The troubling epidemic of unnecessary C-sections around the world, explained

“Your baby is going to die. You’re putting your baby at risk.” This is what Jill Arnold remembers her doctor telling her over and over, while she was in labor in August 2005. Around 7 pm, Arnold started having regular contractions and was admitted to Kaiser Permanente in San Diego. A few weeks earlier, her …

Breast cancer awareness products profit off survivors’ suffering

Pink ribbons, pink candles, pink sweaters, pink yogurt labels, pink lipstick: There’s an endless array of products sold in the name of breast cancer awareness, appealing to shoppers’ sense of advocacy and activism by offering an easy way to support a cause. Pink products — which proliferate especially during October, designated since 1985 as Breast Cancer Awareness Month — …

Kanye West and the damaging way we talk about celebrities and mental health

The conversation surrounding Kanye West’s mental health during his visit to the White House raises issues of how the public scrutinizes celebrities with mental illnesses. The following essay was first published earlier in 2018. A Twitter user known as @cakefacedcutie tweeted out a photo in late June of Saturday Night Life star Pete Davidson arm in arm with his new girlfriend, the pop …