Posts by Loryn Wilson
Vogue Italia's Black Barbie: A Step Forward or a Step Back?
Published August 04, 2009 @ 07:32AM PT
This month, Vogue Italia is doing another take on last year's successful Black Issue: a fashion spread featuring all Black Barbies.
from Jezebel:
Last year, Italian Vogue shook the fashion world with its "All Black issue, which sold out on many newsstands. This year, the July issue features Kristen McMenamy on the cover, but comes with a delightful supplement devoted to black Barbies.
It is Barbie's 50th birthday, after all, and Mattel does have those new black Barbies to promote. And while this supplement is not full-sized like a regular magazine (it's about 6 inches wide; 7.5 inches long) somehow the doll scale makes sense.
As a girl growing up with in Los Angeles, my mother always made sure to buy us Black dolls, especially Barbies. I even had a Black Ken doll! And while it was great to have a doll that looked like me, the reality was that it still sold me and other little girls dangerous ideas about what a woman's body should look like, and what was considered beautiful. In preparing to write this post, I spoke with a friend of mine who happens to be a Black dad with a young daughter. He told me that while he reluctantly buys his daughter Barbies because she loves them, he is concerned about what it teaches his little girl about having a positive self-image. As a result, he makes it his responsibility to teach his daughter about how special and beautiful she is as a black girl.
I loved Vogue Italia's Black Issue last year. I loved that it featured Tocarra, a voluptuous, curvy woman who was far from a size 2. And I like the concept of using all Black Barbies in a Vogue spread. But I have to wonder if it is actually a step backwards. Barbies themselves use the white female body as a the prototype for beauty. Even the new Black Barbies do not have the hips, ass and curves that myself and other Black women possess. It's great that Mattel has barbies of all shade, but what about all sizes? What taking into consideration that other races and ethnic groups have different ideas of what women's bodies actually look like? The fashion industry often creates fashions, ad campaigns, and yes, even Barbie photo spreads that leave Black female bodies out of the equation and therefore, out of the question when defining what a "perfect body" looks like and who is able to possess it.
So what does everyone else think? Is the Black Barbie issue of Vogue Italia actually progress? Or does it still perpetuate anxiety and even denial of the Black female body as one that is indeed normal and beautiful?
Just Say No? Well, Not Exactly.
Published June 26, 2009 @ 02:54PM PT
If you're wondering who thought it was a good idea for Bristol Palin, pregnant at 17, to warn America's teens not to have sex until they're married, you're not alone.
This week Jessica Wakeman of The Frisky reported that advocates of abstinence-only education are re-branding its message with the selection of Bristol Palin as their spokesperson about the hazards of pre-marital sex:
But it's hard to figure out what, exactly, the well-meaning adults who preach "no sex until marriage" to teenagers are thinking, considering a 2007 study confirmed abstinence-only education does not work.
Jessica Valenti, editor of Feminsting.com and author of The Purity Myth: How America's Obsession With Virginity Is Hurting Young Women, has written a piece for The Nation about how the groups that comprise what Valenti calls "the virginity movement" have finally realized they need new PR.
I've written before about the need for parents and schools to focus their energies on comprehensive sex education so that teenagers can make better informed decisions about engaging in sexual activity (or not). But I'd like to submit that perhaps the abstinence-only movement doesn't need re-branding. What they need is to refram abstinence and the reasons for _why_ youth should abstain.
In many churches - particularly in the Black church community in which I came of age - teens are told to just "not have it" because sex is bad. But the abstinence-only crowd instead told teens to wait because, well, sex is a _good_ thing? What if they took it a step further and said, "Because sex is good, we want teens to be inform on how to protect themselves"?
Perhaps organizations supporting abstinence-only sex education could get real and admit that some kids just aren't going to wait until they're married and start educating you on how to prevent STD's and pregnancy. That's the model my parents used when they began a Rites of Passage Program for youth at my church back home in Los Angeles. And lo and behold: many of us waited longer to have sex and - gasp! - there were fewer unwanted pregnancies.
This story brings to mind the "sex-as-taboo" meme that Americans seem to be so obsessed with. Female sexuality is still seen as a bad thing, particularly when complicated by race and ethnicity. Girls in general and Black girls I particular are told to just "not have it" by their parents and places of worship. On the flip side, women are also seen as mere sexual objects by pop culture and the media.
I cannot walk on a DC street wearing a maxi dress in peace. Instead, I still have to hear calls like "Hey, Chocolate!" by men on the block. And believe me, I don't take it as a compliment.
Perhaps by providing comprehensive sex education, society could finally address the discomfort we have with female sexuality and with sexual behavior as a whole. Maybe then, we will see sex beyond a biological destiny and more of a realistic act of intimacy.
Will There Be A Happy Ending for "The Princess & the Frog"?
Published June 04, 2009 @ 06:13AM PT
New York Times media reporter Brooks Barnes talks about the controversies surrounding, Disney's upcoming film The Princess and the Frog in this week's Sunday New York Times. While it is the first animated Disney film to feature a Black princess, there are concerns that the movie may perpetuate stereotypes about African-Americans:
Like her predecessors, [Tiana] is a strong-willed songbird (courtesy of the Tony-winning actress Anika Noni Rose) who finds her muscle-bound boyfriend against all odds.
To the dismay of Disney executives - along with the African-American bloggers and others who side with the company - the film is also attracting chatter of an uglier nature. Is "The Princess and the Frog," set in New Orleans in the 1920s, about to vaporize stereotypes or promote them?
After viewing some photographs of merchandise tied to the movie, which is still unfinished, Black Voices, a Web site on AOL dedicated to African-American culture, faulted the prince's relatively light skin color. Prince Naveen hails from the fictional land of Maldonia and is voiced by a Brazilian actor; Disney says that he is not white.
"Disney obviously doesn't think a black man is worthy of the title of prince," Angela Bronner Helm wrote March 19 on the site. "His hair and features are decidedly non-black. This has left many in the community shaking their head in befuddlement and even rage."
ALSO under scrutiny is Ray the firefly, performed by Jim Cummings (the voice of Winnie the Pooh and Yosemite Sam). Some people think Ray sounds too much like the stereotype of an uneducated Southerner in an early trailer.
While in recent years Disney has attempted to bring diversity to their films--Mulan, Pocahantas, and Aladdin comes to mind - they will never quite escape the racist images of the black crows from Dumbo or King Louie from The Jungle Book, or even Song of the South . According to the article, Disney has done many focus groups and showings to African American audiences:
Few people outside the company have seen footage of the movie. Among them are consultants like Oprah Winfrey, whom Disney asked for input on the racial aspects of the film and was cast as Tiana's mother. (Movie theater owners and members of the N.A.A.C.P. have also been shown scenes, and the reactions, according to a Disney spokeswoman, were "extremely positive.")
Even though there has been lots of criticisms about the characters themselves and also New Orleans as the film's setting, some Black parents are hopeful about having a female Disney character that their daughters can enjoy:
Donna Farmer, a Los Angeles Web designer who is African-American and has two children, applauded Disney's efforts to add diversity.
"I don't know how important having a black princess is to little girls - my daughter loves Ariel and I see nothing wrong with that - but I think it's important to moms," she said.
"Who knows if Disney will get it right," she added. "They haven't always in the past, but the idea that Disney is not bending over backward to be sensitive is laughable. It wants to sell a whole lot of Tiana dolls and some Tiana paper plates and make people line up to see Tiana at Disney World."
The movie has not yet been released and while I understand some of the criticisms, I'm not sure if I'm ready to write off the entire movie as another racist depiction of Black life and culture. I would hope that Disney will have more individuals and organizations than Oprah and the NAACP watching the footage as it gets closer to completion. Given that it is set in New Orleans, I can only hope that the director and his team has spent time researching New Orleans culture and has incorporated that into the way they adapt the story of the Frog Prince to images of the city during the 1920s.
I also worry about the use of the "princess meme" in Disney stories and other stories we tell our girls. Sure, it's great to finally have a Black girl starring in an animated Disney film, but how positive can the image be if it's just another dainty, helpless princess waiting to be rescued? And finally, with Anika Noni Rose as the voice of Tiana, it'll be interesting to see how Disney tries to create positive image of Black girls and what that will look like to the movie going public.
Only time can tell whether The Princess and the Frog enjoys a happy ending in the eyes of critiques, parents and young children everywhere.
Teen Pregnancy - It's Time to Face the Music
Published May 06, 2009 @ 11:54AM PT
The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy invites teens to take a short, scenario-based quiz on their teen website. The quiz challenges teens to think about what they would do when sexual situations arise.
This day also is a great opportunity to think about solutions to not only teen pregnancy, but also to how we can reduce the risks of teens getting STD's. This can be a great opportunity to consider how we talk to our youth about sex and what we tell them about protection themselves and each other.
As I've mentioned in previous posts about this subject, I believe that it takes much more than someone simply telling young people to "just say no." That's not to say that abstinence should be removed from the dialogue completely, but that perhaps giving young people a comprehensive view of how to prevent pregnancy and STD's will allow for them to make more informed decisions.
And it goes without saying that it takes more than a day prevent teen pregnancy. It has to become an on-going part of how we engage youth in a real discussion about these issues.
A few links:
- Planned Parenthood of Northern New England give s a few tips for talking with children about sexuality
- Feminist Law Professors get the word out about the day and Stayteen.org
- Marian Wright Edelman at Huffington Post
- Short post from the National Campaign Blog
- From MSNBC: Bristol Palin selected as spokesperson for the National Day
- And finally...Tweets is Watchin, as always.
Drop it like it's hot: If you have blogged about the National Day or would like to talk about ways to talk to kids and teens about sexuality, then drop your links in the comments section!
Totally Stylin' Barbie is Totally Tasteless
Published April 30, 2009 @ 09:47AM PT
The Daily Telegraph reports that Mattel has given Barbie an extreme makeover for her recent 50th birthday.
The doll now comes with a set of sticker tattoos so children can make her look like their heroes, such as Amy Winehouse.
Barbie and her brunette version Nikki are now marketed as "Totally Stylin", and makers Mattel said the tattoos give children the chance to be creative and express themselves.
"Customize the fashions and apply the fun temporary tattoos on you too. Choose from Barbie or Nikki dolls, both include additional fashions, tattoo stamper and tattoos."
Read the rest of the article here.
While I am not a parent, I question the message we send to our girls when Barbie has a lower back tattoo and midriff-baring tops. As if the body and hair politics behind Barbie wasn't enough, we now also have to break down to our 8-year-old daughters, sisters, and nieces that trashy tattoos aren't the epitome of female empowerment or beauty for that matter. Again and again, the media--including toy companies--oversexualizes our girls, telling them that the goal is to be sexy and "edgy," not smart, confident, and comfortable in their own skin.
Am I saying that young people shouldn't be able to express themselves outwardly through clothes, hair, and even body art? Of course not. My mother allowed me to grow dreadlocks at 16. When my sister turned 16, she asked my mother if she could get a tattoo. They talked over what was okay, and not okay (lower-back was deemed "not okay"). My mother then took my sister to a safe, licensed tattoo parlor to get a pretty blooming rose on her foot. The difference is that we were older teens. She let us express ourselves throughout our teenage years but also made sure we weren't "acting too grown."
I would love to hear comments from parents who are aware of this story. If you have or had a daughter, would you buy her a Totally Stylin' Barbie?
Wild Women at WAM!
Published March 30, 2009 @ 01:10PM PT
This weekend I had the privilege of attending the Women Action and the Media Conference sponsored by the Center for New Words in Boston. It was a great opportunity to hear about feminism from a global perspective, but more importantly, I just loved hearing the voices of some of my fellow women of color activists, mothers, organizers, and social media mavens loud and clear. Here are the highlights:
Keynote: Women at the Global Frontlines
Iraqi Journalist Huda Ahmed talked about her experiences with reporting on the Iraq War here in the states. She told us a story of how, while working as a translator for the Washington Post, the very first question reporters wanted to ask Iraqi citizens were, "Are you Shi'ite or Sunni?" " Why was that always the first question?," Huda thought. She explained that it is not a common question in Iraqi culture, but American reporters "had to know."
She talked to us about being passed up for stories in favor of male journalists, and her experience with McClatchy (formerly KnightRidder): "They treated me as a journalist, not a woman." She had the opportunity to write for a woman at the Baghdad Bureau, which she says was one of her best experiences as a reporter.
Next, Jenny Manrique Cortes tells her story about reporting on trauma survivors in Colombia. She has interviewed terrorists in Colombia as well as rape and kidnapping survivors. "Women are the first victims in this war, and in the worst way," Jenny explained. She also discussed covering a story about mothers looking for the corpses of their assassinated sons, and the importance of mental health assistance for trauma reporters.
Peta Thornycroft gives us an picture of Zimbabwe. She chose to stay in the country to give hard news reports on the political and social landscape in Southern Africa. "Zimbabwe is looking for how they can survive each moment, how they can buy even half a loaf of bread." Since November, 4,000 Zimbabweans have died of cholera, a preventable disease, and yet foreign press has not done anything. In the excitement over the 2008 election in America, "[Foreign press] failed to tell the story," she said.
"It is that other kind of war. Zimbabwe has the highest literacy rate, and yet no streetlights."
I will say that I loved the keynote presentation by all of the journalists, but I do wish there was a native Zimbabwean woman there to tell her story...Perhaps this can happen at next year's WAM!.
Keynote 2: Cynthia Lopez, Vice President of PBS American Documentary | P.O.V.
Cynthia Lopez gave some incredible statistics about women working in TV and Public Broadcasting:
- In 2008, 37.6% of women worked in the newsroom 14% of them were women of color. How many men were deciding the news of the day? A whopping 62%.
- Radio: 22.7% of women work in radio
- Entertainment and Primetime: Women over 40 account for less than 10% of all program, and yet they are the largest demographic for money and income.
- Our 5 major media organizations in public tv are run by women, including NPR (Vivian Schiller) and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (Pat Harris).
- Oh and by the way: PBS is the most trusted news source, followed by CNN and Fox News (!) respectively.
When hearing these stats, I couldn't help but think about my own sorors, friends and colleagues who work in the newsroom, most of whom are women of color. How many of them will be passed up for a man when it comes to who will write that next big story?
I also couldn't help but think about my mom, a fly woman over 40, who can barely find a woman besides Angela Bassett on ER who really speaks to her own experiences on primetime television.
Blogging for the Man: Challenging the Commodity of Online Communities
Joanne Bramberger of PunditMom, Veronica Arreola of Viva La Feminista and media analyst Diane Farsetta discuss how to manage PR people when they want you to, in essence, sell a product on your blog. They talked about the ways in which corporations become "part of the community." The Walmart Mom model was discussed as an example of how mommy bloggers were targeted by PR representatives . Joanne discussed the importance of creating campaigns that are socially conscious and then finding bloggrs who write about related topics.
So what happens when you do agree to review, say, a new eyeshadow from MAC or Sephora? "You can be honest, but be careful of panning a product completely, Joanne explained. "Give the company a head's up if your review is going to be [a bad one]."
Feminist Blogging during Election 2008 and Women in Political Media
Cyn3matic discusses her experiences group blogging with PFLAG and Feminists for Obamaalong with Veronica Arreola. Jenn Ponzer from Women in Media and News discusses the way that mainstream media perpetuated the tensions between gender, race and a lack of attention to intersectionality.
Lisa Stone of BlogHer and Salon's Rebecca Traister talk about the lack of women in political media and what the media talks about when they talk about women before, during, and after the 2008 Election. They discussed the lack of influence of women on our major news networks and Michelle Obama's stigmatization as an "angry black woman" at the beginning of the campaign.
Art, Activism, and Motherhood
Jeannine Cook, founder of Positive Minds, discussed balancing being a mother with the work she does in interactive media literacy with Philadelphia youth. "I make my kids a part of my work." What a great example Jeannine becomes of her son and daughter, who will no doubt grow up to become change agents in their own right.
Sasa Ynoa, a registered nurse and doula talks about homebirth as an option for women of color and poor women. "Feminism has not tackled motherhood as a choice and as something that should be framed as a healing experience, as empowerment."
Women of Color and Social Media
Where are all the women of color social media mavens? Chances are she's right in front of you. Shireen Mitchell and Glennette Clark discuss the importance of a social media policy in the workplace and the factors for the lack of women of color in Top 50 and Top 100 listings of the best and brightest social media professionals and developers. "[Women of color] should be masters of social media because we are experts at community building," said Shireen, who also pointed out that our offline behavior and attitudes should not be much different from what we do online.
For instance, if I write about Black women in the media (which I do) then offline I should be doing work that reflects that (and in fact, I do!). Many people on Twitter for instance have thousands of followers but never engage with them online....@iamdiddy anyone?
Thus, many of the "social media experts" are white males. Through sometimes pompous self-promotion, they position themselves as key influencers. Glennette and Shireen explain that women, especially women of color, don't do this as often as we should. There's no reason why Corvida Raven shouldn't be on next year's Top 50 list. Shireen and Glennette also launched SocialMediaWOC, an online community that will highlight the great work of women of color in social media today.
And finally....
Tweets is Watchin: Of course no wrap-up of mine would be complete without the conference Twittter Feed (#wam09) for those who want to join in.
I had an absolutely great time. For those of who you I had the pleasure of meeting...good to see you. For those who weren't there, I hope you can make it to WAM 2010!
The Feminist Queries: Kimberly Linton
Published March 24, 2009 @ 06:00AM PT
For this Feminist Query, Change.org has interviewed Kimberly Linton is a personal trainer, former body builder and group fitness instructor. After obtaining her MBA and working for a large consulting firm, Kimberly realized that her true passion was to help people stay fit while raising families and pursuing their careers. Kim is DC's toughest trainer and I can certainly attest to that--I have lost nearly 25 pounds working with her! She writes about health and fitness at her blog, Living the Fit Life. I got a chance to talk to Kim about self-care, creating a feminist brand, and why fitness and health is such an important issue to women of color.
Why is fitness and health so important to women of color?
Nearly twice as many women in the United States die of heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases as from all forms of cancer, including breast cancer. Race is definitely a huge factor. Black women have a greater risk of heart disease and stroke than white women. Compared with whites, African-American men and women are more likely to die of stroke. Studies indicate that some of the reasons are that black women have limited access to preventative health care, health education, and through ethnic eating habits predispose themselves to these chronic diseases. One of the reasons I am so passionate about fitness/living a healthy life is due to my own family history. My mother and father both have high blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes. I have high blood pressure but it is controlled with diet, exercise and low dose medication. I know that if I wasn't exercising/eating right, I would need more than 1 medication right now like my mother. Black women especially need to be concerned with their health. Many times they are the primary/only earner in the family--and any loss of work due to illness or death could devastate the families that depend on them.
Many black women are encouraged to be "thick"--full figured and curvy but not necessarily in shape. With Michelle Obama as our First Lady--with those fabulous arms--How do you think this will change the standard of beauty for black women?
I think it will definitely have an impact on the way black women view their bodies. Now we can see what healthy really looks like without all the stereotypes of the media. I like the focus that has been given to her exercise regime and fitness goals. They are aligned with most working mothers out there-do what you can-never take your health for granted. The media reported early in the campaign that Mrs. Obama gets up at 4:45am with a friend and just gets it done with cardio and circuit training. I think she will appeal to many black women out there to adopt a healthy lifestyle and be as active as they can be. Remember the picture of her hula hooping with her daughters? That was a wonderful example of how having fun with your children can also be "exercise".
Ananda Leeke, a black female author and yogini, spoke with us a few weeks ago about the importance of self-care as it relates to feminism. How does your work as a personal trainer speak to the idea of self-care?
I totally emphasize to my female clients the importance of taking care of themselves first--even before family. The family is depending on you to be so many things--if you don't take care of yourself that just won't be possible. Keeping fit and eating right is at the center of self-care as well as getting regular check-ups and screening. Many women actually feel guilty for the desire to take time for themselves to get in shape. One lady told me she only wanted to workout once per month so her kids/husband wouldn't have to worry about dinner etc. when she was out training every week. I told her that she works full time and provide a wonderful home for your family--you deserve and need to take time to get in shape. This will make you a better equipped mom and partner to your husband. It changed the way she looked at having a personal trainer/exercising and she decided to be serious with her goals/expectations.
My particular brand of feminism brings together my girly side that wears pumps and dresses with my devotion to gender equality and reproductive health. Do you consider yourself a feminist, and if so, how does fitness and nutrition play a role in your brand of feminism?
I do consider myself a feminist as I believe in self-empowerment! Because of all the health statistics pertaining to women it is important for us to own the responsibility we have and take our health more seriously. I feel that giving women the opportunity to change their own lives through health and fitness will empower them in ways they never knew possible.
