ABOUT
Maya Oppenheim is a journalist and author who lives in East London. Born and bred in Dalston in Hackney, she has not moved very far and is based a stone’s throw from the hospital she was born in. Maya is the former Women's Correspondent at the independent and was the first and only person to have this job title at a UK news outlet before leaving the role to go freelance at the beginning of 2025. in the over six years she worked as the women’s correspondent, she wrote extensively on issues ranging from human rights to sexual violence, domestic abuse, abortion, women’s health, policing, childcare, sex work, poverty, the criminal justice system and more.
Her first book, The Pocket Guide to the Patriarchy, explores these issues and far more across 22 chapters. The book was published by Hatchett on 31 august 2023 and has been endorsed by the Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner, actor Olivia Colman, writer and activist Selma James and leading global human rights organisation Amnesty International, among others. Topics Maya had long been writing about previously deemed marginal have climbed up the political and news agenda, with her helping to set the agenda in this area. As well as writing news, features and investigations exploring national issues, social policy and global stories from a women’s angle, she wrote and curated a popular free women-focused weekly newsletter for The Independent called Independent Women. Prior to working as the Women's Correspondent, she worked on The Independent's News Desk and People Desk, after working as a freelance journalist for Vice, New Statesman, i-D magazine, Buzzfeed, Dazed & Confused, and other publications. She previously completed a Masters degree in Journalism at Goldsmiths University.
Maya is an experienced public speaker - with this spanning from TV, podcast and radio appearances to giving solo talks, chairing and participating in panel discussions, and delivering training sessions.
