Badass Womxn of the Pacific Northwest

by Miranda Everett and Korey Hawkins

Welcome to the Pacific Northwest. We love this area, and wanted to find some badass womxn who helped shape this unique place we like to call home.

One of the birthplaces of the Zine movement was right here in Olympia, Washington. Back in 1991, a girl punk band by the name of Bikini Kill began distributing zines at their shows. Later in this issue, you will find the whole story of Kathleen Hanna, the lead singer of Bikini Kill. This was an outlet for a new wave of feminism in the 1990s, a way to respond to sexism, racism, and homophobia that was experienced in these people’s lives. After a 20 year hiatus, Bikini Kill just made their return to the stage and in the words of Evelyn McDonnell of the New York Times, “…the return of Bikini Kill feels less like a blast from the past and more like a superhero intervention.”

In this issue, we have compiled the stories of many people throughout history as well as modern badasses that have helped make the Pacific Northwest what it is today. You will find people such as Carolyn Shaw Rice, who became the first female Principal at the Washington School in Tacoma and Bertha Lanes, who was the first female Mayor of a major U.S. city (Seattle). Or more modern badasses like Monae “Medusa” Smith, who is known as the “Godmother of hip hop” and Michele Storms, the executive director of the ACLU of Washington and known leader of established racial justice and civil rights organizations in the PNW.

You will find many more stories of the amazing womxn who have helped pave the way for us to continue fighting for what we believe in.  We thought a zine would be an awesome way to pay homage to the creators of the Zine Movement as well as the incredible womxn who helped make the Pacific Northwest the great place it is today.