Alaina Leary

Alaina Leary

Bio

Alaina Leary is an editor and activist based in Boston, MA. She is currently a social media editor for We Need Diverse Books. She has an MA in publishing from Emerson College. When she isn’t busy reading, you can find her at the beach or curled up with her girlfriend and their two adopted literary cats.

Alaina Leary Articles

Ways to dress like every day is Halloween!

15 Ways To Dress Like Every Day Is Halloween

The best part about Halloween is having free rein to dress a little whimsically and spooky all month long. Let's all dress like every day is Halloween!

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Did my mom feel alone, as if she were blamed for what happened to her? Like nobody could understand what she was dealing with?

After My Mom Died, Drinking Made Me Feel Closer To Her

When my mom died, I made a list of things that made me similar to her: My favorite color was purple, I liked to write, I loved reading, I adored cats, I didn’t wear makeup, my favorite soda was Pepsi, I lived in oversized sweaters. I was 11, so I didn’t add “I love to drink” to the list, but it crosses my mind now whenever I’m at a bar with friends, and I decide to order a cocktail.

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" The future of ending rape culture is intersectional and inclusive. There’s no other way forward."

We Need To Remember Disability When We Talk About Sexual Assault

In the aftermath of my rape, I became an activist for ending rape culture. And I quickly found that even in feminist circles, disability was often left out of the conversation completely.

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If you’re not currently poor, low-income, or broke, here’s what you can do this summer to support your friends and family members who might be.

How To Include Your Poor & Broke Friends This Summer

If you’re not currently poor, low-income, or broke, here’s what you can do this summer to support your friends and family members who might be.

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It’s helpful if you talk to your disabled loved ones to see what works for them.

How To Support Your Disabled Loved Ones This Holiday Season  

It’s helpful if you talk to your disabled loved ones to see what works for them. My family and friends have always been great at figuring out accessibility.

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Image credit: Christopher Flynn via Unsplash

Navigating The Trauma Of Moving

Moving can be a traumatic experience. We often forget how many remnants of the past we hold onto—whether intentionally or accidentally, just because we put a letter away in a drawer and forgot about it.

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The author pictured with their glitter cane. Follow them on IG @alainaskeys

Learning To Love My Sparkly Purple Cane

I’ve walked the line between visibly and invisibly disabled my entire life.

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Doniga Markegard Is Teaching People How To Be More Wild

Doniga Markegard teaches at a wilderness school instructor, and it’s important to her that her own kids learn about nature and wildlife.

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Watching People Go Back To School Is Bittersweet Now That I’ve Graduated

September, for the first time in many years, wasn’t the start of any new beginnings. I’ve been in some form of school — general education in public schools, then an undergraduate degree, and then a graduate degree — since I was in preschool.

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Alaina Leary

How I Discovered I’m Asexual And What That Means To Me

I didn't use the word "asexual" until I was a senior in college. I didn't so much use the word as slur it, in between a long drunken ramble, to my girlfriend and our best friend in our apartment's small kitchen.

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