have as a kid will seem ridiculous when you get older because bigger and worse problems will come along. But you will learn to deal with them easier as you grow up, or like me, you'll just stop giving a shit. So yes, it gets worse, but you know what gets better? Your tolerance for bullshit. I can't say I hate the It Gets Better  project, but I definitely find it to be more problematic than helpful. Yes, it's true, things can change, but the project often leads to a sense of expectation that things will change on their own, while also giving young people the idea that being young is inevitably horrible and they should simply expect to be bombarded by homophobia, transphobia, physical violence, and feelings of inferiority. Now, this book isn't specifically a response to It Gets Better , but it certainly speaks to the need for a change in how we think about be...

Let’s get the feminist party started! Here We Are is a scrapbook-style teen guide to understanding what it really means to be a feminist. It’s packed with essays, lists, poems, comics, and illustrations from a diverse range of voices, including TV, film, and pop-culture celebrities and public figures such as ballet dancer Michaela DePrince and her sister Mia, politician Wendy Davis, as well as popular YA authors like Nova Ren Suma, Malinda Lo, Brandy Colbert, Courtney Summers, and many more. Altogether, the book features more than forty-four pieces, with an eight-page insert of full-color illustrations. Here We Are is a response to lively discussions about the true meaning of feminism on social media and across popular culture and is an invitation to one of the most important, life-changing, and exciting parties around. As someone who recently finished a degree in women's and gender studies, I have come to see the varied and nearly infinite interpretations of feminism, both ...