Come out of the closet, ladies

A comics-reading friend asked me recently about the degree to which I'm willing to read comics in public. I told him that most of my public comics reading occurs on Wednesdays, because that's when they are between the store and my house, and it happens almost exclusively a) on the subway, or b) in a pedicure chair at the nail salon next to Forbidden Planet. While I certainly feel a twinge of embarrassment about it, it's not enough to keep me from doing it when I need to read something and I have comics in my purse. Also, I don't think that I really telegraph "stereotypical superhero comics reader" (for at least one obvious reason), so I actually take a little bit of pride in subtly being like "SHATTER YOUR BIASES, ONLOOKERS".

Anyway, with these themes in mind, Brian Heater has established Read Comics In Public Day, which is this Saturday, August 28 (Jack Kirby's birthday). And with Read Comics In Public Day in mind, the DC Women Kicking Ass blog has created a Tumblr called Women Read Comics in Public, which will post submitted pictures of women reading comics in public. So, ladies: please take pictures of yourself reading comics in public, and submit them! Or non-ladies, please take pictures of you and your female friends and loved ones and submit them! Or go out on Saturday and take pictures of female strangers reading comics in public and apologize and submit them!

The benefits of this public pride are kind of obvious, but the blogs linked above make the most compelling arguments, so I encourage reading them if you need convincing. And of course if you are not able to insert any ladies into the equation, still read a comic in public this Saturday and feel free to submit a pic to Brian's blog, because he's posting them too.