CHERRY ISSUE 1 by Beth Dunne

CHERRY ISSUE 1

CLARA BARNES

BRIDGETTE BOLTON

BETH DUNNE

OPHELIA HORTON

VICTORIA CAMPA

LAUREN CULLY

CLAIRE EADY

MARGARET GILL

RACHAEL HELLER

ANNY SASHA

ISSABELLA SOBEL

BETHY SQUIRES

GARRISON TAYLOR-BATES

EMILY WANG

SOPHIE WILSON

MARCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Persephone After Winter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 To Be Strong. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Dena Winter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Julia Ibarguen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Spilled Pink. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Claraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Journal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Winter Sherbet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Mia Parnello . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 2 essays on feminism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Happy, Free, Confused and Lonely in the Best Way . . . 29 Miley Hyperlink Poem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 We Three . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Amalthea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Why Read? Why Write? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Wander . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Yellow Fever . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 That Summer Feeling (is Gonna Haunt You One Day in Your Life). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Zara Thewlis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Girls On Film. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Clairac. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Emily Wang . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 10 Things

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Nailbiters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Ok first editor’s letter here we go. After many an hour spent Netflixing my way into a deep procrastination, drowning my anxieties in chocolate brownies and internet-whining over Facebook to Claire, I have decided to actually get on with writing this and BOY AM I NERVOUS AND EXCITED. First of all, thank you for reading this first issue of Cherry (Kool & The Gang’s ‘Celebration’ plays in the background). I’m so grateful for all the submissions and requests to become contributors - I know that there are a lot of zines, websites, publications like this, but my aim here isn’t to compete or compare to these, it is just to create something good. There can never be too many feminist/creative collectives, in fact there can never be too much feminism or creativity. The more things like this there are, the more we can spread the message of feminism and showcase new, underrated talent (usually young females). If there is one thing you take from this zine, I really hope that it’s inspiration. Whether that be inspiration to keep fuelling and using your creative mind, speak up about what you believe in, or even buy a punnet of cherries; I’ll be happy (but I’ll probably be a lot less enthusiastic about the cherries thing). So, this issue is a bit all over the place as I didn’t set a very strict theme at all because I didn’t want to limit submissions, I just wanted to see what I got but it’s now ended up in a bunch of people going what are we even doing???!!!?!?!?!?!? And all I’m doing is sitting in my dressing gown hoping that people kind of figure it out. No, but for real you guys the theme for this issue was loosely based on the idea of ‘personal’, so you get to know a bit about Cherry and the people behind it *theme idea copyright Ophelia*. Not everything in this issue adheres to this theme because I simply was not prepared for this and I’m sorry and next month will be better and less Liz Lemon eye-roll I SWEAR. There are a few people who have really helped me out with everything Cherry: Claire and Lauren for being up at ungodly hours of the morning as I send them files and screenshots of the progress and chunks of text going IS THIS OKAY?!?!, my dad for getting Microsoft Publisher, all you lovely creators of lovely things that have sent in submissions, the contributors for (duh) contributing and YOU for being here and reading this. I’m so excited to be sharing all these wonderful pieces of work with you, and I hope you appreciate them as much as I do.

All clothing modelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own, except black capelet made by Liz and tarot card reading cloth hand-

made by Lizâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mother, Sally Layton.

To Be Strong by Trupti P. To be strong Do I have to cut my hair, put on pants, muscle here

no makeup there To be strong can I not smile? Wear a dress, bend my hips, pick a rose take a dare? To be strong must I give up my shine my curve, my color, my laughter, my gender all that is mine? To be strong can I not fight you like a man succeed

hear my voice I too can stand to be strong.

JULIA IBARGUEN 8

SPILLED PINK

Self portraits by Beth with assistance from Jasmine Dunne

CLARAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S J 1) Squeeze pores/zits every time I look in the mirror 2) Drink tea in the morning 3) Crack my wrists (and ankles)

4) Tearing my lips 5) Check out Rookie at least once a day 6) Write down everything I want/have to do in lists 7) See a movie or an episode (once a day) 8) Biting my fingers 9) Carry my wallet/ keys/ cellphone everywhere I go 10) Distract myself from every activity I do

JOURNAL

(which she very kindly translated)

On the right there are some words I didn’t know and their definitions.

I have to accept boredom. I want to eat chocolatey things but I can’t :’(

Some day of January 2014

Dear Diary: Today I went with dad to Davidâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. I went because he has a pool an that go there because they are jerks.

nd I didn’t have anything better to do but I always forget that I hate the people Once I heard David say that [to his house] could only go musicians and bikinis. He was joking but it was a shitty sexist joke and it turned out to be true. I never saw a woman there that didn’t have breast implants and a thong. Plus they don’t let me talk and then they tell me to participate. Conclusion: I like my mom’s friends much better. They studied careers and have interesting jobs, and they are funny in non-male chauvinist ways. They integrate me and sometimes help me with stuff. I didn’t expect this to become so corny, I was supposed to be parodying teen’s comedies. 16

Wish list: -dresses! -glitter glue -black and pink spray -some kind of sandal/ guillermina -rookie yearbook 2 -multivision lens -t-shirt(s) that show off my tastes

-fairy lights

Your Facebook notes are not a representation of your social life

Your test scores are not a representation of your intelligence

WINTER SHERB

BET

Photos by Ophelia. Thanks to Rocio for modelling

MIA PARNELLO

Model: Niamh Durkin

Misconceptions An Essay by Issabella Feminism: a subject incomprehensible by many. Often, people roll their eyes at the sound of the word. The majority of society believes feminists to be lesbians, tomboys, man-haters, hairy, smelly, and overly sensitive. Of course that also would only apply to women, when in fact there are a large amount of male and LGTBQ feminists. People are incredibly ill informed about feminism, and to some extent they have a right to be ill informed because no one has been there to correct them. Many people associate feminists with â&#x20AC;&#x153;angry femalesâ&#x20AC;?. To clarify:

1 Feminism is NOT about hating men. Feminism is NOT about saying women are better than men. Not all feminists are women, many of them are men or identify as LGBTQ. Feminism IS about gender equality. It is the idea that women, men, and LGBTQ people should be able to do the same jobs, have equal pay, and not be treated any differently in school, professional, or social situations based on their gender or sexual orientation.

2 Feminists are NOT all hairy, smelly, organic, voodoo, unhygienic women, as the stereotypes often say. Feminists can be male, female, Trans* men and women, genderqueer, or any other gender identification on the spectrum. Contrary to popular belief, some feminists are perfume wearing, makeup loving, fashion enthusiasts, but this femininity

is not a weakness. Pink, glitter, high heels, and makeup are not weaknesses. They’re personality preferences. These are all personal choices, and have nothing to do with this person being a feminist. Again, many men and many LGBTQ people are feminists. Anyone can be a feminist, ANYONE.

3 Feminism is not about being forced to be over revealing of your sexual preferences or being overly concealing of your sex life. Feminism is about being able to share as much or as little about your sexuality as you are comfortable with. Feminism is not about slut shaming or virgin shaming. When men talk openly about their sex lives, generally people don’t make comments calling them whores or sluts. Men are often praised for being more sexually active. But when women are more vocal about their sex lives and sleep with a lot of men (or women) and like to show some skin, they are judged profusely and told to keep quiet. From birth, girls are told to shut their mouths. They are shamed for things completely natural to

them. Shamed about having body hair, periods or having the ‘wrong’ sized breasts. Trans* people are also shamed for their gender identity and their bodies. What’s the point in judging people for the gender they were born with? Women should be allowed to be as vocal and expressive about their bodies and their gender as they desire. In conclusion, don’t be an asshole. Thank you.

Text edited by Rachael

What’s so wrong with being a feminist?

By Victoria Campa

At the word feminist I imagined huge-muscled bra-less women working hard in factories or carrying wood. If used to describe someone, it immediately turned into an insult. In my head, it was something that dominated every facet of a woman, so a feminist was someone who constantly talked, wrote and sang about women’s rights and such. Only recently did I realize I was off. Waaaaaaay off. First of all, I was brought up with the idea that women and men are equal in any and every way possible. As a first grader I was fueled with the notion of conquering the world, never imagining that my sex organs would become an obstacle or a defining factor of me as a person. Of my friends, I was always the one with the empowering ideas and claims about how the guy doesn’t always have to make the first move, but it was never about the inequality between men and women. From the inside, I saw myself as a person, not as a female. So throughout my life, the differences between men and women had never been an immediate reality until now. I guess I was first confronted with this idea of “women empowerment” 27

when someone suggested I apply to some women’s colleges. Naturally, being a totally “normal” girl that I was, I refused. I thought, if I couldn’t even get a boyfriend at a co-ed school, how would I ever find one if there were only girls around?! Not only that, but I couldn’t believe that universities were all for diversity and then they prided themselves for blocking out half of the population. How was that for different perspectives?! On the websites of schools like Barnard College and Wellesley they went on and on about all the wonderful opportunities for women to grow in an environment where they would not be limited. I was slightly outraged. How were women supposed to gain the so-called equality that they were missing if people were always giving them so much special attention? I couldn’t understand why any woman would ever be intimidated to speak up in front of a man or see this as an obstacle just because she had more hair on her head than he did. I have always believed that women and men were equal, but I didn’t know that it was something that we need to keep fighting for. So I don’t know quite how but after some time I figured it out. I realized that

women don’t get special attention because they need it, it’s exactly the opposite. We get the attention because it’s what we deserve. We already know that we’re capable, we just need everyone else to realize what we can do. Instead of scoffing at it and acting superior like I did, we should relish it, and use it to show that we too are powerful, and that we too can lead the world. So then, what’s so wrong with being a feminist? Even after I figured this out, even after I saw that women should and could use the extra push, I didn’t identify myself with any feminists. As a matter of fact, I was overwhelmed by all the articles on women colleges’ websites describing and setting up different arguments on this concept. Actually, I don’t know if I even understood what it was, and I definitely did not feel like I related to the 17-year-old girls posting stuff on Facebook about women’s place in society. But in reality, feminism is not a radical idea. Feminism is not about getting into fist fights and holding demonstrations on the street. Feminism is only seen this way because of the name, but I really think that many people are feminists, even if they don’t know it or won’t admit to being one. In her book Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg writes “Currently, only 24 percent of women in the United States say that they consider themselves feminists. Yet when offered a more specific definition of feminism—“A feminist is someone who believes in social, political and economic equality of the sexes”—the percentage of women who agree rises to 65 percent.” Yeah, I wouldn’t have thought that was feminism ei-

ther, but I do think that many people, both men and women, agree with this definition. In truth, feminism is only a label. Like so many others, it can be hurtful, but the point is that whether a feminist or not, all women should fight for social, political and economic equality. Because it’s what we deserve, and because there is no reason for why we shouldn’t get it. Before, I wasn’t a woman, I was simply a person. Now, I have realized that being a woman is part of what makes me the person that I am. So I am a woman, and I am rightfully proud to be one.

My favorite sport is cheerleading! That's what I want to do with my life But it’s really difficult being fake is really important

Being famous is like a dream come true because you lose your freedom

A poem by Bethy consisting entirely of Miley Cyrus quotes (each line is a link to the source of the quote)

I’m from the south, and we are not changing for anybody we are so set in our old traditions It takes some of the pain away There I was, taking it all in, feeling the spirit of that song, the music, and Elvis as much as anyone It’s like you walk in and you’re clean

I just think the world is so lame Like Lil Kim is who I am on the inside I can mix and match a cute shirt with some skinny jeans under a leather jacket and it looks fun and unique

It’s about two people Kurt Cobain White Nicki Minaj The world is such a fucked up place Even at my age, a lot of girls are starting to fall But they're not Miley Cyrus

WE THREE Photos by Nic Fazzino of his friends Izzy and Lena

Photography by Anny Sasha Thanks to Isabelle for modelling

AMALTHEA

Contributor Sophie writes about the importance of words. Words are one of the most powerful forces in this world. A picture can tell a thousand words but a thousand words can tell a thousand words too. Words spread ideas. Words take you to other places. Words fill you up and make you feel alive. Words are a part of who we are. Words are our favourite poems, our favourite songs. Words are the quotes we keep close to us, the kind words that we say to ourselves to get through each day and the dark words that are whispered in our minds that can make for a sleep deprived night. Words are the kindest compliments that we thrive off and the insults we carry on our backs. We are all novels and love songs and heartfelt poems waiting to be written.

els of choice are either classics or biographies.

When I was younger I made my way through many a book series. ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘A Series of Unfortunate Events’ are the most memorable. More recently my nov-

prose trigger memories and emotions as much as a whole album of photographs.

I read ‘On The Road’ just over a year ago and since then have been embroiled in beat literature. I have whirled through many a poem by Kerouac or Ginsberg or Cassady and I love how free and alive they all seem. The words rise from the page and dash around the room in a drug- fuelled haze. In many ways it is very different to anything else that I have read. Although the tales of New York and road trips and Mexico sometimes make my I have wanted to be a writer ever life feel a tad lacking, I feel so since I realised that the illustrablessed to have come across this tions that accompanied the stories genre that makes literature feel so I wrote as a child were too inept for alive to me. me to ever make it as a convention- Books are so tender and so delial painter. I wrote all the time and cate; both pragmatically and metamade up stories to pass otherwise phorically. The pages tear with an empty days. ever so slight tug at thin paper. The

I read to feel a part of something. I want to feel like I have been let in

Collage by Beth 35

on a secret that has been shared with generations of people who have read the same words and felt the same ways. I write to feel a part of something. I want to feel that I am part of my generation and I want to make a difference. I want to participate in this phenomenon that is the written word. That is the thought that hangs over my mind when I sit down with pen and paper or poise my fingers over my laptop keyboard. It is the need that motivates me to write every bad poem, every trite song lyric because we need to get past those to someday write something beautiful.

yellow fever we sat in your bed, huddled around the faint glow of your laptop, our legs sticky with the humidity of early june sipping bubble tea and indulging our shared love of studio ghibli. you told me i was lucky to be mixed, that i looked just like the girls on the screen. tall and busty, like an american girl but with a japanese face, perfectly complected with wide almond eyes, cheeks like sakura blossoms and a painted mouth - other girls werenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t so fragile and dainty. you watched with fascination as i showed you the grace in writing kanji; you begged to hear me speak in broken japanese but rolled your eyes and faked sleep when i told you my favorite finnish folk-tale, your head in my lap. 41

it ended when i found out that like so many, you expected me to always be shy and giggly; doting and submissive, the faceless conglomerate of a thousand cheap, generic traits resigned to every other east asian woman. and when you tried to bind my feet to keep me from leaving, i had to remind you that seventy-five percent of me was not so fragile and dainty.

BY REBECCA PLOTKE 42

Collage submitted by Zara Thewlis

GIRLS

Contributor Bridgette

talks about her favourite act

My favorite actresses have had a lot of influence on who I am and what I like. They’ve truly inspired me to be who I am today, so here they are: Laverne Cox Laverne Cox is an amazing feminist icon and she gives wonderful speeches. She’s mainly known for acting on Orange Is the New Black, but she’s much more than the show that she’s on. She’s educated me (and so many other people) on issues that transgender folk have. She’s really intelligent and it’s so neat to have a transgender woman as part of the media these days. She spreads her ideas and she’s changing the world.

Hedy Lamarr

Hedy Lamarr was Austrian she was an inventor as w an actress. Many people her just because she was tiful, but she actually with the idea of frequen ping with one of her fri while they were just han out. Her idea actually l things like cell phones. spired me to constantly new ideas, and try to ta seriously, because you n when you might be on to big. 49

FILM

tors and why they inspire her Audrey Hepburn

Audrey Hepburn was a fantastic actress and she also did great work to help people. I’d be lying if I said she didn’t inspire my fashion choices today, but she’s also inspired me to try to be a better person, and to help others as much as possible. She mainly did acting while she was young, and when she was older she did a lot of work with UNICEF just to try and better the world. She could have kept making movies and money, but instead she wanted to help people, and I think that’s amazing.

n, and well as know s beaucame up ncy hopiends nging led us to . She’s inthink up ake them never know something

Illustrations by Garrison

CLAIRAC

INSTAGRAM: @theclairac 51

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

What is real love when I’m so imperfect too young to love, too young to not care too young to be hurt by someone else too young to kill

is my pursuit alone searching for my lover’s hal-

low face on the warm lighted streets of Abu Dhabi

am i longing for unhappened phone calls phone booths with no phony feelings have i buried my head between the wrong two legs

why do i always ask questions whose answers live on the other side of the ocean

Photos and words by Emily 54

Contributor Lauren tells us about 10 things she loves most in life

1. Avocados This is probably the most random one to start with but I’ve got to start somewhere. I absolutely LOVE avocados. I can’t explain why I just do. They’re so fabulous and creamy, and massively underrated. They’re best with some Worcester sauce too. This doesn’t really tell you much about my personality but I just think they need to be appreciated more and they are a big part of my life so here they are.

2. My cats This is probably the most cliché part of this article but it’s true, I love my cats to bits. I’m pretty s females say the same thing but I don’t care. They’re always there and they’re so fluffy and cuddly babies. They’re also quite sassy and always hungry, bit like me really.

3. Train Journeys Going to and from college everyday means I spend a lot of time on the train, which I love. Sometimes it’s nice to just to sit on a train, on your own, in peace and quiet. Even when the trains are delayed, getting on that train, sitting down and relaxing for those 11 minutes it takes me to get to college is what I live for & looking out the window every day and noticing something different every time. It’s peaceful & gives you time to think which, to me, is just perfect.

4. Swimming For someone who half a year ago, hadn’t stepped in a pool in 10 years, I have rekindled my love for swimming.

After deciding that it’s time to be healthy and stop sitting on my arse stuffing my face with avocados & cheese, I started swimming in an ~attempt~ to lose a bit of weight. Having a major dislike to germs, this is a big thing to me, but swimming is so therapeutic and incredibly good for you, it’s refreshing and it’s calming - although I do look like a right nonce in a swimming costume..

sure most crazy lonely y and they are just my 56

5. My Vogue Collection

Sounds silly but I’ve been collecting vogues since 2010 and they’re my pride and joy. Receiving my vogues on my 14th birthday was eye opening. I just loved the models, the adverts, the aesthetics of it and especially the free perfume samples inside. I mainly love my vogues as they’re so artistic, massively inspiring, and if I’m 100% honest, they don’t include as much writing as normal magazines. Watching the trends that come and go is fascinating, and I can’t wait to look back in 30 years’ time to show my kids the styles and trends of the 2000’s.

6. My bed

Yet another cliché, but it’s 100% true. I love my bed. As many of my close friends will know, I love to sleep, and I am certainly NOT a morning person. I love my sleep and I love my bed. My king size duvet on my always unmade single bed is what I look forward to when I get home. I sleep, eat, cry, laugh, and nap in this bed and whatever happens in the future, my bed’s coming with me. 57

7. Popcorn Yet another food on this list, it was hard to narrow them down to 10 to be quite honest but popcorn has to be on there. I make it all the time, it’s so easy and I’ve even developed my own flavour - bacon & Nandos Peri Peri popcorn. It’s fabulous. I love it because it’s so cheap to buy and the smallest amount of kernels makes the biggest amount of popcorn and it’s pretty light which is good as you can eat tonnes of it and it’s not too bad for you. Well, the amount I eat definitely is.

8. Rain This is a strange one for some, but I really do love winter. I love the rain and I love the snow. Rain is something we see a lot in England, and for most people, they hate it. There's something so relaxing about rain. Everyone can appreciate it some way or another, whether that’s being curled up inside under a duvet with a hot drink listening to it pitter against the window, or even being caught in a heavy downpour and being soaked head to toe. It’s fun, it’s pretty and it’s relaxing. Not all will agree with me, but to me it’s something I love.

9. Bubble Baths I don’t own a shower, so I can only ever have baths, and I am not complaining. I love my bath. A hot, bubbly bath is what I live for. If you’ve had a shitty day, you can come home to soak in the bath for ages. I spend hours, literally HOURS in the bath, I just love them.

10. Wine Anyone who knows me that this is definitely a thing I love. I get taken the piss out for being “classy” on a night out but so what? Wine, wine, feeling fine, sassy and fabulous. I love rosé, I love white wine, I love wine all together. I can’t really explain why I like wine I Just do. So this concludes my list of 10 things I like. I’m not sure if this list has introduced me well or showed my personality well but it’s the best I can do. I hope this has been a good introduction to me and I hope through more posts and submissions that I can show a bit more about what I love and a bit more about myself. Thanks for reading from me and the rest of us at Cherry!

A COMIC BY MARION

Thanks for reading this issue of Cherry

Next monthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s theme is CHANGE You can submit via the tumblr at: cherrymag.tumblr.com (where you can also find a link to the playlist from this issue) or email elisabethdunne@gmail.com