Amber Sadiq, Reporter
@asadiqcourant
The importance of feminism has always been a topic for debate; whether the movement is a comprisal of extremists that view misandry as a hobby or just chaotic banter amongst overally emotional women. The fact of the matter is despite the various advancements we’ve made as a society, the impact of gender on lifestyle remains apparent. This new generation of women has been handed the baton in the relay towards gender equality and one student run magazine in particular is intent on making their way towards the finish line.
203 Magazine is a club run by Junior Amelia (Mimi) Stallings focusing on all aspects of women, from health to pop culture, “An outlet for girls to let go of all the stresses of what’s going on around them”, says Mimi. Advising the club is choir teacher Sarah Gleason, “Mimi came to me with the idea, and I loved it. I thought it was something important that would truly be beneficial for others” says Mrs. Gleason. “One of the reasons I chose Ms. Gleason is because she’s been my teacher since freshman year and we’ve developed a close relationship, not only as a teacher, but also as a mentor,” says Mimi.
Inclusivity to the entire student body is extremely important, however a safe space to discuss topics pertaining to women and girls is extremely important, especially for a community of teenage girls. In high school, girls tend to experience a lot mentally, especially when it comes to self perception. On top of that are the various decisions about who you want to be and what you want your future to look like. “It’s important to talk about the deeper things like girls’ mental health and wellness,” says Mimi, “We’re sharing what we love but also helping influence and teach”. The magazine will also include a segment on anecdotal stories from influential women within the community. Under the spotlight, readers will have the opportunity to read about their story, what they went through, and what they can teach others.
For club members, the magazine serves as a place to educate their audience whilst expressing interests of their own. A girl run magazine, centering on what girls are interested in and what they cover best– no-one knows girls better than other girls. “I really liked the idea of a school newspaper, but I wanted to make a more casual, non-school related version,” says Mimi. “I didn’t want to make it very time consuming for members either”. The club will have monthly meetings to go over and discuss their ideas, “Members will bring their own ideas and decide what we should post,” says Mimi, “I really want to focus on people writing about what they care about and what they are interested in, so rather than assign them material they get feedback on their proposals from the rest of the club.”
203 Magazine is a less formal and more simplistic version of a typical informative website, refraining from the sophistication of common informational posts. “I want it to be casual and ‘younger’,” says Mimi, “Kids nowadays tend to grow up too fast and I just think it would be important to keep it from being a super sophisticated news thing.” In regards to formatting, Stallings takes inspiration from Vogue magazine, the fashion and lifestyle outlet famous for covering the local social scene, primarily consumed by women.
Although the club has only just officially started, Mimi expressed her hopes for 203 Magazine’s growth, “For the near future, I just hope we can get comfortable and figure out our pace; what we want to do and how much we want to do,” says Mimi.
In the age of social media, the more modern approach has proven to resonate a lot more with the younger generation. Mimi says, “I really like the way influencing and posting became really popular within our generation so much so that it’s a career choice for a lot of people”, “I feel like I’ve always played the role of being influenced, whether it was from my teachers, my coaches, or my parents.” she says, “One thing I wanted to do for this magazine is to also positively influence other girls within my community” Mimi says.
In regards to Feminism, one of the most important aspects are sharing the experiences of women and their story to spread awareness to these important topics. “I don’t have a story, and I say that because I, number one, always remind myself how blessed I am that I’m healthy, my husband is healthy, and I have two healthy children.” says Ms. Gleason, “From knowing that we’re always learning how to be our best selves, I think all of our stories are how we keep growing,” she says, “And so my story is ‘gratefulness’ because I’ve had mostly positive influences that have made me who I am” says Mrs. Gleason.
“I feel like because I’m still very young and haven’t seen the rest of the world, I don’t really have my own story.” says Mimi. “One person, however, who’s story really inspires me is my grandmother who passed away in November 2020.” she says. “She was from a very poor area in India and was supposed to be put in an arranged marriage” says Mimi,
“She made this ‘bet’ with her father that if she got into Medical School then she wouldn’t have to get married and be able to live for herself. She passed, went to medical school and became a gynecologist. She showed me how much change can happen within one generation. My mom lived a completely different life, she grew up in America, went to private schools and an Ivy League. My grandma has always been my bridge between America and India and I love that part and culture inside of me” says Mimi.
Feminism has always been about advocating for women and uplifting them. Though the steps towards change have been taken, there is still a long way to go before reaching the end of this relay. Mimi says,“We need to support each other and show others that the things we are passionate about matter, because they matter to us.” People like Amelia Stallings and organizations like 203 Magazine are extremely important for the younger generation, and continue to prove to have a firm grip on the baton.
