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POP CULTURE RAG VOL. 15

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POP CULTURE RAG VOL. 15 Photo

by Team Thinx | 08/02/2016

CONSTANCE WU IS DISAPPOINTED WITH THE GREAT WALL CASTING 

Constance Wu has been admirably vocal when it comes to discussing Hollywood's issues with diversity. This week the actress took to Twitter to criticize the casting choice in a new film called The Great Wall, an adaptation of a short story by Franz Kafka. The Great Wall is about a soldier saves the country of China from Dragons. And will be played by Matt Damon. Yeah, the main character and savior of the Chinese people is being played by a white man. Again. Wu was disappointed in the white-man-saves-asian-society narrative, and expressed this in detail.

“We have to stop perpetuating the racist myth that only a white man can save the world,” she said in her Twitter statement. “Our heros don’t look like matt Damon. They look like Malala. Ghandi. Mandela.”

Wu continued, criticizing the industry's excuse that “money” is always the reason why movies always require white leads.

“We don’t need salvation,” she continued. “We like our color and our culture and our own strengths and our own stories (if we don’t, we really should). We don’t need you to save us from anything.”

Wu encouraged filmmakers to take a “risk” and see how well the movie actually does. Asian actors only make up 1% of Hollywood's leading roles--so why are we just assuming films with asian leading stars will not make money?? As we witnessed during the new Ghostbusters movie--representation matters. Why would we want to tell asian youth, filled with talent, that they don’t have what it takes to star in a film?

Wu’s criticism comes after her previous concern for the upcoming film Ghost in The Shell, based off of the popular asian series of the same name. The main character was originally an asian woman, but is being played by Scarlett Johansson. Wu’s public criticisms are completely valid and understandable--asian stories deserve to be told by asian voices. She followed up her Twitter statement by saying “It’s not about blame, it’s about awareness.” We couldn’t have said it better ourselves.

JESSICA ALBA LEADS ANTI GUN VIOLENCE TRIBUTE AT TEENS CHOICE AWARDS

Jessica Alba may not be a teen, but she knew exactly what to say to her young audience at the Teens Choice Awards this week.  

Alba and musician Ne-Yo paid tribute to the families of victims of gun violence by bringing their family members onstage to participate in a video tribute.

“They are the brothers, sisters, daughters, and family members of recent gun violence” Alba said.  The family members represented the tragic violence in Baton Rouge, Orlando, Dallas, Aurora, Minneapolis, San Bernardino and Newtown. Among the group was 15 year old Cameron Sterling, the son of Alton Sterling, who was killed by a police officer in July.

“Tonight we stand together with these teens, united in our call for peace and an end to this violence,” Alba said on stage. “Now, more than ever, we need to stop, feel and ask: What’s going on?”

Ne-Yo preformed a heart-wrenching cover of Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On? (and to remind y'all, Gaye was tragically killed through gun violence as well.)

We do not only commend Alba and Ne-Yo for addressing a serious problem that needs attention, but for the Teens Choice Awards to understand that it's important for their young audience to process the amount of gun violence and racialization that happens in the United States. Well done, TCA. 

AMBER ROSE & LUCY HALE ARE WEARING ANTI-ENGAGEMENT RINGS

Amber Rose and Lucy Hale are honoring their most long-lasting relationship...themselves! (Cue our favorite video of all time.) And why shouldn’t they? Think about it-- you spend every single moment with yourself. Sometimes you get frustrated or angry at yourself, so doesn’t it  help to be reminded of how wonderful you are? We think so, too.

Rose and Hale bought themselves Self-Love pinky rings from Fred + Far, a jewelry store with the fitting motto of “Commit to Yourself.”  Founded by Melody Godfred and Samira Far, these pair  want woman to (pinky) promise themselves to practice self love. On her Instagram, Rose praised the brand and wrote “Thank you Fred + Far for your love and support.”

@amberrose via Instagram

The self-love rings has been given the label of "anti-engagement ring." As the website says, "Engagement= Commitment to another. Our Pinky Ring= Commit to self." The ring itself is in an inverse triangle design. Far told Racked magazine that the shape is meant to be a fempowered symbol of “the power of the divine form.”

Fred + Far want to remind everyone that if you wear a ring of commitment for somebody else, why not wear one for yourself? And we agree. Whether it’s a pinky ring or just a little piece that makes you feel like you (let’s not forget the iconic Carrie necklace) we love the idea of wearing a little something that reminds you to, as the great poet JBiebs once said, love yourself.

KENDALL JENNER SUPPORTS #FREETHENIPPLE

Kendall Jenner is alllll about freeing the nipple, and as you may have guessed from last week, so is Team THINX. I guess you could say we were a little stoked when Jenner declared her love for her nipples to the world.

Jenner took to her app for an appropriately titled piece called Free The Nipple!, where she explained her love for all things nip. “I really don’t see what the big deal is with going braless! I think it’s cool and I really just don’t care!” Jenner wrote. “I’m not embarrassed by my body.” She continued, “It’s sexy, it’s comfortable, and I’m cool with my breasts. That’s it!”

That’s it, indeed! And why shouldn’t she be? If not wearing a bra is most comfortable and makes her feel the most confident, then Jenner should feel no societal pressure to hide them.

Jenner continued to write about her pierced nipples, and gave her readers some tips on how they can dress up their own nipples. Jenner has always been open and public about her piercings, and has not allowed any negative public response to shame her (we’re all just tryna break the taboo, people!) Jenners nonchalant and relaxed attitude has been a simple but wonderful reminder of “what’s the big deal?” As Cat Stevens once said “If you want your nipples to be free, let them be free.” Or something like that.

RACHEL ANTONOFF UNVEILS BETTY AND VERONICA CLOTHING LINE

Rachel Antonoff, design queen/our dream best friend, has just announced her new partnership with Archie Comics to create a Betty & Veronica clothing line. We haven’t been this excited since we purchased the original comic (along with a Ring Pop) for a day at the beach when we were 12!

Antonoff, who is known for her colorful patterns, feminist messages (have you seen her iconic uterus sweater??), and comedic outspokenness, is thrilled to honor two of her feisty childhood heros. Conceptually, the line (which should consist of 80 pieces by Spring) is meant to invoke what Betty and Veronica themselves might wear in 2016. Because Betty and Veronica had such different looks, we look forward to seeing how both of their styles are represented.

“I think Betty and Veronica were fashion icons in their own right. “ Antonoff told Racked. “The illustrators were true designers. If you look back through the archives, the details of clothing and how it's specific to the decade they're in, it's actually astounding.”

Perhaps the very best part of the collaboration is that Antonoff plans on focusing on the authentic friendship between Betty and Veronica, and less about their romantic rivalry over Archie (who, like, doesn’t even hold a candle to either of them, sry not sry.) “One of the reasons I was really excited to do this was because when people think Betty and Veronica, they think Archie.” Antonoff said. “One of their highlighted storylines was that they were two girls fighting over a boy. We were very excited to switch the focus to their friendship. There are actually so many examples when you go through the archives of how they were really supportive of one another, and there's just a lot more than them to Archie and we're excited to show that Betty and Veronica.”

We’re looking forward to seeing Betty and Veronica's friendship honored through fashion. This line has also sparked a question we haven't asked ourselves in years: Are we a Betty or a Veronica???

Which one are you? Let us know below!

by Team Thinx

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