An interview with Jessica Valenti.

• Author: Archer, Michael
• Position: Interview

Since the early days of Feministing, Jessica Valenti's opinions, expressed in colorful, accessible language, have won her legions of fans. They've also attracted criticism, mostly from conservatives, but also from fellow feminists. Disagreement is the norm in the controversial arena where Valenti operates. What's troubling, though, as Valenti discusses in the interview that follows, is the slew of online abuse, including rape and death threats, she receives.

When Valenti, thirty-six, founded Feministing.com, the goal was simple: give younger feminist voices a platform. Ten years later, the site is widely credited with inspiring the massive rise in blogs tackling women's issues and launching feminism into the twenty-first century.

Valenti, who retired from Feministing in 2011, is now a columnist for The Guardian, and The Nation, and has authored four books: Full Frontal Feminism; He's a Stud, She's a Slut; The Purity Myth; and Why Have Kids? She's also co-edited, with Jaclyn Friedman, Yes Means Yes! She's become a frequent media commentator, a go-to guest for all things feminism, appearing on The Colbert Report, CNN, MSNBC, PBS, and Today, among others.

Befitting someone who has been publishing take-no-prisoners pieces nearly every day for the last decade, Valenti speaks at a furious pace. (In our interview, she was only a dozen or so words into her first response before asking if she was going too quickly. "I always speak too fast," she warned.) And while she admits that the frequent abuse and threats have taken a huge toll, they've not changed the endgame. "A huge part of my project that started with Feministing and continues through my books is being an evangelist for feminism: trying to convert the unconverted," she says.

Q: 2014 marked the ten-year anniversary of Feministing. What led you to create it?

Jessica Valenti: I was working at a national women's organization and involved in the movement, but despite all that was being said about how important young feminists were, it was mostly just lip service. There wasn't a lot of true inclusivity in terms of listening to younger voices. The same people were quoted over and over.

I knew there was a ton of young feminist activism happening, but I didn't see it being represented, especially online. There were a few feminist blogs, obviously. But it felt like there was a gap.

So I decided to start a group blog, which is part of why we were so successful right away. It was a side job. We did it on our lunch breaks or at night. But because there was a group of us, we had something up every day. Then, we had several posts up each day, which is difficult to do if you're a lone blogger.

That's how it began.

Q: One thing I remember about the early days of Feministing was all the fuss about the language being used. There was a lack of formality but also you weren't afraid to go blue.

Valenti: It was a conscious decision to be absolutely informal and conversational. We thought that was more appealing. Also, all of us came from academic feminist backgrounds and were sort of sick of the experience.

It was a political decision, too. One of the reasons I left grad school with a master's and didn't pursue a Ph.D. was that my mom, who raised me to be a feminist but didn't go to college, started asking me, "What the fuck are you talking about?" I realized there was a problem there. So, it was also a matter of wanting to create something where people with any level of education and any level of activist engagement could come to the site...