Meet the CB team: Meg Reynolds

Meet the Clitbait Team: an interview with Meg Reynolds, our Environmental Editor…

Name, Pronouns and Role:

Meg Reynolds (they/them), Environmental Editor

Fun fact:

I love cooking but I am awful at following recipes so if I make (and by make I mean improvise) something really tasty, then it’s never a guarantee that I’ll be able to make it again. It does make for an interesting variety in meals though!

What does intersectional feminism mean to you?

Intersectional feminism is an important acknowledgement that systems of oppression all overlap and interact. As someone passionate about all sorts of social justice, animal rights and environmental issues, the need for intersectionality is a vital reminder that in order to achieve true liberation from oppression, we must achieve liberation for everyone under all systems of oppression. To me it means compassion for all beings and understanding that everyone has their own place, and knowing that everyone has the right to play a part in their own life, activism and liberation.

What is your favourite thing about Clitbait?

I think Clitbait is a fab community! A place to be listened to and to hear a whole range of diverse voices, to be uplifted and to uplift others, and to encounter ideas and experiences that are new and important. It’s a space that I feel completely at ease and welcome, and no doubt makes others feel the same. I’m really looking forward to being a part of such a wonderful bunch of humans.

What inspires you?

I find reading or watching things by or about marginalised activists really inspires me, especially if I’m feeling hopeless or overwhelmed. Reading about figures like Audre Lorde, Marsha P Johnson, Wangari Maathai, Indya Moore and Rachel Carson, and watching things like Pride, reminds me that collectively, determinedly and compassionately we can make real difference in the lives of individuals and groups. I also love reading fiction, being absorbed completely by somebody else’s story. I love having the chance to feel what a character feels and to learn about perspectives different to my own, as well as seeing the ways in which people carve out spaces for themselves. I hope one day to write fiction myself and add another voice to the chorus that books provide us with.

What things do you do outside Clitbait that you are proud of?

Something that has always stirred up anger and quite a bit of passion in me are the issues of poverty and homelessness in the UK. Since moving to Edinburgh I have volunteered with The Big Issue, learning more about how it works and getting to know the people and the stories that make up the population of Big Issue vendors in the city. 

A guilty feminist confession?

If I were to have kids, I’d really love to be a stay-at-home parent. Ideally I’d be a writer, and I’d get to work from home, spending most of my time with my kids. 

A personal feminist triumph?

For a very long time I’ve struggled with severe anxiety, and closely tied with that is the feeling that I’m not very good at anything, and that I need to just be quiet about my opinions because they’re wrong and bad. For me, applying for different roles since being at uni – this Clitbait role, a position on the committee at Sexpression Edinburgh, and a few other things – has been a huge triumph, as it’s an admission to myself that maybe my voice deserves to be heard, and that I can be valued, that I don’t just need to hide away. It’s definitely difficult, and I often feel very exposed and like I just want to crawl back into my shell, but to continuously be letting myself do work in roles like this one feels like an ongoing personal and feminist triumph, breaking out of my anxiety and all the socialisation that tells me to be quiet because my opinions are bad.