tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44622484857168286682024-03-05T03:49:49.996-05:00Hardy Girls Healthy Womenhrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.comBlogger73125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-11329180224841150982010-10-13T12:13:00.002-04:002010-10-13T12:18:09.663-04:00Stop Selling Halloween Costumes That Sexualize Girls!<div id="change_BottomBar" style="text-align: center;"><span id="change_Powered"><a href="http://www.change.org/petitions" target="_blank">Petitions</a> by Change.org</span><a href="">|</a><span id="change_Start">Start a <a href="http://www.change.org/petition" target="_blank">Petition</a> »</span></div><script src="http://www.change.org/widgets/content/single_petition_js?width=300&petition_id=33828&color=1A3563&" type="text/javascript">
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By SPARK (Sexualization Protest: Action, Resistance, Knowledge)<br />
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Join the movement at <a href="http://www.sparksummit.com/">www.sparksummit.com</a><br />
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Halloween used to be about neighborhood trick or treating in creative and scary costumes. But recently the holiday has become about a different type of consumption than eating candy, as girls are peddled costumes that are more and more sexualized.<br />
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That Halloween has gone from scary to sexy in recent years is a reflection of a profound and problematic societal issue: the sexualization of girls. Portrayals of young girls as sexy are so familiar to us and to girls themselves that it almost seems normal, harmless, and simply the way that girls are nowadays.<br />
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So why should we be concerned? A 2007 American Psychological Association Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls found compelling evidence that when girls and young women are sexualized - and worse, when they learn to sexualize themselves -they experience lower self-esteem, higher levels of depressed mood, and discomfort with their own bodies, thus undermining their ability to participate as full citizens.<br />
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Liberty Media Corporation subsidiary BuySeasons, Inc. proudly claims to be "the largest online retailer and supplier of costumes, accessories, seasonal décor, and party supplies in the world!" Its flagship brand "<a href="http://buycostumes.com/">BuyCostumes.com</a>...[is] the leading costume and party retailer on the web."<br />
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<a href="http://buycostumes.com/">BuyCostumes.com</a> sells girl costumes in adult packaging (Naughty and Nice toddler costume, Miss Wonderland child costume in mini skirt, and corset bodice, Little Bo Peep ‘tween costume in corset bodice and black fishnets) and sexualized versions of popular children's characters for adult women (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Cookie Monster, and SpongeBob).<br />
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Tell Liberty Media Corporation to stop pushing the envelope when it comes to creating costumes for little girls and to stop sexualizing beloved childhood characters with their adult costumes!<br />
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<a href="http://www.change.org/hardy_girls_healthy_women_inc/petitions/view/stop_selling_halloween_costumes_that_sexualize_girls">Sign the petition today!</a> </div>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-39689898628001991012010-10-12T22:42:00.000-04:002010-10-12T22:42:44.554-04:00Projection<div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“I am a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">CANVAS</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Every day society projects certain standards, messages, and images </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">UPON ME</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Society tells me how I should look, act, and feel. So when you ask me who I am, I don’t always know what to tell you. But I am learning to step away from these projections, and use them to make a statement of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">MY OWN</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.”</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8C0n1gYAzrwJvLGQ9kTHXgHQcumvx6u-xmtYw_3xKINhnNDLTgSM1CWvcMRQTFTtHwNjQAFYuFF8jOowRdTvJscLspZExDdhfwY_l7RyTpYsVFIGqm8lVwHeGLfRtXxWWjJusrcHy3JA/s1600/Adan+Ai.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8C0n1gYAzrwJvLGQ9kTHXgHQcumvx6u-xmtYw_3xKINhnNDLTgSM1CWvcMRQTFTtHwNjQAFYuFF8jOowRdTvJscLspZExDdhfwY_l7RyTpYsVFIGqm8lVwHeGLfRtXxWWjJusrcHy3JA/s320/Adan+Ai.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Developed by Colby College student Aleah Starr,</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Projection</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> invites us to speak up, to say what we feel and think, and to have our words projected onto others, who then stand with us and for us.</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />
</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; white-space: normal;"><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span id="internal-source-marker_0.8166507501155138" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">PBG (that’s Powered By Girl) and Projection </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">offers girls and their allies a way to talk back to sexism, stereotypes, and sexualization in our media.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-style: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">So if you could talk back to this media, what would <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #4c1130;">you</span> say?</span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />
</span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If you’re between the ages of 14-22 and you’ve got something to say to the media, here’s your chance!</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 21pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Step 1</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">: “Like” our <a href="http://www.facebook.com/poweredbygirl">PBG Facebook page</a></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 21pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Step 2</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">: On our wall, write “Projection” and post your 6-10 words (has to fit on a t-shirt!) rants, statements, poetry, music lyrics, or illustrations. Say what you like, don’t like, want, feel, think</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 21pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Step 3</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">: Invite your friends to join the movement!</span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Your voice will travel to NYC, where it will be projected onto girl “canvasses” by Aleah herself at the <a href="http://www.sparksummit.com/">SPARK Summit</a> on Oct. 22</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 6pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: super; white-space: pre-wrap;">nd</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBmnVknr4j6eOM2Pfk6w01_KPcY5fqX8EAU5-UZCNccUJURNBVH8KqODQXt01agSsGv8lLl_x6HCza6WUFsZAHeCtx_4Cj0hfi73a68Zy5Fzv5Kz7EtXZBMcWyIiloPt87tBk74FbSZH0/s1600/DSC00046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBmnVknr4j6eOM2Pfk6w01_KPcY5fqX8EAU5-UZCNccUJURNBVH8KqODQXt01agSsGv8lLl_x6HCza6WUFsZAHeCtx_4Cj0hfi73a68Zy5Fzv5Kz7EtXZBMcWyIiloPt87tBk74FbSZH0/s320/DSC00046.JPG" width="206" /></a></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SPARK: Sexualization Protest: Action, Resistance, Knowledge</span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If you’re a teen girl between the ages of 14-22, we want you to attend the <a href="http://www.sparksummit.com/">SPARK Summit</a> too. While you’re there, drop by the Projection Action Station and become a living canvass for someone else’s story!</span></div><div style="background-color: transparent; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />
</span></span><div style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">FYI: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">All submissions to PBG/Projection are anonymous. We will not use your name unless you ask us to, and then it’s first names and cities only. If you use a quote, poem or lyric, please submit the full name of the author.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Be sure to check PBG and SPARK after October 22</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 6pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: super; white-space: pre-wrap;">nd</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to catch our photo album</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and find out who stood up to be photographed with your story!</span></div></div></span></span></div>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-85950502507522112992010-10-07T00:15:00.004-04:002010-10-07T00:22:01.634-04:00"I like it hanging neatly on its designated hook in my foyer. I support breast cancer awareness, not sketchiness."<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;"></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjSJK15l3xGC-mGZ_-jkfrllz18OHN9nBaE-ChyphenhyphenuTDT4vORiTNcnqrJCB2PVC1m5FT1aMGXbi-6ViTD-eZ2NbGlQRnDJKGZ1F12a0XROZxtlJck9wFM69mjF8wHDL-qfd7msvmflgHDc0/s1600/breast_cancer_awareness.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjSJK15l3xGC-mGZ_-jkfrllz18OHN9nBaE-ChyphenhyphenuTDT4vORiTNcnqrJCB2PVC1m5FT1aMGXbi-6ViTD-eZ2NbGlQRnDJKGZ1F12a0XROZxtlJck9wFM69mjF8wHDL-qfd7msvmflgHDc0/s200/breast_cancer_awareness.jpeg" width="142" /></span></a></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Or in other words, how can we spread awareness about a disease without turning it into a </span><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/05/i-like-it-on-facebook-sta_n_751756.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">sexualized campaign</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> that mystifies, even tantalizes, but never actually educates? Surely, as bright young women (or middle-aged women or older women or men, even!) we have what it takes to successfully campaign for a cause without the use of sexual innuendos.</span></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;" /></span></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">By scanning online forums and blogs, it is easy to see how upsetting this type of "activism" can be to others. As one woman writes on Jezebel: </span></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><br />
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<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;">Seeing Facebook stunts doesn't make me feel supported, it makes me think that the people who post them are immature and shallow. Breast cancer has the odd predicament of being a terrible disease that strikes a "sexy" body part. Well, my diseased breasts are gone, replaced with implants and the latissimus dorsi muscles from my back. I'll be aware of breast cancer every day for the rest of my life. Someone using it as a reason to act flirtatious under the banner of awareness just makes me resentful. </span></blockquote><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Read more: </span><a href="http://jezebel.com/5657153/breast-cancer-awareness-just-gets-sexier-every-day"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">http://jezebel.com/5657153/breast-cancer-awareness-just-gets-sexier-every-day</span></a></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;" /></span></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Others have called attention to the fact that while Breast Cancer Awareness spans October, other months dedicated to serious diseases lack a comparable fanfare. For example, prostate cancer (September) receives less media attention and less research money than breast cancer even though it is statistically more prevalent and more deadly. As Arun Gavali of the New Agenda explains:</span><br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;">Prostate cancer is more serious than Breast Cancer because, although the death rates are both about 2.8%, the chance of a man getting prostate cancer is over 30% greater than the chance of a woman getting breast cancer. That means that even though the life-time percentage chance of dying from either cancer is the same, the percent chance that a man will have to fight prostate cancer is greater and there are more cases of prostate cancer for the “sick care” system to have to deal with.</span></blockquote></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;" /></span></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The need for stronger awareness efforts on the prostate cancer front does not, of course, negate the importance of October and the many ways in which we can honor survivors and victims of breast cancer. Typing out a suggestive Facebook update does not, however, accomplish this task. Perhaps knowing where you "like it" will eventually lead someone to research and extrapolate the correlation between sexed up statuses and breast cancer, the thought process will probably end there. Putting aside the issue of using one's (female) body and teasing references to garner interest in a tragic disease, let's consider the proactive and direct avenues by which knowledge can be spread. You might, for example, follow one blog commenter by writing:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: grey; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;">Today, let's all donate to breast cancer causes like </span><a href="http://www.cityofhope.org/patient_care/treatments/breast-cancer/Pages/default.aspx"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;">http://www.cityofhope.org/patient_care/treatments/breast-cancer/Pages/default.aspx</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;"> or </span><a href="http://ww5.komen.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;">http://ww5.komen.org/</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple;"> & do self exams instead of updating our status.</span></blockquote></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </span></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Whichever way you decide to raise awareness, do it with dignity. Share facts, provide hospital locations where mammograms are free or discounted, give to a charity, volunteer. Honor your own body by talking to your doctor about reducing your risk of cancer in general. Because after all, "I like it" when women are informed about their health.</span></span></div>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-17783737212627060422010-10-04T23:49:00.003-04:002010-10-04T23:53:00.532-04:00Will sex sell this Halloween?<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We sure hope not! Halloween, for girls and women, is an endless parade of sexualized outfits. Even creative costumes, ones that we might otherwise deem age-appropriate, are reduced to raunchy, skin-exposed replications. Nothing could be more representative than this Spongebob Squarepants mini-skirt and tiny top marketed to teenage girls:</span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1y6GQrTxcDL3l-KaYiXS7h_7q85YT-PymV02KApoIRPsWDE6XIKt7xH9YdH96b1sqgutAcvC-QTBHULN_el5RWCWGFjT0BXmowdqtX3ZxTONR87Mcr2FDrPyeeuOl5-GrkGaXoi2xq_U/s1600/%5Bcostume+sexy+spongebob.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1y6GQrTxcDL3l-KaYiXS7h_7q85YT-PymV02KApoIRPsWDE6XIKt7xH9YdH96b1sqgutAcvC-QTBHULN_el5RWCWGFjT0BXmowdqtX3ZxTONR87Mcr2FDrPyeeuOl5-GrkGaXoi2xq_U/s320/%5Bcostume+sexy+spongebob.jpeg" width="320" /></span></span></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Ready to stop this non-sense? Come on over to our SPARKwatch </span></span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=145736755468946&ref=ts"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Facebook Event page</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and post any and all costumes that you think should be taken off the shelves. We'll send a message to the store, along with a photo of the costume, asking for it's prompt removal.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Brought to you by </span></span><a href="http://www.sparksummit.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">SPARK Summit</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> (Sexualization Protest: Action, Resistance, Knowledge).</span></span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-14087341391351015692010-09-15T09:32:00.006-04:002010-09-15T09:36:27.481-04:00SPARK Ally of the Day: Shelby Knox<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhATEjZAn8d8glRIXGnn85FUrr8IVrINPBkLITaA07PtaVBuGHcPybm-SRi2ITK-bR78rXdZDgZ_3T_fA5thBMLEUC92pGjlDh-wtokrKmxDzsqeeCgAlqEFrMNBLTQRY2z1tBqoT8YrGc/s1600/shelby+headshot.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhATEjZAn8d8glRIXGnn85FUrr8IVrINPBkLITaA07PtaVBuGHcPybm-SRi2ITK-bR78rXdZDgZ_3T_fA5thBMLEUC92pGjlDh-wtokrKmxDzsqeeCgAlqEFrMNBLTQRY2z1tBqoT8YrGc/s200/shelby+headshot.JPG" width="200" /></a>I’m just coming to terms with the fact I’m not a “girl activist” anymore, although the documentary that told my story of fighting to get better sex education into my Texas high school, <a href="http://shelbyknox.com/the-film/">The Education of Shelby Knox</a>, captured me forever as a bubbly fifteen year-old with questionable fashion sense. Since the film came out, I’ve become an itinerant feminist organizer, traveling across the country organizing campaigns for gender justice and speaking about the next wave of feminism. (It’s probably for this work, not the aforementioned fashion fails, that Marie Claire just named me “The Next Gloria Steinem.” Ummm, pressure much???) My favorite projects turn girls into girl activists; I’ve done this work with the Girls Leadership Institute, the Sadie Nash Leadership Project and The Girl Scouts, among others. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">I want to add my SPARK to this movement for the girl I used to be. I hated my body for being too big, my hair for being too curly, and my own supposedly unnatural aversion to the tight, skimpy clothes that were my only hope for a boyfriend. I didn’t know that the media wanted me to hate my thighs so I would buy weight loss products and expensive jeans, my hair so I would buy flat irons and creams galore. I didn’t realize there were forces out there that want young women to think their worth lies in their sexuality and being able to attract a mate rather than their innate ability to take over the world. When I figured out how to decode these messages I got angry, I started the journey to loving myself, and I found my power in activism and plotting to – you better believe it – take over the world. I want young women to embrace their big hips, their big mouths, their big dreams and become the leaders of the next generation of the revolution!</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">Part of "30 Allies in 30 Days." Learn more about the <a href="http://sparksummit.com/">SPARK Summit</a> and check back tomorrow for our next ally! </div>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-37859954974003080892010-08-23T09:34:00.001-04:002010-08-23T09:34:28.852-04:00SPARK Ally of the day: Sharon Lamb<div class="Style-2"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I’m a professor, author, researcher, and media critic who co-authored </span></span><i><a href="http://www.packaginggirlhood.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Packaging Girlhood</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">and the APA Task Force </span></span><a href="http://www.apa.org/pi/women/programs/girls/report.aspx"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Report on the Sexualization of Girls</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and is currently co-authoring a sexual ethics curriculum. Girls deserve a sex education that’s real and relevant and critical of sexualizing images so that they can both explore and be safe, get love and be loved, and feel comfortable in their own skin! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="Style-2"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIXAg1J9a8gsoh2VWLqUxPa1XpFUr18lmXP48XlYIA8UzUVBvFH8FeiqnOvTxtmu6EQKu0g_-UpZKuD_NYSOd2g6RkcjIYv_Li5JXaEyNp1Jg-45O4LqTg-picyKdp7FeztRfD8p3KLB4/s1600/SharonLambretouched.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIXAg1J9a8gsoh2VWLqUxPa1XpFUr18lmXP48XlYIA8UzUVBvFH8FeiqnOvTxtmu6EQKu0g_-UpZKuD_NYSOd2g6RkcjIYv_Li5JXaEyNp1Jg-45O4LqTg-picyKdp7FeztRfD8p3KLB4/s320/SharonLambretouched.jpg" /></span></span></a></div><div class="Style-2"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Part of "30 Allies in 30 Days" Learn more about the </span></span></span><a href="http://facebook.com/sparksummit" style="text-decoration: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">SPARK Summit</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and check back tomorrow for our next ally!</span></span></span></div>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-87741607280828472412010-08-20T09:00:00.001-04:002010-08-20T09:00:05.784-04:00SPARK Ally of the day: Gail Dines<div class="Style-1" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am a professor and activist who co-founded </span></span><a href="http://stoppornculture.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stop Porn Culture</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. Our goal is to raise public consciousness about the harms of pornography. I'm adding my spark to this movement because I believe that girls are being assaulted with images that are sexist, reductive and dehumanizing. We have to do battle with the pornographers because it is time to take back our culture.</span></span></span></div><div class="Style-1" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><object height="345" width="420"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DEhzGKPts-Y?fs=1&hl=en_US&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00&border=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DEhzGKPts-Y?fs=1&hl=en_US&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="420" height="345"></embed></object></span></span></div><div class="Style-1" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Part of "30 Allies in 30 Days" Learn more about the </span></span></span><a href="http://facebook.com/sparksummit" style="text-decoration: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">SPARK Summit</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and check back tomorrow for our next ally!</span></span></div>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-76222362625536630132010-08-19T09:00:00.001-04:002010-08-19T09:00:00.664-04:00SPARK Ally of the day: Rachel Simmons<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZrO36JfhW0eE19Y20DKqrpSqpAxFSO7x89ADGJOy3eDsGequq-s6Ii4z9L4cjNkKDEiUkx-8-UNBB4Ooroj0Fa7e_ok1yUPraqzVS2_TPu0yP95WIwWg6oecdm6gCNVY-LkGmFECFU2w/s1600/Photo+Rachel+Simmons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZrO36JfhW0eE19Y20DKqrpSqpAxFSO7x89ADGJOy3eDsGequq-s6Ii4z9L4cjNkKDEiUkx-8-UNBB4Ooroj0Fa7e_ok1yUPraqzVS2_TPu0yP95WIwWg6oecdm6gCNVY-LkGmFECFU2w/s1600/Photo+Rachel+Simmons.jpg" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I'm co-founder of the </span></span><a href="http://www.girlsleadership.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Girls Leadership Institute</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">, an educator and the author of two bestselling books about girls. I want to help girls respond to the commodification of their sexuality and redefine sexy. I'm tired of seeing sex be packaged as an avenue to power and confidence for girls and women.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Check out Rachel Simmons on </span></span><a href="http://www.twitter.com/racheljsimmons"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Twitter</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> and </span></span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rachel-Simmons/87415268439?ref=ts"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Facebook</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Part of "30 Allies in 30 Days" Learn more about the </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><a href="http://facebook.com/sparksummit">SPARK Summit</a></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> and check back tomorrow for our next ally!</span></span></span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-89222599235421266102010-08-18T15:07:00.000-04:002010-08-18T15:07:54.594-04:00Frances Perkins Center Open Door Award<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><object height="250" width="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lRMyoF2HuHw?fs=1&hl=en_US&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lRMyoF2HuHw?fs=1&hl=en_US&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="400" height="250"></embed></object><br />
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</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Megan Williams is the executive director of Hardy Girls Healthy Women. Named one of the ten people shaping the future of Maine's economy by MaineBiz last year, Megan was hired to lead Hardy Girls in 2005, a year after her graduation from Colby College in Waterville, Maine. She has nurtured the ten-year-old nonprofit from its local roots into a flourishing organization with programs featuring mentoring, an emphasis on strength and activism, and national workshops and curricula.</span></div></span></span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-6872730660324629052010-08-18T09:48:00.004-04:002010-08-18T10:42:58.095-04:00SPARK Ally of the day: Angela Jones<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1cNqqSBw26nCEHoEJPYju8hTEjxfZGYmRemYRfK0pUcLuzRS0_0TfS2cvERYMyBSnQ_k6lLEJG44CMPxDfkzvJ48DBQ8dC6inWE_y5mFy3espyWNWzJIfxDY25SnsBXgEmtlJ_DsR6lA/s1600/angela.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1cNqqSBw26nCEHoEJPYju8hTEjxfZGYmRemYRfK0pUcLuzRS0_0TfS2cvERYMyBSnQ_k6lLEJG44CMPxDfkzvJ48DBQ8dC6inWE_y5mFy3espyWNWzJIfxDY25SnsBXgEmtlJ_DsR6lA/s320/angela.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I am the co-creator of the blog </span></span><a href="http://plussizemodelsunite.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Plus-Size Models Unite</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">, a wife, mother of two children, friend, activist, eating disorder survivor, and a model. I want to add my spark to this movement because I want to see diversity of every shape, size, and age represented in the media. I want to encourage girls and women to be confident in their individual self, to live a balanced and healthy lifestyle, and to ask themselves this simple question daily, "What is one thing I love about myself today?" </span></span><br />
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</span></span></div></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Part of the "30 Allies in 30 Days." Learn more about </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><a href="http://facebook.com/sparksummit"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">SPARK summit</span></span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">.</span></span></span><br />
<div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></div></div>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-28530112670933954352010-08-17T13:50:00.002-04:002010-08-17T14:03:28.599-04:00Once Upon a Time: Ready to Serve<div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">It still feels like summer out there, and you better believe that we’ll soak up these warm days for as long as we can, but we’re also thinking ahead to the year before us. It’s almost September, a month that will bring new journeys for students, folks beginning new jobs, and others making exciting transitions. We’re thrilled to be welcoming five fabulous women to our board of directors — Lindy Graham, Stefanie Solar, Mary Madden, Trish Hansen, and Kristin Aiello. The board of directors isn’t the only governing body of Hardy Girls welcoming new faces — below you’ll find the application submitted by 17-year-old Adriana to join our </span><a href="http://e2ma.net/go/8539199949/3015081/97424548/8944/goto:http://hghw.org/leadership.php#gadvisory" rel="Girls Advisory Board" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Girls Advisory Board</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> (pictured below), who participate in leadership development, complete social action projects, and generally keep us current on what’s important in the lives of girls. It was just too good to keep to ourselves! (And yes, she’s been accepted.)</span></em></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsTd9W__AqTqULI-mxQUbhQhOddDj45BGavoY_lRMbfp4Op4pzdSdUxTbnkeMSvaHZpjUyj6ftSKne_2jFMOSBU_2IKhWd2uueLQDuSSS4QkbuJgpip1chVY-fYoTQcFSCCJRo2_wSRn8/s1600/scaled_e1281639322.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsTd9W__AqTqULI-mxQUbhQhOddDj45BGavoY_lRMbfp4Op4pzdSdUxTbnkeMSvaHZpjUyj6ftSKne_2jFMOSBU_2IKhWd2uueLQDuSSS4QkbuJgpip1chVY-fYoTQcFSCCJRo2_wSRn8/s320/scaled_e1281639322.jpg" /></span></a></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span> </span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I believe that women and girls of all ages should be completely comfortable with who they really want to be, rather than being swayed by gendered social expectations to do anything or be anyone they don’t want to do or be. As a rising senior at Winslow High School, I all-too-often witness young women in my school and group of friends being pressured into fitting some kind of gender stereotype. I’ll hear guys (even girls’ boyfriends) joke around, saying thinks like, “Why don’t you just go make me a sandwich?” or calling girls derogatory names. Many girls even seem to embrace these names for themselves and begin jokingly calling each other (and themselves) profane, misogynistic nicknames.</span></span><br />
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</span></span></div><div></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I have begun to understand that these gender-related stereotypes, behaviors, and mindsets are not always obvious. In most cases, the promotion of gendered social expectations or norms is extremely subtle, which makes the situation even more dangerous. If girls think it’s funny to or cute to call themselves derogatory names, because they think, “oh, it’s just a joke,” it only trivializes the issue. I believe that it is essential to view these issues as real problems that actually exist, rather than simply laughing them off or considering them taboo.</span></span><br />
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</span></span></div><div></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I’ve noticed that, often times, people who question these gender norms are considered “crazy feminists”, or labeled dismissively as gay or lesbian. I want to change this fact. I want to work to make it mainstream – even cool – to question traditional gender roles. It’s hard enough for girls to stand up for themselves in situations, such as relationship dynamics. But I truly believe that every girl can (and should) work to de-normalize these gendered expectations and make the people in her life and community more aware of these subtleties. </span></span><br />
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</span></span></div><div></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I would like to do anything I can to make these issues important to people – both male and female – and to discuss with people not only the most obvious gendered social problems, but the more subtle ones, as well. After all, those are often the most difficult to acknowledge and we often brush them aside as minor details. Especially in high school, the environment is often very unsupportive of these kinds of subtleties and issues. I believe that a young woman should have a safe and supportive place to discuss anything – even the most seemingly minor thing – that makes her uncomfortable or upset. I’m confident that by volunteering with Hardy Girls, I would find a great opportunity to pursue this issue about which I am so enthusiastic and passionate while reaching out to others at the same time.</span></span></div>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-13432021526431842502010-08-17T11:28:00.001-04:002010-08-17T14:02:54.249-04:00SPARK Ally of the day: Lyn Mikel Brown<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We're ramping up energy in support of SPARK: Sexualization Protest: Action, Resistance, Knowledge, a growing movement to push back on the sexualization of girls and push forward girls’ right to an embodied, healthy sexuality. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The October 22nd </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/SPARKsummit"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">SPARK Summit</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> will launch an intergenerational movement to support and stand with girls. In response to the American Psychological Association’s Task Force Report on Sexualization of Girls, the most downloaded documented in the history of APA’s website, the SPARK Summit will engage teen girls to be part of the solution rather than to protect them from the problem, giving them the tools they need to become activists, organizers, researchers, policy influencers, and media makers.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Activists and organizers around the country are contributing to SPARK already by drawing attention to the issue of early sexualization. In our series called "30 Allies in 30 Days," </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/hardygirls"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Hardy Girls Healthy Women</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> is highlighting thirty fabulous individuals who are actively doing their part to ignite SPARK. Our first ally is Dr. Lyn Mikel Brown:</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I'm co-founder of </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/hardygirls"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Hardy Girls Healthy Women</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, professor of Education at Colby College, author, and activist. I'm also the </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/poweredbygirl"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Powered By Girl (PBG)</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> campaign organizer, which means I work with amazingly creative and smart teen girls who are contributing their voices and activism to SPARK. I'm adding my spark to this movement because I'm tired of the pornifed images that pass as female sexuality in media and I want to do what I can to make room for girls to say who they are and what they want.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Part of "30 Allies in 30 Days" Learn more about the </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/SPARKsummit"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">SPARK Summit</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and check back tomorrow for our next ally!</span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-70738025302307293342010-06-16T16:02:00.006-04:002010-08-17T14:05:20.228-04:00A Dad and His Daring Daughter!<div style="color: #ff6600;"><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Hardy Girls has long paid tribute to its Founding Othermothers—an amazing group of women who made a financial commitment to the organization way back in the beginning. They’re women who nourish a girl’s hope through acts of love, courage, and commitment to making the community and the world a better place for girls. But we’d be remiss if we didn’t acknowledge another population — this one of male allies — that does the same thing for girls and for Hardy Girls. We’re calling them Otherfathers and this month, in honor of Father’s Day, we’re bringing you a story about one of them. We spoke with Scott Price, who, as a long-time supporter of Hardy Girls and dad to twelve-year-old Maddie, is both an Otherfather and a regular one. And he rocks at both!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"> </span></span></em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><br />
</span> </span></em></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></em></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Scott’s daughter, Maddie, is a sixth grader at Canaan Elementary. First introduced to Hardy Girls through Adventure Girls programming a couple of years ago, Maddie participated in snowshoeing and frog tracking. She later attended the Girls Unlimited! Conference. Of raising Maddie, Scott tells us: “I think there’s a lot more opportunity than when I was a kid for girls in general.”<br />
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</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Having grown up with five younger sisters, Scott has seen a progression in activities that girls are encouraged to pursue now. “I think with equality, we’ve come a long way. I think there’s more opportunity for sports and education. I think there’s more opportunity for college careers. I like to see Maddie have those chances.”<br />
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</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">One of the things Scott says he wants most for his daughter is for her to have a variety of different experiences. “When I had to start making my adult decisions, I was able to see what was out there, so I’m big on trying to get her lots of experiences. It’s most of the things I like to do — outdoor stuff, cultural stuff, travel.” Indeed, they’ve taken Maddie all around the U.S., to Canada, and even to London. They take canoe trips and go on day hikes as a family, and attend shows and concerts at the Waterville and Skowhegan Opera Houses. “We like those quite a lot,” said Scott. “I think there are a lot of things to take advantage of in Central Maine.”<br />
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</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></em></strong></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">It’s clear that Maddie is a busy kid; she’s particularly devoted to dance and trombone lessons and babysitting. “She took a babysitting class and she understands what money is.” But while Scott encourages new experiences, he understands the importance of not overscheduling. “She doesn’t have to do everything, all the sports and all the dance… It’s a balance you have to find. I find that home time is good. And friend time; you’ve got have friends, too.”<br />
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</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></div><div style="color: #ff6600;"><span style="font-size: 100%;"><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Maddie and her friends are looking forward to starting middle school in the fall, and Scott is excited for her. “She has lots of good friends that are going with her. They’re all good students, and she has a good base.” It doesn’t mean, however, that he doesn’t worry about other influences. “I’m constantly aware of commercials and stuff and I’m always spouting off behind the real meaning of what they’re trying to sell. With the new computerization age, the kids get an amazing amount of ads and exposure to stuff; it’s hard to keep up. I talk about that stuff — I hope the kids listen.” We’d be willing to make a bet that they do, Scott!</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 100%;"><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms', geneva;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Happy Father's Day to all of the fathers and Otherfathers! We'd love to hear about why your dad rocks-- leave us a comment and tell us all about him! Or, if you're a dad yourself, let us know what you do to support your daughter!</span></span></span><br />
</span></span></div>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-61920504344680495752010-06-15T15:15:00.015-04:002010-08-17T14:06:04.139-04:00SPARK! Summit Needs Girls' Votes!<span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"></span><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We’re sparking a revolution and it needs a name!</span></span><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Well, we have a name (SPARK!) but need your input on what S-P-A-R-K stands for.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><a href="http://hghw.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Hardy Girls</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, </span><a href="http://truechild.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">TrueChild</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, </span><a href="http://womensmediacenter.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Women’s </span><st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Media</span></st1:placename><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><st1:placetype st="on"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Center</span></st1:placetype></st1:place></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, ASAP, and the </span><a href="http://ms.foundation.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Ms. Foundation for Women</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> are planning a summit to ignite a movement in protest of the sexualization of girls in media and in support of better images and messages about girls’ sexuality. So much of the media suggests that our sexuality is the most important aspect of who we are – that girls’ and women’s value comes from just how sexy we are – say nothing about our interests, talents, or rockstar personalities (see </span><a href="http://hghw.blogspot.com/2010/05/gen-z-does-single-ladies.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Gen Z Does Single Ladies</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and </span><a href="http://hghw.blogspot.com/2010/03/stupid-is-as-stupid-does.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Stupid Is As Stupid Does</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">). </span><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">You helped us brainstorm some great acronyms for what SPARK! could stand for. We’ve taken the top 4 options and now need your input. What do you like best?</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Take a look at the poll and let us know what you think. Voting closes on Friday at 5:00 pm so vote now and tell your friends!</span></div><br />
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Anyone half paying attention to the media in the past few weeks has seen the YouTube video of a dance troupe of seven and eight year olds doing their thing to Beyoncé’s Single Ladies. If you haven’t seen it, trust me, it’s impossible to watch and not be mesmerized. The girls hit it hard; they are frenetic, fearless, and full of themselves—and very, very good. Gyrating. Grinding. Pulsating. Bouncy balls of energy we might expect of girls this age, but in adult packaging. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br />
</span> </span> <span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The controversy in the wake of the video was almost immediate. Not surprising, the reaction has been divided – between the ‘shocked’ and the ‘defenders.’ Those shocked by the video point out that the black and red burlesque-inspired costumes are more risqué than even Beyoncé’s outfit in her Single Ladies video. They’re appalled to watch little girls do the same dance moves they’ve seen in sexist rap videos on MTV. To the shocked, such dancing can only lead to sexual behavior. They say things like "these girls will be pregnant by 15." Worse, it’s pedophile bait. It’s morally depraved, sick, bordering on child abuse. They blame the clueless parents, the clueless dance instructor, the clueless audience cheering the girls on, and the clueless idiot who posted the video. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br />
</span> </span><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Facing off against the shocked are the defenders of all things girly. What is your basic maladjustment, they wonder? Lighten up. This is the new girl power. Today’s version of girls having fun, a Gen Z rendition of flappers or jitterbugging girls kicking their feet in the air to reveal their panties. Nothing to see here, folks. Move along. You with the dirty minds, get a life.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br />
</span> </span> <span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The shocked are looking for simple answers and personal responsibility. They want someone to blame, and that usually means the parents. Good parents turn off the TV, they say, and by that I think they must mean “raise their children in a vacuum,” because, of course, TV represents a small fraction of the media kids are exposed to these days, and all of it contains highly sexualized imagery. I guess good parents also don’t let little girls take dance lessons, because I mean, really, have any of the shocked been to a local dance recital? Burlesque is the norm.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br />
</span> </span> <span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The defenders, on the other hand, refuse to entertain reality. Just girls having fun doesn’t cut it, not in an increasingly pornified culture where the boundary between childhood and adulthood is all but gone. Not when research tells us exposure to sexualized media is associated with greater acceptance of teen dating violence and sexual harassment. Not when a 2007 American Psychological Association report linked media sexualization to girls and young women’s top three mental health problems: depression, eating disorders, and low self-esteem. And not when having this kind of fun makes girls targets for name-calling, often by the shocked themselves, who like to call little girls who dance this way things like "little sluts in the making."</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br />
</span> </span> <span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Whether it’s a demand for individual responsibility or a defense of individual right to fun, neither the shocked nor the defenders acknowledge the elephant in the room. Since the FTC lifted restrictions on children’s media in the 1980s, media and marketing companies have targeted younger and younger girls with sexier, thinner, more beauty-conscious and more boy-obsessed imagery and messages. As marketing to children has skyrocketed, so has children’s consumer spending. Blaming parents delights marketers and media because they’re off the hook for their unconscionable behavior –the ways they use developmental psychologists to help them reach kids and create a desire for their products, the way they immerse their brands in everything a child plays with, dresses in, or watches, the way they use the very concerns we have about the sexualization of little girls to boost their so-so ratings. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br />
</span> </span> <span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">When the video played and the reporters surfaced, I felt the way I feel each and every time “sex + girls” hits the airwaves. Whether it’s Britney going commando, junior high girls sporting rainbow bracelets, Miley pole-dancing at the Kids Choice Awards, or elementary school girls dancing to Beyoncé, reporters always sound eerily the same, a creepy mix of hand-wringing and barely hidden glee. Tell us why this is bad, they ask. How did we get to this point? Why don’t parents parent anymore? Tune in to Dr. Phil, Anderson Cooper, Fox News, Video at 6. Watch the girls with us, again and again and again and again. Isn’t it awful? </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br />
</span> </span><span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I know what they want. They pretend to represent the shocked, calling for some parent’s head on a platter. But it’s classic bait and switch. Like so many, I also watched the parents of the dancers being interviewed and nothing in their answers made me want to chase them with pitchforks and torches. I felt for the deer-in-the-headlights father when he said he never thought of his daughter this way. I believed the mom, calm and rational, who explained that they weren’t copying Beyoncé’s moves but the Chipettes’ from the latest Alvin and the Chipmunks movie (Really, 20th Century Fox? Chipettes? How about becoming 21st Century Fox?). </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><br />
</span> </span> <span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">No one in their right mind can blame French maid Halloween costumes, pole dancing kits in toy stores, Tots and Tiaras-type reality shows, and Bratz dolls on parents. No one in their right mind can say this sexualized version of growing up is just good, clean fun. To ask parents to take responsibility for the billions of dollars marketers and media invest in making this stuff normal and creating little girls’ desire for this stuff, is simply crazy.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> <span style="font-family: 'trebuchet ms';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Since the APA Report on the Sexualization of Girls in Media came out in 2007, the landscape has gotten worse and the answer isn’t as simple as the ‘shocked’ and ‘defenders’ claim. So what do we do? Because we have to do something. Join Hardy Girls Healthy Women and our sister organizations, True Child, Women’s Media Center and ASAP on October 22nd at Hunter College in NYC for a national summit on the sexualization of girls. We’ll be working with parents, educators, researchers, media experts, policymakers, and most importantly, teen girls to examine the complexity of this issue, generate creative responses, and commit to policy, media and activist solutions to spark a movement and demand something better for girls. For now, save the date and we’ll keep you posted!</span></span></span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-11195925003738782682010-04-02T16:48:00.004-04:002010-08-17T14:07:59.721-04:00Less than $2,000 to go!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD0Yk4oZ3AzA5nmNI-JKC0I16aEphX-D9gV_-NOvLbRqU-lIONqLM1UCTcvth-VP89oIG2npUAxgXiToGDBmaKjst-XwUmWCQqqvRnoL5vQcfkQh3XXO2X2WyRgoVGvW23aiXqscvQ1Xo/s1600/realthermometer.php.gif" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455645414684009826" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD0Yk4oZ3AzA5nmNI-JKC0I16aEphX-D9gV_-NOvLbRqU-lIONqLM1UCTcvth-VP89oIG2npUAxgXiToGDBmaKjst-XwUmWCQqqvRnoL5vQcfkQh3XXO2X2WyRgoVGvW23aiXqscvQ1Xo/s400/realthermometer.php.gif" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 400px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 162px;" /></a><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">As you may know, Girls Rock! Weekend is not only our biggest programmatic event of the year, it's our biggest fundraiser! Money raised for Girls Rock supports the weekend, of course, but it also supports programming year-round that empowers girls to get their critical thinking caps on and make their voices heard.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We are beyond thrilled to report that we are so close to reaching our fundraising goal for 2010's weekend -- with only $1,927 left to go, the finish line is definitely in sight. </span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Can you help us reach the mark before the weekend begins on Friday, April 9th?</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Maine girls effect positive change, and next weekend we'll celebrate them all over the state. Will you join the celebration and consider digging into your pockets for some more positive change? </span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Visit </span><a href="http://www.hghw.org/give"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">www.hghw.org/give</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> to help do your part in making Maine a better place for girls to live and grow.</span></span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-47916617972962709152010-03-26T08:56:00.005-04:002010-08-17T14:09:09.111-04:00Stupid Is As Stupid Does<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvaACt92H1nRlB_Qfr77HgMOp3DtEzsgNy1WV6E21qi-VvS-4aWCBNiE4BX-uuXMSkJ7mzoQ16d1Y5J73D4UKEiWDeaCNgZPC5JVKtMhhFKjhDtdMAf5VjlwpW1ZFsBe3khlOdrjTP7yA/s1600/Diesel1-800.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452926623830547186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvaACt92H1nRlB_Qfr77HgMOp3DtEzsgNy1WV6E21qi-VvS-4aWCBNiE4BX-uuXMSkJ7mzoQ16d1Y5J73D4UKEiWDeaCNgZPC5JVKtMhhFKjhDtdMAf5VjlwpW1ZFsBe3khlOdrjTP7yA/s400/Diesel1-800.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 201px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<span style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Written for the Feminist Psychologist by Lyn Mikel Brown, Ed.D</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In 2008, the District Attorney of Wyoming County in Pennsylvania presented 16 teens – 3 boys and 13 girls -- suspected of “sexting” with a choice: either attend a 5 week, 10-hour education program designed by the District Attorney or face felony child pornography charges. Not much of a choice: if charged and convicted the teens faced a possible seven-year sentence and a felony record. They would also have to register as sex offenders for 10 years and have their names and photos posted on the state’s sex-offender website. Still, three girls refused the “voluntary education course” and instead, with the support of their parents and the ACLU, obtained a preliminary injunction barring prosecution under state child-porn laws. On March 17, 2010 the appellate court upheld the preliminary injunction, accusing prosecutors of violating the civil rights of the teens.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">What had these girls done? A 12- and 13-year-old posed for pictures in their underwear at a slumber party; one was speaking on the phone, the other making a peace sign. The third girl, 14, appeared in a photo emerging from the shower wrapped in a towel, just below her breasts. There was no evidence that the girls had ever transmitted the photos; they were discovered when male students were caught trading the images over their cell phones. While both boys and girls were threatened and pressed to undergo education, only the girls were required to learn about sexual self-respect.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">If you’re tuned into youth culture, it’s impossible to miss the hysteria around sexting. Research conducted by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy revealed that 20 percent of teens in the U.S. say they have sent or posted lewd photos or video of themselves. Given that one picture can make its way far and wide in minutes, it’s likely that most of this 20% represent those forwarding or receiving photos, not posting them. But just as with previous reports of rainbow bracelets and oral sex, there’s a Press Gone Wild reaction to sexting, almost always blaming girls for their “stupid” acts.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Outside the Pennsylvania appeals court, MaryJo Miller, the mother of one of the 12 year olds, said that when she saw the pictures of the slumber party, she thought the girls were "goofballs.” Her daughter was wearing a training bra. “You are going to see more provocative photos in a Victoria's Secret catalog." That’s an understatement. Quick to judge, rarely do the press, police, or school officials make reference to the obvious: the normalizing of sexual voyeurism and sex camming in media. Whether it’s expendable babes baring it all for celebrity on Entourage, Heroes character Tracy Strauss supporting herself and her young child by stripping online, or America’s Next Top Model contestants posing in sexually provocative ways for the camera, the message to girls watching is always, if you need or want something badly enough, you should be willing to sex it up for public consumption. In the VH1 reality show For the Love of Ray J, for instance, girls with nicknames like Cocktail, Chardonnay, and Danger will do anything to be chosen. In what sounds like a middle school dating game, in one episode Ray J asks the girls “to pretend I’m out of town and you have to keep me interested.” Of course the girls do everything from a strip tease to sexy raps to making a “human banana split” -- even Ray J is so shocked by that one that he can’t stay in his seat to watch.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">One newspaper excitedly reports that teens are on to the legal risks of posting photos, and so they’re taking shots of body parts or being careful not to include their faces. Who really knows how many teen girls are this hell-bent on public nudity, but no doubt American Apparel had liability in mind when they developed their recent “best bottoms” campaign. Looking for the new "face" of AA, they invited girls (18+, but really, who’s checking?) to upload a “close-up photo” of their ass-ets to the website. I don't know about you, but I’m on the edge of my own perfectly adequate seat waiting to find out which porn-inspired fave will win -- Boom Boom, Luba, bOOtAAyliCiOus, or Cherry.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We can complain about the perfectly sexy angels in Victoria’s Secret Love Your Body ad campaign (please!), but there’s something particularly icky about American Apparel’s use of ordinary women in its ads, producing low-brow Polaroid-like pictures with a back room naughty feel that normalizes the acts teen girls are now threatened with arrest for imitating. Diesel Jeans adds their spin by capitalizing on adolescent rebellion. “Stupid” is crazy, fun, risk-taking! Smart is “the crusher of possibilities.” For girls, there’s just one way to prove you’ve got the balls to be stupid: show us your boobs!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Teen girls are comparatively measured in their response to sexting. When a blogger on Jezebel.com asked about this issue, girls were more likely to say it wasn’t something they’d seen or experienced personally. They sounded more thoughtful about the causes and more understanding about the outcomes than anything reported in the news. The real story, they say, is the unintended consequences of an impulsive act; the real concern is that girls are more likely to be judged, vilified and threatened with prosecution. As one girl said of the threats to girls like those in the Pennsylvania lawsuit, “it's hard to get my head around the fact that you’re making the victim the criminal.” Pretty smart.</span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-13466849006447488962010-03-10T11:10:00.002-05:002010-03-10T11:37:56.169-05:00American Apparel’s “best bottom” contest has concluded, butt…this is so not over<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">I don't know about you all but we’re on the edge of our own perfectly adequate seats waiting to find out what an ideal bottom looks like and who American Apparel thinks has the best ass-ets. Will it be boom boom? Luba? bOOtAAyliCiOus? Cherry? Wait, where are the boys? Oh yea, halfway through our protest American Apparel set up a site for the guys too, where somewhere close to </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-family: trebuchet ms;">five </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">guys posted pictures of their bottoms amidst the 1368 girls. Turns out that fakery just didn’t fly. In spite of AA’s lame story, this wasn’t equal opportunity sexualization; it was the same old double standard. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">We can’t thank you enough for spreading the word about American Apparel’s blatant and unapologetic sexualization of girls and women. Thanks for signing our petition and for blogging, Facebooking and tweeting the story. You’re all rock stars and we’re incredibly grateful. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">We felt the love, but we also fielded a lot of criticism because of this campaign, some cogently argued and some not worth repeating. More than once we heard versions of: Aren’t you just giving AA more attention? Doesn’t your outrage serve to further the appeal of American Apparel to their target market? Haven’t you learned yet that the forbidden fruit tastes sweetest, especially to teenagers? Yeah, we know this. We talked a lot about the forbidden fruit idea, in fact. We work with teen girls, we know about marketing and resistance theory–i.e., saying no, bad, is standard practice for getting teens to say yes, want. In the end, though, our staff of young women and our high school girls advisory board felt CEO Dov Charney and American Apparel had crossed the line and we had a responsibility to act. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">This is not just a capitalist marketplace, it’s a marketplace of ideas, and the onus is on all of us to speak up and take action when we see something egregious and harmful. The increasing media sexualization of girls has become a pandemic, reinforcing the sexualization of and violence (sexual, physical, emotional, material) against girls and women in the global arena. In the US, it has been linked to three of young women’s most common mental health complaints: depression, low self-esteem, and eating disorders. AA products may be made in the U.S., but they’re exporting the sexualization of girls and women around the world. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Sure, American Apparel gets more attention, but so do those of us who find their practices reprehensible. Every time we speak out, we find our friends, sister organizations, and allies. Every time we talk back, we create a little more space for coalition and resistance and we educate a few more people about the harmful effects of media sexualization. Why speak out? Because the alternative is to allow the Dov Charneys of the world to pollute our environment. Silence, doing nothing, is just not an option. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Plus, roughly half of our more than 3,000 petition signers pledged to use their wallet-power to protest American Apparel's crude ad campaigns. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">So, here at Hardy Girls, we're going to continue to advocate with and for girls because we're determined to create a better world for all, one where women are valued more for their beliefs and brains than they are their butts. And, we're grateful to be doing this work in coalition with so many fabulous girls, women, and male allies. Thank you!</span><br /></span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-67612578303856033392010-02-24T12:03:00.005-05:002010-03-10T11:43:03.985-05:00Join us for our upcoming trainings!<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Have you noticed the media lately? On internet, TV, and magazines, girls and women are reduced to body parts, criticized for their looks, and encouraged to work on their physique rather than their minds. Girlfighting is showcased on nearly every channel and hyper-sexuality is thrust upon girls at younger and younger ages. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Of course, we have all noticed the media; it permeates our everyday lives even as adults. Rather than concede to the negative messages that we all are subjected to, why not develop skills to deconstruct, analyze and confront the culture itself? </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">As a colleague in the struggle to create more supportive environments for girls to thrive, I want to invite you to attend Cultivating Hardiness Zones and Becoming a Muse, two back-to-back strength-based trainings for adults working with girls. Developed by Dr. Mary Madden and myself, Cultivating Hardiness Zones and Becoming a Muse are designed to help you incorporate the latest research on girls' development into work you're already doing with girls. This isn't a training that stresses the inner girl or works to improve "self-esteem," but rather focuses on providing girls with an environment that's conducive to learning and growing despite cultural messages and stereotypes. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Our two upcoming trainings are: </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">March 15th and 16th, 2010</span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">University of New England, Portland, ME</span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">9am-4pm </span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Registration fee for both days is $295 by March 1st; $320 afterward. </span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Registration for one day is $175.00 before March 1st; $190 afterward. </span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Some partial scholarships are available. </span><br /><br />AND<br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">April 27th and 28th, 2010</span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Simmons College, Boston, MA </span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">9am-4pm </span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Registration fee for both days is $295 by April 13th; $320 afterward. </span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Registration for one day is $175.00 before April 13th; $190 afterward. </span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Some partial scholarships are available. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Registered groups of three or more will receive a 15% discount. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">At this training, you'll learn concrete strategies to: </span><br /></span><ul><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Help girls and women build meaningful connections;</span></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Show girls how to find and use the resources they need to thrive; and, </span></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Tap into girls' energy and creativity and inspire them to make the world one which values them for who they are, not how they look! </span></span></li></ul><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Who should attend these trainings? Teachers, guidance counselors, school administrators, health service and social service providers, parents and guardians, and anyone who wants to learn more effective approaches to bringing out the best in girls! </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Thank you for the important role you play in girls’ lives. We look forward to seeing you this spring!</span></span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-16082451205385883252010-02-18T09:55:00.001-05:002010-02-18T09:57:28.313-05:00Are we getting under American Apparel’s, ah, skivvies?Thanks to our sister org, GirlZone.com, for letting us know that American Apparel has now invited men and boys to join their crazy sexist ad campaign. How’s that for a creative response to our Girlcott? Add boys and hope we go away!<br /><br />It’s all pretty disingenuous, of course, given AA’s history of sexist ad campaigns targeting girls. The simple reality is that this ad campaign sits in a culture that highly sexualizes girls and women, something AA knows and takes full advantage of. So it’s no surprise that boys aren’t posting photos anywhere close to the number girls are posting. No surprise, either, that all the top vote-getters on the site are girls.<br /><br />AA is capitalizing on the lowest common denominator marketing strategy to make a buck: selling sex and sexism. Are we supposed to believe that an equal opportunity invite to sexualize boys too makes this ad campaign okay? Please.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/americanapparel/">Tell American Apparel </a>that objectifying bodies – any body--and commodifying sex to sell their products is not okay.hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-8579749924075642172010-02-12T13:24:00.003-05:002010-02-12T13:33:21.204-05:00Our Response to the Kaiser Report on Teens & Media<p class="MsoNormal">On January 20, 2010, the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) released <span class="apple-style-span"><i><span>Generation M<sup>2</sup>: Media in the Lives of 8- to 18-Year-Olds</span></i></span>. The tagline: “Daily media use among children and teens up dramatically from five years.” <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">KFF explains that while this age group already devotes over 53 hours a week on “entertainment media,” the use of multiple media outlets at the same time – such as listening to music while surfing the web – exacerbate this daily intake of media content. Upon comparing 2009 findings to those of their 2004 <span class="apple-style-span"><i><span>Generation M<sup>2 </sup></span></i></span>report, the report authors claim that children and teens have gained an additional hour and seventeen minutes of daily media exposure. They attribute a number of influences to this increase, such as the popularity of “mobile media,” which drives the accessibility of media. Not surprisingly, three-quarters of 8 to 18-year-olds say that their media use is unmonitored by parents and guardians, and according to the KFF report, this unbridled flow of information is taking its toll on kids. The authors assert that “heavy media users” suffer from poor grades in comparison to “light media users.” <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">At Hardy Girls Healthy Women (HGHW), we pose that the wellbeing of children and youth are affected far beyond their performance in school. We argue that media use among 8 to 18-year-olds, as reported by KFF, sheds light on the venues where girls and boys are gathering media messages, and subsequently, where they are learning negative gender stereotypes.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Let’s take a look at social networking sites, such as Facebook and MySpace, where media bombardment is commonplace. Advertisements featured on these sites are often marketed to a specific audience, making their impact even more pinpointed and dangerous. A middle-school aged girl may encounter, for instance, a plethora of ads suggesting weight loss solutions as the secret to happiness. A high-school boy may alternatively be offered games that appeal to his heightened online presence but that also portray men as violent and malicious members of society. Both scenarios show that gender norms are being delivered to girls and boys across the media spectrum. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Multi-tasking with media-based products threatens children and teens even further, as their ability to deconstruct images and content are squandered by repeating and overlapping messages. For example, while perusing her Facebook profile, a teenage girl comes in contact with numerous advertisements, including those that promote body augmentation and negative body image. Meanwhile, the lyrics of a familiar pop song playing on her computer reiterate the degradation of women’s bodies. The message from both the song and the advertisement are not only common but normalized features in this young girl’s life, and without the skill set needed to tackle multiple media outlets, these messages continue to guide her self-perception.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span>While exposure to the media carries a number of drawbacks, particularly for children and teenage consumers, the</span></span> messages can be broken down. Cultivating media literacy among the younger generation is one such way to empower children and teens. Lyn Mikel Brown, co-founder of HGHW, along with her colleagues, argue that by fostering such a analytical eye, youth become active objectors to the mainstream stereotypes and negative portrayals of girls and boys.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">To learn more about media literacy, please join us for our <a href="http://hghw.org/training.php"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">spring trainings in </span></a><st1:city st="on"><a href="http://hghw.org/training.php"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Portland</span></a></st1:city><a href="http://hghw.org/training.php"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"> and </span></a><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><a href="http://hghw.org/training.php"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Boston</span></a>. You can sign up online or by phone. </st1:place></st1:city><o:p></o:p></p>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-67092132945690774052010-02-08T08:37:00.002-05:002010-02-08T08:40:22.785-05:00New Petition Link for American Apparel Hits Rock "Bottom"<a onclick="window.open('http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/americanapparel/'); return false;" href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/americanapparel/"></a><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Because the petition we hosted on citizenspeak.org has received such a strong response from our friends around the US and internationally, </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: trebuchet ms;">we've moved the petition to </span><a style="font-weight: bold; font-family: trebuchet ms;" href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/americanapparel/">http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/americanapparel/</a><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"> in order to allow those not living in the US to sign on their support. Please post far and wide - together we can make a difference in the way that American Apparel and other companies market to girls!</span></span><a onclick="window.open('http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/americanapparel/'); return false;" href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/americanapparel/"><br /></a>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-38158441176725066592010-02-02T13:08:00.009-05:002010-02-08T10:06:38.240-05:00American Apparel Hits Rock “Bottom”American Apparel has such a history of sexist ad campaigns that we’ve often wondered if their marketing team is made up of teenage boys lacking creativity and common sense. But their latest endeavor takes the cake. American Apparel is looking for the best bottom in the world to be the "face" of <a href="http://i.americanapparel.net/storefront/UGCStyle/BestBottom2010/index.asp">their new ad campaign</a>. They're inviting girls to upload pictures of their butts to the website (wearing AA underwear or body suits, of course) and then asking people to judge the submissions with a score of 1-5 and the option to add snarky comments. It’s low budget and lowbrow. For girls, however, it’s high stakes.<br /><br />Here's their invitation: "Confident about the junk in your trunk? Show us your assets! Post a photo of your booty's best side for judgment. We're looking for a brand new bum (the best in the world!) to be the new "face" for our always expanding intimates and briefs lines. The winners will be flown to LA, photographed and featured online. Send in a close-up photo of your backside wearing American Apparel panties, bodysuits or briefs for consideration and vote for your personal favorites."<br /><br />Geez, American Apparel, try listening to girls instead of objectifying them. As Thalia, age 19, says, “You don't need to exploit us to benefit your company. Someone that is a CEO should have more common sense, don't you think?”<br /><br />We do.<br /><br />So, here’s our reply – grow up and get someone on your marketing team who’s got some brain cells and some principles. <a href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/americanapparel/"> </a><a href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/americanapparel/">Sign our letter to AA’s CEO and Corporate Relations people to add your name to the protest. </a><br /><br />Joseph Teklits and Jean Fontana, Corporate Relations<br />Dov Charney, CEO<br />747 Warehouse St.<br />Los Angeles, CA 90021 <br /><br />Dear American Apparel:<br /><br />The sexualization of women and porn-inspired media have infiltrated the everyday culture of the youngest girls. According to the 2007 APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls in Media, the negative impact on girls and women is indisputable: the sexualization and objectification of girls and women in media wreak havoc on our psychological, emotional, cognitive and relational lives.<br /><br />Your recent campaign is a perfect example of the insidious ways marketers and media promote sexualization and body obsession as “girl power.” American Apparel is directly and unconscionably undermining girls’ healthy development by equating confidence with looking sexy, winning with being judged on their appearance, and personal value with 15 seconds of fame. The objectification of girls’ and women’s bodies is a real concern in a country where 1 in 4 women is a victim of violence, and sexual harassment is rampant. This ad campaign invites girls to self-objectify, inviting girls to post pictures of just one body part, and inviting others to comment and rate it is demeaning and dangerous.<br /><br />By launching this campaign at a time when sexting is in the headline news, American Apparel is literally placing girls in jeopardy of prosecution by inviting them to post highly sexualized images of themselves online.<br /><br />Don’t insult us with the usual defense: this is not real girl power; this is not just girls feeling good, making choices or feeling confident in their bodies. American Apparel is selling girls for parts, and we’re not buying.<br /><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/americanapparel/">Add your name to the letter today!</a><br /><br />Now, consider this:<br /><br /> <b>A 3-pack of underwear from American Apparel costs $24.</b><br /><br />We're willing to bet that not only will you probably find a better deal elsewhere, but you'll sleep better having purchased your skivvies somewhere else, too. And, if you want to sleep really well:<br /><br /> <b>Here's what Hardy Girls could do with that $24</b>:<br />Encourage girls to see the world of options that exists for them without having to show their underwear.<br /><br /> <b>Please, consider investing your $24 in girls, with a gift to Hardy Girls Healthy Women.</b><br /><br />We promise we won't sexualize, objectify, or otherwise demean your sisters, mothers, aunts, nieces, or friends. In fact, we will work toward a better world for all, one where women are valued more for their beliefs and brains than they are their butts.<br /><br /> <b><a href="https://www.networkforgood.org/donation/MakeDonation.aspx?ORGID2=010538121">Donate $24 to Hardy Girls today</a> and see the returns in a better world for girls.</b><br /><br /><a href="http://www.hghw.org/give">Support HGHW</a>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-2074032118673621792010-01-21T09:13:00.003-05:002010-02-01T15:00:57.346-05:00SAMHSA’s Tired Re-Discovery: Girls Just Wanna Have .... Fights?<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Media hype over the past several years would have you believe that we have a growing case of violence among girls on our hands. Everything from news reports to reality shows suggest that girls just wanna have…fights? But, last month the </span><a style="font-family: trebuchet ms;" href="http://www.samhsa.gov/newsroom/advisories/100113Violence3214.aspx">Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)</a><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"> released a report on the incidence of violence among adolescent females. The study combined data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) collected in 2006 and 2008. Findings from the study indicate that about one quarter of girls (26.7%) aged 12-17 had engaged in violent behaviors in the year prior to filling out the survey. The report notes a relationship between girls engaging in violent behavior and higher rates of alcohol, marijuana, and other illicit drug use. It also notes a relationship between violence and social class.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Here’s the thing—despite all the urgency and media hype around violence among girls, this study proves that this behavior—while admittedly distressing and seemingly not decreasing—is </span></span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:100%;" >not</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"> on the rise. There haven’t been any significant changes in the number of girls reporting this type of violence since the 2002-2004 studies.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">So why all the press? We checked in with our friend, University of Hawaii’s Meda Chesney-Lind, professor of Women’s Studies and Criminal Justice and author of several books on girls and violence, including her recent Beyond Bad Girls: Gender Violence and Hype. “We are playing a very big game of ‘re-discover,’” Meda says. “I’m looking at my copy of YRBSS (Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System) data. The SAMHSA data more or less line up with it...and the YRBSS data show girls violence </span></span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:100%;" >declining</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">. So, just tell everyone to calm down, and let's talk about the problematic contexts that create girls’ violence.”</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">The problem is not real girls; the problem is the steady stream of girl-on-girl violence in television and film. Popular TV shows like Gossip Girl, The Hills, Jersey Shore, and The Bachelor all pit women against one another, and they make it as sexy and titillating as possible. Shows like these perpetuate cultural stereotypes that women aren’t to be trusted; that they’ll always pick men over each other; that they are inherently gossipy, cruel, and superficial. This kind of media makes this hyped kind of news coverage of the SAMHSA study possible, and makes it easy for us to forget that what leads to violence among girls is a culture of violence, poverty, fear, and mistrust.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">We’re constantly pushing for more real girls in media—more of their dreams, accomplishments, and intelligence—because when we’re bombarded with catty and violent women we miss the opportunity to recognize and publicize what positive realities there are for girls. Worse, we delude girls into thinking all their problems are with other girls. We need a reality check, some public awareness, and a little more faith in girls. Given the tools and the opportunity to think critically about the media hype, you’d better believe girls will get angry — but forget about slapping their sisters. Empowered, critically-thinking girls are going to raise their voices, talk back, and tell their stories. And to be honest, those are the stories we want to hear.</span><br /></span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462248485716828668.post-78545330569379729862009-12-30T11:44:00.004-05:002010-01-21T09:11:06.126-05:00What Girls Want: Wish List for 2010<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">No doubt, with the New Year upon us, you’re hearing lots about resolutions — probably filled with the "classics" involving dieting and/or going to the gym. While many are thinking about whittling waistlines and generally getting smaller, we're thinking bigger-- culture change-big, to be specific. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">This year, our Girls Advisory Board, knowing full well that they’re not lacking in resolve, decided to make wishes for what they’d like to see happen in 2010. They’re wishes for girls, parents, and their peers. And they’d like to share them with you and </span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:trebuchet ms;" >ask you to share your wishes too! </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">So without further ado, and in no particular order, here are </span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:trebuchet ms;" >Hardy Girls' Top 10 Wishes for 2010:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">1. My wish for 2010 is for everyone to realize the importance of girls in their communities, that their ideas can change the world for the better. --Devan</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">2. My wish for 2010 is that girls will be less critical of themselves just because they don't fit every part of "ideal beauty." --Amelia R.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">3. My wish for 2010 is that toy companies will cut the makeovers and stop making all their dolls look like bratz'ed versions of our beloved favorites. --Megan</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">4. My wish for 2010 is for more women to be talked about in history class because we did stuff, too! --Thalia</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">5. My wish for 2010 is that women will be paid equally to men. --Alyssa</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">6. My wish for 2010 is for more famous women to challenge narrow cultural ideas of beauty. --Ruya</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">7. My wish for 2010 is to see myself as a beautiful, intelligent, and worthy woman, the way my friends and family see me. I wish that all women could see this within themselves this year. --Ali Jean</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">8. My wish for 2010 is that more girls become aware that they are worth something, and that their lives don't need to be about makeup, boys, and popularity. --Jenn</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">9. My wish for 2010 is that there will be more girls involved in "guys'" sports such as football or hockey! --Amelia D.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">10. My wish for 2010 is that every school will have a safe place for girls where they can be themselves and allies to one another. --Jackie</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">And that's just a little taste of the big dreams we're envisioning for 2010. What do you hope 2010 brings for girls and women? We'd like to hear about it! Share your wishes too! </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">And we hope you'll consider helping us get the ball rolling (before it drops on New Year's Eve!) by making a tax-deductible donation-- it's your last chance before the end of the year! Your dollars will go directly toward empowering girls through programming, education, and new experiences that open their eyes to a world where girls thrive.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Thank you, and Happy New Year from Hardy Girls!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Share your wish for 2010 here or on our </span><a style="font-family: trebuchet ms;" href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/pages/Hardy-Girls-Healthy-Women/211150408980?ref=ts">Facebook Fan Page</a><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">And, make your gift to support the realization of these wishes today by visiting: www.hghw.org/give</span></span>hrdygrlzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16095247992959279757noreply@blogger.com1