I want to take the time to briefly discuss the state of women, African American in particular. The idea for this post stems from a night of listening to Lauryn Hill's Doo-Wop(that thing) and closely dissecting the lyrics. Here are some of the lyrics that inspired this post.
"Showing off your ass cause' you're thinking its a trend, girl friend let me break it down for you again."
"You know I only say it cause' I'm truly genuine, don't be a hard rock when you really are a gem."
"Baby girl respect is just the minimum."
"It's silly when girls sell their souls because its in."
In a time where women are made famous for who they date (Basketball Wives, Love & Hip Hop), releasing sex tapes (Kim Kardashian), or detailing their sexual exploits with celebrities (Karrian Superhead Steffans, Kat Stacks), its hard to find any female role models who have not "sold their soul" for 15 minutes of fame. Because these women have garnered so much attention for their loud, ghetto, and sometimes promiscuous ways, it is no surprise that women and young girls a like try to emulate these Reality TV Stars. Studies report that "mean girls" on television breed "mean girls" in reality. Women and young girls are observing the behaviors and characteristics of these reality television stars, musicians, models, and actresses and try to become them. Half naked pictures of girls of all ages are surfacing on the web as they try to exude the same sexiness that they've seen in all their favorite television shows, music videos, and magazine covers. In another post I discussed the issues regarding sexting and its unfortunate effects, so there's no need to go into detail about that BUT the fact that the trend of sexting became popular as celebrities began having their pictures and videos leaked is a little bit ironic.
Women are going to new extremes and sometimes life threatening options to get an "Ass like Kim K or Nicki Minaj." Some women have gone as far as getting cement filled butt injections to enhance the size of their bottoms. With people taking these extreme measures to fit society's standards, I have to wonder who's to blame for this new culture? Is it the media for its portrayal and depictions of women? Are women responsible for succumbing to the pressures that is "forced" upon them by the media? Could it be men for pressuring women to have a body like Kim K and look like Beyonce'? Or is it little girls who want to be considered beautiful so they decide to dress in trashy clothes, wear a face full of caked up make up and send nude pix of themselves?
Often times we get so caught up on the women who have fallen victim to the whole wanna be celebrity and reality t.v. star that we overlook the women who have chosen a different way. Women who uphold a certain level of class, dignity, and respect for themselves, like Lauryn Hill, usually go overlooked. Think about it. A woman who is dressed, well barely dressed, will receive more attention, good or bad, than a woman that is neatly dressed from head to toe. If you're on line at a club, the girls with the least clothes, most makeup, and biggest ASSETS will get in without a question, they'll probably be able cut the entire line and end up in VIP just because of their looks.
"How you gon' win when you ain't right within?" How will we continue to progress as a society if put so much emphasis on material things? What will we do with all of the young girls and foolish women who think that dressing scandalously and behaving wild is acceptable? What will happen to all these women when they are no longer able to use their Nicki Minaj booties to get what they want out of life? What happens when the wrinkles start to come in and skin starts to sag? What becomes of these women then?
No comments:
Post a Comment