Short Post for 3/22

The Globetrotting Sneaker

Aside from opening my eyes to the injustice that these Asian women face in order to make a living, this chapter made me appreciate the fact that women like me in the United States generally have so much more of a choice in their life compared to those women in Asia. It seems like many of them are working in these factories because it’s one of the only ways that they can make money to support themselves and their families. And these jobs are not even good enough to do that but there is no better option available to them. When I put myself in the place of a girl my age but living in poverty in Indonesian, I realize how hard it must be to get up and go to such a miserable job every day; I’m sure none of them ever dreamed of working on a sneaker factory or consider it a fulfilling career. It makes me feel guilty that I complain about getting up to go to class in the morning. Obviously I’m in a much better situation so I shouldn’t take that for granted. I also have basically an unlimited choice of what I want to do as a career, where I want to work, and I don’t have to support my parents or children at this point. I feel like everything about my life situation is the opposite of most of the women described in this chapter.
I never realized that Confucian philosophy worked against these women through the belief that that “a woman’s morality [is judged by] her willingness to work hard for her family’s well-being and to acquiesce to her father’s and husband’s dictates” (46). It’s a tough issue because if we were to ask those women to reject that notion, then we are telling them to reject their religion, something important to who they each are as individuals. However, most of these women probably grew up in a family that taught Confucianism and never thought of challenging their religion and thinking about what they truly believe.

Safe Keepers and Wage Earners

I see that Shyam is writing about her own personal experiences and giving us her perspective on how South Asian women in America are expected to have full-time demanding jobs as well as maintain their homes and take care of their families. However, I don’t think that this is as issue faced only by South Asian women. I think it is present in women of all cultures in America today. My mother worked until I was seven when my family moved for my dad’s job. Today I can see that even though my mom doesn’t work at a paying job, she still has a lot of responsibilities. I also feel like I am getting this great education and I want to have a successful career, but I also want to have a family and I don’t want to/might not be able to rely on help from other people. Shyam seems to claim that what makes life even more demanding on South Asian women is that they are expected to pass on religion and tradition to their children. Maybe this requires more effort and active work for her, but I see that women of all cultures, as well as men, actively pass on traditions and religion to their children.
In the second half of her chapter she talks about how women in corporate jobs are stereotyped and many leave work or opt for less-demanding positions in order to fulfill family responsibilities. I totally see what she means. My dad works at a company similar to the one she describes and from what I hear from my dad, there are far fewer female partners in his firm than men. I also think that men might feel more comfortable working with other men because they think similarly and have more in common. So a man choosing between a man or a woman for promotion may unconsciously (or consciously) choose the man because he feels more comfortable working with him. He may also suspect that a man is in the job for the long-haul and therefore favor the man over the woman who might possibly leave the firm within a few years to spend more time taking care of her children.

Short Post 3/8

Paula Ettelbrick makes some very interesting points in her article, Since When is Marriage a Path to Liberation?  Ettelbrick is challenging the institution of marriage and arguing that gays fighting for legalized marriage rights are fighting to be considered the same as a heterosexual relationship.  This is interesting because from Andrea Vaccaro’s chapter in Leading the Way, we understand Andrea’s reasons for wanting to be married.  Andrea wants to be able to become married to her partner for all the reasons a straight man would want to marry his girlfriend.  She points out the 1,000 federal benefits that gays are not subjected to because they are not legally married.  Ettelbrick makes the argument that legalizing marriage for gays will not stop the oppression gays face from oppressors.  She makes a really strong argument by pointing out that everyone in the United States strives to be “normal” and instead of fighting for marriage, continue to fight for equal treatment and zero discrimination for gays from all parties.

Michelle’s youtube link reminded me of the movie The Kids Are Alright.  In the movie, Annette Bening and Julianne Moore play a lesbian couple married with two children born with the aid of a sperm donor.  The kids find out who their biological father is and want to meet him.  He starts off as an immature, irresponsible guy who first says, “I love lesbians” when he finds out that the children has lesbian mothers.  The sperm donor, Mark Ruffalo begins to enjoy the responsibility of a family and spending time with the children and the mothers.  When I first heard of the movie I thought it was about a lesbian couple.  However, after watching it I realized the movie was about family.  Just like Zach from the youtube video, who preached he was a normal guy and is doing quite well for himself.  I do not understand why parents who are alcoholics and significantly impact their children’s lives are allowed to be parents, but a lesbian couple, like in the movie, face backlash from people who are concerned that the kids will grow up impacted solely on the idea of having lesbian/gay parents.  Annette Bening and Julianna Moore play a role that is similar to the gay couple on Modern Family.  All relationships have problems and all of those problems are going to be different depending on race, class, sexuality, age, religion and much more.

The government should not be able to tell people who can and cannot get married.  Giving the rights to legalized marriage to all is not going to have a negative impact on the country.  It seems so barbaric to try to control who is allowed the privileges of married life.  I really enjoyed how Ettelbrick went beyond the idea of marriage making homosexuals equal to heterosexuals.  Oppression does not stop just by making laws.  Based on out many class discussions, we know that people are still oppressed by race, class, age, gender and everything else that is different from the white, Christian, middle-class, male.  Marriage for all needs to be fought for and that would be an influential changing in our society for the better.

Long Post 3/8

The Reading “Soldier in a Long White Dress” by Andrea E. Vaccaro details the struggles involved in the fight for same sex marriage. I really appreciated this look into the hurdles that must be passed as a heterosexual I would never have thought about some of the problems Vaccaro encountered. She starts telling her story with an anecdote about going with her father to buy a wedding dress to wear to a protest. She talks about the way that she was immediately assumed to be a heterosexual woman planning a wedding. This assumption is created because in America same-sex marriage is not legal. The only option for same-sex couple is a civil union, which falls short of being equivalent to marriage in many ways. The hardship that must be faced by a young women activist includes oppression from many sides. Vaccaro had to face resistance due to her youth, homosexuality as well as her being a woman. The fact that there is this much opposition makes Vaccaro’s achievements even more outstanding. Her devotion to that cause of same sex marriage began in High School when she headed and Gay Straight alliance group and organized a day of silence. When she went to college she took leadership roles in several activist groups then opened a chapter for Marriage Equality USA in New Jersey. What is really amazing is the perseverance that she displayed even in the face of apathy coming from the surrounding community. It seems that at every turn in this battle there was another surprise making the fight more difficult. The protest rally that she discusses in detail shows how much Vaccaro cared about this topic. She would let nothing stop her from trying to spread the message and gain visibility. It is sad that after this much passion and devotion Vaccaro and her partner had to settle for a civil union rather than a marriage. She discusses the ways in which accepting this is difficult because while it is a celebration of their love by getting a civil union it is in some ways supporting the restrictions against same-sex marriage.

Same-Sex FAQs is a useful document for anyone to read in order to gain some knowledge to have intelligent conversations about the same-sex marriage debate. The list of rights that are enjoyed by married couple that are therefore denied same-sex couples is really eye opening. It is absolutely crazy to think that a couple that has spent there entire lives together would not be able to automatically make medical decisions for their partner or live with them in nursing home. There is no basis on which to claim that Civil Unions are equivalent to marriage. From this document it is apparent that they are just a small concession made by the Government to pacify those who are protesting. Ettelbrick’s article “Since when is marriage a path to liberation” offers many fascinating viewpoints. She starts with the discussing the ways that a desire to marry is reflective of a need to be less of an outsider. As same-sex couples are forced to exist on the edges of society marriage would be a way to feel more accepted. Despite this acceptance Ettelbrick worries that by joining in the institution of marriage gay people and lesbians would be playing into exactly what they have been fighting against. She has a very strong point in arguing that just because she wants her choice to be respected does not mean that she wants to be the same as non-lesbian women. In conclusion she suggests that by focusing on the right to marry lesbians and gays are tricking themselves into believing that marriage will mean respect and equality.

Short Post for 3/8

Since When is Marriage a Path to Liberation?

Many people have probably seen this but I figured it was relevant so I want to share it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSQQK2Vuf9Q
I saw this video a couple months ago and I thought it was really inspiring. I also saw Zach appear on the Ellen Degeneres show and I thought it was a really good that he got support from someone so public and respected.

Ettelbrick makes an interesting point that marriage won’t create equality because it will be separating married people from unmarried people which will hurt those who choose not to enter into marriage but still want to live together. I see what she’s saying but I still think that marriage equality for gays and lesbians is an important right and it will help make other changes in society. I don’t quite understand why she thinks that the institutional aspect of marriage is so bad. I wish she had explained that better.


Soldier in a Long White Dress

Vaccaro’s chapter was kind of annoying to me because I felt like she just kept listing all of her responsibilities and how much she had on her plate. It was like she was bragging to us and saying “look at how much I did and I succeeded at pretty much everything I tried.” The chapter was more about her personal accomplishments than what her groups actually accomplished or spoke about. I can see that she worked very hard but she portrayed herself as a martyr which took away from the experience of reading her work.

I like to read Perez Hilton’s blog and I found this article about president obama’s take on the defense of marriage act. http://perezhilton.com/2011-02-23-president-barack-obama-calls-defense-of-marriage-act-unconstitutional
I don’t know how much of a difference this will make in the future, but I can only see it as a positive sign for same-sex couples.

As an addition to our discussion last week on bras, I saw this video on Perezhilton.com this weekend. I don’t exactly know how it works and I can’t imagine that its very comfortable to wear.
http://perezhilton.com/2011-03-05-chinese-commercial-shows-boob-clamp-corset

Short Post 3/2

I really enjoyed reading Bromberg’s piece on the changes of a woman’s self-image throughout the twentieth century.  I was shocked to hear the story of Yvonne Blue because I was not aware that so many young women felt the need to be skinny and diet in the 1920s.  However, it did make sense because this was the time period of the flappers and women bearing their arms and legs.  It is interesting how a woman’s body use to be hidden underneath corsets and heavy dresses and sleeves.  It was not until women’s skin was being displayed in the beginning of the twentieth century when women felt the obsession to be slim and fit in with their friends.  Bromberg discusses how bras have revolutionized the emphasis on breast.  Bras were used in the 1920s to create a flatter looking chest and many young adolescents and women resorted to making their own bras at home.  Something really interesting about the market for mass-produced goods, brand name bras, is that you have to fit in to the standard sizes manufactured.

Bromberg talks about how young women who do not fit the standard sizes feel as if there is body is simply deviated.  This is exactly what we were talking about in class the other day.  We were discussing clothing sizes and how either stores offer sizes that do not correlate with other store sizes or they do not offer a size that fits you perfectly.  This is a problem for many women because when they run in to this situation, they feel as if it is their fault not the manufactures fault that they cannot fit perfectly in to any pair of jeans.  Something that really struck me as intriguing was the change in attitudes for bras for young girls.  Bromberg discusses how the old idea was that bras are unnecessary for young girls.  I remember when I was in fifth grade most of the girls did not wear bras.  We had a fifth grade musical and the teacher told the girls we should wear a cami under our outfits.  I remember being outraged because first, I was a tomboy and second I was completely flat.  I did not understand why a girl would ever want to wear a bra because obviously they were gross.  However, in junior high all the girls changed for gym class in a locker room.  Most of the girls from the other two junior highs wore training bras or camis.  I, under no circumstances needed one until mid seventh grade, bought a training bra simply because the other girls had one and it seemed mature.  Wearing a bra was crucial to be considered an “older” girl. 

Bromberg’s chapter encouraged me to see how bras and girdles have transformed throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.  I came across this old commercial for a Playtex bra and girdle.  It was humorous to compare this old Playtex commercial to a current Victoria’s Secret commercial.  The Playtex commercial was very conservative and did not even show the bra on a woman’s body.  Also, the woman in the commercial was fully dressed with a blouse covering her chest.  This shows how bras have progressed from a necessary support item, to a fuller chest under a blouse and now finally to sex.  Also, the Playtex commercial offers a new, slimming girdle as oppose to the old corsets used to slim women.  This idea is so odd because it would make more sense for a woman to eat healthy and exercise to lose five pounds as oppose to just hiding the five pounds.  I agree with Abby in that women are always trying to find the perfect body and always feel they are too heavy or too skinny.  Why can’t all women work on having the best personality instead?

Long Post 3/2

Our Bodies, Ourselves
This is a opening presentation of the book by the Boston Women’s Health Book Collective where the writers discuss how writing this book impacted them. They acknowledge the important of gaining information from one another as equally informative as information from doctors and textbooks. They feel better prepared to evaluate health institutions and the control they have over our health and bodies. They discuss the new notion of pregnancy in an era of birth control where getting pregnant is a choice rather than a destiny. They also emphasize that women have been freed from a life of chronic pregnancy and that has enriched women’s lives as mothers. Finally, they say that learning about our bodies makes us better people and more whole as individuals.


Body Projects
Brumberg gives a chronicle of how girl’s images of their bodies have changed throughout the twentieth century. It all started when clothing started to show more skin and skinny became the ideal body form. Girls started to focus on dieting to attain some culturally constructed idea of an “ideal weight” around 120 pounds. Next Brumberg looks at the evolution of the bra. It was first a luxury item but as it became more accessible, all women and teenage girls began wearing them. Brumberg points out that undergarments used to be made by women at home to fit each individual, but when standard sizing emerged in the clothing industry, women’s bodies had to fit the clothes, not the other way around. Therefore, most women didn’t quite fit into garments perfectly, so there always seemed like something could change on a woman’s body. The obsession with breasts made breast size the measure of superiority among teenage girls in the 50’s, not weight. Brumberg emphasizes the emerging chronic preoccupation women had (and still have) with their body image. Today, girls still worry about how their body looks, but they control it with diet and exercise more than corsets and girdles like they used to. Additionally, the new body area of scrutiny has become the butt and thighs. Finally, Brumberg addresses body piercing and says that it is a way for young people to show the world that they are in control of their bodies.



Sex, Lies, and Advertising
Steinem goes through the whole history of Ms. Magazine and its fight with advertisers and the struggle to keep the magazine going. Her main point is that advertisers are very picky about their ads and how the magazines present them. They usually require extras in the magazine like editorials about their products or photo-shoots displaying their products. Companies only seem to apply these stipulations to women’s magazines though, not other mainstream media like newspapers. She also cites many examples of readers writing to the magazine with comments about the ads. She proposes that some day we might have ad-free magazines which would allow much more diversity, creativity, and realistic material.

Short Post 3/3

Text from Ads form the 1950s-1990s: “Show her it’s a man’s world”-ad for ties, “We dedicate this collection of toilet secrets not to pretty women (they have advantages enough, without being told how to double their beauty) but to their plain sisterhood” –ad for a book, “if she doesn’t want to give it to you get it yourself” –ad for aftershave, “a women’s wealth is her constant beauty” poster displayed at industrial fair in 1950’s, “if a women wants more excitement in her life she can wear it” –ad for Neiman Marcus. “Can you compete with your daughter’s “little girl look?”- ad for soap, “is it always illegal to kill a woman?”- ad for a toaster, “so the harder a wife works, the cuter she looks!”- ad for cereal, “your guy the number one reason for midol. Be the way he likes you”- ad for midol, “skinny girls are not glamour girls” –Numal a nutritional supplement”

The reading for this class period inspired me to look up some vintage sexist ads and they never cease to be shocking to me. I also found it even more disturbing to see the text from the ads without any picture behind it. Within this short survey of ads the text suggests domestic violence on multiple occasions, which people dismiss as a joke because of the picture. Without the image the severity of encouraging this kind of action seems much more real.

Even if everyone does understand the intended comedy of these ads one theme that was so prevalent in these ads as well as the reading was the criticism that women face regarding their appearance. The attitudes towards women’s appearance in the social media remind me of the bird cage analogy. It seems like there is no right way for women to be and it is never accepted that an attractive body can be a variety of different sizes. A perfect example is the last ad that I quoted above which tell women that being skinny is not sexy. While in modern society this seems like an odd claim, but there was a time when being voluptuous was the ultimate body shape. Women strived to achieve this and it is as difficult for some women to be voluptuous as it is for other women to be skinny. This shows just how arbitrary ideas of beauty are and how sad it is that these images of beauty become an obsession for many women. Last class we discussed how often it is women who are more critical of the female form then men, while this may be true one wonder who dictates the images and text that society is bombarded with everyday.

It is difficult to rid society of an ideal beauty, but perhaps it is possible encourage women to be less critical of each other’s appearance. I believe that the best way to accomplish this is to focus on the intelligence, creativity and achievement of the amazing women in our lives and in our society. This approach takes a positive angle to create a difference rather than just focusing solely on everything wrong with our society. This was one the issues that I had with the “super girls” brown bag, while I believe that striving for super achievement may be stressful of some girls it seems like not we are being critical of girls for trying too hard. It seems that we are always too skinny or too fat, too hard working or not hard working enough etc. We will be closer to equality when we realize that just like men there are a variety of personalities and body types embodied by our gender.