What do Mariah Carey and Gloria Steinem have in common? Both are big fans of Raquel Willis. The writer and activist is the communications director at the Ms. Foundation—founded in the ‘70s by Ms. Steinem herself—and was recently featured in Save the Day, a new song by Ms. Mariah that celebrates Breonna Taylor, John Lewis, the pandemic’s essential workers, and more frontline heroes.

“It’s a wild thing to happen,” says Raquel, who was honored for her work within the feminist and Black Trans communities. “But to be honest, I haven’t had much time to celebrate it, even though I love Mariah Carey so much. Because… well… there’s just so much to do!”

Here’s how Raquel is tackling big issues like systemic racism (and small issues like matcha lattes) as she helps guide the Ms. Foundation through this crucial time.

You’re at a party and someone says, “What do you do?” How do you answer?
I say, “I’m a writer, I’m an activist, and I’m the director of communications for the Ms. Foundation.” Those first two labels are so general, people are like, “Oookay, everyone says they’re a writer; everyone’s an activist now.” Those words have been diluted in a sense. So the peg is an interest in the Ms. Foundation and that work. And I say, “We’re the oldest public foundation that’s focused on the leadership of women in social justice movements in this country!” Because many people don’t realize, in a time when there are more people claiming the “feminist” label than ever before, how legendary this is.

You’ve worked at Out magazine, been the face of Express, spoken at the Women’s March, and you have a new book coming out. People must offer you jobs all the time! How do you decide what opportunities are actually a good fit for you?
The first thing for me is assessing whether a space, a group, or an opportunity is in line with my values, specifically values around an expansive idea of equality! Of course making sure the lens on gender or race, ability, class, all of these different things is in line with my own values. So that’s important. Then I’m looking at the track record of an organization.

What are the good and bad things about joining an organization with so much history?
The thing about the Ms. Foundation is that it’s in line with my values and it’s been open to evolution, too. There’s an interesting story, a larger collective story, that our foundation connects to in terms of this journey of feminism. Yeah, you can look back and say, “Maybe every woman didn’t quite see themselves in this space when it was founded.” Because four amazing women created it, but they were all very similar and certainly all white women. But there’s been a consistent effort at the core to grow around analysis, to grow around the type of leadership that’s being supported, and a path was laid to get to the point now where we name, specifically, that we’re centering the leadership and girls of color. Everyone can tap into it. And that’s huge.

How do you speak with people who are afraid of using the word “feminist?”
You know what’s interesting? My mom is the first feminist I ever knew or observed. And she does not even, to this day, identify as a feminist! Even after hearing me speak a million times! Reading my work! Talking to me! Her analysis and her lens is there but the language? That’s not the tool for her to get involved and understand her experience. So I actually think that moments when we go back to spending time with our families, when we’re having critical conversations about identity, reminds us that the work is ongoing. Even when we think we have all the language and tools, it doesn’t necessarily mean what we’re doing is resonating. And that’s the ongoing struggle of being committed to equality.

Thanksgiving is coming up, and there seem to be two schools of thought: cut people out of your life who have views you find abhorrent, or embrace them and try to make them see things from a different perspective. Which do you suggest?
Yeah, this all-or-nothing belief…

It’s from Twitter. Sorry.
Ha! Lots of tough things on Twitter. Look, I would say, we all have to figure out what our lane is, and that means understanding which conversations and relationships we’re willing and able to hold. For me, I’m not as interested in bridging the gap between my progressivism and another person’s ignorance. That is not the space I feel called to, but I know people who are. And that’s the quagmire, right?… People’s approaches are going to be different. But fundamentally, let’s agree what truly respecting another person’s dignity means when they’re different from you.

Right.
What’s helpful for folks is to think critically about their position in the world, right? We are all capable of being oppressed. We are all capable of being oppressive to others too, right? So think critically about your placement and you’ll be able to figure out what platform, power, and privilege you can leverage to make the world better for those further on the margins.

You appear on broadcast media all the time, and you look amazing. What’s your tip for a quick touch-up before a Zoom call or livestream?
The biggest beauty tip is a ring light if you don’t want to wear makeup. That makes things cute. Get that and make sure the “Touch Up My Appearance” filter is on! I would say a quick concealer moment—the Rare Beauty concealer from Selena Gomez is really good! I’ll put my hair up into a cute pineapple. That works. And I’ll throw on a quick romper. I believe that you should be dressed head to toe, even if only some of your outfit is in the frame. You still want a whole outfit.

Are you a coffee person?
I am tea girl! In my home region of the South, it’s definitely super sweet iced tea! But in general, I love a matcha latte if I’m out and about, with oat milk and a little bit of honey.

What are you watching right now?
Schitt’s Creek. I finally got into the groove. I love This Is Us and I’m glad it’s back. I watched The Haunting of Bly Manor, and that was really good! I really loved it! And then off-and-on, I’ve been watching those early Millennial Black sitcoms like Girlfriends, Moesha, The Parkers…

What should we be watching right now?
I would say two things. Last night, PBS released a documentary called Not Done. It’s about the last 5 years of feminism. And I’m in it, but don’t just watch it because I’m in it! Watch it because it really tied all these branches of feminism together, from #MeToo to The Women’s March to Trans Equality to the movement for Black Lives—all of those things! Watch it. Then check out our report called Pocket Change. It’s about how organizations led by women and girls of color aren’t getting the same amount of funding and resources as other organizations, and what we can do—what we need to do—to help.