How often have we seen women show justified anger, even fury and rage, while making public statements, only to have to apologize for it later due to pressure from their peers, the media, and the public? How often have you swallowed your own anger because you know deep down inside that women’s anger is oftentimes seen as unattractive and off-putting? Traister covers a wide scope of social and political change in U.S. history, and how angry women were the catalyst for nearly every movement—abolition, suffrage, workers’ rights, civil rights, LGBTQ rights, et cetera. But she also gives perspective to the #MeToo movement, Time’s Up, the systematic erasure of our accomplishments and voices, and other battles women are fighting today, and tells us how communal, righteous fury can be honed into a tool for change. From how society has recognized and given a platform to men’s anger while demonizing or infantilizing women’s anger, to how women of color’s (especially black women’s) anger is received more harshly than white women’s anger, Good and Mad is an intersectional tribute to angry women. As with Traister’s other works, I left feeling like I wasn’t alone or crazy. Instead, I felt validated, empowered, and fired up!
