Music and Lyrics: Am I Wrong For Liking That?

I love my music y'all. Music is how I start my day; I wish I was one of those folks who starts it with the news or NPR. I tried that but came back to my music.

I listen to a broad {in my opinion} mix of genres and artists. Back in the college days I listened to a lot of rap and R&B both of which have a disproportionately large number of misogynistic lyrics. I don't really listen to those types of songs anymore but hold the ones of my youth in a special place.

 

I've been known to get hot in here.

 

Great! I'm not endorsing or listening to {at least regularly} music that has blatantly sexual and demeaning lyrics about women. Super. But wait....that's not all we have to look out for!

Who has heard, in the last hour, a song about a woman who doesn't know she is beautiful, that is what makes her beautiful, or one who doesn't love herself but that's OK baby cause I.love.you.

Is that so bad? I'll be the first to admit that some of those songs are darn catchy and I love them but I recognize their messages: a woman is incomplete until a man loves her; she is not beautiful until someone tells her so; its ok to think negatively about yourself as long as a man is there to validate you.

Therefore I'm torn: of course someone caring for me is nice and desired; heck, it could be argued its a human imperative BUT the moment it becomes an issue for me is when the message takes on the tone of a 'benevolent benefactor'; in this case a man who elevates you somehow by caring for you or attributing a characteristic to you that you don't. In that benevolence, you are whole, complete or better. I'm all about better but why does it have to come from another? Songs with this message disproportionately feature a man/men singing about a woman.

Songs like these are both a product of and producing the current zeigeist wherein many women have low self-efficacy and look to bolster it externally.

Basically, this is what I look like when listening to these songs:

 

 

So my compromise with these catchy songs that are stuck in my head: I listen when they're on the radio; I will not buy them. Most importantly, I make subtle faces when they are played and I'm with others; after rolling my eyes, I continue to jam. If people want to know, they'll ask. :)



 



What do you all think? Find yourself jammin to these tunes? Hey, I'm not judging; just pointing it out so we can be conscious consumers.

- A

To Women

Considering the theme of my previous post, it was so great to come across Karen Walrond's video On Real Beauty this morning. With the constant media bombardment with "beautiful", pore-less, and airbrushed faces, it is refreshing to see what real women look like. I certainly felt better after watching the video and hope all other females out there appreciate the video just as much. I am all about being different and unique and enjoying it!

 - Krasi

Contradictions

I am amazed by Tavi Gevinson. She is a feminist, activist and magazine editor....and a sophomore in high school, NBD. In a TED talk, she speaks to how women are given messages that certain characteristics are exclusive; you can't be both a feminist and into fashion, for example (note: I get that one a lot).

 

The truth is, we are all a "bundle of contradictions" as she puts it. I know I certainly am. I remember having a discussion earlier this year at a conference presentation that I gave on Muslim students. The topic that came up was feminism; is feminism about making women feel bad if they cover up (i.e. head scarf) or is it giving people the space to do as they please, i.e. having a choice. I described this little gem of a cartoon to the folks in my presentation:

Unfortunately, I feel that we may have shifted from one type of oppression to another. Forcing our beliefs or ideals about something, whether it be oppression or freedom, is oppressive. In other words, ideas like feminism and freedom are subjective, multi-faceted and constantly in flux. Let's step away from the 'shaming' mindset and focus on what we can do to foster an environment of support for however we each choose to exercise our freedom.



- A

MissRepresentation

Yes A., it is February already – the best month of them all! And not because it is the shortest month, but because some really awesome people were born exactly in February:)

Anyway, since I have been stuck inside my apartment since Thursday evening on account of the snow storm that hit Denver, I have had a lot of time not only to be productive but also to be searching for interesting happenings in the area. During one of my search attempts, I found out that one of the films the Denver Film Society is offering this month is MissRepresentation. What a coincidence since I had just added the film to my Netflix wishlist:) I might just go see it in the theatre, instead. And with women's month coming up, what a better way to celebrate who else but us, WOMEN!

 

For those of you interested in the topic of women empowerment and the dire need to fight for respect for women, here is the trailer:

-          Krasi

Men Reign Superior Again...

It is the week of finals and as I am studiously trying to finish my paper on genocide, one interesting topic emerges. I have mentioned it previously, but I am going to provide more detail in this post. The topic refers to the established commonality between all genocidal murderers and that is that they all possess the gene of a killer and that particular gene is the Y chromosome. Yes, the really talented genocidal killers have all been men. As if it is not already hard enough to be a woman, but in the field of mass murder, men reign superior once again.

Throughout history, women have not been used as soldiers and only in recent years, some countries have become more welcoming. They are considered the weaker gender and as such, they cannot be trusted with the important task of being a soldier defending the country. Furthermore, men who refuse to participate in mass murder actions are labeled as cowards and become the targets of jokes and verbal attacks. Therefore, in a twisted and perverse way, those who agree to slaughter innocent women, men, and children are marked as brave and honorable while those who refuse to do so are deemed as weak and cowardly. This, consequently, only goes to prove ChristopherBrowning’s idea that ordinary people are the ones committing evil acts. What is even more disturbing than the ease with which ordinary people commit atrocious acts is the general acceptance of such acts and the excuse that they are normal and necessary in the fight of some global evil. The acceptance of a deviant and aberrant behavior as necessary is just as evil as actually exhibiting it. This is the ordinary and banal world we live in: to kill is courageous; to choose not to is pusillanimous. This is exactly what Hitler believed; in his opinion, if apes could kill outsiders or ‘the other’, why would not humans be able to do it? As if killing is some form of a higher achievement one must be proud of.

Personally, if I have to choose, I am going with the cowards and that is my final answer!

-       Krasi

International Women's Day

Happy International Women's Day (IWD) everyone! Did you know that it is the 100th anniversary of the holiday? It was first observed in 1911 in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Denmark. More than one million people attended various events that first year. (source)

  Source

I'll be celebrating today by thanking my mother for being an amazing woman and being mindful of the fact that I am so.darn.lucky to have been born into a family and lived in a country that afforded me opportunities that the majority of women in the world do not have.

Check out how people all around the world are celebrating!

Additional Resources:

Women Watch

International Women's Day

United Nations

Amnesty International

How will you be celebrating IWD?

- A