"The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any" - Alice Walker
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2UZZV3xU6Q
www.missrepresentation.org
The trailer alone is very powerful to watch, and made me think of the exercise we did the other day - when we got in groups and told stories about the first time we remember being aware of our bodies, or what people thought of us. Every woman in my group remembered a moment that we were awakened to our bodies and the way others viewed them, for better or for worse. That in itself is astounding, because like the one girl asked, 'when is it going to be enough?'
Women are faced with messages everyday, and I go in and out of being angry at times, wanting to fight for change and then feeling a sense of numbness. When you see images on magazines, on television, on blogs, discussed in class, across campus - the way society views women is everywhere and any female is constantly reminded about 'how she should look,' 'what she should wear,' and even 'who she should be' and 'how she should act.' How does this change?
I think this is a start. I wanted to share this trailer because I think everyone in this class would be interested in seeing this film - there are currently no screenings being shown in or around the Denver area, but maybe someone would like to organize this? I may --- this is a short blurb about the film:
As one of the most persuasive and pervasive forces in our culture, media is educating yet another generation that a woman’s primary value lay in her youth, beauty and sexuality—not in her capacity as a leader, making it difficult for women to obtain leadership positions and for the average girl to feel confident herself. Stories from teenage girls and provocative interviews with politicians, journalists, academics, and activists like Condoleezza Rice, Lisa Ling, Nancy Pelosi, Katie Couric, Rachel Maddow, Rosario Dawson, Jackson Katz, Jean Kilbourne, and Gloria Steinem build momentum as Miss Representation accumulates startling facts and statistics that will leave audiences shaken and armed with a new perspective. (Runtime 90 minutes.)
The film is doing more than just showing a documentary to people, they are organizing a social action campaign as well. The funds raised will support woman's leadership groups working on public policy and legislation, as well as those encouraging best practices in many fields such as media and the role media plays, further creating awareness and a foundation for change.
Change takes time, but how much? And how much more time are people willing to give? Films like this help spread awareness and get people thinking - but more importantly, the question should become, what can each of us do individually to change the way the media and society portrays women? Change starts small - so by sharing this, hopefully I started something, and it can only grow from here.
Great Post! Like the documentary that we watched in class last week, putting all of the negative images side by side really makes an impact. I think that it also reiterates Rice’s article, Between Body and Culture: Beauty, Ability, and Growing Up Female. I am not sure if their will ever be a time when women aren’t judged by or worried about their appearance. Even powerful women, such as Hillary Clinton had to deal with her appearance when she was first lady. She would be criticized for changing her hair too often or the clothes that she decided to wear. It takes away the legitimate work that women are doing, by changing the focus to what they look like doing it. I hope that this film has an impact and won’t just be preaching to the choir. It will be interesting to see if any controversy arises from it and hopefully it will help motivate women to not watch or participate in the reality shows that degrade them.
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