My rant for the week

So I’m getting frustrated with wordpress deleting my shit. I’m gonna try this one more time….fingers crossed. The last few post didn’t work out so maybe it’s a sign I should talk about something else. I had a really hard time writing this, so my transition paragraphs may be off.

So this photo has been going around facebook and the blog that I’m following so I felt it was discussion worthy.

I get the point the creator is trying to make: Women pay too much attention to body image and love your body regardless of how you look and how you want to look. But I have a problem with this. There is a hidden message behind this photo: regardless of how you look, you will never be good enough in the eyes of men. Either you’re too small or you’re too big. Basically, your worthiness as a woman and appeal is based on your size.

Speaking of size

The word plus size is used too liberally in the fashion industry. We’ve gotten too comfortable with the word and I am guilty of saying it myself. What is plus size? Not normal? Average? Plus size is used for women sizes 10 and up, but according to the photo that’s the national average. Why not just use the term average? Why put women in a category based on how they look and why separate clothing in the store by weight? Is this the same as having a section for petite? In my opinion it’s not. You can still be “plus size” and petite. Some stores don’t carry their larger sizes in the store and require online shopping to get larger sizes. What about those that need to try on clothes before they buy them?  Before my weight loss, I got this question all the time: Well what about shopping at the same store or shopping at Lane Bryant? First of all Lane Bryant is too damn expensive and Forever 21 is my life. Who wants to shop at the same store all the time? That’s the point of shopping: go to different stores, try on a bunch of stuff, and spend your paycheck on crap you didn’t need in the first place.

Not only is not having bigger sizes a problem, but smaller sizes as well. My best friend who is naturally slim(xs) can’t find clothes that fit her in stores either. What about the other side of the continuum: Those that are smaller than a size small. I wonder if stores will ever make a section for them.

Getting off the subject of size, these women look perfect. They’re tall, tan, have long hair blowing in the fake wind, they’re proportional, scar-less, hair-less, white, and have large breast. They all fit the American standard of beauty. If one wants to spread the message of loving your body, why not use women of different heights, with leg hair, with scars, different races, with different hair colors, and lengths?

Video

I somewhat understand why the guy dressed up in blackface (not a very good one): to get feedback from other students and to spread awareness, but he could have gone about the interviews in a different way. I’m sure he would have gotten the same answers if he were in his usual attire. Although the film could have been edited, it was really upsetting that majority of the interviewed students didn’t know when black history month was and more upsetting when students named Will Smith and 50cent as historical figures.  Is it bad that I yelled at the black guy on the screen for not knowing when black history month was?

He set these people up for failure and made these people look like complete idiots. How are you helping the cause and spreading awareness with questions like “would you prefer a white guy acting black or a black guy acting white?”, “who has better game?”, and do an impersonation of a black person. First of all what does it mean to “act white” or “act black”?  The impersonations were terrible and I don’t know where people get these stereotypes from but EVERYONE (mostly everyone) loves fried chicken and grape soda. Don’t you wanna fanta? Anyways, a more productive way to go about this interview would have been him correcting the behavior and educating the students by listing some historical figures, things they’ve done, and telling them that these stereotypes were completely inaccurate.  Education about all cultures helps suppress bias and keep stereotypes from forming.