Beauty is a Feminist Issue:
Feminism stands on the principle that women are equal to men in all areas of life. Feminism is said to be "the radical notion that women are people too." In a historical sense feminism was a movement for women (in North America) to become recognized as person's under the law and to have the right to vote. Did you know that women were not granted the right to vote until 1920? That wasn't even a hundred years ago! Do you know when men got the right to vote? Uhm... they've always had the right? Correct!
It's hard for me to properly articulate in this blog post the depth and breadth of what feminism constitutes. Feminism in general is about the equal rights of BOTH men and women. It is about the rights of marginalized groups like people of colour, disabled individuals, homosexuals, people of low economic status, and children. Feminism reaches out much farther than 'just' women's issues but it is a movement that stemmed from the notion that women deserved equality and it still to this day continues to fight for women to be considered equal. When women have a 1/4 chance of being sexually assaulted before finishing their undergraduate degree; we still need feminism. When women are paid 0.73 cents for ever $1.00 that a man makes for work of the same value or kind; we still need feminism. And in a world where men who do not live up to the idealized forms of masculinity that praise violence, conformity and muscles; we still need feminism.
If you are a person who is unsure what feminism is all about I want you to go watch this video by Lauren Southern who explains the reasons why she is not a feminist. These too may be some of the reasons why you are not a feminist yourself. After you watch the video I want you to read that article below it that has been beautifully articulated by Jenna Christian who combats all the reasons Lauren (a very misinformed 'non-feminist') believes feminism is not about gender equality.
https://everydaygeopoliticshouston.wordpress.com/2015/04/10/a-reply-to-lauren-southerns-why-im-not-a-feminist/
By now I am hoping you have a better understanding of what feminism is but if you don't feel free to email me @ mailto:[email protected] to express any questions or concerns you may have about the issue.
Now back to the original topic. Why is beauty a feminist issue? Beauty is a feminist issue because women are disproportionally told in their everyday lives either directly or indirectly that they are not beautiful for who they are. They are told to conform to societies narrow expectations of beauty whether that be through cosmetic surgery, drastic weight loss strategies, Botox, anti-aging medication/ creams, make-up and much more. Not only are women told they are not good enough in their own bodies. This process is emotionally and psychologically traumatizing. I can speak from experience as the only reason I was afraid of my acne was because there were NO images of women or men in the media or society at large that had acne. There were countless articles and makeup tutorials that talked about how to "cover up" or "hide" acne. I feel incredibly inadequate because I was continually being told to cover up. Coupled with the emotional response to these beauty standards there are also negative physical and health consequences that stem from conforming to unrealistic beauty standards. Cosmetics (make-up) and other personal care products like deodorant, shampoo, toothpaste, and sunscreen that we view as being safe are often full of chemicals that can compromise our health and cause problems for us in the long run. This is a feminist issue because it is a subtle form of violence against women. It is not something often spoken about in society as violence against women is taboo to begin with. However, MAKEUP or BEAUTY standards are just seen as an inevitable part of being a women and part of our society and that those two terms could never be in correspondence to violence. When in fact, Western practices of beauty like extreme dieting (anorexia, bulimia, binge eating), diet fads (weight watchers, Atkinson diet, South beach), waxing, weight lose wraps, cosmetic surgeries, breast enhancement, etc., all work towards telling women their bodies are not prized or important. Therefore they are encouraged to engage in those forms of 'violence' in order to come to the ideal form of beauty. These extreme forms of idealized beauty come with their own risks and consequences. Beauty will always be a feminist issue if women are disproportionately at risk of harm and violence against them when they are told they are not beautiful for who they are.
Extra links:
Cancer, animal cruelty, feminism: So why can't I quit using make-up?
http://www.salon.com/2014/01/04/cancer_animal_cruelty_feminism_so_why_cant_i_quit_using_makeup/
Why wearing make-up (or not) is a feminist issue
http://www.elephantjournal.com/2010/09/makeup-a-womens-issue-and-a-womans-choice/
When
http://jezebel.com/5972605/when-is-wearing-makeup-a-choice
It's hard for me to properly articulate in this blog post the depth and breadth of what feminism constitutes. Feminism in general is about the equal rights of BOTH men and women. It is about the rights of marginalized groups like people of colour, disabled individuals, homosexuals, people of low economic status, and children. Feminism reaches out much farther than 'just' women's issues but it is a movement that stemmed from the notion that women deserved equality and it still to this day continues to fight for women to be considered equal. When women have a 1/4 chance of being sexually assaulted before finishing their undergraduate degree; we still need feminism. When women are paid 0.73 cents for ever $1.00 that a man makes for work of the same value or kind; we still need feminism. And in a world where men who do not live up to the idealized forms of masculinity that praise violence, conformity and muscles; we still need feminism.
If you are a person who is unsure what feminism is all about I want you to go watch this video by Lauren Southern who explains the reasons why she is not a feminist. These too may be some of the reasons why you are not a feminist yourself. After you watch the video I want you to read that article below it that has been beautifully articulated by Jenna Christian who combats all the reasons Lauren (a very misinformed 'non-feminist') believes feminism is not about gender equality.
https://everydaygeopoliticshouston.wordpress.com/2015/04/10/a-reply-to-lauren-southerns-why-im-not-a-feminist/
By now I am hoping you have a better understanding of what feminism is but if you don't feel free to email me @ mailto:[email protected] to express any questions or concerns you may have about the issue.
Now back to the original topic. Why is beauty a feminist issue? Beauty is a feminist issue because women are disproportionally told in their everyday lives either directly or indirectly that they are not beautiful for who they are. They are told to conform to societies narrow expectations of beauty whether that be through cosmetic surgery, drastic weight loss strategies, Botox, anti-aging medication/ creams, make-up and much more. Not only are women told they are not good enough in their own bodies. This process is emotionally and psychologically traumatizing. I can speak from experience as the only reason I was afraid of my acne was because there were NO images of women or men in the media or society at large that had acne. There were countless articles and makeup tutorials that talked about how to "cover up" or "hide" acne. I feel incredibly inadequate because I was continually being told to cover up. Coupled with the emotional response to these beauty standards there are also negative physical and health consequences that stem from conforming to unrealistic beauty standards. Cosmetics (make-up) and other personal care products like deodorant, shampoo, toothpaste, and sunscreen that we view as being safe are often full of chemicals that can compromise our health and cause problems for us in the long run. This is a feminist issue because it is a subtle form of violence against women. It is not something often spoken about in society as violence against women is taboo to begin with. However, MAKEUP or BEAUTY standards are just seen as an inevitable part of being a women and part of our society and that those two terms could never be in correspondence to violence. When in fact, Western practices of beauty like extreme dieting (anorexia, bulimia, binge eating), diet fads (weight watchers, Atkinson diet, South beach), waxing, weight lose wraps, cosmetic surgeries, breast enhancement, etc., all work towards telling women their bodies are not prized or important. Therefore they are encouraged to engage in those forms of 'violence' in order to come to the ideal form of beauty. These extreme forms of idealized beauty come with their own risks and consequences. Beauty will always be a feminist issue if women are disproportionately at risk of harm and violence against them when they are told they are not beautiful for who they are.
Extra links:
Cancer, animal cruelty, feminism: So why can't I quit using make-up?
http://www.salon.com/2014/01/04/cancer_animal_cruelty_feminism_so_why_cant_i_quit_using_makeup/
Why wearing make-up (or not) is a feminist issue
http://www.elephantjournal.com/2010/09/makeup-a-womens-issue-and-a-womans-choice/
When
http://jezebel.com/5972605/when-is-wearing-makeup-a-choice