Image via Unsplash.com
In a politically charged month where debates got heated – for those party leaders that bothered to turn up, insults got thrown and truths got twisted – there has also been a lot of great content.
Grime4Corbyn
Discussing with @JmeBBK how important it is for young people to register to vote → https://t.co/qXdulxPFk2 #GE2017 #YourVoteYourVoice pic.twitter.com/fbnWXPMXIB
— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) May 14, 2017
I’m quite embarrassed to say that, up until the Brexit vote last year (when I felt very strongly that we should remain,) I had paid little attention to politics – being one of those people that said: “I don’t know anything about it.” But, following this years snap election, rather than being that person, I have read and watched everything and can safely say I am 100% behind Corbyn and the Labour Party.
And I’m not the only one, a whole genre of music – Grime – have also backed the Labour leader for Prime Minister.
This month JME met with Jeremy Corbyn to talk politics and explain to him why so many of today’s youth don’t vote.
Mummy Bloggers and The Daily Mail
The Daily Fail absolutely slated mummy bloggers this month accusing them of: being slummy mummies who are “feeding their toddlers frozen fish fingers” and “swigging gin from baby cups”
Of course, I am not sharing the article itself, I am sharing the response – an open letter to the journalist Anna May Mangan, by one of the mums that was singled out.
I also wrote more about this over on the Zazzle Media blog, looking specifically at the way brands jumped on the back of this and used it, very cleverly, as an opportunity for reactive marketing.
Grandmother Pukka
I thought Grandmother Pukka, mother of Anna Whitehouse from Mother Pukka – was excellent when she took over her daughters social accounts while she was on bed rest after ending up in hospital while 34 weeks pregnant. She was unintentionally hilarious on Instagram stories – but I also thought she wrote a great response to the above article. She said the article was: “in a silly rag I won’t mention for fear of making it more viral or having a virus.” She goes on: “This non-article simply regurgitated what I’ve seen happen to mothers since I became one in 1981.” And ends with: “I would say, if ever in doubt, retaliate with the offer of a jammy dodger. Or if things get really bad, a chocolate digestive biscuit and a cup of tea. It tends to cheer most people up.”
Smell of You
I love this parenting parody of Ed Sheeran’s ‘Shape of You’ – which provides a snapshot of day-to-day parenting.
Why being called ‘quiet’ is your secret superpower
“Why are you so quiet? Whether you’ve grown up asking it, or ever been told to speak up, the message has always been the same – quiet is bad. To the socially confident, quietness was something unnerving, boring, lacking personality.”
This article explores why being ‘quiet’ isn’t the terrible thing the more confidant among us make it out to be.
Webtroverts
An interesting blog by Me & Orla that explores what it means to be a webtrovert: a person who is energised by spending time online / one who must recharge after face-to-face socialising, but finds internet interaction energising.
Scared of turning 30?
It is little over a year until my 30th birthday. I never thought this would bother me, but now I’m getting closer to it, the thought of leaving behind my 20s actually does scare me far more than I expected. I don’t know why – age is just a number after all. I think, in part, it is because I thought I might have my shit together by now – I always assumed that around 30 I would get married and have children and I still feel so far from being ready for that. Which is why I found this article so interesting to this month – why do we live to these imaginary deadlines?
Yoga
“New research shows that yoga can help reduce symptoms of depression by up to 50 per cent.”
I have started attending regular yoga classes during the last couple of years and practicing at home – I genuinely wish I had started sooner because it has so many benefits for both mental and physical health.
Lynx: is it ok for guys…?
An interesting campaign from a brand who has historically been known for promoting and cementing masculine stereotypes – you know, the adverts where the man sprays Lynx on his body and the girls flock to him…
There is so often a focus on encouraging women to be confidant with who they are and who they want to be, but you so rarely see it for men.
The latest Lynx advert, however, points out some of the worries that boys are searching for, such as: is it ok to be skinny? Is it ok to be a virgin? Is it ok to experiment with other guys? Is it ok to be depressed?
Then over on their You Tube channel they have invited Lynx Ambassadors including boxer Anthony Joshua and rapper Wiley to explain exactly why it is fine for boys to do all these things that they worry about.
Manchester
It is so easy to focus on the negatives after something as atrocious as what happened in both Manchester and London in just a couple of weeks. But, actually what came out of the sadness was a positivity of a country that won’t be broken no matter how much evil it is faced with.
Firstly, I saw these two quotes being shared on social media, which I think put it perfectly:
“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’ To this day, especially in times of disaster, I remember my mother’s words, and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers — so many caring people in this world.” – Fred Rogers
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Among the content that followed were open letters to the city, advice for children upset by the news as well as a determination to not let it change anything.
