Looking Sideways: 10 Things
Here's are this week's ten things I thought were worth sharing
1. My latest episode of Type 2 with actor and trans activist Brix Schaumburg. As Germany’s most high profile trans actor, Brix has become a focal point for the conversation around trans rights and issues of gender. This scenario has led him to a form of gently provocative trans activism, in which he has used his platform to position himself as a ‘filter and buffer’, a lens through which to explore these topics with a thoughtful generosity and playfulness.
I think this really comes across in our conversation, which is extremely nuanced and thought-provoking. As usual in Type 2, we talked about Brix’s life and career but really we spoke about themes that everybody can recognise: especially the gap between our inner and public-facing selves, and how reconciling these two poles really constitutes the work of everybody’s life.
I enjoyed our conversation very much, and as is the case in the best exchanges, I learned a lot about the issues generally and, more importantly, my own relationship to the conventions and gender boundaries that invisibly govern our lives. Click here to listen.
2. Related to one of the issues we discussed - this piece by the Guardian’s Sean Ingle is typically clear-eyed on the latest developments regarding trans participation in elite sport and the implication of the Lia Thomas controversy. Click here to read it. And I also found the latest episode of The Science of Sport, in which presenter Ross Tucker also discusses Lia Thomas, to be an interesting take on the issues. Listen here.
3. Also related - I’ve been enjoying this brilliant series by Jon Ronson about the distant origins of the culture wars. The latest episode about the etymology of the term ‘TERF’ is fascinating. Click here to listen.
4. Related - British historian David Olusoga on why historians have unwittingly found themselves at the frontline of the culture war in the UK. Read the article here.
5. As part of my work as a member of the Natural Selection selection committee, I’ve been watching as many of this season’s new snowboarding releases as I can, and I’ve been loving watching Spencer O’Brien’s evolution into boundary-pushing backcountry rider. Watch ‘Ma̱lx̱tłu’g̱a, her latest part, above.
6. One of my favourite gigs of the last few years has been working on the magnificent independent snowboarding book Curator with my pal Tassilo Hagar.
When Taz told me he’d decided to park this year’s volume because he was working on ‘something different’, I was, naturally, a little bit gutted.
Until, that is, I saw what he’d been working on: which is SNOWBOARDING MAKES ME HAPPY, a brilliant children’s book about the life-changing possibilities of snowboarding.
Once again I was privileged to work as editor on this project, and it truly is a wondrous, wide-eyed piece of work. It’s now available to order in German, English and French through this link and I highly recommend it if you want to inspire any kids in your life.
7. New from Patagonia - Vanishing Lines, in which snow ambassadors Lena Stoffel and Mitch Tölderer explore the damage being done to the natural environment as ski resorts continue to expand into ever wilder areas. Watch the film above.
8. I know nothing about horse racing. But, like the story on institutional racism in cricket I shared a few weeks back, this story about the bullying of jockey Bryony Frost by fellow jockey Robbie Dunne is really about power shifts in society, and what happens when two contrasting cultures collide in the workplace. She’s a brave woman - read this article to find out more.
9. Love this from Graystone Action Sports - how skateboarding helps young skater Tilly deal with her dyspraxia diagnosis. Click here to watch the film (and here to find out more about the condition).
10. And now….relax with Partie, an ode to snowsurfing by my friends at Konvoi Snowboards. Watch it above. Merry Christmas!