Not long ago, I came across a song by one of Puerto Rico’s well-known reggaetoneros, Pusho. I was scrolling through my social media feed and suddenly this video pops up– turns out that somebody had to share it. I recognized the name of the artist and since I do not like to listen to his music I was going to ignore it, but I saw the caption of the video and I was shocked. It read like this: “xx Pal cara** las mujeres hechas. Nos gustan naturales y originales. Dile que sí al gym”.
I watched the video of the song, called “Tienen que Soportarte,” only to discover that the lyrics of the song were even more disappointing. As I mentioned, I don’t know much about this reggaetonero, and much less about the type of songs he tends to write but this one, in particular, makes me wonder and worry. This leads to a conversation larger than he thinks.
There have always been dictators over women’s bodies. This has been going on for a long time, and it has been passed on from generation to generation through culture and religion. There have always been rules about how we should manage our body, dress it, maintain it, and wear it, leaving very little space to have sovereignty over it. We even ask ourselves constantly, “Does everyone rule over my body except me?” The reality is sad but today, women are joining forces to fight against this. We all joined in a single cry of “enough already.”
In this song, Pusho shows that his vision is crooked and has a sense of superiority to women. He objectifies them when he assures the girl he talks about in the song that she does not have to undergo any plastic surgery or that she does not need hair extensions, because that’s perfect for him. He body shames the women that do the opposite of what he’s praising. The problem is that this is not the decision of anyone else except the girl. It’s the same problem with the phrase “women should wear less makeup because they look better natural.” Men get the idea that everything we do with our appearance is to please them or to seek their approval. If a woman feels better by undergoing surgery, it’s her decision. If she wants to use hair extensions, it’s her decision. If she wants to use makeup, it’s her decision. If she doesn’t want to do any of these things, it’s still her decision. Our decisions are not for the satisfaction of the fetishes and desires of any man unless that is, indeed, our decision.
Another problem that comes to collation with the song is that, apart from the sense of superiority, Pusho tells the girl in the song that all the other women envy her and hate her for being so beautiful. This implies that he wants to create a rivalry between women by pitting us against each other. I am very sorry for him but none of us women registered for the misogynic contest he wants to carry out.
Women: we must try to cultivate a sense of sisterhood among us because we have to support each other. We are part of a community that is oppressed through discrimination and sexism. Our most lethal weapon is sisterhood. Instead of humiliating, pointing out and judging the other, we must validate ourselves among ourselves when perhaps nobody else does. It is also important to clarify that all bodies are valid. Every height, size, and color is valid and we cannot let anyone tell us otherwise. Together, we will stop body shaming and the thoughts like those of the gentleman who initiated this conversation. Take care girls, and keep shining as we always do.