• In the Blog

    Too Depressed to go to Class Today: Surviving Academia With Depression

    May 3rd, 2017     by Farrah Kabeer     Comments

    Being depressed can feel like being stuck in a deep hole where no one can hear your screams. For me, it was not showering for 3 weeks, forgetting to brush my teeth, staying in bed for days, lying in filth, not cleaning my room. Clothes all over the floor, eating too much, eating too little, sleeping too much, not sleeping at all. Being depressed was constantly dealing with the thought that I would be better off dead. It was several hospitalizations. It was feeling worthless. It was missing school for weeks. It was feeling as if I did not have any friends or that nobody loved me. It was feeling as if I did not matter to anyone. Being depressed was living in my own hell on earth. READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Letters Loved: Letters to myself

    April 6th, 2017     by deb singh     Comments

    Hello dear Shameless readers! I was so inspired by Letters Lived: Radical Reflections, Revolutionary Paths edited by our very own Shameless editor, Sheila Sampath, that I came back after taking a blogging break and wrote my own letter. Letters Lived is an inspiring short read from writers and activists writing to their younger selves, as adults. Ever want to reassure, guide or share your 20/20 hindsight with yourself after the fact? Letters Lived offers that very promise. … READ MORE

  • Announcements

    Politics Issue Out Now!

    April 4th, 2017     by Sheila Sampath     Comments

    Our politics issue is on the stands now! Check out our editor’s letter and be sure to pick up the issue in person or online! READ MORE

  • Blog Series

    Black Canadian Childhood

    March 30th, 2017     by Kelita Braithwaite     Comments

    ‘Growing Up Black in Canada’ is a writers’ series brought to you by Black Futures Now Toronto in partnership with Shameless Magazine. The series is meant to bring forward local and personal Black histories that do not fit into mainstream narratives about what it means to be a young person in Canada. Throughout the series we will highlight the non-fiction work of five young writers from various backgrounds. Through their stories, we will explore what … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    My Name, My Identity

    March 14th, 2017     by Denise Reich     Comments

    I recently learned about the My Name, My Identity initiative. This campaign, created by the Santa Clara County Office of Education in California, USA, invites teachers and school districts to commit to saying students’ names correctly and fostering diversity in the classroom. The project also includes a social media hashtag, #mynamemyid, and encourages youth to share the stories and significance of their names. READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Accessible Organizing Means…

    March 8th, 2017     by Denise Reich     Comments

    Did you participate in the Women’s March on January 21st? Many of us did – millions, in fact, in countries across the globe. But did all of us make it to the march, or feel included there? Before the march, in an article for TheEstablishment.com, Emily Ladau pointed out that disability was mentioned exactly twice in the Women’s March’s platform. One of those mentions referred to caring for and chronic illnesses as a “burden.” Yep. READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    A Short History of North American Witchcraft

    March 6th, 2017     by Amelia Henry     Comments

    Witchcraft is a concept that Western culture and society at large has been obsessed with for as long as it has existed. Its idea represents the ultimate “other” from a dominating patriarchal, Christian society: a collective of women free from shame and imbued with power, grace, and sexuality. In this dominating society, the idea of a free community of Pagans proved unacceptable, the most notable example being Salem’s oppression of real or imagined witches. However, … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    12th Annual Strawberry Ceremony Held At Toronto Police Headquarters

    February 21st, 2017     by Christine Miskonoodinkwe-Smith     Comments

    The crisis of the missing and murdered First Nations women of Canada is both a national tragedy and a national shame. The first women’s memorial march was held in 1991 in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside in response to the murder of a Coast Salish woman on Powell Street. Though her name is not spoken out of respect for her family, an annual march on Valentine’s Day to express compassion, community and caring for all women in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside commenced. Since then, memorial marches across Canada have been held annually. READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Secret Lives of Girls and Cats

    December 31st, 2016     by Lauren Kirshner     Comments

    A review of Panther by Brecht Evens (Drawn and Quarterly, 2016, $32.95) My cat Jasmine was a flouncy calico with celery-green eyes and a taste for yogurt and grass snakes. Her haughty manner and the roughly 40% of her that was ginger reminded me of the old movie star Rita Hayworth. When I was lucky, she’d anoint me with her presence on my bed. She was my buddy and secret-keeper for 14 years. When she died … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Call for submissions: Bawajigan Stories of Power

    December 26th, 2016     by Christine Miskonoodinkwe-Smith     Comments

    In the anthology Bawajigan (Anishinaabemowin for Dream) editors are gathering fictional stories about what it means to dream and be Indigenous, how dreams weave their way through our realities, how they impact history, lived experience, and the stories we tell each other and the world. READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Solidarity with UBC students and survivors of sexual abuse and violence

    November 28th, 2016     by Julia Horel     Comments

    The Canadian literature community has been rocked by an open letter, signed by many prominent writers, claiming the University of British Columbia has failed to give “due process” to a writing professor dismissed for breach of trust in relation to allegations of abuse by students. Critics of the letter say it is biased and erases the experience of the students. READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    On Femme Competition

    November 10th, 2016     by Arena Thomson     Comments

    Identifying as femme has never made navigating my community easy, in spite of this being the only label that has ever felt entirely right. Being a femme has often meant attending queer events only to be read as a tagalong straight friend, having to prove and reassert my queerness, and continually fighting for visibility. I cannot speak about femme invisibility without addressing the intersections between femmephobia and other oppressions like racism, ableism, transphobia, and fatphobia. As … READ MORE

  • Announcements

    Independence Survival Guide out now!

    November 4th, 2016     by Sheila Sampath     Comments

    Our Independence Survival Guide is on the stands now! Check out our editor’s letter co-written by our Youth Advisory Board and Editorial Director! READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Sister Writes’ Creative Writing Bootcamp for Transwomen

    October 19th, 2016     by Sister Writes     Comments

    An inclusive and enriching program, Sister Writes’ Creative Writing Bootcamp for Transwomen is a two-day intensive writing experience. Practice writing in a variety of genres, receive mentorship from professional authors, write and share stories in a supportive group environment, co-create a literary magazine, and collaborate with professional artists. Join Sister Writes on Saturday October 22 and Saturday 29th, 3:30 – 7:30 pm, at The 519. Register by writing to donna@sisterwrites.com. About Sister Writes: Since 2010, Sister Writes … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Stopping Textbook Tyranny

    September 26th, 2016     by Denise Reich     Comments

    Once upon a time, there was a tradition at the beginning of every college/university term: students would descend on their campus bookstores, syllabi in hand, and walk out with bags full of heavy, expensive textbooks. Maybe they got lucky and found used copies of the books they needed or ran into another student selling their books from last term, which eased the financial burden slightly. Still, they were usually out hundreds of dollars. At the end of the semester, the student would sell their books back to the bookstore, or to others at their school, but they’d only recover a fraction of what they spent. READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Gloria Swain and her Mad Room

    September 21st, 2016     by Anne Rucchetto     Comments

    A space for immersion, reflection, and healing. READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Take Back The Night 2016

    September 15th, 2016     by deb singh     Comments

    I feel angry. I feel upset. I feel anxious (actually, I haven’t said that last one to Adli yet!) These are statements I make to Adli when I want to express my emotions. I want him - currently as a cisgender boy - to learn to express his feelings, however artificial it may seem at first. I also have been trying to talk about oppression. How do I educate and support the learning of my kid … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Caribbean Tales Film Festival: Queer programming

    September 7th, 2016     by Lauren Pragg     Comments

    The Caribbean Tales Film Festival (CTFF) is presenting its 11th collection of films this year in Toronto from September 7-17th at the Royal Cinema (608 College Street). The films featured focus on those that represent Caribbean content and creativity from the region and the diaspora. This year, there are 5 films that take on queer realities, identities and experiences. They are: My Silky Blue Frog Shortz by Lezlie Lee Kam (Trinidad/Canada); Cold by Salvador Sol Valdez … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Five Shameless Things: Five things you might not know about freelance work

    August 25th, 2016     by Shannon D’Arcy     Comments

    BY: Shannon D’Arcy in conversation with the Urban Worker Project 1. 9-5 jobs are disappearing It might be surprising to know that between 40 and 60% of new jobs in Canada are freelance or contract positions. While traditionally the work week was 9-5, Monday-Friday, in the new economy, shift work, freelance and contract positions will be the new normal. Whereas this means that there isn’t the same safety net for all jobs, it also means that there … READ MORE

  • In the Blog

    Fanfic Talks Back: A Review of Where Did You Sleep Last Night by Lynn Crosbie

    August 23rd, 2016     by Marta Balcewicz     Comments

    Anyone who’s taken a creative writing class will be familiar with short story prompts. The instructor will say something seemingly random—“Stick three strangers who absolutely hate one another in an enclosed space. Have them be stuck there for an hour”—ready, set, go! Pens start flying. READ MORE

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