Illustration by Isha Khanzode.

Newsletter: Easy Action

Easy Action is a newsletter that offers weekly ideas for organizing, boycotting, volunteering, donating, petitioning, and being an engaged citizen. It’s awesome, especially if November’s election results left you feeling galvanized but occasionally flattened. On Tuesdays, founder Sarah Blank sends a list of ways “to channel your heartache into action.” No matter how much time or energy you can give, Sarah has an achievable mission for you. She’s recommended strategies to combat fake news and protect online privacy, organizations that need money, sites for IRL volunteering, and scripts for calling your representatives about urgent legislative issues. I have especially appreciated her suggestions for holding yourself accountable to organizing, such as saving your reps’ numbers in your phone. I also loved this tip for low-key political trolling: “Block and report @realDonaldTrump as spam. Might not do much but sure feels good.” It felt great! Subscribe to Easy Action here. —Lena Singer

Documentary:The Trans List (HBO, 2016)

The HBO documentary The Trans List is a series of interviews with 11 transgender Americans including Caitlyn Jenner, anti-discrimination lawyer Kylar W. Broadus, and former supermodel Caroline Cossey. Each interviewee directly faces the camera as they detail their struggles to have the world see and respect them as they see and respect themselves. The film is a celebration of how far we have come, but also what we stand to lose with President-elect Trump’s administration. This is a documentary none of us can afford to miss. —Jasmine Sanders

TV Show: Chewing Gum (E4, 2015–, Netflix)

Chewing Gum is a refreshing comedy created by Michaela Coel. The show follows Tracey (played by Coel), a 24-year-old virgin living in a London housing estate who desperately wants to have sex. Her plans are regularly obstructed by her uber-religious mother, sister, and closeted boyfriend. In the show’s first season, we see Tracey break free of the limitations placed on her, but not without tons of hijinks ensuing in the meantime. Coel based the show off her semi-autobiographical play, Chewing Gum Dreams. Sex-positive narratives that explicitly center on black women’s experiences are still rarely found on television, and I’m excited to see what the second season of this series has in store. —Diamond Sharp ♦