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| Still from "Break The Box" |
I do not envy young women growing up in this generation. In
part, some of it is positive, although let me preface this blog by saying that it is 2014 and a shame that we even need these efforts in the first place... but sadly we do and I'm glad that there are some great companies promoting feminism
and being a strong woman. There is “always” with the commercials about “
What does it mean when someone says “like a girl.”” In this brilliant commercial
they ask little girls to throw, run, and kick like a girl… and they give it
their all. Then they ask adolescent women to do the same thing… and they act
weak or insulting… Their whole point being when does “like a girl” become an
insult?
That is awesome.
Then there is Verizon, with their whole
#InspireHerMind, showing us what happens when we do not allow girls to be curious about the sciences, and things that boys are "supposed" to be into. They slowly become disinterested
in the subjects altogether! We, as a society, are discouraging women from
entering any type of field that is “meant for a man.” Watching this commercial
actually made me depressed… because I know this one is a hard subject to
approach and one that may not change anytime soon. Regardless, it is nice to
see some companies trying.
Another great commercial is the Texas Association Against
Sexual Assault –
Break The Box. This one tries to challenge all gender
stereotypes – it’s great! It’s really well put together and makes me want to
make a change when I see it.
These are all great things and are very powerful messages that hopefully will take effect... BUT and this is a big but… we have all these great efforts
in conjunction with really, really negative stereotypes. What makes it worse is
that it is becoming normal to use these “bitch” stereotypes. I was perusing
Facebook one day and came across a quiz that most of my friends have taken
entitled “How bitchy are you?” WTF?
I took this quiz just to see what they
thought would qualify (as if there is anything that would actually give
validation for calling someone this) someone as a bitch. It was simple things
like getting angry at traffic, flagging down a waiter/waitress after 10 minutes
of not being noticed, someone cutting in line… Are you trying to tell me that
my genitalia is sufficient enough that if I get angry at normal stuff like this
– the annoying things that EVEN MEN get angry at – that I would be considered a
bitch if I actually voiced my anger???
If that were not enough, I saw this on a blog – E!
Entertainment actually had an actual award for this category on television. “Best Baddie and
Bitch.” If I were an evil man I would just be slapped on the wrist and called a
“Baddie” or even be idolized… but as a woman I am a “bitch?”
When did this term
become normalized enough to use in frequent social media outlets and awards? Why
is there blatant double standards still in existence?
It’s no wonder that it’s become more and more difficult for
women to be themselves… we are getting mixed signals everywhere! If we so much
as show an emotion other than grateful happiness we are automatically forsaken and thrown into a negative category!
This indeed is a confusing time to grow up and I really hope that girls will be smarter than advertisers and side with those that are actually promoting their well-being, otherwise the inequality will continue to grow. So please, stop promoting negative stereotypes and STOP BEING OKAY with it! It's NOT okay to discriminate against women in this way, especially when it's used as a double standard.
