Happy birthday Jos!

We told you the Feministing birthdays just keep coming this week!

Yesterday, my co-Executive Director Jos Truitt celebrated hers.

Since she joined the Feministing crew in 2009, Jos has not only been tirelessly covering trans issues but also pushing the feminist movement’s gender analysis forward–from calling for a nuanced theory of gendered violence to a trans-inclusive way of talking about abortion politics. Though there’s certainly a long way to go, there’s no question that Jos’s sharp, thoughtful analysis has been profoundly influential–both around these parts and within online feminism at large. Personally, I can think of few other modern feminist thinkers who have strengthened and deepened my own feminism as much as Jos has. Plus, her pop culture writing is consistently some of my favorite. And in my book, you don’t get so much hate from both Fox News viewers and rad fems unless you’re doing something really, really right. 

Some fun facts about Jos: She didn’t identify as a feminist when she was younger, on account of the whole being raised as a Christian fundamentalist anti-choicer. But, as she’s noted before, her love of Buffy started early and laid the groundwork. Last year, she cut back a bit on blogging to focus on making beautiful Little Mermaid-inspired art in grad school. (She is pretty obsessed with mermaids.) And as I learned this summer at our retreat, when she introduced me to slow poached eggs, she’s a terrific cook. (I’m putting in an order for her famous apple pie with cheddar crust right now.)

I am thankful every day that I get to work with Jos to make this blog and this world better. Show her some love on Twitter.

Maya Dusenbery is President of the Jos Truitt Fan Club.