“Author Archive”
Stories written by Nicki Lisa Cole
Nicki Lisa Cole is a writer and public intellectual who holds a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She earned a Master of Arts from UCSB in 2006, and a Bachelor of Arts from Pomona College in 2002. Nicki keeps an eye on issues of both global and local production and consumption, and their connections to social problems. She writes about what we can do to promote justice and equality, and believes fiercely in the motto of New Hampshire, her home state: Live free or die. To learn more about her interests and writing, visit www.nickilisacole.com. Contact Nicki at nickilcole@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/nickilisacole.

Single Mothers a Public Health Problem? Depends on Who is Asking the Question

Bristol Palin holding her brother Trig while pregnant with her son Tripp.

“Unwed mothers suffer long-term health woes,” read the headline in the Los Angeles Times on June 2. I felt myself cringe as I took it in, not just because of the significance of this statement, but also because of the use of the term “unwed mother.” After reading the full article, my initial cringe turned [...]

July 11th, 2011 | Posted in News & Critical Thinking | Read More »

Cancer Causing Agents in Our Everyday Lives

Breast_Cancer_003

October was National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and since that time, I’ve been thinking a lot about this widespread problem in our society. I noticed, as you likely did, that numerous methods for supporting patients and further research were promoted during the month. October saw a barrage of advertisements and events, both material and virtual, [...]

January 29th, 2011 | Posted in Culture,Mind & Body | Read More »

Feminist Applause for The Social Network

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The Social Network, the film that tells the tale of the founding and rise of Facebook, has taken a lot of flack from feminist critics since its release on October 1. The film and its screenwriter, Aaron Sorkin, have been accused of creating and promoting misogyny, of pigeon-holing women into hyper-stereotyped roles in which [...]

November 7th, 2010 | Posted in Culture | Read More »

Weeds: Taking Stock of Nancy Botwin

Mary-Louise Parker and Weeds cast.

This fall finds us in the middle of the sixth season of Showtime’s popular and award winning series Weeds. Since the Botwin family fled Agrestic, the fictional Los Angeles suburb where they lived during the first three seasons, the evolution of the show has been a hot topic among critics and audiences. What started as [...]

October 10th, 2010 | Posted in Culture | Read More »

What Target’s Recent Stumble can Teach us About Ourselves

Britney Spears at Target

“No! Where am I supposed to go to buy cheap goods now?!” read the comment on a link posted by one of my friends on Facebook. The posted link opened to a breaking news story about the recent scandal surrounding Target Corporation, the home goods darling of young liberals and hipsters alike. Back in August, [...]

September 24th, 2010 | Posted in News & Critical Thinking | Read More »

Reflections on a Summer of Weddings

The marriage ceremony of Anne Gibson & Tina Warinner (photo credit: Vanessa Lane)

Despite knowing such good times would result, deciding to attend a wedding is always a conflicted process for me. There are two reasons for this: 1. I do not believe in marriage; 2. I find offensive many of the traditions of the American wedding. It’s not that I don’t believe in celebrating love, or that I don’t want to participate in this celebration. Rather, I take issue with much of what marriage and weddings stand for in our contemporary culture and in the history of our country.

August 22nd, 2010 | Posted in Culture,People & Community | Read More »

Recently Commented

  • Nicki: Irene, I am glad you appreciated the article. I totally agree–capitalism and all its ills are crashing...
  • Fausto Giunta: The recognition of on line dating should be having an have an effect on on the local bar scene.
  • Irene Lambert: Hi Nicki — second attempt to write, my first disappeared, maybe it was sent to you. Great...
  • PrivilegeBingo: There’s a big difference between a sex worker and a prostitute. One chose to sell sex and has a...
  • preclus: I am surely impressed. I am not sure Ive known anyone who is such an expert about this subject matter as you...