nretsneklafm

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By nretsneklafm • 15 years ago

Kiddie Bikini Waxes?!!

I was surfing the net and came across this article from MSNBC and searched for the New York Post article that they refer to, which can be found here .

Both articles describe and critique (to a certain extent) a frightening new trend in hair removal. First off, I’m not a huge fan of hair removal. I understand some people prefer it, and I have no problems with them, but for me it seems silly. People go as far as to call not shaving "unnatural" (I hope people see the irony in that). Anyways, if it were just another article shaming women into trying a new painful hair removal system, I would’ve just rolled my eyes and moved on, but it wasn’t.

This disturbing new trend is marketing hair removal (particularly waxing) to "tween" and "pre-tween" girls – some as young as 6. I was absolutely disgusted. And we’re not talking just eyebrow waxes. Everything from eyebrows to legs to BIKINI WAXES. Some salons are even offering specials for "virgin hair" removal. That’s right. Supposedly you can prevent these little girls from ever growing pubic hair (you know a sign of becoming a woman) with 2-6 waxing sessions at an early age.

I’m so horrified and angry I can barely find the words to express my outrage. Not only are little girls being taught that their bodies are something to be shameful of and things that need to be "fixed." They are also being ...

By nretsneklafm • 15 years ago

Surprise! Sexism in Hollywood!

I came across a very interesting article about women and Hollywood, specifically about how female characters are written and portrayed in Hollywood movies. It’ll be no surprise that film teachers discourage writing female characters that don’t support the lead male character. She puts forth a "test" that she describes. It has three steps:

To pass it your movie must have the following:

1) there are at least two named female characters, who

2) talk to each other about

3) something other than a man.

Seems pretty simple, right? Not really. I started thinking about my favorite movies and had trouble thinking of ones that fit this bill. You really should go to her article and read more in-depth about her experience as a female ...

By nretsneklafm • 15 years ago

Game Shows and Women as Commodities (and Prizes)

I heard about a new reality TV series on the radio coming home from work today. It’s called "Gadget or the Girl," and the premise is what you can expect from the title. Male contestants get to choose between a super-awesome high-tech gadget or a weekend vacation with the girl of their choice.

While this is on Playboy TV (so what can we really expect from a company who’s business is exploiting and objectifying women), it makes some assumptions about women that are disgusting to me. Firstly, that women are the equivalent to an object (otherwise it wouldn’t be a very tough decision). Secondly, that women’s affections can be bought and sold (or won in this case). And thirdly, that only ...

I heard about a new reality TV series on the radio coming home from work today. It’s called "Gadget or the Girl," and the premise is what you can expect from the title. Male contestants get to ...

By nretsneklafm • 15 years ago

“Health” and Beauty

I had to go buy some shampoo today and I started thinking about the "Health and Beauty" sections of most department / grocery / big box stores. It makes me mad that they call it that. I know that sounds a little silly, but hear me out. It equates beauty with health. While there may be some evolutionists that argue that beauty is a sign of genetic and overall physical health, I don’t think it exactly adds up.

The "Health and Beauty" sections have very little to do with actual health. Most vitamins, medications, etc are found in the Pharmacy sections of these stores. So what exactly is sold in this section of the store? Shampoos, conditioners, body wash, lotions, hair ...

I had to go buy some shampoo today and I started thinking about the "Health and Beauty" sections of most department / grocery / big box stores. It makes me mad that they call it that. I ...

By nretsneklafm • 15 years ago

Hair, make-up, and high heels: Making choices about your body

As a feminist I have begun to examine why I do some of the things that I do. I realize that a lot of my behavior is shaped by heteronormative, patriarchal, societal expectations. One of the first things I began examined at the beginning of my freshman year of college was hair. For most of my teenage life I have struggled with hair: not having enough, having too much, not styling it correctly and so on. In high school almost all of the girls had long, thick, shiny hair. I was not blessed with the genes for thick hair. My hair is fine and has a tendency to be frizzy even though I have straight hair. Despite this, I joined ...

As a feminist I have begun to examine why I do some of the things that I do. I realize that a lot of my behavior is shaped by heteronormative, patriarchal, societal expectations. One of the first ...

By nretsneklafm • 15 years ago

The “Quiver Full” Movement: Women and Children as Victims

Today I came across a fairly older blog post about the "Quiver Full" movement. It can be found here .

The post begins with a bit of self promotion, but goes on to talk about this woman’s experience as a "quiver full" mother. Individuals who are a part of this movement leave family planning up to God and try to have as many children as possible. She describes how women and children are the victims of this situation and the cult-like feeling of the whole movement. She describes the horrifying situations that many of these women are put in and how the media doesn’t cover this side of the story:

Today I came across a fairly older blog post about the "Quiver Full" movement. It can be found here .

The post begins with a bit of self promotion, but goes on to talk about this woman’s ...