Who’s ready for election season?!? Here’s this week in review, with just a couple political bits sprinkled in as they apply to the feminist stuff. Tryna curb that sugar-high from all dis candidate candy, u feel?

http://mashable.com/2015/08/10/donald-trump-periods/?_ke=

1. Feminism trumped Donald after he was straight up #rude. 

Head still fuzzy from polishing off two 40s and a half-liter of Vodka during your how-misogynistic-can-they-get Republican debate drinking game? Here's a ringer that'll knock your week-long hangover: after FOX's Megyn Kelly stuck to her guns (not literally, Megyn!) and put his misogyny on blast during the debate, Donald Trump fired back, saying she had "blood coming out of her wherever." SERIOUSLY. Because obvi there's no such thing as a woman exhibiting legitimate anger toward a man who has no respect for her or her gender––she's just PMSing. Doiiii. Here's where it gets fun: women have been tweeting at Trump with #periodsarenotaninsult, graciously informing him of when their cycles began, how much blood they are losing per day, what color their discharge is, as well as other fascinating tidbits. You can visit this website, created by Amber Gordon of Femsplain, for more period pride and some sparkly fonts. We <3 politics.

2. Bernie Sanders got a dose of BLM, and took it pretty well.

On the other side of the political spectrum, we’ve got a candidate who's up for title of “Biggest Liberal On The Beach” (we ain’t even complainin’). We're talkin' Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. He had a thing or two to say about women after the Republican debate, too, but that's not what had folks talking this week. After his rally in Seattle was shut down by Black activists (thought to be representatives of Black Lives Matter like the protesters from last time, but later found not to be affiliated), all Left-Wing Hell broke loose. The talk of racial politics upset some Sanders supporters, who feel defensive that their candidate is facing criticism from other progressives. Now that the dust has settled, however, the politician seems less defensive than many of his supporters. It seems Bernie himself is #FeelingTheBern to reform his campaign’s message to be more inclusive of people of color, as the protesters asked. Clearly “screaming” pays off. Two big, fat thumbs up for you, democracy.

But, how is this a feminist story? Read here.

3. Target is targeting gender stereotypes in the toy section.

When perfection reaches a whole new level of perfect, it might be time for a new nickname. Say goodbye to “Tar-jay” and hello to “Tar-get-your-gender-expectations-out-of-my-toy-box!" (...open to suggestions). Target has announced that it will do away with gender-based signage to describe toys and home entertainment products, for which gender is actually irrelevant (feels kinda obvious when your favorite store draws attention to it, no?). While this one major step won’t undo years of shame and gender-based violence, it is a pretty big deal that the next generation of kids might grow up knowing that you can actually like pink and monster trucks--regardless of your genitalia. Bullseye.

5. Jane Doe faced some seriously disrespectful demands from her college.

*** The following section discusses sexual violence.***Just because school isn’t in session doesn’t mean news about campus sexual assault stops. A 2012 Virginia Wesleyan College survivor of sexual assault by a male classmate, who was found guilty and expelled, is suing her school under the pseudonym of Jane Doe on the grounds that another male student drugged her on the night of the attack. But why is this in the news now? Well, the school demanded her to divulge her entire sexual history in order to “prove” that she was a virgin at the time of her attack, as she claims. So, if she were to have actually had sex prior, would she then be considered deserving of assault? Would her trauma be any less significant? Say it with us now: NO. (Possible variation: Still NO). This is a painful reminder of why survivors can be so hesitant to come forth.

@madamegandhi via Instagram

6. This badass freebled to the finish line. 

When you’re the drummer for M.I.A. and you have a MBA from Harvard Business School, you can generally stop doing cool things and still have enough cool to last you the rest of your life. Seems like 26-year-old Kiran Gandhi, who just ran her first (menstrual) marathon in 4:49:11 all while free-bleeding through her (aptly) red pants, had just a little more cool to shower over all of us plebes. Instead of sitting out the race because of her period, she seized the opportunity to give menstruation the attention it deserves. She explains why she did it in this blog post(#crying). Truly a woman after our own hearts. She even gave us a shout-out in this Mic article!

http://marikoproduct.com/Flo?_ke=

7. Flo-cusing on women is top priority for these Pasadena students.

Innovations in the menstrual hygiene sphere get us understandably excited, especially when they focus on those inpoverty. That’s why we “squee!’d” when we heard about this new doohickey that makes cleaning, drying, and carrying reusable pads a more seamless process for women who are faced with challenges when caring for their periods. Flo, created by a team of students from Pasadena’s Art Center College of Design, makes menstruating less of a nightmare and more a simple part of life for people who don’t have the time and resources to be struggling with biological processes on the reg. Plus, we bet they’d make a perfect additional partner for AFRIpads. ;)

by Team Thinx