Mistresses, Part 1: Meet the Cast

SPOILER ALERT: This post contains information from Season 1, Episodes 1-11 of Mistresses (US), as well as some information from Mistresses (UK). 

Let's begin our social justice and mental health-informed exploration of pop culture with the US television series Mistresses. Based upon a UK series of the same name,  US Mistresses was created by K.J. Steinberg, and stars Alyssa Milano, Jes Macallan, Rochelle Aytes, and Yunjin Kim as four friends who wittingly or unwittingly become "mistresses" in some sense of the term.

Before we go any further, let's unpack some of the impact and connotations of the series' unfortunate name. The word "mistress" can have one of several meanings, ranging from:

Defining the Wires: Age, Disability, and Class 101

I've been struggling with how to most effectively group the remaining 5 major identity variables that make us who we are. I've decided to group together age, disability, and socioeconomic status, as these are core identities that we can often (though not always) visually perceive. Sexual orientation and religious orientation, core identity variables that we usually can't see will make their appearance in the next post.


Age is one of those interesting, fluid identity variables that we experience from numerous perspectives throughout the course of our lives.
Ageism:

• Therefore, is a set of beliefs, attitudes, norms, and values used to justify age-based prejudice, discrimination, and subordination.
• Ageism is predominantly understood as stereotyping of and discrimination against older people--and in many ways, this is how ageism manifests in its most virulent form. 
• However, any system of oppression is the product of prejudice and systemic power, and in the case of age, (in US culture, at least) individuals from the age of about 35-55 experience the most age-related power and privilege.  
• Subsequently, individuals younger than their mid-30s and older than their mid-50s tend to experience the most age-related disempowerment and discrimination (with elders, adolescents, and children bearing the brunt of this)
• Dr. Alison's note: while the physicality and appearance of individuals in their teens and 20s are often valued and coveted by popular culture, in comparison with individuals in their 30s-50s, teens and 20-somethings are often culturally understood as less responsible and less competent, and experience significantly less societal and institutional power. Subsequently, they are included here in the age minority.
• Like any form of oppression, ageism can be conscious and/or unconscious