Asses and Activism includes interviews, opinion pieces and news about people who are breaking taboos, fighting stigma and living their best lives, because activism is more fun when it’s sexy. The idea for Asses and Activism was born from one of my Instagram posts. I had posted a picture about a less politically oriented post, saying: “Can’t always cover Asses and Activism!” and my followers pointed out how great a format that could be. So when I realised the community I’m part of would love to hear from and support sexy activists, this category of posts came to life. So without further ado, all these posts are for them, featuring everything from pole dancing to podcasting, from sex workers to bloggers, these posts are about discussing everything that matters, but that hasn’t yet received the right attention. Expect: the odd sociological / criminological spin, sass and a whole lot of ass. Submit ideas to bloggeronpole@gmail.com if you’d like to be featured.
This blog post, as part of the #RenegadeActsofKindness campaign by English sparkling wine Renegade & Longton and just after World Mental Health Day, is an occasion to thank my network for the help in getting me out of a difficult time. Even just last year, when I was less sure of the validity of my … More Celebrating Asking For Help: #RenegadeActsofKindness
This post is half a personal essay, and half a review of one of the vibrators from the Satisfyer Luxury Range. Why? Because unlike many women I know, I was very late to masturbation – and that has made me think a lot about female sexuality, and about how the stigma attached to it creates … More I Was Late To Masturbation
The past couple of years since I’ve rebranded as Blogger On Pole have become a whirlwind of chats, meet-ups and binge-reading (or listening) to articles, talks and podcasts by the incredible members of the social media sex-positive communities who are pushing boundaries with their no-stigma, no-bullshit activism in the shape of brilliant content. This community … More Asses & Activism: The Sex-Positive Activists To Follow
The whole pole dancing academic persona might be newsworthy and is definitely working for me, but doing a PhD isn’t the easiest thing in the world. Sure, it has allowed me to find and focus on my area of expertise and to follow my passions both in writing and pole dancing. But should you do … More Should You Do A PhD?
A joint effort among pole dancers across the world, a petition with nearly 20,000 signatures and a request for clarity about algorithms and the shadowban resulted in Facebook and Instagram apologising to pole dancers about censoring their posts on the social network today. This post contains that apology and hopes to shine some light on … More Instagram Apologises To Pole Dancers About The Shadowban
Early this week I emailed Instagram to clarify the reasons behind the shadowban and censorship of pole dancers. Instagram has now come back to me, denying they are censoring pole dancers or sex workers. This post is about what they told me. If you want to read about what this means for social media for pole … More Instagram Denies Censorship of Pole Dancers and Sex Workers
If you follow a pole dancer on Instagram or are friends with one on Facebook, chances are you’ve seen she is fuming about the shadowban this week. Pole dance Facebook groups have been set alight with anger, and even the biggest pole stars have been complaining through their profiles. Why? Because the majority of pole … More What Instagram’s Pole Dance Shadowban Means For Social Media
It’s been an interesting few weeks for womxn in academia. After a few articles and Twitter threads began commenting on the hideous “appropriate dress code” advice we often receive, I thought I’d add my two cents to the debate, essentially to say: “Fuck your dress code for womxn in academia,” through a parade of fantastic … More Why I’m Not Toning Myself Down For Academia
I’d been following Peach Lee Ray on Instagram for a while before I got the chance to perform with her at PD Filthy Friday‘s Halloween showcase last Autumn. At the showcase – and pre-Channel 4 documentary – she put on a fantastic performance to Michael Jackson’s Thriller, inviting the whole crew to dance with her … More Meet The Pole Dancer Changing Everything About Pole Studios: Interview With Peach Lee Ray
If you’ve been reading me/following me for a while, you probably know I get a lot of traffic through Instagram, but that I’m getting increasingly annoyed at the platform’s censoring of (mostly) women, erotic artists and sex workers. After receiving what was basically a set of non-answers by Instagram, I decided to speak to artists that were actually affected by account deletion and shadowbanning – namely, the iconic Exotic Cancer. … More Interview With Artist Exotic Cancer
