A new feminism is raging in America and the modern woman is embracing it.

Marketing Manager Anna Brones and I were busy doing what we do at EcoSalon when I pinged her:

“Are we becoming in your face feminists?”

Anna shot me back: “What are we supposed to do? Not be feminists?”

It got me thinking, why does feminism have a bad name?

After a while Anna sent another message: “As women, we have to rally together because we have no choice and it’s not because we hate men. I also think it’s bullshit that as soon as we start talking about women and rallying together we quickly get attacked.”

Her comments stayed with me on Tuesday when a female neighbor talked feverishly about a female DPW worker who needed to “stop wearing her cutesie heels and skirt and be a man,” so she could get things done.

Her comments stayed with me on Thursday when a friend said “I don’t want to wear lipstick to the supermarket to call attention to myself.”

I could go on. I bet you could too. Here are five more stories that should clearly show you, in 2011, women are still not out of the woods as equal members of society.

Fact. In the U.S., women still hold only 14.4 percent of executive officer seats and 15.7 percent of board seats in Fortune 500 companies. Why is that? You could blame it on life, women having babies and leaving the work force but you also could blame it on “Good Girl” syndrome. In her story Women Learn How to Fail at Work in Grade School, Andrea Newell, Senior Editor at EcoSalon says “After spending their formative years of learning the ‘nice’ girl code of behavior, women discover that the workplace demands different behavior and has a new set of rules.”

Sometimes you have to scratch your head and wonder what century we’re living in. Could it be possible that in 2011, women are still fighting for the right to choose? In her article Barely Legal, writer Libby Lowe talks about H.R.3, a bill known for finally defining rape as “forcible.” Lowe says the bill is now aimed at punishing women and private insurers who provide coverage for rape victim abortion. “And, as if your taxes aren’t complicated enough, if H.R.3 passes, the IRS will be looking to get in your pants. ‘Under standard audit procedure, a woman would have to provide evidence to corroborate facts about abortions, rapes, and cases of incest.'” Hello Big Brother.

In The Top 15 Feminist All Stars, we get a Hollywood breakdown of strong actresses who have played kick ass women in supporting and lead roles.

Miss Representation is a documentary that explores the misrepresentation of women in culture and media and how that influences the under representation of women in other realms, like politics and business. In an interview with the film’s writer and producer, Jennifer Siebel Newsom says “It’s sort of a chicken and the egg, both the media and our culture don’t value women enough,” she says. That leads to an image that, as Siebel Newsom puts it, is “disparaging and hyper-sexualized and ultimately relays to the culture that that’s what women are.” Miss Representation aired just this past week on the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN).

So, today, at this very moment, if you were to go out in Tucson, Arizona, you couldn’t wear a pair of pants. Nope. Not kidding. A real law in the city. Who knows what happens to women who defy it, but in 7 Ridiculous Laws Against Women, we get a pretty traumatizing look at backwards places still holding true to women being the lesser sex.

And for these injustices we have to laugh and cry at the same time.

The post The Friday 5: The New Feminists Edition appeared first on EcoSalon.

What we read, and what you should read, too.

As purveyors of conscious culture and fashion, our reading list is long (and our reading is never done). But these are the websites we find ourselves drawn to again and again. They’re bookmarked in our daily reads, noted on EcoSalon’s Reading List, and are worth getting to know. From some of the most-beloved print publications online to rambunctious upstarts and indie standouts, you won’t find a more dynamic reading feast anywhere online.

BEST ONLINE READING IN: FASHION

WWD – Women’s Wear Daily

Tagline: “The Fashion Bible” (and it is).

Publishing since 1910 (print).

Refinery29

Fashion news from everywhere.

Ecco Eco

News on eco textiles and art farming projects from fiber artist and writer Abigail Doan.

Publishing since 2006.

Social Alterations

A platform for design educators to benchmark themselves against other educators not only within their own field, but across various design disciplines.

Ethical Fashion Forum

The EFF delivers support and ethical news for fashion businesses and conscious readers alike and serves as a resource for connecting to sustainable sources.

Publishing since 2004.

Coco Eco Magazine

Coco EcoMagazine is a digital multi-media lifestyle brand celebrating sustainable fashion, beauty, celebrity, and culture.

Publishing since 2008.

Ecouterre

Tagline: “Green Fashion Is More Than A Passing Trend.”

Publishing since 2009.

Vogue.com’s Green Style Blog

It’s Vogue, what more is there to say?

Publishing since 1892.

EcoTextile News

News, comment and analysis on sustainable textiles and clothing.

Style.com

Vogue’s original venture into the land of HTML.

Publishing since 2000.

Josh Spear

The four corners of the world of design, and everything in between.

Publishing since 2004.

Organic Exchange

“Creating Material Change”: a non-profit committed to promoting sustainable textiles.

Publishing since 2003.

The Square Project

The blog of Tara St James, owner and designer for the clothing label Study.

Publishing since 2009.

Goodlifer

Inspiring news and articles on sustainable fashion, travel and food trends, shopping and living the good life.

BEST ONLINE READING IN: FOOD

Chow

News, articles, recipe-hacking and the ChowHound online community.

Publishing since 2006.

Chez Pim

Professional cook, professional eater and internet cult figure Pim Techamuanvivit’s food site.

Publishing since 2001.

Foodzie
“Taste Something Different” – an online marketplace connecting small-scale food producers & growers.

Publishing since 2008.

Delicious Days

“I Eat Merely To Put Food Out Of My Mind” – home of a food-lover based in Europe (and one of TIME’s “50 Coolest Websites”).

Publishing since 2005.

Foodspotting

“A visual guide to good food and where you find it” via user-recommended dishes.

Publishing since 2009.

Tastespotting

A user-built grab-bag of gorgeous images leading to recipes, articles, tips…anything goes. The ultimate in food porn.

Publishing since 2007.

Summer Tomato

Scientist and foodie Darya Pino shares nutrition tips, healthy recipes and farmers’ market finds.

Publishing since 2009.

Serious Eats

Sharing and celebrating food enthusiasm! (With some serious chef talent on the roster.)

Publishing since 2006.

Food News Journal

Articles, essays, blog posts – the best in food current events.

Publishing since 2009.

Civil Eats

Driven by the politics of food – and the need for a serious dialogue about the American food system.

Publishing since 2008.

Organic Authority

Everything organic! (It’s right there in the name).

Publishing since 2004.

BEST ONLINE READING IN: SEX

Jezebel

Tagline: “Celebrity, sex, fashion for women.”

Publishing since 2007.

Bitch Magazine

Providing and encouraging an engaged, throughful response to mainstream media and popular culture.

Publishing since 1996.

Ms. Magazine

The legendary feminist magazine in its online form.

Publishing since 1971.

Ad Age

Advertising agency and marketing industry news.

Publishing since 1992.

Feministe

“One of the oldest feminist blogs online designed by and run by women from the ground up.”

Publishing since 2003.

Feministing

Tagline: “Bringing you brainy, bad-ass feminist news.”

Publishing since 2004.

The Hairpin

Founded by Edith Zimmerman and Cassie Murdoch, Hairpin features writing by women for women.

Publishing since 2010.

Girl With Pen

Tagline: “Bridging feminist research and popualr reality.”

BEST ONLINE READING IN: SHELTER

Apartment Therapy

Aiming to make homes more beautiful, organised and healthy.

Publishing since 2007.

Dwell

“At home in the modern world” – promoting pragmatic, beautiful modern design.

Publishing since 2000.

Desire to Inspire

A showcase for the beautiful side of interior design.

Publishing since 2006.

Remodelista

Tagline: “Sourcebook for the considered home.”

Publishing since 2007.

Wallpaper

Tagline: “Designinteriorsfashionartlifestyle.” (Which rather says it all).

Publishing since 1996.

Not Cot

A growing network of design sites including the famous NotCot.com.

Publishing since 2006.

Better Living Through Design

Tagline: “Your guide to home, style, travel.”

Publishing since 2005.

Design Milk

A web magazine dedicated to design (and a favorite of Google’s engineers).

Publishing since 2006.

Rum Magazine (in Danish)

Interior design with a Scandinavian twist.

Publishing since 2006.

BEST ONLINE READING IN: NEWS & CULTURE

The New York Times

Still the best.

Publishing since 1851 (print).

The New Yorker

Commentary, reportage, criticism, essays, and fiction with a twist of wry.

Publishing since 1925 (print).

The Atlantic

The literary and culture commentary magazine.

Publishing since 1857 (print).

The Daily Beast

Tina Brown’s Beast recently merged with Newsweek. “A fresh take on the news from around the world with sharp opinion.”

Publishing since 2008.

The Economist

The week in international politics, business, science and culture.

Publishing since 1843 (print).

Treehugger

The most well-known green website.

Publishing since 2003.

Wired

Covering the impact of new and speculative technology on world culture.

Publishing since 1993 (print).

TechCrunch

Technology news and analysis, and everything regarding online startups.

Publishing since 2005.

Hacker News

From Ycombinator, aggregating the best news.

Publishing since 2005.

Ecorazzi

Tagline: “The latest in green gossip.”

Publishing since 2006.

Vanity Fair

Pop culture, fashion and politics.

Publishing since 1913 (print).

More Intelligent Life

The must-read quarterly lifestyle and culture magazine from The Economist.

Publishing since 2007.

GOOD

A magazine reporting on the people who are “moving the world forward.”

Publishing since 2006.

PSFK

Providing inspiration for creative professionals.

Publishing since 2004.

Laughing Squid

Featuring the best in unique art, culture and technology.

Publishing since 1995.

Gawker

Daily gossip/news on celebrities and the media industry.

Publishing since 2003.

Fast Company

Progressive business media, ethical economics, leadership and design.

Publishing since 1995.

TED

Tagline: “Ideas Worth Spreading.”

Publishing since 2006 (online).

Mother Jones

The nonprofit magazine specializing in liberal and progressive values.

Publishing since 1976 (print).

The Awl

Tagline: “Be Less Stupid.” Culture commentary and humor.

Publishing since 2008.

Recommend your own required reading in the comments.

Image: liquene

The post Our Big Fat Conscious Reading List: The Best Websites of 2011 appeared first on EcoSalon.