Thursday, March 21, 2013

Women's Views on News

Women's Views on News

MEPs vote on ‘sexualisation of girls’

Posted: 20 Mar 2013 05:17 AM PDT

European_flag_in_the_wind_zpsaf077082MEPs have voted for regulations on the representation of women in the media.

Although opting out of a proposed ‘porn ban’, the EU assembly voted 368 in favour of wide-ranging proposals to end the sexualisation of women and girls.

The proposals were tabled by Dutch left-wing feminist MEP Kartika Liotard.

Her original proposals, outlined in a report called  “Eliminating gender stereotypes in the EU,” had included a “ban on all forms of pornography in the media”.

But there was some outcry and protest about the definition of ‘media’, and the MEPs dropped banning pornography.

The report is aimed at changing the way that women and girls are portrayed in the media, in an attempt to stop the damage sexualisation can cause.

The report highlights a broad spectrum of ways in which gender stereotypes are prevalent, covering areas from media and culture, education and training, the labour market and economic and political decision-making.

It makes suggestions in each of these areas as to how gender equity can be achieved.

It is compelling reading, and for a feminist, it lays out very clearly and succinctly exactly where many of us already feel our societies are going wrong.

However, not everyone feels this way.

Marina Yannakoudakis, MEP, remained critical of the report’s proposals despite the dropping of the ban.

“This would be a charter for ultra-feminist interference in the way countries choose to run their media systems,” she said.

“As such it would do women and women’s rights more harm than good.”

It is hard to see how her opinion is validated.

Indeed, I would argue that the opposite is true, and that to do nothing about the proliferation of highly sexualised images of women would do far greater harm.

In regard to the media representation of women the report notes that there is an ”increasingly noticeable tendency…to show provocatively dressed women, in sexual poses.”

In the UK last year feminist groups OBJECT and Turn Your Back on Page 3 submitted evidence to the Leveson Enquiry about the portrayal of women in the British press.

Their submission makes for pretty stomach-churning reading, showing ‘A Week in the Life of The Sun, The Daily Star and The Sport’.

They point out clearly the links between images of women in the media and the harm it can cause:

“The links between sex object culture, discrimination and violence against women are recognised at the international level by the legally binding United Nations Convention to Eliminate Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which has repeatedly called on states – including the British government – to take action against the objectification of women.

“Similarly the UK-based End Violence Against Women coalition has called on the UK government to tackle the sexualisation of women and girls because it provides a conducive context for violence against women.

“Indeed, the sexual objectification of women and girls is linked to a range of harms –ranging from body image and self esteem issues to violence, sexist attitudes and racism.”

More recently, shadow minister for public health, Labour MP Dianne Abbot spoke out about the sexualisation of girls, and the damaging effect of internet porn on young people.

The circumstances which led to the tragic death of 13 year-old Chevonea Kendall-Bryan this year demonstrated the dark effect that this sexualisation is having upon young men and women.

"Never before has girlhood been under such a sustained assault – from ads, alcohol marketing, girls' magazines, sexually explicit TV programmes and the hard pornography that is regularly accessed in so many teenager's bedrooms," says the psychologist Steve Biddulph, author of new book ‘Raising Girls’.

It is hard to disagree that something needs to be done.

Rape Crisis groups have voiced their support of the EU report.

Fiona Neary, director of Rape Crisis Northern Ireland, said: "We need to get beyond the black and white debate of censorship versus free speech.

"We need to start looking at what we can do rather than being paralysed by the internet."

It remains to be seen exactly what and how the recommendations of the report will be implemented, but we can only hope that perhaps from now on we can move towards a far less harmful portrayal of women in all aspects of the media.

Steubenville, wallpaper and rape culture

Posted: 20 Mar 2013 03:30 AM PDT

wass

It is almost beyond belief, but rape culture seems to be coming increasingly blatant.

The latest example of rape culture in practice is the appalling CNN and Fox News coverage of the Steubenville rape case in the USA.

It is quite obvious in this case that the convicted rapists – both in their teens – were completely clueless as to what they were doing was wrong – or if they did have an inkling, they felt very safe indeed from any consequences.

And this ‘safety from consequences’ is reflected in the appalling news coverage which bemoans the loss of ‘promising futures’ for the rapists, with no mention of the survivor of the attack.

What is most horrifying though, is that these teen rapists did not care what they were doing to the rape survivor.

They simply did not care.

This lack of care is a direct result of society treating and portraying women as objects for the sexual pleasure and titillation of men, and that is aided and abetted by images produced by the multi-million dollar porn industry.

As a result, women are seen as nothing more than sex toys, and the result of this stripping away of their humanity is that 1 in 5 women experience some form of sexual violence from the age of 16 onwards.

So what does all this have to do with wallpaper?

WVoN reported last week on the sexist and racist images used as wallpaper by the recently ‘re-decorated’ Moo Bar in Leamington Spa.

The images include slogans such as "Black runaway slave girl, aged 18 years, seeks plantation master" and "Busty Indian schoolgirl".

As a result of both our piece and widespread local media coverage, almost 3,000 people signed a petition set up by the Warwick Anti-Sexism Society (WASS), demanding that the bar take down the images.

After several days of ignoring all requests for comments from the local media, WVoN had sight of a press release issued by the bar owners.

Calling the WASS petition ‘flawed and misleading‘ the press release confirms the removal of the one image – of 25,000 on the walls – used to promote the petition, and said “we can only say sorry if we’ve upset anyone, but the very nature of art through history has often been divisive and controversial”.

This comparison to the ‘nature of art’ is based on the images being original, rather than fabricated, with the intention being to provoke debate and kick back at the ‘airbrushing of history’.

In response WASS said:

‘The choice of wallpaper has generated discussion and the overwhelming response is one of disgust and of the view that the images are sexist.

Moo Bar is not a museum, nor is it an educational space.

The images are not treated with respect or dignity or as historical pieces.

They are not being viewed as artifacts of historical sexism or racism, nor is their display in any way empowering for women attending the bar.

Using the images on the wall of a profit-making establishment is not equal to acknowledging the historical racism and sexism which is still present in many forms in our society.’

For the owners of Moo Bar to celebrate images of women as sex toys is shameful, and that they try and defend this as ‘art’ is astounding – and shameful.

But in common with the coverage of the Steubenville case, it is obvious that the owners simply do not care about their part in the cumulative impact that such representations  have on how women are perceived.

Moo Bar, Russell Street, Leamington Spa, simply does not care.

If you live in Leamington Spa, or the surrounding areas, or intend to visit, please consider boycotting this misogynistic establishment until it agrees to redecorate.

Meanwhile, WASS is currently considering its next move: and they should know one in five women, and their families and friends, are behind them all the way.

Please contact warwickantisexismsociety@gmail.com for further information.

Sex(ism) still sells, apparently

Posted: 20 Mar 2013 02:01 AM PDT

Anti sexism TFLCampaign groups are stepping up the fight against sexist advertising.

The advertising industry may appear to have come a long way since the Mad Men era, when a woman's place was most definitely in the home and the only reason to let the wife pop in to the office was when it needed a spring clean.

But has it?

Slogans like 'Don't worry darling, you didn't burn the beer' and 'Christmas morning she'll be happier with a Hoover' may be laughable today, but big businesses are still using sexism to sell everything from breakfast cereals to banking.

Last year Christmas advertisements from Asda and Morrisons attracted complaints for reinforcing sexist gender stereoptypes, portraying mothers doing all the work to make the festive season a success.

Both retailers were cleared by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA); neither advertisement was thought to reinforce negative stereotypes.

I can only presume this means ‘woman alone in the kitchen’ is a perfectly acceptable stereotype in 2013.

But the blatantly sexist ads of the 50s and 60s, where women cooked, cleaned and still managed to look pretty for their husbands, have given way to more blatantly sexist ads where women, if they are not in the kitchen, are always up for it, and even if they are not, it is probably still ok.

Women are being sexualised and degraded in the name of consumerism in a way that men just aren't.

And from glamorising domestic violence to imitating pornography, advertisers are failing women and girls today.

Just take a look at this short clip from American campaign group Missrespresentation for a selection of the worst offenders last year.

One place you can't escape the barrage of sex-in-adverts is on the London transport network, and a new Facebook group has sprung up for commuters to share their experiences of sexist advertising on the city's tube, rail and bus network.

The group -  ‘Anti-sexist advertising on TfL – was created in response to 'the bombardment of advertisers using sexism and sexualised images of women to sell their wares.'

It encourages commuters to share pictures and report the offending ads to Transport for London (TfL) and the ASA.

In response to the group, TfL have claimed all advertisements on the London transport network adhere to the standards set by the Advertising Standards Authority and the Committee of Advertising Practice.

The problem here is that the standards are defined by taste and decency, not the underlying discrimination.

The objectification of women has become so normalised in our society that sexualised images are no longer seen as indecent and anyone who objects to a girl in a bikini on an underground poster is accused of being a prude.

Campaign group Object, set up to challenge the sexual objectification of women, met with TFL a decade ago to address the problem of sexist advertising on the London transport network.

Object claims progress has been made since, although the guidelines put in place are not always adhered to.

In a parliamentary debate on sexualised imagery in advertising last year, Object outlined the impacts of sexist ads on all members of society:

"As well as stifling the self-esteem and aspirations of girls, the persistent portrayal of women as objects to be judged negatively, impacts the attitudes of boys and men and the ways in which they are conditioned to view and treat women and girls."

"Indeed, emerging evidence suggests the sexual objectification of women and girls is reinforcing the views of many young men that women are always available for sex."

To mark International Women's Day on 8 March, the London Feminist Network (LFN) set out to identify sexist ads displayed on the TfL network.

Examples included a scantily clad Katy Perry helping to easy the guilt of eating crisps, a Virgin Atlantic-branded burlesque dancer and a businessman with a much younger woman in a bikini, and a blatant euphemism for sex, advertising Pow Wow Now's conference calling service.

In a letter to the transport company, LFN said: "We believe [these advertisements] perpetuate and reinforce negative and harmful attitudes towards women and girls.

“This is an issue of discrimination and harm, as opposed to public morals being offended."

"These offensive advertisements must be considered within the context of systematic harassment and violence towards women.

“These adverts contribute to normalizing such behaviours."

Another project aims to highlight endemic sexism in the British media.

In a similar vein to the Everyday Sexism project, Everyday Media Sexism provides a space to share stories, speak out and object to sexism in newspapers, magazines and adverts, online and on television.

You can post stories to the website or on Twitter; find them at @MediaSexism.

Sexism may have changed over the last 60 years or so, but it is still rife today and continues to create barriers to female happiness and success.

As long as the – lazy and unimaginative – media perpetuates the idea that women are objects to be looked at and judged on their looks, we will never be on an equal footing with our male contemporaries.