If you asked me a couple of years ago—say, before the 2013 VMAs—if I considered myself to be a feminist, I would have probably stuttered something along the lines of “Who? Me? No—no, I’m not like that.” A shame, considering that the feminists we know from the history books were those brave suffragettes who fought for our voting rights back in the twenties.
Fast forward a few decades and feminism somehow became majorly stigmatized. Whether or not we want to admit it, the “f-word” implies everything from caring too much to being in the closet. It was a hostile descriptor with many a passive-aggressive connotation.
At what point, then, did feminism switch from butch to Beyoncé? All of a sudden, it seemed an inherent responsibility—a duty, even—for every girl to stick up for her fellow female. Yet, though many a political leap and bound has been made in regards to women’s rights (see AnnaLee Rice’s recent article on equal pay), the cause is not necessarily as political as sociocultural these days.
Perhaps that’s why when we think of feminists today, Miley Cyrus comes to mind instead of Susan B. Anthony. Technology has given those at the forefront of mass media attention more of a voice than ever. That’s why the entertainment industry, along with its leading ladies, wields an incredible amount of influence over the national consensus on everything from fashion to politics.
Back to Miley: America hasn’t been this torn up over something (or someone) since ObamaCare. On one hand, that foam finger was hilarious. On the other, it was just plain gross. After the VMAs aired last August, we had half the country cheering for Miley’s, shall we say, freedom of expression (You go, girl!) while the other half covered its children’s eyes in horror.
There’s no denying it: women are sexual beings. Men, too—we all are. Yet, until recently, it seemed like sex was the only thing we really had in our arsenal when it came to evening the playing field. Men went to work; women stayed at home. The only sphere shared by both genders was the bedroom. So it was only there that we allowed ourselves to express our passion and our desires, behind closed doors. After all, in a world when women were nothing but inferior to their husbands and fathers and brothers, using the only leverage we supposedly had against them was out of the question—at least in public.
Nowadays, of course, everything has changed. Women are playing the same sports as men, going to the same schools, getting the same jobs, and then some. Yet, why do we still shy away from acting like them?
For example, a guy who gets around is a “player”—respected, and even envied, by his peers—while a girl who hooks up with a lot of people is a deemed a “slut,” no questions asked. When Robin Thicke sings in front of naked girls in his music video for “Blurred Lines,” no one says a word. When Miley Cyrus dances with naked girls on her “Bangerz” tour, the entire Twitterverse is up in arms.
What Miley’s “twerktastrophe” asked us is this: where do we draw the line when it comes to double standards? And, more importantly, what are the implications of using one’s sexuality as a vehicle for feminism? Here’s what the queen of pop, herself, Miley, had to say about what the “f-word” means to her: “I feel like I’m one of the biggest feminists in the world because I tell women to not be scared of anything.”
Indeed, Miley has ventured into territory that was previously unchartered by women and, in the process, spurred some serious debate about what our values are in contemporary American culture. Many praise her for pushing the boundaries and creating new gender norms, while others condemn her for objectifying women and reducing them down to their sexuality.
In this day and age, women demand both equal pay and for their male counterparts to carry their groceries in from the car. I’m all for the institution of both practices, but there’s no denying that the lines between chivalry and inequality are becoming increasingly blurred and, if we’re being honest with ourselves, hypocritical. Do we judge on a case-by-case basis of what is right and what is wrong when it comes to relations between the sexes? Why not turn to the be-all and end-all of feminism herself, living legend Gloria Stienem.
When asked about Cyrus and her very public approach to sexuality, Stienem remarked: “I wish we didn’t have to be nude to be noticed…But given the game as it exists, women make decisions…I think that we need to change the culture, not blame the people that are playing the only game that exists.” Preach, Gloria: don’t hate the player; hate the game.
Maybe one day women will open car doors for men just as often as men do for women. But for now, chivalry isn’t dead and sexuality remains to be a distinct power women hold over men, or so it would seem. So, instead of passing judgment on our fellow sisters, lets be proud of who we are and exchange in discourse that promotes a culture in which we truly want to live.
To join in on the debate, tweet your thoughts at @HCNotreDame!