EILEEN ADLER

Krista Suh, a Hollywood screenwriter whose inspired creation of a bright pink “pussy hat” became a symbol of the Women’s March on January 21, 2017, believes that the revolution is really about “women helping each other.” Krista Suh teaches us to trust our instincts, for they are important. We must squish – be gone! - those negative messages like I am not good enough! (we might ask who is rating us?) swirling around in our heads. Good enough is good enough. We are enough – we are good enough. Krista Suh implores us to take care of ourselves – it is a choice and one we need to make. Her goal is to empower women to know themselves, put their power into positive action, and to invite women to live their best lives, speaking up fearlessly, uncovering our passions and pursing them.

Krista Suh differentiates self-care from self-help and states that both are especially important, but self-help is diametrically different from self-case. Self-help is based on a set of prescribed solutions instructing people seeking their own individual improvement. For example, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a twelve-step program setting up guidelines to recover from an addiction, compulsive behaviors, or behavioral problems. When the problem is so out of control, a different code of behavior must be installed, and structured programs are invaluable.

Krista and her co-creator Jayna Zweiman, are none other than the idea behind the design of that ubiquitous pink “pussy hat” that was witnessed for the first time the day after the U.S. presidential inauguration in 2017. The actual hat pattern was designed by Cat Coyle, owner of the Little Knittery yarn store in Los Angeles, CA, with artist Aurora Lady who created the illustrations. As half a million marched in Washington, DC, a sea of pink was witnessed; a hat that represents the symbolic women banding together to effect change, power, and creativity, but that was the tip of the iceberg for millions upon millions marched all over the world - five million people participated worldwide on all seven continents! The Pussy Hat Movement was much more than an adorable knitted pink cat hat, for it symbolized the empowerment of women to feel free to speak out. Krista’s idea was rebuffed by so many, but she persevered, she never gave up, and, maybe the most amazing part is that from idealization to movement took six days, begun on November 12, 2017! As she contemplated attending the march in January, quipping that attending naked would make a statement, but knowing that it would be cold was not a great idea, she opted instead for a hat – such a simple realization – but what resulted was anything but simple. 

   Suh, Krista and illustrated by Aurora Lady. DIY Rules for a WTF World: How to Speak Up, Get                Creative, and Change the World. 2018. New York: Grand Central Publishing, Hachette Book Group,         Inc.