Last semester, Dana Barnes (CAS ’16) and Madeline Aruffo (CAS ’15) were determined to bring back an way for feminists to channel their passions and start conversations about feminist issues in the Boston community. By the beginning of Fall 2013, they had officially revived Hoochie: Feminist Thought From Boston University.
The blog has been through many revivals and incarnations. Hoochie was originally created in 2007 to showcase ‘zines that focused on self-expression and experiential activism. Unfortunately, after the ‘zine-making students graduated, the blog died out. The first revival of the blog occurred in 2010, but again died out. Barnes and Aruffo, however, wanted to generate the second revival of Hoochie. The blog would highlight BU feminist events, current news stories pertaining to feminist issues, and feature student answers to “Does feminism matter?” So far, they have had much success. Recently, the blogs most popular posts were “What does my girlfriend mean when…” and “TYSK: Misandry (and why it’s not a thing)”.
The Hoochie revival has also proven to reach audiences who may not identify as feminists. Barnes, the co-editor of the blog, says that posting on Hoochie is a “way to expose people who may not familiar with feminism” and promote different kinds of feminism. Aruffo, her other co-editor, adds, “you’re not going to get anything solved if you just focus on women.” To acknowledge the overlapping gender elements of feminism, the Hoochie editors share that some goals for the future are to “increase the audience to include all genders,” increase the amount of contributing writers, and assure that the blog will sustain after the current staff graduates.
Hoochie is accessible to anybody and everybody because it is an online platform. With the omnipresence of social media, readers have the power to share posts with their friends, families, and other allies-in-training. Whether or not you are a feminist, read the latest Hoochie content and like their Facebook page! You will not be disappointed– maybe just a little bit angry at the patriarchy.
If you’re interested in contributing to Hoochie, email the editors: dbarnes@bu.edu and maddy416@bu.edu