Introducing Split Screen guest writers!
My summer guest series: introducing Frances, Sasha, and Isla.
When I started Split Screen a year and a half ago, I had no idea how much this concept – that engaged citizens must be informed and vigilant about the ways images shape our perception of the world – would resonate. Yes, it resonated with camera people and political junkies (and those of us who are…both) as I suspected. I’m very moved to announce that this summer we’re starting with guest writers, all of whom are brilliant young women with a fresh perspective on how images of women shape our understanding of our dignity and authority.
Without further ado…
***
FRANCES: Hi! My name is Frances Brogan and I’m a rising senior at Princeton University studying history with minors in journalism and Latin American studies. I’m originally from Lancaster, Pennsylvania (the refugee capital of the world!). At Princeton, I serve as a Managing Editor for the Daily Princetonian, and this summer I’m interning at Now Voyager, an emerging magazine of global longform writing. In my free time I like writing bad poetry, sending my friends angry woman Spotify playlists, experimenting in the kitchen, and long hikes. I’m a lifelong feminist and became even more passionate about women’s issues after taking a gender history class during my first year at Princeton, but I’m also fascinated by Latin American and Middle Eastern politics, global struggles for human rights, literary criticism, and pop culture. I’m so excited to write for this community and honored to be a small part of Azza’s brilliant and revolutionary project! My hope is to reflect on how the trivial isn’t always so trivial and the geopolitically momentous isn’t always remote, and to write about visual sexism with compassion, humor, and curiosity.
SASHA: Hello! My name is Sasha Cavell, and I’m a rising sophomore at Harvard concentrating in Philosophy with a secondary in Economics. This year I joined the Harvard Crimson’s Editorial Board, and I’m delighted to say that I’ve found a new passion in writing opinion pieces. Outside of academics, I’m drawn to film, media, and culture — how art shapes the world and how the world shapes art. The most engrossing conversations I have often start from the simple enjoyment of popular media and blossom into a full dissection of its reception, production, and politics. I am, as they say, someone for whom it is always “that deep.” This summer, I’ll be researching visual sexism and writing pieces at the intersection of feminism and culture — which is to say, doing what I’d be doing anyway, but with more rigor and an infinitely better excuse. I’m incredibly excited to have found such a rewarding outlet for my passion, and can’t wait to deepen and complicate my current understandings of sexism and feminism as they exist in media and culture today. As it turns out, there’s no shortage of things worth going “that deep” on, and I’m so glad to have found a place to do so!
ISLA: Hi! My name is Isla Robbins, and I’m a rising senior at Riverdale Country School in New York City. I grew up surrounded by fiercely strong women, and each day in my household is a testament to just how capable women are. My single mother, for example, somehow balances raising my sister and me with a thriving career in the beauty industry — all while pushing back against the misguided opinions of the men who still dominate the field and ensuring women’s voices are heard. Needless to say, I’m a huge feminist. Last year, my sister and I co-founded our school’s female affinity group after noticing that boys already had a space of their own, yet girls had nowhere comparable. This past spring, the group hosted an event to break stigma around menstruation and raise awareness about the menstrual cycle. We put period cramp simulators on teenage boys who (shockingly) lined up eagerly to volunteer (stay tuned, because content about that event is coming soon!). Visual media shapes so much of how we perceive power and think about the world around us, and I cannot wait to unpack the layers of sexism — both subtle and blatant — within it, so we can work to change the narrative!
***
I’m so lucky to work with the next generation of feminist thinkers. I cannot wait to share their pieces with you soon. And, as always, send us your tips and ideas!
Azza