Inside Broadside
A Decade of Feminist Journalism
Review Excerpts
At the heart of this collection is an intention to give readers a sense of the issues that were important to the (Broadside) collective at the time, and to acknowledge their contribution to the feminist culture that laid the groundwork for the #MeToo movement, among other achievements. In this it largely succeeds.
Dory Czerny, Quill & Quire, January, 2020
Inside Broadside is a meticulously researched and well written historical retrospective of feminist journalism in Canada during the 80’s…Much of the content is like a time capsule into a time which is different and also frighteningly, depressingly unchanged from the ‘Alt-right, alt-truth, misogyny filled political dystopia’ we wake up in every day…I found this an engaging and immersive read on its own merits, but it would also make a good selection in an academic setting as a support text for many courses such as contemporary history, political history, North American/Canadian history, gender studies, etc.
Reviewed by Nonstop Reader Blog, December 8, 2019
This collection contains a range of articles by famous and less famous feminists and shows by inclusion of readers’ comments the impact the newspaper had on its chosen audience. Collections of ephemera have a built-in challenge of relevance; do they mainly highlight issues still unsolved, or do they show how issues relevant at the time of writing have been consigned to antiquity? This publication strikes a good balance in this regard not least because many of the voices are still alive and well: Gloria Steinem and Margaret Atwood, for example, will be familiar to non-feminist and non-Canadian audiences…
Jane Hale, New York Journal of Books, January 24, 2020
The voices lack in diversity, as (editor Phil Masters) and others make clear, but despite its limitations, Inside Broadside is nonetheless a rich collection of ideas, as thought-provoking now as they were when they were written. The distance of time means that certain debates and issues can be recognized as historically significant, such as…feminist demands to strengthen the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Other challenges tackled by Broadside remain only too pertinent: sex work, the prison system, judges’ pronouncements about sexual violence and the rise of the new right…The combination of incisive and impassioned critique with plenty of humour makes for lively reading.
Liz Millward, Herizons Magazine, Fall, 2020