Review: They Call Us - A Feminist Literary Magazine
Every seasonal edition of They Call Us features a new adjective. Fall, “They Call Us Witches.” Winter, “They Call Us Bossy.” Year-round, They Call Us empowers.
This literary magazine is spellbinding—particularly the Fall edition. Magic happens when womxn gather, bewitching all with creative storytelling mediums of media, art, and literature.
The spooky edition features images of witches’ silhouettes glimmering in violet hues, brooms, and eerie candles casting light on the backdrop of darkness. Even the table of contents gleams under the bright constellations of the stars above.
The feminist zine spins stories with powerful magic glowing from the computer screen in feminist poetry, prose, and artwork. A magazine for the modern witch, the enchanting theme transfigures through the pages. Each virtual click of a page drips in rich history dating back to King William and Queen Mary in 1689, and as recent as The Women’s International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell 1970 protest at the New York Stock Exchange. Sisterhood kept womxn together in the past, and storytelling strengthens their bond today, but only when they believe in their own power.
“We are the granddaughters of the witches you were not able to burn.” Feminism binds this modern sisterhood, surviving the witch hunts that failed to silence womxn acting outside of constrictive views of what womxn should be. Words and fluttering pictures are the common wand used to cast spells onto readers.
We can’t wait to see what They Call Us Bossy will conjure next and how the zine will continue empowering diverse womxn to use their words, art, and voices as powerful wands to speak for those condemned into silence.
Caroline Kurdej is a Graduate Student at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Last spring, Kurdej worked as an intern for Dzanc Books, and currently provides writing services to iMiller Public Relations. You can find her work online at carolinekurdej.journoportfolio.com.