The Wicked Problems of the Holidays

Greetings folks from A Feminist Newsletter in New Jersey —about Urbanism,

The year is wrapping up and while we are tired, we stay ready to continue uniting and fighting.

The narrative of “shame changing sides” steps forward as Gisèle Pelicot’s ex-husband was found guilty of aggravated rape against her and sentenced to 20 years in prison. Pelicot has become a symbol of resistance and strength, around the world.

We narrowly averted a shutdown of the Feds. If a funding deal had fallen through, federal employees could have ended up with delayed paychecks or on temporary leave. 

The Senate delivered a win by voting 76-20 to pass the Social Security Fairness Act.  

This legislation corrects a decades-old racially tinged insult, securing economic justice for federal and public-sector retirees by repealing the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO). 

“No longer will public retirees see their hard-earned Social Security benefits robbed from them thanks to this bill,” said Senate Majority Leader Schumer.  

For many people in the U.S., the December 25 is just another workday. Exploited ironically named “ride-share” workers keep driving, grocery workers are stocking shelves and watching you check your own groceries under broken union contracts, postal workers are preparing your packages for December 26 delivery, and restaurant staff are ready to serve, and of course medical and fire are at the ready for the mishaps that don’t take a break just because it is the holidays. 

The working class stands at unsheltered bus stops, walks over two miles to catch trains, or have to drive, because they don’t qualify for housing that is bikeable, walkable, or even public transit accessible from where they work. 

Meanwhile, free public transit only appears on New Year’s Eve, for the benefit of those who have the resources to live in Manhattan where public transit is a block from people’s homes or the “suburbs” of North Jersey and South Jersey with cars who have been receiving gratis parking since Black Friday— during one of the deadliest times of the year for pedestrians.  

The high cost of being a pedestrian on a heating planet during the winter holidays

“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…” because every town in New Jersey offers free parking. Towns promote this as an act of goodwill toward local shopkeepers and a way to support shopping locally—reminiscent of the 1950s. But we’re not in the 1950s anymore. Free parking,

‘A Feminist Newsletter in New Jersey’—about UrbanismL. Lo Sontag

AF has big plans for 2025. In January, we’re launching our podcast, Autocentric Asphyxiation, where we’ll dive into transportation, urbanism, the political economy, and feminism. Plus, we’ll start publishing two newsletters a week instead of one.  

Your fundraising efforts, which have raised AF $2,500 so far, make all of this possible.  

Consider becoming a monthly paid AF subscriber if you are not already. 

Please share this newsletter with your feminists, friends, family, and foes.  

Check out our review of the movie Wicked through the Wicked Problems Lens.

The Wicked Problem film review

I watched “Wicked” in the most urban state in the United States—New Jersey—in the county of Essex which reminds one of a city in one of the most trendy urban places in the U.S.—Montclair. The City of Montclair’s tagline is “Where the suburb meets the city,

‘A Feminist Newsletter in New Jersey’—about UrbanismL. Lo Sontag

See you on Thursday, December 26.  Thank you for your support. We appreciate you.

Your Femininomenon Urbanism,  

Lo Sontag  info@afeministnewsletterinnewjersey.com