Category Archives: Life and style

Women Deliver racism investigation verdict described as a ‘slap in the face’

Posted on by

Complaints of ‘white saviourism’ and harassment at the group led to the review, which found no individual responsible

The results of an investigation into allegations of racism and harassment at one of the world’s most high profile women’s rights organisations has been described as a “slap in the face” to those who complained.

Investigators concluded this week that no single person was responsible for the “challenges” at the group, Women Deliver, which had undergone a period of rapid growth “during which its policies and practices lagged behind”. The report added the workplace culture had been “too demanding, urgent, and high-pressure”.

Continue reading...

Covid crisis fashion report: ‘workers’ rights, wellbeing and dignity should not be put on hold’

Posted on by

An assessment of 428 Australian and international fashion brands has found that while most took some positive actions to protect workers, none could ensure all workers were covered

A special report by Baptist World Aid Australia has found that, throughout the Covid pandemic, 35% of fashion companies assessed did not show evidence that they had made regular payments to their suppliers.

The Covid Fashion Report – which this year takes the place of Baptist World Aid Australia’s annual Ethical Fashion Report – assessed 96 Australian, New Zealand and international companies, representing 428 brands, on specific positive actions taken amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Continue reading...

‘I got a whole new mindset’: the health secrets of people who got much fitter in lockdown

Posted on by

Many of us have struggled to maintain our fitness in 2020 – but not everyone. Here, four people explain how they improved their sleep patterns, diet and exercise regimes

Before Covid-19, an ordinary evening for Tim Ludford, a charity worker, looked something like this: after-work drinks with colleagues; an Uber home; a takeaway. “Not healthy takeaways, either,” says Ludford, 37, from London. He would polish off a curry for two people before nailing a bag of Maltesers or a packet of biscuits.

Ludford’s relationship with food began to deteriorate after the death from cancer of his father in 2013. “I was unhappy, first of all, and I was bingeing on food and alcohol as a coping mechanism,” he says. “A lot of it was related to my dad, but I was also stuck in a rut and food was an easy way to make myself feel good.” By the time lockdown was introduced, he was severely obese, with a BMI of 40. (A healthy BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9, according to the NHS.) “Sometimes I’d do crazy things,” he says. “If I was on the way to meet someone for dinner, I’d go to KFC on the way. And then I’d eat dinner as well.”

Continue reading...

Joni Mitchell: ‘I’m a fool for love. I make the same mistake over and over’

Posted on by

As she releases a box set of her earliest recordings, in a rare interview Mitchell talks about life before fame, the correct way to sing her songs – and her long struggle to walk and talk again after an aneurysm

“I was lying in bed last night thinking about getting a cat,” says Joni Mitchell. It’s an early summer Sunday, and she’s sitting in her backyard patio, nicknamed Tuscany. Behind her a bird feeder is busy with hungry visitors. “And this guy shows up at the gate around midnight, meowing.”

A light-brown kitten with long white paws, only a few months old, leans contentedly against her shoulder. “I hope nobody comes to claim him,” she confides softly. They’re fast friends. Nearby Marcy Gensic, Mitchell’s longtime friend and associate, mentions they’ve papered the neighbourhood with lost notices. No calls yet. So with our midnight visitor, tentatively named Puss ’n Boots, tucked in the lap of this treasured artist, Mitchell is here to discuss the new set of early recordings she never intended to release: Joni Mitchell Archives Vol 1: The Early Years (1963-1967). For years she doubted their place in the revered canon of her carefully curated albums. “Some of the melodies are beautiful,” she told me in an interview in 2004, “but they’re very ingenue-y.” She seemed almost wistful. “God, they’re so vulnerable in these tough times. They’re like some ancient world.”

Continue reading...

Wash your mask daily: the ultimate guide to face coverings

Posted on by

Experts explain the best way to wash masks, how to handle them – and how to prevent ‘maskne’

We hook them on to our faces, laugh, sneeze and sputter into them, then crumple them into our bags or pockets only to retrieve them and do it all again. Yet despite official advice that we should be wearing a fresh face covering each time we enter an enclosed public space, a YouGov poll revealed many people are going several wears between washes – and 15% of Brits don’t wash their reusable masks at all. Similarly, more than half of those opting for disposable masks are rewearing them – 7% of them indefinitely so.

Face coverings are designed to catch the respiratory droplets we emit from our mouths and noses, but given that they’re our own respiratory droplets, is this really so bad? We examine the evidence.

Continue reading...

What I learned at man camp, where men get in touch with their emotions

Posted on by

In early March, I headed to the California desert to explore my emotions and learn ‘healthy masculinity’ with a group of men

On a Friday evening in early March, two weeks before much of the US went into a coronavirus lockdown, I found myself standing in the California desert, screaming into another man’s face.

The next day, the smell of burning sage wafted through the air as I took my shirt off and wrestled a guy inside a metal dome.

Continue reading...

‘At 47, I discovered I am autistic – suddenly so many things made sense’

Posted on by

Other people’s lives always seemed more effortless, but it took my daughter’s autism diagnosis to realise why

Until last year I had no idea I was autistic. I knew I was different and I had always been told I was “too sensitive”. But I don’t fit the dated Rain Man stereotype. I’m a CEO, I’m married, I have two children. Autism is often a hidden disability.

Other people made life seem easy and effortless while, before my diagnosis, I always operated with some level of confusion. I was able to achieve a lot and I used to attribute this to the strong work ethic I inherited from my dad but now I have no doubt that he was autistic, too.

Continue reading...

Linda Evangelista praises women accusing her ex-husband of rape

Posted on by

Exclusive: supermodel speaks out after four more women accuse Gérald Marie of sexual misconduct

The supermodel Linda Evangelista has praised the “courage and strength” shown by a growing number of women accusing her ex-husband, the model agency boss Gérald Marie, of sexual misconduct and rape.

Speaking exclusively to the Guardian’s Weekend magazine, Evangelista said she believed the women’s accounts of their experiences with Marie, who for over three decades was among the most powerful figures in the fashion industry.

Continue reading...

Cleaning up: the social media stars making housework cool

Posted on by

Donning the Marigolds need not be a chore, according to a new breed of influencers who say cleaning is fun and aspirational

There were fears that this autumn’s bumper crop of books would see some titles overlooked – but one volume definitely didn’t get brushed under the carpet. This Is Me by Sophie Hinchliffe, better known as the Instagram cleaning sensation Mrs Hinch, was the runaway hit of Super Thursday on 1 October, fighting stiff competition from almost 800 other hardbacks published that day to top the UK charts and shift more than 90,000 copies in its first week.

It’s no surprise: Mrs Hinch’s three previous books have been bestsellers, and the 30-year-old comes with a readymade audience thanks to her “Hinch Army” of 3.8 million Instagram followers.

Continue reading...

Purrfect match: cats and their human doubles

Posted on by

We all know someone who looks like their dog, but what about our feline friends? Photographer Gerrard Gethings set out to match moggies with their lookalikes – with uncanny results. By Kathryn Bromwich

If you’ve spent much time on the internet over the past decade, chances are you’ve seen some cats on there. Cats chasing their own tails. Cats attempting ill-judged jumps from one piece of furniture to another. Or, in the case of Gerrard Gethings, a cat who looked exactly like the actor David Schwimmer. “There’s something about the shape of Schwimmer’s face that’s quite interesting,” says the London-based photographer, “and the cat had exactly the same face. That pushed me over the edge, into thinking there was something in it.”

Continue reading...

Nimco Ali calls for frank discussion on violence against women in UK

Posted on by

Campaigner gives first major interview after being appointed as government adviser on issue

The UK needs a frank conversation about the fear of male violence that women live with every day, according to the government’s new adviser on violence against women and girls.

In her first major interview since her role was announced on Friday, the feminist campaigner Nimco Ali – who has been a key figure in the global fight to end female genital mutilation (FGM) – said she wanted to work across political, ethnic and gender lines.

Continue reading...

How to clean your bed: ‘If you didn’t wash it for a year it would be a kilo heavier from dead skin’

Posted on by

How often should you wash your sheets, pillows, doona and mattress? And when is it time to throw them out? Experts explain how to keep your bed clean

Do you treat your sheets like a cast iron skillet? Mainly wiped down, occasionally rinsed, never with detergent?

Men be treating their bedsheets like a damn cast iron pan

Continue reading...

Italian women take legal action over foetus graves marked with mothers’ names

Posted on by

More than 100 women launch action as activists say practice is serious violation of human rights and privacy

A group of more than 100 Italian women have asked prosecutors to investigate who is behind the burial for nearly a decade of foetuses in graves marked with the names of their mothers in a cemetery in Rome.

The practice only came to light last week after one of the women, whose curiosity was sparked after reading about the so-called “fields of angels” in local newspapers, discovered a plot with a wooden cross bearing her name and the date on which the foetus was buried at Prima Porta cemetery. She subsequently posted about her experience on Facebook.

Continue reading...

‘I’ve put on a stone and my kids smell of oregano’: Guardian readers on their weirdest pandemic meals

Posted on by

Being at home so much this year has led to some of us getting a bit more, well, experimental in our cooking. Here are 10 of the oddest offerings shared by readers

This year, as we spent months locked down at home and eating out became less routine, our habits changed in weird and wonderful ways. Away from the prying eyes of colleagues or other diners, we were free to experiment with surprising combinations. And with shortages in the spring of our usual buys, an increased desire for comfort food and just plain boredom, some of these strange – but satisfying – meals have stuck.

Here, Guardian readers tell us about the oddest dishes they have made during the pandemic.

Continue reading...

The e-scooter: road menace or saviour of the commute?

Posted on by

They may be a common sight, but privately owned motorised scooters are still illegal on Britain’s roads and pavements. But with rental scheme trials taking place across the country, could they be answer to getting to work in the pandemic?

Standing upright, you glide, ghostlike, along the street. You have no emissions. You are alone, outside, unlikely to catch anything or pass anything on. You are no burden to the public transport system, nor do you contribute much to congestion. You take up little space.

Now you join a busier road, one with buses. Perhaps you feel small, vulnerable. But when the traffic bunches up and stops, you can pass. Ha! This is the future of urban travel, isn’t it? Make that the present: it is here, you are here, going somewhere else quickly, with a smile. You are also breaking the law.

Continue reading...

Netflix indicted by Texas grand jury over ‘lewd visual material’ in Cuties

Posted on by

French film about pre-teen girls who form a dance group is called ‘prurient’ in Tyler County prosecution. Netflix defends story as social commentary against sexualisation

Netflix has defended the controversial film Cuties after it emerged the streaming giant is facing a criminal charge in Texas over the movie’s allegedly “lewd” depiction of children.

Cuties follows an 11-year-old Senegalese girl living in Paris who rebels against her conservative family’s traditions when she becomes fascinated with a “free-spirited dance crew”.

Continue reading...

Women’s health organisation president resigns following bullying and racism investigation

Posted on by

Françoise Girard and two others cleared of racial discrimination but report finds culture of fear and intimidation at IWHC

The president of a women’s health charity has resigned following an investigation into allegations of racism and bullying within the organisation.

The findings of the independent investigation cleared Françoise Girard and two other senior managers at the International Women’s Health Coalition (IWHC) of unlawful racial discrimination or retaliation against employees.

Continue reading...

‘You’re left to rot if you speak up’: the abuse faced by female roadies

Posted on by

For years, women who work on music tours have been patronised, denigrated and abused. But as the industry takes stock during the pandemic, change is hopefully coming

Sandwich-maker. Foot-rubber. Mother. Eye candy. Enabler. Subordinate. Weakling. Women and non-binary (NB) touring crew members have heard it all while working as managers, sound techs, drivers, engineers and other roles – and resistance is mounting as live gigs fitfully begin to return.

In 2018, sound engineer Chez Stock published a widely shared blog post detailing her experiences on tour with an unnamed major band, including allegations that the crew were offered bonuses if they could bring girls backstage for the band members and, on one occasion, being invited over the radio comms to take turns having sex with a drunk woman who had been brought into a dressing room.

Continue reading...

Fashion designer Kenzo Takada dies after catching Covid-19 aged 81

Posted on by

Takada was the first Japanese designer to make a mark on the Paris fashion scene

The Japanese fashion designer Kenzo Takada has died in Paris after contracting Covid-19, a spokesperson has announced. He was 81.

Takada, known best by his first name, was the first designer from Japan to break into the city’s exclusive fashion milieu in the 1970s.

Continue reading...