Libby Chamberlain

Shortly before the election last November, my mother, who is far more present on Facebook than her two twenty-something daughters, shared with us that she had recently joined a Facebook group called Pantsuit Nation. Needless to say, Laura and I were most intrigued – we had all become a bit “news obsessed,” watching the media circus known as Decision 2016 and knew of both our mom’s, and Hillary Clinton’s, obsession with pantsuits.

My mother has worn her power suit for pretty much my entire life as she worked in just about every facet of public education, first for the state of Pennsylvania, and now on a national level. The idea of standing with Hillary in a pantsuit, appealed greatly to our mother’s sensibilities, it was a natural thing for her to do anyway, but for Laura and me, we didn’t usually dress in the power suit vein. But Mom invited Laura and me to the private Facebook group anyway, knowing there was little chance we’d don the garb, but we would enjoy the stories.

And the stories, oh the stories shared in that Facebook group that are now published in print in Pantsuit Nation. They made us smile, they made us cry, they made us angry, and they made us realize that we are not alone. And most importantly, the stories, coming from people off absolutely all walks of life, made us realize that voting for Hillary went so much deeper than wanting a woman in office. Voting for Hillary meant exercising our human right to vote, our human right to stand up to oppression, and our human right to be heard together as one voice, regardless of race, religion, gender identity, etc.

So, should you pick up a copy of Pantsuit Nation? Well, let’s see: Do you feel lost and hopeless in America’s current political climate? Do you need some inspiration and hope? Do you appreciate the power of collective story telling? Is your heart open to change and being inspired by the unexpected? Then yes. Yes, you should.… (meer)

I find books derived from internet things pretty hit or miss, but surprisingly Pantsuit Nation works well. I remember being highly skeptical when I saw Libby's initial post about how stories were going to be published (is she getting permission? Who profits? etc.) but with a platform, you can do good, and I'm glad to see the secret Facebook event has grown into a blend of online engagement via storytelling and activism.

The book itself is laid out chronologically, and vignettes & photos are formatted beautifully- amazing what happens when content is pulled out of the FB format. From the note at the end, it sounds like users submitted their own posts for physical publication, and people are credited appropriately as they wish (some people with just a name & a state, others with their full name, etc.)

What's missing is the engagement derived from being posts in the group- it's hard to have subthreads and dialogues in an organized way in vignettes, I suppose. Great snapshots for people who are FB averse, though.… (meer)

I wanted to read this book, even though before I started I figured I had probably already read most of it via the Facebook group posts, and even though I (correctly) predicted that I wouldn’t enjoy reading the book as much as I did finding one timely post after another in the group. There are still new posts being frequently posted.

It turned out that I had missed reading or don’t remember reading a fair number of posts chosen for inclusion in the book.

I’d joined the group before the election and the mood there was excited and lighthearted. Since Election Day it’s been more of a support group, but the posts continue to be heartwarming, inspirational, and worth reading, though I miss reading most of what’s posted. There is just too much to take the time to read. The group is more fun and enjoyable than the book partly because I get more from them when I read the posts one by one, even if I sometimes read a bunch in a row. I enjoy the stories & photos and I’m grateful that the group exists.

For those who are members of Facebook I recommend following some of the group posts.

For those who are not Facebook members and cannot access the group’s posts, read the book. People’s stories & photos are worth reading/viewing. It’s uplifting to read about others’ struggles, triumphs, and their resistance. I love the inclusiveness and collective (short story) storytelling and wonderful photos. I like that so many members of marginalized groups, often scorned by the current administration, are speaking up and telling their stories and the stories of family members. The participants are a true melting pot of people of various genders, relationships, religions, races, and ages, abilities/disabilities, individuals, couples, families, friends, simply telling their truths.

I also realize that one reason the group’s posts resonate with me more than those in the book is because one of the great things about the group is how each post gets different types of “likes” and many comments, and often those add immeasurably to the original posts. I love seeing the support the posters get and love giving it too. I’ve never posted in the group and have rarely commented, but I do enjoy liking, loving, sad facing, angry facing, etc. people I want to support.

When I joined the group I think there were maybe 100,000 people in it. (I don’t remember the exact number; I wish that I did.) Now there are nearly 4 million people in it. I’m so glad that it continued on past election day!:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/pantsuitnation/… (meer)