My name is Julie Lawrence and I’m a marketing and communications specialist (Bachelor’s of PR) and journalist (BA in Journalism) from the east coast of Canada.

I have worked all over the place, from buttoned-up white collar bureaucratic government departments, to bustling and free wildin’ advertising agencies. Most recently, I was the only female editor of a magazine for women run by middle aged men. Yes, you read that correctly.

No matter the environment, all of my gigs had one thing in common: misogyny. Some was sneakier, some way more blatant, but it was always there, like a dank fog hanging over everything.

I began to realize that my opinion didn’t hold much weight, despite my education, skills and experience. I was constantly interrupted, sexualized, mocked and questioned. I was judged for how I reacted to feedback or conflict. If I didn’t behave exactly how the men around me expected me to, all hell broke loose.

This frustration made me curious and I started researching and writing about misogyny and the ways it infiltrates the workplace. The knowledge gave me power because I realized that I’m not crazy, the patriarchy is set up to keep us women in line. And THAT makes us feel crazy (and mad and sad and outraged).

So, I’m channeling all that into DEFY. It’s a magazine I think women both need and deserve. It’s for women, written by women with the goal of helping you understand why the workplace is the way that it is and what you can do to change it.

I’m always looking for kick ass women to join the team, so feel free to reach out: Julie@defymag.ca