The War on Cars21 Sep 2021

The E-Bike Radicalization of Jessica Valenti

Jessica Valenti, the noted feminist writer, was curious about e-bikes. So, as one does, she posted a question about them to Twitter. Thus began her path to radicalization. After buying an e-bike of her own, she quickly found how life-changing it was — a not uncommon feeling among the converted. A lifelong New Yorkers, Jessica found that riding an e-bike changed her perspective on the city and offered her new insight on being a woman in public space. In this spirited and far-reaching conversation, Jessica talks about e-bikes as vehicles of feminist empowerment, means of escaping harassment and good plain fun. Plus, we dig into history and discuss the similarities between the "resting bitch face" of today and the "bicycle face" of the late 1800s.

***This episode was sponsored in part by our friends at Cleverhood. For 20% off of stylish, functional rain gear designed specifically for walking and cycling, enter coupon code BANCARS at checkout now through November 1st.***

Support The War on Cars on Patreon and get cool stickers, access to exclusive bonus content and more.

***Get tickets for The War on Cars: Live in New York! Tuesday, November 2nd at Caveat in Manhattan.***

SHOW NOTES:

Learn more about Jessica Valenti. (JessicaValenti.com)

Thanks to riding an e-bike, Jessica Valenti's road rage "has ascended." (Twitter)

"Bicycle face": a 19th-century health problem made up to scare women away from biking. (Vox)

Check out the work of Bekka Wright, the artist also known as "Bikeyface. (Bikeface)

Episode 7: Nice Legs, Dude (The War on Cars)

Get official War on Cars merch at our store.

Read up with books from The War on Cars library at Bookshop.org.

Follow, rate and review us on iTunes.

This episode was edited by Ali Lemer and engineered by Josh Wilcox at the Brooklyn Podcasting Studio. Our music is by Nathaniel Goodyear. Our logo is by Dani Finkel of Crucial D.

Email us: thewaroncars@gmail.com

TheWarOnCars.org

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(255)

Running the Chicago Transit Authority with Nora Leerhsen

Since 2025, Nora Leerhsen has served as the acting president of the Chicago Transit Authority, the second-largest transit system in the United States and an indelible icon of the city. She is the firs...

6 Okt 55min

PREVIEW: Ashik Jain, the Bicycle Mayor of One of India's Fastest Growing Cities

***This is a preview of a Patreon-exclusive bonus episode. For complete access to this and all of our bonus content, plus ad-free versions of regular episodes, merch discounts, presale tickets to live...

29 Sep 10min

Fighting for Federal Transportation Dollars with Mike McGinn

How will the United States spend $580 billion in federal funds for transportation over the next five years? That's the question facing Congress right now, as it's time once again for the transportatio...

22 Sep 46min

Fine, We're Doing a Helmet Episode

After New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani posted a social media video showing him listening to concerned citizens and deciding to wear a bicycle helmet, social media exploded. Some people praised the m...

8 Sep 1h 26min

PREVIEW: What Bicycles Can Do for Cities, via Velo-city 2026

25 Aug 11min

Let's Get Political [Re-release]

***We're taking a quick summer break this week so we're releasing this recent Patreon bonus episode into the general feed. We hope you enjoy it as a taste of what you can get if you sign up to support...

18 Aug 1h 6min

Human Transit with Jarrett Walker

Jarrett Walker's career has been dedicated to improving the quality of public transit in the United States and beyond. A specialist in bus network design, he has led transit planning projects around N...

4 Aug 56min